From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

“Heh heh, hard work.”

Seeing Anson's figure, Edgar casually stuffed the phone he had been staring at into his pocket, stood up, revealed a smile, and greeted him with a natural and relaxed expression, without seeming anxious or worried, as if Anson had just been chatting with a friend.

“I’ve already booked lunch. How about it? Do you have any plans for the afternoon? I mean, if not, I have two Knicks tickets.”

While chatting idly, they naturally walked towards the elevator.

Others might not notice, but Anson could see Edgar constantly winking at him, clearly signaling Anson to play along.

Obviously, Edgar didn't want to appear too eager or too nervous, trying to present a casual and relaxed state as much as possible, to wrap up the audition—

The official audition had already ended, but after the end, the actor's demeanor and performance, the agent's posture and actions, etc., were all within the surveillance range of the onlookers. Even the slightest disturbance could reach the ears of those producers, further affecting the impression the actor left.

Would this affect the audition results?

Usually not.

But Hollywood is a small circle, and the image, reputation, and rumors of actors and agents are slowly pieced together from these trivial details. Especially for an audition opportunity like "Spider-Man", the speed of information dissemination is beyond imagination.

So, Edgar is also acting. Life is like a play, all depending on acting skills.

All the way until the elevator doors closed.

Anson looked at Edgar with a smile, not speaking, but using his eyes to inquire.

Edgar relaxed slightly, but still hadn't fully returned to normal, “Hey, we’re still in Sony Columbia.”

Looking at Edgar, so vigilant and fully prepared, Anson laughed, “What, do they also watch the elevator's surveillance cameras?”

Edgar shrugged lightly, “There have always been rumors that Disney watches elevator surveillance, although there is no evidence, we tend to believe it.”

Anson didn't hide his surprise, “For what?”

Movie companies really don't need to pay attention to actors, agents, or directors, do they?

“Power.” Edgar said a word, but it seemed meaningful.

Anson thought about it carefully and understood. These large film companies should also have factional struggles internally. The success or failure of each film project may affect the direction of interests and power. Naturally, these filmmakers who bear the fate of the project also become their pawns.

The "Spider-Man" project has had many twists and turns, but Sony Columbia still decided to give it a budget of over 100 million US dollars, which can be described as a desperate gamble.

Everything has a reason.

In 1997, Sony Columbia won the annual North American box office champion with "Men in Black" and occupied three seats in the top ten of the year-end box office charts, performing well.

But 1998 and 1999 fell into a trough. For two consecutive years, only one movie's North American box office broke 100 million US dollars. This year is even worse. The summer season has ended, and Sony Columbia still doesn't have any movie whose North American box office has crossed the 100 million threshold. The best-performing "The Invisible Man" currently has a cumulative box office of only 70 million US dollars.

Sony Columbia needs to cheer up, otherwise it will fall behind in the competition among top players.

"Spider-Man" is this ambitious work.

It is precisely because of this that the interest factional disputes behind this project are also beyond imagination.

Edgar's caution is not without reason.

All the way until they left the building and took a taxi into the bustling traffic of New York, Edgar relaxed, revealing his nervousness and anxiety—

At this time, you can see his youth and vigor. Although he lacks experience, his focus and ambition for work are fully revealed.

“So, how was it?” Edgar looked at Anson expectantly.

Anson thought seriously, “It felt good. The whole audition process was full of laughter, deviating from the track several times, but I think breaking the routine is a good thing.”

Edgar, “Explain in detail.”

Anson didn't hold back and told Edgar everything about the audition, and then Edgar frowned, immediately grasping the key point.

“Laura? Ian called her Laura?”

Anson nodded, “What, do you also think she might be the key person?”

Throughout the audition process, Sam's accident and Ian's control were expected, but the performance of that plump lady was remarkable.

Most of the time, she was in the posture of an observer, but every time she spoke, she could grasp the key points. Not only Ian, but others also showed a posture of listening attentively when she spoke. If she was a person who held the key voting rights, this scene could be explained.

Edgar awakened the memory in his brain according to Anson's description—

For agents, mastering Hollywood's intricate network of contacts and memorizing countless important names is a basic skill.

“Laura-Ziskin, she is a senior producer. Most recently, ‘As Good as It Gets’, got seven Oscar nominations the year before last, including Jack Nicholson and Helen Hunt finally winning the Best Actor and Best Actress awards respectively.”

“She… is very low-key, but very professional. She has very close relationships with those producers, directors, and big-name actors, and the film company is willing to refer to her ideas.”

“By the way, ‘As Good as It Gets’ was willing to use Helen Hunt because of her opinion.”

“You need to know that Helen entered the industry at the age of nine and has been in Hollywood for more than 20 years without entering the mainstream. She has been told more than a hundred times, ‘You are not pretty enough to play the heroine’, but Laura spotted her at a glance and personally persuaded Jack, which is why Helen was used.”

In other words, Laura-Ziskin does have the right to speak, especially in the choice of actors.

After thinking about it carefully, Edgar looked at Anson, “What did she say at the end?”

Anson shrugged lightly, “The interesting thing is that she didn’t say anything at the end.”

Edgar raised his chin slightly, which often meant that the person already had an idea, but only the person involved knew what the idea was.

Anson raised his eyebrows slightly, Gary Marshall's "Pretty Woman"?

Edgar didn't stop, “You said that your cooperation with Gary Marshall was very pleasant? Then, we need to connect Laura and Gary. We need Laura to ask Gary herself, instead of Gary taking the initiative to call Laura to recommend you. That would be too deliberate and too obvious.”

Instead, it may backfire.

But, how should they make Laura have an idea and then ask Gary?

They can't sit still and passively wait to be beaten. It is conceivable that other agents must also be working hard. For a movie of the "Spider-Man" level, the audition is definitely a very important part, but beyond that, there are invisible swords and shadows that can often affect the development of things.

They need to take the initiative.

Third chapter.