It's great to have them!
"Thank you, thank you!" With a grateful heart, she waved repeatedly to the fans. Even if they couldn't hear her voice, she continued to express her gratitude and touched them again and again.
Without them, she wouldn't be in her current position!
The cheers were so loud that stars walking on the red carpet couldn't help but glance back. Who could receive such a grand welcome?
Even the lead actors and actresses in movies wouldn't have so many fans before the movie was released, right?
But when they saw Laila and Roy, all the doubts turned into understanding. It wouldn't be surprising if it was them—two extraordinary individuals. One broke the record for the youngest Oscar winner at a young age, and the other gained fame with every movie, not only elevating themselves but also lifting the actors in their films to stardom.
If it weren't for the inappropriate venue, they would have wanted to cheer to express their admiration for these two.
Walking to the entrance gate, Laila saw Michael Bay.
"I didn't expect you to show your face." Bay's expression was somewhat subtle.
Although he had accepted her olive branch, it didn't mean he had forgotten the defeat he suffered at her hands before.
"Of course, this is a movie invested by our company, isn't it?" Laila looked at him with a smiling face, as if she hadn't sensed the sarcasm in his words.
Michael's mouth twitched. "Aren't you afraid I'll ruin it for you?"
"Of course not." Laila pointed to her eyes. "I trust my own judgment."
Although what she said made sense, Michael still felt a bit depressed. It felt bad to knowingly help his former rival make a lot of money, even though he believed he had made a great movie, one destined to be a blockbuster.
He couldn't understand the young girl in front of him. Did she genuinely not know the potential of this movie, or did she not care about giving a high-grossing film to someone else to gain fame?
However, she bought the rights, and wrote the script; it's unlikely she didn't understand the film's potential. So, it could only be that she genuinely didn't care about the enormous box office success.
That's worth hundreds of millions! Enough to make the director of this film go down in history.
But when he thought about every movie she had made before, seemingly all making hundreds of millions, Michael felt like he was just finding fault with himself. As long as it benefited him, why care if his former opponent suffered a loss?
"It's a pity we didn't clash with your movie this time." He proudly raised his chin.
Laila raised an eyebrow. "What, do you want to have a showdown with me?"
"Your luck is good. If we did clash this time, the winner would be me!" He believed he would teach her the strength of a senior with "Transformers"!
Roy frowned. Just as he was about to speak, Laila stopped him.
First, she smiled reassuringly at Roy, then turned to Bay. "It's a pity. Even if we clashed this time, the winner would still be me."
"That's impossible!" Michael shook his head repeatedly. "You don't understand. Transformers' energy isn't just what you see on the screen; it's also about emotions! It's the nostalgia of a generation, and just for that, many people would walk into the cinema."
She didn't understand? Laila laughed; no one understood its significance better than her.
"Even so, the winner will still be me."
Michael was already unhappy about being crushed by her before, and hearing her blunt "challenge" made him even more upset.
"Use your new movie? Unfortunately, it won't be released until next year."
Laila smiled slightly. "How about we make a bet?"
"What are we betting on?"
"Next summer, after my movie is released, let's see who gets more box office."
"No problem!" Michael was confident he wouldn't lose. "What's the stake?"
Laila thought for a moment. "The loser has to agree to a request from the winner. Of course, the request can't be too extreme, and if it crosses the line, it's automatically void."
Michael looked at her. "Aren't you afraid I'll intentionally void it?"
"Do you already think you've lost?" Laila asked with a smile.
Michael was momentarily stunned, almost losing his temper. Why did this girl say such infuriating things?
"I will definitely win!"
"Then I wish you success." Laila reached out her hand to him.
Watching Bay walk away with a disgruntled expression, Roy was not happy with his attitude toward Laila.
"How can you let him talk to you like that?" And, worst of all, not allowing him to help her.
"What do you think of this director?"
"Not great!"
Laila gave him an annoyed punch. "I'm serious."
"Okay." Roy had to admit defeat. "Judging by his previous works, he's decent." Describing him as "decent" might still be too critical; he was actually a pretty good director. Looking at his previous works, "Pearl Harbor," although not well-received, had reasonably well-done war scenes. "Armageddon" and "The Rock" were also very exciting films. It showed that his directing skills were commendable.
"Yes, he's quite competent. That's why I want to bring him into our family."
Looking at her cunning smile, Roy seemed to understand something. "Are you planning to sign him after he loses? I think he won't be willing. Judging by what happened just now, he still sees you as a competitor, the one who once defeated him."
"Would I do something so crude?" Laila smiled and hooked her arm through his, leading him inside. "Don't worry, after he loses, he'll be very willing to join our big family."
"As long as you're happy."
Roy shook his head; he would never understand what was going on in her mind.
The two chatted and laughed, apparently ignoring the most important thing—whether Laila could really beat him. But then again, maybe they didn't ignore it; they just never thought that she might fail.
Will Laila lose?
I believe that anyone contemplating this question will have only one answer in their hearts.
The premiere officially began. As the theater lights dimmed, the voices in the cinema disappeared.
Speaking of Transformers, in that era, countless children cried and begged their parents to buy them such a toy. Now those naughty kids had grown up and had cooler things than Transformers, but the joyful memories remained.
This was what Michael called nostalgia, and it was why he was so certain he would win.