America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Before Martin could react, Annie-Hathaway's agent Maha announced that love had become a thing of the past.

Agents are smart and know what to say and what not to say, revealing to the public only that Martin and Annie had had a big argument due to incompatible personalities and decided to break up.

Martin naturally wouldn't say much either, nor did he need to.

A peaceful breakup is the best option for celebrity couples or spouses, as a fight would only lead to both sides exposing each other's dirty laundry.

Paparazzi launched a full-scale campaign to uncover the real reason behind the couple's split.

Entertainment publications and gossip media went into a frenzy.

Sometimes, it doesn't matter whether news is good or bad; what's important is the exposure.

In Hollywood, not just ordinary stars, but even big celebrities need to feed off traffic.

After another weekend, "The Hills Have Eyes" had accumulated $71.51 million at the North American box office.

Meanwhile, the film was gradually released in several countries and regions including Latin America, Europe, East Asia, and Australia. Benefiting from the ripple effect of the North American box office hit, the international market response was positive, and it grossed $22.47 million in just one week.

As the audience for "The Hills Have Eyes" grew, so did Martin's fan base.

Under the impetus of Martin and Thomas, the West Coast Fan Club was officially established.

Rachel became the leader, while Jessica and Emily sneaked in and became deputy leaders.

The hub for activities remained the fan section of Martin's blog.

Martin had considered establishing his personal official website, but to make the website decent and maintain it later on would require substantial expenses.

Currently, most of his funds were tied up in the "Wanted Order" project, so further plans would have to wait until the funds flowed back.

The project's director was now in sight.

Ari Emanuel personally recommended a candidate.

Martin made a special trip to WMA, arriving at the entrance to Thomas's office, where assistant Natasha quickly got up to greet him.

Bruce came to her desk: "No need to be polite, just a cup of coffee."

Natasha went for the coffee.

Martin entered the office and took a seat.

Thomas began with good news, "The agency has recommended you to the 'Infernal Affairs' crew, and Ari Emanuel has personally discussed this matter with Martin Scorsese."

From this perspective, WMA took Martin very seriously. He added, "The company has invested a certain amount of networking resources in you."

Being in a major agency has its advantages, which Martin was well aware of. He asked, "How did the crew respond?"

Thomas said, "The crew has not yet selected actors, but you have passed the preliminary screening and moved straight into the second round of auditions." He specifically reminded, "Scorsese is not an ordinary director; even if you join the crew with financing, some procedures are unavoidable.

You must participate in the third round of auditions to get Scorsese's personal approval, otherwise it will be very difficult to secure the role."

Martin had been aware of this, "Don't worry, I've made ample preparations."

Negotiations between Pacific Pictures and Warner Bros. were entering the final stage, and it would be no problem for him to join the crew with financing.

This was a project of Martin Scorsese; there would certainly be competition.

Thomas wasn't worried about Martin's competitiveness but about something else, "This is a high-profile game, Scorsese takes it very seriously. According to Ari's conversation with him, he has no hope for this year's Oscars. He's preparing to make another run for Best Director at the Oscars. Anyone who messes with this project will only become an enemy of Martin Scorsese."

He cautioned, "It's not that you can't compete, but some low-level tactics, in such high-profile games, might bring negative effects. Scorsese, with nearly forty years of experience in the industry, what hasn't he seen?"

Martin nodded, "The competitors are much higher caliber than me. If I used dirty tactics and even temporarily succeeded, there would be bad consequences afterward. The benefits of the role might not outweigh the negative impact that follows."

"Exactly." The more Thomas worked with Martin, the more he realized that the incidents during the auditions and shooting for the wax museum and jeans crew were not coincidental.

First, the biggest competitor was taken out by Adrian, then Adrian met his end in Australia, and the incident with the jeans crew was certainly no coincidence.

Who benefited from these events?

Thomas glanced at the closed office door and lowered his voice as a warning, "The incidents with the wax museum and the jeans crew, happening to those people, the agency could just let them go; after all, they weren't real stars. But if they happened to star-level actors, it's a whole different story. Stars are connected to interests in all aspects.

Relevant parties would definitely not let it slide easily."

Of course, Martin understood this, "Keep your heart in your chest; I never planned to take a shortcut for this role."

Such dirty tactics certainly couldn't be used recklessly. He asked, "Who are the competitors now?"

Thomas shook his head, "Despite our inquiries from multiple sources, there is no news yet. So far, the crew has only confirmed Leonardo as a cast member. The casting process for the other roles hasn't started, so there's no way to find out. But one thing is certain: Scorsese's movies are never short of heavyweight stars."

They would have to start with Warner Bros. for this matter. Martin then asked about another project, "You called me saying there's a director willing to take on 'Wanted Order'?"

Thomas said, "Ari and Jim have issued a joint notice, with several agents recommending their director clients."

He handed a few documents to Martin, "Pierre, a photographer with no prior experience directing on his own. Michael Davis, a screenwriter turned director, his latest movie is 'Monster Truck.'"

Martin carefully looked through the documents; these two directors were quite unknown to him. He had been in Hollywood for such a long time and had never heard of them.

Thomas continued, "There's also another one, French director Louis Leterrier. His previous movie, 'Danny the Dog,' was released in Europe at the beginning of February, with a fairly average response."

Martin was familiar with this director's name. As he reviewed his past works, he saw a movie series—'Transporter'!

The director of the first two parts.

Martin carefully recalled the movies and seemed to remember that, apart from Audi, only Jason Statham had left a lasting impression; he couldn't recall the rest.

The series had three parts, which established Statham's status as an action star. It seemed that it was recognized for action and a cool style, which was a good fit with 'Wanted Order.'

Martin then focused his thoughts, recalling that the guy had made some other movies too, but when he used to watch movies, he hadn't paid much attention to the directors unless they were top-tier Hollywood directors.

Without a doubt, this was a director skilled at filming action movies.

Martin glanced at 'Transporter' listed behind Europa Corp and asked, "Is Leterrier currently in Los Angeles?"

Thomas replied briefly, "After finishing 'Danny the Dog,' he shifted his focus to Hollywood, and had signed a representation contract with the company even before shooting Danny."

Martin flipped through Leterrier's information once more, picked up the phone from Thomas's desk, and dialed Aga's number.

Aga had come to North America from France just before shooting 'The Hills Have Eyes' and should have an insight.

Once the other side connected, Martin briefly explained the situation.

Aga said straightaway, "You saw during the shooting of 'The Hills Have Eyes,' I'm not very good at action scenes, but Leterrier is just the opposite. His ability to tell a story is a bit weaker, yet he's extremely skilled at designing and controlling big scenes, focusing on visual enjoyment and cool cinematography.

He's recognized in the French film industry as a director who can handle action scenes and a cool style."

After finishing the call, Thomas said, "I think he's quite suitable."

Martin needed a director with successful experience in this area, and Leterrier happened to be just that.

He said, "You contact Leterrier's agent. If he's interested, have him go to the 'Wanted Order' studio as soon as possible. Louise, the screenwriters, and I all want to meet with him in person, as well as the action director."

Thomas pulled the phone back, directly dialed a senior agent's number, talked in detail, then covered the receiver and asked Martin, "What time would be suitable?"

Martin answered, "This afternoon or tomorrow morning would both be fine."

Thomas said into the phone, "This afternoon."

The person on the other end replied, "That works. Two o'clock this afternoon, Louis and I will go to the studio."

Thomas hung up the call, "Done, two o'clock this afternoon."

Martin glanced at his watch and invited proactively, "Come with us when the time comes."

Although the law stipulates that agents cannot participate in film preparation, shooting, or production, understanding the entire process is hugely beneficial for agents. The very top entertainment agents often leave the agency business to become executives at one of the six major companies.

Agents are considered a downstream service industry in Hollywood.

Martin intended to pay a visit to Ari Emanuel, but the latter was away on a business trip. Moreover, it would seem rather inconsiderate to visit another agent in front of his current one, Thomas. He made a special call to Ari to express his gratitude.

He would visit Ari quietly when he returned.

With a suitable director candidate in mind, Martin left the office in high spirits, only to see Bruce chatting animatedly with Natasha, Thomas's assistant.

He took a moment to observe; Natasha wasn't particularly curvy, just of average build.

As they walked downstairs, Martin asked, "Are you interested in Natasha?"

Bruce shook his head, "She's too flat for me, not my type." When someone came by, he waited for them to leave, then explained, "Natasha is Thomas's assistant; she has access to a lot of his information. I was testing the waters. She's quite ambitious, and establishing a good relationship with her means we could be better informed about any special moves by Thomas."

"Old Cloth, you never cease to impress!" Martin admired the craftiness, "You're a true professional."

With a snort, Bruce said, "I've told you I'd have your back, and I intend to keep my promise."

That afternoon, Martin went with Louise to meet with French director Leterrier, joined by screenwriter Bradt and action director Chad Stahelski.

They exchanged their understandings and ideas on action and cool scenes. Leterrier had also reviewed the draft script of 'Wanted Order' and conducted a thorough exchange about the film's shooting.

While it was impossible for their visions and ideas to align perfectly, the differences were not significant, as finding common ground while retaining individual differences was not difficult.

Both parties were inclined towards cooperation, and the experienced Louise decided on the spot to engage Leterrier as the director of the movie.

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