"This was a trap." Joseph could hardly believe it, his face stiff with self-reproach. "And I fell right into it!" He blamed himself, blaming his own negligence. He hadn't fulfilled his duties as a agent, and on top of that, he had actively hit the reporter.
Although this had prevented Hugo from directly committing a more serious act of violence, for any artist, the agent and the talent are inseparable, a shared interest. Now, Joseph's role as Hugo's agent made the relationship even closer. Joseph hitting a reporter was essentially no different from Hugo hitting one. Perhaps the negative impact would be slightly less, but not by much.
"Same here," Hugo said, looking at Joseph, which made Joseph freeze. "Remember? I raised my fist at that damn reporter too… I was just a step slower than you!"
Joseph shook his head, frustrated, pressing his hands to his face. "But I should have stopped you. I should have stayed calm."
"Joe, wake up, this isn't your fault," Kal said, sitting beside him, trying to offer reassurance.
"Yeah, if it were me, I would've already punched that bastard!" Alex quickly chimed in, agreeing.
Charlize closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "You're not helping." Then she turned to Joseph. "Joe, now isn't the time to point fingers. Whatever the fault, it's done. We need to figure out how to handle it. From what Hugo said, that reporter is insane — he risked everything for this story. Tomorrow, the news will flood in. If we aren't prepared, things will only get worse."
Charlize deliberately said "we" instead of "you." Hugo noticed the choice of words. First, he had the reassurance of Meryl, Jack, and Al; now, a group of friends stood united by the same cause. Slowly, Hugo regained some confidence. The entertainment industry was indeed treacherous; incidents like Anthony's would happen repeatedly. But at least he still had this group of friends by his side.
"Of course. Honestly, neither you nor Hugo did anything wrong. This was all that damn reporter's doing," Charlize muttered, frustrated. Though she maintained her composure, inside she could not forgive the reporter's slanderous nonsense.
Hugo couldn't help but let a small smile appear at her words, despite the tense atmosphere.
"So… what should we do now?" Alex asked, but no one responded. Silence fell.
Everyone knew what awaited Hugo and Joseph tomorrow, but no one knew if Anthony had more tricks up his sleeve. Worse, Hugo and Joseph both thought of Tracy and Ron — would they take advantage of the situation? Or had they been behind today's provocation all along?
Thinking carefully, Anthony's topics hadn't been random. First, the award; second, the big names; third, plagiarism; fourth, Uma. Each of these topics was baseless, yet Anthony presented them with absolute certainty. Where did his information come from?
Joseph was the first to look up at Charlize and noticed her gaze fixed on Uma. He followed her eyes. Today, all four topics had one common thread: Uma.
Regarding the awards, Hugo had been in Malibu, interacting only with friends and among them, only Uma. The big-name issue was known to Hugo's friends, including Uma. Plagiarism was clearly a smear from Anthony with no factual basis. Lastly, the claim that Uma was taking advantage of Hugo's rise reminded Joseph of the New Year's Eve conversation between Uma and Martin Baum, and of her decision to stay at Sydney Pollack's party.
More importantly, Uma's behavior tonight had been exceptionally strange. During the confrontation, Joseph couldn't recall all the details, but he remembered that while Hugo spoke with Meryl Streep and the others, Uma had stood a few steps away, brooding and frowning. Initially, Joseph thought she had been frightened and worried about Hugo. But after that, she seemed lost in her own world. Once a highly present and noticeable person, Uma had almost disappeared, staying absorbed in her own thoughts.
Joseph exhaled deeply, forcing himself to stop overthinking. He knew it was all speculation. His own conjectures were as baseless as Anthony's slander — saying them aloud would have been as irresponsible as defaming Uma. Moreover, Joseph knew Hugo trusted Uma, and she had no reason to harm him. So Joseph withdrew his gaze. He and Charlize exchanged a look, then both turned their attention elsewhere.
Breaking the silence, Kal spoke up. "Maybe… Tracy… or Ron…"
"No, absolutely not!" Hugo said firmly. He understood Kal's suggestion. Regardless of whether they were involved, Tracy and Ron had significant influence and could have helped, but Hugo had no intention of seeking their aid. "I'd rather handle this with my own ability. Whatever happens, I'll accept it."
Hearing Hugo's firm response, Kal shrugged and said no more. Hugo thought carefully. "Right now, worrying about how it happened or what future schemes might await us is pointless." His mind had been in chaos moments ago — Tracy, Ron, Anthony, the industry, the negative news all intertwining, impossible to untangle. Hugo was convincing himself and everyone else.
At this moment, trying to trace an unclear source or anticipate unseen threats was irrational. The priority was to deal with the chaos coming tomorrow. Afterwards, they would handle challenges as they arose. After all, the enemy is known, the threat hidden that's the only way forward.
"I think…" Hugo's voice regained a faint warmth, but this time it carried more determination than usual. "I think we should publicly admit our mistake to the media and avoid getting entangled with them…"
"Why?!" Alex interrupted him sharply, unable to comprehend the idea. "That damn reporter provoked you! He kept slandering and insulting you! Why should we admit fault? Why! This is unfair!"
"Alex…" Hugo tried to speak, but Alex impulsively stood up, shouting angrily, "We should expose that reporter's disgusting behavior! We have to fight back! Today he insulted you and you lowered your head — tomorrow everyone could insult you! This has no end!"
No one stopped Alex because everyone knew he had a point — even Hugo couldn't argue.
"But we have no evidence," Hugo said helplessly. "We don't have proof that the reporter slandered me. It all happened too fast. No one nearby heard our conversation. Unless he voluntarily provides evidence, we can't prove he provoked us intentionally."
"And involving defamation… you know this isn't easy," Hugo added.
Defamation is indeed a tricky matter in the United States.
In a country that values freedom of speech, every citizen can freely express political opinions and criticize government policies. Even if such criticism is entirely baseless or false, the government won't sue for defamation.
In theory, publicly attacking someone with false statements that cause economic or reputational damage constitutes defamation. In practice, it's far more complicated.
In the U.S., there are two groups of people who find it difficult to sue for defamation: government officials and celebrities. Government officials must endure criticism, even if it's completely false, without recourse. The same applies to public figures: insults are part of their profession. Suing over criticism is usually unsuccessful.
To maximize freedom of speech, celebrities find it extremely difficult to win defamation lawsuits. The main reason is that reports about public figures are often based on rumors to satisfy public interest and the right to information. Defamation requires proof of "economic or reputational loss."
Economic or reputational loss cannot be claimed without evidence. For example, if someone falsely claims that a person has a contagious disease or bad habits, causing them to lose a $100,000-per-year job, the victim would have valid evidence for a defamation suit. Proving mental or emotional damages may require disclosing medical bills. Without such evidence, suing is a waste of time, effort, and money.
Celebrities, as public figures, often cannot provide such evidence. Their lives exist under constant scrutiny; any "defamation" is mostly entertainment gossip, with harms that are difficult to document. For instance, if a public figure claims they lost a job interview due to slander, a hypothetical opportunity isn't admissible as evidence. Hence, using defamation to fight media attacks is rarely practical.
Hugo was, without a doubt, a public figure.
"Besides, even if we could prove he slandered us, the fact remains that we hit the reporter. There are witnesses and physical evidence the injuries on his face are proof. I can even imagine him deliberately showing those injuries to the media," Hugo continued. This was why he wanted to openly admit fault: facts cannot be altered. Taking responsibility is the right choice, rather than avoiding it.
"I should have hit him," Joseph muttered quietly. Though it was just a small comment, it somehow made everyone present laugh unexpectedly. Hugo nodded. "Yes, you should have hit him where it wouldn't be visible, like the ribs or the butt."
.....
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