Eight hours of besieging the "50/50" crew passed, yet Renly's figure remained unseen. It seemed that the situation was gradually turning into a protracted battle.
Now, many reporters were beginning to retreat. Reporters weren't paparazzi, after all. Their daily lives and reporting style were vastly different. They could run around for a piece of news but wouldn't wait around for a piece of gossip for too long.
Moreover, the Oscars were looming, and Renly was sure to attend. By then, they could witness Renly's physical condition firsthand and even confront him on the red carpet. All the doubts would be laid bare. It was so simple; they didn't need to wait around here for a long time or spend sleepless nights in their cars.
However, leaving directly like this… felt too frustrating.
Although the era of the unofficial kings was long gone, especially with the rise of social networks like Facebook and Photo Wall, which made everyone a potential news source, the threshold for reporters had indeed lowered. Yet, as professional journalists, they had never suffered such a loss, especially under the banner of the "Hollywood Expedition Team." They had traveled together, only to return empty-handed?
It was too embarrassing, too shameful, too exasperating.
As a result, the journalists' minds started churning.
Cornell McGregor from Entertainment Weekly was also part of the Hollywood Expedition Team. Originally, the magazine had dispatched another reporter, but upon hearing it was about Renly, he volunteered to come instead. The editor-in-chief was aware that Cornell had been following Renly's news for the past half year.
Cornell didn't like Renly, especially after the Sundance Film Festival. His dislike grew stronger; he felt that Renly was putting on a facade. That gentlemanly appearance was nothing more than a mask of hypocrisy. Underneath that facade was just a scoundrel.
He kept chanting "actor, actor, actor," but looking at the developments of the past half year, who had ultimately benefited? Wasn't it Renly? In the blink of an eye, he secured his first Oscar nomination and his fame skyrocketed. He was quietly amassing wealth and receiving praise without deserving it. It was truly contemptible.
As he looked at the apartment lights that had turned off early in the distance, Cornell couldn't swallow the lump in his chest. "50/50" had just finished filming in the apartment. After wrapping up, everyone left one after another. But Renly never showed his face. Now, he had even decided to stay in the apartment, making it clear he wouldn't give the journalists the time of day, leaving them waiting in vain.
It was just 9 PM now. Who would go to bed at 9 PM these days? Truly preposterous!
This was likely Renly's usual ploy: leveraging opportunities. Riding the momentum of the Oscars, he would self-promote and create publicity. In the past half year, this wasn't the first time.
He won an Emmy award and unexpectedly made street performance videos go viral. Natalie Portman took a hit, but "Buried" garnered countless attention. "Like Crazy" was a hit at Sundance, leading to Renly's first Oscar nomination. And now? The rumors were cleared up, allowing "50/50" to enter the public eye. Seth even came out personally to vouch for him!
It was like this, it must be like this!
This was another act of self-promotion. Next, "Fast 5" was about to be released. Renly was nothing more than a third lead, and his presence was ultimately overshadowed by Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. However, after this round of publicity and with the upcoming Oscars, he was bound to ascend strongly, and he could also use the opportunity to promote "50/50"!
As Cornell pondered, his thoughts became active, and he firmly believed in his idea. So, he opened his laptop and swiftly began tapping away on the keyboard.
After finishing the draft, he quickly reviewed it, confirmed its accuracy, and then sent the email. Only then did Cornell reveal a satisfied expression.
"A Self-Directed and Staged Drama? Malicious Promotion by Renly Hall?"
Just this one title was immensely sensational and explosive, enough to stir up a huge commotion.
In this article, Cornell elaborated on the whole sequence of events, describing what had happened upon arriving in Seattle. He emphasized Renly's deliberate absence at least three times and pointed out that this contradicted Seth's statements. If Renly was truly in good health, appearing to clear things up would have been the simplest way, and it wouldn't have sparked so much debate. However, it had been thirty-six hours since the gossip from the National Enquirer, and Renly was still refusing to show up. Why?
"There could be many reasons, which are difficult to speculate for outsiders. But it can't be denied that during this period, "50/50" has become well-known, and many people have even started discussing what kind of comedy would prompt Renly to choose it after two consecutive highly praised artistic works."
This was where Cornell's brilliance shone.
After reading the entire article, everything was factual, precise facts cited, including the official statement from "50/50". Moreover, Cornell refrained from speculative comments, even actively avoiding them. However, at the article's conclusion, he laid out another fact: "50/50" had indeed garnered significant attention.
Especially since it had been reported by The Village Voice before that Renly had been on the waiting list for "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo", a topic-rich movie, and now it turned out he hadn't chosen that film but a comedy instead. This made the explosive effect even more apparent.
Facts upon facts, combined with facts. Yet, under Cornell's effective arrangement and the guidance of the title, a simple association arose: all of this was Renly's promotion strategy, designed to elevate "50/50", riding the wave of the Oscars to promote it extensively.
In essence, this was similar to the technique of montage in film editing. The connection between shots held profound meaning.
For instance, if the first shot depicted someone with an expressionless face, the content of the second shot would guide the audience's inference. If the second shot had a gray and gloomy tone, viewers would naturally interpret the expression in the previous shot as negative. On the other hand, if the second shot featured a sunny and cheerful scene, viewers would automatically assume that the previous shot's expression was positive.
Now, although Cornell's article stated facts, the arrangement and combination held significant meaning, leading to a wide array of interpretations.
Although Entertainment Weekly was a gossip magazine, they still held their own integrity and beliefs. They wouldn't fabricate evidence out of thin air; they would daringly speculate on the existing foundation, play with the art of language, and guide readers to think in the direction they hoped for without causing trouble.
Cornell, as a senior reporter for Entertainment Weekly, truly had a knack for this.
Indeed, after this article was published on the web version of Entertainment Weekly, the previously subdued discussions once again began to bubble up with fervor. If all of this was a self-directed and staged performance by the "50/50" crew, or even further, if it was all Renly himself orchestrating, just for self-promotion, then that would be truly explosive. It was likely that the entire Hollywood would be turned upside down.
In recent times, Natalie had been deeply embroiled in the stunt double incident, and due to the speculative guesses of Entertainment Weekly, suspicions were raised that Natalie had used Renly's scandal as a shield. Without any evidence, they left Natalie in an embarrassing situation. Now, was it Renly's turn?
Character issues weren't the most important for artists. Sean Penn had served time for domestic violence in his early years, Robert Downey Jr. had been incarcerated for drug-related offenses, and Hugh Grant's sex scandal had been directly exposed... As for such self-promotion, it was countless in Hollywood. It should be said that artists who didn't self-promote were the exception.
However, while self-promotion was common, getting caught in the act wasn't good for reputation. For those self-righteous academy judges, they cherished their reputation. They even disassociated themselves from idol actors, let alone people who employed any means necessary for fame and fortune.
This was also why Natalie's struggle for the Oscar Best Actress title had turned into a bitter battle. Now, after Natalie, was Renly also about to fall from grace?
Internet users were once again excited. It wasn't just internet users; reporters were as if injected with chicken blood, discussing various possibilities with great fervor.
Beyond Entertainment Weekly, other newspapers and magazines were not fools. They followed suit, analyzing the ins and outs of the incident and every suspicious detail. It was as if they were Sherlock Holmes themselves, determined to unearth the truth behind the matter. The entire "50/50" crew was caught in the encirclement of reporters. Not to mention Seth, Anna, and other core actors; even the crew members became subjects of interviews.
Then, TMZ burst out with the latest shocking revelation, "Renly Hall is arrogant, self-conceited, and thinks he's above others. He refuses to communicate with crew members on set, ignores other actors, and even gives Director Jonathan the cold shoulder. Furthermore, Renly never attends any gatherings of the crew, excusing it as preparation for the next shoot, but he's actually just sleeping at home..."
This exposé spanned a whopping six hundred words, an internal revelation from the "50/50" crew.
Now the situation became lively. Different from the National Enquirer, TMZ's report propelled the development into an unknown direction. Not only was Renly orchestrating this round of self-promotion, but he was also reported to have character issues and unprofessional behavior?
Did that mean that all the previous praise for Renly was just a false halo?
Just when people thought the situation couldn't get any more chaotic, a voice emerged once again on the internet, "Renly Hall comes from a well-established background, and the Hollywood big shots have all paved the way for his career. It's been like this since "The Pacific". His rapid rise over the past year was entirely the result of everyone's combined efforts."
Boom! Nuclear Blast!