[Chapter 279: Daniel's First Time]
Previously, following Daniel's suggestion, Rachel had played the role of Pepper Potts in Iron Man. At the time, Daniel's intention was to give Rachel a stable foundation. After all, this role could support her career for years. That way, it wouldn't be pointless for her to give Daniel $200,000 every month.
But as they say, man proposes, God disposes.
He and Rachel had ended up together. He even secured her an Oscar for Best Actress.
Now, Marvel was benefiting from Rachel's fame.
The way things turned out was truly magical.
Daniel leaned back in his chair, a faint smile curling the corner of his mouth. "Those two are shrewd businessmen; they certainly won't let this kind of hype go to waste."
"However..." Chris shifted the topic, her tone carrying a hint of schadenfreude. "Master, your troubles aren't just limited to that. Amanda, Megan, Anne, and Jessica have all sent messages -- they want to be Oscar Best Actress winners too."
Daniel immediately looked like he had a headache. "All of them want it?"
"Pretty much." Chris chuckled, covering her mouth. "Their eyes turned red with envy when they saw Rachel take home the little gold man. Who wouldn't want to stand in that theater, in front of a global audience, and say 'thank you'?"
...
Beverly Hills, early morning.
Daniel sat on a dining chair, flipping through the newly delivered copy of The Hollywood Reporter. The front page featured a large photo of Rachel on the Oscar stage. The caption was wildly exaggerated.
Meanwhile, in a short commentary in the corner, someone had already begun digging into the identity of the mysterious "Male companion" behind Rachel.
"Ding-dong."
The doorbell rang rhythmically.
Daniel didn't even look up. "Chris, go open the door and see which of these little queens has arrived."
Before long, Jessica walked in, clicking her high heels. She carried the faint scent of high-end perfume, sunglasses perched on top of her head.
As soon as she entered, she strode straight behind Daniel and pressed her hands onto his shoulders.
"Daniel, I want that little gold man too."
Jessica got straight to the point, her tone carrying a touch of bossy willfulness rarely seen from her.
Daniel put down the newspaper and leaned back into her touch. "That depends on whether you're hardworking enough."
Jessica circled around to face him and sat directly astride his lap. "I'm very hardworking, don't you know?"
Daniel smiled and caught her mischievous hand, his gaze growing serious. "Rachel won because the script for Walk the Line was tailor-made for her. And during those three months, she truly brought June Carter to life."
He looked into her eyes. "Jessica, to be honest, with your current acting skills, you might have a shot at a Golden Globe for Musical or Comedy. But for the Oscars... you're still a bit lacking in refinement."
Jessica's face stiffened, her gaze dimming slightly.
Daniel patted her waist. "Besides... good scripts require a bit of luck."
Just as he finished speaking, the doorbell rang again.
Amanda and Liv walked in together.
Seeing Jessica there, their expressions flickered subtly before quickly masking any hint of discomfort.
"Looks like everyone's thinking the same thing."
Amanda tucked a stray hair behind her ear, her eyes locked onto Daniel.
Looking at these three women gathered together, Daniel felt his temples throb.
And that wasn't even counting Megan, who was filming in Detroit and had been crying on the phone yesterday about wanting a trophy, or Anne, who was in New York, busy with reshoots for The Devil Wears Prada.
"Everyone, sit down and talk."
Daniel stood and gestured toward the large circular sofa in the living room.
The three women sat down obediently, their gazes fixed sharply on him.
"If you want an Oscar, acting skills are the basic requirement."
Daniel looked at them, his voice low and steady.
"Amanda, your explosive power is impressive, but you don't handle details delicately enough. As for Jessica and Liv..." He turned, his gaze sweeping over Jessica's face. "The commercial labels on both of you are just too heavy right now. When the audience sees you, their first reaction is 'beauty,' not 'acting.' To the judges, that's a fatal flaw."
The room cooled into silence, save for the sound of steady breathing.
Daniel continued, "I'll keep an eye out for scripts for you. But this year, your task is to act well in the roles you currently have. You can take on endorsements and commercial work, but as for scripts... I'll vet them for you."
After calming the women and promising to find suitable "award-aiming projects" for them, the atmosphere in the room finally relaxed.
Since they couldn't get a little gold man in the short term, these women began demanding "compensation."
...
For the next three days, Daniel barely stepped outside the villa.
By the time he'd dealt with all of these vixens, Daniel stood before the bathroom mirror, looking at his still-fit, marble-like physique, and smiled bitterly.
'Lucky I reached the Fourth Tier of Body Enhancement... otherwise, I really wouldn't have been able to handle them.'
"Master, you look a bit weak."
Succubus Chris, now dressed in an extremely seductive set of black lace lingerie, appeared at the bathroom door. She bit her red lip, her gaze so hot it almost seemed ready to ignite.
"Not finished tossing me around yet?"
Daniel wiped water from his face and looked up at Chris, who leaned against the doorframe.
Chris swayed her hips as she walked over, her fingertips lightly tracing the muscles of Daniel's chest. She left a faint red mark. "I'm just worried about you, Master. After all, these ladies are even greedier than the demons in Hell."
Daniel patted her hand away and wrapped a bath towel around his waist. "Help me keep an eye on the news outside. The time is almost here."
...
The time came at the end of March 2006.
The Hollywood sky was transparently blue, but the air was thick with the scent of drawn swords and bent bows.
Inside a conference room at the Paramount building, Brad stared at the pre-sale data on the screen.
Not far away, at Sony Pictures and Warner Bros., countless eyes were fixed on the movie about to be released.
Under Daniel's intervention, The Pursuit of Happyness -- a film originally slated for a late-year release -- had hit theaters more than six months early.
This was Daniel's first true cross-industry debut.
It wasn't just about exorcism anymore.
It was his first real invasion into Hollywood's traditional territory as a producer and capital tycoon...
...
Inside a luxury mansion in Malibu, Will Smith sat on a leather sofa in his private theater, holding a glass of whiskey.
His agent, James, sat beside him, expression somewhat uneasy.
"Will, the word-of-mouth from the test screenings is already out," James said softly.
Will Smith took a sharp gulp of his drink and let out a cold laugh.
"Those critics took Paramount's money, so of course they'll say good things. I want to hear the truth. That kid hiring Denzel to act -- that was a mistake from the start. That role... only I could have portrayed that soul struggling at the bottom yet never losing its warmth."
He put down the glass, his gaze brooding. "Just wait and see. In three days, the audience will vote with their wallets. An outsider who only knows how to catch ghosts can't possibly understand our history of struggle."
...
Inside an office at Marvel headquarters, Avi Arad and Isaac Perlmutter weren't idle either.
"Isaac, do you think we should wait and see a bit longer?" Avi rubbed his chin. "If Daniel Cross fails this time, we might be able to try buying back some of those heroes' copyrights."
*****
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