America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 897 New Goals

The entire cast and crew of "Spotlight," led by Thomas McCarthy, came to the Oscar stage, and Thomas McCarthy even accepted the Best Picture Oscar from Warren Beatty on behalf of the crew.

Producer Steve Golin gave his acceptance speech.

Everything seemed normal; it didn't appear to be an accident.

Martin glanced discreetly at the director, then at the PwC accountant.

The former is wearing a headset and communicating with the behind-the-scenes team.

The latter sat in his designated seat, organizing the briefcase he was carrying.

In the third row of the VIP seating area, where the "Moonlight" cast was located, Jennifer Aniston looked at the "Spotlight" cast on stage with a puzzled expression, feeling that something was wrong.

Despite winning both of the two key indicator categories, they suffered a major upset at the Oscars.

Aniston thought to herself, "Could Martin's judgment be wrong? That shouldn't be the case! The college is indeed promoting diversity."

The African Americans on the film set... always had very dark complexions, making it hard to tell anything about them.

Director Barry Jenkins, wearing glasses, cursed inwardly. So after all these months of commotion, the Academy didn't even offer a word of comfort?

He remembered Spike Lee's famous quote, "I bought a watch last year," and almost blurted it out.

At the backstage exit, the director saw that the Best Picture team's acceptance speech was about to end and said into his headset, "Attention, the countdown to the end of the live broadcast has begun."

The crew of "Spotlight" and award presenter Warren Beatty walked backstage.

The director then announced, "GG will play in twenty seconds!"

Just then, the PwC accountant pulled out an envelope, glanced at the small print that read "Best Film," paused for a moment, then realized what he'd done and shouted, "Wrong! Wrong! There's a mistake!"

He grabbed the envelope and ran frantically to the director, shouting, "You've got the wrong Best Picture! This is the one! The envelope's wrong!"

The director stared at the accountant in disbelief, almost murderous. He snatched the envelope, glanced at the award names on it, and without thinking twice, tore it open and took out the card. It listed a film and the names of two producers.

Everyone present, including Martin, heard it and looked over there with curiosity.

Martin then turned to look at Warren Beatty. Did this guy not check the envelope before opening it?

The live TV broadcast was interrupted by a segment on GG. The director said to the microphone, "GG will play for a little longer, wait for my instructions."

He immediately found Warren Beatty, took the envelope from Warren Beatty's hand, which was the envelope that PwC had previously taken back for the Best Director award!

When the director explained the situation, Warren Beatty was dumbfounded, thinking to himself, "You bunch of bastards made a mistake, and now you want me to embarrass myself on stage?"

Even the slowest person can tell that this year's Oscars will likely go down in history, and when people talk about it in the future, the first thing that comes to mind is that Warren Beatty mispronounced his name.

Warren Beatty felt as if a huge black pot had fallen from the sky, slamming him so hard he couldn't lift his head.

This kind of rubbish has never happened in the previous 87 Academy Awards!

The director, the accountant, and Catherine Kennedy, who rushed over at the last minute, gathered together to discuss the matter.

There are two solutions: one is to accept the mistake and the other is to return to the stage and correct it.

These people decided on the second option in just a few words, but Warren Beatty refused to go on stage again.

The old man is almost eighty years old; he can't afford to lose face like this.

Warren Beatty approached Martin, pretending not to see the three men, and whispered to Martin, "I'm never going to the Oscars again. The mess they made is just too damn embarrassing."

Martin could tell that Warren Beatty didn't want to go on stage again, and said, "Pretend you don't know anything."

With things having reached this point, and so many people behind the scenes, no matter which option is chosen, there will be an uproar afterwards.

With no other option, Kathleen Kennedy, the PwC accountant, along with "Spotlight" director Thomas McCarthy and producer Steve Golin, returned to the stage.

After the interruption ended and the live stream returned, the group went back on stage and announced that they had made a mistake; the winner of Best Picture was not "Spotlight," but "Moonlight."

Whether at the Dolby Theatre or in front of their televisions or computers, everyone was stunned.

To demonstrate authenticity, PwC accountants presented two envelopes to the live stream camera.

But these measures were not enough to quell the uproar at the scene and in front of the live broadcast cameras.

Even the previously excited "Spotlight" crew was shocked and at a loss.

What actually happened was even more outrageous than what's shown in the movies!

The cast and crew of "Moonlight" who went on stage looked like wooden figures, showing no joy at winning the award.

Even the two producers, Aniston and Barry Jenkins, didn't give any acceptance speeches. They simply took the Best Picture Oscar, which had been reviewed by the Spotlight team, and went straight backstage.

This year's Academy Awards ceremony ended in farce.

Aniston went backstage, declined the routine interview, and quickly walked over to Martin after seeing him.

Seeing her gloomy face, Martin said, "Honey, no matter what, you still got Best Picture, cheer up."

Aniston glanced at the little golden statuette in her hand and said, "I feel a strange unease, like this trophy is secondhand."

This was so outrageous that Martin didn't know what to say for a moment, and could only offer words of consolation: "At least you won the Best Picture Oscar."

Aniston looked around to make sure no one was nearby, then lowered her voice and asked, "Was it intentional?"

Martin answered honestly, "I don't know."

An assistant director then came over and called Martin and Aniston to join the Oscar winners for a photo.

Because of the mix-up, the group photo session ended abruptly, and the winners all declined interviews.

Representatives from the college came to communicate with the students and staff, requesting that those who were present at the time refrain from discussing what happened in public, especially in front of the media.

Martin casually agreed.

He left the Dolby Theatre and got into Nicholson's extended Lincoln, where the two bastards were already waiting for him.

All three of them need to make an appearance at the "Oscar Night" party.

Martin Scorsese, the Best Actor winner, was also required to appear on the red carpet at the party as soon as possible, according to his agreement with the sponsors.

In the car, Leonardo asked curiously, "What exactly happened?"

Martin recounted the events in detail and asked Nicholson, "You've been through enough, isn't the college deliberately causing trouble?"

Leonardo said, "Is the Academy trying to grab attention this way?"

Nicholson was scrolling through his phone when he turned the screen around to show the two of them: "The public outcry has exploded."

Discussions about this are going viral on social media.

"The biggest blunder in Oscar history has occurred!"

"This is the most fake Best Picture Oscar ever, in every sense of the word."

"This is such a ridiculous joke that Best Picture was made!"

"The academy is utterly depraved; they're using this method to create buzz and attract attention!"

Leonardo looked away and asked, "It couldn't really be the academy's doing, could it?"

Nicholson said, "Whether it's true or not doesn't matter; the Oscars have become the focus of public attention again."

Martin doesn't rule out conspiracy theories: "Is it possible that those African Americans forced the college to carry out so-called diversity reforms, but the core strength of the college is basically made up of people like us? How could we be willing to be coerced by those blacks... jumping around like that?"

Leonardo understood what he meant: "The Academy was unwilling to be forced into this situation, and it also bore the enormous pressure of social diversity, so it gave them the most prestigious Oscar award, and deliberately created the current situation, making that black gay film the most controversial Best Picture in Oscar history."

Martin laughed and said, "Did they give it the Oscar for Best Picture or not? If the Black people keep making a fuss, then they're the ones with the problem."

"No one would admit to something like this," Nicholson continued. "And I feel that this wasn't a deliberate plan, but rather a natural outcome achieved through a tacit understanding among some people."

He pushed up his sunglasses: "Regardless of the quality of 'Moonlight' itself, after this incident, the most controversial Oscar Best Picture will no longer be 'Shakespeare in Love,' but this one."

Leonardo DiCaprio said, "From now on, when people mention 'Moonlight,' the first thing that will always come to mind is the controversy."

The car was parked in front of the Beverly Hilton Hotel, waiting to enter.

Martin changed the subject, reminding Leonardo, "Dude, remember to do the math problem later."

Leonardo knew what the bastard was talking about, and immediately gave Martin the middle finger.

Nicholson, however, pressed on: "The three of us have seven Oscars. How many does each of us have?"

Leonardo declared fiercely, "This time next year, the three of us will have eight Oscars! I swear!"

Someone opened the car door outside, and Martin got out first, walking onto the red carpet with Leonardo and Nicholson.

There are hardly any movie fans here, mostly media reporters.

As Martin walked up the hotel steps, a reporter from Vanity Fair, one of the organizers, stopped him and said, "Congratulations, Martin, on winning your third Oscar and your second Best Actor award. Can you tell me how you feel right now?"

"I'm very excited and happy." Martin has reached his current status and doesn't need to stand out. When interviewed, he gave a rather conventional answer: "Thank you to the academy and my colleagues in the field for their recognition."

The reporter's focus wasn't on that; they immediately followed up with, "You were backstage before and after the Best Film award presentation, right? Can you tell me what specifically happened?"

Martin said, "I went to the restroom as soon as I got backstage, and I didn't find out what happened until I came out."

The reporter wanted to ask more questions, but Martin waved his hand, caught up with Leonardo and Nicholson, and went into the hotel together.

As Martin entered the banquet hall where the party was being held, people came one after another to offer their congratulations.

Because the Split crew was small, Jonathan Nolan, who had never won an award, didn't even come. The table that belonged to the Split crew was only occupied by the trio of bastards.

Occasionally, someone would come to inquire about something, but Martin always brushed them off.

Nicholson made a phone call and said, "The college's executive committee has held an emergency meeting and is working on a unified statement. We expect to have an official statement by tomorrow morning."

Leonardo, recalling something Martin had said, replied, "I've given you the explanation you wanted. Whether you accept it or not is your business, not mine."

Martin gave Leonardo a thumbs up: "Old man, you've got the hang of this society!"

Nicholson said, "You two bastards are just as shameless as the politicians in Washington."

Martin waved his hand: "We're far from it. Politicians never have a bottom line, but Leo and I at least have one."

The three stayed for a while before deciding to leave.

Martin received a call that Elizabeth and Lily were preparing a celebration party at home.

Leonardo and Nicholson went with him.

In addition, Martin also called Menez and other friends, as well as members of the agency and public relations team.

As he left, Leonardo glanced around again; the atmosphere at this Oscars night was really not good.

The controversy sparked by "Spotlight" and "Moonlight" has only just begun.

Martin and his two companions quickly returned to the North Side of Sunset Boulevard.

During the day, Elizabeth made sure to greet her neighbors, nearby residents, and the management committee.

As soon as Martin and his two companions got out of the car, fireworks shot into the sky.

The entire Davis Estate was brightly lit, and dazzling fireworks soared into the sky to celebrate Martin Scorsese winning his second Academy Award for Best Actor.

In all of Hollywood, there are only a handful of actors who have won three Academy Awards for acting.

Jack Nicholson, now considered an Oscar icon and mascot, shares the same awards as Martin Scorsese: one Best Supporting Actor and two Best Actor awards.

The only person to win three Academy Awards for Best Actor is Daniel Day-Lewis, the Academy's darling.

Most of the people who came to celebrate would clink glasses with Martin.

Even with Martin's high alcohol tolerance, he was starting to feel a bit tipsy.

After the party ended and the guests left, Martin sat on the living room sofa with an air of nonchalance, talking in a half-awake, half-drunk manner.

Someone once said that there are fifty-five types of people who sing and dance when they get drunk, and there is another type of person who loves to brag when they get drunk.

"I once dreamed of storming Washington, storming the White House, and destroying America." Martin wasn't entirely exaggerating: "Now I suddenly realize that I've become part of the privileged class; the boy who dreamed of slaying the dragon has become the dragon himself!"

Lily pouted, "I knew there was a dragon among us when you started dating my sister!"

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow at Lily.

The two had an unspoken understanding, and Lily quickly shut up, no longer mentioning the people and things in Atlanta.

Elizabeth poured Martin a glass of water: "Your previous goals were unrealistic. What are your goals now?"

Martin took the water, drank most of it in one gulp, and said, "To become the first person in Hollywood to achieve something that no superstar or top director has ever accomplished."

Lily had heard Nicholson say before, "To become the first person to win both an Oscar for Best Actor and an Oscar for Best Director?"

Martin stood up, grabbing Lily with one hand and Elizabeth with the other: "Wanting both? That's greedy."

(End of this chapter)