America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 730 Tax Issues

Fans are a very peculiar group that cannot be measured using normal people's way of thinking.

The ultimate pink can be transformed into the ultimate black in an instant.

As shouts rang out in the square, some of Depp's fans joined in.

"Peeing Queen! Peeing Queen..."

In an instant, shouts echoed throughout Nokia Square.

Depp's eyes widened, his brain nerves, eroded by alcohol and drugs, tensed up.

An impulse surged to my head.

Depp, remembering the awful things Amber had done on their wedding bed just hours earlier, was furious. He yelled at the loudest spot in the audience, raised his middle finger, and shouted, "Fuck you!"

Everyone on stage was stunned.

Depp was shouting at a specific group, but to the people in the audience, it seemed like he was shouting at all of them.

The crowd in Nokia Square was in high spirits, and the shouts grew louder. Some people even threw water bottles, light boards, and banners onto the stage.

Depp's bodyguards reacted incredibly quickly, immediately pulling Depp away and escorting him back.

A jumble of random things rained down on the stage.

The roadshow could not proceed.

A perfectly good promotional event turned into a chaotic mess.

The media reporters were all incredibly excited. What's so interesting about a bland, predictable publicity announcement? This is what news should be!

Ivan put away his camera, started the car, and called Jody at the same time: "Big news! Depp provoked fans at a promotional event, gave them the middle finger, and swore at them."

Jody had heard from Bruce that Depp was doing a promotional tour today: "A lot of people must have taken pictures, right? I need to be timely."

Ivan said, "I'm on my way to TMZ, I'll be there in about ten minutes."

Jody immediately replied, "I'll wait for you at the door."

Within seven or eight minutes, Ivan arrived, and less than five minutes later, a video of Depp giving the middle finger and swearing at fans was already on the front page of TMZ.

In the foyer, Megan watched everything unfold, nearly driven mad with anger. She had planned to confront Depp, but Depp got into his car and drove off.

Daniel was speechless. In his more than 20 years in Hollywood, this was the first time he had ever seen Depp like this.

It's normal for Hollywood stars to act like divas; there are countless difficult stars out there. But most of them have two faces. The diva-like side they show in private is rarely revealed in public, especially when facing fans.

"Fuck!" Megan couldn't hold back any longer. "I'm going to kill that bastard! I'm going to tear Johnny Depp apart and throw him into the Pacific Ocean to feed the fish!"

Compared to Depp, her father, the madman Larry Ellison, is practically a gentleman.

Daniel advised, "Take remedial measures immediately and initiate crisis public relations."

Megan, furious, thought of the two projects starring Depp, and the exorbitant production costs of "Transcendence" and "The Lone Ranger" at $1.5 million and $2.5 million respectively. She forced herself to swallow all her anger and summoned her two subordinates, Wilson and Dreett, to quickly clean up this mess.

Daniel also called over people from the publishing company.

A dozen minutes later, Dreit came over to report to Megan Ellison: "Depp's photos and videos are on the TMZ homepage. I contacted TMZ, and they refused to take the news down."

Megan Ellison stood with her hands on her hips, pacing back and forth in anger. After a long while, she finally said, "You get someone to keep an eye on Depp!"

"I will." Dreit reminded his domineering female CEO, "We also have an even more expensive film, 'The Lone Ranger,' coming out."

Megan listened to him and waved her hand, saying she wouldn't do anything to Depp before "The Lone Ranger" was released.

The main problem is that the sunk costs are too high.

…………

In the La La Land studio, Sebastian stands in front of the piano, telling Martin some points to note when playing.

Martin placed the sheet music down, pressed the black and white keys, and the music began to play.

Although the music he played wasn't smooth, he had completely broken free from the one-finger technique and could play the entire piece in one go.

As the piano music paused, Sebastian praised, "The progress is remarkable."

"Thank you." Martin raised his hand, looking at his long, strong fingers. "You're a good teacher."

In his past life, when he was a stuntman, there was a legendary actor in his group nicknamed "Kato Monkey" who was exceptionally skilled.

Martin had specifically consulted with Kato Monkey-sensei back then.

Arriving in Hollywood, Martin had plenty of opportunities and practice partners to hone his skills, and now his fingers are just as dexterous as Lily's, who has practiced sculpting for years.

This can be proven by Elena, Elizabeth, Daddario, Taylor, Charlize Theron, Angelina Jolie, and Jennifer Aniston, among others.

It's no exaggeration to say that everyone who has tried it has given it rave reviews.

Sebastian added, "These fundamentals require a lot of practice. Martin, you'd better set aside an hour every day to practice the piano until filming begins."

"No problem." Martin flexed his wrists and fingers, ready to continue.

Sebastian didn't hold back either, pointing out some of Martin's problems, especially his fingering.

This is also the most crucial point. The music presented in the film can be achieved through post-production soundtracks, but Martin himself needs to play it, at least to make it look authentic.

Half an hour later, the door to the music room quietly opened from the outside, and Bruce walked in.

Martin noticed them and said to Sebastian, "Is that all for today?"

Sebastian glanced at Bruce and asked, "Let's continue tomorrow."

"Okay," Martin agreed.

Martin and Bruce left the music room together.

Back in his office, Bruce tapped a few keys on his keyboard, waited for the LCD monitor to light up, and pointed to the TMZ website, saying, "Latest news on Depp."

Martin watched it carefully and said, "As expected of Depp, he didn't disappoint."

Bruce said, "Ivan and the others waited all morning, and it wasn't for nothing."

Martin sent Bruce to contact Ivan because Depp, at this stage, would most likely cause trouble.

Putting aside everything else, the chances of them being late or drunk on stage are as high as 80%.

Martin turned off the video and said, "Depp is killing off his last bit of public goodwill."

Bruce had a feeling: "I've discovered that Depp will ruin himself without me having to do much."

Martin said, "Depp might make himself hated in Hollywood, but he has hundreds of millions of dollars in assets, so even if his career is over, he will still live a very comfortable life."

He's a real bastard: "It would make me feel terrible if my enemies were living such carefree lives, more painful than losing hundreds of millions of dollars in investments."

Bruce said, "It's already working over there."

Martin understood: "The situation is about right, let them leave."

Bruce nodded. "We're ready to leave."

Martin packed his things, preparing to go home.

Thomas called: "Martin, Daniel from Warner Bros. sent you an invitation to the premiere of Transcendence."

In Tesla's latest round of financing and share expansion, Martin, leveraging his influence as the leader of the Coca-Cola cult, secured a $5000 million investment.

Musk had always wanted to attend Depp's premiere.

Martin was still figuring out how to get the invitation in a legitimate way when it arrived.

Megan Ellison wants him to witness the success of Transcendence firsthand?

Martin asked, "How many people can you bring?"

Thomas said, "Two people, including you."

On the way back, Martin called Musk to inform him of the premiere of "Transcendence".

Musk stated that even a major earthquake in Los Angeles wouldn't stop him from attending the premiere.

…………

Los Angeles, Country Fishing Club.

Johnny Depp's investment manager, and also a seasoned angler, Joel Mandel, opened the trunk of his car and, together with his friend Rogers, unloaded a huge bluefish from a woven bag.

This is their achievement for today, setting a new club record.

Countless anglers gathered around to watch, marveling at Joel's good luck.

Several people worked together to help, and they managed to hang the bluefish up.

Joel came over and took a picture with the bluefish.

The fish will remain at the club and be preserved as a specimen.

After all that commotion, we can finally rest for a while.

Joel and Rogers went to a coffee shop and ordered coffee and dessert to replenish their energy.

Rogers ate a donut and asked, "How's your investment going?"

Over the past six months, the two have become close friends who can talk about anything. Joel didn't hide anything, giving a thumbs up and saying, "It went very smoothly. We made a lot of money, and Robert and I bought new cars and houses."

Rogers laughed and said deliberately, "I've made a good amount too. The method you taught me is much better than my old, clumsy methods."

He looked around: "Won't this cause trouble?"

Joel laughed: "What trouble could there be? My investment documents were all signed and confirmed by Depp. Even if we take him to court, the court won't rule in his favor."

Rogers said, "Your fish are fat enough."

Joel said, "I'll let you come, but you won't participate."

"These are your and Robert's fish," Rogers said. "I can't take your fish."

Joel picked up his coffee and took a sip: "These stupid idiots have made so much money. Even if we don't take it, they'll squander it all."

Rogers said, "We still need to be careful."

Joel leaned closer and lowered his voice: "It'll be fine. Depp has tax issues. If he really sues us, someone will report him for tax evasion, and the IRS will give him endless trouble."

Depp is rarely sober. He and his brother Robert obtained multiple authorization letters, which both got Depp into trouble and cleared their own names.

Joel invited, "Shall we go fishing again tomorrow?"

"I won't have time these next few weeks," Rogers said. "A client wants to buy a house in Australia, and I need to go there to handle it."

He blinked. "This is a great opportunity to make money; I can't miss it."

They both laughed at the same time.

An investment manager using the pseudonym Rogers is about to move to the port city to work and live.

(End of this chapter)