Exploiting Hollywood 1980

Exploiting Hollywood 1980 Main Text Volume Chapter 36 The Behavior of Stars On Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood, there is a restaurant with a view that specializes in Russian cuisine. Ronald reserved a corner seat where there was a large table, enough to accommodate 12 people, where he would meet the leading actors today.

"Look, I'm really sorry, Alec. But there are a lot of things in Hollywood that a director can't change. Here's the thing, would you be okay with playing another character?"

Ronald, Julia Taylor and others sat to one side, opposite Alec Baldwin, the original leading man, and his agent.

"Mick Duggan is also a good role, I accept it." Alec Baldwin did not complain and accepted the condition of changing roles very calmly.

Ronald was a little uncomfortable with Baldwin being so reasonable. In a place like Hollywood where competition is fierce enough to cut throats, Alec Baldwin's approach is very rare. Most people will protest excitedly, and then pretend to be reluctant to accept it after getting some benefits.

"It's nothing more than boring bargaining. I understand my own situation. The addition of Harrison Ford is something that no producer can refuse." Alec Baldwin knows the rules of Hollywood very well. He himself worked on Broadway For a long time, I have long been indifferent to the unexpected changes that often occur in the entertainment industry.

While it was an embarrassing temporary replacement, Baldwin wasn't disappointed. If you want to be a star, the first step is to appear in a big production by a big-name director and play an impressive role.

Not only is this movie directed by Ronald, but the dramatic conflicts are also very enjoyable, and his ex-boyfriend Mick Duggan also has a lot of scenes. He is confident that the audience will remember him as a vulgar man who does not regard Tess as an independent career woman.

This kind of person is very typical in America. As long as he can perform well, he will have the capital to enter Hollywood. Instead of waiting for a leading role in a small production, why not join a supporting role in a big production first?

"I'm glad it can be resolved like this. You can start preparing..." Ronald felt a little sorry for this person, but the industry was like this. He couldn't go against everyone, and he had to go his own way and use him.

Julia Taylor explained to Baldwin how to prepare for the role. She directed Baldwin to go to the docks in Lower Manhattan, New York, to see how blue-collar workers spoke. Then go to Staten Island to see the restaurant chef there and understand why Dugan and Tess can't communicate and live together.

After sending Alec Baldwin away, Ronald talked to Julia Taylor and waited for the arrival of the big star Harrison Ford.

"I asked screenwriter Kevin Wade to come over,

Harrison will definitely have to make some changes to the script to include him in today's meeting. "Ronald put the script that had been read many times and marked many times on the table. After reading it many times, every page of the script was unfolded and expanded a lot compared to when it was first bound.

"Kevin!" Just as Ronald said, he saw the screenwriter of "Working Girl", Kevin Wade, walked over and quickly raised his hand to greet him.

"Isn't this Kevin?"

Kevin Wade was walking towards Ronald's table when he was interrupted by a guy with a typical Jewish appearance. The guy also stood up and blocked the way, trying to talk to him.

"Please step aside. I want to discuss the script with the director. Today is the first gathering of our crew since the actors took their seats." Kevin Wade had a look of disgust on his face and looked at him coldly. This person was his former agent, who was also in Hollywood.

This agent looked down upon Kevin Wade and believed that this "working girl" movie would never have a chance to be made into a movie. Kevin Wade immediately fired Ronald after he agreed to direct, completing his current role as agent.

"Is this the director of your script?" The man showed an expression of disbelief.

"Kevin, are you familiar with this? Harrison will be here soon, we have to chat first." Ronald waved him over quickly.

"Harrison? Which Harrison? Harrison Ford?"

"Exactly." Kevin Wade smiled, brushed away the hand of the short-sighted former agent, and walked over quickly.

"Bang!" The agent stood up in shock, put on the decorations on the table, covered his head and fled the restaurant quickly.

"Are you satisfied?" Ronald, who saw everything, asked Kevin Wade to sit down, and then chatted with him about the new changes.

"People at CAA have told me that a big star like Harrison will demand a lot of changes to the script. I hope you can take note of all his requests, but don't argue with him. What we are going to do today is to Harrison figured out all the ideas for the script."

"No problem..." Kevin Wade took out his notebook and tape recorder. Before coming, his new manager also explained to him many key points on how to cooperate with stars.

The two of them each picked up their own scripts on the big table and turned to Harrison Ford's character to prepare. The sun is shining brightly through the window, making it very warm.

"Ah...it's Harrison Ford!"

After a while, there was a sudden commotion at the entrance of the restaurant. The sudden exclamation from the welcome aroused everyone's curiosity. The waiters in many restaurants and the customers sitting at the door began to whisper to each other. Some of the more daring ones had already begun to try to stand up and get closer to see if the person coming was Han Solo from Star Wars and Raiders of the Lost Ark. Professor Indiana Jones.

"Ah, my child, are you getting bored here to welcome guests?"

The person who came was none other than Harrison Ford. He stepped forward and put his hand on the shoulder of the overly excited and screaming welcome guest, using his unique charm to comfort him.

"Mr. Ford, I'm sorry, I'm just too excited...I'm a fan of your movie." Yingbin saw his idol talking to him and was already stammering and didn't know what to answer.

"I think you must be serious and responsible in your work. Let's not block the entrance. Someone is waiting for me...a gentleman named Ronald Lee."

"Okay, okay", the receptionist found Ronald's reservation and then welcomed Harrison in.

"Harrison...can..." Some of the bolder bystanders had already taken out pen and paper to get him to sign.

"Oh...I won't sign...thank you." Harrison Ford showed his trademark evil smile and stopped the people who came up to ask for autographs. However, those people were able to have a few words with Harrison and felt that the trip was worthwhile, and no one came up to ask for an autograph.

Upon seeing this, the owner of the restaurant brought a screen over to cover the corner where Ronald was, to prevent customers from taking random photos and invading the celebrity's privacy. Harrison Ford saw this and chatted with him to thank him for his thoughtfulness.

"Hi, Harrison." Ronald stood up and hugged the big star. "This is the screenwriter of the movie, Kevin Wade."

"Nice to meet you, thank you for the script. I loved it." Harrison Ford also introduced a woman behind him. "This is Patricia McQueeny, my manager."

"Hello Patricia..." Ronald shook hands with her. This manager had been working for Ford since the beginning of "American Graffiti". He started as an agent and later became a manager, taking care of Ford's business. Everything.

After a few people exchanged pleasantries, they sat down and began to discuss some of Harrison Ford's performance in the script.

Harrison Ford asked, and Kevin Wade answered, and the two went through all the Jack Traynor scenes in the script.

Ford is more concerned about the character of Jack Traynor, his lines in various scenes, and the logic of the plot. He was soft-spoken, not fast, but pleasant.

Ronald observed for a long time and unexpectedly found that Harrison Ford was not much different in life from his image on the screen. Masculine and charming, his words exude strong confidence.

If there's one thing that sets him apart from Han Solo and Indiana Jones, it's that Harrison Ford himself is a little shy around unfamiliar people.

Yes, shy. Ronald did not expect that a person who always played the role of a tough leader on the screen would laugh as if he was caught by the teacher in a high school class when he had something unclear when communicating with Kevin Wade. It’s the same as boys who don’t do homework.

Maybe he's not that smart? So you didn’t understand something? Ronald thought to himself. Harrison Ford actually worked as a carpenter before he became famous, and it is said that he has good skills.

"Hahaha... That's it. Jack Traynor is such a Wall Street elite, and the most outstanding feature of Wall Street elites is that they are very confident..." Kevin Wade was fascinated by Harrison's demeanor. Stayed here and answered all questions very carefully.

Since Harrison Ford had no experience in the financial industry, Kevin Wade also told him some of his original ideas for creating the character of Traynor.

"Very good..." Harrison Ford smiled back at Kevin Wade. Whenever this happens, Wade will feel the satisfaction of being recognized by a superstar, and then patiently and carefully talk about his thoughts.

More than an hour passed, and Kevin Wade's mouth was dry as he finally finished discussing Jack Traynor's last scene. Jack Traynor did not support Tess, but in the end the client believed that Tess was the one who came up with the brilliant business idea.

The two broke up, and then Tess and Jack met again on Wall Street. Jack Trainor said that he would go back to his hometown for a while to figure out what he needed in life, and finally come back to find Tess. The camera freezes on the scene where the two of them are about to talk about breaking up.

Harrison Ford asked his manager Patricia to order some drinks and some snacks. Overall, he was satisfied with the script.

The waiters brought plates of food and drinks, and Harrison thanked each of them personally.

Everyone picked up their cups and ate and drank, all very relaxed. The biggest stars were basically satisfied with the script, and Ronald also felt that Ford didn't want it to be as scary as what CAA's agent described.

Harrison Ford took a bite of the sausage, then casually wiped his fingers with a napkin, and said to Ronald, "Listen... I have a question about that ending..."

"Question? I thought you liked the scene at the end," Kevin Wade rushed to answer before he could calm down from his excitement.

"Hey, Kevin, I really love your script. Why do you think I agreed to Ronald playing Jack Traynor?"

"That's right, that's right..." Kevin Wade was still nodding his head, immersed in joyful emotions.

"Harrison, let's be direct. What do you think is the problem at the end?" Ronald almost watched the entire discussion. He had a premonition of what Harrison Ford was going to say next. "

"Ronald, I have no problem, but if you ask me to be direct, I will tell you directly. Do you remember the last scene? Jack Traynor clearly knew that it was Tess who was the first to get involved with the brilliant idea to prevent the acquisition of Japanese companies, and then Catherine wanted to claim it as her own, but he didn't fight on Tess's side."

"Of course I remember..." Ronald glanced at Kevin Wade, who was still lost in the lake, and used his eyes to signal him to calm down and stop rushing to answer.

"I don't quite agree with Jack Traynor's reaction. I don't think it's like Jack Traynor." Harrison Ford still said what he thought was problematic in his Han Solo-like leisurely tone. place.

The premonition in Ronald's mind seemed to slowly become clear in the fog. It seemed that there was a big light shining on that premonition, and the headlight offset a lot of the fog.

"Not like Jack Traynor?"

"You see, the character I play, at least according to my own understanding and the wonderful interpretation Kevin told me, is an American tough guy hero. He is a born leader, and leadership requires fairness and justice. Wrongful to anyone to realize.

He hates people, like Catherine, who take credit for other people's work. And he sincerely admires and likes a beauty like Tess who has both business acumen and a sin-provoking figure... I don't think he will let Tess suffer a second disappointment. "

Kevin Wade's mouth hangs open. That's not a Jack Traynor character trait at all. It's a Han Solo and Indiana Jones character trait.

"I think what you described is the character that our lovely screenwriter Kevin is trying to create." The big light in Ronald's mind has completely illuminated the road in the fog, and at the end of the road is a Harrison Ford. The villain yelled at Ronald:

"I'm a star. Stars can't do this kind of dishonest behavior. Please change Traynor for me. Maybe we can call him Jack Solo, or Indiana Traynor."

"Very good, eh. I like Jack Traynor, and the reason why I agreed to play the role is also because of his temperament as a natural leader. He is a pure American leader, someone we can rely on, and the country relies on to compete. The one who wins. He's not at all impressed by those nasty office politics, and becomes a coward, sacrificing the opportunity of his good partner Tess in exchange for his own future."

"Pure leader, that's right. What you said reminds me of the President's speech in the Oval Office of the White House." Ronald figured out what Harrison Ford needed.

After all, stars are stars, although when he first came here, Harrison also said a lot about how he didn't feel like he was limited by Han Solo and Dr. Indiana Jones in Star Wars. He doesn't want to be stuck playing a tough guy role forever. He hopes to broaden his acting career and try some roles that rely not on action but on his mind.

But in the final analysis, stars are not actors. They need one hit movie after another to maintain their existing star image.

"Maybe I'm too slow. The inner world of Jack Traynor that Kevin just explained to me is that of a successful man who came to Wall Street from a small town, a place with fierce competition on the earth. If he betrayed his friends like this With such a character, you will not achieve the success you have on Wall Street."

Harrison Ford is as humble as ever and speaks nicely, but he will never give up until he achieves his goal of modifying the character to suit himself.

Kevin Wade's mouth opened wider. This scene really broke through his psychological defense. You just said that your script was a work of genius. Why has the setting of the male protagonist been changed now?

"Even if you say so, I still don't want to change the ending of the story..." Ronald said with a smile. Although everyone knew that the final outcome of this matter would have to be accommodated by Harrison Ford, but since the other party did the matter in a very face-saving manner, In place, Ronald also had to act according to the script.

As soon as these words came out, Kevin Wade happily nodded to Ronald. This is what a great director does. The ending of his script is logical and reasonable. It is the inevitable ending of the plot when it develops to this point. Wouldn't it be different if it were changed? Are the characters separated from the front and back?

Harrison Ford's manager, Patricia, frowned and wanted to say something that was inconvenient for her client.

"But, Harrison, the last thing I want to do is disrupt an actor's thoughts and ideas about creating a character..." Ronald continued.

"I just think it's necessary to speak out about things that don't feel right to you, and actors should be honest with directors and screenwriters... After all, we..." Harrison said, glancing at screenwriter Kevin, whose mouth was almost dislocated.

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"Wait a minute." Suddenly, Ronald's tone became high-pitched, as if an actor was inspired by the genius performance of his opponent's actor and was excited and eager to perform.

"What?" Harrison Ford turned to Ronald, his eyes wide, as if Han Solo was listening to Luke Skywalker's wonderful "new idea" inspired by the Force.

"I have an inspiration. What if Jack Traynor sides with Tess in the end? His support finally shakes the client and gives Tess a chance to explain? In this way, the two of them can finally be happy. A happy ending, moving in together and becoming a couple?"

"What do you think? Harrison?" Ronald also looked at Harrison Ford with keen interest.

Harrison turned his head, thought for a while, then turned around and said:

"This is an unexpected idea...I like it very much, but I still need to try the results of this acting."

"Kevin..." Ronald turned to screenwriter Kevin Wade, "Can you rewrite the ending of Jack Traynor in this direction?"

"I...I...of course I can..." Kevin Wade's voice dropped, and his dream of directing stars and great directors was shattered like a soap bubble.