I am Hollywood

Chapter 419: Chapter 420: Look at You All So Eager



[Chapter 420: Look at You All So Eager]

"Well, since you all look so eager..." Elisabeth glanced at Eric sitting in the audience, mustering her courage to say, "Finally, I want to thank Eric Williams. Although this guy really didn't do anything, it seems like everyone feels he should be thanked, so I guess I'll just go with the flow."

Seeing the girl's half-hearted attempt to cover up, the audience erupted in a chorus of playful jeers, which only made Elisabeth's face grow redder.

As the ceremony reached its conclusion, the final segment allowed for some free expression. At this stage, the emcee would not restrict the time for the winners' speeches. Many people, if they wished, could take the stage or mingle with the guests in attendance.

At that moment, many noticed host Billy Crystal stepping back onto the stage, casually walking over to the flustered Elisabeth, who looked ready to flee from the commotion, and joked, "Come on, Miss Murdoch, you seem to be struggling with that little gold statuette. Let me help you with that."

As he spoke, Crystal lent a hand to steady Elisabeth, supporting the statuette she held in her hands, then stepped forward to the microphone, saying, "Alright, those executives from Hollywood studios are now tearing up because some guy has finally stopped crazily making movies. A few years back, his films were quite a strain for everyone. So, in this joyful Cisco, let's forget about Eric Williams. The glory tonight is already destined for The Silence of the Lambs."

Amid the final laughs, this year's Oscar ceremony finally came to a close.

...

Ghost only garnered a few minor awards, so Firefly Films didn't plan to host a celebratory banquet. After all, following the Oscars, as long as one had the energy, there were all sorts of parties to attend. Eric simply announced that everyone was dismissed. The celebratory party for The Silence of the Lambs chose not to take place at a hotel but rather at a mansion owned by the Murdoch family in Beverly Hills.

As Eric slid into his car, he noticed a petite figure clambering in right after him, throwing her arms around Eric with a flurry of kisses and cuddles, "Eric, where's the little gold statuette? Where's the little gold statuette?"

Drew wasn't present at the ceremony, but the girl had been waiting outside the entire time. Eric pulled the clingy girl away, laughing, "How could I have the little gold statuette? They're all with Liz; they're back there doing interviews."

At this, Drew suddenly jumped out of the car. Eric ignored the crazy girl and waved to Nicole, who then made her way over and climbed into the vehicle.

Once Eric signaled the driver to head toward the celebration for The Silence of the Lambs in Beverly Hills, he lifted the partition between them, and the car smoothly began to roll out.

Nicole's mood was quite complex at that moment. For the audience, the Oscar ceremony was merely a lively Hollywood affair filled with fun and jokes, but for the stars attending, watching others ascend the stage to enjoy victory and glory made no one content to remain a mere spectator.

Once the car settled into a steady pace, Eric looked at Nicole's expression and asked, "Are you feeling envious?"

Nicole honestly nodded, "I was just thinking about when I could get my Oscar statuette."

Eric looked at Nicole and replied, "You're too beautiful; Oscar tends to have a bias against pretty women."Nôv(el)B\\jnn

Nicole wrapped her arms around Eric's arm, leaning against him with an endearing tone, "What about you?"

Eric embraced the girl, feeling the outline of her slim waist through the silk dress and said, "Of course, but do you really want the Oscar?"

Nicole insisted, "I don't believe there's a female actor in Hollywood who doesn't want one!"

"If you want an Oscar, it's not impossible," Eric continued, noticing the sparkle in Nicole's eyes, "But you'll need to dedicate two or three years fully to it. During that time, you might not be able to juggle commercial films, so there's a lot of risks involved. In the end, you may not even get the Oscar, and your value could diminish if you overly focus on art films."

Despite the team allure of the Oscar, Nicole certainly wouldn't give up her development in commercial films for it. Hearing Eric's words, she cast him a skeptical glance, "That shouldn't be the case, right?"

Eric explained, "For you, it absolutely would be. First, you'd need to choose an art film script that has the potential to impact the Oscars, then ensure it fits the judges' tastes for outstanding films. Once you confirm the movie is good enough with test screenings, it's a long road of pre-marketing and promotion, which usually takes several months. So, the effort required is much more than just filming the movie -- you also need to participate in various public relations efforts.

After getting enough attention at other pre-Oscar awards, the final push for Oscar Campaign begins. This entire process might just lead to a nomination. But given your background, age, and looks, getting that first nomination doesn't guarantee you'll win. You'll have to go through this at least two or three times, and even then, you need to pray not to encounter any strong competitors."

While Nicole found Eric's words somewhat believable, she still questioned, "Even though it sounds reasonable, looking back at recent Oscars, it seems like what you said doesn't quite happen. Judy Foster this year, the last winner was... I think it was that older woman, and going further back, it seems those winners didn't follow your proposed process, did they?"

Eric chuckled, "That's completely different. I was talking about a targeted strategy of aiming for the Oscars. The previous winners probably didn't even know they would get nominated before they starred in those films."

"Since they didn't, how could you... come up with those things you mentioned?"

Eric had, of course, drawn from his memories of the past. In just a few years, the Oscar's publicity would become increasingly standardized and formulaic. For instance, Nicole herself, in his original timeline, first garnered an Oscar nomination for Best Actress through Moulin Rouge, then won the little gold statuette the following year with The Hours. And not long after, Jennifer Lawrence would repeat this standard process by first earning a nomination for Winter's Bone, then winning the award for Silver Linings Playbook.

There were plenty of examples of winning on the first try as well, like Julia's Erin Brockovich or Charlize Theron's Monster. However, those actresses, even if they hadn't received many nominations before, were already accomplished by the time they claimed their wins, having made their mark in Hollywood.

Faced with Nicole's relentless questioning, Eric didn't feel the need to explain further, "Why do you have so many questions?"

Nicole twisted her body against Eric, giggling, her mind momentarily set aside the thought of pursuing an Oscar. After a moment, she remembered something else, "Eric, do you think it would be appropriate for me to star in a film like Sarah & Shannon? Pat just said that movie would be too much of a departure for me."

Eric, however, was not at all concerned, "You're gorgeous, but you don't have a sweet look. If you only keep doing romantic comedies, I guarantee you won't compete with Julia and the others. So it's better to explore your range early on and try out some very unique roles. Experimenting with various types of films will prevent you from being limited to just one style. Although Sarah & Shannon is an R-rated movie, if you nail the role of Sarah, it could be spectacular."

Upon hearing Eric mention Julia's name, Nicole turned her head, but her thoughts took a different direction, quietly asking, "You don't... want me to compete with Julia Roberts, do

you?"

Eric retorted, "Do you think I would need to?"

As his career progressed, Eric's perspective also broadened considerably. What he wanted was to continuously grow Firefly Films until it became a unique titan in Hollywood. In this context, Eric wouldn't invest too much thought into precisely directing the development paths for the women in his life. As long as they were thriving in their respective fields without seeking his assistance, he usually saw no reason to intervene.

However, it was evident that Nicole thought differently. She always felt that Eric treated her differently from the other women. Or to put it bluntly, even after that incident, while Eric had changed a lot in his attitude toward her, Nicole still believed that he always showed favoritism towards the others.

For a moment, Nicole fell silent, realizing that she rarely guessed Eric's true thoughts, and this time was no different. When she was daydreaming, she felt that she was suddenly picked up by Eric. sitting on his thighs, she cried in surprise, but shrank into Eric's arms obediently.

Eric pulled down the girl's lavender tube dress and stroked her delicate and fair skin. He said with a slightly admiring tone, "It's perfect. You know, Nicole, if I didn't want you to compete with Julia, I would have locked you up in the villa at Liberty City Manor and made you my personal maid forever."

Feeling Eric tearing off the nipple stickers on her chest bit by bit, and then reaching out to touch them, Nicole leaned on Eric's shoulder with some panting, and said in a sweet voice: "I'm sorry, Eric, I shouldn't have doubted you, can you forgive me?"

Eric still didn't stop what he was doing, and said, "I still have those maid outfits. I kind of miss seeing you in those outfits."

"I...ha, I'll find time to...wear it again for you to see."

...

The trip from the Shrine Auditorium in downtown Los Angeles to Beverly Hills usually only

took forty minutes, but it was already over an hour when Eric finally arrived at The Silence of

the Lambs party venue.

Drew and Elisabeth, who came out to greet him, eyed Nicole suspiciously as she leaned

against Eric. Being "in the know," it was easy for them to spot the telltale signs on Nicole's face, leading to disapproving looks directed toward Eric.

Nicole's doubts had prompted Eric to ask the driver to take a few extra loops around Los Angeles, where he had given the girl quite a scolding in the back of the car.

Facing the accusatory gazes from Drew and Elisabeth, Eric maintained his composure: "Liz, Nicole is a bit tired. Why don't you take her to find a room to rest for a while? I can manage on

my own."

Elisabeth huffed in annoyance but coldly directed at Nicole, "Follow me, Miss Kidman."

With that, Elisabeth turned and headed toward the villa. Nicole glanced back at Eric, saw him

nod, and followed after her.

Once the two women were out of sight, Drew leaped onto Eric's lap, laughing brightly, "Eric, didn't that feel great? Should we find some time to give it a try too?"

Eric lightly tapped the girl's forehead with his finger, adopting a serious expression, "Thinking about these things all day might mean it's time for a good reality check." Drew maintained her smile, cheerfully linking her arm with Eric's as they walked toward the villa, all the while chattering excitedly, "Yeah yeah, I promise to cooperate if you get serious

about this!"

...

As they entered the villa, the lobby was teeming with people engaged in lively conversations. Upon seeing Eric, numerous guests hurriedly approached to greet him, and he responded with

a smile to each one.

After chatting for a bit with Anthony Hopkins, Eric spotted Murdoch making his way through the crowd, beaming as he approached. As it was a celebration for his daughter's winning Best Picture, Murdoch couldn't possibly skip out on the event. Eric also noticed that Murdoch was accompanied by two youthful men around his own age.

After introductions, Eric learned that these two young men were Elisabeth's brothers. Noticing their slightly resentful expressions aimed at him, Eric guessed that Murdoch had undoubtedly compared them to himself and might have belitted them in private -- talk about being caught in the crossfire!

However, while physically similar in age, Eric's mental maturity was light years ahead of these two young punks. He didn't take their dismissive demeanor personally. After exchanging casual greetings, Murdoch ushered the two young men away and led Eric to a sofa.

Watching his sons walk away, Murdoch couldn't help but sigh, "If only Lachlan and James had half of your competence, I'd feel much more at ease handing the reins over to them." Eric vaguely recalled Elisabeth mentioning her brothers; they were the quintessential spoiled rich kids. One had even spent some time in juvie for reckless driving. Hearing Murdoch's sentiment, Eric tentatively suggested, "Isn't there still Liz?"

Murdoch shot a glance at Eric, remembering his daughter's connection with him, looking

somewhat troubled.

While he wholeheartedly wished for Eric and Elisabeth to be together, believing their union would significantly propel News Corp, he also recalled that over a year ago, Eric wasn't even willing to marry his daughter when Firefly was still in its early stages. The chances now

seemed even slimmer.

Moreover, with Firefly's current scale and the ambition Eric had shown, Murdoch was certain that even if Eric and Elisabeth did end up together, Firefly would only maintain a good

collaborative relationship with News Corp, not become its subsidiary.

*****

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