I am Hollywood

Chapter 565: Chapter 566: You Guessed It Right



[Chapter 566: You Guessed It Right]

With only three minutes before the show began, Eric finally saw Emily personally escorting Anna Wintour, the editor-in-chief of Vogue, into the venue. Noticing the two women walking toward him, Eric stood up, curious about the renowned fashion powerhouse.

Anna Wintour, sporting her iconic bob hairstyle, had not donned her signature Prada sunglasses this evening.

"Eric, this is Ms. Anna Wintour. Anna, this is Eric," Emily formally introduced them, even though everyone already knew each other.

"Hello, Mr. Williams. It's a pleasure to meet you," Anna Wintour said warmly, extending her hand to Eric.

Her voice was a bit raspy, giving off a tired vibe, although she spoke rapidly like many elite people. Eric shook her hand and replied, "Likewise, Ms. Wintour. You can call me Eric."

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Anna Wintour walked toward her seat. Just as Eric was about to return to his spot, Emily gently tugged on him. Eric had to shift Nicolas Cage and Bridget Fonda slightly to his left to sit right next to Anna Wintour.

...

As the three settled into their seats, Emily's assistant appeared from backstage, holding a small brown teddy bear. She approached Eric and said, "Mr. Williams, time is tight, and this is all we could find. Is this okay?"

Eric realized that she had brought a teddy bear. A memory of a certain R-rated comedy that had ruined childhoods flashed through his mind, and he instinctively broke into a mischievous smile. Taking the teddy bear from the assistant, he said, "That'll do, thanks!"

The assistant blushed a bit, smiled shyly, and nodded at Emily before she headed back backstage.

Many Hollywood stars who were invited to the show had been glancing over at Eric from time to time. If not for the numerous media reporters present, they would have likely approached him. Seeing a staff member inexplicably deliver a teddy bear to Eric seemed to give many guests a justifiable reason to look his way unabashedly.

Eric glanced at Anna Wintour, who was about to speak, and held up a finger to indicate a moment of pause. He then walked a few steps to Ivanka Trump and handed her the teddy bear. "Here you go, Ivanka. This is your mascot for tonight."

Ivanka instinctively took the bear. With everyone around watching her, she felt too embarrassed to toss it away and instead hugged it to her chest, looking toward her father, Donald Trump, for help. He, however, wore a beaming smile. Naturally, Donald enjoyed being in the spotlight, especially after Ivanka had appeared with a stuffed animal in Jurassic Park, which had made her beloved by the world. As a father, he felt proud.

When Eric handed the teddy bear to Ivanka, many attendees instantly grasped the situation and stifled laughter. Meanwhile, the media jumped at the chance to capture the moment, and the room erupted in flashes from cameras.

Seeing that Eric was still lingering near her, Ivanka asked a reporter nearby to snap a photo of them together. She maintained her adorable demeanor, but after the photo, leaned closer to Eric and whispered, "You bad guy, I'm never acting in your movies again."

"Oh, that can't be. I've paid for your time. Are you planning on breaching our contract, Miss Trump?"

"How about this time?" Ivanka raised the teddy bear in her hand. For some reason, she felt there was something wicked in Eric's eyes when he looked at the bear.

"Would a thousand dollars be okay?"

"You're wealthier than my dad, and you're only offering me a thousand bucks? How stingy!" When Ivanka heard that, she instinctively began to negotiate, almost making Eric laugh. It seemed that even though she had grown up, a hint of that little money-grubber vibe Eric had unintentionally instilled in her remained.

Eric calmly replied, "Why don't you make an offer?"

After considering for a moment, Ivanka mustered up her courage and said, "Ten thousand dollars!" Once she said it, she realized she might have been too bold, her cheeks flushed as she quickly added, "I need to save for my future tuition to avoid needing my dad's money."

"Alright, ten thousand it is," Eric said, feigning a pained expression.

Ivanka completely disregarded Eric's theatrics; with his acceptance, her eyes lit up, and she stretched out her hand eagerly. "Give it to me."

Eric raised his palms. "I don't have it on me right now; I'll have someone send it to you after the show."

The girl seriously warned, "But you better not forget."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

...

Upon returning to his seat, Anna Wintour, who had been observing him keenly, immediately remarked, "Eric, you're quite an interesting person."

"Thank you, Anna."

Eric nodded with a smile, feeling that Anna's enthusiasm was a bit excessive. After chatting a bit more, he understood that Anna wanted to invite him for an interview with Vogue. She was an excellent communicator, and if it hadn't been for Emily chiming in briefly, Eric might have found it hard to turn her down.

Plan or not, Anna Wintour showed no signs of disappointment when a half-hour later, the fashion show officially started.

With some eerie and melodic music playing, the models began walking down the runway.

Eric felt completely indifferent about the models' attire on stage, but when he heard the accompanying music, it captivated him.

The song's lead was a woman whose voice carried a soft rasp. Her low, haunting melodies were like whispers from a ghostly muse in the still of the night.

"Eric, this is a song by The Cranberries from Ireland called Pretty. The lead singer is Dolores O'Riordan. Their music is quite evocative; if you're interested, you should consider buying a record," Anna Wintour explained, noting Eric's appreciation.

Eric nodded slightly in gratitude, mentally noting the song title and details about The Cranberries.

Aside from Pretty, the following segments of the show provided little more for Eric to pay attention to.

After more than ten minutes, the fashion showcase concluded. Most people hurried off to the next event, while Eric, under Emily's arrangement, moved to a nearby studio to shoot several

cover photos for Vogue.

...

By the time all these activities wrapped up, it was 8:30, and Eric had just appeared in the ballroom of the Hyatt hotel. Several eager individuals were approaching him.

In addition to the Ghost duo, Nicolas Cage and Bridget Fonda, Emily had also invited seven or eight other Hollywood celebrities. They weren't expecting to land any immediate offers from Eric; their main goal was to become more familiar with him. The more memorable they were, the better their chances of landing suitable roles in future Firefly projects.

After socializing with the group, Eric finally joined Cage and Fonda on a couch, discussing that upcoming movie before the fashion event.

"It's essentially a story about a reserved cop in Manhattan who meets a waitress at a diner. After a chance encounter where the cop forgets to bring his money, he makes a deal with the waitress: if his lottery ticket wins, they split the prize. Sure enough, the ticket hits, and after some internal conflict, he ends up sharing the million-dollar reward with the waitress, and they find romance along the way..."

Cage's storytelling wasn't particularly strong. If it had been a completely unfamiliar narrative, Eric might have shook his head, but he remembered the movie. Oddly enough, in the original timeline, Cage and Fonda had portrayed those very roles in a film titled It Could Happen to You. Eric didn't see the film as anything particularly remarkable, but it wasn't terrible either. It was just decent; their continued discourse wouldn't significantly benefit their careers, but it wouldn't hurt their box office draw either.

Eric shared his honest opinion with both actors.

"So, we're not going to take it, then," Bridget Fonda said after considering Eric's feedback.

Cage seemed to share this sentiment.

Eric smiled, "If you're not planning to take this project, you'd better not let Michael Eisner know about our discussions; otherwise, he'll be furious with me."

"I won't just blurt this out," Cage chuckled. He well understood the dynamic between Michael Eisner and Eric. "Since we won't pursue this film, Eric, do you have any roles that might suit

me?"

Eric shook his head honestly. "Firefly has been focusing on big-budget, special effects films lately. Since the 'stars' of those films are typically computer-generated, they generally cast outstanding second-tier actors to save costs."

Cage shook his head sadly, then thought for a moment and added, "Eric, I thought the movie you did with Sony, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, was fantastic. That Hong Kong director's name was..."

"John Woo," Bridget Fonda interjected.

Cage nodded, "Right! John Woo. I really admire his directing style; the action sequences are just incredible. Do you think there's a possibility for us to collaborate?"

Eric wore a peculiar expression, wondering if this was some kind of historical inertia. "John's currently working on another film, but he signed a three-picture deal with us. There's

still one more film left for next year. If you're interested, I have a suitable script that could fit you."

Since the script for Face/Off was still under wraps, Eric didn't divulge any specifics to Cage. They made an initial agreement. Seeing Cage get a potential project, Bridget Fonda wasn't one to be outdone but, being an actress who lingered in secondary status in this timeline, Eric couldn't think of any fitting project for her in the immediate future and only politely suggested they could discuss

tential roles in the ire.

Nicolas Cage and Bridget Fonda weren't idle people; after their conversation with Eric, they

quickly left the party.

...

Emily had mingled with a large crowd at the event and soon approached Eric, holding a

champagne flute.

"Emily, where's Ewa?" Eric asked, glancing around.

"She's doing a photoshoot; they need it for the magazine tomorrow. I expect they'll be

working late," Emily explained, giving Eric a playful roll of her eyes. "She's Joanna's sister, so

keep your thoughts to yourself."

||||

Eric could only respond with a silent eye roll before shifting the topic. "Didn't you already discuss matters with Anna Wintour? Why did she want to invite me for an interview with

Vogue?"

"If Anna Wintour didn't know how to seize opportunities like this, do you think she would have become the editor-in-chief of Vogue before turning thirty? Besides, after taking the helm at Vogue, she's been emulating Tina Brown's approach from Vanity Fair."

Upon hearing Emily mention Vanity Fair, Eric realized that the magazine focused on the private lives of high-society stars and the wealthy. Given Vogue's mimicry of Vanity Fair, it wasn't surprising for them to extend an invitation to him.

Seeing Emily take a sip of champagne to wet her throat, Eric smiled, "I think I've done everything I needed to tonight. What do you think of the outcome?"

"Absolutely fantastic, Eric. Thank you!" Emily's mood brightened immediately. "With the news pieces built up from tonight, Brighton Apparel's brand will spread across the U.S. in no time. Do you remember that British buyer from Marks & Spencer I was talking to before the

show started?"

Eric nodded, recalling the image of a bearded man.

"I had been negotiating with him for a while, and he wasn't budging. But seeing you here

tonight, along with Nicolas Cage and others, he just promised me a $5 million order! While many buyers are still considering, just the orders secured tonight have already surpassed last year's sales by over double. Eric, I plan to invest in twenty more specialty stores in the major cities. Do you think that's feasible?"

"I'm not too knowledgeable about that, so it's up to you to figure it out."

Emily blinked at him. "I mean, if each store requires a $500,000 investment, that would

roughly need $10 million."

Though $10 million wasn't a trivial sum, Eric assumed Brighton Apparel should be able to pull

that off without issue.

Noticing Eric's puzzled expression, Emily proactively said, "You guessed it right, the

company is out of cash. For this fashion show alone, I've already spent over $5 million."

*****

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