My Hollywood System

by Cui Shi yi

1 - 242

2. 33

My Hollywood System #Chapter 33: - Read My Hollywood System Chapter 33: Online - All Page - NOVEL NEXT

Chapter 33:

After shaking hands with Carl and George, Will asked for George's health. He almost seemed to have gotten a heart attack at the movie's end, and Will was scared that he would die because of his old age.

George, however, seemed like a tough nut, laughing and reminiscing about the past as he told Will how much effort they put in the 'Janitor of the Asylum' movie.

"Ya'know, back in the day, when we started to film that movie, although the movie idea was very unique, it heavily affected the acting of the main leads in the movie. Mainly because of the rawness of the expression which we needed, which was the core ingredient to make movies with Found Footage technique a success."

George paused for a second and added, "Though that movie succeeded, I do have this instinctive feeling that your movie will most likely surpass that one."

Will smiled, "Thank you so much. I am glad that all of this worked out well for us. Everyone in the crew, from the main leads to the editors, have put hours into this and have tried to make it as realistic as possible."

George nodded, "Can't deny that. I must say, if this movie becomes a hit, it will most likely change the lives of everyone involved in this project."

"Fingers crossed." Will replied, "I have high hopes for it too."

George thought for a moment and then said, "Let's continue with the distributor agreement discussion. I am really excited about this movie. It's been a long time since I last saw a hair-standing and heart-stopping horror movie."

…

The process of filmmaking is said to be completed only when the film is distributed to the public. A film is distributed through various methods such as through theatres, OTT platforms, DVDs and so on. A distribution agreement is negotiated between a production company and the distributor.

The distribution agreement specifies the territory in which the movie is planned to be released. Territory can be worldwide or may be limited to a particular region or country. The length of the term of distribution is added. The agreement mentions the number of theatres/screens in which the movie will be exhibited. It also lays down the duties and rights of each party. The promotional and advertising activities which the parties agree to are provided in detail.

The agreement also will have a detailed clause on the collections and remuneration of each party. For instance, if it is a theatrical release, the agreement clearly prescribes the amount or percentage of daily collection that the distributor, producer and theatre owner is entitled to receive. Such amounts can vary in accordance with the number of days the film is played in the theatre.

Usually, the distributor of the movie gets about 10-15% of the total box office earning, and the thirty percent goes to the production house. However, Will's case was pretty special.

And to understand why Will's case was pretty special, we will have to understand how a movie's box office is distributed.

The way a film's income is collected and distributed is known as the Recoupment Waterfall. Income comes in from a variety of sources and the money is then handed back to the filmmakers via a number of third parties. Along the way, these third parties can recoup the money they spent upfront promoting the film and also charge a pre-agreed fee for their work. What's left after a party has repaid costs and kept their fees will be passed down the chain to the next party.

It can be easily understood using the following waterfall:

[Total Earning: From the theatrical, non-theatrical, VOD, home ent., television, extra.)

In this part, about 40-70% of the income is kept by the exhibitors, for e.g, the theatres.

[Income received to distributors.]

Let's say, 60% comes to the distributors, from which, about 25%-35% is taken by the distributors for publicising and advertisements.

[Sales Agent]

Sales agents, or sales companies, act on behalf of the producer to sell the rights to an independent film or TV drama to distributors, who then release films on different platforms (cinema, TV, DVD, Blu-ray, streaming platforms). Sales agents negotiate with the distributors based on the sales estimates and detailed assessment of the production's commercial value.

[Director, Crew, Actors, Producers and Investors]

After the sales agent's cut and payment of the crew, about 10-25% of the total box office income is left in the pocket of investors and producers.

…

The above explanation is the most basic explanation of the complicated structure of the film industry, and what made Will's case special was that he was the Producer, Director, and most importantly, he was also the Sales Agent since he himself came to negotiate the contract.

And because of the advantage of the genre, the share he was going to get would be a big one.

Right now, 40% of whatever the box office the movie reached was going to be in Will's pocket.

But that didn't mean Will would be satisfied with this. He wanted to have the biggest portion of the pie on his plate.

And his other advantage was, although the CEO of Wheel Works Studio, George Carter, was very enthusiastic about the movie, but that was mainly because of his love for the horror genre.

From a business point of view, this movie was a big risk.

And this was why he wasn't planning to put his toes too deep into this.

"30%. That's my last offer." George said, "My company will handle all the advertisements and publications."

"30% is too high for this movie," Will shook his head, "The movie doesn't need much advertisement. It's the horror genre, and we will create curiosity among the audience, and that will work as a spark to fuel the movie."

George pursed his lips, "What is your counteroffer?"

"8%."

"8?!" Both George and Carl were taken aback. "That's too low. I estimate that the movie will reach one to three million in the box office, and considering its budget, it will be considered a big hit. However, eight percent of that… is too low."

Carl added, "It's not even a half a million as per the estimate. And don't forget that we're considering the highest possible numbers of the box office."

Will shook his head, "8% is my last offer."

"What if…" George thought for a moment and asked, "What if the movie is a flop? Won't I face a big loss? Don't forget I have other shareholders too."

"How about this…" Will thought for a moment and added, "Since you think the movie will fetch you 100-300k with 8% cut… how about I give you 200k as an upfront payment?"

"Hm?" George squinted his eyes, "You're giving this instead of the 12%?"

"No." Will shook his head, "You will now have an 8% share of the box office. But I also have a condition if you accept this deal."

"8%…" George asked, "What is the condition?"

…

/DreamNote/

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The chapter was a but filler-ish, but it was important for us to understand the basic distribution of movie box office share.

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Chapter 34:

"You will have to make this movie a part of the Annual Film Festival."

Will said, making it clear that he won't back down from this point. The original [The Blair Witch Project] movie gained its popularity from the Annual Film Festival, to begin with.

After discussing it with Carl, George smiled faintly and said.

"We have ourselves a deal then. I see a promising young man in you; I just wish those instincts aren't a false alarm."

Will just grinned at his words, and then they had some further discussions, and after that, Will went back to his apartment.

Knock* *Knock*

Will knocked on his apartment door and again was reminded that he had yet to fix his doorbell. He decided to leave it as it is since he will buy it soon anyways.

As the door opened, Will could see June looking at him with loving eyes, trying to suppress her expectations. She was wearing short jeans and a tank top.

Without giving her a chance to react, Will pounced at her, hugging her body close to his, her breasts pinned on his chest. He dived onto her lips, immediately kissing her, making June widen her eyes in surprise.

The kiss didn't last long as he separated from her and grinned at her face, his cheeky smile bringing a smile on June's face too.

"Guess what?"

He asked in a voice that barely hid his excitement. June, who had already guessed the reason behind his pure childlike excitement, still asked, her eyes raised as if genuinely curious.

"What happened?"

"We got a distributor!! And not only that but also a very favourable contract."

Will replied, the smile still on his face.

"Yay, come inside already. I'll prepare something good to celebrate."

June said as she dragged him inside.

After that, she cooked chicken nuggets and pizza while Will brought some coke. They started laughing and eating happily, tickling and touching each other's bodies all over.

After eating and finally sighing in contentment, Will called Jeffrey.

He gave him the good news. The gruff man, Jeffrey, who heard this almost cried from happiness, continuously shouting at Emilia to come and listen to the good news throughout the call.

Will called Josh and Mike too– Ahem. He called Marcus and Zach too.

Everyone was really happy and excited to hear about the good news, and their movie was finally going to make it on the big screens.

He told the main cast and Jeffey about how the contract will work and how everything will be, including the talk about taxes.

After that, he called Benjamin and told him about it, and his uncle couldn't help but jump from his chair and congratulate him again and again.

For an independent director, getting their movies in the theatres was already an accomplishment worth admiring, especially someone like Will, who suffered a lot due to the nature of his movie.

– One more thing, Will. Sign the contract as an individual instead of a company. It would be better that way, and you will have to pay much fewer taxes.

Benjamin advised.

Will contemplated the issue and thought that it was better to do it as Benjamin had told him.

They talked a little more, and Benjamin gave Will the number of Walters Law firm. A medium-sized firm that could help Will through the complications of the contract.

He thanked his uncle and cut the call off.

"In just some time, a movie made by me will be in the theatres."

He muttered and smiled broadly.

The next day, Will was ready to go to Walters Law firm to meet a lawyer. It was then that he had got a phone call from an unknown number.

He picked it up, and a gruff voice came out from it.

– Hello, is this Mr Will Evans? This is Henry Matt from Lauson Studios. Do you remember me?

Will took a moment to realize that Lauson studios were one of the studios that had rejected his movie. Henry was the company's CEO and had been there during the showcase.

But they have rejected it, saying they wanted to focus more on real movies.

"Yes, I remember you. Why are you calling me, Mr Matt?" He asked, wondering why they had suddenly changed their views about his movie.

– Actually, our company recently watched Blair Witch again, and we felt like it's way better than the horror movies these days. We are interested in buying out the movie for 200k dollars. What do you say?

Will didn't expect such an offer and took time to take it in. What was happening? In two days, he had gotten two offers.

It seemed like he was finally in his lucky phase. But in the end, he shook his head and replied.

"I'm sorry, but I already got a better offer from another studio. And it's one that I really like too. I'm sorry, but I have to reject it."

The voice on the other side of the phone didn't really expect rejection and quickly said.

– Don't be so hasty. At least let's meet and discuss some terms. You haven't signed the contract with the other company yet, right?

"I have not, but there's already a verbal agreement."

– Then, I'm sure Lauson studios can give you a better offer. Let's just meet once to discuss it?

"I'm sorry, but I can't. I am quite happy with the current terms, and I don't wish to meet you. I'm sorry but let's cooperate sometime later in the future."

After saying that, Will cut the call and left for the law firm. But on the whole way, he kept wondering why Henry had called him after already rejecting him once.

'And he wants to buy the movie for $200k? I should have told him that I gave that much money to my distributor like it was some spare change.'

…

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Chapter 35:

After the talk with Henry, Will had many questions in his head but decided to throw them at the back of his mind for the time being.

He headed straight for the office of Wheel Works Studios. Meeting up with Carl, and George, who had also come to look out for the contract procedures.

Will's new lawyer, Jason Grace, had also arrived at the office, even before him. He was a senior associate lawyer from Walters Law Firm, one of the biggest law firms of this alternate America. It can easily be compared to Latham Watkins from Will's past life.

(A/N – Latham Watkins is a famous law firm of America)

Although his cost was a bit above average, so was his services. And he was recommended by Benjamin himself.

George had also called for his lawyers, and they started discussing the contract.

They agreed to a clause that if the 8% from the overall income surpasses Will's initial downpayment of $200k, then Wheel Works Studio had to pay back the $200k to Will, and they would just keep 8%.

They decided on how they will market the movie.

The first clause was by Will himself that the movie must enter the Annual Film Festival, to which George and Carl readily agreed.

After which, the advertising and marketing clause came in, which ate Will's brain a lot as there were many things to look out for in this. They had to decide the exact amount they'd spend on it, from attending reality shows to promote the movie to posters and many such things.

Will also emphasised getting an online marketing team, which was actively refuted by the CEO and distribution head of Wheel Works Studios.

But Will didn't back down as he knew the importance of online marketing, especially for this movie which pioneered the online marketing strategy back in 1999.

After that, there were a few clauses that had created minor repulses with each other, but overall, the contract went quite smoothly.

Later, after both the parties had signed the contract, Will told them about the call he got from Henry Matt, the CEO of Lauson Studios.

"That…. I'm quite concerned that he might be trying to enter the Annual Film Festival."

George said what was on his mind, with which Will agreed to as he also felt that Henry would enter the film festival too, that would explain why he opted out for his movie later. A movie shot on a camcorder can be a good attraction, it'll gain the interest of people, and as long as it is good enough, it'll leave a good impression on the crowd.

Later, when everything was done, Will bid his farewell to George and Carl, collected the originals of every document and left the xerox copies with Jason.

2nd October 2010

It had been a month since the contract signing, and Wheel Works Studios was busy promoting the movie to its full potential.

Will had followed the actual marketing strategy of [The Blair Witch Project, which was to keep the lead actors missing from the crowd. He was sure that it would create some trouble for the actors involved, but it won't be as bad since they are using fictional names instead of real names.

And he would take them in his other movies if they didn't get work later, not like they were talentless people.

The Annual Film Festival was just around the corner, and Will was expectant where it would take his movie.

Soon, the film festival arrived. It was held in San Francisco.

The Annual Film Festival did screenings of movies that participated, where it'll be met with all types of appraisers and critiques. Mostly, movies with famous directors and actors had their screenings totally packed, and as the event ended, the movies that did well would be awarded.

As Will's movie was an independent movie with relatively low chances of gathering many audiences, he decided to use a marketing tactic the previous [The Blair Witch Project] team had used and told Carl to make missing posters of the leads of the movie.

As Will reached the film festival, he saw a bunch of paparazzi outside the venue.

The venue was in a huge building with posters and such decorating its outside.

A huge crowd was gathered outside as famous people from Hollywood kept coming in their cars.

Some reporters who had permissions entered under strict security.

The paparazzi who just had one motto, and that was to gather a scoop, didn't miss a single second as the sound of flashing, shuttering, and camera clicking echoed throughout the venue.

The commotion only increased as famous actors like Alex King Kyle Myers entered the venue. As Will reached the guarded entrance, he took out his invitation and showed it to the security guard, who in place let him in.

The Wheel Works Team had already arrived before and did what Will had asked them to do.

Even though the actors were invited too, Will didn't take them with him all because of his plan.

As people entered through the hallway and saw the posters of the movies that would be presented at the film festival, people noticed something unusual.

There were missing posters of people with names such as Mike, Josh, and Heather, along with the movie poster titled [The Blair Witch Project].

It succeeded in gathering attention from the crowd, like the reporters who were allowed in started clicking photos and jotting down articles on their writing pad.

Will, who had done all this, silently walked through the hallway towards the screen designated to [The Blair Witch Project] with a smile on his face.

As he reached the area where [The Blair Witch Project] screening would take place, he found Jeffrey, Carl and George talking amongst themselves.

The marketing team had succeeded in gathering a few audiences, but the big hall still seemed empty with empty seats, only a few seats that were occupied.

As Will went near the trio, they shook hands with him and tried to cheer him up by saying that 'The screenings have yet to start, more people will come soon.

Will just grinned at that and thanked Carl for following his instructions and posting missing posters. Carl was still confused as to why Will had asked him to do that; he didn't need to ask for an answer as he realised that the number of occupied seats started to rise rapidly after Will entered.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 36:

4rth October 2010,

Beeline Hall, San Francisco.

The huge glass building was decorated with nothing but dim light. The lawn leading to its entrance was decorated with red ribbons giving it an exclusive look.

Expensive cars and limousines would come around and drop by famous celebrities on the red-carpet path that led to the entrance.

Nick Fernandez was a senior writer from one of America's most popular newspapers, the Hollywood Times. He was famous for his accurate and descriptive reports of the Hollywood industry.

He had long since been offered a higher position and was proposed to work directly from the studio, but he rejected it, saying he preferred his current way of work.

Paying keen attention to everything in Hollywood, from the rise of a newbie actor or director to the fall of some famous celebrity, it was his hobby to jot down juicy articles related to Hollywood.

Today, he came here to attend the film festival with famous directors such as Edward Friedman and Nicholas Smith.

Film festivals are events staged by universities, private organisations, local governments, arts associations and film societies.

They provide an opportunity for unknown filmmakers to get their movies in front of a real live audience and to have their films reviewed by professional critics.

Filmmakers whose movies get accepted into a festival also get valuable press attention and exposure to prospective agents and buyers, not to mention a sometimes sizeable cash award if they win.

Fledgling filmmakers practice their craft far from the glitter of Hollywood. In backyards, in small studios or on local sets, they transform their vision into a film that they hope will one day be seen by thousands or even millions of people worldwide.

They may lack in budget and star power, but they more than make up for it with raw ambition.

Independent filmmakers might remain forever in obscurity were it not have been for the film festivals. These annual events are held worldwide, where films are screened and professionally judged. At film festivals, cinema fans can see the new – and sometimes daring – films they would never be able to find in their local movie theatres.

Film festivals give new talent an opportunity to shine while also showcasing the work of already well-known and respected filmmakers.

Festivals can range from huge, star-studded events, such as the Sannes festival in France or the Moondance Film Festival in the United States, to small, independent, local awards that garner just a few hundred attendees. But all festivals have something in common: They celebrate the art of film, and they champion the artists who produce it.

A movie that gained 'The Best Feature Film' award at the film festival last year became a blockbuster. That's how much of an impact a film festival had on movies that did well in it.

Nick was an admirer of movies and one of the most famous critics in the United States. He was well respected even by well-known directors and actors, and everyone would try to maintain a friendly relationship with him at least.

He was already in his mid-40s, but he looked to be in his thirties due to his health-conscious self.

He looked more like a star than a reporter with grey hair, sharp eyes covered by circular glasses and a 5'11" height as he walked in proudly on the carpet.

As usual, the venue for the festival was big, and he looked around the walls decorated with movie posters.

As he walked in, he saw a few staff members distributing some posters, and the people who took a look at the poster couldn't help but exclaim a little, causing a small commotion.

A girl staff handed out a poster to him too, and as he took a look, even he felt weirded out.

[Missing]

[Joshua Leonard]

He saw words like 'missing', 'documentary', and 'Unknown' highlighted in the poster and couldn't help but take a look.

Apparently, it was a missing poster of an actor who starred in a horror movie that would be showcased at the film festival. As a news writer, his interest was piqued, and he checked other posters too.

He saw that all of the movie's three leads had a missing poster of their names being handed out here.

Nick just smiled at this as he immediately guessed that it was someone's clever marketing strategy, and he couldn't help but inwardly praise it because it had succeeded in making him want to know more about the movie itself.

It must be the same for all the people who slowly started gathering around the screening room designated for the movie of the missing lead actors; as someone entered, others who were hesitating earlier started entering inside to watch the movie too.

Nick just laughed inwardly at this and couldn't help but be expectant. He was a fan of horror movies, but recently, the movies that could make him genuinely feel fear didn't come around in Hollywood.

He entered the screening for the movie [The Blair Witch Project] too, with a thought in his mind.

'You did well in marketing the movie, but if your movie isn't up to the level of stunt you've pulled, it'll be all for nothing…. I really wish not to be disappointed for the first time in my life.'

It didn't take much for the news to spread that something unusual was happening inside the film festival venue. People who learnt about the news of missing posters didn't have to think much before knowing it was a marketing strategy.

Still, it was something unheard of, so it left people with a certain amount of curiosity. In the end, the screening room for [The Blair Witch Project] was filled to the brim with the audience.

Some people didn't even know what the movie was about and just entered the screening because of the crowd.

Soon, the huge screen blinked, and the movie started.

As minutes passed by, some people got so absorbed into the screen to even remember that what they were watching was done in the first person, which wasn't usual.

Nick, who was an attentive critic, couldn't help but praise the execution of the first person. It was so smooth that people would not really find it annoying rather, they'd find it more engaging.

(Scene currently being played on the screen.)

As Mike and Heather hear Josh's voice, Mike starts running towards the voice, leaving behind Heather who's camera image keeps shaking due to fear, and she tries to run after Mike.

"Mike, don't leave me!"

She shouts at Mike and follows him, only to find him standing stiff; she couldn't help but ask.

"Is he in here?"

"No."

Mike whispered as soon he let out a low curse,

"Oh shit!"

From somewhere in the messy building, they heard Josh's muffled voice.

"No! God!"

Again, from his camera, Mike could be heard whispering nervously.

"Oh, Jesus."

Mike arrives at a set of dishevelled stairs and stops,

"I hear him."

He starts running up the stairs as he keeps hearing Josh's voice.

"I hear him. I hear you! Where? I'm going upstairs!"

He begins to climb upstairs to the second flight. Child-sized bloody palms and strange occult symbols were decorating the run down walls.

[The scene cuts to Heather's 16mm footage on the same set of stairs.]

"Overhmmm!"

Mike heard Josh's muffled voice again as he got anxious.

"Did you hear that? Did you hear that?"

Mike asked in an uncertain tone.

[The scene cuts to Mike's camera looking back at Heather just as she confronts the handprints.]

"Where is he?"

Mikes asks in an agitated voice as Josh's unintelligible cries and moans resound all over.

[The scene cuts back to Heather's footage, hyperventilating at this point.]

Mike starts running towards the voice, panicking and still holding the camera.

"Where are you!? Come on! Josh? I'm getting downstairs! Come on! I HEAR HIM DOWNSTAIRS! Come on!"

He begins to run downstairs. Heather was so scared that she could hardly scream.

"Mmmm! Mike!"

"Come on! Josh!"

Mike keeps shouting as he descends downstairs.

"MIKE!"

Mike arrives at the cellar steps; more occult writings could be seen along the wall.

"Josh? Josh!? Josh, is that you down there!?"

Mike asks as he sees a silhouette of a man.

Heather, who was at a distance from him, shouts at the top of her lungs.

"MIKE! MIKE!"

Ahead, Mike descends into the basement as Heather continues to scream.

"Oh god. . Josh?"

He says as he grunts suddenly, his camera getting knocked to the ground, which autofocuses on the cellar gravel.

[The scene cuts to Heather 16mm footage.]

Heather, who had just arrived at the cellar entrance, starts screaming.

"MIKE! MIKE! MIKE! MIKE!"

"MIKE! IEEE! Mike."

She reaches the bottom of the cellar stairs. She turns around a protruding wall and sees Mike standing there, facing the far corner.

"MIKE! MIKE! IEEE! IEE! HHUH!"

Her camera drops, and the image starts jittering. Suddenly a shadow of a ghastly figure comes around and runs straight towards the camera at a breakneck speed, and the 16mm footage glitches as it cuts off.

"…fuck."

Almost everyone from the audience had a jump scare as the movie ended, and Nick was no exception as he even let out a low curse.

Thump* *Thump*

His heart was beating loudly, and he could feel every beat as cold sweat trickled down his face. He took out his handkerchief and wiped his face as the lights of the screening room turned on.

Exclamations and clamour could be heard everywhere as everyone finally caught their breaths which they had been holding on to since the movie's climax.

'This is it!'

As Nick's fear calmed down, he couldn't help but get excited. The movie was just perfect. Hollywood's horror had been degrading lately, and then, this unexpected movie showed up.

'This is it. This is what Hollywood needs right now. This movie didn't just reach a level; it has created its own standard!'

'There is now a new difficulty level in the horror genre.'

He thought to himself as a sudden rush took over him, and he couldn't help but feel a bit light-headed.

'Which genius director had come out with such a perfect idea?'

He thought to himself; the movie was something well above what he had expected it to be. It was so engaging and thrilling that he couldn't help but keep praising it in his heart.

And at the end, that part where the shadow suddenly runs at the camera was a surefire jump scare for everyone.

Clap*

As everyone regained their sense of reality and clarity, someone from the crowd finally started clapping. It should have been done just after the movie's end but was delayed because of the dizzy audience.

Clap* *Clap* *Clap* *Clap*

Everyone followed after that clap as the screening room echoed with continuous rounds of applause.

…

/DreamNote/

Including this chapter, all the future chapter will me 1.9k to 2.6k words from now on.

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Chapter 37:

Clap* *Clap* *Clap*

Continuous applause resounded throughout the screening theatre as clarity finally returned to the audience.

One by one, people got up from their seats as some were still shaking from fear while some were from excitement.

"Woah….I actually nearly pissed myself. Damn, that was good."

"Yeah, dude, the ending where the witch suddenly appeared almost gave me a heart attack."

"I especially liked the parts where the tents were shaking, and it didn't feel like the actors were actually acting. It felt as if they were genuinely scared."

"I will definitely show this to Lina. She always says horror movies are boring and are not scary at all; I want to see her reaction, haha, it'll be priceless. Maybe I'll record her reactions too."

Some of the audience who had come with their friends or acquaintances started talking and discussing the movie heatedly.

Will, who was listening to the earlier conversation, couldn't help but smile contentedly. His movie was getting talked about, and he felt a sense of accomplishment build-in inside of him.

Just beside him, a cameraman, who was appointed by Carl, started shooting the audience' reaction. They would be able to market the movie by leaps and bound if they caught and advertised using the reactions from the film festival.

Writers and critics that chanced upon the movie, including Nick, started jotting down their opinions about the movie.

As the audience started to calm down, a few of them started looking for the director of the movie, and so, George invited Will to the podium to talk with the audience. When the audience met Will, they gave different types of reactions.

Some were surprised that such a young man was the director, and they almost fainted when they learnt that he was the screenwriter and producer too.

Some old folks told him that they were jealous of him, while some people acted like total fans and looked at him with reverent eyes.

Will felt refreshed at the types of reactions he got from different people. Sometimes, George and Carl would chime in to praise the young director as they were extremely pleased with everything related to him, from his movie to the marketing strategy provided by him.

Soon, as the audience got more engaged in their questions, as this was the first screening of a fairly unpopular movie, there weren't many writers or critics present.

Nick Fernandez, who was the first to ask questions, brought the crux of the matter first.

"What about the missing posters you're distributing outside? Have the leads of the movie really gone missing? If so, how do you plan to find them or compensate their families?"

He barraged Will with tons of questions at once as he smiled inwardly as this was something where most newbie directors would start stuttering and losing confidence.

Most independent and new directors were still like rough diamonds that needed a lot of polishing. And most of them weren't prepared for interviews or abrupt questions that directly impacted their future popularity.

On the other hand, Will just calmly smiled as he answered with ease.

"Oh, no, there is no such thing as actors going missing, I take very good care of my team. That was just a movie poster that we distributed outside. Didn't you watch the movie? It started with the news of 3 missing friends. Behind the missing poster is the normal movie poster too, for making things clear."

Nick was dumbfounded at that answer and immediately took out the folded movie poster from the front pocket of his blazer. Indeed, there was a normal movie poster behind the missing poster, which he seemed to have missed earlier to the rush.

He just chuckled at the absurdity of the situation and asked,

"So this was merely a publicity stunt? Aren't you scared of people reporting it to the authorities that you made fake missing posters and played with people's emotions?"

"There is nothing fake in it, it's a movie poster, and the committee of the annual festival gives full freedom to promote our movies inside the venue. I don't know what you're talking about….Mr. Fernandez."

After that, many others started asking questions about the movie and its shooting. The questions mainly were like how Will got the idea of such a movie and how he used a shooting technique that was thought to be dead.

"Can I get Heather's number?"

One of the guys from the audience asked jokingly, whereas Will simply replied.

"Oh no, she has got a boyfriend."

Visible lamentations could be heard from the young buds in the audience. What they didn't know was that the boyfriend he talked about was Will himself.

Will replied to every relevant question while avoiding any questions aimed at himself or his personal life.

The first day of the Annual Film Festival concluded just like that.

As the day ended and the second day of the Annual Film Festival started, the festival participants began receiving information about the first person horror movie.

It wasn't like wildfire, but word of mouth kept spreading around, and as a result, the audience on the second day of screening was even more significant than the first day. There were even some people who had come to re-watch the movie.

Will, who didn't plan on repeating the same movie, again and again, had invited the cast to join the screenings from the second day onwards. His marketing tactic was a success, so there was no need to keep hiding the movie's leads.

Although only the two male leads attended the screening, the female lead was missing.

June was taken around by Will to enjoy other movies. There was a movie screening which was named [Alien? Lover?].

The movie was directed by a famous director and starred Nick Maddie, the famous rom-com actor.

It followed the story of an alien that got stranded on earth because he missed his trip back to his planet. He saved a girl who would fall from a hill and missed his chance to return home.

The alien looked perfectly human-like and had a cynical personality. He never ages and is forced to change his identity every ten years. Four hundred years after being stranded, he meets a crazy Hollywood actress as the plot begins.

It's mostly a romantic comedy with a light theme but still had its emotional moments. June was crying during many parts of the story, and it was clear that the movie actors had done an outstanding job at playing their characters.

What Will was confused about was that the story was a complete copy of [My Love From The Star, a popular Korean drama back in his previous life.

This opened up new possibilities for Will as he contemplated that there could be movies that already exist but with a different name. There can even be actors with other names.

Although all this would still not cause any real threat to Will as he had the Hollywood System with him.

Will and June enjoyed their time together in the rest of the film festival days in the same fashion. [The Blair Witch Project] started becoming a hot topic on the third day and famous critics attended the movie from the fourth day onwards.

In the meantime, Will and June watch another movie together, directed by John Carry, a famous director who mostly did sci-fi movies.

The movie's name was [The Eclipse in Our Memories] and followed his sci-fi trend with a touch of romance to it; the story went as follows.

After a fight, John Agnello discovers that his girlfriend Emma Bartley has had his memories erased by the New York City firm Racuna. Heartbroken, he decides to undergo the same procedure. In preparation, he records a tape for Racuna, recounting his memories of their volatile relationship.

The Racuna employees work on John's brain as he sleeps in his apartment so that he will wake up with no memory of the procedure. One employee, Patrick, leaves to see Emma; since her procedure, he has been using John's and Emma's memories as a guide for seducing her. While the procedure runs on John's brain, the technician Stan and the secretary Mary have a party and lovemaking session.

John re-experiences his memories of Emma as they are erased, starting with their last fight. As he reaches earlier, happier memories, he realizes that he does not want to forget her. His mental projection of Emma suggests that John hide her in memories that do not involve her. This halts the procedure, but Stan calls his boss, Howard, who arrives and restarts it. John comes to his last memory of Emma: the day they first met, on a beach in Montauk. As the memory crumbles around them, Emma tells John to meet her in Montauk.

In John's apartment, while Stan is outside, Mary tells Howard she is in love with him, and they kiss. Howard's wife arrives and, from the street, sees them through the window. Furious, she tells Howard to tell Mary the truth: that Mary and Howard previously had an affair and that Mary had her memories erased. Disgusted, Mary steals the Lacuna records and mails them to the patients, including John and Emma.

John wakes up, his memories of Emma erased. He impulsively goes to Montauk and meets Emma again on the train home. They are drawn to each other and go on a date to the frozen Charles River in Boston. John drives Emma home, and Patrick sees them, realizing they have found each other again. John and Emma receive their Lacuna records and listen to their tapes. They are shocked by the bitter memories they had of each other but agree to try again.

Will was again shocked to find a movie from his past life, although it wasn't a particularly famous one, the movie was really good, and it was named [Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind].

During the past few days, he had watched many screenings with June, and this was the second movie that matched movies from his past life. He came to the conclusion that every 2/10 movie existed here, and he made up his mind to watch all the famous movies.

After all, he could end up working hard on movies that already existed and make a fool out of himself.

On the 10th day, the film festival officially came to an end as the awards distribution started.

The venue for award distribution was different, and it was much bigger than the venue for screenings. A huge stage was prepared, and the host would announce movies that won particular awards, basically announcing their success in the future.

As the award ceremony went on, Will watched a few famous awards going to famous directors of this world, such as 'The Best Feature Film' award.

He wasn't stupid enough to expect an award on his first movie, but deep down, he couldn't help but hope for it; even a small award would be huge for him.

After some time, the special awards started getting handed out. These awards were the ones that truly shocked the jury but weren't able to bag the main awards.

"Next up is the award for 'Most innovative movie'. To present this award, I would like to call Karen Jansen to the stage."

The host said, and a beautiful actress walked up to the stage in a dress that the top designers made in Hollywood.

She took centre stage and took out the envelope that contained the winning movie's name.

Her eyes showed a surprise as she looked at the movie's name, and raising her head with a smile, she announced the winner.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 38:

Karen Jansen took out the envelope with a smile on her face. Her gaze lingered on the directors and actors sitting below the stage, and she couldn't help but smirk.

As an actress, she very well knew how they were feeling; Anxious, worried, and hopeful.

She looked down at the envelope and saw the name of the movie that had won the award, and she couldn't help but be surprised.

'I haven't seen this one.'

She had gone through the screenings of many movies but not the one written on the envelope. Ignoring her thoughts, she spoke on the mic.

"So, the name of the movie which has won the award for the 'Most innovative idea' is [The Blair Witch Project]!"

As soon as Karen announced that, wild applause rang out from the crowd. All the eyes of the directors, actors, and other important individuals gathered on Will.

"What is [The Blair Witch Project]? Why haven't I heard of it?"

"That camcorder movie? I can't believe it won an award!"

"I saw the screening of it. It was really scary, but it's not a real movie. The jury has really gone mad!"

"Who's the director of it?"

People talked in hushed whispers, but their gazes were lingering on the table, which was occupied by Will, June, Marcus, Zach, and George.

'We won… we really won.'

Will couldn't believe that the movie he had directed had really got an award at a prominent film festival.

[The Blair Witch Project] didn't receive any awards in his previous world. But it was well-received by the audience, even though the movie still couldn't rake in any awards.

So, this was a shock to Will.

But it was a genuinely good one. For a moment, Will wasn't even able to hide his emotions, and a bright smile unknowingly crept on his face.

"June, did we really win an award?" He asked, turning towards June, who was looking up at him.

"Yes, yes, we did! You really did it, Will!"

She said excitedly, thinking back to the time she had decided to accept Will's offer to play the lead. Who would have known that a movie shot on a camcorder in 10 days would get an award?

On the other hand, George had an expression that said he was finally not regretting choosing a movie like Blair Witch to distribute.

Marcus and Zach just looked at each other in disbelief and shock.

Slowly coming to terms with reality, they walked up to the stage with Will and George leading the way.

As Will walked towards Karen, she whispered.

"Congratulations! Are you really the director?" She asked with a flicker of surprise in her eyes.

"Yeah, I'm the one."

"I haven't seen your movie, but now I'm interested in it. Again, congratulations on winning!"

Saying this, Karen presented Will with the award. He picked it in his hands and looked down at it.

It was the first movie award he had won in his life.

Will glanced at the award, then at the audience. At that moment, George nudged him a bit on his shoulders.

"Will, you should speak on behalf of the team."

He nodded his head and stepped towards the mic. Looking down at the prominent figures in Hollywood who were eyeing him with curiosity, he spoke.

"Hello, my name is Will Evans, the director of [The Blair Witch Project] – A horror movie made in 10 days and shot with old video cameras. Funny, right?"

Many people in the crowd still haven't seen [The Blair Witch Project, so his words caused a bit of stir. Although it got a lot of audiences, the screening time ended before it could spread to more people.

Anyway, horror movies are ignored by most people until they're really exceptional.

"When I started this project, even I had thought that I was acting crazy. But it was my only option to be a filmmaker, especially after I dropped out of EUC – A dream I have had since childhood. I wanted to make something that is unique in its nature, and I think I'm satisfied with the product that we have managed to make. In the end, I want to thank the committee overseeing the Annual film festival for giving me an opportunity to show my movie here."

As Will ended his speech there, loud applause rang out. Several fellow independent directors in the audience were impressed by his calm attitude.

His words were short, but he had managed to relay a bit of his journey. Even Karen, who was standing beside Will, was a little impressed.

She felt like the young man standing in front of him would one day be a great director.

After that, they just shook hands with the jury that had selected the movies for awards and met some other people who introduced themselves.

"Haha, Will, you are brilliant. Your movie is brilliant!"

George slapped his hand on Will's shoulders when they were moving towards the parking lot after the ceremony was over. He seemed to be ready excited as he hadn't expected Blair Witch to win an award.

"Thanks, George. To be honest, even I didn't expect an award."

"Take it as a sign that your movie is capable of impressing people. We got an excellent response during the screening too. Now, with an award behind the movie, I think we are ready?"

George said, hinting at something and Will's eyes widened hearing that.

"You mean a proper release?"

"Yes, let's release it in a month. There were no big movies released around that time. So, our competition would be less, and I'm now more than confident that [The Blair Witch Project] would do really well at the box office."

"That's the best thing you have said today, George."

Will laughed, and behind him, the three leads of his movie high-fived each other. All of them said congratulations to Will.

Like that, the official release of the movie was finalized.

The following month was pretty gruesome for everyone attached to [The Blair Witch Project]. It was due to the fact that Wheel Work was going all out with the marketing campaign.

In the past month, they have created a MeTube channel and a website according to the instructions given by Will.

On it, the marketing team was regularly posting small clips and behind the scene footage. Aside from that, they have also made a 2-minute trailer, and it has already crossed 200k views.

They were also posting interviews with the cast and some fictional facts about the Blair witch.

Wheel work had even made two of their older employees work as the parents of Heather and give out an interview. Obviously, all this was fake, but their performance was good enough to make people believe in it.

He even felt like the two employees deserved awards for the performance they gave in a 5-minute clip.

All this, coupled with the small amount of hype they have gotten due to the film festival, was enough to make some people interested in a horror movie shot on a camcorder.

To maintain the hype till the release, Wheel Work even hired a legion of keyboard warriors – the formidable fighters whose jobs were to go to every movie-related forum and social media channels and talk about [The Blair Witch Project].

For a while, even Will joined them to help out.

All this made Wheel work and Will hopeful about the movie's official release. Will very well knew that even if the opening was not big, the movie would spread due to word of mouth.

More and more people would be attracted to it every day, and in the end, it would make more than 100 million dollars in the North American market alone.

Today was the day that the [The Blair Witch Project] was released.

The first show was actually starting on over 800 screens all over the United States in just thirty minutes from now.

'I hope at least some people come to see the movie after reading these articles.'

Will thought as he went through some articles. He was currently on his way to the theatre to watch the movie.

He had been waiting for this day since the last month. This was going to be the first movie directed by him. Even though he was almost sure that this movie would probably be a hit, he was still nervous about the results.

In fact, he hadn't even slept properly last night, and by the time he closed his eyes, it was almost morning.

After sleeping for the whole day, he woke up pretty late, and as soon as he felt the first ounce of consciousness, he opened his eyes and immediately sat up on the bed.

The first thing he checked was the time. It was still about an hour before the first show of the movie.

Removing the blanket, he stood up, and the first thing he checked was his phone.

There were quite a lot of messages, and a few missed calls, too, from Jeffery, his Uncle Ben, and June.

He decided to dial back to them one by one.

Starting with his Uncle Ben.

-Hello, Will. Is that you?

"Yes, Uncle, it's me."

-Oh, I called during the day. Were you busy?

"Ah… I just fell asleep. Today the movie I directed will be released. So I couldn't even sleep properly last night."

-Haha, that's normal. I also called regarding your movie and another thing. First thing, I am happy for you, and isn't there a saying… ah yes, I hope that this movie breaks the internet.

"Thank you, Uncle."

-Hm, also, don't be discouraged even if this one doesn't perform well. In fact, I will be going to watch it today. I missed it during the screening event because of my schedule, but I won't miss it today. In fact, I am just about to leave. Where are you? Why don't you join me? I also have a surprise for you; I think it will be better if I tell you in person.

"Oh, you don't have to trouble yourself, Uncle. Just tell me the Cinema hall name nearby, I will come over.

-Um, I think it's the Arclight Cinemas. It's near my office building. Should I send a car? The show will start in one hour.

"I will be there, Uncle. In half an hour at most."

-Alright. I will see you there then.

Will nodded and put down the phone as the call came to an end.

'I will talk to the others later. I need to hurry.'

Within the next five minutes, Will freshened himself and wore a tailored blue suit jacket paired with a white shirt and black dress pants…

Since today was the movie's first day, he couldn't help himself but wear a suit to enjoy the movie.

Though he was sure that he would be getting a few looks because it's not every day people see a guy going to watch a horror movie wearing a fancy dress.

It took him about twenty minutes to reach the cinema hall in a taxi and five more minutes to find his Uncle.

"You're here," His Uncle called him, "Come, tickets will be here soon."

Will nodded as he walked towards his Uncle and asked, "How have you been, Uncle?"

"Ah, my schedule has been hectic for the last few months. And you're the one to be blamed for it."

"Me? What did I do?"

"You gave me an amazing script."

"Oh…"

"Yes. The company loves your [17 Again] script, in fact, they are not even planning to make too many changes; it just feels kind of perfect. In fact, someone might call you pretty soon regarding this project. And you better pick it up; maybe that call might change your life."

"Oh?" Will was surprised by this, "Who would be calling me?"

But before his Uncle could reply, someone approached them and spoke.

"Dad, here's the ticket."

Will's smile froze for a moment, and regaining his composure at the moment; he turned around.

In his sight appeared a young lady, who also turned towards him. She wore a yellow gown with a large flared skirt and yellow-coloured floral embroidery on the bodice, revealing a pair of flawless and fragile alabaster shoulders.

She was Uncle Ben's daughter, Jennifer Charles.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 39:

Jennifer Charles, nicknamed Jenny, daughter of Benjamin Charles, was a childhood acquaintance of Will. Their relationship never seemed to develop from 'acquaintances' to 'friends' due to Jenny's peculiar personality.

The surprised expression on her was priceless as she stuttered a bit with movie tickets and popcorn in her hand.

"W-why is this chipmunk here?"

Ben had asked her to buy three tickets for the movie, but he didn't mention who the third person was.

Jennifer frowned at Benjamin, clearly displeased.

A slight smile unconsciously formed on Will's face after hearing the nickname he hadn't heard since his reincarnation.

"It's his movie," Benjamin replied shortly, as he said in a sharp tone, "Why are you acting like this? Weren't you excited to see the movie?"

"You were?" Will asked, clearly surprised. As far as he remembered, she didn't like horror movies in particular.

Jennifer tried to control her facial expression as she answered, trying to sound grand, "I just wanted to buy a ticket so that at least your movie earns a few dollars."

Ben frowned in annoyance and reprimanded her, "Is this any way to talk? I've taught you better."

Will just chuckled at her antics; this personality made it impossible for him – or his past self – to become friends with Jenny.

After that, they just walked inside the theatre, and a poster of the movie was plastered on the entrance.

The poster was overall dark, with a close-up picture of June's upper face, her eye's frightened with a torch-like light illuminating her face. The other part of the poster was covered in a jungle of dark trees, with the following text on it, just below the part where it said it had won the most innovative film award at the annual film festival.

[In October 1994, three students disappeared in the woods near Burkittsville, Maryland, while shooting a documentary…

A year later, their footage was found.

The Blair Witch Project]

There was a cross before the texts.

Benjamin, who looked at the poster, was impressed and told Will that this kind of poster would market well as it even gave a vague explanation of what the movie was like.

Then he inquired about the cross mark, and Will said he'd find out after watching the movie.

They entered the theatre. It was a medium-sized theatre with about 1200 seats. As he often visited this theatre, the seats were acceptable with a big screen.

What was weird about this 1200 seat theatre was that not even half of the seats were occupied. It seemed like, at most only one-third of the seats were occupied by the audience.

Jenny, who saw this, couldn't help but frown. It was hard to tell what annoyed her more, the sight of empty seats for Will's movie or the fact that she would be watching the genre she was most scared of.

"Ahaha, it's fine, Will. Don't feel down. This is just your first movie; most people can't even make it here. You're still young, and there will be many opportunities for you in the near future."

Ben tried to cheer Will up with words of encouragement, although he wasn't really lying about the latter part.

"Don't worry, Uncle Ben. In my mind, tonight will be the start of the best advertisement for this movie because, after tonight, the real word-of-mouth will begin."

Will said in an optimistic tone that neither sounded arrogant nor overconfident. He knew that his uncle was trying to cheer him up, but he already knew the movie would do well in the latter part of the week instead of the first day.

"That's great. You have got the right mentality. Just don't despair at small setbacks and keep going ahead with a positive mindset. Success will be yours sooner or later."

Ben commented. He was extremely pleased with Will these days, who seemed like a different person and showed a lot of maturity for his age. Although some of his decisions seemed rushed, Ben couldn't take them at face value as he had already learnt his lesson that Will was not an ordinary hot-headed kid.

"Yeah, sure, Mr Chipmunk will go and take the world by storm with his old camera."

Although Jennifer said that sarcastically, her face showed a different reaction as if she was happy with Will's attitude.

Soon, all of them sat at their seats, with Will on the right, Ben in the middle and Jenny on the left.

The lights turned on as the screen lit up and the movie started.

The movie's full length was about eighty minutes long. And Will enjoyed the whole movie… no, he enjoyed the expression of terror, gasping, teary eyes, and the shaken face of the audience members throughout the playthrough of the movie as they even had their legs huddled on the seat out of fear.

Although he couldn't see Jennifer's expression, considering the fact that she was afraid of a mere spider, the Blair Witch Project ought to be on the higher tier than that.

As for the others, the audience was so terrified that they didn't even leave the theatre until the whole credits ended and the lights were switched on.

…

"Dude, I am not going anywhere near the woods," A guy walking right in front of Will as they exited the theatre said to his friend.

"Woods? Fuck that; I am not going near a fucking tree. This shit was scary as hell, man." His friend replied, rubbing his own forehead.

"I got literal creeps, man; I had my legs on the seat the whole time."

Someone else added, "To be honest, the only part that creeped me out was the final shot. I am kinda feeling nauseous."

"It's cuz you're allergic to art." The first guy gave him a look, "This movie was a true art."

"Yeah, I am going home and gonna tell everyone about it. Damn, this shit was scary."

"I know, right, fuck! Why should we be the only ones scared shitless!"

"Dude, that one flash of Blair Witch's shadow tho…"

"Don't mention that! That fucking scene made my heart stop!"

"This movie was worth every penny, man," Another group of youngsters passed by Will, and one of them was telling his friends, "I was so sceptical of this movie, mainly because of the recording technique."

"Yeah, it's very unique. I don't think there is any movie like this, is there?"

"I think there was one-thirty or so years ago, but I think this one takes the cake."

"Yeah, this movie gave me the chills. I don't remember the last time I was so scared."

"Maybe when you saw your face in the morning?"

"Fuck you!"

"That'd be kinda gross."

"…"

…

With Jennifer and Uncle Ben, Will had arrived in the parking lot by now, and the latter was talking about the movie.

"…Interesting. Yes, that's the word I would use for it." Uncle Ben said.

Will was a bit surprised. The adjective 'Interesting' was not a word one would normally use to describe The Blair Witch Project movie.

"You didn't find it… scary?" Will asked.

"Scary?" Uncle Ben chuckled, "Hehe, Will, do you know thirty years ago, when a movie used this same technique, your dad and I went together to watch it. Both of us used to go to watch movies, especially horror ones."

"Oh? So you got used to this genre?"

"Um, actually, we used a simple trick not to get scared."

Meanwhile, Jennifer unlocked the car and opened the back seat door, gesturing to Uncle Ben to have a seat. As Uncle Ben stepped in, Will was about to follow, but she closed the door and pointed at the front door.

"I am not going to be your chauffeur."

Will shrugged and took the front seat, besides the driver seat.

Jeniffer looked around for a bit and gulped her saliva. She swiftly ran, took the driver seat, and sighed relief while putting in the key.

Will glanced at her for a moment and then asked Uncle Ben while putting on the seat belt, "What trick?"

"One of them was, we would just imagine the director shouting "Cut" and all the studio lights coming on straight away while the camera pans away to reveal the set."

"Oh? It worked all the time?"

"Well, not always. But the second trick worked every damn time."

"Dad!" Jennifer scowled in the rear-view mirror inside the car, "Watch your language." She added while squinted her eyes at her father and then focused back on driving as they left the theatre.

Uncle Ben ignored her and continued to say, "The second trick was to find something funny. No matter how scary the scene is, if you can find a single comedic moment in it, all the scare will be gone."

"Oh?" Will nodded, "I will try these."

"Haha," Uncle Ben laughed. "Try it. But yeah, of all things, I can be sure of one thing. Your movie is going to raise the bar in the whole horror genre."

Will smiled, "Thank you, Uncle."

Uncle Ben smiled and asked about shooting process related questions and any problems he faced.

About ten minutes later…

"Hahaha, I bet those bastards at Foxstar are now going to lose their sleep as your movie earns a lot." Uncle Ben laughed.

Will smiled. He recalled the day when he had visited the Foxstar Studios to make them the distributor for his movie, but in the end was harshly rejected.

'Well, things turned out to be better.'

The deal he got later with the Wheel Works Studios was not something he could have succeeded in negotiating with Forster.

'If things go well, I will soon have enough funds to…'

Just then, the car stopped, pulling Will out of his thoughts.

"Dad, we are here," Jennifer spoke.

Uncle Ben removed his seatbelt from the backseat while saying, "Will, why don't you come over? Your aunt must have cooked something good."

Will thought for a moment and replied, "I can't say no to aunt's cooking."

"Hahaha," Uncle Ben smiled as the security opened the gates, and Jennifer drove the car in.

As the car entered the estate, Will remembered something, and turning his head towards Uncle Ben; he asked, "Uncle, you were telling me that I would get a call from someone? Who were you talking about?"

….

/DreamNote/

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…

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Chapter 40:

It was early morning when Will opened his eyes and woke up at the sound of the alarm.

Getting out of bed wasn't a hard task for Will; he was a morning person, after all. However, today it was a bit different.

He had a dream early in the morning, and he kept waking up from time to time due to it, waking up and going back to sleep just to experience the dream again.

Will dreamed about a full-packed theatre showcasing [The Blair Witch Project, and when the movie came to an end, everyone stood up to give a standing ovation.

'Getting a standing ovation for a horror movie… that's something funny.'

Sitting upon his bed, he stared at the digital clock hanging on the wall to his right.

[07:34 AM]

[26th October]

This was Halloween weekend, and Will had a good feeling about this week's audience turnout in the cinema halls.

'I have a feeling this week will be the best week of my life.'

Taking a light breath, he removed the blanket from himself and headed towards the washroom while recalling last night's events at his Uncle Ben's house.

Last night, he had dinner at his uncle's place, and later, Jennifer dropped him off at his apartment, which he had insisted on even though Uncle Ben invited him to spend the night at his place.

Will didn't wish to be too reliant on his Uncle Ben and give their family any trouble. And the other thing was, he liked this place better.

He remembered the call Benjamin talked about, and he decided to put it at the back of his mind for now as it wasn't his priority.

While brushing his teeth, he switched on his phone. The phone's battery had died while he was watching the movie, and by the time he got back to his apartment, he was too tired to turn it on.

'Come to think of it… I don't even remember much… how did I leave Jennifer's car to go to my room?'

Before he could dwell anymore in thought, the phone switched on, and a string of notifications flashed in front of his eyes.

[12 Missed Calls]

[23 Messages]

"…"

Will put the phone down and immediately went to rinse his mouth.

Coming back, he first called June. Most of the missed calls were from her.

She was currently at her parent's house, visiting them for the Halloween weekend. Even though she wanted to watch the movie in the cinema with Will, he told her it would be good if she watched it with her family, because he was confident that this was going to be a big turning point in her career.

It was still early in the morning, and getting no response from the call, Will assumed she was most likely asleep.

The next person he called was Carl.

The latter had played a major role in making this movie a reality.

-Hello, Will, is that you?

"Good morning, Carl, yeah it's me."

-Good morning, lad. Where were you yesterday? No one picked up your phone. Did you go to any cinema hall to watch the movie?

"I was sleeping for most of the day, and in the evening, I rushed to the cinema hall. Uncle Ben had invited me over, and during that time, my phone's battery died."

-Oh, never mind that I was calling for ways to ask about the turnout of the audience at the cinema hall. How was it?

"Uhm… it wasn't much. Not even half of the seats were full."

-Yeah, that's a bit natural. I called you yesterday afternoon to tell you to be prepared for this sight and not to be discouraged. This is just the opening weekend of your very first movie. I have a feeling the real show will start in the next few days.

"Yes," Will nodded, "I am confident that it will attract more and more audiences. However, we shouldn't slack. I hope you can continue uploading the interviews on MeTube, of the people coming out of the cinema hall after watching the movie.

-Oh, don't you worry about that, I will handle it all. Anyway, the official date of the occupancy rate in each cinema would come out in the afternoon.

The occupancy rate was calculated by how many people bought the ticket, both from the cinemas and the online websites. All this reached the distribution company in a day and was the best way to know if a movie was doing well or not.

"How much are you expecting?"

-I would be happy if it's 15 percent.

"That's around the same I predicted. Well, it will just increase this week. Nothing tops horror movies in Halloween week."

Will was on call for a few more minutes, and after hanging it up, he stared at the phone screen for a good long minute with a frown.

'Am I forgetting something?'

Just then, a thought flashed in his mind, and he recalled the system prompt he got during the award function in the Annual Film Festival.

It's already been more than a month, and he remembered it now. Shaking his head, he brought the system screen.

[Congratulations on winning a basic level award at a film festival.]

[Achievement – Award Gobbler (Repeatable)

Reward – 1 lucky spin]

'Huh. So this time, it's a lucky spin instead of fame points.'

Instead of waiting and dying from anticipation, Will immediately used the lucky spin chance he got.

The translucent screen started scrolling down rapidly and then came to a halt, leaving a pleasantly surprised Will as he couldn't help but smile at the reward.

In the next few days, Will got in the habit of waking up and going through online forums and social media platforms to see what people were saying about [The Blair Witch Project].

The only time he would go out was to see people's live reactions in the cinema hall, and he could see that gradually, more and more people were getting attracted to his movie.

Due to the way it was made, many people had doubts that it was actually a real documentary and not a movie. Wheel Works didn't clarify anything related to this rumour, and it just added to the people's curiosity.

As it was Halloween week, more horror movies were also getting released. Will has already watched most of them, and he had to say that their quality wasn't something that could surpass [The Blair Witch Project].

One of the movies was [The World of the Dead]. The surprising thing about this movie was that it was distributed by Lauren Studios.

Will had watched it yesterday, and it wasn't anything special. It was easy to guess that Lauren studios just wanted a movie to release during Halloween and rushed the selection.

In the end, it was a wrong choice.

Unlike that, [The Blair Witch Project] was on the rise every day. And at that time, a major incident happened.

A 16-year-old who was watching the movie got a heart attack at the sudden appearance of the Blair witch. The incident brought waves of media outlets and articles on the web to be written about the movie.

The incident caused an uproar, especially on social media, as people started to question more and more about the movie.

Will, who heard about the incident, immediately contacted George.

"It's me, Will. Did you hear the news?"

– Yeah, I did. Honestly, don't worry about it. If someone tries to find trouble, we will handle it easily. This isn't the first time a casualty has appeared due to a horror movie.

"Yeah, I know. I am not worried about that. It's time for us to gain a massive advertisement boost, and this incident will prove very useful in deciding our total numbers in the box office next week."

– Y-you …mean?

A peculiar smile appeared on Will's face, making him look as charming and innocent as a sage, his next words not matching his sage-like aura.

"Yeah, someone getting a heart attack from our movie is actually pretty good. The news would spread like wildfire and give our movie free promotion. I'm expecting the audience rating to increase by at least 30% by the weekend."

– That… that's true. I didn't think that way.

The tone of George's voice was like he was impressed. They talked for a while more, and George promised that he would do everything to use the heart attack incident as publicity.

For a moment, Will thought he was using someone to profit, but it was Hollywood, and he needed to do everything to make sure his movie became a huge hit.

The next day, the incident had already spread.

Many news websites have covered it, and one of those major websites was Movie flex. There was an article titled 'Horror movie causes heart attack'.

It was more than enough to attract people, and soon, many people read the article and commented on it.

-Wow! Is this true?

-My brother said he watched this movie yesterday. He was sleeping with the lights turned on.

-Seems like a marketing tactic.

-I'm going to try out this movie. I heard it's based on real footage.

-Just as I thought I wouldn't get any good horror movies, this article came on my feed. Going to try it out today.

-Is the kid okay?

-is this movie really that scary? it seems like a farce….

-Yeah, I wonder the same thing. Is it really that scary to have a heart attack?

These were the comments under the article, and it was getting more and more reads by the hours.

At the same time, those who have already watched [The Blair Witch Project] were recommending it to their parents, especially young teenagers and adults.

As they can't change into costumes and go from house to house to ask for trick or treat, they decided to go watch a horror movie, and Blair Witch Project was the obvious choice.

All this resulted in a huge increase in the occupancy rate in theatres day by day. On the first day, it was only around 15 percent.

The next day, it was 30 percent.

Then, 45 percent.

70 percent.

And the movie was just getting more and more hyped. At the end of the week, George called Will to tell him about the weekly gross of the movie.

Will was expecting a fair number, but when George finished talking, even his eyes went wide.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 41:

"How much did you say?"

Will's voice shuttered as he took in the number that George had just said. He was expecting a good enough box office amount, but it was still too much.

-Yeah, I was shocked too, Haha. It's around 17 million for the first week. Will, you don't realise, but we are doing way better than most movies on the box office currently."

"That means we already recovered the costs and even made a big profit."

-Yeah, and it's just the first week! Will, you and your movie are a wonder! A gift from Jesus!

One could clearly feel George's excitement from his voice, and even Will couldn't stop himself from laughing out loud.

17 million dollars in the first week was no joke!

And it should be noted that this was just the first week and the occupancy rate in cinemas was just increasing day by day, especially the midnight shows that would give the real scare to the viewers.

Many self proclaimed strong people watched it just to see if they would be scared and ended up scared shitless.

At the same time, 17 million meant that the [The Blair Witch Project] had ranked 4th in the North American Weekly Box Office Rankings!

The movie above at the 3rd rank was [The World of the Dead]. Although the movie was bad, the marketing cost has been too much, and it has barely crossed [The Blair Witch Project] because of this.

It was hard to say if this Lauren Studios movie would at least break even, especially with the hype of [The Blair Witch Project, a movie in the same genre.

Will was sure that his movie would cross it pretty soon.

Aside from that, the other two movies were [The Knight' Prince, a mediaeval fantasy headed by Frank Joe, one of the oldest actors in Hollywood, and the other one was [Love me, Zinon, a rom-com produced by one of the top six studios in Hollywood.

Both of these movies were running for weeks and were slowing down.

Will felt like from next week, [The Blair Witch Project] would surely occupy the 1st rank and would make his way into the history of cinema.

As the hype around the movie was just increasing, even the media started paying close attention to it, and some of the reporters even went to the Wheel Works studios office and interviewed George.

In the interview, he let out that the director of the movie was a 21-year-old EUC dropout, and it was made on a budget of fewer than 100k dollars.

Just this one sentence spread like wildfire, and suddenly, the media started advertising the fact.

As the craze of [The Blair Witch Project] was starting to settle in the hearts of the crowd, the media in the United States especially can't let go of such a chance.

Famous news channels sent their reporters on literal man-hunts as at least 1-2 reporters were stationed around every medium to large-sized theatres for the sole purpose of taking interviews of people who have just watched the movie.

A young reporter holding his mike in front of the cameramen started with a summary about the movie as he noticed that the movie inside the Blue Bell theatre in Las Vegas had ended.

"I'm reporter David from BNN news with cameraman Thomas. The craze of [The Blair Witch Project] is increasing day by day as the enjoyers of the horror genre have titled it as the standard for all Hollywood movies. The story is about three students who have gone to shoot a documentary about the legendary Blair witch, but these students never returned."

"A year later, their footage was found that seemed to tell the story that they went through, of course, this isn't really as per the confirmation from the distribution company. Yet, there are people who still call it a real story."

As people walked out, a middle-aged woman with grey hair came out; the reporter instantly went to her to take her review.

"What do you think about the movie?"

The woman seemed to be surprised at first, then noticed the mic and camera.

"Two words, absolutely fantastic! This was the scariest experience ever."

She said with her eyes moving as if to convince the reporter.

"Why? Why do you think so?"

David asked to elaborate on her view, which the woman excitedly continued with.

"I don't know! It's like they took a concept and stuck to it to a very terrific level. I think that the performances of the three actors are so realistic and… convincing, without which the film wouldn't work at all. I just found it all very… invigorating, fresh and…haha terrifying."

David, who saw that the woman was co-operating, asked another question.

"There are a lot of people who are saying the movie is real footage. Do you believe it's real too?"

The woman just smiled and looked at the reporter's ID and said.

"David…. I'm seduced to think that whatever is happening on the screen is real and natural, that's how enjoyable a movie is, and that's how good the 'realism' factor of this movie was. I loved getting scared witless from this film."

The interview continued for a while, and this woman's interesting replies spread all over the media and the internet. The particular clip of her review got almost over 500k views on MeTube

As the reviews like this from the audiences got famous, the popularity of [The Blair Witch Project] sored high.

Every day, there would be some of the other incidents that would be enough to make headlines. Even Will would have doubted these incidents as marketing stunts if he wasn't the director himself.

The movie was getting extremely popular due to factors that Will hadn't even considered. First was that woman's review. Secondly, some weird guy decorated his neighbourhood parking lot with the cross signs of Blair Witch, scaring people shitless and getting arrested in the process.

Still, these types of incidents kept happening, and some media channels tried to question the authenticity of these events, only to be diverted by some other incident.

The movie grossed $40 million in the second and $77 million in the third week, bringing about the awe of everyone.

It was the third week of the movie's premiere, and it had remained on #1 for the last two consecutive weeks. The highly anticipated movies that were about to be released were already scared of their box office getting affected due to [The Blair Witch Project].

Soon, as the movie's popularity reached a certain point, people finally started to question the director and actors of the movie.

They weren't kept in the dark for long as Wheel Works posted information related to the director, actors and the cast on their website and MeTube channel.

This caused another wave in the viewers and audiences as they couldn't believe such a young director was behind this masterpiece. He had also broken the record in Hollywood as the youngest director to earn more than 50 million in the first month of the premiere, while the first month was nowhere near its end just yet.

Everyone from the main cast received a lot of attention from the media as they dug out the information of each main lead and the director, bringing upon another row of exclamations filled with awe and incredulity.

The female lead, June Roberts, was an actor who had never played any role apart from being extra, bringing about the rage of people as they thought that other directors hadn't done justice to her talents, as her performance in [The Blair Witch Project] was too awe-inducing.

The other two leads, Marcus and Zach, were also low time actors without any particular movies or fame to back them up, yet they came out with such amazing performances.

The most incredible of the bunch was the director himself. Will Evans, a 21-year-old EUC dropout without any backing or earlier achievements, seemed to have come out of nowhere as he started his trip to Hollywood.

Not only was he the director of this stir-causing movie, but he was also the screenwriter and producer. How he got the funding to make the movie was another question altogether when people learnt about his run-down rented apartment.

His history was nothing spectacular, and he was never too bright of a person from whom people would expect a future star.

But here he was, coming out with such a risky yet genius movie. People's interest and attention were piqued, and 'Will Evans', this name became the centre of attention between the youth and old alike.

There were many unanswered questions about him, so the media dug out and interviewed his ex-classmates to his current landlord.

They found out that Will was a guy who recently became an orphan, and after losing his dad, his attitude changed, and he started working on [The Blair Witch Project].

There were many made-up juicy stories related to his past, and the media used the fact that he was someone who recently became an orphan to gather more sympathy from the viewers and audiences.

On the other hand, several famous critics also finally found time to watch and give a review of the horror movie that has started a craze.

Erwin Marshal, an old critic, called the movie "A fresh breath of air with a unique way to capture the story."

Lisa Hudson gave the movie three and a half stars out of five and called it, "The biggest dark horse of the year."

Suraj Kumar, a movie reviewer from Los Angeles Daily, called it "Something unprecedented that has managed to charm the viewers and rightly so!"

It wasn't like there were only positive reviews. Many critics said that the movie was a documentary and not a real movie with a bland storyline.

A famous reviewer with a personal blog, username Zayn F called the movie "A bland storyline and something which didn't give me a single scare. Don't waste your time on it!"

Even with the negative and positive reviews, the movie worked spectacularly, and everyone involved was pretty happy.

Will, the cause of all this stir, had finally decided to buy a car. He bought a car that resembled a Hyundai Equus from his past life, the silver-coloured one.

June was finally coming back from her parent's place, and Will decided to pick her up from the airport.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 42:

27th November 2010

Los Angeles International Airport.

Will had come to pick up June at the airport as she was finally returning today. All this buzz on the internet had made him sneak out for everything.

This didn't upset him though, as it just confirmed his ticket to stardom. As the amount from the box office would take some time to come, Will had taken over a credit card of $100k from George.

He had already told that he would pay back the due himself, so George didn't even bother hesitating. The first thing he did with the money was to rent a bigger apartment in Manhattan.

As his run-down apartment had a risk of being known to the media and paparazzi, and the landlord couldn't be trusted too much, Will simply didn't wish to stay at that place anymore. He had already decided to buy a house when he got the money.

Aside from that, he went to a car seller and bought a car which was named Yundai Sailor, which was simply a copy of the actual Hyundai Equus. It had a luxury look to it and cost him $50k.

Will drove inside the airport and walked towards the waiting area with his new car. Many people were pushing up their luggage and carrying bags. Some couples were kissing, and there were even people holding up signs, waiting for someone.

Seeing that June was nowhere in his sight, he took out his phone and texted her.

[Where are you? I'm at the airport already.]

A reply instantly came back.

[I'm just coming out. Why are you here? I said I can take a taxi.]

[I can't let my girlfriend take a taxi.]

There was no reply after that, and Will wondered if it was because her wifi had suddenly died down. At that moment, a voice called him out.

"Will!"

Raising his head, he saw June coming out with a sliding luggage bag in her hand.

"June!"

Will said a bit loudly, making her gaze fixed on him, her expression lit up like a light bulb.

She immediately ran towards him, with the bag sliding behind her as she checked out from the counter.

Will, who had his arms open, hugged her back tightly as she hugged him.

"I missed you."

She said softly, clinging her arms on his back.

"I missed you too."

He said as he hugged her back, taking the bag from her hands. He kissed her, and they enjoyed the moment together for a while.

Suddenly, Will heard someone shout.

"Isn't that Heather?"

He raised his head up to look at a man wearing a cap pointing at them. At his shout, several people turned to look at them, and many of them recognised June.

"Yeah, she is Heather. Isn't she dead?"

"She's the actress who played Heather. Didn't I tell you that this is a movie and not a real documentary?"

"Should I ask for an autograph?"

"Who's the guy beside her?"

Hearing people look at her and whisper made June confused. She had always craved such type of attention, but when it had happened so suddenly, she didn't know how to react.

"Let's get out of here!"

Will said to her, and after picking up her luggage, they rushed to their car. June didn't even have a chance to be surprised about Will's new car as they drove away from the airport.

"That was intense. I never thought there would be people recognising me."

She said after calming down. Putting a hand on her heart, she could feel it violently beating.

"Yeah, people have been glancing at me when I go out to buy stuff too. [The Blair Witch Project] is just getting more and more popular, so it can't really be helped."

"I was hearing news about it too. I kept checking the internet and my family was really annoyed. But they were also shocked when we went to watch the movie together."

June said with a happy expression. Will was about to reply to it when his phone suddenly rang.

He took out his phone and saw that it was George. Turning it to the speaker, he opened his mouth.

"George, is it something urgent? I'm driving."

-Yes, it is something urgent. Did June come back from her hometown?

"I'm here. We are driving back to the airport."

June replied in his stead.

-That's good! Drive straight to my office.

"Why?"

-This is something big. Don't ask questions and just drive here. If I answer currently, you will have an accident because of shock.

George said and hung up the call.

Will and June looked at each other, but by the tone of George's voice, they knew it was something urgent.

So, they drove to the Wheel Works studios office.

Reaching the office, Will saw that the crowd and rush around it were way bigger than when he used to come earlier. Without much delay, he went to George's office.

As he knocked, he could see a huge poster of [The Blair Witch Project] stuck on the wall behind his chair, and lots of files and papers arranged neatly in front of his desk from the glass door.

Entering the office, Carl, who was sitting in front of George, stood up to greet the stars with a wide smile. George, too, stood up and shook hands with Will, his face full of smiles.

"Congratulations on the massive success of the movie Will."

George said as Carl congratulated him too.

"It wouldn't be possible without you guys, and don't call it massive just yet. It still hasn't hit its peak just yet."

Will said calmly. George would have called any youngster saying such a thing as arrogant, but Will was a weird case. Whatever he had proclaimed till now, everything has been true.

"What did you call us for? You do know I just landed?"

June asked unhappily, she wanted to spend some time with Will, and then they were abruptly called here.

"Ah…well…ahem."

George coughed embarrassedly as he knew he had disturbed the youths in their reunion, but the matter really was urgent, so he continued.

"You see, we got an invitation from [Night Talks With Tuffin]."

That was all that they needed to hear.

"W-what…?"

June stuttered in disbelief; she couldn't believe what she had heard; even Carl, who was in the room, had an expression of absolute bewilderment. Apparently, even he didn't know what George was calling everyone for.

'It's a bit earlier than expected….but it's finally here!'

Will thought. That he was already expecting this development soon enough in the future, but he never expected the situation would come so early.

[Night Talks With Tuffin] was the most famous talk show in the United States. Its host was the famous Brooks Tuffin. He was a middle-aged comedian and entertainer who had made a name for himself in this worlds' Hollywood.

Appearing in that show would guarantee that your movie would at least reach 2 million people just due to their audience size and popularity.

It wasn't far-fetched to call it the best kind of advertisement and promotion to appear in that show, but of course, such a show only invited a selected few people and had certain standards.

To think that a movie such as [The Blair Witch Project] would cross that standard and some newbie directors and actors would get invited was unheard of.

Soon, George showed the letter of invitation to Will. They had sent both an official letter and an email.

Everyone was happy hearing the news. The invitation was for five people, including Will, June, Marcus, Zach and the distribution company CEO George.

They wanted to capture the show as soon as possible and hence, the appointed time was on Monday, 29th November 2010. And so, George told everyone that they would be leaving tomorrow if Will agreed, to which he agreed obviously for many reasons.

The next day, everyone was ready to go to Chicago, the place where the talk show would take place. They all got in one car equivalent to Land Rover Range Rover from Will's previous life and reached Los Angeles International Airport.

They would take a luxury class flight to Chicago, arranged by the talk show team.

As everyone showed their boarding passes and entered the Aeroplane, Will also sat down on his seat, which was just beside Junes'.

Will had rented a top-end tuxedo just for the show. As it would still be a while till he gets his share from the box office income, he could only rent and borrow expensive clothes.

"It's our time to shine lad; this is the break that will turn you into a real star. People haven't really seen you yet; this would show you on the screens for the first time."

George said while laughing heartily. Will, who heard this, couldn't help but gulp.

He had always tried to act mature and self hypnotised himself to success, but the idea of getting on screens made him somewhat nervous. His nervousness only lasted a minute as June tightly grabbed his hand and smiled at him, making him chuckle at himself.

As the nervousness died down, anticipation and excitement took over.

"Damn man, you really carried us so far…."

"My family is so happy these days that they always talk about dying happily. I can't believe I'm going to be in [Night Talks With Tuffin]."

Marcus and Zach said excitedly as they chatted with George and June.

June, who heard this, couldn't help but get emotional as tears threatened to break out from her eyes.

"I…I really can't believe how much my life has changed. I would still be struggling to get a single supporting role if it weren't for you."

She looked at Will with teary and grateful eyes.

Will just took her hand and kissed her warmly.

"Always remember, whatever heights you reach, you deserved it."

After that, they just had a small chat and decided to take a nap since it'd take time to reach their destination.

Preparations for the talk show with Brooks Tuffin and the [The Blair Witch Project] cast was going on a boom.

Brooks Tuffin, the entrepreneur behind such a famous talk show, had himself watched the movie and was very impressed with the person 'Will Evans'.

As the movie's ongoing popularity was still on a massive rise, he decided to call the movie cast to his show, as it would be a win-win situation for both himself and [The Blair Witch Project]. He would even meet up with Will Evans, so it was a win-win for him.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 43:

June, Zach, Marcus and Will were backstage, waiting for their turn to go inside. The show was just about to start, and a tense atmosphere surrounded their lounge room.

Meanwhile, on the other side, sitting on a couch at the stage in front of the cameras and the lights, wearing a blue sweater, was Brooks himself. And sitting in front of him was a packed audience; at least 400 people had come to see his show.

It was a house-full just like his every other show.

After rechecking everything, the cameraman gave his cue, and the talk show started.

Brooks Tuffin turned his face towards the camera, smiling, and said, "Welcome to Night Talks with Tuffin. Today, there are so many topics to discuss. The stock market has some interesting news, and just like every day, American politics has been the world's best comedy show, but we aren't talking about that today. Today, we have a guest here. Not many people might have heard of him, but people in the movie industry have been calling him a wonder, and his movie has raked in unbelievable numbers in the last few weeks, and it's still going strong."

After introducing the topic for the day, he gestured with excitement and looked towards the stage entrance, "Let's welcome Will Evans, the director of [The Blair Witch Project]."

Typically, Night Talks with Tuffin revolved around various topics worldwide and would be presented humorously. But sometimes, there would be guest interviews and today was just that.

As Will entered the stage from the backstage, wearing a smile, thunderous applause broke out among the audience. Most of the audience were young people who had already watched his movie.

They clapped their hands animatedly and cheered his name on as soon as they saw him. Will flashed a smile and waved his hand at the audience as he walked toward the couch in the middle of the stage.

Then, he sat down, shook Brooks' hand, and said cheerfully,

"Hi, Brooks, nice to see you."

"It's good to have you, Will," Brooks said with welcoming laughter, and went on, "First of all, I would like to congratulate you on the unprecedented success of the horror movie, [The Blair Witch Project, which has shaken the box office, and the hearts of all audiences."

"I mean, I was terrified when I saw the movie."

"You have watched it?" Will was a bit taken aback.

Brooks chuckled, "Of course I watched it. All my friends are talking about it; I am not going to be left out in the convo. Now, if the topic of the movie comes, I am like, 'Yeah… I've watched that."

Will smiled, "Did you like it?"

"Like it? I don't know, but one thing for sure, the ride back home was the scariest experience of my life."

Will smiled as the audience laughed at Brooks's enactment.

Brooks then focused on the other actors and had a small chat with each of them, and about three minutes of introduction later, he returned to Will and asked.

"Well, Will, before our show starts, we give a piece of paper, and a pen to the audience, and they write the things they want me to ask from you. From all the questions, the staff in the back chooses the most interesting ones or the worst ones."

"Shall I ask the first question?"

"Sure," Will leaned a bit forward, showing his interest.

Brooks picked up flashcards from the table and, glancing at it for a moment, he stared at Will, and asked with a serious expression, "How did you do it?"

"Hm?"

"How did you shoot the movie," Brooks asked, "I bet the whole world wants to know how did you succeed in creating a movie with just fifty thousand dollars and earned more than two hundred times of the investment, and it's still going on. I think it won't take it long for it to cross the one hundred and fifty million mark."

Will thought for a moment and replied, "Well, the technique we used is termed Found Footage technique. In a found footage movie, horrors are inescapable and unknowable. They lurk out of sight, then surge forward, overwhelming both the spectator and their lens. And visuals add more horror than the sound effects; this gives a much more lasting impression in the audience's mind."

Brooks nodded, "Well, the way it was shot was definitely interesting. You alone have increased the bar for all the directors who are directing or will direct a horror movie in the future."

Will just smiled, "I am flattered, but there's still a lot to learn from this."

"Well, I only wish for you have to immense success ahead," Brooks smiled and then, taking out the next flashcard, he asked, "What was the biggest challenge you faced while creating this movie?"

Will replied, "Editing. We had over ten days worth of footage by the time we shot the last take. The step was to edit and edit and edit everything, and after weeks of editing, we were left with only eighty minutes of footage, and the rest is history."

"What about while filming?"

Will thought for a moment, then glancing at Zach with a smile, "Finding Zach when he used to get lost in the woods was always a headache."

Brooks laughed and went towards Zach and then continued to ask the other actors about different questions and their experiences while filming the Blair Witch Project.

As the program came to the closure, Brooks couldn't help but turn towards Will and ask, "Before we get to the end of this interview, I want to ask one more thing, Will. It's actually more of a secret deal between us rather than a question."

"I am all ears," Will smiled.

Brooks cleared his throat before asking, "Ahem, so, well, I have a few thousand of my savings. Are you planning for another camcorder type movie?"

He didn't forget to add a slight wink at the end, whispering, "If you know what I mean."

Will shook his head, "The way we filmed this movie is unique, and the types of movies on which this can work are also very limited."

"Oh? What about a sequel to this movie? Considering its success, I would say a sequel would be worth it." Brooks asked.

Will shook his head, "I would disagree on this. This whole movie is strongly based on a sense of mystery and curiosity. The more we show, the more it would lose its effect. So yeah, I won't be directing this type of movie any time soon."

"Oh?" Brooks put on a thoughtful expression while asking, "From your tone, I have a feeling you have big plans in the coming future."

Will smiled, "I hope to direct some really good movies."

Brooks chuckled and then turned towards the audience, he ended the interview.

"So ladies and gentlemen, with the cast of Blair Witch Project, this was Will Evans – the youngest director to enter the 100-million-dollar movie club! And I bet this won't be the last time you will hear his name!"

As he clapped, the audience followed, with the background instrumental group also following suit.

….

-Ttring ttring! Ttring ttring!

The sound of the incoming call woke up Will. He was currently in bed in his apartment, lying with his face down.

He moved his hands and searched for his phone on the small table beside the bed without raising his head.

-bam!

The alarm clock was knocked by his hand and fell on the floor.

Will didn't care because he had found his phone. Bringing it closer to his face, he slightly moved his head enough to see from just one eye and then stared at the phone screen.

[Incoming Call]

[George – CEO Wheel Works Studios]

Will smiled as soon as he saw the name on the screen.

'Finally!'

He immediately sat up straight and picked up the call.

"Hello."

-Hi, Will, did I disturb you?

George's voice, carrying a cheerful tone, entered Will's ear.

Will smiled, "No, I actually fell asleep while waiting for your call. Is it done?"

-Yes, your share is currently being transferred to you.

Will smiled, "Finally. I have been waiting for this for more than seven weeks now, haha."

-Honestly, me too! Hahaha, well, how could I not? It's been seven weeks since the movie's release, and it has grossed over 157 Million Dollars in the box office, leaving all of its competitors eating dust.

-With all the cuts from the theatres, my company, and the entertainment taxes, the share coming in your pocket is between 40 to 41% of the total box office, and that's around 65.5 Million Dollars!

"Woah!" Will took a deep breath upon hearing this.

65 Million Dollars!

'Damn!'

A few months ago, Will would have only dreamt of earning this much money.

'And the movie still has potential to earn more….'

Just the thought of this made Will feel thrilled. Money played a crucial role in his plans, and now, his biggest trouble would be solved as soon as the money was received in his bank account.

"How long are you planning to run this movie?" Will asked.

-uh, well, about that, actually, we're planning to take it off the cinema halls. This week, the movie grossed just 10 Million, which is about 23 Million less than the previous week's box office. And considering the big cuts those cinema halls take, it's not worth it.

"Oh? Then, are we going to release DVD and ott formats?" Will asked.

-Yes. It's the right time to sell the tv. Also, we're going to release this movie in the international market too, and I am thinking of releasing it in three-four different movie languages.

"Oh? Then the translations and stuff, that will take some time."

-Don't worry about that, my company will handle it. However, we will have to form a new contract for the international release of this movie.

Will narrowed his eyes for a moment, but then he just shook his head.

"Alright, when should I visit your office?"

-Well, there's no need to hurry for that. You should enjoy the fruits of your hard work! Congratulations on becoming the youngest self-made millionaire of Hollywood, if not the world, hahaha!

Will smiled as the phone disconnected.

Just as he was about to put down the phone, he received a text message notification:

[Received $65,534,214 in your a/c 91xxx4067 from Wheel Works Finance on 30th December. Queries? Call 01204456456]

…

/DreamNote/

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Let's go for it this week too!

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Chapter 44:

3 January 2011

East Street, Los Angeles

A 1268 sqft house on the east street of LA with a 0.25 acres Lot and 2 bedrooms, separate bathrooms attached to each of them.

It was Will's new residence, which he had bought recently. He could have bought a better one but decided against it as he needed funding for his future movies.

Yawn*

Yawning a little, Will woke and went to the kitchen to make himself a cup of coffee. The past month has been intense and [The Blair Witch Project] was about to hit the $200 million mark.

He had bought this house for $500k and was still getting used to living in it as it had been less than a week since he shifted here. The house was moderately furnished with a modern touch to it.

It had a parking lot and was enough for someone like Will, who didn't have any family to live with. June had been busy as she had even gotten roles for some commercials, and she rarely visited, not that Will blamed her, he himself had been busy trying to keep up with all the e-mails and letters he kept receiving.

Sip*

He sipped on the coffee and immediately regretted it as he wasn't prepared for the burn that his tongue received.

Ruffling his hair with his hand, he went and opened his laptop like usual. It has become a habit of his to check and keep track of the daily news.

[The Christmas movie from Foxstar Studios 'The Santa of My Dreams' had finally crossed the $20 million mark…]

[US president to give a speech on 6th Janua…..]

There were many news and articles, but the one in the trending section was occupied with the all too familiar [The Blair Witch Project, causing a smile on Will's face.

[The modern pioneer of the found footage technique, 'The Blair Witch Project', had been the talk of the whole country for the past 2 months. This camcorder trend has brought about many similar videos on MeTube with millions of views, but the originator of the trend, the youngest multi-millionaire director of Hollywood, Will Evans, is still on the rise.

Some youths from famous film schools have even started idolising him, and everyone has the same question in their minds, 'What's next?'.

According to the hints provided by Will on the famous talk show 'Night Talks with Tuffin', it was pretty clear that he would be working on some new movies, which had caused many speculations to rise from the audiences and experts alike.

Would he continue with his horror trend and release another horror movie? Or would he work in another genre altogether? If yes, then would he succeed in it or will his first popular movie become his last?

There are a lot of questions, and people are enthusiastically waiting for the answers.]

Will, who read through the article made by Hollywood Times, had a satisfied smile on his face.

As he was about to go bathe and start his day, his phone buzzed beside his laptop.

[1 unread message from 'Uncle Ben']

[Hey, Will. I just texted to remind you about our meeting. Come to the MCA office at 4 pm.]

Will, who already had the meeting in his mind, didn't need the reminder but still appreciated it.

Benjamin had helped him a lot even though he wasn't even his relative.

Will went to the bathroom and took a bath. After that, he dressed up in neat black and white clothes with his inner shirt tucked in and an unbuttoned black blazer on the top.

He went to the parking lot and started driving his Yundai Sailor.

On the way to the MCA office, he thought about the call Benjamin had talked about.

He had received the anticipated call almost a week ago. It was by Edward Friedman, the director who had taken up [17 Again].

He congratulated Will for the massive success of [The Blair Witch Project] and praised him for his excellent direction in the movie.

After that, he told him how he was impressed by the script of [17 Again] and wished to meet him for discussions.

After which, Benjamin took Will's permission to arrange a meeting between Edward and him, to which Will gladly agreed.

The Hollywood industry was all about connections, and making a connection with Edward Friedman was a good opportunity.

Will reached the MCA office by 11 am and directly went to Benjamin's office, meeting his assistant on the way, who gave him the most brilliant smile that he could muster.

As Will knocked, Benjamin's lively voice came from inside.

"Haha, come in, Will."

Will pushed the door open and entered. Both Benjamin and the middle-aged brown-haired man stood up, flashing a smile at him.

"Welcome, Will. Meet Edward; he's one of the best directors here in MCA. Edward, this is Will; he doesn't need an introduction these days, does he?"

Benjamin introduced jokingly.

"You flatter me, Uncle Ben. Hello Director Friedman, I've wanted to meet you for a long time. I've been a big fan of your works."

Will lied through his teeth. Although it wasn't a complete lie as he had researched him and watched many of his movies since he had transmigrated to this world.

Edward Friedman was one of the popular rom-com directors in Hollywood, and he had quite the achievements backing him up. His most famous works were [Your Eyes Are Lying] and [I'm (not) A Free Man].

These were both Hollywood blockbusters, and [I'm (not) A Free Man] had bagged many awards due to its funny yet realistic concept of an average modern man, who was free just in name but was tied down by parents, workplace, society, and love life.

As the introductions were over, Will said.

"I'm quite glad that you will be directing this movie. I would love to see my precious characters come into life. I just hope this movie would be profitable for both you and MCA."

Edward smiled at that. He knew how much screenwriters cherished their characters and how annoyed they got if the actors didn't live up to their expectations.

"We are quite confident in the movie as of now. It follows the current time travel trend and even has rom-com concepts touch to it. I would consider myself a failure if such a well thought out plot of my specialised genre becomes a flop."

Everyone laughed at that as Edward continued.

"Honestly, though, I never expected someone this young to be this talented. I'm not going to lie, but we barely had to make any changes to your masterfully crafted script. To think that not only can you write such a script but also direct such a blockbuster movie, I see a clear star in you."

Will just thanked him humbly, and they continued chatting. Edward revealed his plans for the movie and talked about the new crew he had gathered.

"The crew is very professional, and I'm putting in a lot of money in them. The lead role would be given to Drake Redcliff for the teenager Mike and Jonathan Smith for the 38-year-old Mike."

Both were famous MCA exclusive actors, and Drake was even a rising star for his teenage movies.

Edward mentioned how he had yet to find some actors for roles like Mike's daughter, Maggi and Mike's son, Alex, from [17 Again].

"It's nothing personal, but I would recommend you to try June out for the role of Maggi."

Will put in his thoughts, Edward who heard this, recalled June and smiled.

"Why not? Isn't she also from MCA? And I think her acting was very good in [The Blair Witch Project]. Since the scriptwriter had himself requested, how could I not say yes."

Edward joked, but he was happy that he had finally gotten someone inwardly. June, who was recently getting popular due to Will's movie, acting in his movie would be really good. Edward would surely give her the role if she did well in the auditions.

As Will recommended her, a sudden thought crossed his mind.

"Say, wasn't Alex's role empty too?"

He asked out, to which Edward immediately replied as he thought that Will would recommend one of the male leads from [The Blair Witch Project].

"If it's not taken yet, I would like to audition for that role too."

Will said in a friendly tone, surprising Benjamin.

"What?"

Both Benjamin and Edward asked at once as they thought if they had misheard something.

"I am saying if Alex's role is still undecided, I would like to audition for the role."

Will repeated calmly.

"You know how to act?"

Benjamin blurted abruptly, making Edward chuckle.

After some talk, Will said casually.

"Not like I'm asking for the role. Director Friedman can reject if he doesn't like my audition."

Edward thought for a moment and then laughed heartily as he patted Will's shoulder.

"Hahaha, Why not. Why not. Since it's like that, I would obviously like to see you act."

Edward was very surprised and excited regarding Will's declaration. If this genius scriptwriter and director turned out to be a good actor, too, he was sure to take Hollywood by a storm. And letting him audition for the role wouldn't bite him, so he agreed to it.

Benjamin was still feeling surreal from the situation as he never knew about his best friend's son as he kept showing one talent after the other. He seemed like a completely different person from the boy he had helped get admission at EUC back then.

He got a bit emotional as he thought about how Will's dad would feel after seeing him do so well and how much must Will miss his dad.

The meeting came to an end after some time, and Edward left the duo for some other appointment he had. Apparently, he was really busy with the preparations of [17 Again] and had made some time to meet with Will. This improved Edward's impression in Will's eyes.

As Will was about to bid farewell to Benjamin, the latter informed him about something important.

"[17 Again] is getting distributed by Foxstar studios, and the new distribution head had told me that he was really interested in meeting you if you had any new projects."

From Benjamin, Will found out that this new distribution head was none other than James Dankworth, the previous distribution head's assistant.

Apparently, the previous distribution head was kicked when it was found out that he rejected [The Blair Witch Project] without even watching it, and James was appointed as the new distribution head with strict supervision on his head.

Will was quite surprised hearing all this as Foxstar Studios rejected him earlier. But he understood that the fault was Chandler's, the previous distribution head, and James was just following his order, and even then, he was hesitating.

Will agreed to meet up with the new distribution head as in business; there were no real enemies, only interests.

After that, Will, too, remembered something very important that he had found out and took out his smartphone, and he opened an image and showed it to Benjamin.

"Isn't this an actor contracted with MCA?"

Benjamin glanced at the photo and said,

"Oh yes, he is. If I remember correctly, his contract is going to end soon too. He had worked in a few films, but they barely managed to recover the budget cost."

"Oh, is that so, hmm."

Will was surprised after seeing this guy's movie when he was binging through some movies by MCA. He was one of the biggest celebrities from his previous life, and now he was working on movies that didn't suit him at all.

A smile crept at Will's face as the plan to open his own production house had solidified in his heart.

The actor that Will mentioned was none other than Robert Downey Jr., mostly known for his role of iron-man.

The guy in the pic looked every bit like him, and after watching his movies, Will had confirmed that his acting style and voice were also the same, just his name was different. Micheal Elrod was his name on this alternate earth.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 45:

It was almost close to a year since Will had transmigrated into this alternate earth. Yet there were many unsolved things he had yet to get exposed to.

One of them was how a guy like him, with the same face, body and interests, existed in this alternate world too, and he had taken possession of such a guy.

And after seeing Micheal Elrod, who was exactly like Robert Downey Jr., Will concluded that this was more a parallel world than an alternate world.

Meaning people with the same faces, interests and habits from Will's previous world can exist here too. But as this world's history was a bit tweaked, so were people's actual roles and situations too.

Or so seemed to be the conclusion that Will had come upon and had started to believe it too. This easily explained the situation with himself as he was transmigrated into an exact copy of himself instead of someone else, and the appearance of Tony Stark 2.0 had solidified this belief.

"Can I meet this Micheal Elrod guy? Obviously, if you don't mind."

Will asked Benjamin, who raised an eyebrow at his question as if thinking, 'What is this guy up to now?'

"Of course it's fine; I can arrange a meeting between you two. But like…what are ya up to?"

Ahem*

Will coughed and said.

"Well, I had watched one of his movies recently, so I was interested in him. Nothing much."

Benjamin, who heard this, was still curious but decided not to pursue the matter and simply agreed to let Will meet Micheal.

Micheal didn't seem particularly talented or charming, and his contract with MCA will be ending soon anyway. There was no harm in him meeting Will.

Benjamin gave Micheal's contact information to Will and told Will to take his name when Micheal asked how he got his contact number.

After that, Will had nothing more to do, so he left the MCA office.

[Congratulations on reaching the $200 million in the total box office in less than six months.]

[Achievement Unlocked: Meant for success.]

[Rewards:

10 million fame points

Intermediate Instrumentalist ]

Will received the notification as soon as he sat in his car. His movie had finally crossed the $200 million mark as soon as the DVDs sale started last week.

As he received the achievement notification and rewards, he got excited. His system was barely a means of giving a head start to him; unlike the systems from the novels of his previous life, his system didn't force him to do anything nor gave tasks or anything related to keep it going.

It would occasionally give out rewards to him if he did something exceptionally well. And even when he earned 65 million dollars, he didn't get any rewards, coming to the conclusion that he is only rewarded when certain conditions are met or when he outplays his own achievements.

He has a convenient shop option through which he can buy various things that can make his career in Hollywood much easier, although they cost a hefty amount of money.

It was like buying talents with money. If the rich people in the world had a way to buy talents, they would buy them for sure, but unfortunately for them and luckily for Will, such a convenient system existed just for Will.

[Skill Upgrade]

[Intermediate Directing Advance Directing]

[Cost – 640,000 fame points]

[Are you sure you want to upgrade this skill?]

[Yes] [No]

Although it was like spending 6.4 million dollars, Will thought it was a good investment, especially considering the next movie he had to direct. So he immediately agreed to upgrade the skill and knowledge and experience filled his brain.

It almost felt like a new eye had opened up for him to see normal things from a totally different perspective than he used to earlier.

[Skill Upgrade]

[Beginner Acting Intermediate Acting]

[Cost – 35,000 fame points]

[Are you sure you want to upgrade this skill?]

[Yes] [No]

Acting was something he had never thought of doing in his previous life, but ever since he had gotten the beginner acting skills, he couldn't help but develop a certain level of liking and interest in acting; this was also one of the reasons he asked for a role in [17 Again, the other reason being closer to June.

Without thinking much, he invested the FP and knowledge of various expressions, poses, body languages, ways of talking and several other things got implanted into his brain and body.

Not only did the skills give him brain memory, but it also gave him muscle memory as if the talents he had just bought were practised since childhood.

"Hah…."

Will let out a contented sigh. He felt like he had just eaten the best gourmet in the world and was filled to the brim. That's the type of satisfaction he was feeling.

He was still inside the car that was parked at MCA and hadn't budged a slight inch.

He still had few things to do with the system, so he put it aside for a moment. He was hungry and wanted to eat something good, so he called June.

She didn't pick up the phone. A few seconds later, a text message came from June.

[Sorry, Will. I am with a friend right now, and she's helping me look for an apartment to rent. I'll catch up with you later. Cya.]

Will just chuckled at that. June and the other two male leads alike were facing some problems from the paparazzi, so Will decided to just go and eat alone. It was nice to have some quality and peaceful time for oneself once in a while.

He drove off to a 3-star hotel nearby MCA and, after parking his car, went inside to eat his lunch.

A female waitress came to his table and asked for his order while continuously staring at him and fidgeting around with a writing pad in her hand.

Will just asked to bring whatever was their best on the menu and was good for a light lunch, after that, he started playing Chocolate Crush on his phone.

After the food came, Will ate to his heart's content while savouring every bit of flavour.

As he asked for his bill, the waitress gave him a folder on which the bill was placed.

"I'll pay with a card."

Will waved his debit card in his hand as if telling the waitress to bring a swiping machine.

Soon after paying the bill, as Will was about to leave, the waitress came and stopped him.

"Hey…Errr…Well…can I get an autograph? I'm a big fan."

The waitress showed her writing pad, Will smiled and took out the pen tuck on his blazer as he signed on the paper.

"What's your name?"

"It's Rose."

Will wrote down 'to Rose' just below his signature and drew a heart.

After coming to his house and lying down on his comfy bed, Will summoned the system's status screen.

[Name – Will Evans

Age – 21

Skills – {Advance Directing} {Intermediate Acting} {Intermediate Instrumentalism}

Fame Points – 9,330,000

Inventory – {Sherlock Holmes}]

A short status screen appeared in front of him.

He still had a considerable amount of fame points left which he could use to buy some other skills, but he didn't wish to do so. He found out that the last level of each skill was the Grandmaster level.

Beginner Intermediate Advanced Master Grandmaster

This was the ranking that every skill followed, and after the advanced level, there were certain conditions to be met before he could upgrade a skill, for example, when he tried to upgrade his advanced level directing skill to master level, a system prompt popped up,

[You do not meet the requirements to upgrade and learn about this skills upgrade cost.]

[Upgrade requirements –

Have participated in at least one movie that gets nominated for oscar.

Your net worth should be greater than $200 million. ]

Reaching the net worth was possible after some time, but meeting the first condition would take time and effort, so he decided to save up the fame points for his next movie, [Sherlock Holmes].

After the lucky spin that he got from winning an award in the Annual Film Festival, he had gotten the movie script.

He was quite happy to get the script, but he had thought that he would need to keep this project on hold for quite some time to gather everything required for the project, the most important of them being the lead role himself.

Due to a weird stroke of fate, he had come to learn about an actor who had played the Sherlock Holmes role in his previous life, making it such an amazing blockbuster that it had won him the best actor award in Golden Globes Award while bagging many other awards for the movie.

To top it all off, he had played the role of Tony Stark, Iron Man. One of the most famous superheroes of the Marvel Universe, and Will was sure nobody could do it better than him.

Will had already watched all the movies Micheal Elrod (Robern Downey Jr. of this world) had starred in and concluded that he was the same guy with the same acting skills.

The only reason he wasn't too popular was due to the types of roles he had played till now, making him unable to show his true potential to the world.

Will had planned to buy a cheap movie script from the system and direct [Sherlock Holmes] later due to two reasons. The first was a suitable lead role, and the second was funding.

Although he had gotten around $75 million from the overall income of the Blair Witch Project, it was still not enough to cast this movie.

Even in his previous life, the budget for [Sherlock Holmes] had already crossed $90 million. Many other factors would just increase Will's overall spending.

The first was to get his own company. He didn't want to look for others every time he made a movie, and having his own production company would save him a lot of money later on.

As he had already researched about Sherlock Holmes, the legend already existed, and one of the top 6 production house's had already created a movie related to Sherlock Holmes in the 1990s.

He would need to buy the rights from them to make a movie taking the same concept, and he would need his own crew for everything, which would cost a lot, and the amount he had was nowhere near enough.

But after getting the 10 million fame points from the system, the future didn't look as hazy as before. He had already spent almost 680k fame points on skills and was left with 9.3 million fame points.

Which can be converted into $93 million through the point exchange in the system. After combining his current bank balance and the fame points, he should be able to create his own movie company and direct [Sherlock Holmes].

The first step was to bag Micheal Elrod into his own company as his contract with the MCA was about to end.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 46:

After organising his thoughts, Will decided to use the [Sherlock Holmes] script. As soon as he did that, information about the movie entered his head with a written copy of the book in front of him on the translucent screen.

Will took out his laptop and started jotting down the script in it. He had a habit of checking articles and news after opening his laptop, but he didn't even do that as he got busy writing the script, tweaking a few things while keeping most of the script similar to the original.

The next day, as soon as Will woke up, he resumed his scriptwriting after freshening up for a bit.

There were several reasons why Will wanted to start his own production company. One of them being the fallout between the producer and the director.

There have been several occasions when a director and producer dispute amongst themselves, and the whole project gets ruined. There were even times when the producer would be unhappy with the director and won't let the director attend the premiere of his own movie.

These types of things have happened a lot, at least in Will's previous world; that's why even a famous director like James Cameron wanted to be the producer of his own movies.

(A/N – James Cameron is a famous Canadian director who has directed famous movies such as The Terminator and Aliens.)

For these and a few other reasons, Will wanted to start his own production company, especially considering the nature of [Shelock Holmes, a full-on traditional movie and not some movie shot on a camcorder.

It would need a team of experts just for the visual effects and editing, forget about the set of shooting, costumes and everything else that were too important to work without.

Moreover, there was also the matter of getting [Sherlock Holmes] movie rights. If Will moves himself, it will attract a lot of eyeballs.

It was way better to operate from a company.

That's why, in between a break from his writing, he called Jason Grace from Walters Law firm. He was the lawyer who helped him during the contract signing with Wheel work studios.

After getting his share, Will had appointed him as his personal counsellor. He was now entitled to take legal advice from him whenever he wanted, and in return, he needed to pay him 30k dollars a month.

It was a fair price at this age.

-Hey, Will. What's up?

Jason picked up after a few rings, and Will went straight down to business.

"Hello, Jason. Actually, I was thinking of starting another movie soon, and I wanted to start a film company because of it."

-A movie? Will, don't get a company. Just get a shell company if you really need one. If it's a camcorder movie, it won't need much.

"That's the thing. It's not a camcorder movie, and it's a traditional one. A full-blown production. I need a company for that."

Jason went silent after hearing that. For a moment, he wondered if this was a joke as he was highly sceptical if Will could handle directing a traditional movie.

It was natural for people to think like that. After all, his first movie wasn't movie-like at all.

But as Will was his client, he didn't say anything, he was hired for business, not a personal review. And somehow, the conviction in Will's voice made him want to believe in him.

-Umm, if you really want to get a company, I can give you the contact of a real estate agent, but I don't think you should get a company and make it from scratch. It will be too much work to just rent, and then you need employees and people to help in administration.

"So, what do you suggest?"

-Invest in a small studio that's on the verge of bankruptcy. There are always companies like this, and then, I can help you with the procedure of taking it over. It would be the same as yours, and we won't have to bother too much.

Will nodded his head, hearing that. Indeed, this was way better.

"So, do you know a company like this? And yes, I want to start an agency too."

He asked, but Jason only laughed.

-Why do you think I would know? I only know lawyer stuff, you should ask someone who's been in the industry for a long time. Those types of people know all the ins and outs. And why do you need an agency?

The last part of his sentence was filled with confusion. Will could understand that. After all, a director making an agency was completely unheard of.

"I have an actor I'm interested in. His contract with his agency will end soon, so I want to bring him up by getting an agency."

-Your ideas are getting more and more unexpected day by day. Why do you want to get an agency for just one actor?

"One for now. I will get more and more actors into my agency in the future. It's a goal I'm working on."

-If you want to get an agency, then I can hardly help you. I can handle the contract and stuff, but you should better consult an agent about how to open an agency. Your uncle is one, right? He would be able to help you out.

"Uh, okay. I will call you again after I get a company to invest in."

Like that, Will cut the call and thought of the people who could help him. Uncle Ben would probably be able to help him, but he was relying on him too much.

Then he thought about his Doraemon– Jeffrey. He was like the blue cat robot of Hollywood who had helped Will with a lot of things till now. As he was someone well experienced in the industry and had a good relationship with WIll, he would be willing to help.

Will also had plans to invite Jeffrey's whole crew to his own company after all.

In the evening, Will invited Jeffery to a cafe where they can discuss things. It was a high class cafe which Will could afford now.

But the reason he had chosen this cafe was so they could have some privacy.

As he was called on an urgent notice, Jeffery was not sure what Will wanted to talk about.

"So, what urgent thing do you want to talk about? Don't tell me you want me to work on the Blair witch sequel?"

Jeffrey asked, but Will shook his head with a chuckle.

"No, I told you I don't have plans to direct a horror movie again. It will just give me nightmares."

"So, the rumours are really true?"

He asked, his voice a whisper.

"Yeah, I'm selling the sequel rights to Wheel Works for 10 million. They want to invest more in the franchise, and I don't want to continue with it. It's a win-win situation."

In the past few days, George had pestered him a lot about the sequel rights, and he finally decided to sell it.

Obviously, the original price offered by George was only 5 million, and Will had to negotiate it, but it wasn't really hard.

Other studios have also offered him a good price for the sequel rights, and some even wanted him as the director, but Will very well knew that the Blair witch franchise wasn't one that will last long.

In the end, selling the rights was the best option for him.

"You got a nice price. Anyway, if it's not for that, why did you call me here?"

Will organised his thoughts and asked, "Jeffery, what are your thoughts about having a studio of our own?"

Jeffrey stared at the young man in front of him for a long moment before leaning forward a bit and replying, "Don't tell me you're planning to create a studio? Do you know the risk behind it?"

Will nodded, "I understand-"

Before Will could finish, Jeffery shook his head, "No, Will. Trust me, you don't. I get it that you're a talented young man and even directed a blockbuster, but creating a production studio and managing it is a different task altogether. First, you need to understand the risks and other factors which will either make your life hell or a luxury and trust me, money is the least important factor of them all."

Will put on a thoughtful expression as he asked, "What are these risks you are talking about?"

Jeffery took a deep breath and began to explain.

"Well, it's a well-known fact that film production goes through unprecedented conditions to complete a project, although movies like yours are an exception to it, this also means you have no experience about it, and that can put you in big trouble."

After saying that, Jeffrey started to explain how it all worked.

Even after finalising microscopic details regarding crew, scripts and budget and all untiring efforts, one cannot assume that they will not face any uninvited circumstances.

To produce movies that have the potential to attract people, the movies feature specific locations, stunts and action with special effects which pose risk and serious threats to film production. Those risky stunts, actions or specific locations can bring production to a halt.

Film production needs to be carried out in a way that there should be a backup option for every move and needs to follow guidelines to minimise the risk factor in film production.

"What I have told you till now is just the tip of the iceberg. Creating a production house is a hard task, but running it will be even more daunting. I would rather hope that you first understand this industry, rather than diving straight into something you have no idea about."

Will remained silent after hearing Jeffery's words. What the latter said made a lot of sense. However, Will was ready to take the challenge.

If he didn't have his own production house and teams, it would be even more difficult to bring the movies of his world to this one.

Another thing was Jeffery didn't know about the Hollywood System, which would be of great help to Will. Although it may not be of big help to Will when it comes to running the production studio, it was still a big advantage, and it could only be used to a full extent if he had full control over the movie and everything related to it and the only way for it to happen is by him owning the whole production studio.

Will couldn't tell these reasons to Jeffery; that was why he needed something else to convince the latter.

"Jeffery, I understand your point. I know it's a very risky move, but this is the best thing I have in my mind right now. I may not have a full understanding of things, but won't you be there to guide me?"

"Me?" Jeffery was a bit taken aback.

"Yes," Will smiled, "You have helped me so much, and I am not an ungrateful guy. This is why I want you to be a part of my company, and in fact, my dream to have a fully-fledged production studio won't come to fruition without your help. And this is why I have called you here. I want to get a production studio, and I want you to be a part of it."

Jeffery fell into thoughts after hearing Will's words.

What the young man had said to him may have put a smile on his face, but that doesn't mean he could agree to it.

He himself has just told Will about the risks they would face, and if he agrees to Will's offer, he would also be facing the same issues.

"I don't want to beat the bush; I will be direct." Jeffery said, "When you open a production house, you are not only responsible for yourself, but also the livelihood and safety of hundreds of people who will be working for you. And all this takes a lot of resources, effort, and expertise. And you will need a backup plan for every decision you take. And another thing is, I would suggest you invest in an already existing studio, that will decrease your troubles."

Will smiled, "So you're not rejecting the offer."

Jeffrey pursed his lips, "I have not accepted it either. This is something that heavily affects my life. I can't just decide over a cup of coffee."

Will thought for a moment and then nodded, "I understand. Also, about what you said at the end, yeah, I am planning to buy out a near-bankrupt studio."

"You want to buy out? Why not invest in a popular studio?"

Will shook his head, "I want full control over everything, and big studios would mean unnecessary drama. I just want to produce and direct some awesome movies instead of attending board meetings in big studios."

Jeffery smiled, "Alright, but then, do you have any company in your mind?"

Will shook his head, "Not any that I know of. I have just started focusing on this thing."

"Uhm," Jeffery thought for a bit and said, "I do know a company which is struggling a lot, but I am not sure if the CEO of that studio will agree to discuss it with you."

"Oh? Which studio, if you don't mind."

"Uh… well, I can't name it," Jeffery shook his head, "The CEO of that company is an old friend of mine, and news like bankruptcy is not a small thing; it can heavily affect the image of the company if the news gets leaked. He only talked to me about it because of the stress he is under, and if he trusts me enough to talk about it, I should respect our friendship and not spread it to others."

Will smiled, "you're a good friend, Jeffrey. How about you arrange a meeting between me and the CEO? You can ask him about it, if he agrees to have a meeting, that would be awesome."

Jeffery nodded, "Sure, no problem."

Will nodded, and after a moment of silence, he said, "And, uh, there's another thing."

"Oh? Go ahead, what is it?"

"I am also planning to create an Acting Agency."

"…What?"

…

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Chapter 47:

"An agency? Are you joking with me?"

Jeffery looked at Will like he was drunk. He could understand him trying to get a studio for his movies but an agency? It was just another market.

He felt like Will was getting impatient due to his inexperience and was trying to get into several markets way too quickly.

"No, I'm not. You very well know I'm serious, and I want to create my own Agency."

"Why? I think that you are getting too carried away with the money."

Will smiled hearing that. After all, no matter what, he would look like a fool to others if he really got an agency so soon after becoming a millionaire.

But only he knew the advantages he had.

"I know it seems like that, but there's an actor I have my eyes on. His contract with his Agency will end soon, and I want to rope him in no matter what."

"I don't think you understand my point, Will. You might not know, but the agent market is pretty big, and there are already lots of bigwigs in it. You won't be able to fit in. It's almost a cartel, and no one could fight them out."

The cartel Jeffrey was talking about consisted of MCA, ICM (Innovative Creative Management), Jenkins agency and such.

They were big players who have been in the market for decades, and they won't let just anyone enter the market to increase their competitiveness.

It was not like people who had money didn't try to make other agencies. But they were suppressed even before their Agency could get registered.

Just last year, Zenon Arts Corporation had made a big splash into the market. One of their actors even became an A tier actor, but Jenkins soon roped him in.

They offered him a contract he wasn't able to refuse.

ZAC tried to fight back, but they could not do anything against Jenkins. Will knew this, too, as he had obviously researched about it.

But he wasn't scared of any agencies.

"Jeffery, I don't know about others, but I'm not scared of any agencies."

"Do you think it's easy to make an unknown actor into a superstar? The probability of an actor even becoming B-list is 1 out of thousands of C-listers."

Jeffrey told seriously. He knew Will wasn't as impatient of a man as he looked, and most of the time, people would mistake his confidence for arrogance. But this time, even he was having trouble keeping up with Will's carefree declarations and plans.

"Haha, Jeffrey. Let me tell you something; I'll make an actor get an Oscar nomination in a year."

Will said with confidence. If he used his whole arsenal, which consisted of his Hollywood System, it wouldn't be a stretch to accomplish this task.

Jeffrey, who heard his bold declaration, couldn't help but sigh inwardly. He was sure if someone who didn't know about Will heard that, they would surely give him weird looks and think that Will was too high on one movie's success.

But Jeffrey believed in Will, still believing in him didn't make him entertain Will's wild ideas.

"It would really be a miracle if you can do that. I am not against your idea; just know that haste will make waste. You better think everything through, and when it's the right time, I won't stop you."

Jeffrey sincerely made his point. Will had a lot of potential, especially because he was so young. Jeffrey didn't want his potential to go to waste.

In the end, Will agreed to delay the matter of the Agency for now, at least until he met with Micheal. And if things didn't work out well even by that time, then he would just contract Micheal as an individual instead of an agency.

Outdoor Basketball Courts, Los Angeles.

Will was running around while dribbling a basketball with his right hand.

He was wearing a red coloured jersey and shorts with a white headband tied on his head.

He was soaked in sweat from the apparent workout, but a fresh smile could still be seen on his face as he kept dodging and dribbling, losing his ball to a teenager who looked around 17-18 years old.

"Hah….."

He breathed loudly as he stopped in between.

"Go, Will Goooo!"

Will heard June's voice cheering him on as he kept sweating.

Wiping his forehead with his hand, Will stood near his team's basket.

This was called Box Out, where a player would position himself between the basket and his opponent as a way to obtain a rebound.

As the opponent who had the ball dribbled through the court towards Will's basket, he threw the ball onto the basket, but the shot became a brick and bounced off after slamming on the rim of the basket.

Will succeeded in acquiring the ball and passed it to a player in his team who was already mid-court as he started running.

Through many passes and turns, Will was almost at the opponent teams' basket as the ball was passed to him by his teammate.

Dribbling at a fast speed, Will managed to avoid the enemies tackle and did a slam dunk, scoring the final goal for his team.

"Yahoooooooo, We did it!!!"

"Hurrayyyyyyyy!"

Will's team started cheering as the game ended.

Walking towards Will's apartment, June kept wiping Will's sweat with a towel in her hand.

"You did really well. I never knew you could play basketball so well. That was so exciting!"

June said as she could barely control her excitement. She was very pleased to see Will's sweat-drenched body as it made him look more charming than usual.

Will had come out to play basketball with the teenagers in his locality.

From the past few days, he used all his free time, which he had apart from writing the script of [Sherlock Holmes, in practising for the role he was going to audition for in [17 Again].

Playing basketball was also part of practice due to the nature of his role.

"You're working really hard for the role; I never knew you had an interest in acting."

June said while walking with her arms scissored to Wills'. Will's declaration to audition for a role in [17 Again] really came off as a surprise to June.

She had already prepared herself not to be surprised with anything Will said or did due to his onion-like nature, but she was still not prepared to see him acting.

"Yeah, I'm working hard, but what about you? You're working even harder than me. You shouldn't lose this chance and get Maggie's role anyhow; it'll be really helpful for your future. If you need help with it, ask me."

Will said while still walking. As he wasn't used to such an intense workout, his legs were sore, yet a refreshing feeling spread throughout his body.

As he was the movie's screenwriter, he obviously knew about each character and asked June if she needed help with it.

"No, can't do. You've already helped me a lot, and I'll do my best and make you proud my snatching the role with my own ability."

June said with firm eyes, then stuck her tongue out.

"That's great then. Oh, by the way, what about your agent? Did you tell him you're auditioning for this role?"

Will asked with curiosity visible in his voice as he thought about June's agent. He had been rude to Will the first time they met, but Will had never seen him around after that.

"Don't even talk about him. After the success of your movie, he doesn't dare to say anything against what I have decided. He has become like a tame puppy these days. Obviously, he didn't say anything regarding this role either."

June said in a carefree tone. Will, who heard this, didn't ask more about it. June would be changing agents soon anyways if everything went well with his own Agency's setup.

Edward Friedman had rented a theatre for a whole week for the auditions of his new movie [17 Again]. This was also the place where he was supposed to meet Will today for his audition.

The producer of the movie, Peyton Collins and an executive from Foxstar studios, Henry Burton, were also present at the scene to look over the auditions.

As this was a movie where they were investing millions, everybody wanted the best of it. The producer, Peyton, was especially cautious about everything as he was the one who had invested the most into the movie.

As Will came to the auditions with June, Edward, Peyton and Henry, the executive from Foxstar scanned him with their eyes.

"He has just come to make a fool of himself. Why do these youngsters get so drunk on small success?"

Peyton remarked cynically to Edward while looking at Will with eyes that were filled with annoyance.

He was really annoyed at this person who thought that the world revolved around him and that he could do anything as long as he tried. Acting as an art and not everyone was gifted in it, Peyton definitely wouldn't accept just anyone.

Will came and greeted Edward and Edward introduced him to the producer and others.

After a while, the auditions started, and Will was the first to audition.

He was given the scene with Drake Redcliff, the actor who would play teenager mike. Of course, not everyone was given the same privilege as to audition with one of the selected roles, but since Will was pretty popular, this much favouritism was fine.

"You'll do well, don't worry."

June mouthed towards Will in a low voice, and Will just smiled at that.

He was given the infamous scene where Mike says, 'I'm very disappointed in your sister'.

The scene was rather tame, and the role of Alex, which Will was auditioning for, was quiet and didn't talk or speak loudly, was bullied and was introverted.

As Edward said 'action' the atmosphere around Will changed. From one a successful young man to that of an introverted teen.

The change was so sudden that many people were slack-jawed as Will started with his dialogues.

Peyton, who was looking down on Will till the very last second, looked like his eyes would pop out of their sockets any moment.

He never expected Will to be able to act so well. Although Will was supported by [Intermediate Acting, he had been practising non-stop for the last few days, complimenting his already enhanced acting skills.

Even June was pleasantly surprised at her onion of a boyfriend, who kept showing one layer after the other, completely disregarding common sense.

As Edward shouted 'cut', Will's serious acting atmosphere changed as a smile formed on his face, and he walked towards Edward, who was beaming with smiles.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 48:

Clap* *Clap* *Clap*

Edward clapped while smiling as he saw Will walking towards him. Lastly, everyone else on the set followed after him and clapped, including Peyton.

"Awesome! Awesoe!"

Edwards praised as Will rubbed the back of his head and said.

"Thank you. I've been practising a lot; I hope it was good enough for the role."

"Good? It was very good. Honestly, I was surprised that you could even act, forget about this level. You're just full of surprises. An actor, director, producer and screenwriter…. What else are you hiding behind that human skin? Haha."

Edward said while laughing heartily. He had never imagined Will to be this good at acting.

Peyton, who was silently standing beside Edward, had a tinge of guilt in his eyes as he sincerely said.

"I'm not going to lie. I thought you were just going to make a fool of yourself and that you're just too full of yourself. It seems I was the one who was judging a book by its cover. Your acting is brilliant, and it's my bad this time around. Haha!"

Peyton shook hands with Will while saying "Welcome onboard" to him.

"Wow, I never knew you were such a great actor. How do you continuously come up with ways to surprise me?"

June, who had come and clung to Will's hand, asked cheerfully.

Will just said thanks to everyone who praised him and tried to befriend everyone as humbly as possible.

The same went for the young star, Drake Redcliff, who came and shook hands with Will while congratulating him.

Although as he did that, his eyes kept darting towards June, she was too busy in praising Will to spare a glance to the 'Lead Actor'.

After that, Edward officially announced that Will had been selected for the role of 'Alex', the main character Mike's son in the movie [17 Again].

As Will asked for any apparent flaws in his performance from Edward and Peyton, the other two just said it was perfect, and nothing seemed lacking.

To begin with, Alex's character was timid and weak, which was supposed to be due to Stan, the bully in the movie. So Will didn't need to put in too much effort. Otherwise, it would create an adverse effect.

There were times when a character needed to foreshadow even the main leads character, but Alex's character definitely wasn't one of them.

"By the way, I have to commend you for recommending June as the character for Maggie. She looks kinda similar to what I had in mind, but let's check out her acting skills first before deciding anything."

Edward whispered towards Will.

"Then, I hope you take care of her if everything goes well."

"I definitely will."

Edward laughed and patted Will on the back. In his mind, he wondered what kind of stuff the young man in front of him did.

Maybe he would be another one time wonder? Or maybe a superstar.

He felt like it would be either one of those because there's hardly any 'middle' for people like Will cause they just aren't satisfied with it.

After that, they talked a little more about the rule, and Edward invited him to dinner, but Will politely rejected as he was going on an evening date with June.

But as he was leaving, Harry Williams, the Foxstar executive, came towards him.

"Will, can you give me a second?"

"Yeah. Hello, Mr Williams. What do you need from me?"

"Just want to talk about something." Harry smiled and immediately went to the topic. "Have you decided to direct another Blair Witch movie? Foxstar is interested in coming on board as the distributor."

"I'm sorry, but I don't plan to direct horror movies."

"Is that so? I guess the rumours were true after all," Harry said with a disappointed face.

The Blair Witch franchise was one of the hottest things in the market currently, so a chance to be a part of it was a golden opportunity.

"What about the sequel rights then? They are still with you, right?"

Harry asked, hoping to get a deal, but he was bound to be disappointed.

"I'm sorry, Mr Williams. I already sold it to Wheelworks. They are already in pre-production for the sequel. I think there will be an official announcement soon."

Will said, and Harry couldn't help but frown. Maybe he should have contacted Will earlier.

"That's too bad. Anyway, I have a message for you from Foxstar. We would like to have a meeting with you regarding any of your next projects. If the idea is good enough, we don't mind investing."

"I would contact you then."

Will said with a smile, and Harry raised one of his eyebrows hearing that.

"It seems like you are already planning a project."

"You can say so, but I don't plan to reveal it until everything is finalised."

"Take your time. Just don't forget Foxstar. It's really rare for us to want to work with young directors so much. I hope you will think about it."

Will nodded his head, and they shook hands. The last part of Harry's sentence sounded arrogant, but Will knew their levels were just too different.

But he also knew that it wouldn't be the case for long.

The next few days, Will just worked on the script for [Sherlock Holmes]. It was close to ending, and it was only taking so much time because Will was busy with other stuff.

One of the things he did was to register himself in the Directors Guild of America. It was important for every director to be a part of the guild.

He also registered for the actor's guild as he was working as one in [17 again]. All this took a few days, but it was good to get it over with.

On Monday, Wheel work finally announced the sequel for [The Blair Witch Project]. A major website covered it on their front page, and for a whole day, it was again the talk of the town.

[Breaking news! The camcorder horror movie [The Blair Witch Project] is getting a sequel. Headed by Wheel work studios, the sequel will be released next year. The most shocking fact is that the director who was the vision behind the blockbuster horror movie won't come back to direct the sequel!!]

As soon as the news broke out, many people wondered why Will wasn't coming back to direct. Some people pointed out how he had said he wouldn't do horror movies anymore.

While others said that Will was just set for life and he didn't have a reason to direct any movie or work.

That was the discussion in a famous movie forum.

-Did you all see the post by Wheel work studios? Blair witch is coming back!

-Yeah, there was a rumour about the sequel, but Will Evans won't be directing. I wondered how they convinced him not to.

-There was no news of a fallout, so I guess it was mutual.

-I heard Wheelworks would look for an experienced director and a new cast to direct it.

-Ahh, I'm jealous of that director! He's set for life! No need to earn and have millions to spend!

-He's probably partying all day with hot chicks!

-I don't think so. He looked like a smart person in the Brooks Tuffy show. I bet he would direct another movie.

-I wonder how he does it? Take 50k and turn it into 200 million dollars! What a lucky fuck!

-10 dollars bet that he's gonna retire soon.

-I feel the same.

-True! He himself knows he's a one time wonder.

…

'They really underestimate me.'

Will thought as he read through the comment sections. Many people were calling him a one time wonder, especially after the sequel rights announcement.

Some even made articles about how he was gonna retire and marry a young model or something. Those were just speculative articles, obviously, and Will just laughed at them.

"What are you laughing at?"

Jeffery, who was driving the car beside him, asked as he saw Will holding his phone and laughing about something.

"Just articles on me leaving the Blair witch franchise. Many think it's the end for me."

"That's indeed funny. Anyway, Frank is an old businessman, so he will try to get as much money out of you as possible. Try to hold your forte."

Jeffery said, and Will just smiled. Currently, they were on their way to meet Frank Winston, the chairman of Krown studios. It was a mid-sized studio that Jeffery had told Will to buy.

The owner, Frank, had created it ten years ago, but aside from two or three movies, none of the others worked, and it was in serious loss for a few years now.

It was even a surprise that Frank had still not sold it and retired.

The truth was that Frank was an avid lover of movies, and he always wanted to produce an Oscar-nominated movie, and that was his dream, and he has persisted until now because of that.

But he was tired of seeing the losses now.

No matter what he did, his studio never worked, and he wasn't even able to pay the employees. In the end, he was a failure as a businessman, and he realised it too.

So when Jeffery contacted him saying someone wanted to invest in his studio, he was ready to meet him, albeit a bit reluctantly.

"What kind of guy is he?" Will asked, looking at Jeffery.

"Stubborn. That's the word to describe him. He has good business sense. Just he made bad movie choices. He has all the stake in the studio because he didn't want others to interfere in his decisions, but that backfired."

Will nodded his head, hearing that. At that moment, he suddenly got a notification on his phone.

It was a message from June.

[My audition will start soon. Do your best today! Let's celebrate together if we both pass!]

In the end, there was a heart emoji, and Will smiled seeing it. Her audition for the role of Maggie was today, and she has been working hard for it in the past few days.

'I hope it all goes through well.'

Will thought in his mind and looked outside the window. Even though it was January, the sky seemed incredibly clear for some reason.

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Chapter 49:

"Hey, have you heard of Will? I heard that he's a really talented guy."

"Yeah, I have heard of him, alright. I heard the dude got a producer to invest in his movie as soon as he finishes his studies at USC. There were many aspiring directors with some great ideas, but only his idea was selected."

"They said he can turn out to be a really good director. I personally think he's using the back door. Must be nice, eh? He's rich and already has a bright future ahead of himself."

Will heard the students chattering about him. He was used to this 'unnecessary' popularity.

He was born in a reputed celebrity's house. Wealth, fame and respect, his family had it all, making it all easy for him to study and aim at becoming a director.

That was his fault. People thought that being poor was a sin, but being rich had become a sin for Will. No matter how much effort he put in and no matter how much passion he showed, his thoughts and hard work were never conveyed to people, and they just either treated him as a guy born with a silver spoon.

'Someday, I'll make you all respect me for my own works!'

Will thought inwardly as he walked out of the campus. There wasn't really anything that he had to do after the classes, so he planned on going back home and starting to work on ideas for his first movie.

A car had come to pick him up, like usual. As he sat inside the car, the driver drove it off until they came to a halt at the red signal.

Knock* *Knock*

Someone knocked on the side glass from the outside. It was a guy with wild blond hair dyed green in some places and two scorpion tail-like ear piercings. He was sitting on a bike behind another guy whose face wasn't visible.

Will subconsciously slid down the glass as the guy opened his mouth, revealing a piercing on his tongue too.

"It's nothing personal, dude; blame your parents if you gotta blame someone."

The driver in the front seat tried to warn Will about something urgently.

Click* *Boom*

By the time Will could react, the blond guy had already taken out a gun and shot directly on Will's head.

"Haah…."

Will let out an exasperated breath as Jeffrey immediately patted his back.

"Are you okay?"

Jeffrey asked with concern visible in his eyes.

'I fell asleep huh…"

Will thought as he felt his own heart thumping wildly as his forehead was filled with cold sweat.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

Will said while trying to catch his breath. Since his transmigration, Will has dreamed about his previous world for the first time.

To be precise, it was the dream about how he had died in that world. As he was going to Krown Studios office with Jeffrey, he noticed the clear sky and fell asleep without realising, only to be woken up by this horrific dream.

"You must be getting tired from working so much every day. You should take some rest when you have the time, don't waste your youth by just working every day."

Jeffrey said with a bitter smile. According to him, Will was way too mature and serious about his work for his age. It was a good thing but not even resting would eventually tire him out, making his work performance drop significantly.

"Don't worry. As I said, I'm perfectly fine. How long till we reach our destination?"

Will tried to change the subject.

"We are already there; that's why I was trying to wake you up earlier. Don't worry, we still have some time before the meeting starts."

Jeffrey said as he got out of the car.

Soon, Will calmed down and got out of the car too.

Benjamin and Jason should have already reached the studio before them.

To acquire a company, an acquisition team was necessary, for that purpose, he had asked Benjamin to take over the role of a temporary agent.

There were several obvious reasons why Will had decided to acquire Krown studios. The first and foremost reason was that it didn't have a single debt.

All the equity was with the real shareholders, and none of them had opted out to sell it yet. Secondly, all the departments and offices were well maintained even though the company had obviously fallen, or so Jeffrey had mentioned.

The various types of equipment that they used were obviously cheap, but according to Will, that wasn't a big problem and could easily be solved with money.

Walking around, Will looked at the surroundings and couldn't help but feel delighted. The rooms and offices around looked all new and cleanly kept.

Soon, Jeffrey found the board room as he knocked once before entering.

An old man around 60 years of age was sitting on a head seat with two other men sitting opposite to him on a circular glass table.

"Jeffrey, your habits just won't go away, huh. I've told you many times to wait for a reply before barging in; what if I'm having an affair with my secretary and somebody caught me?"

The grey-haired old man said in a rather gruff tone, perfectly matching Jeffrey's own voice.

"Shut up, you old fart; you really think some secretary would be blind enough to be having an affair with you? You aren't even rich. Hahaha."

Jeffrey said as both of them laughed and shook hands.

"This is Will, the guy I told you about. Will, this is Frank Winston, the Chairman of Krown Studios."

Will shook hands with Frank as the latter measured him up with a gaze.

"Hello, I'm Will Evans. I hope we can come to a satisfying deal."

"We will see about that."

Frank said as he gestured for the two to sit down.

Will greeted Benjamin and Jason as he said.

"Let's start the meeting."

"You really overestimate your movies…. $3 million just for the copyrights; you might as well straight out rob us."

Benjamin said with a look that showed how absurd this situation was.

As the meeting went on, Frank's personality became clearer and clearer as both Benjamin and Frank entered a heated debate.

Frank was asking $3 million just for the copyrights of all the movies Krown Studios have produced.

As the movies produced by Krown Studios failed one after the other, Frank sold some movies through DVDs. The sale of those DVDs was the reason the Krown Studios wasn't bankrupt yet and was still afloat, albeit barely.

"I think that's pretty reasonable considering the ten years of history behind the studios."

Frank said aggressively, to which Benjamin didn't back down and countered.

"Reasonable? Bah! It's way too high; we might as well go and buy some other studio. Hollywood doesn't lack studios on the verge of bankruptcy, you know? Not to mention that this studio's B grade movies without a single popular actor aren't worth much. You have had enough chances to sell this sinking company before, but you let it go. But trust me, we won't wait for you to make up your mind, we can just go and buy some other studio."

As Benjamin said this, Frank hesitated for a bit.

The company was already in tatters, and it was all due to his stubbornness that he hadn't sold it yet. But if he is delayed anymore, he won't just be playing with his own life but the whole company's life, including the employees.

The reason why he decided to sell the company now was due to a certain realisation. His company's shares weren't getting sold, and he had to buy back all the shares from the shareholders himself, emptying his pockets further.

Will hadn't said much throughout the meeting and left much of it on Benjamin as he looked at him. A smile couldn't help but form on his lips subconsciously as he looked at Benjamin aggressively, making points to lower the rates.

Such business negotiations and tactics were the reason why Benjamin was a senior agent at MCA. He was very clear about how to strike a nerve to gain an advantage in a debate such as this, which wasn't the most likeable thing about him on a personal level, but in business, this was clearly an advantageous skill.

Even though Benjamin had struck a nerve, Frank regained his composure soon enough, proving his years of experience as he again engaged in the argument.

Although Frank had become a bit tamer throughout the meeting, his quirky self kept coming at conditions after conditions for Will to buy out the company. Will simply rejected each one of them and left everything else for Benjamin to handle.

As the meeting was coming to an end, Frank made one last condition: not change the studio's name if Will wanted to buy it out.

"I would love to respect your emotions related to the company, but I think that names are also a defining factor of success, and I just don't think this name would work out for me. I'll be sure to make it something better than it is now, both the name and the company."

Will said that as a reply to Frank's demand. In the end, Frank conceded.

It was decided that the whole company would be transferred to Will's name for an amount of $4.5 million. This included the building, and one of the conditions that Will had accepted from Frank was that he wouldn't fire any existing staff; there were only a few of them left to begin with.

As the deal was finalised, Frank held his hand out, and Will shook it.

"Congratulations on the successful deal. I just hope you treat the staff well and take the company to heights that I was never able to."

Frank said somewhat emotionally, and Will just smiled and said,

"Thank you. I will make sure of that."

"What's going on? Has Chairman Frank finally decided to sell the company?"

"What will happen to us? Are we going to get fired now?"

"I don't think Chairman Frank would accept a deal where we would become unemployed."

The employees of Krown Studios had gathered outside the hall, which was near the board room, as they chattered amongst themselves. An air of anxiety and uncertainty surrounded them as a handsome young man walked out of the board room and said.

"Hello, everyone. I'm the new owner of the company, Will Evans."

…

/DreamNote/

Don't forget to vote

Chapter 50:

"Hello, everyone. I'm the new owner of the company, Will Evans."

Will came out and said with a smile.

"Ah, so it's true."

"The company really has been sold."

"He's so young. Did he say his name was Will Evans?"

"Isn't that the director of that Blair Witch movie that recently became popular?"

"What will happen to us? Are we unemployed now?"

Hushed murmurings and chattering took place amongst the employees of Krown Studios. An air of agitation and anxiousness surrounded them as the uncertainty of their future made them despair.

Krown Studios had been at rock bottom these days, and the employees that were left were there due to the sentimental value instead of the bare minimum of a salary that they got. They were treated really well by Frank, and now that Frank had finally retired and sold the company, they didn't know what would befall them.

Will knew what they were going through. He walked through them and eventually stopped in front of a middle-aged lady.

"What's your name?"

He asked with a smile.

"I'm Tiana from the Visual Department."

She answered while contemplating what he was trying to do.

"I am the new owner of this company; nice to meet you. I hope you will do your best like everyone else to make the company prosperous."

"Ah…this…"

Now everyone understood where Will was going with this. This was like telling them, 'I have bought the company, and I am not going kick you out; you are still the company's employees.'.

Will walked around the office and finally jumped and sat down at a table.

"I've bought this company, and I have no intention of kicking you guys out. Although the company's ownership and management will change, you will still remain employed and working. Of course, you guys would need to renew your contracts according to the new policies."

"You are all someone experienced at your work, and I hope to have your co-operation and full dedication to this company. I would love to have a friendly chat with all of you, but I'm running short on time, so are you guys."

Will said as he smiled and gazed around at the crowd.

"You guys can take a rest for a day or two, decide whether you want to work in the company or not and then sign the agreement accordingly. Whoever decides to stay, they need to prepare themselves as I already have a big movie's production planned out and would need to start working on it soon."

Everyone's eyes lit up when they heard Will's last sentence. It was a big movie by Will, the star rookie director, it would at least be able to break even just due to his recent popularity, and if it actually worked, their lives would change.

"What kind of movie will it be? Another camcorder movie? I'm good with handling cameras."

A scrawny guy asked, and Will shook his head.

"Sorry to disappoint you, but it would be a real cinematic movie. I wouldn't need a company if I planned just to make movies on video cameras, right?"

"Ah, yeah." He nodded, and Will turned around, facing all the employees.

"The movie I'm going to direct next is worth tens of millions, and I would need all of you to help this movie become a success."

Everyone cheered hearing that. Due to Will's age, some people were still in disbelief, but even they knew that he was a multi-millionaire thanks to [The Blair Witch Project].

In the end, they just clapped and wished that everything would go well.

Frank saw all this and just smiled to himself. He was still reluctant to give up on his company, but maybe, it was for the best.

After all, he was old, and the future was for the young.

He just wished that Will would be able to fulfil his dream of making an Oscar-nominated movie.

In the evening, Will and June were out in a small restaurant that was close to his apartment. They were here to celebrate as this was a day of success.

Like Will, June had also managed to bag the role of Maggie. Edward was really happy with her portrayal, and her looks were on point.

Moreover, with her being close to Will, there was even more reason to cast her in the role.

"I can't believe I got that role. It's like a dream!"

June said cheerfully and took a sip of the wine in her hand.

"Congrats, June."

Will said as he lightly raised his own wine glass. He didn't usually drink, in fact, he didn't drink at all since he had transmigrated. But today was special. As June herself said it was fine to let loose once in a while, he agreed to drink.

Surprisingly, after taking a sip, he received a system notification.

[Achievement Unlocked: Wine may not be the answer, but it is worth a shot!]

[Drink wine for the first time]

[Rewards – Alcohol Tolerance]

He didn't expect this, but after much deliberation, he couldn't help but consider the deep ties alcohol had with Hollywood.

Will just chuckled to himself and decided to leave it be for the moment. After all, he was here to enjoy his time with June, not with the system.

"You know, I actually messed up a bit and thought that I won't get the role. But Edward told me to try again, and I was so nervous and self-conscious that I didn't make any mistake later. I got the role because of that."

June said, her expression still bright like a star but her cheeks carrying a healthy shade of red, maybe due to the excitement from getting the role of maybe from the wine, or maybe both.

"Oh, Oh. What 'bout the company you went to discuss with? Did everything work out?"

June asked Will as she thought that she was the only one talking and continuously blabbering.

"It all went great, actual there is only some paperwork left to do, and the company is as good as mine already."

Will said happily. He was really glad that the thing with the company issue worked out fine, but he didn't feel like resting just yet; he wanted to get an Actors Agency too.

"That's so great! By the way, have you decided on a name for the company?"

June asked with curiosity. As far as she knew Will, she was sure he wouldn't run the company with the existing name.

"Actually about that, yeah, I've already thought of a nice name."

As he took another sip, Will said that the food was mere decoration as the duo were just busy with their talk and the wine.

"What are you waiting for then? Aww c'mon, tell me what it is….please."

June gave Will the puppy eyes as he just laughed at her antics.

"Dream Vision Studios… that's the name I've decided on."

Will said as he waved his wine glass in his hand smiled.

"Ah… that's… that's such a nice name."

June commented with emotion.

"Yeah, well, I had thought of it in my college days. It was my dream to have my own company, and I visioned to become the best director, this is just the start of my many dreams that will come true."

Will said with confidence, and June couldn't help but stare at him. If another guy said it, she would definitely take it as bullshit and wouldn't bother.

But it was Will who was saying this. He did whatever he said he would do. And he wasn't arrogant about it, but it was his confidence that made him say such things without batting an eye.

Confidence that she found extremely sexy.

Will just chuckled, looking at June, who was giving him a predatory look.

"I want this company to be attached to my identity. This company's name should pop up whenever someone talks about me and vice versa. I've even thought of a nice logo for the company."

Will said as he took another sip and sighed, looking somewhat tired.

"I'll get busy from tomorrow. I also need to find a capable CEO for the company and have board meetings to stabilize the company's situation. Not only that, but I've to acquire the rights of [Sherlock Holmes] from Z Studios too and enter the pre-production phase for the movie."

"Wait, what? Sherlock Holmes? I mean, you did tell me you will need to buy rights from some existing company for your new movie, but I didn't know that the movie is Sherlock Holmes… You do know it was a super flop movie… right?"

June said somewhat warily. It was only natural.

In this world, someone had already made a Sherlock Holmes movie in the 90s. It was called [Detective Sherlock Holmes, and it was a movie that people counted as one of the biggest disappointments in Hollywood history.

If Will made a remake, it would get affected by that bad reputation too. After all, reputation mattered a lot in Hollywood.

Will, who already knew what kind of reactions he would get from the audience in the early phases of the movie, was already prepared for such a thing. Nevertheless, it didn't disappoint him; on the contrary, it gave him a challenge that he would overcome with his own effort.

"Will, I really don't think you should try to buy the rights of it. It's too risky."

June said, hoping she would change his mind. She felt like Will was taking too much of a gamble in an industry as fickle as Hollywood.

"I understand your concerns, but please trust me. How about this? The script is almost ready, so you can read it and tell me if it's good or not. If you think it would be a flop, I will give up on it."

His confident tone made June believe in his project a little. She nodded her head and replied,

"Okay. Just I don't want you to make the wrong move."

"I know."

Will softly said and squeezed her hands.

He felt like this was just the beginning of his journey, and even if no one would trust him enough, June will.

…

/DreamNote/

Vote please, because June will

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Chapter 51:

In the next few days, Will was pretty busy finishing the paperwork to acquire Krown studios. Things like this were always complicated in a place such as America.

One had to go through many departments to finish everything legally, but his lawyer, Jason, really helped him finish all this quickly.

On Sunday, he became the owner of Krown studios which was now renamed 'Dream Vision Studios'.

Will had to spend a little in the office renovation, making a new website, and creating other social media platforms for his new venture. He wanted his studio to connect with people, and he very well knew how powerful social media could be.

Other than that, he also designed a logo himself.

He was not really that good at drawing, but he did his best for the logo of the company.

It was just a picture of a camera looking up in the distance with the studio's name written under him. But Will liked it a lot.

In his mind, the camera was his way of visioning his dreams, and as it was simple too, it didn't take much time to make it official.

As his identity as the new owner, everything surrounding him felt pretty new, almost like an employee's first day of work.

But just because things felt new and fresh didn't mean there wasn't work to do. In fact, there was a lot of pending work, and it needed to be finished soon in order to enter the pre-production phase.

Although Will hadn't fired a single employee, there were one or two of them who had left on their own accord, probably thinking that the company was going to die anyway, and the reason they stuck around was for Frank, not for Will.

There was already staff for most of the things, but everything was lacking, according to Will, so he wanted to hire more staff and fill in the gaps.

The CEO is the most crucial person necessary to run the company.

Will himself wanted to focus solely on movies. He had to do many things himself, like writing down the script, production and directing. He couldn't just let anyone do the bigger negotiations for him either.

And with all this work on the side, it would not only be difficult to run the company, but there might also even be complexities, and these two works might become a thorn in amongst themselves. For these reasons, Will thought it would be much better to get a capable CEO, and he could just become the founder of the company.

As a CEO has the utmost power in a company and his decisions affect the whole company, he needs to be a person who understands the intricacy of Hollywood and must be capable enough to take decisions on behalf of the company.

For these obvious reasons, Will had already asked Benjamin to be his company's CEO as he was the most capable person Will knew of, at least regarding these matters.

Benjamin immediately refused the offer, saying that he still had a lot of work in MCA, he even had a contract that he couldn't break in the middle. Apart from that, he himself didn't wish to start afresh, as it would be too tiring and take too much of his daily time, especially in the earlier days. So he said it would be better to find someone else.

As Will thought from Benjamin's shoes, he, of course, understood his reasoning. Dream Vision was just a chick right now which had just hatched and hadn't even earned its first profit yet. Compared to that, MCA was a full-fledged goose that laid golden eggs; the choice was obvious.

Beep* *Beep*

As Will was thinking about all this while lying on his bed, his phone beeped on the lamp table beside him.

As he picked up the phone, he saw that he had gotten mail from Benjamin.

[Hey Will,

I'm sending the resume of that woman that I talked about earlier. It's attached in this mail. Please find the attachment.]

Will smiled as he went through the email.

Although Benjamin had rejected his offer, he recommended someone else for the position himself too.

The person Benjamin recommended was Amanda Garcia, and she was someone who had worked directly under him and was looking for new opportunities these days.

As Will read through her resume, he found out that she was a graduate from a famous business school in New York City and worked as an executive for a middle-sized company before getting attracted to the showbiz world.

She easily cracked the Agents exam and became an agent in MCA, slowly contributing to the company and getting promotions after promotions.

As MCA started declining and the management changed, she was really unhappy with it and eventually decided to quit due to the competitiveness without getting any proper returns.. She planned on starting afresh in some new companies with the hopes of making them big.

After leaving MCA, she had worked in two companies as a senior agent. Still, both the companies failed due to high competition and shallow understanding of the industry, even though she tried her best to keep them afloat. But, one person couldn't really amount to much, especially when she wasn't someone who could make big decisions.

She was a middle-aged woman in her 40s and was divorced with two children.

After going through the whole of her resume, Will couldn't help but be impressed by the feats she had achieved even though the designations she had worked as gave her limited freedom.

In the end, Will decided to have a meeting with Amanda.

He called her on the number provided on the resume and talked with her regarding the interview, to which she agreed. Even on the call, her confidence and way of talking were perfect, factors that interviewers take notice of before actually inviting someone for an interview.

Amanda and Will shook hands as Will gestured for her to sit down.

Amanda was a blonde-haired woman with average facial features and sharp eyes. Although she was almost 44 years old, her face didn't have any obvious wrinkles.

She had a white shirt underneath her peach blazer with tight black pants. She gave off the vibe of a businesswoman and an entrepreneur. It was surprising how she was working under someone all this time.

Will had called her to Dream Vision Studios office, previous Krown Studios office, and she was currently in Will's personal cabin.

Will had already renovated his own cabin. It was neat and gave a modern office vibe. His office was on the 5th storey, and so it gave quite the view from the glass window.

As the introductions were over, Will directly jumped to the basic questions.

"Why did you agree to give an interview for Dream Vision company, and can you really do the job with two of you having two kids?"

These were the most basic questions anyone would ask, and Amanda seemed prepared as she smiled and said.

"It's obviously due to you, Will Evans. There is no name of Dream Vision Studios yet, and I've come for the interview solely based on your fame. And I've been working in the industry for a long time, my kids, when they were kids, didn't give me any trouble, now they're grown-up teenagers, so they're doing fine on their own."

Will was impressed by her straightforward answer. Obviously, Dream Vision Studios was yet to become something that people would recognize just from its name. Amanda decided to give the interview because she was betting on 'Will Evans' rather than 'Dream Vision Studios' itself.

"Okay, I get your point. Tell me this, if I appointed you as the CEO, what would you do to make my company known to people and Hollywood."

Will asked a question that would concern many new start-ups in Hollywood.

"It won't be easy, I would say. But considering your current fame in Hollywood, even though it is temporary, it could give us a boost. We have to keep one thing in mind: Will and Dream Vision's images are the same. So the company would directly determine your fame and vice versa."

She said as she made some hand gestures during the process while continuing.

"We need to sell 'you'. We need to sell Will Evans and capture the market. Although I wouldn't like to force you to do things, it would be really great if you could do interviews and such in the media, and it would directly affect the company's image after all."

After that, she continued to talk about how they should engage with social media. As it was 2011, social media was still relatively unused by Hollywood Companies.

Amanda proposed that they engage more with people and have a special team for that, directly promoting their future movies.

Will was very satisfied with all her answers as he himself has thought of many of these while the others she mentioned had never crossed his mind but were great ideas nonetheless.

As the meeting was coming to an end, Will decided to ask a very sensitive question. Sensitive, not for her, but himself.

"What do you think about my age? You do know that I'm still young; why did you still decide to give the interview?"

This was, in fact, a hot topic in current Hollywood. There were many speculations and criticisms regarding Will's age, and most of them had speculated him as a one-time miracle.

And that his fame would die down soon enough, just like those teenage breakout stars who lose it all quite soon.

"Well, it's pretty simple, actually. You had earned quite a lot of money, and you could have decided to live on it for the rest of your life. But instead of that, you set up a company, decided to avoid the parties you were invited to, and didn't involve yourself with one girl after the other. It's reasoning enough for me to trust that you've your own plans, so I'd like to be a part of them."

Amanda replied with a straight face as she looked Will directly into his eyes, clearly showing her honestly.

It was true that Will was invited to many Hollywood parties and such after his big break, but he didn't attend any, neither did he spend money like a fool and decided to buy a company first.

Will was sure that Amanda had studied him even before he invited her for an interview, and thus, she was quite well prepared. Apart from all that, he took quite a liking to Amanda's straightforward character and ideas, so he decided to give her the job.

"Welcome to Dream Vision Studios!"

He said as they shook hands.

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Chapter 52:

As Amanda had proven herself from the interview, Will didn't hesitate in hiring her.

Will had already talked with Jason and had all the necessary papers to hire a CEO and any other employee ready with him, all he needed to do was input the name and designation of the person in the offer letter, including their salary and commissions.

The salary Will offered was quite the amount, being $2 million annual income. It was way above average for a firm such as Dream Vision Studios, but Will had made her sign an 18 months bond contract. It was mentioned that her salary wouldn't increase during the contract period, and it can only be reassessed after the contract has ended.

To which Amanda gladly agreed as it was already a lot of salary, but Will knew it would seem less after [Sherlock Holmes] started earning, that's why he made such a contract. It also included the deductions and such, but still, it was a big amount. Currently, Amanda is Will's highest-paid employee.

After appointing her and getting all the necessary documents signed, Will didn't dilly dally and started discussing the company's current structure and future plans. All the existing employees of Krown Studios were made to sign similar bond contracts like Amanda, and their pay was way above what they were receiving earlier.

According to Will, this was a way to boost their morale in the long term while getting the best performance out of them, along with their loyalty to the company.

As it was evening, everyone prepared to return home. Before leaving, Will was in a meeting with Amanda telling her about his next movie. She was against the idea as soon as she heard it was based on Sherlock Holmes.

"Will, this is too risky! A 90 million dollar Sherlock Holmes movie? Tell me you are joking."

Ananda said, looking at Will while shaking her head. She knew her boss was a bit eccentric. All geniuses are, but such an idea was on the level of being a lunatic.

"At least listen to my proposal." Will smiled, already expecting such a reaction. "I have already completed my script."

He passed on a thick document in front of her, and on the front page, the title [Sherlock Holmes] was written in bold.

It was the script that Will had painstakingly typed for days.

"So, this is really not a joke?"

Amanda frowned and opened the first page of the script.

"Of course not. Just read it, and I'm sure you will like it a lot. There's a reason why I want to do a Sherlock Holmes movie."

"And what is that?"

"I find Sherlock Holmes one of the best characters ever written in fiction, but its legacy was never well maintained. The books are classic, but there's no good cinematic movie made on it."

"It's because of what happened to the last one. You must have seen that one?"

She was talking about [Detective Sherlock Holmes] and Will had indeed watched it and had even laughed. It was not like the movie was a detective comedy, but it was so badly made that it made him laugh.

The background looked out of place, and the actor playing Sherlock Holmes has completely ruined the character.

Moreover, he had been given stupid punch lines that looked more cringy than cool. Even the story lacked any sense of mystery and flowed quite badly.

Overall, it was a total disaster. In fact, it got so much heat that no director or producer felt confident enough to consider any more Sherlock Holmes movies or a series.

To Will, this was going to be a good challenge, and he was excited about it.

"I did watch the last one," Will replied, "But our movie is not based on it. I have the whole vision. In fact, I won't be lying if I say that the whole story, scene by scene, is in my mind."

Amanda stared at him for a moment before asking. "How confident are you?"

Will smiled, "There will be multiple challenges, but I am confident."

"From the scale of [Detective Sherlock Holmes] to [The Blair Witch Project, how much?"

Will thought for a moment, "If the vision I have for this movie becomes a reality… it will get three times more on box office than the [Blair Witch Project] 's lifetime box office."

Amanda pursed her lips, "Alright, give me the script. I will go through it tonight."

Will nodded as he passed over the file, "Yeah, please do. Tomorrow, we will have a board meeting about this."

"Oh? Alright," Amanda nodded and left the office.

Will also packed up soon and left for his apartment.

About four hours later, while he was watching a football game, his phone suddenly beeped, indicating a notification.

From[Amanda] (a few seconds ago)

[It's good. Let's discuss this with others tomorrow]

Will smiled a little upon seeing the message.

'Let's get this finalised as soon as possible.'

…

"90 Million?! On Sherlock Holmes?!"

The boardroom of the Dream Vision Studios was suddenly enveloped in a pin drop silence.

The board meeting had begun just a few minutes ago, and Will had revealed the first project.

He waited for almost a whole minute before someone finally spoke up.

"Will, 90 Million… is too much." It was Jeffery. His team was now a part of the Dream Vision Studios and Will had offered him a position on the board member's table.

And as he spoke, someone else quipped.

"It is a lot. And in a Sherlock movie? No one will invest in that."

It was Mark Peirce, the Head of the PR Department. He was part of the old company and was offered a position on the table due to strong recommendations from others, his years of experience and connections he had made over the past few years.

"The last movie was an utter flop, and even that didn't have this big of a budget. Also, how will we even score the funding for this movie? From actors to producers, I don't think anyone would be willing to take such a big risk. If this movie flops at the box office, it will be the end of their career…"

He took a slight pause before continuing.

"…And for our studio. We're still new to the market; let's take one step at a time and start with low budget movies. Once we get our name out there, we will be able to score enough funding for such big projects, though I would still object to it because of the risk factor. It's too high."

Will spoke, "I will be the producer."

"You will….?" The others frowned.

Jeffery cleared his throat and asked, "Will, that's 90 Million. It could literally be everything you got from the horror movie. Are you really planning to throw away all of it in one movie that the whole world thinks will be a flop?"

Will nodded.

This made Mark frown. He tried to explain.

"Will, please understand. We're a new studio, and this will be our first project of any kind. This project will be how the company will be stepping into Hollywood. We can't do this project. The chances of it being a flop are simply too high. In fact, even if you make it really good… wait, you will be making it?"

Will nodded, "Indeed. I will be the director."

Mark cleared his throat, "Will, I am not doubting your ability or anything, you did a phenomenal job in your horror flick, but this kind of movie is a whole different level of production. We can hire a director, you know?"

Will frowned, "Mark, do you know why I created this studio?"

"To create movies…?"

Will shook his head, "I could create movies on my own; why would I need to buy out a studio? Well, let me tell you. It's so that I have full control over everything in a movie's production, from day one to the day its posters are plastered outside every cinema hall."

Mark nodded, "I understand that. But, you're jumping from 55k to 90 Million budget. It's hard to believe if this project will ever be a success. In case you don't know, last year, only three movies had more than 70 Mil budget, and all of them were directed by the top directors of the world."

Will nodded, "I know that."

"Well, then, let me take the dip and be honest here. You're not at the level of handling a big project like this. If we go like this, we might go bankrupt before we even start properly." Mark added, "Also, as I was saying earlier, even if you direct a perfect movie, a thousand times better movie than the shit show that came a decade ago, it's highly likely to be a flop."

"Why?" Will asked.

"Well, pretty simple: the notion in people's mind." Mark replied, "There has never been a successful Sherlock Holmes movie, and now if you ask any random person walking down the street about their thoughts on a new Sherlock Holmes movie, they will give only one response: Why is someone making it?"

"Will, more than 80% of America thinks no one can make a good Sherlock Movie, and the rest of the 20% are toddlers, give them a few years, and they will say the same."

Will remained silent and looked around at the table, indicating if others had anything else to add.

He wasn't surprised that none of them spoke. It was just their way of indicating that they somewhat agreed with Mark's words.

Mark may have sounded negative, but that's what his thinking process was. He had been in this industry long enough to have a grasp of what was good or bad for the company. Not to mention that he was a pessimistic person – ending to seeing the worst aspect of things.

It may not have been an inherent character, but after so many years in this super volatile industry where nothing ever goes as planned, Will couldn't blame him for his opinion.

And since no one spoke, Will started with his response.

"90 Million is the maximum figure," He said, "It's taking all the risk factors in note, but I think there's a chance this movie might compete on a lower budget. However, that's not the main point."

"Just because the old movies directed by sloppy directors with wrong casting failed to make an impact on the audience, you can't think that any future movie will fail – that's formulaic thinking. And, formulaic thinking is the antithesis of art."

"The public has an appetite for anything about imagination – anything that is as far away from reality as is creatively possible."

Will paused for a moment, and then he added.

"I just want to say this: I have every second of the movie etched in my brain, and I will travel down to hell and wrestle this film away from the Devil if it's necessary to make this a reality."

…

/DreamNote/

something serious happened in my family so couldn't write anything yesterday.

…

2 Chapters tomorrow if we get back to Rank 1.

Vote Please

Chapter 53:

It was hard for anyone to say something when Will was adamant about the idea. Most of them took it as immature stubbornness stemming from his success and experience in the industry.

Mark was one of the people who still strongly rejected the idea to go for a big-budget Sherlock Holmes movie.

The franchise had potential, but it was really hard for anyone to make something out of it.

At least for a young director.

That was Mark's opinion, and clearing his throat, he asked.

"How much do you think it will earn with a 90 million budget? The box office numbers need to reach at least 200-300 million for it to be a big hit."

"It won't be around that mark."

"If you are not confident that it will reach that number, it's better to give–"

"You didn't let me finish my sentence."

Mark snorted and tried to get Will to reject this idea, but his words were cut off in the middle. He looked at Will, who smiled.

"500 million dollars. That is the mark that it will reach!"

Some of the board members had a strange expression when hearing those words. Even Jeffery looked at Will like he was crazy.

But some of them also had thoughtful expressions. After all, Will had managed to make 200 million dollars with a budget less than 500k dollars.

Moreover, his confidence was something that made people want to believe in him.

'Maybe, just maybe, he has a good plan. At least they could listen to his proposal.'

That was the thought in their mind, and at that moment, Amanda cleared her throat and spoke.

"How about we at least take a look at the script?"

"Is the script already prepared?"

Jeffery asked, not knowing of this. He knew that Will was working on something, but he didn't know he had finished it so quickly.

"I have read it. It's terrific."

Amanda said, her words causing some murmurs.

"Even if the script is good, you do realise the idea is completely… shocking. I have never heard of such a gamble in my entire life."

An old man who was head of the production department spoke. His name was Anthony Zabka.

"I know it is. But I don't think there is any reason why we shouldn't at least try to listen to the whole proposal. Will isn't someone who will talk about things without thinking it through."

Her words made one thing clear. She was on Will's side, and it did give a clear message to the board members.

If even the CEO is on his side, then there wasn't much they could do, to begin with. Mark was still not satisfied and looked at Amanda.

"It seems like you have already gone through it."

"Yeah, and it was pretty good. At least I think it has potential, and I think we should at least understand every point before we say anything."

Mark frowned but still nodded his head. There was nothing wrong with listening through it all.

"Okay, so let's take a look at the script first."

Everyone nodded, and at that moment, Will spoke.

"I have already sent a script to everyone's office. Do not share it with anyone, and let's come back tomorrow to finalise it."

He knew that it would take a bit of time to convince everyone, but he would go ahead with it no matter what.

Just that he needed to be patient.

'I will make this movie a huge hit.'

He thought in his mind as he glanced at the board members. Many of them didn't trust him enough yet.

But it was just a matter of time.

Hollywood is a place where they'll pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss and fifty cents for your soul.

And Will knew this very well. He smiled as he stared at his reflection in the makeup room mirror, which was bordered by bright bulbs.

He was currently at a photoshoot for one of the industry's top magazines, the Hollywood Pride.

Hollywood Pride is a monthly magazine of popular culture, fashion, and current industry affairs, from gossip and rumours to the latest announcement.

Will was the industry's current hot topic, and Amanda had convinced him to accept the invitation for a photoshoot at the editorial building of this magazine company.

With the success of the [Blair Witch Project] movie, many people were interested to know more about him, and Amanda wanted Will to be serious about this since he would be the face of the Dream Vision Studios.

The photoshoot that he was attending right now was for the magazine's cover page, and once this was over, he would then go for an interview which would be published in the magazine with his cover page.

Right now, he was going with a very simplistic look – slick hair, white shirt with the top button unbuttoned and a black tie.

One thing to note about his shirt was that it wasn't even ironed, and the tie was slightly out of place.

This wasn't due to negligence; rather, it was under the photoshoot director's instruction. That person wanted Will to give a workaholic type of vibe, someone who's new to this industry and understands the weight he has on his shoulders and takes his work very seriously while also being confident about everything he does.

He also had black trousers, but the photo needed for the cover page was only of his upper torso.

Just as he was correcting his tie, one of the staff members stepped inside the room.

"Mr Evans, we're ready."

Will nodded at him with a slight smile and went out.

Outside, the staff of the photoshoot had arranged a white screen, which would be his background.

"Will, come here," The director, John, gestured at him as soon as the former stepped out of the makeup room.

And as Will stood in the white background, facing the cameras and big lights, John told him about the pose he had in his mind.

"I want you to relax your shoulder, Will." He said, "Just be chill. Pull up the sleeves of your shirt, and put your hands in your pocket. You got it?"

"Yeah."

"Alright, let's do it then." John then concentrated on the camera while saying, "Look into the lens! On the count of three…1…2…3!"

-Khachak!

"Perfect!" John smiled, "You have a pretty photogenic face, Will."

"Is that a compliment?" Will smiled.

John chuckled, "From a photoshoot director? Yeah, of course, it is."

The photoshoot continued for about twenty more minutes, and Will even changed his attire into a tux.

Satisfied with the shoot, John shook Will's hands as the event came to a closure, "Will, that was a good one. I hope to see you more for the photoshoot in the near future."

Will smiled, "It was my pleasure. And yeah, I hope the same too."

John chuckled a bit at this, and glanced at the staff; he told them to pack up.

As Will returned to the makeup room to change his clothes, a staff member was already waiting for him there.

"Sir, I will take you to the interview for the magazine in the next room once you have changed."

Will nodded, and the staff member left.

Five minutes later, Will walked out of the room, back in his own casual clothes.

The staff member, who was waiting for Will just outside the room, gestured at him to follow and took him to the next room.

In the next room, a young reporter was waiting for him. She had been working in the magazine for a few years, and her name was Amelia Kathy.

As she saw Will enter the room, she shook hands with him and introduced herself.

"I'm Amelia Kathy. I will be doing your interview today."

"Will Evans."

He said and sat down. As he wanted to get the interview over with, they quickly started it.

"So, how does it feel like to be a multimillionaire? Your story is an inspiration for a lot of young filmmakers as it's basically a rag to riches one."

She asked, asking one of the most fundamental questions, but it was inevitable that people would be interested in knowing his views.

"It feels incredible, obviously. Everyone likes having money, but I don't think my lifestyle has changed much. Aside from a better house, everything is still the same."

"Did you always believe that your movie would earn so much?"

"I know it will be successful. A filmmaker doesn't make a movie that he thinks won't be successful. Though, it was a surprise to me too when it earned so much."

Amelia smiled at that and asked some more questions. They were pretty simple ones, like how it feels to be famous and why he sold the rights to the Blair Witch franchise.

He easily replied to them, and after a while, she asked a question that put him in a tough spot.

"There were rumours that many students from EUC and other film colleges are dropping out to be a real director. Do you think it's because of you?"

Will took a while to answer this question. If he replied hastily, there would be headlines like 'A young director said that film schools are of no use.

Media were always good at changing words in a way to create controversy.

This question had stemmed from the fact that Hollywood was seeing a craze for camcorder movies. They were cheap to make and were perfect for young filmmakers.

But it's not like he was encouraging something like that. He knew well that the craze wouldn't be there after some years.

"I don't think the reason is me. I mean, it's not like I'm telling them to drop out. I personally would have stayed in the EUC if not for my circumstances."

"So, it was not a choice?"

"It was a necessity. I didn't have money to pay the fees, and I opted to sell scripts for a living. At that point, the idea for Blair Witch came to my mind. Thankfully, it worked out for me, but I don't know if it's going to work out with other people too."

She nodded her head at that and asked about other stuff like his life in EUC and his relationships. Or if his classmates had tried to contact him after he got famous.

In the end, she asked about something he wasn't expecting.

"There were reports that Edward Friedman's next movie is written by you? Are you going to make a career out of screenwriting?"

"Yes, I am indeed the screenwriter of his next movie, and in the future, I might write scripts for others, but directing movies is something I won't give up."

Amelia curled her lips up and asked.

"So, will we see a new movie of yours this year?"

"If everything goes well, then yes!"

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Chapter 54: [Bonus Chapter]

The next day, the board meeting continued.

When the board members appeared in the room, Will could see that they had all read [Sherlock Holmes] script, and if his plan managed to impress them, they would agree even if they had some wrong givings in their hearts.

So, without wasting time, Will started explaining the plan that he had thought of for [Sherlock Holmes].

It was basically going to be a big gamble as there was never a case in history when a director had gone to direct a 90 million movie from a 500k one.

Just that was enough to make people interested.

And that was Will's plan too. He wanted to make people interested enough to watch the movie. Even if they thought it wouldn't be good or it would fail, he was confident enough that it would impress them once they watched the movie.

The board members also agreed with it as they had all seen the script. But there were still some points that needed to be discussed.

"I know the script is exceptional. As a fan of Sherlock Holmes novels, I know it will work as a novel, but a movie is completely different. We would need exceptional and well-established actors."

Mark said, and Will smiled at him. He was finally starting to accept the fact that even a Sherlock Holmes movie can work.

"A major part of the budget I told you would go to sign A list actors. I'm very well aware that, unlike my previous movie, I can't sign newcomers for it."

Although Will said that, he didn't know what people would think if he told them that the actor playing Sherlock would basically be unknown.

With a wry smile, he opened his mouth.

"If the first movie worked, we can create sequels and prequels because of the amount of material we have. So, the actors playing the roles would be big ones."

"Does that mean we would be buying Sherlock Holmes rights?"

Anthony asked, and Amanda replied instead of Will.

"Yes, we are planning to buy the rights from Z studios. They have the rights sitting there in the dust without any use, so I am sure we will get them for cheap."

"Yes, they would instead thank us."

Will chipped in too.

His reply satisfied everyone, and they couldn't help but be excited. After all, they were going to be producing a big movie now instead of the small ones they did till now.

They felt like they were suddenly in a completely different league.

"Your plan isn't bad. We could use Sherlock Holmes fans and start a social media campaign. Moreover, people are easily attracted to cinematic versions of classics."

Jeffery said, looking up at Will. He had worked as the cinematographer for big directors before but never for a 90 million movie.

At that moment, Mark asked a question that made everyone sceptical again.

"We would need a big distributor too then. We can't just go for a small one. The movie needs to be released in North America and overseas simultaneously, and a big distributor would make people come to the theatres. Do you have anyone in mind?"

His question made everyone look at Will. He had only worked with Wheel work studios till now, and there were rumours that their relationship had already ended.

Even though he gave them a big hit, no company liked earning less than an individual, and after gaining Blair witch rights, they didn't have any use of Will.

But when everyone was expecting a bad answer, Will said something that shocked everyone.

"Actually, I already got an offer from Foxstar."

The board meeting ended soon after, this time with a better aftermath atmosphere.

Everyone was on board with the plan, and the whole studio would soon start working on the [Sherlock Holmes] movie.

Although there were few who were still doubtful, it was still a natural reaction. And in all honesty, Will didn't even need to discuss their opinions in the first place; however, he still did.

This was because he was making a 90 Million dollar movie, and it was of a universe whose previous movies had tanked on the box office miserably.

This was a big jump from his first movie, and although he could just tell them to go with it and they would have to agree with him no matter what, there would still be dissatisfaction among his employees.

What Will was doing here was thinking about long term plans. With the help of the system, he was sure to create a lot of exciting movies and shows, but that also meant he would have less and less time to handle the core of the company, and that was why he needed trustworthy and confident people at the helm of the company.

Another thing was that Will still needed to prove himself to everyone in the group; after all, a camcorder movie is nothing compared to a full-fledged cinematic movie.

He was confident that once Sherlock Holmes became a success, he wouldn't need to argue with these people, and they too will gain some confidence in him.

For now, the company would gear up for the preproduction things.

The first task in this list was, of course, getting the movie's rights from Z Studios.

Amanda was already working on it, so Will didn't need to worry too much about it.

"5 Million." As he parted ways with Amanda, Will said, "That's the final price for the rights. I don't think they will ask this much, though; just don't let them get wind of the total budget."

"I think they might already know about it," Amanda replied.

"How?" Will frowned.

Amanda smiled at this, "Will, you're new to Hollywood. Consider this incident as your first lesson – in this industry, word spreads very fast. People make connections, and they like to keep up with their connections. Sharing such information is how you earn the favor of other people."

"Oh?" Will narrowed his eyes and added, "Well, if they know about the budget, then tell them that we will drop another million if they tell us how they got to know about this."

Amanda frowned, "Are you sure about that?"

Will shrugged, "We're not running a circus, Amanda. I can listen to all the objections and arguments against this movie, but I won't stand any snitches or betrayers. Whatever we discuss in the boardroom must stay in the boardroom."

Amanda nodded with a slight frown, "I will see this thing."

Will nodded, "See you tomorrow then. Good luck!"

Amanda nodded and left.

Just as Will was about to head back, his mobile phone suddenly rang.

-ttring~ ttring~!

"Hello?" Will picked up the phone.

-Hi, Will! It's me, Edward. Can you come to MCA right now?

It was Edward Friedman, the Director of the [17 Again] movie who's script was given to the MCA by Will, and that was how he started his journey in this industry.

"Right now?" Will asked, "Is it about the script?"

-Just come, I have something to ask, and I think it would be better if I tell you in person.

Will thought for a moment and replied, "Alright, I will soon be there."

-Cool, I will be here for the next two hours at least; if you can hurry up, that would be great.

Will nodded, "I will be there at ten."

Disconnecting the call, Will went to his car and headed towards the MCA main office.

It wasn't too far away from his own company, but the difference between the two was pretty stark.

'One day… I will build something even bigger than this.'

Will took a deep breath as he walked towards the entrance of the MCA Building.

"Hi, I am here to see Mr Friedman,"

Will said to the receptionist at the desk upon entering the building.

The young lady on the other side smiled and said in a respectful tone, "Do you have an appointment?"

"Yes," Will nodded, "He just called me a few minutes ago. I am Will. Will Evans."

"Ah, Mr Will, the Director did inform you about your arrival. Please head to the fifth floor." She said, "Director is waiting for you."

"Thank you," Will smiled and headed for the elevator.

….

-Ting~!

The elevator's door slowly opened, and Will stepped on the fifth floor of the building.

"Hey, Will!" Just as he was looking around, he heard someone's voice calling him out.

Turning around, he saw Edward waving his hand at him through the half-opened conference room, "Come in!"

Will nodded and stepped inside.

"Come, take a seat," Edward gestured at Will.

As Will sat in front of him, Edward added, "Will, I have called you here to discuss an important thing."

Will inwardly frown. 'What's going on?'

With the way Edward was acting, the situation seemed pretty serious.

'Don't tell me they're shelving the [17 Again] movie?'

That would be pretty disappointing because he wanted to take part in it.

"Is it something related to the script?" Will asked.

This was his second and most probable guess. He may have given the audition, but he didn't think the MCA would lack actors that would give the movie's screenwriter a role in the film.

"It's not about the script," Edward cleared Will's doubts, "This is about the role you auditioned."

"Oh? What of it?" Will asked, "Have you decided to give the role to someone else?."

Edward shook his head, "No, that's not the case. Your audition went pretty well, but the aura around you doesn't fit well with the character Alex."

"What do you mean?" Will was a bit taken aback.

"Um, how should I put it…" Edward thought for a moment and then added, "Well, Alex is a simpleton, but the vibe around is a lot different. That's why I don't think you would be a good option to play as Alex."

"Oh…" Will cleared his throat, "Ahem, so… you called me all the way just to tell me that I am not getting the role…?"

"Ah, no," Edward shook his head, "You see, although Alex isn't the perfect role for you, there is another option. And coincidentally, the actor who was supposed to play that role got arrested under drunken driving charges and is currently behind bars. We don't know when he will be released, and opportunities wait for none in this industry. His is gone, and now it has come knocking at your door."

"You're offering me his spot…?" Will understood what the person in front of him was trying to say.

"Yes."

"But I didn't even audition for any other role… don't tell me it's a side character who just needs to stand in a corner?"

"No, no, no, I could have hired any random small-time actor for that; why would I call you here for then?"

"Oh?" Will put on a thoughtful expression, "Now I am curious which character I will be playing."

"The character for which you will be perfect is Stan," Edward replied with a smile.

"….Stan?" Will froze for a moment, "The stud and bully of the school…?"

"Yes!"

"…"

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 55:

"…"

Will was confused as to why Edward would ask him to play the role of Stan, no matter what the circumstances were with the guy who was going to play that role.

MCA didn't lack actors and there would be many replacements for Stan, so he didn't quite get what Edward was planning.

"Well, I just think that you could play the role perfectly. There are scenes where Stan has to look oppressive and dominant, and honestly, Alex's role doesn't suit you even though I'm sure you'll play him well."

Edward said while looking at Will as he continued.

"Not only that, isn't June your girlfriend? You've got that chemistry since she'll be playing the role of Maggie – Stan's girlfriend. Although the chemistry isn't the same, wouldn't it be better for you this way? And I'm very confident that you'll play the role well."

At this point, Will was convinced about something. This was the consideration Edward was giving him for his talent, otherwise, there are many people who could replace Stan's role.

And if he played Stan, then June wouldn't need to kiss a random guy. So it was kind of a good thing. Not only that but also the role of Alex was so tame and timid that there wouldn't be any trouble finding a replacement for it.

"Then we have a deal I guess, just send me the script and I'll prepare for Stan's character."

Will said while contemplating.

"Brilliant! Brilliant! Haha!"

Edward said as they started discussing the role. It wouldn't be too difficult for Will to play any role as he had the system skills backing him up.

It's already been two weeks since Will's meeting with Edward. Today was the first day of shooting.

The negotiation with Z Studios for the rights of Sherlock Holmes also went well with Amanda being able to buy the rights for just $1 million after some haggling.

Will had already told the team to begin the pre-production of the movie partially. He had already got an appointment with Foxstar studios and Micheal Elrod this week to settle things with them.

Since he was acting and had to start the movie's production too, he decided it would be much more efficient to do everything consecutively.

[17 Again] was decided to be shot in a span of one and a half months. This was Edward's way of doing things. He was popular for his short shoot time, but that only meant that his team had to work extra hard to get all the shots perfect in less time.

Will himself would have to go for the shoot for 2 weeks, and that was after Edward's consideration. As Will was busy with his own company, he wasn't just an actor but also a director, screenwriter, etc.

Edward decided that they'll shoot all his scenes first, which would spare Will some time for his own work. Will was extremely grateful for that and thanked Edward.

Will and June were sitting on a bench near the vending machine with Will gulping down a can of coke.

"Slow down, you seem like you've just come out from a dessert. It's not even summer yet."

June said as she chuckled. She wiped down some of the coke that got spilt out of his mouth with her handkerchief.

Will looked at her lovingly with emotions fluctuating in his eyes. One of the main reasons why he decided to act in the movie was also for June, as he wanted to spend some time with her.

"Yeah, Yeah. Well, how's your part of the practice going?"

Will asked with a smile as he gently caressed her shoulders.

"It's going great obviously. It's nice to be reciting dialogues that aren't filled with fear and uncertainty."

June laughed as she said that. It was true that the most dialogues she ever had in a film were in [The Blair Witch Project] and apart from the starting, the whole movie was just a scary mess.

"Oh yeah, that Drake guy was hitting on me. Hahaha."

"Drake…. You mean the main lead who's playing the younger Mike?"

Will asked with an amused smile.

"Yeah, that guy."

June replied casually.

"Well, when there is a flower, bees will be there too. There will be a lot of people like that in your life, try to ignore them. They give up as fast as they gain interest most of the time."

Will said as he talked like a wise old sage.

After the practice, the shooting officially began with the scene of the old Mike turning into the teenage Mike and telling his circumstances to his friend.

With that, he got admitted to the high school and his new life began. Drake, who was playing the role of the teenage Mike kept repeating some mistakes, maybe because he hadn't done a role for a while.

Edward roasted him a lot and even compared him to bad actors while giving him pointers. Although Drake wanted to retort, he knew better than that, otherwise, his career would end right there.

Talking back to the director on his pointers was considered a taboo in the Hollywood industry, and whoever broke that taboo would face living hell as no director would ever accept them in any of their films due the directors dignity.

As the shooting progressed, Drake started getting into it after a few more rants from Edward and was finally able to finish after many takes.

After that Will's shooting finally started.

It was a scene where Stan was playing basketball and was dominating the team. Although there was something like this in the original movie, Will had tweaked a bit of the script for a stronger antagonist role.

As Will started acting out, Edward couldn't help but sigh. He was simply too talented, and Edward would tell him to leave directing for acting if he didn't know any better.

"Cut!"

As Edward's cut resounded, Will came out from the set and asked how everything went and if there was something that needed to be corrected.

"Haha, you're just too good. With your scenes, I'm relieved that I won't have to do too many retakes."

Edward said as he patted Will's shoulder. June too had come and hugged Will happily. Will's acting was simply outstanding, at least for someone who had never acted in any movies before. And June was happy that her boyfriend seemed perfect in every way.

"Ah damn, it's itchy. I want to take it out."

Will said as he scratched his head. Edward had told him to do a complete makeover to suit Stan's role. But Will said that he would just get a wig and didn't want to actually dye his hair.

"Not so fast boy, we still have more scenes to shoot today."

Edward put an end to his complaint as they proceeded for the next scene.

"Can you give me an autograph please?"

It was a pretty girl with blue eyes and brown hair. As Will recalled, she was an extra actress for the set to fill in the roles of the students.

"Sorry?"

Will asked, confused.

"Ah, well. My name is Mila. I'm a big fan of [The Blair Witch Project] and of course a big fan of your directing. Can you please give me an autograph?"

Mila said as she gestured towards the notepad and pen in her hand.

It seemed like she was just a fan and wanted an autograph.

"Sure, why not?"

Will smiled as he took the pen from her hand and gave her an autograph.

As he was handing back the notepad, their hands seemed to have touched by mistake. But after a while, Mila didn't let go as she slowly rubbed Will's hand and said.

"Would you like to go out for dinner? It would be such a pleasure!"

Her lips were curved seductively as she asked that. Will just softly smiled and waved her hands off.

"I still have some work to do back at home and need to sleep early for tomorrow's shooting, I hope you don't mind. Thank you for asking though."

He didn't wait for a reply as he turned around and left.

This was one of the most common scenes one can expect on a Hollywood movie set. She was just testing her luck by trying to seduce Will and make a contact.

This type of thing was common in Hollywood and it was something Will despised. Sure she was a pretty girl, and sure he would love to sleep with someone like her, but when it involved a trade, it basically put his dignity to the test.

Not to mention he already had a girlfriend.

Will walked out to the parking lot and got near his car. June was already waiting for him while standing near the car with a smirk on her face.

Apparently, she had seen the little incident that happened.

"Someone sure is popular."

June said teasingly.

"Sheesh."

Will just wanted to get over with today. He was quite tired and wanted to rest.

June kept giggling as they got in the car and Will sat on the driver's seat.

"So my popular boyfriend, how does it feel to be acting in a movie? Do you like it?"

June asked with both her palms placed on his right shoulder and her eyes deeply looking towards him.

"Uhm, well. It's a nice experience I would say. After all, I finally understood how actors feel when they're scolded by a director."

Will chuckled at the end of his sentence.

"Mhmm… is that so?"

June said while still looking deeply into his eyes, soon, their lips touched each other as they kissed deeply.

After that, they talked a bit more about the movie and how everything was working out so well. Will told June that he would be meeting up with a potential lead candidate for his next movie.

June didn't ask much about it as Will started driving. After driving to June's home, Will dropped her there.

Although June gave a very seductive invitation to come inside her house, Will's tiredness said otherwise and he told her that he had a meeting to attend.

After that, Will drove to White Ruby Hotel. It was a 5 star hotel. Will had pre-booked a meal for two there as he was going to meet Micheal here according to Benjamin's appointment.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 56:

Will had asked Benjamin to set up a meeting with Micheal Elrod. The latter was a small-time actor in the MCA, and there were many such actors like him struggling to make their break.

In Will's perspective, he was the exact replica of Robert Downey Jr, or he at least seemed that way from the movies he had starred in. The roles were good but not something that suited his personality.

White Ruby Hotel

This was one of the best hotels in Los Angeles, and only top class people could afford to have a meal there. Why Will decided to invite Micheal Elrod to this lavish place was simple.

Although Will wasn't particularly fond of dining at such places, it was also true that these were the places that could leave a heavy impact on someone, especially when not just anyone can afford to dine here.

Will's reasoning was simple. If by any chance, this Micheal was the same as RDJ, there was no way Will would leave him be. And if he was truly the same person with a different name and circumstances, It would open up a world full of massive opportunities for Will.

This can mean many things, especially that there was a chance legendary actors that were famous back on earth were still small-time nobodies here, and Will could make an agency full of these actors.

There's even a chance that they existed but never took acting as their career.

Just this thought sent a rush of adrenaline down Will's whole body.

From what Will had heard about him from Uncle Ben, this Micheal wasn't a child actor like Robert Downey Jr, and he never got into drugs and such.

In this world, he had just entered his 30s and was struggling to make a break in the industry. His personality was pretty likeable, and he mostly got along with people and had no apparent feuds with anyone.

Will parked his car in the parking lot and walked inside the grandiose hotel through the carpet. Yellow lamps were decorating the walls as if themed.

Will walked inside as a waiter came and guided him to his reserved table.

On a chair by the table, the Robert Downey Jr lookalike was drinking water from a glass cup.

Micheal looked exactly like RDJ with the same face and even the same haircut. He wore a grey tweed, shawl collar blazer that made him look really handsome and young.

"Hello, I'm Will Evans."

Will got near and said. Micheal, who was drinking water, looked towards him and immediately put down the glass as he stood up.

"Ah, It's so nice to meet you. I'm Micheal Elrod. You can call me Robert."

Micheal– Robert introduced himself.

"What….? Isn't your name Micheal?"

Will's brain started buzzing as he was shocked. This was something he didn't expect. Was Micheal also a transmigrator? Or was he someone who could read minds? How did he know that his other name was Robert? Will was honestly confused and a bit apprehensive.

Robert, who saw Will's expression changing, couldn't help but immediately try to come clear.

"Yes, yes. My name is Micheal. Micheal Robert Elrod, to be precise. My friends call me Robert, and it's something I prefer getting called. It's fine if you want to stick with Micheal."

"Ohhh, so it's like that. You don't need to be so formal. I'm younger than you. Don't mind my earlier reaction. I just spaced out for a second, I guess. Anyways, it's really nice to meet you; I'm a fan."

Robert was confused as he heard that. It seemed like a joke. He was already surprised when Benjamin told him that Will, the star rookie director, wanted to meet him. He was having a hard time coping with reality due to his stale career, and most of his days passed by in sadness and regrets. He didn't know what Will was talking about.

A fan? Not a single person had said that to him in years.

"I'm sorry, but are you mistaken? I don't remember having any fans." He asked as he chuckled in a self-deprecating tone.

"You do have them. I'm one of them. I really enjoyed your acting as the Lord's servant in [The Red Knight]. It was a small role, but you looked really convincing in your portrayal as the servant who hears all but isn't allowed to speak. Then, there was…"

Like that, Will explained to him by speaking out about all the movies Robert has acted in, even a movie in which he only had a 30-second role. From fantasy movies like [The Red Knight] to a teen romance like [High school love] where his role was just to get punched in the nose to introduce the bully to the audience..

This surprised Robert a lot as he never thought there would be someone like Will who'd be his fan, not only that but to such an extent.

'Looks like he's really shocked.'

Will had, of course, prepared for all this. He wanted to make sure if this guy was the real deal, so he had watched all the movies he had acted in, and soon Will was confident that Micheal had the same level of skills as the original RDJ.

'That was close. I almost got scared. I never thought he would have Robert as his middle name… fate sure likes to play.'

Will thought inwardly as he looked at Robert. He looked every bit like the younger Robert Downey Jr; even his voice was the same. But his confidence seemed to be lacking somewhat.

Which was expected after not being able to get a break in the industry even after working for years.

"I don't want to sound rude, but why did you call me here today? I was surprised when I got a call from Senior Agent Benjamin. For a second, I legit thought MCA wanted to kick me out even before the end of my contract term. Hahaha."

Will chuckled upon hearing that. To think that such a powerful figure from earth was reduced to just being this much.

"Actually, I heard about your contract with MCA. It is going to end soon, right? Do you have any plans to renew the contract or change your agency?"

Will asked after he ordered some food and asked Robert to order whatever he wanted.

"Yes, it is going to end soon. However, I would like to renew it. I don't think they would invest any more than they already have in me, and I've already been with them for three years now."

Robert chuckled bitterly as he said that, his index finger circled the rim of the wine glass.

Although MCA was a big agency, it didn't mean that every actor in it would be successful. June was such a case, and it was the same with Robert.

Some fault also lay in the fact that the internal management of MCA was in shambles for a long time now.

"Well, in my opinion, it's not something you should be worried about. Anyways, I won't beat around the bush; I have a role for you in my next movie."

Will said with a serious expression. He didn't want to circle around and talk, he just said what he had come for directly.

Robert was surprised after hearing that. He never thought that when he was despairing about not getting any roles just a few days ago, he would be offered a role by the famous rookie director. It was like a piece of pie suddenly fell from the sky directly onto his face.

Normally, telling Benjamin or his agent would have been enough to get him for a role; he didn't know why someone like Will, who was continuously rising in fame, would personally come to give him a role. But he wasn't going to complain about it.

"I've never acted in any horror movie before, but I would be happy to take on any role."

Robert said with a light smile. As Will's first movie was a horror movie, it would be normal to think that he would ride on that trend and continue to make more horror movies.

"Hahaha, I wonder why everyone thinks I'll continue making horror movies. Well, the role I'm offering you isn't for a horror movie, but for something else entirely; it's also the lead role."

This time, Robert was speechless. He never imagined that his luck would be running so sky-high. At this point, he was even starting to doubt the reality of the situation. A lead role out of nowhere wasn't just a piece of pie, but a whole cake that has fallen face-first onto his head.

"Well, What was the highest budget movie that you've acted in?"

Will asked in an inquiring tone, to which Micheal immediately replied while still being in a trance.

"It was almost a $30 million movie, and I had played the role of an extra in it. That 30-second role you talked about earlier."

"Oh.."

Will contemplated as he thought about how seriously unlucky these Roberts were. The one in his previous life was unlucky enough to get into substance abuse, while the one in his current life was just a low time actor with such good acting skills. No matter which world it was, the life of Hollywood wasn't as easy as it seemed.

"Well. The project I've planned is pretty big, and I will give you a chance to audition for the lead role movie, with a package of 2 Million Dollars if you pass the audition and sign the contract."

Will said as he closely looked for Robert's reaction. He chose to offer the amount for the lead role directly. However, Will could have also decided to not tell the former about the movie's budget, because these things are best kept secret. $90 million is not a tiny amount, and the Robert in front of him wasn't yet a superstar that he was on earth. Greed can make any man blind and foolish, and Will didn't wish to lose someone like Robert.

And as expected, Robert's eyes opened wide in disbelief as he was shell shocked. Robert couldn't get his head around what he had just heard. For a small-time actor to be offered the chance to audition for a lead role was already a big deal, and he was even getting 2 Million dollars if he passed the audition? It was either his luckiest day, or he was being pranked again!

"You shouldn't be joking around with people like this. It's not a good habit to practice."

Robert said that as he tried to leave. He, of course, wouldn't believe the bullshit that he was actually getting such an important role in a big movie like that. He couldn't help but think that he was getting pranked and made fun of.

For someone helpless like him, one might think he should at least listen to what Will has to say, but this wasn't the first time such a thing was happening to Robert, which was why he immediately dismissed the idea of Will honestly offering him a role.

But just as Robert was about to take his first step, Will put down his wine glass and spoke without raising his head.

"Every step you take from here, you will lose $100k."

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 57:

"Every step you take from here, you will lose $100k."

Robert froze as soon as he heard those words, and without saying anything, he quietly sat back on the chair in front of Will.

"Look, man," He explained, "This better not be a prank. I already have a lot of things to deal with."

Will smiled, "Neither of us has the luxury to prank or be pranked. My offer is still on the table. A chance to audition for the lead role, and if you pass, a 2 Million Dollar contract."

Robert looked around, trying to find something and then stared at Will.

Will was a bit confused by his actions, so he asked, "Anyone else on your seat would have at least waited to listen to what I had to say. Why were you in a hurry? And… what are you looking for?"

"Hidden Cameras." Robert replied, "And yeah, anyone else would have surely at least listened to what you had to say, especially someone like me who's at the end of his career. But you know, once bitten, twice shy. All this kinda feels like Deja Vu to me. One of the senior producers and a big name actor offered me something like, and when I jumped in happiness, they recorded everything and told me it was a prank."

"…"

"Will," Robert pursed his lips, "It's these harmless pranks that hurt the most. Anyway, I will take a leap of faith and trust you on this. What's the movie about?"

Will shook his head, "Nothing will be revealed so early."

"Nothing?" Robert was a bit taken aback, "What's the whole secrecy about? Won't you tell me to act on a scene anyway?"

"I will, but don't worry. It will be more about testing your character rather than your acting."

"You won't audition for me for my acting? That's a first…"

Will nodded, "This audition is also your first, and it may also be your last audition, Robert. I want you to think carefully and decide."

"Can you… tell me the genre of the story?" Robert asked with a slight pause, "I don't want to work hard for an audition, only to find out I will be playing the lead role in some gay movie or maybe as a pimp. I mean, I have nothing against either of those, but I am pretty sure I won't suit such roles."

Will twirled the wine and took a sniff before replying, "It's your call, Robert. You want to come or not?"

Robert cleared his throat and sighed, "I have nothing to lose anyway and neither do I have any right to act entitled. I will take this opportunity to work with you, Will."

Will smiled, "That's what I like about you, Robert. You know when to take the chance."

Robert smiled back and asked, "Can you tell me who else is in the movie? Is…is June Roberts in it too?"

Will's hand suddenly paused as he raised his head and asked, "That's an interesting question. Why do you ask?"

"Nothing, it's just, your first movie was with her as the lead. And…uh, I have heard the rumours, so I was just asking, nothing else."

Will stared at him. He knew what rumours Robert was talking about, and they were about his relationship with June, and it was now becoming an open secret.

Sensing the stare, Robert waved his hands and explained himself, "Oh, don't misunderstand, I was just asking."

"You like her?"

"Like her? No…" Robert shook his head, "I have never even met her. Well, I do feel envious of her. Also…I am just worried."

"Envious? And what are you worried about?"

"Well," Robert pursed his lips, "If you look at it, six months ago, both of our careers were on the same level, but now she has gotten her break, and I am still the same."

"Well, it's one at the time," Will replied, "That was her break; maybe this time it will be yours."

Robert nodded and then hesitatingly asked, "I know this doesn't happen with everyone, but as I said, I have nothing to lose. So I will say this, I am worried that you might give her preferential treatment if she's a part of the movie. I know it sounds quite presumptuous, but I have seen it quite a lot of times."

Will smiled, "The only thing I gave preferential treatment is my work and my money. So don't worry about these things."

Saying this, Will took out a pen and then scribbled something on a napkin at the table.

Passing the napkin over to Robert, Will stood up and said, "See you then. Don't be late. And enjoy your lunch; it's my treat."

Robert stared speechlessly at the disappearing back of Will.

By the time he regained his composure, Will was long gone.

Lowering his head, he stared at the folded napkin.

Using his hands, he unfolded it and stared at it for a long time.

[11 AM. In two days. Dream Vision Studios. Will]

'Should I go or not?'

Robert kept sitting on the table for a long time, thinking of the whole meeting with Will.

…

The valet had Will's car ready as soon as he stepped out of the hotel.

Switching it on, Will headed for his next destination – [Shoot of 17 Again.]

As he sat in the car, he first took out a few papers from his pocket and put them into the car's deck.

These papers were none other than the contract that Will had asked Jason to prepare for Robert.

At first, when Will hadn't yet met with Robert, he was ready to sign the contract as soon as he confirmed that the latter was indeed as talented as Robert Downey Jr.

However, as he sat at the table, he slowly realized.

The person in front of him was indeed as talented as Robert Downey Jr., but it wasn't the same person. While Micheal was at the bottom of the industry right now, he had never experienced any ups in his career; however, in the case of RDJ, he was someone who once had the whole industry in his grasp and lost everything at once.

The latter had tasted success and was overwhelmed with it. But he recovered and turned himself into one of the industry's most in-demand, talented and highest-paid actors.

Micheal was still yet to taste overwhelming fame. This was why, although Will gave him importance, he also showcased indifference and seriousness when it came to working.

No matter how big of a fan Will was of Iron Man, right now, he couldn't be delusional into thinking that RDJ and Michael were the same. And not to forget, Will was investing a lot in the [Sherlock Holmes, and any mistake would cause irreparable damage to his reputation.

….

It took Will about thirty minutes to reach the shooting location. A high school in the suburbs.

Today, he came here to play the role of his Stan. However, that was yet to come, and the scene they were shooting was right before the main character, Mike, throws a party to celebrate a basketball game win at his friend Ned's house while Ned is out with the school principal Jane.

During this party, there would be a scuffle between his character, Stan, and the main character, Mike, because Mike's daughter, Maggie, would refuse to sleep with Stan. Over this, the latter would break up with her.

It was a cliche bully plot, but Will didn't care much.

In fact, one might ask why does he even need to do such roles? Why not just direct the movies and conquer Hollywood?

It was because, while directing movies was Will's dream, he also wanted to try out other things, and not to forget that the system he had was the 'Hollywood' System, not just the 'Director' System. He wanted to experience different roles and not forget that acting would increase his reputation the fastest, whether from a good or a bad character's role.

As for how his bad reputation could affect his career, well, that was the least of his worries. With the help of the Hollywood System, he had access to countless movies and shows ever made in the history of the earth's showbiz industry. If he chose some of the critically acclaimed fan base creating and box office exploding roles, he could easily change the people's opinion about his characters.

Stepping out of the car, Will leaned on it and waited for things to get ready. After a few high school scenes, his scenes would come, which would be at Ned's mansion.

Right now, the reason he was at this place was, of course, because of June.

She had a few scenes today in the high school, and once that was done, he would take June to the next spot, the mansion.

Just then, Will felt something on his cheek.

Frowning, he raised his head and looked at the sky.

-tap!

-tap! tap!

-tap! tap! tap!….

-pitter-patter!

It was beginning to rain!

"Why all of a sudden?"

Will frowned and walked inside the school.

The scene was shot on the open ground, and as Will walked towards the crew, he saw them rushing to pack up everything.

The rain had suddenly become intense, but Will cared more about a certain someone.

He darted his eyes and found Drake.

'No, not him.'

He looked around more, and yeah, there she was.

June.

He lightly smiled and walked over to her.

She was half drenched in the rain because the downpour had suddenly intensified out of nowhere, panicking everyone at the set.

She rubbed and cleaned her face with a towel as Will came and stood in front of her.

"Huh! Will?" She was pleasantly surprised to see the person in front of her, "What are you doing here? I thought I would see you at the mansion?"

Will shrugged, "Someone told me it was about to rain, and you might need a lift."

"Or really?" June smiled.

Will nodded with a serious expression, which made June chuckle.

Just then, a crew member came over.

"Mam, the shooting is cancelled for the day."

"What?" June was a bit surprised, "Because of the rain?"

"Yes," The young man said, "It looks like the rain will continue, and we can't shoot the mansion scenes today."

After the young man finished his words, he went to the other lead actor Drake.

Will stared in their direction, and Drake somehow sensed him.

Both of their eyes met for a moment, and the latter nodded his head in greeting, to which Will nodded back.

"What's with him?" He asked June.

June shrugged, "Maybe because he now knows that I am with you, and he's being respectful of that fact."

"Oh really?" Will put a hard-to-believe-that expression, to which June nodded, "Yes, really."

"That's nice to hear," Will smiled, "Well then, my lady, please."

He said while making an 'L' shape with his left hand.

June smiled and, moving her hand, she crossed her hands with his at the elbows and soon walked out of the school.

People around them noticed but didn't pay much heed; their relationship was not a secret. Although it was a toxic one in the movie, it was the opposite in real life – a sweet romance.

As they walked out and stood at the main entrance, Will moved his hand and held her palm.

"Ready?"

June opened her eyes wide and turned her head at him, "Are we really gonna do this?"

Will shrugged, "It doesn't rain every day in Hollywood."

June laughed and nodded, "Alright, one my count of three…. Three!"

June tricked Will and pulled him out in the rain, to which Will was happy to oblige.

As both of them merrily hopped and ran towards the car hand in hand, and even stealing a kiss in the run, on the other side of the road was a black car.

And from the car's half-opened window, a black circular pipe-like device appeared, which, on careful observation, was actually a camera lens.

And as it was moving out, as if zooming in, in its outer glass was the reflection of Will and June kissing in the rain.

-snap!

-snap!

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 58:

In Hollywood, rumours were abundant, and every other day, new rumours about celebrities would come out. Some would be fake and some true, but they would still get a lot of clicks on the internet.

These rumours would appear in tabloids or on movie websites on the internet.

L.A. Times was one such tabloid, and it was famous for topics such as sensational crime stories, astrology, celebrity gossip and television. They were prominent because they would often post some proof with their articles.

And today, there was a pair of new faces that had made it to the front pages.

The image was of a handsome boy and a beautiful girl kissing each other while getting wet in the rain. The photo and angle were so perfect and clear that one would doubt its credibility of not being scripted.

Just above the image were headlines in bold words.

[Famous rookie director Will Evans and actress June Roberts' romantic affair caught on camera!]

Below the headline, there was a full-blown article.

[Last year, Hollywood had a lot of topics that blew out of proportion, but the most surprising of all of them was the black horse on the box office [The Blair Witch Project].

It was directed by a director that had dropped out of a famous film school and had a low budget. Coupled with the fact that the movie was shot on a camcorder, many people thought of it as a joke.

The movie would have been a flop in a simple world, and no one would have even heard of it, but it went on to make 200 million dollars at the box office. In just a few weeks, everyone went to the cinema to watch this unique horror movie.

It became a phenomenon at the box office.

The man behind this almost supernatural phenomenon was Will Evans, a young director who had hit it out of the park with just his first movie. After becoming a millionaire, he had stayed relatively low and hadn't given many interviews or showed his face at any Hollywood parties.

But after so many weeks, there's finally a scoop about him.

Yesterday, he was caught kissing June Roberts, the actress who played Heather in [The Blair Witch Project]. It was surprising because no one had expected the two of them to be dating.

According to our sources, they started dating after the shooting of [The Blair Witch Project] ended, and it's already been some months.

Unlike most young relationships in Hollywood, theirs had just been getting better and better. It was to the point that Will Evans even joined the cast of [17 again, the next movie by Edward Friedman.

June Roberts is playing a supporting role in the upcoming teen comedy, and there are speculations that Will Evans joined the cast just to spend time with his girlfriend.

As Will Evans is also the movie's screenwriter, he requested Edward Friedman for the role.

We were able to get in touch with an anonymous actor from [17 again] who gave us some comments about how they behave on the set.

"It's not wrong to say that they don't even try to hide their relationship. I have seen them kissing quite a few times on the set, and they would come and leave together. The relationship is quite different than what I have mostly seen in Hollywood and…"]

'They really posted a long ass article in just a day.'

Will thought and looked at the tabloid in his hands. The front page had a picture of him and June kissing, and they wrote the headline in bold letters.

Frankly, he quite liked the picture, and he even wondered if he should ask the L.A. Times for a copy.

As for June, she had been quite worried after the article had been published. She had no idea that a paparazzi would end up following them and taking photos.

The thing she was worried about most was Will's reaction.

She knew that they were both early in their careers, and these types of articles can easily affect people's perception of them. That's why she had called Will early in the morning, and he had told her that he had no problems with the articles being published.

There was no reason to hide their relationship, and it might even help June in her acting career. After all, Will was a hot topic, and anyone associated with him would come into the public eye.

Even M.C.A. would be happy that due to this, some attention had been directed towards [17 again, which hasn't even begun its marketing.

Hearing all this from Will, she had been relieved, and they had talked for quite a while.

'At least this is better than my relationship with June coming out during [Sherlock Holmes].'

He thought in his mind and got out of his car.

Raising his head, he saw a massive building. People were coming and going out of the building, and it all looked quite busy.

He had come here once when he searched for a distributor for [The Blair Witch Project]. Yes, it was the building of Foxstar studios.

Today, he had come here to meet with James Dankworth, the new head of Distribution. But unlike last time, he was the one getting invited.

Not the other way around.

As soon as he had told Foxstar that he had completed the script for his next movie, they had invited him for discussions. Particularly, James was quite keen to have him over.

It seemed like after the last time he had rejected him, he had been quite regretful, and the feeling had only increased after seeing [The Blair Witch Project] box office gross.

'Our last meeting hadn't gone well.'

Will thought to himself and chuckled.

At that point, James had continuously looked down on him and had acted arrogantly. Though, in the end, Will's movie had managed to scare him a lot, and he still took it as his victory.

Even though their last meeting had left Will disappointed at James' behaviour, he expected better things this time.

"Hello, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Micheal Robert Elrod. But you can call me Robert."

"Amanda Garcia, I'm the C.E.O. of Dream vision studios."

Robert shook hands with Amanda and sat down. After thinking about it, he decided to look through Will's offer. There was no harm in it, and he was surely interested.

A two million dollar contract was something that an almost unknown actor like him could only dream of.

That's why he had come to the Dream Vision Studio's Office, but to his surprise, Will was busy, and he was actually scheduled to meet Amanda.

"You must be wondering, what's all this about? And what is the 2 million dollar contract Mr Evans talked about?"

Amanda asked, and Robert nodded his head. The information he had was not enough, and the only thing he knew was that Will wanted him to audition for a lead role.

But he didn't know anything about the movie or the script to even prepare for the audition.

"Can you explain a bit more about the nature of the role I'm auditioning for and what type of movie it is?" He asked.

"Yes, I can, but before that, you need to sign this."

Amanda said and took out a paper from below her desk. Robert took it up in his hands and read through it. With his eyes wide, he asked.

"An N.D.A.? I need to sign this?"

(A/n: N.D.A.'s full-form is Non-Disclosure Agreement. The name is self-explanatory.)

"Yeah, I'm sorry, but we need to protect the nature of the project. This agreement is just to ensure that anything about the movie doesn't go out in public domain."

Robert hesitated a bit after hearing that. He had heard that big studios would make actors sign N.D.A. for them to not speak about any of the movies they were working on.

But he never thought he would be asked to sign one.

After reading through the N.D.A., he signed it. Now, he was more curious to know about the movie than anything else.

"I signed it. Now, can you tell me more about this movie?"

He asked, and after checking through his signature, Amanda took out the script for [Sherlock Holmes]. She passed it to Robert, and after reading the front page of it, his eyes became round.

"[Sherlock Holmes]?!"

He ended up muttering out loud.

"Yes, this is the first movie that Dream Vision would produce. Unlike the 90s movie, it's a massive production, and the script is way better too."

Amanda explained, and Robert couldn't help but get curious about some things.

"Can I know what the actual budget of the movie is?"

The 90s Sherlock movie was something that Robert had watched in the theatre with his father, and he had not enjoyed it much, mainly because most of the background in the movie looked fake and rather than a detective story, the movie gave the vibes of a bad comedy.

One of the main reasons for the failure of [Detective Sherlock Holmes] was its low budget.

"The estimated budget including post-production is around 90 million dollars."

"What? Really?" Robert asked, shocked at the massive amount.

"Yes, I won't joke with you. Dream Vision would handle the total investment of the movie, and it's already been approved."

Robert couldn't speak anything for a few seconds after hearing that. He had heard that Will solely produced [The Blair Witch Project] project, and because of that, the latter had also earned an enormous profit from the box office collection.

But he didn't know that it was this much that Will was able to produce a 90 million movie on his own.

Even though Will was a lot younger than him, Robert felt like he was already on a stage where he couldn't overtake him. He couldn't help but feel a bit of envy and jealousy.

…

/DreamNote/

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Chapter 59:

As Will walked inside the office of Foxstar with the script of [Sherlock Holmes] in his hands, various thoughts appeared in his mind.

The importance of the meeting and how he was going to move ahead with his movie.

In his mind, Will thought that his plan was a little crazy, and there was a little chance of it being successful.

But history had shown that a little craziness was needed for success, and it was not like Will was going to back out at this point.

He needed [Sherlock Holmes] to be a grand success, and for that to happen, he needed the connections and distribution channels of Foxstar.

As he reached the reception, the female employee there looked at him in wonder, recognising him. Due to [The Blair Witch Project, his face was something that most people working in Hollywood would recognise.

Will told the female employee about his meeting with James Dankworth, and she told him to go to the 12th floor.

After his promotion, James had not taken the office of the former head, Chandler Davies. Instead, he had transformed one of the rooms on the 12th floor into his new office.

When Will reached there, he was surprised to see James standing in front of his office. When the bespectacled man noticed him, he spread his hands and directly hugged him.

"Haha, Will, I was waiting for you." He said with a beaming smile as Will awkwardly returned the hug.

'What happened to him? The last time I saw him, he looked like a man who had never smiled in his life.'

Will thought as he looked at James. Unlike the last time, he was wearing an expensive suit, and a gold watch was on his wrist. Moreover, his hair was completely waxed, and he looked like he had gotten a complete makeover.

Soon, the initial awkwardness died down, and he followed James into his office. The man sat down as Will took a seat in front of him and put down the script on the desk.

"Sorry if I made you uncomfortable there. I was just so pleased to see you. My promotion to the head of the Distribution department was because of you, so I just wasn't able to stop my happiness when I saw you."

He said with a laugh, and Will asked back in a confused manner.

"What do you mean your promotion was because of me?"

"After our meeting last time, I was constantly thinking of [The Blair Witch Project]. Your movie had really managed to scare me off, and I was even sleeping with the room's lights on. My wife was really annoyed due to that." He chuckled, then explained further. "Anyway, as the movie managed to scare me that much, I tried convincing my boss, Chandler Davies, to rethink his decision, but he scolded me and the matter spread in the company. He proclaimed in front of some executives that the movie would never work and that he was looking for another assistant as, according to him, I had no vision. But things changed a lot after [The Blair Witch Project] released in the theatres."

James' last sentence was filled with contempt for his old boss. After all, no one liked being publicly insulted.

Sadly for Chandler Davies, his words came biting him in the back after the box office numbers of [The Blair Witch Project] were revealed.

"After the movie crossed the 100 million dollar mark, our chairman, Spencer Miller, called him into his office personally and fired him. As he had heard that I was in favour of distributing [The Blair Witch Project, he appointed me as the next head. It was all thanks to you and your movie!"

Will nodded his head as James' story came to an end. Of course, he didn't fully believe that his movie was the sole reason behind the firing of Chandler Davies.

In the past one or two years, more movies of Foxstar had flopped than succeeded. Moreover, their movies had hardly won any awards in famous film festivals, and even in events like the Oscars and Golden Globes, there were hardly any nominations.

The reason behind this was the conservative approach of Chandler Davies. [The Blair Witch Project] was merely the final nail in the coffin.

"Again, I would like to apologise for my behaviour last time. I acted too arrogantly for no reason."

In the end, James made a stiff expression and apologised. Unlike his initial impression, he was not just another arrogant fool.

Especially after becoming the head of the Distribution department of Foxstar, he wanted to build a legacy, and Will was certainly in his plans.

Will also understood that and shook his head with a smile, "Mr Dankworth, that's in the past. I don't mind starting anew with you and Foxstar."

"Thank you for that, and you can just call me James."

With that done, they both quickly moved on with the reason behind their meeting. Will took the script that he had brought and passed it on to James.

James couldn't help but read the title and look at Will with the script in his hands.

"I was pretty curious to know what type of movie you would direct, especially since you said you won't do horror anymore. But I never thought it would be a detective story, and on top of that, a Sherlock Holmes story."

"I just thought he was the most interesting character to make a movie around."

"That's indeed true."

James nodded his head gleefully, thinking of the various Broadway productions he had seen around Sherlock Holmes. The portrayal of the character was always different, but every single one of those was fascinating.

Although it was surprising to know that Will was going for a Sherlock Holmes movie, there was still a problem that James felt needed to be addressed.

"Will, I don't think you know, but the rights to Sherlock Holmes are with Z studios. Even if this script is good, you won't be able to make a movie out of it."

"That won't be a problem," Will smirked hearing that.

"What?"

"I have already bought the rights from them. You could try to verify it if you want."

James didn't pick up his phone to try to verify the information. By the tone, he could tell that Will wasn't lying. After all, in Hollywood, it was just a matter of a call, and James would know if Will had bought the rights.

He knew that Will had bought a studio recently. He wasn't surprised by this as many directors would do this after becoming big, trying to compete with the major movie studios.

But he certainly didn't know that Dream Vision had secretly bought the movie rights of Sherlock Holmes.

"I have heard that Z studios chairman Josh Booth was still fretting over the debacle of the 90s Sherlock film. But I didn't expect him to sell the rights so quickly."

For the record, Josh Booth had been looking over Z studios since 1994, and in his career, [Director Sherlock Holmes] was the biggest flop. It had nearly made the company go bankrupt, and this was the reason why Josh Booth still fretted over it.

Due to this, it took him too much work and a long time to make Z studios a part of the Big 6 film studios in Hollywood.

"So, going by the fact, you bought the film rights, it seems like you are serious about making [Sherlock Holmes] a reality?"

James asked, and Will replied like it was obvious.

"I won't waste my time writing a script if I am not serious."

"Haha, I like your attitude."

Saying that James started going through the script. The script was 168 pages long, and it took quite a while for James to read it.

In this span of time, his expression changed to anticipation, excitement, confusion and in the end, satisfaction. Will kept grinning while looking at those expressions.

It meant that his script had done its job, and James was fully invested in it.

Finally, after a long time, James raised his head and put down the script.

"It's pretty good, and it gives me the same vibes that Sherlock Holmes novels give out. And the climax is something that would surely satisfy the viewers when Sherlock solves the entire case."

"So, what do you think? Would Foxstar be interested in distributing the movie? I'm talking about both overseas and the North American market."

Will asked, knowing full well by James' reaction that he won't reject. But the bespectacled man suddenly gave out an offer.

"We would be interested, but rather than that, how about selling the rights to Sherlock Holmes to us and this script too. Of course, you would be the director, but Foxstar would take the lead."

That offer surprised Will a lot, but after a little bit of thinking, he could understand where James was coming from.

This world's Hollywood lacked good movie franchises. There were some Western cowboy franchises in the past, and then there was a franchise of a fantasy film series based on a popular novel called [The Hunter's apprentice].

But other than that, there was nothing.

Although Sherlock Holmes was regarded as a cursed franchise to delve into, James was seriously thinking about it after seeing the quality of Will's script.

"I'm sorry, James, but this is not possible. [Sherlock Holmes] will be Dream Vision's first movie, and I just can't sell it to you. Maybe in the future, we can have cooperation like that." Will rejected as he looked at James.

"How about the script and the movie rights for 20 million dollars? That's quite a high price."

"I'm sorry."

As he stayed firm, James had no choice but to sigh helplessly. The young man in front of him was quite clear with his goals, and it looked like there was nothing that could make him think otherwise.

Clearing his throat, James changed the topic.

"Then, for now, I would be satisfied with having the distribution rights. By the way, are you going to be the sole producer? Or are you looking for investments?"

James asked, a little bit of greed in his voice. If he could get Foxstar to invest in the project, they would have more control.

"Yes, I will be the sole producer. You do know I got a lot of money due to Blair witch?"

Will chuckled, and James regretfully nodded his head. There was even a half-joke in the industry recently that horror movies are the way to go if you want to be a multi-millionaire.

It was all thanks to Will.

"So, how much is the budget exactly?"

"I think 90 million."

….

/DreamNote/

This arc is slow, please understand that this is to set up the story for the next 100s of chaps and to add on the world building. This is necessary to do and after Sherlock Holmes arc, the story will be fast paced. And just to clear any doubts, there's no NTR or cheating in the novel.

In the future, I will also increase release speed, however that is uncertain because one – my real life is not under my control and two – I will be very busy in the month of may, so I want to have enough stockpile so something like the last week doesn't happen.

/…/

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…

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Chapter 60:

"Will, think about it again! 90 million isn't a small amount. Isn't it all the money you got from Blair witch?" James exclaimed, looking at Will like he was a madman. "This is actually a crazy decision."

He had thought that the movie's budget would be around 20-30 million dollars. That was enough to make a great detective movie set in the backdrop of 1890s London.

But 90 million was going over the top.

If the movie failed, then Will would become bankrupt. It was similar to a king sending all of his soldiers to fight a war with no guarantee of the victory. One wrong move, and the king and his kingdom would be captured.

In simple words, it was a risk it all gamble.

"James, I very well know what you are saying, but the vision I have for [Sherlock Holmes] needs a lot of money. And 90 million is just an estimated figure."

Will explained, but James' expression was still a bit stiff. The original [Sherlock Holmes] had actually cost around only 60 million dollars to shoot.

One-third of the budget was just for the various actors involved in the project. Heck, just Robert Downey Jr had scooped 15 million dollars for his role.

He still thought he was lucky to have obtained Robert for such a cheap price.

"I know all that, but this is a huge risk. If it fails, you do know it will just repeat the debacle of the 90s Sherlock. No studio wants to be associated with that."

"I wouldn't pitch the script to you if I wasn't aware of the risks, James." Will said a little stubbornly. "But it won't fail. I have full confidence in it. I wouldn't risk every little cent I have on this movie otherwise."

Taking a deep breath, he continued, "In the first place, rather than the project failing, you should think about the scenario in which it would be a big success. You have already read the script, and my past achievement is something everybody knows. Maybe, this will be your chance to move away from the shadows of Chandler Davies's approach."

Listening to Will's confident voice, James began weighing the pros and cons in his mind.

Will's confidence was something he really liked, and the passion burning inside of his eyes was the same as he had seen in countless directors before. But unlike those, he was confident in his skills and gutsy enough to risk all his money in a single movie.

This wasn't something he had seen before. He was indeed a young, genius director.

Though, Will's nemesis was also his young age. He was inexperienced, and although he had hit it big with his first movie, he had never directed a cinematic movie before.

Just that one single thought was enough to tilt his decision to negative. But Will's last words were still looming in his mind.

'This is the chance to move away from the shadows of conservative approach that Foxstar is known for.'

As he thought that, the face of Chandler Davies appeared in his mind. He was an arrogant, paranoid man who had ruined too many movies due to interfering in their production.

James certainly didn't want to follow in his footsteps.

In the end, he made his decision.

"Okay Will, let's discuss the share ratio and sign the contract. I hope this cooperation brings back fruitful results."

Will gave a wide smile hearing those words. With that, he has finally secured a distributor.

As Foxstar agreed to distribute [Sherlock Holmes, everyone in Dream Vision studios felt a euphoric feeling running through their veins.

Working with one of the Big 6 film studios was really a dream come true for most Hollywood productions, and they have achieved it so soon.

It made them work even harder. Will was satisfied while watching his employees, but although Foxstar had agreed to the deal, it was just a verbal one, and Amanda was still going over the negotiations.

At one point, it had become a lot heated, but Amanda handled it well.

Her argument was that [Sherlock Holmes] was a big production, and as the sole producers of the movie, most of the risks were high there, so they should get a higher cut. In the end, Dream Vision got 37 percent shares in the North American box office and 15 percent in the overseas one.

Will was more than happy to get such a deal and was really glad that he had chosen Amanda as the CEO of Dream Vision.

Without her, it was hard to get such a lucrative deal.

After he had signed the distribution contract, the only thing in Will's mind was the casting for [Sherlock Holmes].

Robert had already been given the script, and he had even locked himself in his house to prepare for the audition for [Sherlock Holmes]. From what he knew, he was going over every Sherlock Holmes novel to get a better understanding of the character.

Will was quite satisfied with his efforts, but there were still a lot of roles that needed to be cast.

"Here's a list of the actors that would be suitable for John Watson. I made a list considering age and availability. Take a look."

Amanda said and passed him a long list. They were both currently going over the casting choices they have and which actor or actress would be suitable for which role.

"Let me see."

Will went over the list and saw the names of several good actors that could potentially portray Watson well. But after a while, he clicked his tongue.

Looking up at Amanda, he said.

"This is a good list, but all of these are B grade actors at best. I think we need to go for more popular choices."

"But I doubt if A list actors would agree, considering the potential lead we have in mind is a relatively unknown actor."

Amanda said with a hint of dissatisfaction. She was not too happy with Will's first choice for Sherlock. She felt like it was way better for a popular actor to play the iconic character.

But he was firm in his decision and was sure that Robert would be the perfect choice.

"I do know what they would say. They would probably try to ask for the main role instead of playing foil to an actor they don't even know the name of."

"Yeah, and Watson's role is always portrayed as a bumbling fool in theatre and even in the 90s movie. Only comedic actors would agree for such a role."

Will shook his head at those words.

"Our Watson is comparatively different from those comedic gag representations. He's a womaniser, a former soldier, a doctor, and even a gambler. These are the qualities of a great character, and I don't want to believe that no actor would see that after reading the script."

Amanda nodded her head, thinking back to the script and Watson's portrayal in it. Indeed, rather than a fool, a confident character would make a way better foil for the lead.

After going through some more names, she suddenly thought of one actor that would suit Watson a lot and blurted out.

"Will, how about approaching Levi Richards for the role? I think he would suit the character a lot, and his real personality is good too."

"Levi Richards?"

Will tapped his finger on his desk as he thought back to the movies he had seen of Levi Richards in this world.

Levi was an American actor who has been in the industry for over 15 years, and a few years ago, he had become an A-lister, signing several big-budget movies every year.

But for the last month, he was on a break to spend more time with his wife and young kids.

"Levi Richards would be nice. He has that British look and elegant aura about him. But is he looking for a new movie? He's on a break for a long time now."

Will asked, and Amanda smiled.

"Yes, word on the street is that Levi is planning a comeback and actively going through scripts to choose the perfect project. Many studios have contacted him until now about various potential projects, but he hasn't signed any."

"Then, try to hold a meeting with him to pitch the idea."

"Okay."

With that decided, they moved over to the other castings. Some of the characters were easy to find actors for, but some were too hard.

For example, the character of Inspector Lestrade was of a competent cop who would hire Holmes to look into the murders, and at the same time, he would be fed up with his antics.

Will finalised a TV actor Augusta Sheen for the role. He had played cop roles a lot, and as a British actor, Will felt like he was perfect for this role.

But unlike him, the role of the villain Lord Henry Blackwood, a serial killer delving into the occult was hard to cast. Will wanted to cast only top actors for the main roles, and just because of this, the cast selection became harder.

There were so few actors that Will thought would be suitable for the role that both he and Amanda could only scratch their heads at these problems.

Though in the end, they were able to finalise most of the actors they wanted and sent out a script to the actors' agency.

Now, it all depended on their reply.

"I think we will get a reply very soon. With Foxstar joining us in the project and it being a 90 million dollar production, many agencies would be interested."

Amanda said, and Will nodded his head a little stiffly. He knew that actors would surely be interested in a big-budget movie, but he was also sure that their agencies were going to be a pain in the ass.

After all, even if they have Foxstar behind them, both Dream Vision and Will were just rookies in the industry.

"By the way, uh, there's one more thing I wanted to tell you about?"

Suddenly Amanda said, and Will asked with a puzzled expression.

"What is it?"

"I got an invite from the Academy inviting you to this year's Oscar."

…

/DreamNote/

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…

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Chapter 61:

Just like his Will's world, many prestigious awards showed existed in this parallel universe too. Oscars, Golden Globes and BAFTA were the same.

All of them existed in this universe and were the global awards that everyone over the world looked up to. Every actor, director and anyone who worked in Hollywood dreamed of one day standing on the stage and receiving such an award.

Although Will felt that sometimes the awards weren't fair, he still understood their importance. After all, if a movie earned the best picture, then it would basically make its way into the history books.

It was the best way to get recognition for your work.

"The Academy gave me an invitation?"

Will asked, just to confirm. He hadn't expected the Oscars to invite him. After all, many people in the industry were biassed towards [The Blair Witch Project, saying that it was not cinema since it was not even shot on a proper film camera.

Many film awards were also the same. Even the Golden Globes, which had happened a month ago, didn't give him an invitation.

"Yeah, it's a formal invitation too. You can bring a date to it too. What do you think? Will you go?"

Amanda said and looked at him for an answer.

Initially, Will thought to reject the invitation. Not like his movie was nominated, and he was still busy in the pre-production of his movie.

Oscars were just going to take his mind off when all he wanted to do was focus on his movie.

Although it was just a one-day event, the preparation will take too much money and time. He can't look shabby after all.

He would need to get the best outfits and find makeup artists of the highest calibre to match everyone else in the event. Like Amanda had told him before, he was the face of Dream Vision, so he needed to look his best in the most prominent award ceremony in Hollywood.

And in the end, he agreed to the invitation.

"Yeah, I will go." He said, thinking of the reason behind his decision. "It's better not to piss off the Academy. If I didn't go and they thought I was rude, I'm pretty sure none of our movies would be nominated in the future."

"Yeah, the Academy tends to act petty from time to time."

Amanda agreed to his reasoning. Once, a famous actor had not attended the Oscar ceremony due to him not having any nominations. There were rumours that he had angered the Academy, and after that, he never received any nominations even after giving out great performances.

Both Will and Amanda didn't want Dream Vision to go the same path.

"Now that you are going, I will prepare your outfits and book the makeup artists. Your date will be June, right?"

Amanda listed down some points on a notepad and raised her head before asking.

"Yeah, obviously," Will replied with a smile.

Due to [Sherlock Holmes, he would be swamped for a long time. Maybe, he and June wouldn't even be able to see each other, so he felt like going to the Academy awards together was a nice compensation.

After all, it was basically announcing to everyone who hasn't been aware of their relationship yet that they were a couple.

As Will agreed to go to the Oscars, Amanda took up the work to prepare him and June for the event. She got busier because she was handling the casting calls too.

Will also began to go through various details of the movie with Jeffrey and his crew. After [The Blair Witch Project, it was going to be their first movie together, and this one was even a periodic movie.

It was based in 1890, and due to that, there were many things they needed to get right. Two of these things were the costumes and the film set.

Currently, Will was in discussion with Jeffrey about this particular topic.

"Will, I'm telling you. We need a good costume designer, and Andy is good, but he doesn't specialise in periodic British clothing. We need to get someone else to do it."

For the record, Andy was the costume designer in Jeffery's crew.

Hearing Jeffery's concerns, Will also nodded his head and replied.

"Yeah, I agree. His style suits modern-day movies way more, and I don't want to mess up the costumes. Do you have anyone in mind?"

Jeffery thought about it a bit before shaking his head.

"Unfortunately, I don't. I know people have worked on periodic movies, but they weren't set in Britain. I can ask, but I think it's better to hire someone from London."

"London?"

"Yeah, there are tons of theatre groups there, and many of them show Sherlock Holmes. I'm pretty sure there would be a lot of designers there who are already experienced."

Will nodded his head and decided to take a flight to London after the Oscars. There was no use delaying something like this.

He wanted [Sherlock Holmes] to be in the theatres as soon as possible. He was planning to shoot the whole movie in around two months and release it in early May.

That was a spot that even Foxstar agreed with as they have no prior movies releasing at that point.

"I was planning to go to London to finalise the filming situation anyway. This will be on my to-do list now."

"Are you sure about shooting the movie in London? Technology has gotten pretty good now, and we can save some money by shooting it in a studio in Los Angeles."

Jeffery suggested, but Will stayed firm in his decision.

"I want the movie to be more authentic. London provides scenic locations, the exact ones I have in my mind. I'm pretty sure I won't be satisfied with computer-generated buildings."

Like many directors, Will believed in shooting in real-life locations as much as he could. He felt like the true nature of a movie can only be shown this way.

"Okay, I don't think I can change your mind on that."

Jeffery laughed, and they continued discussing various things for a long time. They didn't really have much time, and many things needed to be considered.

Because of that, both of them kept working till two at night.

In the office of ICM, one of the biggest agencies in Hollywood, a prickly looking man with a moustache was sitting right across from a middle-aged actor who had an intimidating aura about him.

They were sitting across a table, and on it, he had put a script titled [Sherlock Holmes].

"Jared, what do you think?"

The prickly looking man asked. His name was Perry Hopkins, and he was the agent of Jared Morgan, an actor in his mid-30s who was famous for his negative roles in various movies.

"Umm, I really liked the script. I didn't know Foxstar was trying to make a Sherlock Holmes movie."

"It's not exactly Foxstar, but yes, they are the distributor of this movie. I heard that they are collaborating with an independent studio to make this movie."

"What studio?" Jared asked.

"You know about Will Evans, right?"

Jared nodded his head.

Everyone in Hollywood knew about the wonder kid who had struck gold with his first movie. Jared was no exception.

"It's his studio, and he's the screenwriter too. Obviously, he would be the director of this movie."

Jared's eyes widened hearing that. It was not because he found out that Will already owned a studio. It was because of the fact that he found it surprising that Foxstar was letting someone so young direct such a big production.

"Didn't you say that this is a nearly 50-60 million dollar production?"

[A/N – Jared here is referring to it as 50-60 million production cause it doesn't include the cost of actors.]

"Yeah, I didn't lie to you."

"Then, why is Foxstar investing so much in a kid?"

Perry shook his head, hearing that and explained.

"They are not investing in anything. The sole producer of the movie is Will Evans himself, and he's betting all the wealth he got from his first movie on this one. It's a huge fucking gamble!"

Jared's mouth hung open upon knowing this. He had felt like Will was pretty lucky before, but now he thought of him as an idiot.

Even if he was talented in directing and scriptwriting, he was a complete idiot in money matters.

Perry began to explain to him that this piece of news was still new and the only reason he knew about it was that one of his friends in Foxstar had overheard this when they were signing the distribution contract.

"Anyway, I don't think we should care too much about who is producing the movie. This is a good chance to make you a more popular actor, and I think you should take it. After all, movies with a production budget of over 70 million are rare. They are even offering you one of the main roles – Lord Blackwood, the main antagonist."

"Yeah, but what about the Director?

Jared showed his concern. If he was honest, he was not really confident in the directing ability of someone who was so much younger than him.

"We will know more about it once we begin discussions with them. But I don't think Foxstar would have agreed if they weren't confident in his skills; you know they are pretty picky."

Perry shrugged his shoulders. Contrary to his confident expression, he was not really confident in the project.

The only reason he was trying to persuade Jared was that he could smell money from this project. If Jared got a big paycheck, he would also get a good enough commission.

Although he was a senior agent, Perry saw Hollywood as a business and rather than suggesting only projects he was confident that would succeed to his actor, he believed in getting his actor the highest amount of money.

"I understand all that, but I'm more interested in the role of Holmes."

Jared had a pretty good build and aura to be a villain, but he was kind of sick of such roles. This time, he wanted to play the iconic character of Holmes.

"Holmes? I don't know if they have finalised someone for that role yet."

Perry said, and Jared insisted.

"Then find out. If he's not a more popular actor than me, I'm pretty sure they would be more than happy to give the role to me."

…

/DreamNote/

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…

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Chapter 62:

The casting for [Sherlock Holmes] was going great. Amanda took great care about finding suitable actors for the roles, and Will personally oversaw all the auditions held in a theatre they had rented for two days.

Most of the small roles were already cast like this, and the only thing pending was the few main roles that will play a pivotal part in the story.

Thankfully, most of the actors that they have given the script to had responded well, and today Will, Amanda, and Jeffrey were even signing the contract of a popular British actress for the role of Irene Adler.

In the meeting room of Dream Vision Studios, 5 people were seated on their chairs as they were discussing a contract.

Will, Amanda, and Jeffrey were discussing the contract with Maria McCollins, an older woman who is also the agent of Rachel Linden.

Rachel Linden was a British actress who was selected for the role of Irene Adler in the movie. She was a beautiful woman in her early thirties. She had been in Hollywood for a long time and was quite a popular actress too.

After going through a list of the movies she had acted in, Will had decided to sign her up for the role of Irene Adler, who had appeared just once in the original story 'A Scandal of Bohemia.' But in the movie, Sherlock and Irene have a love affair.

After some digging, Will thought that Rachel would do great as Irene Adler and called her for auditions. The auditions have already been done, and the current contract signing process only showed how well it went.

She had done a great job at portraying Irene Adler, and Will was deeply impressed, so he decided not to dilly dally much and just sign her up. The procedure would be taken by Amanda mostly, but he wanted to be there when they signed the main roles of the movie.

After some discussions, the contract was finalized at 1 million dollars. Nobody had to negotiate much as 1 million wasn't a small amount, and as an agent, Maria was quite satisfied with the amount Rachel was offered.

After a while, they discussed some more about the contract and the clauses. Amanda said that they'd send Maria the schedule for Rachel and handed Rachel the script for her to prepare, which she enthusiastically picked up.

Although she had acted in many movies, a movie such as [Sherlock Holmes] which was set in the 1890s would be her first, and she was really looking forward to it, especially after going through the script.

The meeting finally ended with everyone being on happy terms; it was obvious after such a huge amount of money was paid. To Will, this was just an investment that would keep everyone happy and make him avoid unnecessary complications if the movie made it big.

There were chances that it wouldn't succeed at all and that Will should have worked on a less budget and more profitable movie before jumping to such a big one. But life was short, and Will wanted this world's Hollywood to be dominated by his previous life's blockbusters and make people experience the movies that had set the standards in his previous life.

Obviously, there were many movies that he could have gone for instead of [Sherlock Holmes, but since he got the script, had the money, and wanted to leave a deep impression on people, this franchise would do it all for him.

After the meeting, Will felt gleeful as he had finally signed one of the main roles for the movie.

After going through Will's script, Jared Morgan's agent Perry Hopkins came to have a meeting with Will.

In Will's office, Perry was seated in front of Will.

"It's really nice to be meeting the genius young director."

Perry laughed as he said. He was here to finalise the conditions for Jared's audition. Jared was busy in a shoot, so only Perry had come.

"The pleasure is all mine."

Will said with a smile.

If anyone saw his innocent and charming smile, they would just think of him as a pure young man who has yet to see the world, but getting fooled by someone's business smile was one thing Perry had learned not to do with his years of experience in the industry.

"The script was really great. There is no comparison to be made with the 1990s [Detective Sherlock Holmes] by Z Studios. Jared liked the script a lot too."

Perry said with an earnest expression. Anyone who read the script would agree with his words.

"I really did put a lot of thought into it; thank you for praising it."

Will replied humbly as he came to the crux of the matter.

"So is Mr. Morgan willing to join the [Sherlock Holmes] cast?"

Perry's expression visibly changed as he said.

"Yes, he is indeed very interested in the movie and is willing to join the cast. He read through the whole script, and he said that he would like to play the lead role, Sherlock Holmes himself."

Perry looked at Will's expression after he said that. There were no visible changes in it, with Will having the same smile that he had since the start of the meeting.

Jared Morgan was a handsome man in all honesty. The roles he did till now suited him so well that his fame in the industry was built as a handsome antagonist.

He wanted to change it, and this role seemed like the chance to do it, so he had told Perry to get the lead role for him.

Will, who heard what Jared wanted, contemplated on the matter. If there was no RDJ in this world, he would have even agreed to it, but since he had quite a clear picture in his head of how the lead role will be, he didn't think too much before rejecting.

"Ah, Well, Mr. Hopkins. The thing is, I already have an actor in mind for the lead role, and I don't think that the role of Sherlock Holmes would suit Mr. Morgan. In fact, the role of Lord Blackwood would be perfect for him."

Perry was surprised at that. He didn't think that Will already had someone in mind.

It was common that a director would scout out the whole cast then pick the main lead. It was mostly due to the suitability that directors would take their time selecting the main leads of their movies.

A suitable main lead was also one of the factors which decided if the movie sank or swam; after all, people would never take Iron Man as someone else after seeing RDJ playing the role of Tony Stark. Although Will was a bit biased due to the fact that Micheal had the potential of becoming this world's RDJ, it was also true that Jared Morgan would be much more suited to play the role of Lord Blackwood.

"If you don't mind me asking, who is this actor that you've in mind?"

Perry asked cautiously. Most of the time, directors won't reveal the cast to each other to not cause a conflict of interest, he was worried that Will would do the same, and if he did, then he would just leave.

Will, who sensed his motives, didn't hide and said.

"It's Micheal Robert Elrod. He's one of MCA's actors."

Perry had a confused expression on his face, and even after recalling for a while, he wasn't able to think of anyone with that name in his memory.

But after some minutes, a face suddenly appeared in his mind. ICM had looked into a lot of actors of MCA to sign them in the past few years, and for that reason, Perry still remembered the names of a few obscure actors.

"You're talking about that guy? Are you serious? Isn't he one of the worst even in MCA?"

"Yeah, that. He isn't the worst; he just hasn't gotten a suitable role till now."

Will replied calmly.

Perry had a strange expression on his face. He couldn't fathom the absurdity of the situation he was currently facing.

Will was asking for Jared, one of the top B-listers, to play the antagonists' role while a no-name actor would play the lead role.

"Sorry if you think I'm rude but are you really going to risk a 60 million dollar movie just because you want to be biased to some unknown actor? Is there even any 'reason' you are doing that?"

Perry said in an annoyed tone. Right now, he didn't care what Will or anyone thought of him. He was annoyed because he thought Will was taking him as a joke.

Will totally understood where Perry was coming from. It would be the common reaction that most people would have after learning about Robert, and there was only so much that Will could explain. After the movie was shot and released, it would be another thing, but before that, most people would doubt Robert's qualifications.

"So what are you suggesting? That I should kick Robert and take Mr. Morgan as the lead?"

Will asked again with both his hands supporting his chin.

"Yes, this isn't even a question. Jared will only work with you if you give him the lead. And if you don't do it, I would make sure that ICM blacklists Dream Vision Studios."

Will raised an eyebrow at the obvious threat. It wasn't uncommon in Hollywood as this was simply considered as utilising power, especially towards someone like Will, who was yet to establish himself as someone who amounted to anything in Hollywood.

"As you're a senior in the industry, I'll surely consider your suggestion."

Will said with the same never-changing smile, making Perry click his tongue. He was annoyed at this lad that was still so young yet didn't lose his composure even in front of such blatant threatening.

If he did this with some established director in the industry, he would surely lose his job and even be blacklisted by all the directors in the industry. However, since Will was still young and had only directed one movie that was more of a homemade clip, he felt like he could get out of doing anything to him.

…

/DreamNote/

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…

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Chapter 63:

After the meeting with Perry concluded, Perry rushed out of the office with an annoyed expression.

Slam*

"This son of a b*tch."

Jeffrey, who was seated on the other side of the table, slammed his hands on the table as he let out a suppressed curse. Perry had treated him like air throughout the meeting, but that wasn't the reason why Jeffrey was angry.

"These people from ICM really think they're the boss of something. Fuck!"

Jeffrey cursed again as he thought about how Perry had acted throughout the meeting. Agents from powerful agencies like ICM mostly acted like this as if they had nothing in the world to fear about.

"Calm down, Jeff, let him be."

Will said as he chuckled, seeing Jeffrey's reaction.

Knock*

After a knock, the door opened, and Amanda came in with a bitter expression.

"Don't worry Will, it's fine to let go of Jared. We can just find another actor."

She said as she sat on the chair in front of Will. She had a file in her hand that consisted of the information and details about various actors for various roles.

"But the problem is, most of the actors we have in mind are from ICM, and it's not uncommon to be seeing ICM agents acting like tyrants, especially in front of a new director."

Amanda massaged her temples as she said that. She was getting seriously stressed due to meeting with agents after agents and coping with their demands, it was going fine for the side roles, but there was only one main character signed till now.

"Don't worry, Hollywood doesn't lack actors. We can hire another actor, and if needed, we can take help from MCA."

Will said, trying to comfort her.

"What are we going to do about Lord Blackwood's role though? It's one of the difficult ones, and not just anyone could play it."

Jeffrey said in a concerned voice. They would face a lot of trouble if ICM really blacklists them. After all, this was Dream Vision's first-ever project, and with the amount Will was investing, it can be the last project if it turns out to be a flop.

"Don't worry too much about all this. Hollywood isn't so small that we don't have any options after Jared Morgan. In fact, I've someone else in mind already, but I need to think about how to persuade him."

As Will was going through suitable actors for the role of Lord Blackwood, another actor piqued Will's interest as he seemed like someone who could perform Lord Blackwood really well. But he was an A-Lister of this world's Hollywood and one of the highest-paid actors.

As he was currently in the free market, many agencies were trying to entice him into joining them. But he had rejected them all due to being too picky regarding the people he works with. Even his personality was a bit unique.

He has a record of kicking out his agents left and right due to various reasons, such as getting him movies from the directors he has no interest in working with.

After thinking for a while, Will said.

"Amanda, arrange a meeting with Uncle Ben for me."

In a black limousine, Will and June were seated together, and both were wearing expensive clothes designed by famous fashion designers.

Will was wearing a black tuxedo while June was wearing a black gown that had a cut near her right legs, with long black gloves covering her hands, making her look more elegant.

This was the night of the Oscar ceremony, and as Will was invited to the Oscar, he decided to go there to not have any beefy records with the Academy.

June was his companion and date for the night, and he wasn't able to take his eyes off her. She looked simply phenomenal in the black dress she was wearing.

"Oh fudge, I'm nervous. But I'm sooooooo happpyyyy tonight. I can't believe I'm attending an Oscar."

June said excitedly as she kissed Will on the cheek. She had been happy throughout the ride to the venue, and her happiness was so pure and lively that Will couldn't help but look at her in a daze.

She kept telling how she could only imagine in her wildest dreams that she was attending Oscars, and now it had become a reality.

Kodak Theatres, Hollywood, Hollywood Highland

As the limousine stopped at the venue, Will came out of the car and held his hand out to escort June.

Click* *Click* *Flash*

The camera's clicking and flashing sound came out as soon as they made their way towards the red carpet.

"Will… It's Will Evans!"

People gasped as they looked towards Will. The reporters and cameramen's attention shifted towards him too.

Although there was news that the Academy invited the famous rookie director, people just took it as rumour as it was too much of a drag.

A new and young director who got famous for a movie that was more of a home recording was now even invited to Oscars? Even if it wasn't a nomination, it was still too much of a stretch because an invite from the Academy was a big honour in itself.

But witnessing the arrival of the famous rookie director in person not only confirmed one but two rumours.

Firstly, however unbelievable it was, he indeed had gotten an invitation to the Oscars. Secondly, the rumour about him dating June Roberts, the lead actress of his first movie, was also true, which was obvious seeing his companion for the night.

The reporters started jotting down articles after articles, and the cameramen kept taking photos as Will and June walked on the red carpet hand in hand.

The adventurous romance between co-workers was always a juicy and thrilling topic among the young generation especially when the story was about someone who was as young as them.

As June and Will appeared together, this basically confirmed their relationship and made it somewhat official.

Not just Will and June had come as famous celebrities were in their front and back.

"Woah, I can't believe I'm just behind Scarlett McJohn."

June said as she excitedly looked around.

"Yeah, …..I can't believe it either.."

Will replied somewhat absentmindedly. He couldn't believe Scarlett Johansson was right in front of him. No, She was Scarlet McJohn, at least in this world. Another celebrity from his world had appeared right in front of him, but she didn't seem as helpless as RDJ.

As Will thought that almost all of the reporter's attention had been shifted towards the duo, June got nervous seeing all the attention and tightened her grip around Will's hand.

Although they didn't have to face the situation for too long as they entered the venue, they were guided towards their seats and finally settled down.

"A very good evening, gentlemen and not so 'gentlewomen."

The host, Kellen Reeves, finally started the event. She was a famous comedian and actress.

"Thank you all so much for coming. For those of you who are watching at your homes, it has been a tough couple of days here," Kellen said with a pause, she continued, "It has been raining."

Everyone laughed at that.

"We are fine; thank you for your prayers."

Kellen said in her ever sarcastic voice, making everyone laugh again.

Then she moved on as she introduced famous people in a teasing manner.

"And, to top it all off, we have a new face here."

The cameras zoomed towards Will's direction as she said.

"Will Evans, of course, didn't get a nomination with his homemade video, but viola, he did manage to gain an invitation. Not gonna lie, I was shocked."

Kellen introduced Will, in the same ridiculing way she had introduced everyone else, and everyone laughed again. Will just smiled lightly as the camera's turned towards him.

"So we are all here to celebrate and award the movies and people that did exceptionally well in those movies. People throughout the world have hard times one way or the other, and I'm not saying that movies have helped them or are important in life … But they're an escape from reality for them at least."

Kellen said in a sombre voice as she continued, "Of course, the most important thing in life is love, and family, and friends, and….. People who don't have these get into showbiz."

Everyone laughed at that.

Will and June just chit-chatted about various things and laughed at the host's jokes from time to time. After a while, the awards distribution finally started.

They started with technical awards such as best editors and cinematographers. Will kept an eye on the people nominated and those who won in case he might try to rope them in his studio.

Slowly, more important awards started to come out.

The award for the Best Original Score went to [Enchanted World, a musical based in the European mediaeval era.

The Best Supporting Actress went to Darcy Collins, and the best supporting actor went to Irfan Rahman, a Muslim actor of Indian descent who has been in Hollywood for 20 years now.

Will had watched both of their movies and was quite impressed with their performances. But he was more interested in knowing the winners of three of the major five awards.

Soon, he got his answers as the nominations for best actor and actress came out.

The award for best actress went to Emily White, who had played a deaf gymnast in the movie [Black, and the award for best actor went to Jack Crawley, who had played the role of a Bard in the movie [Enchanted World].

This movie had raked in two awards in a row, and what surprised everyone was the award that came later.

The Best Director awards went to Walden Ardolf, the director of the movie [Enchanted World]. This movie successfully raked in 3 major awards and became one of the movies that left people slack-jawed.

Will, who hadn't even watched the movie, was still in shock. He wanted to just run out of the function and directly watch this movie.

'I wonder what's the level of the direction of this Director as per the System terms.'

…

/DreamNote/

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…

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Chapter 64:

After the Oscar award ceremony was over, Will felt like his hands were hurting from clapping too much. But it was not yet over.

The awards have been given, but the celebration was still just starting.

One of the major parts of Oscar was the after-party that would happen after it. Many movie corporations and sponsors of the events would organize after-parties.

And Will had also been invited to a few of them.

Truth be told, rather than the ceremony, he was looking forward to the after-party. After all, it was the place to make more connections and today; there were other reasons for him to go to an after-party.

"Will, I'm sorry. But I can't go to the after-party with you."

As they were on the way to their car, June slowly said to him. Although she had enjoyed the prestigious event, Will could see that she was a little exhausted.

"Is there any reason?"

"Yeah, I have an audition tomorrow, and I need to look my best for it. If I go to the after-party with you, I won't be able to wake up in time."

Will made a confused expression at that and said.

"You are having a lot of auditions these days."

"Yeah, the agency is pushing me because of my growing popularity. This audition tomorrow is even for a lead role."

June nodded with a smile, and Will didn't object more. He was happy that she was taking her dream so seriously. But her expression did seem a little odd to him.

He wanted to ask about it, but he didn't push and decided to ask about it later. They got in the car, and Will got off in a nearby five-star hotel.

One of the after-parties was happening here. Foxstar actually organized it, and because of their relationship, he had gotten an invite.

He showed the invitation to the staff and got on the elevator to the sixth floor where the after-party was happening. Foxstar studios had bagged three awards.

The best editing, cinematography and best-adapted screenplay awards went to Foxstar.

Though these awards were technical, it was still a matter of great pride, and they weren't shy to show it off.

When Will reached the after-party, he saw many celebrities talking and chatting among themselves. Some of them looked drunk, while some of them were flirting with the other gender.

No one wanted to go home alone today after all.

As Will made his way in, a familiar face recognized him and waved at him.

"Hey, Will, come here!"

It was James, someone who had been in regular talks with Will over the casting of [Sherlock Holmes]. Will smiled and walked towards him.

"James, congrats on the awards."

"Thanks. We are quite happy with them, and our Chairman was just here congratulating the winners, but he left with some other people to discuss some stuff." He said, then not finding anyone besides Will, he asked. "Where's your date?"

"She needed to leave early."

"That's too bad. But it's also an opportunity to meet new people. You are new to Hollywood, but here, people keep moving on from stuff to always look for something different."

As James said that, Will just smiled in response. He knew what he was hinting at, but Will wasn't the type to do this sort of stuff.

But it seemed like James was bent on showing Will a different side to Hollywood. He suddenly called a young actress over to them and introduced her to him.

"Will, meet May Warner; she's been working in Hollywood for years and started as a child actress in a Foxstar production."

"Hello, Mr Evans. I have heard a lot of stuff about you, and you can call me May."

May pushed out her hand in front of him, and he shook it with a smile. He knew who she was.

After all, only a small number of child actors were able to stay relevant in their adulthood. May was one of them.

While shaking hands, his eyes unconsciously wandered to her low cut dress, which showed all her right curves. When she noticed his eyes, May couldn't help but feel a little proud, but Will was thinking something completely different in his mind.

'She's another one of the child actors who directly went to a sexy image to cast off the child actor curse.'

Many child actors don't stay relevant after reaching teenage and puberty in Hollywood.

Many of these will try to change their image and May in front of him as someone who started wearing more short clothes and even posed for an underwear brand to shake off her innocent child actor image.

As Will was thinking of that, James praised him in front of May, thinking of himself as some wingman.

"Will here would be directing a movie for Foxstar soon. I can't say much, but in next year's Oscars, his movie might win some awards."

Obviously, James' words were the reason for alcohol and him trying to sell Will to May, but it certainly worked as her eyes shone.

"Is that so? Then, Mr Evans, do you think I can get a role in it?"

She said, giving him an ambiguous smile.

"Maybe. If you pass the audition, then I think there will be a role for you."

He had said it with pure intentions, but May took it wrong. She leaned at him seductively and whispered.

"Do you think we can hold a private audition tonight?"

'Son of a banshee! Why are you taking it the wrong way?'

He thought in his mind and just wryly smiled. Somehow, he managed to shake off May and James and looked around the room.

Many famous actors, producers, directors were already talking in small social circles. Will didn't try to approach them, and instead, his eyes kept looking for someone else.

Finally, after a while, he saw the one he was looking for.

'Ewan Rees'

He was the main reason why Will was at the after-party.

He was an actor in his early 40s, black hair with an imposing aura around him and popularity which not only made him famous in Hollywood but all over the world. In the last five years, he had only done four movies, but they were a big hit.

The reason why he was so slow was because of his pickiness. He would only work with certain directors, and for this reason, he had changed three agencies in the last five years.

He will simply fire an agent if he fails to get the role he wants. And this had already happened a lot, and due to that, he was still on the free-agent market.

His antics reminded Will of Leonardo di Caprio who had fired a lot of agents to work with Martin Scorsese, and it was something well known in Hollywood.

Even now, Ewan was not bothering to socialize and was simply sitting alone, drinking wine in silence. Many people tried to approach him, but he simply shrugged them off.

"Hello, Mr Rees."

Will said as he sat down next to him. Seeing his approach, which one can easily be inferred as arrogance, Ewan raised his eyebrow.

"You are that young director who shot it big. What are you doing here, kid?"

"I wanted to talk to you."

Will said, getting straight to the point. The longer he tries to be overly polite, the quicker Ewan will tell him to leave.

"I am at this party for the wine, not for any business. If you want to have a meeting, contact my agent."

"I will if he manages to get you a role in Simon Vercetti's next movie by this week. Otherwise, he's gonna get fired too."

Simon Vercetti was one of the most acclaimed directors in Hollywood who had won 2 Oscars before. There were rumors that he was itching to work on his next movie, and Ewan wanted to work with him no matter what.

That was something that everyone in Hollywood knew.

"That's true. Anyway, I think this introduction was enough. Let me drink in peace, and maybe, one day, when you are a good enough director, maybe I will fire people to work with you too."

Ewan said with a laugh, but his tone was one that was telling Will to leave. But he stayed seated and suddenly said,

"That's too bad. Cause I wanted to talk about Simon. We were in a meeting just last week, and if our talk was a bit nicer, I was going to recommend you as the lead in his next movie."

"What did you just say?"

Ewan stopped drinking and looked at him with both shock and confusion. He didn't know if the young man in front of him had too much to drink or was simply trying to get his attention.

"I think you heard me quite well. Let me introduce myself again. My name is Will Evans, and I'm the screenwriter for Simon Vercetti's next movie."

The reason why Will had asked Amanda to get a meeting with Uncle Ben was because of this.

Simon Vercetti was one of the highest-paid directors, and he used to belong to MCA before opening his own production house.

Still, he had good connections with MCA, and Will used those to get a meeting with him to show one of the scripts he bought from the system.

Simon was looking through a plethora of scripts to shoot his next movie, and Will was trying to use this opportunity.

Fortunately, the meeting went well, and he was now the screenwriter for his movie.

…

/DreamNote/

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It begins from today.