Apart from the mistake of Hugo's lateness, as the stage manager, Alej had a responsibility to keep the production running smoothly. Even if Hugo needed to be punished for being late, it wasn't Alej's place to enforce it; after all, Hugo was the lead Actor of the production, and if an Actor were to be replaced, it would naturally be decided by the producer.Listen to Hugo's statement just now; although he was late, he had been delayed at the studio—he specifically apologized to the Staff Member, and then was delayed further by Alej. All in all, at least twenty minutes had passed. These things could be investigated; Hugo had no way to lie. So, adding it all up, Hugo was actually less than five minutes late.In short, Alej had interfered, which severely delayed the production's first script reading. Hugo was certainly at fault, but Alej, as the stage manager, was even more inexcusable. No wonder all the Actors in the conference room were glaring at Alej.Joseph listened to Hugo's explanation. With a calm demeanor, he had quietly completed a counterattack, not only sincerely admitting his mistake but also leaving Alej completely unable to refute him. This released some of the frustration in Joseph's heart, but he still didn't show it, only keeping his head down to show sincerity while looking at the dumbfounded Alej out of the corner of his eye.Alej was now completely unable to speak, and he was also unable to defend himself because everything Hugo said was the truth. He wanted to retort, but Rob directly interrupted him, "You can leave now. The script reading is about to start." Alej stood still, but Jack lost his temper again, "If we delay any longer, let's just cancel today's practice." Then another assistant director kept signaling to Alej, which finally made Alej leave the conference room, looking dejected and unwilling.Before leaving, Alej glared fiercely at Hugo, but Hugo had his back to the conference room door and didn't give him any response. Then, the conference room door was "slammed" shut by Joseph, ruthlessly isolating Alej outside."I'm really sorry for the inconvenience I've caused." Hugo walked quickly to the first seat on Rob's right and sat down. Joseph found an empty seat among the two rows of chairs against the wall of the conference room.Jack glanced at Hugo, "Instead of apologizing, you'd better start reading the script."It was only then that Hugo really looked at the man in front of him. Jack was fifty-five years old this year. His hairline had receded significantly, revealing a full, broad forehead with fine wrinkles writing the traces of time. In fact, Jack was not a typical handsome man. His eyes were not sharp, and he didn't have any special aura. At this moment, he was wearing a simple lake-blue shirt without any decoration or embellishment. However, there was a silent aura about him, as if he could hold the entire scene in his hands.In this regard, Jack was very similar to Al Pacino, whom Hugo had worked with not long ago. From Jack to Al Pacino, to Dustin Hoffman and Robert De Niro, they were not typical handsome men. Al Pacino was very handsome, but his height was a fatal flaw, and Robert De Niro fit many people's definition of a handsome man, but compared to handsome men like Tom, Brad, and Hugo, there was still a gap.However, these four masters of acting all possessed their own unique qualities, and the key was that they were able to integrate these qualities into their performances, thereby creating classics. This was the true aura.No wonder people jokingly said that handsome men, like beautiful women, were not easily recognized by the academy. Looking back at the winners of the best actor in Oscar history, the proportion of handsome men was pitifully small. Not to mention the distant past, just looking at Al Pacino, he only achieved his wish after being nominated for an Oscar eight times. And the most famous one in the twenty-first century was Leonardo, whom Hugo had met not long ago. The path of this handsome man to the oscar statuette could definitely be described as bumpy.Therefore, it was not easy for Hugo to be recognized for his acting skills. Appearance was a stepping stone, but it could also be a stumbling block.Sitting on Hugo's right was the film's lead actress, Demi. After twelve years in the entertainment industry, Demi finally reached the peak of her career with the 1990 film "ghost," which also pushed her salary into the eight-million-dollar range, making her one of the top actresses today.There were many reasons why Demi accepted the script for "a few good men" this time, such as wanting to challenge a brand-new role, or because working with Tom and Jack would be interesting, but what Demi definitely did not expect was that Hugo would become the male lead of the film.It is worth mentioning the unspoken stories between Hugo and Bruce Willis. Tracy gave up on Bruce and chose Hugo to film "hudson hawk." Although the film failed, Bruce still inevitably had a grudge. And Demi was Bruce's wife.Therefore, it was not hard to find the reason for Demi's indifferent, exclusionary gaze at this moment.Facing Jack's anger and Demi's coldness, Hugo did not offer any more excuses. He quickly lowered his head and opened the "a few good men" script in front of him.This was the first time Hugo had seen the film's script. Everything was so unfamiliar to him. Every line, every scene, every character had to be started from scratch. At this moment, a group of people was sitting around the conference table, including not only the three main leads—Hugo, Jack, and Demi—but also a series of supporting Actors who had arrived at the scene for the script reading. They had already been delayed for some time and were getting impatient. The whispering made the conference room seem a bit stuffy and noisy."Then let's begin," said Jack, who clearly didn't want to wait any longer.Rob looked at Hugo, giving him an inquiring look. Hugo had only just received the script and didn't understand anything, but he still gave Rob a confirming look, indicating he was fine. Then Rob said, "Guantanamo, Daniel's first formal meeting with Colonel Jessup."After Rob finished speaking, the sound of page-turning rustled through the conference room. Hugo glanced at Demi's actions on his right and hurriedly turned the page, but because he was not familiar with the script, Hugo's movement was ultimately a bit slow. However, Demi saw Hugo's embarrassment but had no intention of offering help; she just sat quietly. Fortunately, Rob reached out his right hand and helped Hugo turn to the correct page. Hugo looked up and gave Rob a smile to express his gratitude."Begin," Rob ordered. Then, they heard Jack's steady yet relaxed voice saying, "Nathan Jessup, please come in."Hugo was still looking for the specific location of his lines and didn't react for a moment, but he soon noticed the silence in the conference room. He couldn't help but look up, only to find everyone looking at him. Hugo thought to himself: Was it his turn to take the line? This was really...In such an occasion, especially since everyone didn't like Hugo to begin with, no one would understand Hugo's situation. Their eyes were filled with nothing but indifference and curiosity. Joseph, sitting in the back, couldn't bear to look and closed his eyes in annoyance, regretting once again that he had overslept that morning.Hugo knew that repeated apologies would be ineffective, and no one would buy it. So this time, he didn't speak but used an apologetic smile to ease the awkwardness in the conference room. Fortunately, Hugo received a friendly look from the crowd. Hugo took a glance; it was actually Kevin Bacon. Hugo had worked with him on "the little diner," which Hugo still remembered. Kevin gave Hugo a smile and looked encouragingly at the script in front of Hugo. Hugo didn't have extra time to respond, so he could only return a smile and then bowed his head to look at his script."Thank you, sir. I am Daniel Kaffee, the lawyer for Dawson and Donnie..." Hugo found the lines and began to read without any pause. Although this was the first time Hugo had seen the lines, this part was not difficult, so Hugo read the whole paragraph of introductions, although the rhythm was a bit slow, fortunately, he didn't make any mistakes."Is there anything we can do for you, Daniel?" Jack didn't make any mistakes and read the lines without any difficulty. Moreover, one could clearly feel that the man in front of them was not Jack, but Colonel Jessup. Jack's ability to control his acting so freely was truly admirable. Hugo was still a long way from this level."Uh, nothing, sir. It's purely routine. The Judge Advocate General's office requires... uh, sorry." Hugo finally stumbled. Although this line was not long, because Hugo was not very familiar with it, it was inevitable that he would stutter in the process of reading it. "The Judge Advocate General's office requires us to meet with all relevant witnesses." Hugo still finished the second half of the line.The next line was originally Demi's, but it was directly interrupted by Jack. "Hugo," this impatient voice made everyone in the conference room focus their attention again. "If you think a script reading is just reading the lines, then you are wrong."A script reading is not just about reciting lines; it is actually an occasion to cultivate chemistry between Actors, and even requires Actors to get into character and have an emotional dialogue. Although there was no filming, the state of the Actors was not much different from the official shooting.Jack was clearly very dissatisfied with Hugo's slightly flat and stumbling line reading just now. After he finished speaking, he put the script on the table. "Let's take a half-hour break before starting again. Even if we practice like this, there will be no results." After saying that, he stood up directly and turned to leave the conference room.Immediately after, Demi also stood up and turned to leave. Seeing that the two main leads had left, and after getting Rob's permission, the other Actors also stood up one after another. The quiet and order of the conference room were broken in an instant. No one cared about Hugo's feelings, just chatting and laughing as they left the conference room.Hugo looked at the script he had only received for less than five minutes, but he couldn't say any defense. He could only swallow his bitterness.
