King of Hollywood
Chapter 516 - 237 A Small Request

Chapter 516: Chapter 237 A Small Request

I must admit, Spielberg and DreamWorks are extremely formidable; there’s no need to even mention Spielberg’s directing and producing capabilities. If it weren’t for Adrian’s preemptive vision, he wouldn’t even stand a chance against him. Besides, the influence of DreamWorks’ Three Giants in Hollywood is second to none. Plus, following ’Jurassic Park’ setting a box office record, it was only natural for ’The Lost World’ to premiere at the top of the North American box office charts with its release in over 3,200 theaters.

However, this doesn’t mean that ’The Matrix’ was completely defeated at the box office. In addition to horizontal comparisons, vertical comparisons are also necessary. If Adrian’s memory served him right, the original ’The Matrix’ premiered in over 2,700 theaters in April and garnered just over $30 million in five days, while his version, which only secured over 2,500 theaters, earned over $55 million in three days. The data spoke for itself.

With enough fame and resource support, coupled with proper marketing strategies, if the box office couldn’t surpass the original, then Adrian might as well not produce movies anymore. The premiere box office of the original ’The Lost World’ was over $90 million. Now, delayed by a year, the figures should have risen but instead dipped slightly, clearly squeezed by ’The Matrix.’ With this in mind, can we really definitively say who won and who lost?

Although Spielberg wasn’t as perceptive as Adrian, he did see something in the situation, which is why he was quite courteous over the phone. Adrian didn’t say much either; it wasn’t a big deal after all. Despite ’The Matrix’ breaking $100 million in North America a week later than ’The Lost World.’

The intense competition of the summer film season had thus kicked off. Every film company did everything in their power to ensure their films were hits, but sadly, the biggest profits this summer were destined for others. Three weeks later, just after Independence Day, AC Media released another movie starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, beloved star of the teen TV series ’Buffy the Vampire Slayer,’ as the protagonist of the comedy ’Legally Blonde.’

"To be frank, this is an interesting movie," Adrian read, smiling. "The director and the film company seem keen on challenging the stereotype of blondes being beautiful but brainless. Thus, even though the protagonist comes across as a bit clumsy and frivolous, she shines with brightness, innocence, and kind-heartedness. Unfortunately, the film doesn’t showcase much of her intellect, and the turnaround at the end seems more like luck, which is a pity. As for Sarah, she did capture that light, innocent feel quite well. Whether or not the fans will accept it, that’s another story." Adrian finally stopped reading and laughed.

"They really do have a way with words, Sarah, whether the fans will accept it... Well, I’m even starting to regret letting you play ’Buffy,’" Adrian said, shaking his head with a sigh.

"It’s okay, I chose it myself at the time," Sarah responded nonchalantly, shrugging her shoulders and continuing to peel the apple in her hand diligently.

The premiere box office of ’Legally Blonde’ wasn’t that great, only making $18 million across 2,500 theaters; of course, that’s just Adrian’s view. In other people’s eyes, a small production with a budget under $20 million performing this well at the premiere was quite an achievement, but Adrian knew the film’s box office should be higher.

This situation was actually quite normal. After all, the character ’Buffy’ had become deeply ingrained in people’s hearts, just like ’Rachel,’ causing fans to resist changes. The previous ’I Know What You Did Last Summer’ was popular not only because its genre was similar to ’Buffy the Vampire Slayer,’ both being thriller types but also because the female protagonist displayed the same strength attribute as ’Buffy.’

’Legally Blonde,’ however, was different. The protagonist Elle was very sweet and adorable, sometimes appearing clumsy but kind, innocent, and smart, completely different from Buffy. Given this change, it wasn’t surprising that Buffy’s fans had strong reactions, and you couldn’t expect them to cheer and praise. In fact, on the official website of ’Buffy the Vampire Slayer,’ complaints flooded in the day after the movie premiere, claiming that the character Elle had ruined Buffy’s image.

"Oh, I really can’t imagine the capable Buffy who boldly faces off against vampires, selflessly shouldering burdens for friends and lovers, becoming like this. Even though she might be occasionally ditzy and cute, she is definitely not the kind of brainless, busty blonde beauty that’s being portrayed. This is just awful!" a fan commented like so.

Of course, there were also quite a few fans who were more rational, thinking the movie was quite good and, at least, Sarah gave an excellent performance with the entire film being enjoyable, especially the unexpected twist at the end.

"Buffy is Buffy, and Sarah is Sarah. One can’t just reject Sarah’s other roles because they like Buffy too much, can they?" a fan responded.

Just like Rachel’s fans argued endlessly over Aniston’s role in ’The Matrix,’ Buffy’s fans were divided into two factions; however, the overall atmosphere was better than that with ’Friends.’ This was unavoidable, and that’s why Adrian arranged for Sarah a sweet and lovable character, just as he had Aniston play an action role.

Adrian didn’t take it too much to heart. Although the premiere box office didn’t reach expectations, he believed it would soon pick up. While no joint promotions with Sassoon for a ’Blonde Day’ were held, the advertising was still spot on. Moreover, ’Buffy’s’ appeal wasn’t small, and Sarah’s performance was quite good. Plus, despite the altered storyline, it only served to be more captivating because...

"Your afternoon tea." A gentle voice sounded, and Nakama Yukie, carrying a teapot and cups, appeared before Adrian and Sarah.

"Thank you, Yukie," Adrian said with a smile as he took the items from her hands.

"Why don’t we sit and chat for a bit, Yukie?" Sarah also called out invitingly.

"No... no need, I still... I still have things to do..." Yukie, blushing, stuttered, then bowed slightly and left the balcony.

"To be frank, I just don’t understand the Japanese. They always seem so cautious, humble, and polite, as if... they think speaking a little louder would offend them," Sarah said, curling her lip.

"How can that be? On the night of the premiere, Yukie was really outgoing," Adrian observed with interest.

"Legally Blonde," although a decent comedy, did feature somewhat one-dimensional character development. Simply put, the secondary characters seemed to exist solely to support the leading man and woman or, more specifically, the leading lady. This certainly helped to highlight the female lead’s image but at the same time could weaken the overall story structure. Since Sarah, due to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," needed more interaction with characters, Adrian had the scriptwriters add a character without making major changes to the original script: a Japanese girl who was a bit of an airhead.

From high school on, this girl was a good friend of the female lead who was also a bit clueless, and, without much of her own opinion, followed the lead to Harvard. Although she often caused small laughs, at crucial moments, the lead could always get inspired by her. For instance, the big turnaround at the end came after she was encouraged by her to mention shampoo just before questioning the victim’s daughter.

Her screen time wasn’t extensive, but she was quite charming, continuing the line of her most popular role to date—that one from "Friends." Even if she couldn’t be as celebrated as Western actors, her popularity would surely surge.

"It’s because she seemed so outgoing that night that I wanted to chat with her. During the filming, as soon as it was over, she would sit in the corner without a word and barely spoke to anyone," Sarah sighed and poked the peeled apple with a fruit knife a few times. "I thought she had changed."

Adrian couldn’t help but laugh. The premiere for "Legally Blonde" was much smaller than that of "The Matrix," with fewer people attending, and even fewer Asian faces. Yukie, being exceptionally petite and delicate, stood out, which gave Sarah the wrong impression.

"After all, she’s not a true Japanese-American, and it’s only been a little over two years since she came to the United States. It’s quite normal for her to feel unaccustomed," Adrian explained a bit for Yukie. "She has actually changed quite a lot, and if she says she has something to do, then she clearly does. Don’t worry about it too much, Sarah."

Sarah hmphed softly, about to say something when a question suddenly stopped her in her tracks. Wait... Was Yukie wearing a maid outfit? And not just any maid outfit—it had lace trimming, revealed her shoulders and arms, and the skirt... The skirt was so short it almost reached her upper thighs, and when she left, a not-so-small part of it had flaunted itself, apparently without any underwear.

Why Yukie blushed when she came in was no longer a mystery, and now Sarah’s face also turned red. She glanced at Adrian, who was leisurely propping up his chin and watching her. Sarah really wanted to glare at him, but hesitated and didn’t act on it. Given his lecherous nature, how could he not take advantage of Yukie being so close at hand? No wonder Yukie, despite having some fame now, still lived with Adrian and even did things like a personal maid would do.

Sighing internally, Sarah didn’t want to think about these things. However, Adrian was indeed a bit hateful, especially as he continued to stare at her, clearly writing, "I know what you’re thinking," on his face!

"By the way," Sarah coughed dryly, trying to change the subject, "why peel the apple? Isn’t it more nutritious to eat it with the skin?"

Adrian surprised her with his reply: "Yes, of course. I never peel apples when I eat them."

Sarah looked up at him in astonishment and then at the fruit knife and the nearly peeled apple in her hand. She had done the peeling carefully, the skin was not only thin but had remained unbroken.

"Then... then why did you ask me to peel it?" she glared at him, seemingly a bit angry.

"I finally entrusted Lily to Charli’s care and dumped the two Emmas on some auntie, so of course I had to find something meaningful to do," Adrian shrugged, "like watching you peel an apple for me on this quiet afternoon."

At this tender remark, Sarah lowered her head, coughed softly, and then continued peeling, but this time she did it exceptionally slow. What could normally be done in two or three strokes took ten minutes, and the knife was still barely moving in the same spot. Even though the summer sun enveloped the earth, the motionless pair felt no heat at all.

No matter how long the apple peel was, there would always be an end to it. Sarah handed the peeled apple to Adrian somewhat helplessly, but then she immediately cheered up again because Adrian took a big bite out of the apple.

"Sometimes, tasting an apple with its skin removed can be quite nice." He said this and then winked at Sarah, who quickly leaned back. Not only did she shield her mouth with the back of her hand, but she also shook her fist threateningly, indicating that if he dared to transfer the chewed apple to her mouth with his own, she would not hesitate to fight back.

Adrian chuckled and shook his head, soon finishing the apple and throwing the core onto a plate. After that, he wiped his mouth and hands with a napkin and stood up: "I have a gift for you."

"A gift?" Sarah looked at him with some surprise.

"Yes, a gift," Adrian walked over to the cabinet and took out a DVD, "for your 21st birthday, which I couldn’t attend. I just had someone send a simple present, and I didn’t think that was quite right."

"It doesn’t matter, as long as you..." Sarah started to say something with a smile, but she stopped abruptly when Adrian raised his index finger solemnly.

"Turn 21 is important," he continued, "not just because you can legally drink alcohol in public, but it also means you’re completely independent now."

He paused then looked at her with a gentle voice: "So I wanted to give you a gift that isn’t too expensive but is very meaningful."

Saying that, he shook the DVD in his hand and then made a gesture inviting her over. Sarah stared at him for several seconds, then jumped up and grabbed his hand. Without speaking, they both went to the widescreen TV in the room and together inserted the DVD into the player.

Soon, a clear image played on the screen. Sarah let out a low cry, it was a scene from "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." Then a rhythm with a good feel started, and with this rhythm, the scenes began to switch. Each one was from the TV show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer."

"I’m loving living every single day, but sometimes I feel so..." a voice, magnetic and slightly deep with a bit of sweetness, started to sing.

The beautiful lyrics were so fitting for Sarah’s experiences, capturing her heart instantly. Combined with the perfectly edited footage, matching the rhythm, displaying her many faces as Buffy -- passionate, indifferent, innocent, strong, crying... She could only lean against Adrian and grip his arm tightly to keep herself composed.

"...All my life all the time so far away from home, Without you I’ll be so far away from home." As the song repeated, the sad yet hopeful music finally came to an end, and the scene froze on an image of Buffy smiling through tears, like a phoenix reborn from the ashes.

The room went quiet. It took Sarah a while to let go of her grip and asked in a low voice, "This is... the gift for me?"

"Yes, I wrote a song, then had someone from the record company help me complete it, had an artist under the label perform and record it, and then edited a music video using clips from ’Buffy the Vampire Slayer.’ Though all the details were taken care of, there are still some aspects that didn’t turn out quite as I hoped..." Adrian was about to say more, but Sarah abruptly threw herself into his arms and silenced him with her lips.

After a fervent kiss, they finally parted, and Sarah opened her eyes, something glittering and sparkling within them.

"I’m sorry, if only I could have given it to you on your 21st birthday, and..." Adrian sighed, reaching out to gently caress her cheek, "I regret that I never accompanied you ice skating, so I could only edit that footage into the video, oh, your graceful movements are so beautiful..."

"It’s okay, Ed, it’s okay," Sarah’s voice choked with emotion, a tear already rolling down her cheek, "Having you by my side is enough; this is the best gift I’ve ever received! I love you!"

As she spoke, she kissed him repeatedly, her eyes tearful and smiling, not knowing if she was crying or laughing. Adrian smiled back, responding by holding her tightly in his arms, and stayed like that for a long while before stopping.

"Tell me about it, Ed, how did you do it?" Sarah murmured with her head against his chest, her eyes closed, the enchanting song still echoing in her heart, stirring her emotions with the video.

Adrian told her slowly, starting with how he found out about her father, how he wanted to comfort her, how he built the beginnings of a song from some musical fragments, how he got help from people like Eric Norton to complete it, and how he had the increasingly popular new singer Britney Spears to perform and record the song. Regarding his relationship with Britney, he neither made it explicit nor hid it.

Sarah didn’t mind it at all, knowing well what kind of person Adrian was, and besides, her heart was now completely filled with the song he had created for her with such effort.

"Thank you, Ed, thank you," she said, lifting her head after hearing his story, although she had controlled her emotions, the tears still glittered in her eyes.

"Alright, no more crying," Adrian said, wiping the tears from her cheeks, "I only hope that from now on, even if you cry, it will be tears of happiness and joy, and not of sadness and pain."

"I know I can do it." Sarah nodded repeatedly, smiling through her tears, and grabbed Adrian’s hand, placing it on her heart, "As long as you’re with me, I won’t wander too far from home."

Adrian laughed and held her in his arms again.

"Ed."

"Hmm?"

"Will this song be released?"

"That’s up to you."

"I have a small request."

"Go ahead."

"After it’s released, if there’s going to be a music video, can you and I star in it together?" (To be continued. If you like this work, please come to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommended votes and monthly tickets, your support is my greatest motivation.)