[US Entertainment] 1994

Josh greeted Arnold Keynes' gaze naturally, and there was even a slight smile on the corner of his lips. After a while, Arnold Keynes retracted his gaze and tapped his fingers on the table: "Mr. Walter, I was a little rude just now." Alright, allow me to re-introduce myself."

"I am Arnold Keynes, a professional agent. I have been in this industry for exactly ten years. After becoming an agent, the first star I dealt with was Tom Cruise." Arnold Keynes said, "We The cooperation relationship lasted for several years, and later the cooperation was terminated because of disagreement, so next, I hope to create a star who agrees with my ideas, Mr. Walter, what kind of star do you want to be?"

Josh smiled slightly. He understood what the other party meant. Judging from the current situation, it seemed that not only was he picking the right agent, but the other party was also very picky about the artists in his hands.

Arnold Keynes raised his eyebrows, waiting quietly for Josh's answer.

"Do you want me to tell you all about my ambitions? Mr. Cairns." Josh said calmly, "I'm worried that it will scare you."

Arnold Keynes's calm expression changed slightly at this moment: "I guess it must be amazing ambition, but the word fear has never been in my dictionary."

"If I have to set a standard, in terms of awards, I hope to be Katharine Hepburn among actors. As for business, I hope to have enough commercial value without being bound by business. If we can establish a cooperative relationship , I have only one request for my agent, you can give me full advice, but you can't interfere with my choice, I can make the biggest concession in terms of money, but in terms of performance, I am an actor, there is no one A layman knows more about cinema than I do."

After Josh finished speaking, he fixed his eyes on Arnold Keynes, trying to find out the other party's true thoughts from the other party's facial expressions. However, to Josh's regret, Arnold Keynes' expression still did not change, only pointing The sound of sharp tapping on the table proved that the other party was thinking.

After a long time, a smile gradually appeared on Arnold Keynes's face: "Josh Walter, you are a bold young man. I don't think there is any unknown newcomer in Hollywood who would stand in front of his agent Saying that, especially when you're trying to put your agent down."

"I'm sorry, Mr. Keynes, I've already made the biggest concession, and this is my truest thought." Josh said, "Agents can indeed play a big role, and many of them have excellent film selection vision , excellent public relations ability, but in the matter of acting, I am more confident than anyone else. Can you deny that even Michael Ovitz can't replace an actor to perform."

"Besides the movie itself, there are many things an agent can do. I'm an actor, and I'm not good at many things. I can take care of everything other than acting for you."

After saying this, Josh kept silent. For him, this was already the biggest concession, although he knew very well that it would be very difficult for the agent to completely give up the right to interfere in the actor's selection of films. Not easy.

Why do Hollywood's top agents earn tens of millions of dollars a year, which is on par with big-name entertainers, and why is Michael Ovitz, the head of CAA, as powerful in Hollywood as the bosses of several major companies?

To a large extent, it is precisely because they can influence the will of the actors.

The top agents are overwhelmed, and the artist resources in their hands are enough to allow them to strategize in front of big companies. When a film company plans to make a movie and tries to recruit actors from agents, these agents are likely to use a certain star as a bargaining chip. The film company signs the contract, and during this process, he may add the condition of arranging another star to participate in the performance, or he may extract a lot of economic benefits from the contract. After all this is completed, he will talk about the participation of the star.

It is true that stars can benefit from these movies, but at the same time, the agent has accumulated contacts, gained benefits, and can even cultivate a new outstanding star, which is even more profitable.

In Josh's view, if Arnold Keynes can't meet his requirements, Josh will not sign a contract with him even if the other party is the pusher for Tom Cruise to become a superstar.

Although Tom Cruise's achievements make him envious, Josh firmly believes that he is the unique Josh Walter, he will not become the next Tom Cruise, and he will not repeat anyone's route.

And in Josh's opinion, he chose the most correct path.

Judging from his previous life experience, Daniel Day-Lewis is the most favored Oscar actor among Hollywood actors, who has won three Oscars, followed by Jack Nicholson, Tom Hanks and Sean Penn. All three have been crowned Oscar winners twice, but among these acting actors, Tom Hanks is always the most famous and powerful.

The reason is simple. Among these actors, only Tom Hanks has maintained the highest commercial standards.

Daniel Day-Lewis and Sean Penn are both typical art-based actors. They have no shortage of scenes to shoot, and the quality of the films they make is also high. But Tom Hanks has both Oscar awards and The achievements in business are also impressive. "Philadelphia Story", "Forrest Gump", and "Saving Private Ryan" are all classics in film history, but the box office of these films is also astonishing. , "Forrest Gump" even defeated all its opponents and won the championship of the North American box office rankings that year.

Compared with most unpopular Oscar films, "Forrest Gump" not only crowned Tom Hanks as the best actor, but also created a remarkable box office miracle. Even in the history of Oscars, such situations are rare .

So what Josh wants to be is an actor like Tom Hanks who pays equal attention to art and business.

Even after the 90s, Tom Hanks has stepped out of the peak of his career, but he can still star in commercial blockbusters such as "The Da Vinci Code", and can rely on films such as "Captain Philip" and "Captain Sully" to present awards There have been some gains in the season. Compared with the other Tom, his career is stable.

Although Tom Cruise is a very well-known superstar in Hollywood, after entering the new century, Cruise has stagnated in terms of awards, and it is difficult to follow the path of an acting actor. There is also the "Mission: Impossible" series, but Tom Cruise's influence is not as good as before. As he grows older, even if he wants to shoot every action himself, he has to stop because of health requirements .

This is undoubtedly a cruel reality, but it is the status quo of Hollywood, even superstars are not immune.

"For an agent, it's very difficult to let go of the rights in your hands." Arnold Keynes said, "I'm really curious, where did you get your confidence..."

Josh raised his eyebrows: "So Mr. Cairns, you still don't agree with my idea..."

"But—forgot to tell you, I'm not the kind of agent who likes to meddle in the artist's affairs wantonly. If you determine your goal, I will play the role of agent to complete it for you." Arnold Keynes suddenly smiled, " But I hope my stars can fully respect my opinion, don't be arrogant, don't think about relying on gossip and hype to get a first-line position, that's not enough, there are only two things in Hollywood that are eternal, one is Oscar, and the other is Headshots of several presidents."

"As an agent, I also have my ambitions. I think we can cooperate, but it's not about one party's sex with the other, nor is one party becoming a vassal of the other."

"So it looks like we hit it off?"

Josh's smile grew brighter.

Arnold Keynes first extended his hand: "It's a pleasant cooperation."

Josh immediately stretched out his hand: "Happy cooperation."

After the conversation with Arnold Keynes, Josh returned to the hotel. At this time, all the actors from the crew of "My Cousin Vinny" came together, and the group had a full meal under the leadership of producer Dale Launer. Dayton, the next day, "My Cousin Vinny" officially started shooting.

The first scene of course belongs to Josh and Mitchell Whitfield, two young people are driving a car, happily rushing to the university.

Although Mitchell Whitfield played the nasty Barry in "Friends", after Josh got acquainted with him, he found that this person was very easy to get along with, probably because he was 6 years older than Josh, He has always taken good care of Josh. As a newcomer in Hollywood, it is also Mitchell's habit to keep a low profile.

In fact, after getting along, Josh discovered that the most irritable person in the crew was Marisa Tomei, who was a woman. Although she was the same age as Mitchell Whitfield, she had far more acting experience than Mitchell. , The strength is quite good, and therefore, when Josh or Mitchell make mistakes in performance, the actress will always point it out mercilessly, looking like a big sister.

However, although Marisa Tomei has a bit of a temper, she is not a bad person, and she does things in a hurry. Therefore, Josh, Mitchell, and other extras in the crew always cheer up and take the performance seriously when they perform. Jonathan Lynn, who has always been unsmiling, nodded repeatedly.

"Drink water, Josh!"

"Thank you, Marisa!"

During the filming interval, Josh and Mitchell Whitfield chatted together, and just chatted a few words, but Dale Launer suddenly appeared between them, he patted Josh on the shoulder lightly, and asked : "Josh, you signed with Arnold?"

Josh nodded: "That's right."

"That's really good news!" Dale Launer smiled deeper, "Thank God Arnold didn't feel depressed because Cruise terminated his contract. Thanks to you, Josh, you will definitely be excellent partners!"

"I also think he has a good eye."

Dale Launer didn't hear clearly at first, and after a while, he pointed at Josh and shook his head: "I finally know why Arnold signed with you. You guys are exactly the same as Arnold."

The author has something to say: update~

Not surprisingly, there is another chapter tonight.