Hollywood Domination Chapter 136: solitary

"Are you here now? Have you parked in?" Lilian kept asking on the phone, "Are you sure you have parked in the driveway?"

Jenny waved helplessly at the surveillance camera, and after the iron door slid open, she drove the car into the courtyard, "I'm sure, I've already driven in, you can start it, coward."

"Okay, then I'll hang up." The sound of starting the engine came from the phone, and Jenny rolled her eyes helplessly, put the phone in her bag, parked the car in front of the garage, and jumped out of her newly rented car. Maserati. She looked curiously at the property that Cesare had bought for herself—this was her first visit to Cesare's house.

In fact, as a broker, inviting clients to your home is a very common way to increase intimacy. Some family celebrations are also a good time to build relationships, such as Hanukkah and coming-of-age ceremony for Jewish families. If you can be invited to participate, it means Has entered the core social circle of the family. However, Cesare himself is single, and he doesn’t seem to be a pious believer. Jenny’s schedule is also busy, and she is often followed by paparazzi, and it’s not convenient to go to a single man’s house, so although her house and Cesare’s house are only a few distance away. blocks, but hadn't been here for over a year, until today when Cesare decided to host a birthday dinner at home, hosting--to be awkward--Lillian and her new boyfriend.

Although Cesare stated that his new girlfriend would also appear (if he hadn't said it, Jenny wouldn't know that he was in a relationship again), the two made it clear that it was half a year ago, and there was a buffer period of half a year. It is not outrageous to find a new love for each other, but Lilian is still very embarrassed and nervous because of this. She had arrived five minutes ago, but she chose to park her car nearby and wait for Jenny to drive through the door without being sure whether there was anyone in the house.

"Happy birthday." After the door opened, Jenny said enthusiastically, presenting a gift, "Red wine and cheese——I prepared caviar for you, but there was a power outage in Los Angeles yesterday, so, just to be on the safe side , I’d better enjoy them at home tonight.”

Cesare pursed his lips in response, and the beautiful girl who walked with him laughed, and she introduced herself kindly, "Jennifer, I have been looking forward to seeing you for a long time, I'm your loyal fan - I'm Chiesa's girlfriend, Michelle Elliott."

"Michelle is Latham's patent attorney," Cesare introduced. He glanced at Jenny and added, "Latham is the largest law firm in the United States."

Jenny's sluggish expression returned to normal, and she enthusiastically shook Michelle's hand. Michelle smiled and exchanged glances with Cesare, "It's a pleasure meeting you, Michelle..."

Because it was the first time to visit Cesare's house, Michelle accompanied her around an extra circle, "Swimming pool, garden, front yard - there are living room, dining room kitchen and guest room, reading room on the first floor..."

Jenny has the illusion that she is looking at the house. Cesare's own house is as she expected. Based on the impression of the model house, it is now certain that the house he lived in before is completely Lilian's aesthetic.

"Very charming house." She said to Michelle. Out of the gossip mentality that anyone would have, Jenny paid attention to the furnishings of the master bedroom outside the door, at least as far as the part she saw was concerned. , Michelle should have not entered the house yet, and officially moved in to live with him. "But it seems a little empty for ordinary people, doesn't it?"

"I am also a supporter of Bauhaus." Michelle showed the 'that' smile just now, "In fact, my own home style is very similar to this, so I often say that I and Bauhaus Cesare is a match made in heaven."

Jenny smirked at her, and decided that she still likes Lilian better, "Yes, you must not miss each other—let's go down, the guests should be arriving, I can't drag the hostess here to accompany you Me."

Compared with Cesare's new girlfriend, Jenny prefers Lilian's new partner. Surprisingly, the new partners that the ex-lover found are similar to each other in personality. From Myspace, Lily Ann's new boyfriend, Mark, also has a smiley, kind personality. He is passionate about public welfare and is Doctors Without Borders. In short, it is hard to say whether Michelle is Cesare's ideal couple, but Jenny is sure that Mark is definitely The kind of lover Lillian wanted.

"Hey," Lilian hurried over and kissed Jenny, "Where's Josh?"

"Josh is still participating in the TV show, so he has to come later." Jenny said. Lilian then asked, "OK, what about Christopher?"

Jenny blushed a little, but remained calm, "I don't know, he should be here—have you seen Michelle?"

"I see, I said hello." Lilian made a grimace, "Uh, what a female version of Chesa."

"Oh, some people seem to be not very optimistic about this pair." Jenny laughed.

"Although this is none of my business anymore, but——Yeah, they don't seem to be very suitable. Of course, she is already fascinated by Chesa."

"You mean, in your opinion, Chesa—" Jenny came up with gossiping interest.

Lilian shrugged and pulled Jenny enthusiastically, "Let's go, I'll take you to see Mark before he is swallowed alive by Chesa."

She met and dated Mark when Jenny went to Hamilton to shoot "Sally". When she came back for vacation, she didn't introduce him because the two hadn't been together for a long time. Jenny only learned about him through the Internet. This time it's official. ——As she expected, Mark is indeed much more likable than Cesare's pair, at least he won't jump out with words like "Bauhaus, Ruisheng". He introduced to Jenny in detail what he would do A volunteer charity organization, Mark is an ophthalmologist who goes to Africa for ten days every year to provide free cataract and glaucoma treatment operations for local people. "I'm taking every opportunity to tell people about these poor kids—especially the millionaires who need tax exemptions."

"Okay," Jenny laughed, "you can show the information to my agent Jim, and if there is no problem with the account, I will donate."

"The children of Africa will thank you, Jenny." Mark and Jenny clinked glasses, and he joked to Lilian again, "That sentence makes tonight's pain worthwhile."

Lilian laughed, and Jenny couldn't help laughing, "Comeon, Chesa is not so narrow-minded."

"Are you talking about me?" Cesare and one of Lilian's uncles came over, "Jenny, this is ABC's advertising director David Swenson."

"Lilian introduced us to each other just now," Jenny said with a smile, "Mr. Svensson, once again, it's nice to meet you——"

Family friends like Lilian and Cesare, even if they break up, it is difficult to completely sever contact. Lilian said to Cesare, "Just now Mark said that you made him very sad tonight."

Cesare showed a social smile, and he said in a calm and threatening voice, "Do I have it? Mark?"

Mark begged for mercy, "Let me go, Chesa, I was just joking."

Everyone laughed, and Cesare returned to his normal tone, "Just kidding, Lilian is a good girl, treat her well—otherwise I will make you very sad."

"You can think of him as your big brother-in-law in Los Angeles," Lilian said, clenching her fists to intimidate Mark. "The very, very strong kind."

Although the ex-lovers might be a bit awkward meeting each other, Lilian and Cesare obviously resolved it well. They are also very eager to chat with her. This party can be described as star-studded. Although the host has a serious personality, there has never been a cold silence. Although Mrs. Vijri and Robert Iger didn't show up, Christopher, Cameron Diaz, Leonardo DiCaprio and others all showed up, which is enough for Chesa Ray's face, of course, some familiar faces from the B-list appeared, but only Jenny stayed until the end under Cesare's gesture. Most of the stars left after dinner and went to the next stall to serve spirits, Power Party.

"Jim brought some big dream files," Cesare said, and he pointed to the direction of the second floor. "Let the cleaners clean up here. We have a meeting on the second floor. .”

"Of course." Jenny and Michelle, who came with two trays, nodded, "Jim, which documents did you say last time that I need to sign? How slow the speed is, plus the **** hurricane, I'm afraid I missed a few points..."

She walked up the stairs with Jim, who was flushed from drinking, and vaguely heard Michelle's voice, "But dear..."

A moment later, Cesare appeared at the door of the study as if nothing had happened. He turned around, closed the door, and locked it again. TV series to create some stable sources of income for the company—”

"Oh! Oh! What a great idea!" Jenny regained her spirits. She had forgotten about it. Compared with movies, she must remember the ratings information of TV dramas more firmly, that is to say, cheats are easier to use . "Uh—wait, but I remember that TV production was pretty much a private affair for the major networks."

Although there are many TV stations in the United States, there are not many companies that can independently produce TV dramas, because most TV stations adopt the principle of self-production and self-marketing. NBC, CBS, ABC, FOX, UPN, WB, the five major TV networks They are all backed by the Big Six in Hollywood, and all kinds of cable channels and pay stations are almost all subsidiaries of the Big Six. Even if they have plans to buy movies, they usually only buy them from a big company like Warner Bros. If a small production company wants to step into the TV drama industry and sell TV dramas to the six major companies, the threshold to cross is indeed not low. It is not an exaggeration to say that the hope is almost zero.

"But this does not mean that we cannot participate in the development of new dramas and share the production costs for them." Cesare said, "The start-up capital of each new drama is at least 10 million US dollars. If it is a science fiction drama If the budget is higher, if there are investors who can share the cost, it means that the production center can make the series better, or shoot more episodes. I just talked to David and confirmed that ABC does I have a similar idea, but the most urgent need should be HBO. After all, HBO’s shooting costs are higher, and the loss of series failure is even greater, so HBO is likely to formally seek a similar cooperation model at the end of this year. If possible, I want to get involved in the production of a series first, and I think this will be a good profit model, of course, the premise is that our vision for picking dramas is accurate enough.”

"Ten million dollars?" Jenny couldn't believe it, "I thought—"

"Pilot episodes, the guarantee contract signed with the screenwriter, director and other core crew members, if it is a famous brand team, generally requires a guaranteed season's income, and of course the actors." Cesare said, "Settings, shooting, Propaganda... Now that the shooting cost of an episode can easily exceed 3 million, 10 million dollars is nothing in a TV series, so you can imagine how much pressure the TV station will have.”

"So which network should we start with? HBO or ABC?" Jenny asked.

"HBO." Cesare said, "As far as I know, ABC is still hesitating-but don't worry, even if the cooperation with HBO fails, we still have ABC as a guaranteed choice."

The reason why ABC is a guaranteed choice is not just because David Svensson is the director of ABC. Jenny guesses that a large part of the reason is that Disney is the parent company of ABC, and the big dream is now Disney. The thickest thigh...

Of course, Robert will not ask anything personally for a share of Show, but Mrs. Vijay's relationship is there. As long as the big dream wants it, and ABC has such a cooperation opportunity, there is basically no point in negotiating the contract. difficult. ——Don't say that the Western world doesn't need relationships. In fact, as long as interests are involved, almost all countries in the world are the same. Sometimes relationships are the strongest layer of strength.

Because both HBO and ABC have such an idea at the beginning and have not progressed to the point of picking a film, so the trio (actually a duo) just discussed briefly and agreed to seize this opportunity, " Of course, you have to put your mind into the film selection and negotiations, and the TV networks will definitely allocate the new dramas they think are the most risky to foreign capital.”

"Is there any precedent for HBO to conceal income?" Jenny is very concerned about this now. After all, TV series are different from movies, and the main income will be in the future, such as the annual rebroadcast rights contract, DVD sales, etc. If If the TV station deliberately conceals it, this business cannot be easily involved.

"I haven't heard of any similar lawsuits." Jim replied, "I'll send a smart boy to watch."

This topic can only be discussed here, and Jenny looked at the financial statements and the production progress of the two films—fortunately, neither of these two films was affected by natural disasters, the shooting work was not interrupted, and the budget was not affected. No increase is required. "—By the way, how did you manage Lindsay Lohan? To be honest, I thought we would break up with this project."

"Jim got someone and got a Lindsay hair at the last minute," Cesare said, and Jim blushed half proudly half embarrassingly. "Lindsay has a history of **** use within six months, and the people at Fox have changed their minds."

Even though she knew that Lindsay would die sooner or later, after learning about her information, Jenny couldn't help but sigh, "It's a pity, this girl's future is bright—has this matter made it to the media? ?”

"No, Lindsay's agent begged us not to blow it out." Jim replied, "But she is already in rehab, but in the name of treating alcoholism."

In Hollywood, taking drugs is a big taboo, not only because it will affect the public image of the star, but also because after taking drugs, the actor's performance status will be very unstable, or even unable to complete the performance. The performance phenomenon is also a great loss to the producers. Therefore, once it is revealed that he has taken drugs, it is inevitable that the celebrity's value will plummet. Unless he can successfully maintain the withdrawal state for a long time, no project will smile at him. Therefore, drug addicts like Lindsay who are still under control have to find another name even if they want to enter a rehab center.

After abandoning Lindsay, Fox chose Rachel McAdams recommended by Dameng, and the budget of "Unlucky Cupid" was also reduced to a safe range. At this time, Rachel has a new work, while Lindsay has only a long blank resume-this may be the starting point of the bifurcation of the two stars. In this matter, Hollywood is very contradictory. It is very easy to make mistakes, but its tolerance for mistakes is terribly low. A different choice may be a distance that cannot be shortened in a lifetime.

Although it was a short meeting, it took more than an hour. When the meeting was over, Jim hurried out of the house, "I can't believe I left it behind. I'll go back to the company now and get it tomorrow." I will send it to you for signature in the morning, and this contract cannot be delayed any longer."

Jenny was left behind, she looked around, "Michelle has gone?"

"It should be." Cesare didn't mean to see off the guest, he opened the bookcase drawer, "Cigar?"

"If you keep saying 'should be' to a woman who's worked so hard at being the hostess of the night at parties," Jenny sat down on the low counter, "you're going to have to find a new girlfriend soon Yes, Cesare."

Cesare showed a slight smile, and poured Jenny a glass of wine, which was the double aged whiskey she liked, and he poured himself a glass of brandy, "Strange, you would actually talk to her, I thought You don't like her."

"Of course I'm not crazy about her—" Jenny spread her hands under Cesare's eyes, "Well, I don't like her very much, but I don't hate her either. All this is just very unfair. I know every detail of my life, but I know almost nothing about you, and such a sense of gap is very uncomfortable."

"So I only take 15% of your income." Cesare pointed out, "All this does have a price."

Jenny laughed, "Oh, you're already anxious about Josh's marriage, aren't you? That's why you asked me to stay."

Cesare made a noncommittal expression, and Jenny was about to speak, but with a soft sound, the room suddenly plunged into darkness, and she couldn't help but let out a soft cry, "Ah!"

"Maybe the power went out again, don't panic." Cesare said, "Sit still."

He seemed to have left the place. After a few noises, Cesare opened the curtains, and the moonlight poured into the window lattice, becoming the only light source. Jenny looked at the landscape outside the window, which was pitch black, with only sporadic lights. Downtown Los Angeles, "Well, poor Jim, hope he makes it to the neighborhood - this is definitely another power outage."

"We'll have to move," Cesare said, "It's going to get hot and stuffy here soon."

"So." After a few minutes, Jenny said, "Josh's marriage?"

They have already changed places, sitting cross-legged on the warm rooftop, looking down at this dark and quiet gentle **** above Beverly Hills, with the moist and warm night wind blowing over, it is indeed necessary to Much cooler than indoors.

"Your questioning tone is very questionable." Cesare pointed out, "Actually, you should explain to me why you don't want to marry Josh."

In the hazy darkness, red light flashed, and Jenny smelled the aroma of cigar smoke, maybe it was related to whiskey, and she felt very relaxed—of course, maybe it was because the darkness made her not need to mind her sitting position, and she could take off Damn it, wearing lace-up heels all night.

"Why?" She lazily repeated Cesare's words. "Yeah, why."

Cesare took a sip of wine, "Is it because of Christopher?"

"What?" Jenny laughed, "No, no, of course not... Well, part of it is because of him."

She took a puff, "But it's not because of him, you know what I mean? I just don't want to be under such pressure, when we are in Hollywood, I always think, if we get caught , what kind of storm will usher in—"

"Yes." Cesare agreed, "This will indeed be a big event, and I understand that it will affect your psychological state."

His tone became a little cautious, which made people laugh, and Jenny smiled and said, "And I guess the reason for your change of attitude is that you are really worried that I will be under heavy pressure, I don't know, Boom said, change Crazy, isn't it?"

Cesare was pursing his lips——Jenny couldn't see it, but he could feel it. It was definitely a pursing of his lips. He said dryly, "To be honest, sometimes I can't help but worry about it."

Jenny laughed, "Oh, Chesa, dear old Chesa."

She patted Cesare's shoulder, or wherever she touched, and gradually stopped laughing, "You know what?—Sometimes I worry about that too."

Cesare is as secluded as the darkness, maybe it's because the environment makes her feel safe, maybe it's because of all people, Cesare is the one closest to her secret - he has definitely found out No, it's even possible that some guesswork has been made. Jenny really loosened up, and for the first time in a long time, she opened up a conversation without citing any destination, revealing, “When we were in the Caribbean, things got more complicated when Chris and I developed a relationship. Loose... I don't know, after friendships things get complicated but in the caribbean it's all breathless and of course I've kept a lot of things from the public before that like you Like I said, it makes me feel pressured, maybe because the instinct of herd mentality is manipulating me-but I can learn to deal with those pressures, but it may be because of the relationship between shooting a lot of martial arts. In the Caribbean, I feel very Tired, I started to dread the future, I couldn't accept that after such an exhausting job, I would go back to the house and have to deal with another awkward relationship."

She said, "When I imagine what's going to happen after Josh and I get married, I feel... very lonely, this marriage is going to be such a huge secret, so huge that I divide everyone into two groups. , those who know the secret, and those who don’t. And there are so few people who belong to the former, Cesare, I don’t know how to describe it, it’s just..."

"It's just that you don't belong to any group anymore, you are independent from this society, and almost no one is your companion." Cesare said, "Is it?"

"Y-yes," said Jenny, "and the secret cut off my chances of finding a companion... I couldn't find someone who would make my home more like home while I was married, so I Like an ant under a microscope, there is no freedom unless you hide in Hamilton forever - how strange it is, in Hollywood, you are always surrounded by so many people around you, but you still can't help feeling how lonely you are , there are so many people watching you in this world, but you are so, so lonely..."

She couldn't continue, and the roof fell into a brief silence.

Cesare asked softly, "Do you need a tissue?"

"No," Jenny cleared her throat, "I—I'm fine, really—and I've got one in my hand."

They were silent for a while, and then Jenny simply gave up on herself, "Okay, tell me—tell me how you laughed at my weakness in your heart——"

"No." Cesare interrupted her, his voice softened, "No. In fact, I admire your strength, you are already the star with the fewest breakdowns under my command, Jefferson."

"Really?"

"Really," Cesare said, "Bell was almost addicted to alcohol for a while, and Christopher's way of coping with stress was to linger in the flowers-everyone has their own problems, and your performance has been perfect. Overjoyed. Of course, I have to say that there was one time in the past, I thought you had a breakdown."

Jenny giggled through tears, "The Notebook and Prada."

"Yes, "The Notebook" and "Prada." Cesare said, "So, everyone has a time when they can't bear the huge fame, although your situation is a bit special than them..."

"What's so special?" Everyone cared about their own evaluation, and Jenny pricked up her ears.

"You are a very mysterious person, Jefferson." Cesare said, "I doubt that anyone in the world really understands you. There is a... I don't know, secret? Mystery? You always Going against my predictions, I know my clients, my colleagues, my friends, that's the housekeeping skill of a broker, but I don't know much about you. I think it will be a source of stress for you, there is no such thing as People can understand the real you, no one can understand you, which in itself means great pressure and..."

"Lonely." Jenny said softly, "Yes, so lonely."

"Yes," Cesare said, "extreme loneliness can of course lead to a cascade of psychological problems, so if being married makes you feel worse, then no problem, the marriage option is out."

"Really?" Jenny raised her voice for the second time, almost overjoyed, and asked childishly.

"Really." Cesare affirmed for the second time, "After all, I don't want to visit my best client in a lunatic asylum."

"And partners." Jenny corrected.

"And partners." Cesare followed suit.

"Good." Jenny smiled, she raised her glass, "Cheers."

Cesare clinked glasses with her under the moonlight. For a while, the two of them didn't speak, just sat on the roof and watched the lights of the city in the distance light up one by one.

"So." Jenny swung her glass, "You said before that Christopher's way of coping with stress is to linger in the flowers—"

Cesare raised his head and laughed relaxedly at the starry sky. He seldom smiled like this, young, carefree and pure, "And you said you are just friends—"

"I'm just—well, I'm just curious, can't I?" Jenny said scathingly, "Answer me, Chesa—I promise I won't tell him—if you don't say yes, then It’s because you see him closer than me.”

"Okay——Okay." Cesare shook his head, "It's no secret—Christopher also has fears, and almost every A-lister feels that his position today is a fluke, and they are also afraid Looking forward to the future, the actor industry is like this. You never know whether your last film is your peak... This kind of huge panic cannot be compensated by the sense of accomplishment and money. Maybe they are better than being poor. The fear is that people will forget..."

His tone also carried some slight emotion, "And Christopher's way of dealing with this is to enjoy himself in a timely manner. He wants to enjoy everything he can enjoy in his peak period, and use his fame to buy everything he wants , try to use it before it expires—"

"That way even when he's dead, he's had his time," Jenny said. "It's kind of philosophical, isn't it?"

"I didn't say no." Cesare said, "Indeed, this is a good way to adjust."

"So, he is actually quite miserable." Jenny described Chris's face in her heart, "Behind those fickle **** faces, there is a timid little boy who loves to cry? Ugh, this setting is really vulgar."

"Hollywood is full of these poor little boys, little girls, if you want to look at it that way," Cesare said, "especially the A-list, and there's hardly any A-lister who doesn't have this problem... people say L.A. is an impetuous wasteland above opportunity, and maybe they're right that most people in this city—Beverly Hills—are lonely."

He pointed to the houses below the hillside, as if shooting, "Lonely, alone, alone, alone."

"What about you?" Jeanne asked, turning to look at Cesare. "Are you feeling lonely?"

Under their feet, the whole house was lit up, and Cesare's face was reflected in the landscape lights, a little faintly green, and he looked back at Jenny with a good eye.

"Sometimes," he said, "always, very much."

"I'm sorry." Jenny lowered her voice, "I'm sorry, Cesare."

"That's ok." Cesare shook his head, "Actually, it's not worth mentioning."

They didn't get up, and Jenny leaned on her elbow, looking at the starlight that was sparse and dim with the city light, "I never told you, what happened between you and Lilian is a pity - Michelle is a bitch. "

"So you really don't like her." Cesare said, "but you like Mark."

"You sound like an elementary school student complaining that the teacher is too partial," Jenny hid her smile behind her wine glass, "I don't like her—in fact, I appreciate the Bauhaus, and Cesare and I are almost the same. A natural pair—"

Imitating Michelle's voice, "Oh God, I miss Lillian."

Cesare also laughed, "Well, this is a private matter that should please you - we just had a bad day two days ago."

"Oh? Why?" Jenny really got excited, "Don't tell me she's already calling herself Mrs. Vijay."

"No." Cesare shook his head, "Two days ago, I found out that she sneaked into my house and tried to prepare a surprise party for me."

He emphasized his tone and said solemnly, "A surprise party."

Jenny laughed, and she responded sarcastically, "How dare she? Ohmygod, I bet it was ugly - and how did you find out?"

"My office has a real-time video of home surveillance." Cesare said, "As a result, I changed my security code. According to common sense, I think we will break up soon."

"This thing," Jenny announced, "Makemyday."

She put out her cigar, picked up her wine glass and stood up, "I should go—unfortunately, it seems that Lilian and Mark will not break up in a short time."

"It doesn't matter." Cesare shook his head and said calmly, "That girl is too good for Hollywood."

"Yeah," Jenny murmured, "kindness and purity are absolutely wonderful for Hollywood."

Cesare smiled, but before answering, he was attracted by the phone. He turned on the phone and looked at it for a moment, his expression changed, "Oh."

"What's wrong?" Jenny asked sensitively, "What happened?"

"Yeah..." Cesare looked up at her, "Anna sent me an email asking when I would be free—she wanted to discuss the details of Josh and your wedding."

The author has something to say: Note: The people mentioned in this chapter who went to a rehab center in the name of alcohol abstinence are really true. Basically, you can see who went in because of abstaining from alcohol, and then soon became addicted to drugs. Or if there are friends who can be high by your side, then it will definitely be...

An example of private goods, a certain Canadian little heavenly king and his girlfriend, the little heavenly king himself is undoubtedly the representative of high, so I think the girlfriend who went in to quit drinking is also very suspicious...

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Sorry, it's a bit late...I've been wanting to break the chapter, but I can't stop when it comes. I finished writing in one go and found out that it's already 9 o'clock. I bow, I'm really sorry, everyone has been waiting for a long time.

This is the update tonight~