America: Child stars start with The Shining

New York, Manhattan, Broadway.

Theaters lined up densely along the street, one after another, with huge signs and posters hanging on their porches.

Almost anyone who steps onto this street will immediately notice these resounding names.

The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Chicago...

The names of classic plays are listed one by one, each one a household name and world-renowned.

For many middle-class and upper-class families in America, going to the theater to see a play is more like a respectable lifestyle and constitutes one of their daily hobbies.

Broadway is not actually a single theater, but rather an area comprised of dozens of theaters.

It stretches 25 kilometers northward from Battery Park, traversing the entire island of Manhattan, occupying the most central section of this city where land is incredibly valuable.

It is surrounded by iconic buildings such as Wall Street and Madison Square Garden, all brightly lit.

All of the nation’s most prestigious theaters are gathered here, and the place is always packed with people, making it one of the core areas of America’s entertainment industry.

Charles stood at the entrance of a building, looked up, and then slowly walked inside.

He came here today specifically to audition for "Oliver Twist".

Even though he had already acted in two big-budget films in Hollywood and received unanimous praise from Kubrick and Spielberg, he still had to honestly attend auditions in a place like Broadway where rules matter.

Generally speaking, Broadway casts can be roughly divided into two categories.

One type is theatrical actors who have trained since childhood.

Some of them came from formal training, while others were apprenticed to their predecessors, or even came from families with a long history of theater, and had been striving since childhood to reach the Broadway stage.

Another type is Hollywood actors like Charles.

They often squeeze into the Broadway scene after they've already become famous, both to make their resumes look more impressive and to gain access to circles like Broadway.

Even actors like Dustin Hoffman, after winning the Oscar for Best Actor, still have to come here to hone their skills and make an appearance in front of those white, old-money audiences.

This is why these two types of actors naturally don't get along, especially the veteran cast members who have been rooted in Broadway since childhood and worked their way up step by step.

Although they wouldn't say anything on the surface, they didn't really like those outsiders from Hollywood and instinctively felt some resistance towards them.

Therefore, if Charles wants to win the role of the male lead in "Oliver Twist," he must stand out from the others during the audition process.

As soon as he entered the waiting room, he found that there were already quite a few people there, all of them actors who had come to audition.

However, when Charles pushed open the door and entered, all eyes immediately fell on him.

Some of those looks were curious, but most were repulsive.

They immediately recognized the little guy who had suddenly walked in.

Charles remained expressionless, walked straight to a corner, and found an empty seat to sit down.

Before long, several whispers could be heard from not far away:

"Hey, isn't that the Hollywood child star who's been on the news a lot lately? What's he doing here?"

"What else could it be? Most likely they couldn't make it in Hollywood anymore, I heard that before..."

"WTF!? Really? How could a nobody like him have offended those people?"

"Hmm, who knows... Anyway, the water over there is much deeper than here."

Charles heard everything clearly from the side and twitched the corner of his mouth.

Sure enough, gossip spreads the fastest everywhere, especially in the entertainment industry.

Moreover, those people mostly looked like actors from Broadway, which explains why they sounded somewhat hostile when they spoke.

However, he didn't pay any attention to these words, as they didn't actually have any impact on him.

On the contrary, this shows that his popularity is rising. Whether in Hollywood or on Broadway, he is immediately recognized whenever he appears.

"Wow, looks like you're quite popular. You've already become the center of attention as soon as you walked in."

Beside him, a girl much taller than him turned around, her tone slightly teasing.

Hearing the incessant chatter around him, Charles sighed softly and casually replied:

"Isn't this normal? This kind of gossip is exactly what those busybodies love to hear."

The girl looked him up and down, then chuckled to herself.

"You seem to take it all in stride."

"Let me introduce myself. My name is Jennifer Aniston. I don't need to introduce you; I already heard your name, you're the Hollywood superstar, Shire, right?"

Upon hearing the name, Charles paused for a moment, then turned his head and glanced at the girl again.

Jennifer Aniston.

I never expected to run into her in a place like Broadway.

If most of the stars he knew in Hollywood had risen to fame through film, then this girl in front of him was clearly on a different path.

Television actor.

In the near future, she will make countless people remember this beautiful face known as "America's Sweetheart" with her role in "Friends".

At the same time, she became one of the most popular actresses in the country thanks to this TV series, and even won the 54th Emmy Award for Best Actress in a Comedy Series.

If we were to draw a comparison, it would be similar to Xiao Yanzi, who had just finished playing the role of Xiao Yanzi in "My Fair Princess" and was at the height of her popularity.

Later, a reporter even did a statistical analysis and found that Jennifer Aniston appeared on the cover of a famous New York gossip magazine more often than anyone else in the past two decades.

Those fake news stories about "suspected pregnancy" have been hyped up over and over again for many years, supporting countless paparazzi.

She is definitely a future queen of American TV dramas.

Charles raised an eyebrow and shook hands with the other person.

Television dramas are a very important part of the future entertainment industry.

In terms of speed and sustainability of making money, it may not be inferior to movies, and in some ways, it may even be more exaggerated.

One episode of Friends was enough to sustain Jennifer Aniston for a lifetime, but a single movie wouldn't achieve the same effect.

If given the chance, he would definitely try to bring out those classic TV series from later generations ahead of time and snatch them away from those big companies.

Thinking of this, his smile deepened as he looked at Jennifer Aniston, making her feel a little uncomfortable.