King of Hollywood
Chapter 404 - 126 Continuous Screening

Chapter 404: Chapter 126 Continuous Screening

"Your performance was really great, Silver, although I’ve already said it once at the premiere, I want to say it again now, no description would be too much," Adrian complimented in the Phoenix family’s living room.

He had originally thought that after coming to visit, he would see the whole family since the Phoenix family had several children. However, upon his arrival, he learned that River’s parents and the other kids were still in Arizona’s Phoenix, and the reason they stayed a few months a year in Los Angeles was mainly to visit the three kids who were striving for their careers in the entertainment industry. As for River and his two brothers, they had always lived together, which, according to Silver, felt more like a home.

"I think you just want to live with your brothers," Adrian teased him once before.

"So what if I do?" Silver didn’t mind at all, and even looked at Adrian with some surprise, "Is there anything wrong with that?"

The Phoenix brothers seemed to be like that; if they believed in something, they would persist until the end and never shied away. So convincing them to change their minds was not an easy task. Therefore...

"Come on, Ed, I know what you’re going to say, but I won’t change my mind," Silver rolled his eyes at Adrian.

"Hey, Silver, you can’t be rude like that," Joaquin scolded his younger brother.

"Ed didn’t even say anything, Joaquin," Silver made a face at him, then widened his eyes and looked at Adrian with an innocent expression, "You’re not mad, right?"

"I certainly wouldn’t be mad," Adrian laughed heartily, "In fact, if you still insist on your choice, I wouldn’t object, but I will always stick to my opinion."

"How many times have I told you, Silver, not to always argue with us!" River came over at this moment, and started ruffling his brother’s hair.

Although River seemed to be roughhousing with his little brother, the endearing look in his eyes was very clear, and Silver, though loudly protesting, also had a smile on his lips. The bond between the brothers was truly strong.

"Sorry, Ed, for keeping you waiting," River said apologetically after playfighting with his brother, "Actually, you could’ve just given me a call, and I would have quickly shown up at your office."

"It’s okay, I had been meaning to visit your place anyway. We’ve known each other for so long and I’d never come here before. I excused myself from your several invitations due to being busy. Today, taking advantage of Silver’s film debut, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to make up for that," Adrian said, waving his hands dismissively, "Besides, I gained quite a lot today."

As he spoke, he pointed to Joaquin who was carrying Silver off towards the inner room. Silver had a look of terror and was struggling desperately while Joaquin looked smug, clearly planning to "teach" Silver a lesson for his earlier impoliteness.

"They are always like this," River also started laughing, but then his expression turned serious, "Let’s talk about the important matters."

The so-called important matters naturally concerned the movie "L.A. Confidential." River had already read the script, and Adrian had come to congratulate Silver on the rave reviews for his performance and to visit the Phoenix brothers, and thirdly, to discuss River’s role in the movie.

The two didn’t chat for too long; after exchanging their thoughts on the novel and the role River needed to play, Adrian stood up, bid farewell, and left. In fact, although today his excuse for visiting was to discuss the new movie with River, the main thing he wanted to do was to test the waters with Silver.

After all, the relationship between Adrian and River was clear; even if River didn’t like the role, he would agree to take it, especially since he was actually very interested in the movie. However, Silver was another raw gem that Adrian had accidentally discovered, just like when he first encountered Dennis Knight. Even though Silver had only just acted in one movie, Adrian could almost certainly say that if he chose to continue on the path of an actor, his achievements wouldn’t be much less than his brother’s, and his connection with River obviously seemed much deeper, which was probably why Adrian had no recollection of him.

Although everyone was full of praise for his keen ability to judge people and situations, Adrian was very clear about how he came by these accolades—if he became overly proud and lost himself in these praises, truly believing his judgment to be unrivaled, his downfall was only a matter of time, even with foreknowledge—but that did not mean he did not want to prove himself a little.

Yes, just as he had unearthed Dennis Knight and saved River Phoenix, he really hoped Silver could achieve more in his acting career.

The problem was, perhaps the experience of street performing at a younger age had made a strong impression on him, and Silver seemed to prefer singing more. Frankly speaking, the Phoenix brothers all had decent voices, but making a dazzling accomplishment in singing was much harder than in acting.

That’s not to say that singers can’t match actors, but there are many more levels of singers than actors. How many singers can reach the level of Michael Jackson or Madonna? How many actors can stand shoulder to shoulder with Paul Newman and Marlon Brando? Moreover, the 21st century was approaching, and the recording industry was about to face an unprecedented impact; it would be harder for superstar-level singers to emerge, and naturally, Adrian would not want Silver to go down that path.

However, as mentioned at the start, the Phoenix brothers were the kind of people who, once they set their mind on something, would stick with it, no matter who tried to persuade Silver—no one knew him better than his own brothers. So Adrian had made a special trip to gauge the young man.

"It seems it’s not going to be easy..." Adrian mumbled to himself as he remembered the earlier situation on his way back.

"What’s not going to be easy?" Charlize, who was about to hand him a memo, directly asked upon hearing him.

"Uh, it’s... never mind, you weren’t there just now, you don’t know about these things," Adrian shook his head but immediately muttered to himself again, "Maybe I can find out more from the record companies."

"That’s because you thought it wasn’t necessary for me to go in," Charlize immediately snorted, "But record companies... okay, I may not know the situation you’re talking about, but I do know some other things."

"Charli!" Adrian coughed and glared at her in feigned displeasure.

Charlize shrugged nonchalantly, then shook the memo in front of him: "Tomorrow is Independence Day, there’s also a premiere to attend, and someone has already agreed to show up."

"Ha, the heads of the other movie companies are probably having headaches again," Adrian laughed out loud, directly ignoring the second half of Charlize’s sentence.

The executives of major film companies were indeed having headaches. DreamWorks’ "Saving Private Ryan" had swept the North American box office at the beginning of the summer holidays, forcing them to settle for second place on the North American box office charts. However, the release of Bossworth’s "The Sixth Sense" immediately shattered their dreams.

Bossworth was not DreamWorks; during the past two years, it had been releasing several high-grossing movies during the hot seasons, and why would this year be an exception? Especially when the movie and the holiday matched so well.

Independence Day, as a national holiday in the United States, was officially one day long, but it usually extended starting from the weekend, so it was effectively a three-day holiday. Under normal circumstances, there were grand parades and celebrations all over the country, making it a great opportunity for merchants to make money. Movie theaters were no different; the closer the story adhered to the main theme of America, the more popular it would be. This Independence Day, what could be more attention-grabbing than Roland Emmerich’s "Independence Day"?

Before the extensive promotion of the film began, the plot elements such as the alien invasion destroying the White House, the array of special effects and large-scale scenes, and the president’s patriotic speech leading to the final counterattack on Independence Day were all heavily advertised. Moreover, the release date was set for July 4th, which naturally garnered a lot of support. In addition, the film also caught the attention of Adrian, making other film companies naturally choose to keep their distance.

Their decision proved to be the right one. Upon its release on July 4th, "Independence Day" effortlessly raked in $89 million at the North American box office within five days across 2,500 theaters! It snatched the top spot from "Saving Private Ryan," which was due in part to other companies stepping back, but the quality of the movie itself was beyond question.

"It’s fantastic! So satisfying! So thrilling!" exclaimed an excited audience member during an interview.

"A work built upon splendid visuals and special effects, suitable for leisure viewing, and easily forgotten after watching," remarked a more artistically inclined critic.

Of course, these were in the minority. This movie had been a commercial piece from the beginning, so true art-house critics would not take notice, whereas commercially-oriented critics all admired the storytelling: "The dazzling special effects and scenes are stunning, the pace of the story is incredibly tight. Director Emmerich has masterfully controlled the intense scenes, making it seem as if even a slight look away could cause you to miss crucial details. The President’s speech at the decisive moment of the final battle is particularly uplifting. Despite a number of plot holes, this is undoubtedly one of the best sci-fi movies of the year."

New Line’s CEO Robert Shaye couldn’t help but smile ear to ear, and this film took Will Smith’s popularity to a new level. Especially the scene where he punched an alien that emerged from a flying saucer while fiercely delivering the line, "Welcome to Earth," made many feel it was incredibly cool.

"It’s more about his luck, after all..." Adrian gestured but did not continue, "Don’t worry, all of this is within my expectations."

He said, wrapping his arm around Rachel’s waist and chuckling, "I have a new movie ready for you. Once ’The English Patient’ is released, we’ll start preparing. You’ll like the female protagonist because she is an archaeologist who graduated from Cambridge University—although in reality, she’s a librarian."

Other main characters of "Independence Day," like Bill Pullman and Jeff Goldblum, did not receive as much attention as Will Smith. Rachel Weisz, who was almost marginalized later on, wasn’t as big of a draw of the movie, which was primarily about the alien invasion and the counterattack. For Will, besides luck, there were other reasons for his success.

"Ed, can we not talk about this?" Rachel muttered softly, head down as she picked out clothes.

"What are you worried about? Being recognized? But when I suggested going to the boutique, you insisted on coming to the department store," Adrian sighed and kissed her forehead. He then selected a long skirt from the rack and held it in front of Rachel. "How about trying this? A beige A-line skirt, a versatile color that can be matched with any top as long as it isn’t too similar in color."

"Indeed, miss, your boyfriend has good taste. I recommend pairing it with this black T-shirt," the salesperson, seizing the opportunity, approached and began her pitch.

"I know he has good taste..." Rachel sighed, never lifting her head as she didn’t want anyone to notice her mixed emotions, "Alright, then wrap it up."

"Wait a second," Adrian interjected before the salesperson could agree, "Pick up the previous selections, and as for this one..."

He handed his credit card to the salesperson and chuckled at Rachel, "Try it on first, Rachel."

"Maybe... there’s no need. I trust your taste," Rachel said, her face slightly changing as she forced a smile.

"Please, put it on and let me take a look," Adrian said in a tone that brooked no resistance, while the salesperson discreetly left after receiving a tip.

Rachel bit her lip as she lingered in grabbing the clothes and went into the fitting room, and soon came out wearing a skirt, twirling a few times in front of Adrian.

"Very pretty," Adrian said approvingly, clapping his hands.

Seeing his reaction, Rachel seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. She then went back to the fitting room, but just as she had put on her previous outfit and was about to open the door, she found Adrian standing outside. Rachel sensed trouble, but before she could react, Adrian hooked her waist and pulled her into the dressing room.

"Please, Ed, don’t do this," Rachel pleaded softly as she struggled, but Adrian wasn’t about to listen, pushing her up against the wall of the fitting room with a teasing smile on his face.

At first, Rachel resisted, but she quickly gave in, whimpering, although a careful listener would detect a distinct note of excitement in her whimpers. This excitement became even more apparent when noises came from the next stall, just like the passionate thrills often heightened in the confined space of a restroom stall.

It wasn’t the first time Adrian and Rachel had been in such a situation in the fitting room. It was always the same: resistance, surrender, and then eager, excited compliance. In fact, each of their passionate encounters had followed a similar pattern. Most women have a bit of a masochistic streak, which is one of the reasons why women like Julia stay with him, but quirky Rachel, who hid it underneath her bookish demeanor, could hardly be unlocked without strong measures.

If it were someone else, they would either feel inferior or fall hopelessly in love in front of her restrained conversation and elegant demeanor, and they would gladly become her protector. But Adrian was different. Right from their first time in bed, there was a hint of dominance, and every time after, he would sweet talk her before forcefully breaking through her defenses, leaving her in turmoil and at his mercy.

In terms of eloquence, Adrian was even more articulate than her; in terms of talent, Adrian’s achievements spoke for themselves; and in terms of power, no other young person in the entertainment industry could compare to him. Naturally, Rachel inevitably harbored an irresistible attraction for him. However, her personality and education didn’t allow her to submit easily, thus leading to her internal conflict and awakening something hidden deep within her.

"Alright, don’t think too much, trying these things out occasionally isn’t too bad," Adrian, who was helping Rachel get dressed, said with a smile.

"This isn’t just occasionally," said Rachel, turning her head away and speaking in a weak voice, similar things she had said many times, but always with a lack of conviction.

"Alright, not just occasionally. If you’re upset, then I apologize," Adrian said gently, then kissed her lips again and chuckled as he cradled her face. "You know, you really do look tempting right now."

"Ed!" Rachel’s voice rose slightly, sounding as though she wanted to be angry, but her words still came out soft.

"Let’s go," Adrian, who had watched her, said with a light laugh, wrapping his arm around her waist and taking the skirt they had tried earlier as they left the fitting room.

Adrian, who knew how to control the situation, of course, wouldn’t take things too far. So every time he was forceful it wasn’t too severe, and he would always sweet talk her for a long time afterward. The tangled contradiction in a woman had a distinct flavor, more enchanting than feigned reluctance. If it were any other woman, Adrian would have cast her aside already, but Rachel was so intriguing that he couldn’t bear to let go.

But enough of that; this was just a small episode. The movies arranged for Rachel were all prepared. As for whether the original cast would remain, that would be discussed later, after Anthony Minghella finished "The English Patient."

After "Independence Day" took up the baton from "Saving Private Ryan" and once again swept the box office in North America, other studios mourned and chose to step aside again—although the film was produced by New Line, everyone knew that New Line was under AC Media—the momentum of "Independence Day" was just too strong. However, some films still chose to release during this time, such as Universal’s "Nutty Professor" or "The Birdcage," adapted from a French stage play, as well as a film invested in by Miramax and related to Adrian—"Broken Arrow"!

This was a film that made many people look forward to it and talk about it with enjoyment, but the reason wasn’t so much about the film itself as it was the long-lasting love triangle rumor! (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)