[Chapter 312: Good Resources Should Be Reserved for Our Own]
Although the dinner had completely cold, the two still ate with great relish. There was no other way -- the battle had been exhausting, and both were hungry.
After dinner, Nicole Kidman, holding a glass of wine, boldly straddled Linton and began to drink a toast with him, playing up the romantic mood. Later, she took a big sip of red wine, held it in her mouth, and as they kissed, she poured some of the wine into Linton's mouth. He returned a portion, and they drank together, calling it a bond that left no distinction between them.
Under the gentle influence of the wine, and refreshed from their earlier passion, Nicole radiated stunning beauty.
Linton scooped up the beauty in his arms and strode toward the bedroom.
"Darling, this time I want to be on top..."
Soon, strange sounds echoed from the room, followed by sweet and cheerful singing that swelled loudly. It wasn't until the golden sunlight filtered in through the thick curtains that the singing finally ceased.
...
After nearly a month of preparation, the crews for Good Will Hunting and Final Destination were both progressing smoothly. Upon learning that Linton had returned to the company that day, Nacho Misi and Jonathan Glazer came to report on the production's status and sought Linton's opinion on the actor auditions.
"Boss, do you have any thoughts on the actor auditions?"
"Wasn't the lead actor contract already signed with Matt Damon at the project's inception?"
"What about the other actors?"
"Leave the female lead role, the campus beauty Skylar, to Kate Winslet. As for the others, you decide."
"Kate Winslet?"
"Yes, a British actress with great spirit; she just finished shooting my music video."
"Thank you, boss. Can you attend the other auditions?"
"I don't have the time, you make the call. I trust you."
...
After sending Nacho and Jonathan off, Abella and James Wong arrived to discuss casting for Final Destination. Linton didn't hesitate to give the female lead to Jennifer Connelly, the second female lead to Noriko Sakai, and left the rest to their discretion.
...
This reminded him of the casting for Independence Day. Strictly speaking, Independence Day was an ensemble film with three main male roles: President Thomas, Air Force pilot Steve, and computer engineer David. There were two main female roles: David's ex-wife who was also the president's assistant, Constance, and Steve's girlfriend, Jasmine.
Moreover, it was a sci-fi movie whose appeal centered on aliens and massive explosions -- blowing up the White House, the Statue of Liberty, the world's major cities, and the alien fortress.
Usually, a sci-fi ensemble film, even a big-budget one, does little to boost an actor's profile. This was unlike The Rock, which, although also an ensemble piece, was an action movie where audiences focused on the actors and their performances.
No one expected Independence Day to sweep box offices and become the second highest-grossing film in history. Naturally, all the main actors benefited tremendously, especially Will Smith as Steve, who skyrocketed to fame.
Linton had at one point considered starring as Steve himself. Not only him -- the producer Robert and director Michael Bay, as well as Universal, repeatedly suggested changing Steve's character to a white man and requested Linton take the role. They believed only with Linton as lead could the film ensure box office success.
It's worth noting that Hollywood in this era was politically aware but less entangled with elections or party politics. It focused more on art, equality, freedom, and anti-war sentiments. Movements like Black Lives Matter or feminism's influence hadn't yet permeated mainstream Hollywood.
Most leading roles were held by white actors, for instance, The Rock featured a few black actors only in supporting roles. The choice to make Steve black in Independence Day was primarily a box office strategy to attract a wider audience.
So when Robert, Michael Bay, and others proposed making Steve white and changing Steve's girlfriend accordingly, everyone thought it would be no problem. However, for such a sci-fi ensemble film, no matter how high the box office, this change wouldn't significantly boost Linton's career.
Instead, he figured it would be more effective to direct and star in a film centered around himself as the main character. Even if the box office was not as high as Independence Day, it would significantly elevate his popularity and commercial value.
After much thought, he declined to act in Independence Day. But when Universal came on board and secured big gift packages of the Pentagon and the White House, they pushed hard for him to play Steve, even offering an additional $15 million investment to ensure his salary wouldn't affect the production budget.
At this point, Robert and Michael Bay insisted Linton take the role, even offering to increase Steve's screen time. Having no way to refuse, Linton accepted the role for $20 million plus 10% of North American box office share. However, he did not agree to the increased screen time -- the balance of the ensemble cast was well maintained in the script and should not be disrupted.
As for the female roles, since he would play Steve, Steve's girlfriend Jasmine had to be changed to a white woman as well. That made Nicole Kidman a great fit for Constance, the president's assistant, and Cristiana Reali perfect for Jasmine.
Coincidentally, yesterday Nicole requested to join his inner circle, so assigning her this role served as a reward and provided her with a solid representative work, preventing her from being popular without notable projects.
Fortunately, the film had many large-scale scenes, most of which couldn't be shot on location and required elaborate sets. This meant a lengthy production schedule of at least four months, with filming expected to start in late December.
That gave Linton enough time to promote his single before the year ended, but his movie The Man from Nowhere's premiere promotion would overlap awkwardly. The Man from Nowhere was scheduled for release on December 9, meaning after its release, he could only promote it in North America for about ten days, with no overseas promotion possible.
...
That evening, he quietly returned to the Four Seasons Hotel. As soon as he opened the door, a passionate beauty flung herself at him, planting a sweet kiss on his lips.
Wow, Nicole Kidman was spectacularly dressed tonight -- subtle makeup, golden hair down over her shoulders, fiery red lips, eyes sparkling like water. She wore a black sheer slinky nightgown, black stockings, and the classic black high heels.
She was stunningly sexy, a fatal enchantress not to be trifled with, truly a peerless beauty.
With such a beauty in his arms, Linton naturally felt his passion ignite.
Soon, the room was filled with sweet, lively singing...
*****
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