King of Hollywood-Chapter 623 - 31: Wrap Up Once Again

"You know, I never received any formal training and Ed became so disillusioned with the system that I had to trade sexual favors to get their signatures," Erin Brockovich said with a bitter yet proud tone in the spacious office. "Blowing over six hundred people in such a short time really wore me out."

She raised her eyebrows at her boss. "I’m really exhausted, may I sit down?"

"Of course, please do," her boss, barely suppressing a smile, made a welcoming gesture and gallantly pulled out a chair for her. The senior attorney working with them and the female assistant who had previously satirized Brockovich both lost their composure, the assistant quivered her lips as she looked at her, unable to summon any fire because Erin had managed to secure everyone’s signatures as well as the internal report from the power company about water pollution.

"Good!" Adrian, who was personally handling the camera at the moment, looked up and shouted, then set down his camera as everyone started applauding.

The applause was particularly enthusiastic, not only for Julia’s outstanding performance but also because it marked the completion of the movie "Erin Brockovich," which was a liberation for the crew who had been working tediously for six weeks. Collaborating with the Miracle Director was not an easy feat, and everyone agreed—an assumption had been made that he had changed when he gave everyone a few extra days off two weeks ago, but after the holiday, the squeezing began anew, and it was miserably tough.

Well, that’s just a joke, at least the first four weeks were pretty good, the usual business, and the subsequent two weeks were tense because Adrian had only just returned from London and hadn’t fully adjusted to the time difference, thus was off his game. Additionally, the entire crew, including the two main actors, were also off their game after resting for four days.

Mood is funny that way; perhaps one day it’s great, but the next day could be off, managing to keep a good mood for four weeks across the whole crew was already an achievement. However, since the plan was to finish shooting in six weeks and most of the difficult and important shots had already been completed earlier, there was no reason to start dragging now, hence Adrian chose to press on to make progress. It’s understandable, you get used to it, at worst you make a few sarcastic or satirical remarks; this was something the Miracle Director handled well, as long as the work was completed satisfactorily, he was fine with significant teasing.

"Where did you just go?" After wrapping up, Julia sat next to Adrian, sipping water and asking.

"I went around the next studio where ’The Mummy 2’ is being shot, you know, it’s right nearby. I went to check on their progress, that’s normal, right?" Adrian didn’t hide anything, of course, there were some things he certainly wouldn’t mention, like the mournful, helpless yet excited Rachel desperately trying to control her loud moans under his thrusts.

Such a Rachel was the one he favored; seemingly being invaded, seemingly against her will, yet particularly cooperative, as though only that could satisfy her. Adrian just recalled a movie role that would be perfect for her to play—it was practically tailored for her. Although it would come after ’The Mummy 2’ and a British movie, that wasn’t a problem as long as they could start shooting next year.

Rachel would likely be very interested in a role she could play naturally, although outwardly she would still have to appear as if she was being insulted.

Incidentally, the current version of ’The Mummy 2’ has a notable difference from the original: Evelyn and O’Connor have a daughter instead of a son. It didn’t matter, son or daughter, both could drive the plot forward. Besides, the young girl Adrian recommended cleaned up nicely and wasn’t much different from a little boy, especially with short hair, well-suited for a child of archaeologists.

The girl playing the role was currently still responsible for scriptwriting matters—Jules Mann Stewart’s daughter, Kristen Stewart. Yes, that Kristen Stewart. Jules and her husband, John, were some of the earlier people to join AC Media, back when AC Media just included Bossworth’s film company alone. Both of them were talented, so they had won Adrian’s admiration, and now, although Jules was still in charge of scriptwriting, she was handling scripts for four film companies including Universal, and John had become a well-known TV producer.

Adrian originally didn’t realize there was a bonus gift, but once he knew, he didn’t care much, as such things were too common; just going with the flow was fine, and he had a good relationship with Little Kristen. However, probably because Avril lived at Jules’ house when she came to Los Angeles, aside from wanting to be a screenwriter due to her mother’s influence, what Little Kristen most wanted to do was to become a rock singer.

Her personality was somewhat masculine, and although she was six years younger than Avril, the two hit it off immediately, and often, when Avril wrote a simple new song, she would give it to her to sing while she played basic accompaniment, and even taught her to play the guitar by hand, which is why Little Kristen had the thought of becoming a singer.

However, this hope was soon dashed; at the end of last year, she went through her mother’s connection to consult a record company, where a producer told her that her voice was very ordinary. Although he didn’t put it bluntly, suggesting she come back in a few years to try again, it was still a blow to Little Kristen.

Later, when Adrian learned about this, although out of a mischievous interest he really wanted to see Little Kristen pursue singing, considering his far lesser involvement in music compared to film and fearing he might be emptied out in a few years, he gave up on that idea. Then, he suggested Little Kristen act in movies and specifically asked Stephen Somers to change the little boy in "The Mummy Returns" to a little girl—Somers had no objections, as it made no difference to the plot—thus resulting in the current situation. Interesting, isn’t it? Even though only he knew what changes had happened in the world, it still provided him a secret thrill.

Alright, back to the subject at hand; although Adrian hadn’t said a word more than necessary, Julia clearly understood what he had done. How could she not know who was filming in the studio next door? She might not be able to name all of Adrian’s women or even know how many there were, but she recognized the one next door. However, she didn’t say much, just snorted, as she was used to it after all these years with Adrian without leaving.

"By the way," she changed the subject, "the day after tomorrow I’m planning to hold an equestrian party at the racetrack, will you come?"

"The day after tomorrow?" Adrian thought for a moment, "Sorry, dear, I have plans and most likely won’t make it."

"Is it that you cannot come, or you don’t want to come?" Julia asked somewhat discontentedly, but then she sighed, "You are always like this, always letting others accept your invitations, but rarely accepting others’."

"I really have plans, dear, you know I never lie about such things," Adrian said earnestly.

That was true; even if he was meeting other women, he wouldn’t say it outright, but he would give hints, so if he said he was busy, he really was. Of course, what Julia said was also true; in terms of these party invitations, the number of times he agreed to women’s invitations was far fewer than the number of times women accepted his, a seemingly trivial detail but actually quite significant, how should he demonstrate his dominance? Right there!

Think about it, if every woman wanted him to come over, that would indeed create a hectic scene. Of course, how to maintain control over his own dominance, keeping the women revolving around him while pacifying them to not let them harbor too much dissatisfaction, that was a matter of personal skill.

Obviously, these thoughts could not be voiced, so he quickly changed the subject: "How about this, my new yacht will be officially ready next Tuesday, how about we go out to sea together?"

"New yacht?" Julia’s attention was indeed drawn, and she raised her eyebrows, seemingly thinking of something promising, and revealed her signature charming smile, "It isn’t another antique yacht, is it?"

"Hmm... of course not." Although it was Adrian who had steered the conversation in this direction, he still touched his nose somewhat awkwardly.

After owning what was then the largest private plane, he planned to upgrade his yacht and customize a unique style of yacht—of course, the small yacht he used to sail with Blanchett was still retained.

After much thought, he slapped his head and ordered a sailboat from Brunswick Company, a five-masted flying clipper. The flying clipper was invented in the United States and had been the fastest ship on the sea for a long time, still active at sea even until the late 19th and early 20th centuries when steamships were widely used. Especially the five-masted ships; once their sails were unfurled, their momentum cutting through the waves was unrivaled. However, their excessive speed also caused numerous accidents, notably when the famous Prussia Flying Clipper collided with a British steamship in the English Channel in November 1910 because the steamship underestimated its speed and illegally overtook it.

However, with technological advancement, flying clippers were gradually phased out after World War I. Even though they had set many new records, they ultimately couldn’t compete with steamships and either ended up scrapped or destroyed in accidents, while those remaining were converted into exhibition ships, training ships, or fishing boats, among other uses. Still, some were transformed into yachts, and it made perfect sense for Adrian to order one as a display of personal style. He always had a peculiar taste—in fact, before this, he had even considered buying a retired Iowa-class battleship to convert into a yacht.

But he wasn’t particularly well-acquainted with these matters, and he ignored the opinions from the shipyard saying that flying clippers were no longer suitable as yachts, that the most recent clipper yacht was from more than a decade ago, or that there was no need to make a five-masted type, and that the masts should just be used for decoration and needn’t be functional... etc. After placing his order and emphasizing that it must be made to his specifications, he set the matter aside. The shipyard, accustomed to the eccentric whims of the wealthy, complied with his request and then... that was that.

The produced five-masted flying clipper yacht was indeed majestic. Although it was only 5000 tons, the tall masts alone made an impressive sight, and everyone who boarded the ship praised it. However, many downsides emerged; not to mention that it could only sail near the coast—due to its design, it rocked greatly in strong winds and waves. Although there was no risk of the ship sinking or people dying, it was certainly not comfortable for the passengers. Flying clippers were known for their speed, which inevitably came at the cost of stability. Even though this ship had been adjusted during construction, its inherent flaws were not so easily remedied.

In addition, while the masts looked imposing and the sails unfurled were indeed stylish, where could one find experienced and skilled sailors to manage them? The deck was spacious enough, and it would create a nice scene to have a group of people dressed in vintage attire walking on it, but the interior was too small for hosting parties—accommodating no more than a handful of people, and the ship could not accommodate a helicopter.

Thus, as the initial novelty wore off and more drawbacks were revealed, Adrian became increasingly frustrated. After much consideration, he finally donated the yacht to the alumni association of the elementary and middle schools he had attended—though docking it, maintenance costs would be minimal, it was still beyond a single school’s budget—so the two schools could organize extracurricular activities and let the students onboard for observation.

Even after subsequently ordering a new, more luxurious yacht that was nearly ten thousand tons, fitted with top-notch equipment, and featured the best security systems, a swimming pool, cinema, massage room, helipad, water scooters, a small sightseeing yacht, and various uniquely styled suites—it may not have rivaled the Eclipse owned by the famously rich Russian Abramovich a few years later, but it could easily rank among the top three luxury yachts in the world.

However, Claude still teased him for a long time about the flying clipper, and his girlfriend and a few friends who knew the full story also didn’t miss an opportunity to rib him, so it was quite normal for Julia to have that kind of smile on her face.

"You’ll see when the time comes. It’s the maiden voyage, Julia," Adrian said.

"A trip just for the two of us?" Julia rested her chin on her hands, her eyes narrowing into a mischievous glint.

"Of course." Adrian smiled slightly, not really interested in comparing with the Russian magnates—even though it would be some years before Abramovich would order the yacht, or rather cruise ship—but some ideas were still worth borrowing, like the automatic opening skylight, which would make sleeping under the stars quite romantic, wouldn’t it?"

Let’s not talk about that anymore. Even though "Erin Brockovich" had officially wrapped up, Adrian did not plan to fulfill the promise he made to Little Emma. It wasn’t that he wanted to break his promise, but rather there were other things requiring his attention, like the upcoming premieres of several movies—Kate’s "Miss Congeniality" or Russell Crowe’s "Gladiator".

The promotion for the former was on point, and just as expected, her previous film, "28 Days," though commercially average, was critically well-received. If this movie could achieve results close to the original, Kate was bound to climb another rung on the career ladder. Even if it failed, it wouldn’t matter much as many other suitable roles were waiting for her, but Adrian always hoped for success with these significant adaptations.

Kate obviously didn’t fit the goofy big sister image. As an FBI agent, she couldn’t be too naturally dumb—unless it was a spoof. Therefore, to mold the character to fit Kate’s image, the writers had racked their brains and finally settled on a female agent who wasn’t big on details. For instance, the arrangement in her house seemed quite decent at a glance, but if one were to look closely, they’d find that all the mess was merely hidden away.

Of course, even if the setting was right, the director’s execution and the actor’s performance were crucial. Having seen the test screening, Adrian did think that Kate’s performance wasn’t bad and the comedic effect of the story hadn’t drastically changed from the original. However, his opinion was not what mattered—audience reactions would be the judge of it, so attending the premiere to support Kate was essential.

"Gladiator" needs no mention with Ridley Scott’s prowess and Russell Crowe’s peak form after years of refinement. Interestingly, Russell now had a steady girlfriend who designed costumes and was quite pretty. They seemed quite in love, earning Russell the label of a "good man." In Australia, he was even compared to the equally devoted Hugh Jackman. Considering his scandal-ridden past, the irony of fate was truly astonishing.

Aside from these, Adrian also needed to visit some movie sets. He had already been to "The Mummy 2", and often visited "Little Miss Sunshine," so both could be overlooked. However, he definitely had to check out "The Bone Collector" and "Traffic", discuss the "Training Day" screenplay with Denzel Washington, or chat about "Ocean’s Eleven" with Steven Soderbergh, while also painting another cake for Zetajones.

"Exactly, singing and dance, all the musical performances are best done by the actors themselves," Adrian said with a smile.

"Are you planning to make a musical?" Zetajones hesitated before asking.

"Musicals also deserve a revival," Adrian didn’t deny, "even if it’s just a brief one, but at least it can proclaim to people that this genre isn’t extinct, so the opportunity is relatively significant."

After saying this, he gave Zetajones a meaningful look, a complex expression fleeting across her beautiful face. However, soon she was showing her characteristic seductive smile, "I believe it’s true." free𝑤ebnovel.com

Adrian knew what she was hesitating about; an old man was pursuing her. He reportedly said to a friend after watching "The Mask of Zorro" that he’d bed her if he couldn’t marry her. Yet, the man hardly had any opportunity. He had only succeeded in striking up a conversation with Zetajones by the end of last year, subsequently asking her out repeatedly even though she kept turning him down.

Adrian was aware of all of this, yet chose to remain silent. If Zetajones truly decided to leave, he wouldn’t stop her, but if an incorrect method was employed, she shouldn’t blame him for turning ruthless.

However, it seemed she had already made her decision. Using Penelope to set an example had not been in vain, so it could also serve as a warning to that man now. (To be continued. If you like this work, please visit qidian.com to vote for recommendation tickets and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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