Back at the hotel, Laila didn't want to move at all. She leaned against Roy, her entire body exhausted.
"So tired?" Roy embraced her waist, supporting her weight with concern.
"Tired." Laila was like a boneless doll, not even bothering to move her fingers. Just a meal and the round-trip car journey took nearly two hours. Despite the pleasant environment and good food, being surrounded by people complimenting her left her feeling physically and mentally exhausted.
"If you're tired, don't accept other people's invitations anymore." Many people had extended invitations as they were leaving, hoping Laila would accept. Roy didn't understand why Easterners liked inviting people to meals so much. Although he enjoyed Eastern cuisine, excessive indulgence wasn't a good thing.
Laila responded with a simple "Hmm," saying, "I won't accept them anymore. Let's go back."
"You're willing to go back?" Roy raised an eyebrow, casting a sidelong glance at her. He had been waiting for this moment for a long time. As long as he didn't have to see that person, he wanted to leave right away.
"Wishes fulfilled, why stay here? Work is more important!" She was referring to Leslie Cheung's matter, but Roy automatically interpreted it as related to the movie. Since they came for the film, leaving after watching it made sense.
"Then let's go back. We indeed have a lot of work to do!" Even if there was no work, he would find something. Given Laila's nature as a workaholic girlfriend, he was sure she would choose work over that "old man."
Seeing Roy's expression in the reflection on the elevator wall, Laila knew he was feeling jealous again. But she didn't mind this feeling; some people enjoyed seeing their partners jealous—it was a bit satisfying.
So, the next day, when someone wanted to visit Laila at the hotel under the pretext of checking on her, the answer they got was that she had already checked out and left. As for where she went, how would the hotel staff know?
By the time the media found out that Laila's private plane had already left Hong Kong, she had long returned to Zhangjiajie. Before leaving, she didn't forget to send a copy of the new movie script to Leslie Cheung.
She knew she was impulsive. Adding an Eastern face to a purely Western literary work might seem out of place. But he was her "big brother," her idol. It wasn't too much to be a bit impulsive for an idol she loved occasionally, right?
She believed that aside from having an Eastern face, Leslie Cheung's acting skills wouldn't be inferior to other Hollywood actors. Moreover, with Xiao Ye's presence, maybe they could surprise the audience with makeup. Anyway, she had made up her mind—even if makeup couldn't save it, she still wanted him in her movie. Keeping him tied to work would prevent him from being trapped by depression again.
When Laila and the others returned to Zhangjiajie, Yao Yingxia was the happiest. She had genuinely worried that Laila might not come back.
This time, when Laila returned, she decided to thoroughly study the terrain of the area. She wanted to recreate the most beautiful scenes in her film, showing people which country was truly favored by the gods, not just those who considered New Zealand a fairyland.
Spending a month, Laila, accompanied by Roy, traveled through various cities in the East, seeing mountains and crossing dense forests. The vast territory of the East, as Yao Yingxia had said, offered any kind of terrain one could imagine. The more she looked, the more places she discovered that could be used in the film.
Not only Zhangjiajie but also Guilin, Shangri-La, and countless breathtaking landscapes. This made her feel the urge to abandon New Zealand and bring all the scenes to the East.
Initially, she came here to promote the East and chose this location because of the unforgettable scenes in "Avatar." She felt that New Zealand had performed well in the original version, and it would be convenient to choose it. However, after this period of observation, she thought it might be a good idea to shoot all the scenes here. It would save the trouble of running between two countries and could save a considerable amount in the budget.
Most importantly, she wasn't sure if it was a good idea, but she had plenty of time. She wasn't in a hurry to make a decision.
After concluding the tour of the East, Laila finally returned to the United States.
For such a large country, one month was undoubtedly not enough for location scouting. But she had to return for her younger brother William's birthday and the official start of the promotion for "Iron Man," as informed by Louise.
The "Iron Man" film series was an essential piece of Laila's future career puzzle. Some people still underestimated this second-tier superhero, and Robert Downey Jr.'s once-debauched past lingered in people's minds, with some still refusing to acknowledge his transformation.
However, Laila was well aware that after the release of "Iron Man," a global Iron Man craze would ensue. While raking in billions at the box office, it also symbolized the official launch of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
In the upcoming time, heroes from the Avengers will take the stage one by one, refreshing fans' perceptions of superheroes with their stories. Starting with Iron Man, the Hulk, Captain America, Thor, and others would follow, ultimately forming the Avengers and dominating global box offices. In any year featuring these superheroes, they would undoubtedly secure top spots in the box office rankings.
Though the investment was substantial, compared to the potential billions in box office revenue, it was a minor consideration.
Hence, the impact of the first "Iron Man" film on the future was significant. If it exploded in popularity, the subsequent films would follow suit. If it became a dud, Marvel's superhero adaptations would need some time to resurface.
Would Laila watch "Iron Man" become a dud?
Certainly not!
After celebrating William's birthday in New York, Laila finally returned to the Hollywood scene she had been away from for a long time.
With so much time away, a mountain of work inevitably piled up. Louise had already discussed urgent matters with her over the phone, and for now, Laila only had to deal with some trivial matters that weren't urgent or had already been handled, waiting for her to check the results.
"Laila, our first wave of advertisements has been released, and we've started getting the cast involved in promotional activities worldwide." Louise looked at her with great expectation.
Laila found herself inexplicably scrutinized, "That's good, just continue with that."
"Don't you want to personally set the promotional strategy?" Louise asked.