King of Hollywood-Chapter 563 - 284: Exploiting Labor

"Wake up, Ed," a familiar voice rang in his ears. Adrian yawned and opened his eyes, then a tempting cleavage appeared before him.

"Captain Wintour sent me to inform you that we’ll be arriving in New Zealand in half an hour," Ali said with a seductive smile as she straightened up. Although the allure vanished, her blue flight attendant uniform accentuated her figure perfectly. It was a shame her breasts were a bit small; the enticing cleavage from earlier was slightly lacking.

The lady moaned but immediately held his hand, "Not now, Ed, you just wore me out a few hours ago."

"Happy to serve," Ali kissed his face and then sashayed out of the bedroom.

Watching her pert derrière sway, Adrian whistled softly before he entered the bathroom to wash up, yawning again as the cold water hit his face with the towel. He shook his head, traveling from New Zealand to Los Angeles, then from Los Angeles to New York and London, and back again to New Zealand was chaotic enough with the jet lag, let alone handling various affairs and flirting with women. Despite his abundant energy, fatigue inevitably set in.

"I need to have Grant tailor a new workout regime based on my current situation, and Krupa needs to devise another diet," Adrian said aloud as he got dressed in front of the mirror.

No woman would want to feel unattractive, the past life Keira might have appeared indifferent, but that surely wasn’t the case when she constantly did peculiar things or made startling remarks to divert attention from herself and flaunt her individuality. No one could tolerate their flaws being scrutinized by curious eyes for too long.

If it was any other girl, she might just walk away with a tight face, perhaps mentally blacklisting the perpetrator, but over time she would likely forget completely. However, Keira, since childhood, faced ridicule by other kids for her reading disabilities—the cruelty of children knowing no bounds. Therefore, she became particularly sensitive and desperate for others’ approval, naturally becoming fixated yet repelled by her own lack of bust.

Even though her parents loved her deeply, they couldn’t be much of a help in this regard, only offering comfort and gradual guidance. Moreover, as a child at that age, starting to rebel and deny her parents, it was necessary for someone not as close as a parent, yet relatable, to step in, thereby benefiting Adrian in the end.

That afternoon, the girl’s body twisted continuously with the fingers beneath her clothes, her low, soul-stirring moans barely audible, captivating the mind. But it was precisely Keira’s impulsive and extreme nature that made Adrian stop; she might demand proof of his intentions in a rash moment or feel remorse and embarrassment upon calming down. If he went too far, who knew whether Keira might feel taken advantage of and react drastically.

Lolita may be delicious, but full savoring required the right moment, and the impulsive Keira was obviously far from this stage. It turned out his decision was correct. Although Keira left a bit timidly, a blush of bashfulness on her cheeks made her look quite charming.

"Take it slow, although this further step is somewhat unexpected," Adrian said.

After the plane arrived in Queenstown, Adrian took a brief rest to adjust and then rushed off to the film crew. He was going not to the headquarters in Queenstown but to several other teams. As before, when Adrian left, he had his assistants shoot scenes that didn’t necessarily require his camerawork, even though last time they weren’t much used, but he did not really have overly strict demands. The suitability of the footage only had to be consistent with last time to be acceptable. fгeewёbnoѵel_cσm

However, ideas were one thing, and carrying them out was another. The temperature in the southern hemisphere kept dropping, which greatly affected the outdoor shooting, so the pass rate of the footage shot by the various teams also varied greatly. One team reached 42%, another only reached 24%, but there were still some surprises. The fourth team, which sometimes camped outside because the helicopter arrived late deep in Tongariro National Park, had a pass rate over 80%!

"Well done, Demian, you’ve given me a big surprise," Adrian exclaimed, patting Demian Byrne, the leader of the fourth group, on the shoulder after viewing the footage.

"This..." Byrne scratched his head, "Actually, Mr. Adrian, this shooting wasn’t entirely handled by me. I think, the key to earning your approval lies in the help from another person."

"Oh?" Adrian raised an eyebrow, a bit surprised. "The help of one person?"

"Yes, a local," Byrne replied, walking to the entrance of the tent calling out, "Kuchi? Kuchi! Bring Peter here, quick!"

Then he came back and continued explaining, "A director from New Zealand. He loves ’The Lord of the Rings’ novel, so after hearing about what we were doing, he volunteered to join the crew to help out. He has a thorough understanding of the novel. He grasped the script shortly after getting it and often expressed how this was exactly the ’The Lord of the Rings’ movie he wanted to see—quite an interesting person."

"Really? I can’t wait to meet him," Adrian narrowed his eyes. A New Zealand director, a fan of ’The Lord of the Rings’ novel, and someone who could integrate the script so seamlessly—it all sounded like...

"Mr. Demian, did you need me for something?" As the voice sounded, a disheveled, chubby man with round glasses and a large beard walked into the tent.

"Certainly," Byrne happily grabbed him and introduced, "Mr. Adrian, this is Peter, Peter Jackson, a very distinguished New Zealand director."

Before he could finish, the man in front of him had already enthusiastically stretched out his hand to Adrian—of course, he didn’t forget to briefly wipe his hand on his clothes—then exclaimed with excitement, "It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. Adrian. I love your movies, and I’m thrilled you chose to come to New Zealand to shoot ’The Lord of the Rings.’"

"Thank you—are we—have we met before?" Although Adrian had already worked out who this was, he still pretended to be puzzled.

"Um, I don’t think so." Jackson smiled modestly.

"No, no, no, I remember, some time last year, around the end of the year, at a certain reception, while talking with a few producers, they mentioned an intriguing film about a serial killer who wanted to keep killing people after his death, and it seems that the director from New Zealand had this name," Adrian said, recalling the past.

"Really... really?" Jackson’s eyes widened.

"Of course, my memory rarely errs, and I remember that the movie was called ’The Frighteners’," Adrian said, smiling at him, "I believe there shouldn’t be too many New Zealand directors named Peter Jackson."

"Yes... yes, Mr. Adrian, that movie was indeed directed by me." Jackson’s tone became more eager, "This truly flatters me."

"It’s nothing, although they say the movie is quite original, I haven’t seen it yet." Adrian smiled meaningfully, causing Jackson to look a bit embarrassed and awkward.

When someone tells you "I really like your movie", if they need something from you, you shouldn’t take it seriously, as it’s generally just a way to get close and build rapport. Adrian had heard such things too many times and could easily discern whether the person was sincere, but he didn’t plan to make a big deal out of it. A simple hint was enough, he was interested in something else.

"However, I will see it soon, because," Adrian pointed to the images on the equipment in the tent, "I am quite satisfied with these shots."

"Do you really like it? Do you think it aligns well with what the novel is trying to convey?" Jackson asked repeatedly, and upon receiving Adrian’s affirmative answer, he cheered and jumped in excitement.

"Has he always been like this?" Adrian couldn’t help but whisper to Bain.

"Hmm... occasionally, but this is the first time he’s been like this," Bain replied after recalling.

"Sorry, Mr. Adrian, I am just... I am just a bit excited," Peter Jackson quickly realized his misconduct and immediately stopped, scratching his bushy head somewhat sheepishly, "I have loved ’The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy since I was young, and as a director, I’ve always wanted to turn it into a film. Now that I’ve realized this dream and received your approval, it’s inevitable that I’d..."

He made a few gestures and hesitantly stopped talking.

"It’s okay, I understand your feelings, no need to rush, I still have to rest for a couple of days, we have plenty of time to discuss," Adrian said, patting his shoulder with a smile.

In the following days, Adrian quickly understood the whole matter. Simply put, after ’The Frighteners’ gained recognition in Hollywood, Peter Jackson started to entertain the idea of directing the ’The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy. Unfortunately, the rights were taken by Adrian from Sol Saz long before, and despite his determination, upon confirming that the Miracle Director had no intention of relinquishing the rights, he could only abandon the thought.

Although now ’Vanity Fair’ had spread news that the Miracle Director had begun producing the ’The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, reigniting his thoughts about it, ultimately it was owned by another, leaving Jackson with nothing but regretful sighs. The turning point came in mid-last month when, after completing a low-budget movie, Jackson returned to New Zealand for vacation. Having often envisioned scenes from ’The Lord of the Rings’ using local sights as a blueprint, he sometimes visited these places. It was during one such trip that he stumbled upon a film crew stationed at a scenic spot.

Although the crew’s responses to Jackson’s inquiries were vague, having been in Queenstown for nearly two months, the locals basically knew what they were filming. Combining this with the reports from ’Vanity Fair,’ even though it wasn’t explicitly stated where the Miracle Director was filming the ’The Lord of the Rings’ trilogy, Jackson was convinced it was this crew, igniting a burning desire within him.

This was filmmaking in New Zealand! The filming of "The Lord of the Rings"! It was exactly what he had always envisioned! If he hadn’t gotten involved, if he had missed this chance, he might have regretted it his entire life! It had to be said, Peter Jackson truly adored Tolkien’s novels and didn’t take long to make his decision.

Even though he had some fame in Hollywood, he was still just an independent filmmaker, and the heads of "The Lord of the Rings" team, who had produced many films with Adrian, might not care about one seemingly insignificant director in their eyes. After being rejected, Jackson was neither annoyed nor discouraged. He thickened his skin and persistently nagged until he finally obtained a menial job on set, occasionally even acting as an extra.

Even then, Jackson never complained and kept working diligently; seizing every opportunity to communicate with the crew, especially after he had read the script and found it massively to his taste, which solidified his confidence even more. Eventually, when Adrian left again to continue his previous filming schedule, Jackson managed to get on Bain’s team. Among the various groups, he had the best rapport with Bain, yet it still took a lot of effort to persuade Bain to shoot in the way he envisioned.

Jackson was gambling, if Adrian did not like what he filmed, then he would have had to leave. Fortunately, he won that bet. Of course, Jackson would never know the main reason why he won.

"I have to say, Peter, you’re a very determined person," Adrian told him sincerely at a cafe in Queenstown after hearing Jackson’s story.

Just being passionate about the novel and diving in without hesitation, starting from the very bottom, this guy was admirable. For a moment, Adrian even felt a bit ashamed, but it only lasted a few seconds before he threw that feeling all the way to heaven.

"Thank you, Ed, I truly love Tolkien’s novels and I really like your scripts. I resonate with many aspects, and moreover, it’s being filmed in my homeland. I’ve imagined New Zealand’s landscapes blending with ’The Lord of the Rings’ description more than once in my mind, so I don’t want to live with regrets," Jackson said, using the name "Ed" though maintaining all due respect.

"I’m very pleased with the footage you shot," Adrian nodded, "so I have a task for you. You know, aside from the main crew that I personally handle, we’ve divided into several smaller groups for location shoots. When I’m busy with other important scenes, they are responsible for most of the footage. According to the plan, by mid-month, I’ll begin shooting the battle at Helm’s Deep and the Rohan scenes, so I want you to lead a small team independently and handle the outdoor scenes of Rohan and Helm’s Deep, how about that?"

"Are you saying... are you saying I’ll be in charge alone?!" Jackson’s eyes lit up.

"Of course," Adrian spread his hands, "the shots you and Bain worked on were impressive. It shows your deep understanding of the novel and script, so why couldn’t you lead a team by yourself?"

Saying this, he patted him on the shoulder: "I believe you won’t let me down, Peter."

"I won’t let you down, Ed, I promise," Jackson stated firmly.

Adrian nodded in satisfaction. With such a great workforce in front of him, how could he not make the most of it? Of course, he wouldn’t let him be at a loss either. The honors that were inevitably lost actually weren’t better. Prior critic’s harshest remark was that without CG effects, Jackson couldn’t make movies.

Look at Jackson’s works before "The Lord of the Rings," although many also had special effects, the storytelling was still quite good, like "The Frighteners," with its layers of unfolding plot and occasional humor, both thrilling and funny.

But after "The Lord of the Rings," those few films, although not bad, had overwhelming CG effects that took up too much of the film, completely dominating it, no wonder people criticized it like that.

So, Jackson should hone his skills further rather than achieve instant success. Besides, even if the main trilogy was over, there were still "The Silmarillion" and "The Hobbit." (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to qidian.com to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets, your support is my biggest motivation.)

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