From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

Thump. Thump.

His heart was pounding uncontrollably, almost leaping out of his throat, making Brad feel nauseous.

Brad couldn't help but look around. He had already taken a peek while standing at the door, but only after truly entering could he appreciate the scale of the villa.

Shock, impact, astonishment.

He thought he would feel envy, jealousy, or a myriad of emotions, but he didn't. He was simply plunged into deep amazement, his brain temporarily forgetting to function.

Until he saw Anson.

White T-shirt, blue jeans, white sneakers, a smile on his lips, standing there bright and open, as if the sunlight falling on him had also become clear and pure.

Anson was still the same Anson, exactly as he remembered him. The success of "Spider-Man" and the attention of all of Hollywood hadn't changed him much.

However, he was no longer the same 'he'. Ironically, he tried to search his memory, but couldn't find the way he was supposed to appear in his memories.

For a brief moment, he wanted to run, to flee in disarray. His mind was blank, all thoughts erased, completely unaware of why he was here, but his body's conditioned reflexes continued to move forward, staring at Anson's smile, walking towards him as if his soul had left his body.

"Sorry."

From afar, the first word he spoke, Brad had only one thought in his mind.

Anson was a little surprised.

Brad noticed a strange face behind Anson, fully alert, his body tense, watching him closely in an wary manner.

This made Brad extremely uncomfortable, but he didn't have time to be upset.

Because he deserved it, it was his own fault.

"Sorry, Anson, I didn't come here to cause trouble, I just... Huff, I just want to talk."

"I know... It's an excessive request... I have no right... You don't need to either..."

"But."

"Please..."

Brad looked terrible. He fidgeted nervously with his fingers, like a hyperactive child, completely unable to stand still, revealing an unease all over his body. There was a faint shadow under his eyes, echoing the red blood vessels in his eyes.

In a few words, it was hard to describe Brad's state.

Anson sighed softly, "You look terrible."

Brad anxiously gnawed at his nails, "I haven't slept in a week. To be precise, I haven't slept well. I feel like I'm going crazy."

But there was no way of knowing how much courage it took for Brad to come to Malibu, to come to his doorstep.

Thus.

Anson didn't say much, but instead stepped aside, making an inviting gesture, "How about it, would you like to come in and take a look?"

Brad rubbed his hands nervously.

Anson showed a smile, "Chris and James haven't been here yet, you're the first."

Brad's nose felt sore and his mouth was full of bitterness. He almost broke down, his eyes flickering slightly, and in the end, he couldn't squeeze out any words. He cautiously stepped forward.

Anson turned to look at Noah, signaling with his eyes that there was no need to be nervous, "Noah, please get us two Cokes, thank you."

If he didn't drink alcohol, Brad would often choose Coke—

Because it was high in sugar.

Brad was a little nervous, waving his hands repeatedly, "No, no... You don't have to treat me like a guest."

Anson just smiled without saying a word—

If he wasn't a guest, then what was he? They weren't even friends now.

Brad's eyes dimmed, and he hastily shifted his gaze.

Anson took Brad on a tour and then left the hall, heading towards the backyard along the palm-lined avenue. The gray-blue sea spread out before him, and the refreshing sea breeze that rushed towards him opened up his vision in an instant. The golden sunlight fell down without obstruction, as if he could embrace the whole world by opening his arms.

Involuntarily, a sigh escaped his lips.

"God, this house is beautiful." Brad tried to find a topic, but obviously, he had become rusty.

Meeting again, he didn't even know where his eyes should focus.

On the contrary, Anson appeared calm and composed. After all, in his previous life, he had experienced the warmth and coldness of human relationships and had seen all kinds of scenes, so this was really nothing.

Anson shrugged lightly, "The property tax figures are also very scary, not to mention the daily maintenance. I'm starting to worry about going bankrupt."

The casual joke made Brad unable to resist, and he finally regained his smile, "Fortunately, 'Spider-Man' has a sequel?"

"Thank God. No matter what other people say, those paychecks are real." Anson exaggeratedly sighed.

Brad chuckled.

Anson did the same, his lips slightly upturned, paused, "I heard about it, an Oscar project, wow, that's something worth celebrating, so when does filming start?"

Although they no longer contacted each other, Hollywood was just a small circle, and news always inadvertently brushed past their ears, hard to ignore.

What's more, some major projects had already focused their attention early on, even if Anson didn't care, Edgar had to keep an eye on them.

It was just a little surprising that Brad Lanfrow became the protagonist of this project—

This summer, a project came into view, with Frank Marshall as the producer.

Who is Frank Marshall?

Hollywood's top producer, Steven Spielberg's staunch partner, "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "Back to the Future," and "The Bourne Identity" were all works he produced, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. In the past two decades, his productions have almost always appeared in the top ten of the year-end North American box office charts.

Prestige, status, connections.

Everything can be called the top in the industry. Any project that can enter Frank's field of vision often means absolute guarantee of connections and resources.

In Hollywood, every project sets a goal at the beginning:

Genre film or art film? Aiming for the three major European film festivals or the Oscar awards season? If it's a genre film, summer or holiday season? If it's the Oscars, the acting department or aiming for Best Picture?

And so on and so forth.

An accurate positioning can often make the preparation process twice as effective.

Naturally, many projects have determined their route from the very beginning. The project Frank was preparing this time was aimed squarely at the Oscar awards season.

The reason is very simple. This project is adapted from the original novel "Seabiscuit: An American Legend," a work with biographical overtones that awakens hope in the Great Depression era. For the Oscars, it is really more suitable.

Frank hopes to create such a project, easily attracting a lot of attention during the preparation stage and becoming the target of countless actors vying for roles.

He never expected that Brad Lanfrow's name would stand out and be firmly tied to this project, with industry rumors continuing to circulate—

Could it be that Brad's opportunity has finally come?