Joseph could tell things hadn't gone well the moment he saw Hugo's expression as he walked out. Honestly, he had expected it—after all, that woman wasn't someone easy to deal with. Still, he had held on to a shred of hope, which was why he insisted Hugo come to the audition for "A River Runs Through It". Given Hugo's current situation, he wasn't in any position to be picky. But in the end, it was still a failure.
Joseph had originally planned to go up to him—Hugo didn't look too good—but he stopped in his tracks as soon as two provocateurs appeared. Hugo now looked completely different from before. More precisely, different from how he was before last night. He now seemed much brighter, a lot more upbeat; his entire demeanor had become more positive. He looked like a sunny, handsome young man, yet he seemed a bit less impulsive, with a touch more humor. When Joseph heard Hugo mock those two guys, he couldn't help but chuckle.
Was this... a good thing? Joseph wasn't too sure.
Seeing Hugo pass by him, Joseph quickly followed, and the two entered the elevator together, leaving the noisy hallway behind on the third floor. Joseph carefully studied Hugo, as if trying to see past his handsome appearance and into the depths of his soul.
Joseph's intense gaze made Hugo uncomfortable. He frowned and looked back at him. His first instinct was to ask, "What are you staring at?" But Joseph's icy blue eyes seemed to cut right through his "disguise" and pierce into the real Chen Hugo. This startled Hugo, and he instinctively averted his eyes, stupidly fixing them on the elevator's digital floor display.
Ding. The elevator reached the first floor from the third. Hugo pretended to be calm and glanced at Joseph. "What, you're not going to ask about how the audition went?"
He honestly had no idea what an agent's job actually entailed. From what he'd seen about top-tier stars, their teams included makeup artists, nutritionists, personal trainers—those were just the add-ons. The must-haves were agents, managers, assistants, PR reps... a whole complicated list. It was all a mystery to Hugo. Naturally, he thought Joseph should be showing more concern about his audition outcome. Besides, it was a great way to shift that unsettling gaze.
Joseph became increasingly aware that something was off with Hugo. Even though he'd only taken over as Hugo's agent from Ron Meyer a year ago, this was definitely not how the two of them used to interact.
Joseph didn't bother hiding his stare, which made Hugo's heart skip a beat. He didn't know what the old Hugo Lancaster had been like before the body swap, but there was no way they could be identical. It was only natural that others would notice something was wrong. Hugo thought about the inevitable meeting with the Lancaster couple in the future—perhaps it was best to start handling Joseph head-on now.
With that thought, Hugo turned to Joseph and bluntly asked, "What is it? Do you think something's off?"
The elevator hadn't moved since they got in, and now the doors were closing again. Though no one had pressed a button, the elevator began ascending, likely because someone upstairs had just called it.
Joseph gave Hugo a hard look, raising his brow slightly. His face remained expressionless, but he spoke simply, "No. Just... you've changed a lot. You're not like before."
Hugo almost blurted out something about how he went through a near-death experience last night. But he suddenly realized Joseph hadn't specified when the change started—if he brought it up first, that would be suspicious. So he swallowed his words and instead asked, "What do you mean, in what way?"
Joseph paused briefly before continuing, "Almost every way. Aside from that face, your entire presence has changed." He hesitated for a moment as he looked at Hugo's warm smile. "I mean since last night."
Hugo's smile remained as warm as morning sunlight at 9 a.m., gently dispelling any chill. "Joseph, if you met Jesus or an angel, I'm sure you'd have a new outlook on life too."
"So you're saying you met heaven yesterday? Got summoned by the Lord?" Joseph shot back quickly, clearly not planning to give Hugo time to think.
At that moment, the elevator dinged again and opened at the eighth floor. A hotel staff member stood at the door, gave a polite bow to the guests inside, and then entered. Seeing no buttons had been pressed, the staffer asked, "Which floor, please?"
"First," Joseph answered casually. After the staffer pressed the button, he stood quietly to one side without speaking further.
Joseph thought Hugo would use the presence of another person as an excuse to dodge the topic, but to his surprise, Hugo kept talking. "No. Just brushed past death and decided to appreciate life a bit more. At the very least, I don't want to lose consciousness while floating in the clouds."
Hugo didn't make any grand declarations or emotional statements, just offered a simple, self-deprecating remark full of quiet regret. But that sincerity was exactly what made Joseph fall silent.
Indeed, a lot had happened last night. If Hugo's breaking down and rebuilding had caused these changes, then it wasn't so surprising after all. Besides, the Hugo now was much more pleasant than before — that was a good sign, wasn't it? With this thought, Joseph didn't bring up the topic again. Instead, he hoped that Hugo's transformation could continue and that he wouldn't revert to his old self after a while.
From the ride down to the first floor, exiting the elevator, the valet bringing over the battered Volkswagen Golf, to the two of them leaving the Four Seasons Hotel, Joseph and Hugo didn't speak again, both lost in their own thoughts.
"So, you haven't asked about the audition earlier. Is it because you already knew the result, or is there something I don't know about?" Hugo was the first to break the silence. He wasn't sure if Joseph had bought into what he said earlier, but at least on the surface, Joseph didn't have any more questions. So, what Hugo needed to do now was to stay calm, act as if nothing had happened, not make a fuss, and not scare himself. That would, in turn, minimize Joseph's suspicions.
Hugo thought back carefully to the audition process. No matter how he looked at it, it seemed like his failure had been predestined. And the fact that Joseph didn't ask a single question after leaving the conference room was extremely abnormal.
Joseph was driving. Today's audition was at the Four Seasons Hotel located downtown, and it was currently the morning rush hour, so the roads were badly congested. He took a quick glance at Hugo, then sighed softly. Joseph knew he couldn't hide this from Hugo. This, in turn, proved that his suspicions about Hugo's odd behavior had been unnecessary. He was still the same intelligent young man as before.
"Tracy is one of the producers of A River Runs Through It." Joseph avoided eye contact with Hugo, not daring to look at him, then added, "She was personally invited into the project by Robert Redford after the project was finalized, which is why I didn't receive any prior notice."
Tracy? Hugo searched his memory, and a flash of insight struck him. "You mean Tracy Jacobs?"
A look of surprise appeared on Hugo's face, surprised that he actually remembered the name and the secret behind it. But in Joseph's eyes, that expression became one of shock and anger. Joseph pursed his lips slightly, "Hugo, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have insisted you attend today's audition." Unfortunately, Hugo didn't respond because he had already fallen deep into thought.
Every industry has its unspoken rules that's a fact, and an unavoidable one. Hugo knew this very well. In the U.S., thanks to the actors' guild, there were already strong protections in place for performers. The era of rampant casting couch behavior had long been reined in.
Nowadays, to prevent under-the-table deals in the casting process, each audition required the presence of the director, producer, and agent. The so-called producer also known as the "executive producer" was either the film's investor or someone who could bring in sponsorships. The commercial nature of a film meant that producers were a critical part of the production and had a say in all aspects of the project. Agents fell into two categories: personal agents hired by actors, or, for those without one, union-appointed shared agents to ensure the actor's rights were protected.
Casting decisions had to be made jointly by all three parties. This was the strongest safeguard against under-the-table dealings. Even if an actor was willing to compromise and tried to bribe or curry favor with all three, it still didn't guarantee they'd get the role.
That's because no one involved could afford the blame for a failed movie. The director couldn't risk it as it would damage their career; the producer couldn't either — independent producers invested their own money, and those working for a studio had a company watching their every move; and agents certainly couldn't their income came from commissions based on actors' earnings, and if the project failed, it brought them nothing.
So, under this system, the so-called unspoken rules and shady deals had been minimized as much as possible.
But then again, how many people would truly refuse if they knew sleeping with a director or producer could get them acting gigs? Put simply, sleeping with a director or producer in exchange for an opportunity to perform was the fastest way to fame for many actors a bargain too good to pass up, and plenty were willing to give it a try.
In other words, unspoken rules were no longer hidden in the shadows they were openly placed on the table and had evolved into a case of one party willing to hit and the other willing to be hit.
...
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