America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Chapter 296: Chapter 293: Red Wing Operation

Century City, the WMA lobby was filled with warm applause, and Aniston waved with a smile as she walked to the private office area.

Accompanying her, Steve pointed to a luxurious office ahead, "Jen, this way."

But Aniston looked towards the row of offices they had passed, where Martin was standing at the doorway of one of them.

She gave a smile in that direction, saw Martin nod in response, and entered Steve's office.

Martin pushed open the frosted glass door and sat down across from Thomas.

Thomas asked, "How have you been resting lately?"

Martin responded, "I came back and started preparing for the next awards season. I barely had a preliminary plan and was ready to go on vacation with Blake, and then you called me to say that the Coca-Cola ad shoot was scheduled."

Thomas laughed, "You can always go on vacation after the ad is done." He got down to business, "The ad crew is settled. Coca-Cola is putting a lot of resources into this ad, and they've even invited Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes to direct."

Martin found the name familiar and, after a brief recollection, remembered—it was Kate's current husband.

So the big brands do hire top directors for ads.

Martin vaguely remembered that about 10 years later, David Fincher seemed to have shot a cyberpunk version of a Coca-Cola ad.

He had long forgotten the specifics.

If it hadn't been for David Fincher, he might have forgotten the ad right after watching it.

Thomas handed a fax to Martin, "The ad shoot is scheduled in Parker Town, Southern California. The crew has planned the schedule, and here's a list of the main crew members."

Martin quickly browsed through the list, and besides Sam Mendes, he saw a familiar name.

Elizabeth Olsen!

A coincidence, or the Olsen he knew?

Martin pulled out his phone and found Elizabeth's number to send a text.

Elizabeth immediately called back, "Yes, it's me! I'm going to be in your ad."

Martin replied, "That's great, looking forward to working with you."

Elizabeth had to go to class, so she hung up quickly.

"Are you following Leonardo's footsteps?" Thomas gossiped for once, "And who is this Elizabeth?"

Martin casually said, "Don't get it twisted, she's just a girl I saved at Burbank Middle School."

Thomas remembered, "The younger sister of the Olsen sisters?" He marveled, "A hero saving the beauty!"

Martin put down the fax, "Let me know the exact schedule after you coordinate with the ad crew. I have to go now."

He left the office and went to the WMA lobby where he waited a bit for Aniston to come down from upstairs.

The two chatted briefly and, as they both had things to do, parted ways.

…

At Angel Shooting Club, Chad Stahelski had finished firing two magazines and returned to the club's recreation area.

His friend Marcus, who he knew from there, was still sitting on the sofa, unmoved.

Chad grabbed two cans of Coke, placing one in front of Marcus. Continue reading at M-V-L

Marcus picked it up and saw Martin Davis's image on the can, "The Cola Cult?"

"Have you joined too?" Chad asked.

Marcus took a sip and said, "Lots of the guys in Afghanistan joined the Cola Cult as a break and a bit of fun in their work. It's a poor place and quite dull."

Chad laughed, "I'm a member of the Cola Cult too. Martin even said he'd make me a district bishop when we drink together."

Marcus gulped down half the can and stated, "I saw the video from Burbank Middle School. He's a really remarkable star. Only someone who's been in combat knows the courage it takes to remain calm in that kind of situation, to think of a plan and have the courage to face an armed thug."

Chad pondered and replied, "Martin is optimistic, humorous, and always finds a way. He loves to stir things up, but he's very loyal to his friends, so I always work with him."

Marcus asked, "Can I join your stunt team?"

"That's possible," said Chad, and then he listed a condition, "But you must complete a psychological treatment program."

Hearing this, Marcus said, "Actually, I'm not traumatized, but feeling guilty."

Seeing that Marcus seemed ready to talk, Chad asked, "What happened? Forget it if it's confidential."

"It's not confidential," Marcus started hesitantly then spoke vaguely, "In one of my squads, on a reconnaissance and infiltration mission, we came across three Afghan shepherds. In that situation, the shepherds could have compromised our location, but they were civilians..."

Chad nodded slightly.

Marcus ran his hands through his hair and continued, "The four of us were divided. Some suggested killing the shepherds, but I and another disagreed because we didn't want to end up in military prison. In the end, we voted and released the shepherds."

He sighed deeply, "Hours later, over a hundred armed militants surrounded us. Everyone apart from me was killed in action, and I was seriously injured. After falling behind a cliff, I was sheltered by local villagers. When the militants came looking, I thought the villagers would hand me over, but they protected me, bandaged my wounds, and fed me goat milk. I survived until rescue…"

Chad instantly recalled the news he glimpsed last year, "You're the SEAL that the terrorists claimed to have caught?"

Marcus admitted, "Yes, it was me." He then corrected, "They never caught me."

"It's all in the past, buddy," Chad wasn't one to console others, saying only this much.

Marcus sighed again, "If I had made a different choice back then, it might have been a completely different outcome."

Chad, a qualified filmmaker, suddenly felt that this story had a lot of dramatic conflict and seemed suitable for a movie adaptation?

He didn't have such capabilities himself, let alone the power to push a project forward, so he decided to go back and talk to Martin about it.

In the past two years of working together, Chad felt that Martin's strength was constantly growing; most importantly, he was able to secure funding and turn plans that existed on paper into real film projects.

Chad weighed his options quickly and said, "Let's meet in the next few days, I'll see what's suitable and take the opportunity to introduce Martin to you, you've met him once."

Marcus remembered, last time he saw Martin was at the Angel Shooting Club.

At that moment, the club owner, Cain, came over and said, "You two seem to be enjoying your conversation."

Marcus smiled, "Chad always shares the interesting happenings of the film circle with me, it's quite fascinating."

"Try to cheer up Marcus," Cain, understanding a bit of what this younger brother had been through, said, "What's past is past, you have to look forward, and not live in the past."

Chad nodded and added, "I'll make arrangements for Martin to come over some other day, and then we can have another match."

Cain replied, "No problem, I lost to Martin in last year's community shooting competition, and I've been looking to get back at him!"

He tapped the back of Marcus's chair and asked, "You can take your dog with you now, right?"

Getting up, Marcus said, "I found a new house, I came over this time just to pick up the dog."

Chad asked, "Where's the new place?"

Marcus said, "It's in South Santa Monica, I rented a detached house in an outskirts neighborhood, it's quite spacious for one person."

Chad recalled something, "I've heard the security isn't great on the south side; be careful when you come and go."

Marcus just smiled.

Chad slapped his forehead, "Look at me."

Then Cain took Marcus to collect his dogs, two Labradors named Daisy and John, both looking spirited.

Marcus crouched down and hugged the two beloved dogs, as if hugging children and family members.

After a good while, he led the two dogs out of the club.

Getting into the car, Marcus bumped heads with the dogs and waved at Chad, then drove away.

Cain said, "In Los Angeles, Daisy and John are Marcus's family."

"I've got a dog too, a German Shepherd," Chad mentioned. During the filming of "Wanted Order," he adopted a stray pup on set. He pointed towards his car, "I'm going, let's talk some other day."

Once in the car, Chad immediately called Martin, "Remember Marcus? He was involved in a special battle in Afghanistan; there was media coverage last year, about the local armed forces claiming to have kidnapped a SEAL. Marcus is that SEAL. I advise you to meet him personally to see if there's value in adapting his story."

On the other end, Martin responded, "No problem, pick a suitable time."

Chad asked, "Are you available tomorrow morning? Good, then let's meet at Angel's Club?"

Martin, who wouldn't be going to Parker Town to shoot a commercial until the following week, said right away, "That's fine."

…

Burbank, a business club near Sacred Valley.

Some of Hollywood's female producers and directors occasionally gather here.

On one hand, it's women helping women, mutual reciprocity; on the other hand, they enjoy the various benefits that come with female power.

Following Scorsese's favorite casting director Ellen, Mene entered the club's entertainment hall.

About a dozen women and five or six men were gathered there.

The youngest seemed to be around forty.

Mene spotted his target, Emma Thomas, almost immediately.

It wasn't that the female producer was particularly beautiful, but in a group of women in their forties, fifties, and even sixties, she was relatively young.

Mene had pleased Ellen the night before, and she let him roam freely.

After making a quick round, Mene acted as if he had just noticed Emma Thomas and went over to greet her, "Hi, Emma, I thought it was you as soon as I walked in, and indeed it is."

Having talked at the Warner Bros. annual party, Emma Thomas remembered Mene and smiled with a nod, surprised, "What brings you here?"

Mene pointed at Ellen, "Director Lewis brought me."

Emma Thomas had heard about Mene from Ellen last year, hence her curiosity. She waved down a waiter for two drinks, handing one to Mene, "Join me for a drink, shall we talk for a bit?"

Mene sat opposite Emma and soon they were chatting animatedly.

By the time the gathering dispersed, although they didn't leave together, they had exchanged their personal contact details.