America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 161 Light a Fire

The pickup truck turned into the parking lot, and Martin looked at the small building not far away, where a number of paparazzi had gathered.

These guys have an extremely sensitive sense of smell.

Los Angeles has an average of actors per person, and also an average of news informants per person.

Bruce made a phone call and said, "Menez's agent, Munir, and lawyer are already inside."

Martin opened the car door and got out, walking with Bruce towards the office building, ignoring the paparazzi reporters, and entered the building.

After explaining their purpose, an administrative staff member immediately led them into an office.

Munir and his lawyer are waiting here.

Martin asked, "Is he alright?"

Munir said, "He's a good guy; he can leave after posting bail."

Martin asked directly, "How much more is needed?"

"I've scraped together some of it, and I still have part of Menez's salary," Munir quickly said. "I'm still short $5000."

Martin wrote a check for $5000 and gave it to Munir, who then went with his lawyer to process the bail.

After some time, the two brought Menée out.

When Menez saw Martin, he lowered his head and said, "Boss..."

"It's good that you're alright." Martin took the lead and walked out. "Let's get out of here first."

He added, "There are paparazzi and reporters outside."

Menez slowed his pace slightly: "Boss, you and Old Bu go first, I'll go out later."

"Meet at the gym in North Hollywood." Martin and Bruce went ahead.

As the two got into the car, Menez came out of the building. The paparazzi were excited and wanted to shove their microphones into Menez's mouth.

Bruce laughed carefree: "He's got the headlines again."

Martin shook his head: "We don't need headlines like this."

Upon arriving at the gym, Bruce booked a private lounge. After waiting a short while, Menez and Munir walked in together.

Martin ordered some drinks and snacks: "Make yourself at home."

Menez, looking miserable, exclaimed, "Victoria has absolutely no professional ethics! She had her fun, and now she's arresting me to cover it up!"

Martin said, "Fishing."

Bruce knew quite a bit about it: "The FBI does this all the time, using fake news online to lure out traffickers or perverts..."

Munir interjected, "Lawyer, that bail intermediary, he said that Menez has been too active in the Paris case and has been on the LAPD's radar for a while now."

Martin asked Mene, "I remember you said you hadn't taken any money from her."

Menez exclaimed helplessly, "This time she secretly slipped $100 into my pocket, and I didn't even notice! $100, I'm only worth $100!"

Bruce asked, "Didn't they ask anything else? Like, your club?"

"No," Mene said. "Someone warned me not to talk nonsense, that my nuclear weapons in there could kill me without me even knowing why, but I didn't say a word."

Bruce said, "Thank goodness you didn't do anything stupid. Don't be fooled by the hype; they don't really follow the rules."

Martin asked Munir, "What did the lawyer say?"

Munir asked carefully and said, "In the end, it should be a hefty fine, probation, and community service."

Martin warned Menez: "You'd better not go to that club anymore. Be careful lately and don't give them any more opportunities to exploit your weaknesses."

Menez lowered his head and said, "Boss, I'll do whatever you say." He vowed, "I'll pay you back the money as soon as possible."

Martin waved his hand: "If you have an audition opportunity, then audition normally. If not, then assist the production team with pre-production planning."

Munir, a small-time agent, kicked Menez and said, "I'll keep an eye on him. If he messes things up again, I'll sell him to Mexico!"

Menez, having been played with until he was bored, was then dragged to complete a task. His usual carefree attitude had vanished: "I'll report to the studio tomorrow."

Munir left first.

Menez walked out of the gym's back door alone, glanced back, and muttered to himself, "I thought the boss would just abandon me."

Let alone helping the boss register a studio, he would still rush to help Boss Martin even if he were facing 20 people over fifty years old.

Any more than that, and I'll have to think it over, since it's a matter of life and death.

In the lounge, Martin couldn't help but say, "The LAPD is getting really into this kind of thing."

Bruce shrugged: "Public funds for personal enjoyment. You don't actually think everyone in the LAPD is both law-abiding and ethical, do you?"

Martin laughed: "How could that be?"

Because of the short time, he remembered seeing a news report before he suffocated: the Los Angeles authorities themselves had publicly released, or rather leaked, the entire list of LAPD undercover agents.

This is absolutely mind-blowing! Those LAPDs in special positions must be questioning their very existence.

Bruce added, "A friend of mine in the military once said that the biggest gang in Los Angeles is the LAPD."

The following day, with the help of professional agencies, Menez registered a separately accounted "Wanted" studio, which rented a small studio at Warner Bros. Studios.

Martin has already invested $70 in the project, including the acquisition of the comic book rights, screenwriter Michael Bradett's fees, and various other expenses and reserves, all of which will be factored into the film's production costs.

Including the various costs incurred during the period, such as labor and management expenses, the investment should be at least $200 million.

This is an absolute steal in Hollywood.

For companies like Warner Bros. and the other six to operate a blockbuster project, if they don't generate $5 million in management fees for a $50 million production, they'd be embarrassed to even greet the other five Hollywood studios.

Martin is well aware that he needs to climb the ladder, build a reputation for his brand, and not go too far.

To put it bluntly, even swindling and cheating require a reputation and real ability.

After the studio announced the recruitment of directors and action choreographers, it quickly received more than 20 resumes.

Martin had never heard of most of these names, and had no notable works to his name in the past.

He dared not take too many risks and appointed a director with no successful experience.

Martin could only discuss this with Louise.

Wearing black-rimmed glasses, Louise carefully reviewed the director resumes Martin brought and said directly, "There may be talented, capable, and ambitious directors among them, but they haven't proven themselves, so their talent is worthless. If the investment is only a million, we can take the risk, but for tens of millions of dollars, all of these people are a pass."

Martin had experienced the harsh reality of dreams in his past life, so he agreed with Louise's statement: "I would rather spend more money to hire a director with successful experience than risk using a talented newcomer."

He asked, "How about John Wu? He's really good at gunfight action movies."

"John Wu from Port City?" Louise thought carefully for a moment, then slowly shook her head. "His personal style is too strong, especially in the gunfight genre. Do you think he'll make a cool and innovative gunfight action film, or just another John Wu-style film?"

Martin has seen too many John Woo-style gunfight action movies.

In that instant, it was as if white doves were fluttering in the air, a solemn church, romantic dance-like movements, and gunfights flashed before my eyes.

Martin said, "The latter is more likely."

Louise cautioned, "He's a seasoned director who's been famous for many years, and his style is already established. It's difficult to change, and forcing him to change is unpredictable."

Martin nodded. "I understand."

Nikki then knocked and came in, saying, "Thomas Lane is here."

"Thank you." Martin got up and left Louise's office, heading downstairs to Davis's studio.

Thomas was waiting in the inner office. When he saw Martin, he said, "Nothing important. I was just taking Oscar Isaac to the studio for an audition and happened to be passing by, so I thought I'd drop by."

Martin sat on the sofa and said, "I remember he was another client of yours?"

Thomas specifically remarked, "Latinos are completely different from your type of actors."

Martin nodded, adding fuel to the fire for Thomas at the opportune moment: "A few days ago, Mike Vogel's agent, Pinto, contacted me."

Thomas said, "That matter with the snakes has nothing to do with you..."

He paused mid-sentence, then suddenly realized something, a hint of nervousness creeping across his face. He quickly adjusted his breathing and asked, feigning nonchalance, "About your management contract?"

Martin stated directly, "That's right, Pinto wants me to choose him as my exclusive agent after my agency contract expires. Also, he promised to get me the lead role in a 20th Century Fox A-list production, an epic film directed by Ridley Scott, a top-tier director."

Thomas couldn't help but grip the sofa armrest tightly; even the leading man in a big-budget A-list production didn't have that kind of strength.

That's Ridley Scott, whose previous epic film, Gladiator, not only sold like hotcakes but also earned Russell Crowe an Oscar for Best Actor.

Even with Thomas's mind racing, he didn't know what to say for a moment: "Martin, he's just making empty promises..."

"I rejected him!" Martin declared righteously. "I've never forgotten that when I first came to Los Angeles, it was you who helped me gain a foothold and settle down here."

For some reason, Thomas felt a sense of relief.

Martin's words resonated deeply: "Thomas Lane, we're a golden duo!"

Thomas suddenly felt like he owed Martin a bit of a debt, the male lead in a big-budget A-list production!

Martin at least has a chance to compete.

As for myself, I can't even find a chance to compete.

Thomas gritted his teeth, a determination he'd never shown before: "Martin, I promise you, within a year, even if I have to sell my body or sleep with old men and women, I'll get you a major role in a near-A-list production! I swear!"

He dared not speak too definitively, because a near-A grade was the limit he could hope to reach.

Martin said casually, "Just do your best."

With the fire ignited, Martin wasn't just talking; he was taking action: "If the 'Wanted' project can get going, there are other roles suitable for your clients. Just ask."

Thomas laughed and said, "No problem, I won't stand on ceremony with you."

Martin then asked, "Does the company have a suitable director for gunfights?"

"I've sent out the message, but I haven't received a reply yet." Thomas thought for a moment: "The company has a lot of director clients. The biggest names are Eastwood and Michael Bay, and Mel Gibson is a given. There's also Tony Scott and Guillermo del Toro, and Brad Bird and others with some fame. I've notified their agents."

Martin knew this couldn't be rushed, and said, "Keep an eye on things at the company." He emphasized, "Find directors with similar successful track records."

(End of this chapter)