[Chapter 124: The Oscars]
The next day, the article had taken up a whole four pages, and Eric neither cared for the $1,800 in payment nor desired the fleeting recognition it brought him. More importantly, he found himself unable to explain the sources of the detailed information contained within the article, so he submitted it anonymously to the newspaper.
The publication instantly caused a stir in Hollywood, overshadowing the upcoming 61st Academy Awards that were just days away. If most of the power players had previously reveled in discrediting CAA, they suddenly quieted down and turned their attention to this article. Over the following days, the entire American media buzzed with excitement, reprinting this highly specialized piece, which led to a flurry of papers researching the article further.
Executives from other talent agencies in Hollywood read the article and realized why they were unable to stop CAA's rise. Film studios also grasped why their production costs kept skyrocketing and why there seemed to be no way to avoid this trend. Michael Ovitz saw the article almost immediately upon its publication and spent half an hour reading it, his brow furrowed. Even he couldn't help but applaud; the article's examination of agents' business radius aligned almost perfectly with his recent thoughts, and even pushed the envelope. It was precisely this realization that had led him to attempt to get involved in Sony's acquisition of Columbia a little while back.
But right after he had applauded the article, Ovitz became furiously angry, to the point of wanting to commit murder. Because this article laid bare the strategies that CAA relied upon, putting them directly before all their competitors. CAA's rivals had previously only been able to vaguely imitate CAA's bundling strategies, lacking clarity on the intricate operations involved. Now, with this article as a reference, any rival with even a modicum of ambition would be bound to reform their own practices. Even if they could not entirely replicate the CAA model, they would no longer be powerless against CAA's expansion.
Unfortunately, despite a deliberate announcement on the front page seeking the article's author, no one responded.
...
Two days later, the CEO of WMA publicly stated that if the author of the article was willing, WMA would offer 5% of its shares in exchange for the author joining WMA as a vice president. Although WMA had been surpassed by CAA in scale, they were still a well-established agency with a century of history, and their scale was not vastly different from CAA's; 5% of their shares also amounted to several million dollars. On that same day, someone came forward with the "manuscript" to WMA, leading to an uproar.
Amid this turbulence, CAA faced another upheaval as Tom Hanks, following Tom Cruise and a few other A-list stars, chose to make a switch again. This time, however, he was not joining WMA or another large agency like ICM, but instead, he opted for UTA, the relatively low-profile agency owned by Eric.
Furthermore, Hanks was not going solo; he somehow managed to convince his long-time, top agent from CAA to join him in this switch.
This sparked a flurry of speculation within the industry. Top agents at CAA were not easy to come by; most began as lowly mail clerks, working their way up over a span of years, sometimes even over a decade, proving their skills and accumulating enough experience to become the million-dollar agents they aspired to be. Hanks' agent's departure meant relinquishing all those years of accumulated qualifications. Even if he were to return to CAA in the future, he'd have to start again from the bottom, despite having equal capabilities to any top agent.
In a meeting with Hanks himself, his agent Simon Wilson, and a staff member from a prominent notary office in Los Angeles, Eric and Hanks secretly signed the contract Eric had promised. Of course, Hanks graciously did not demand a $100 million bet fund regarding his departure.
What CAA could do in response was to request a nominal breach of contract fee from Hanks, as well as a percentage of his earnings. After Hanks signed on with Firefly Films, word got out about his compensation terms, just as Eric had anticipated, and there was a significant concession made on the profit-sharing side. Ultimately, just the day before the Oscars, the two sides swiftly signed a deal for a $5 million fee along with a 5% share of North American profits, which fully met Eric's expectations. They also confirmed that April 5 would be the official start date.
...
On March 29, after more than a month of preparation, the 61st Academy Awards were officially held at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
Eric was set to serve as the presenter for Best Supporting Actress. Initially, the organizers wanted to invite Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, a newlywed couple; while Johnson may not have been a household name, this year Griffith had rocketed to A-list status with a recent hit. Unfortunately, Griffith was unable to compete with Eric when Columbia's representatives contacted the Oscars, and quickly withdrew in favor of the more prominent Eric.
"Eric, can you check if everything is okay?" Virginia nervously asked as their Lincoln drove slowly toward the Oscar red carpet. She couldn't believe she was so quickly walking the red carpet; her cheeks were slightly flushed with excitement.
He patted her small hand. "You're beautiful, Vicki. Just relax."
Still feeling unsure, Virginia nervously touched her styled hair and asked, "Um... Eric, if we win, you really let me go up to accept the award, right?"
"Of course," Eric nodded. "I don't want my first award on stage to be for Best Animated Short Film."
John Lasseter was supposed to attend the ceremony, but after receiving Eric's investment and freedom to create, he had become a workaholic, practically living at Pixar's office. Had it not been for the Oscar invitation arriving in Richmond, Lasseter would have almost forgotten about his nominated short. Once he received the invitation, he immediately called Eric to say he was too busy to attend and would like Eric to accept the award if they won.
Eric didn't feel the need to persuade him further. Pixar was practically the king of Oscar-winning animation, and this time wasn't crucial. When Pixar submitted for the award, they mostly hoped that winning would bring in more business. Additionally, Eric would rather not have his first Oscar trophy be for Best Animated Short Film, so he happily let Virginia take this opportunity to be in the spotlight.
...
As they chatted, the Lincoln stopped at the entrance of the Oscar red carpet, and they could already hear fans calling out from a distance.
Eric stepped out of the car first, crossed to the other side, and gallantly offered his arm for Virginia to link with his. With staff directing them, they slowly approached the red carpet.
Perhaps female stars were born for the red carpet; Virginia, who had been so nervous in the car, quickly loosened up once they arrived, gently linking her arm with Eric's and walking closely beside him while occasionally waving and flashing her charming smile.
Only seven or eight meters from the fan area, someone spotted Eric, and the crowd erupted with cheers, including several girls shouting, "Eric, I love you!" Compared to the predominantly thirty-something stars on the red carpet, Eric's youth and good looks undoubtedly gave him a significant advantage.
Moreover, his film 17 Again had only recently come out of theaters, yet he had already amassed a large following among teenagers. If not for the staff maintaining order, there might have been fans rushing the red carpet, a situation that had happened before. Eric slowed his steps, smiling and nodding towards the crowd of fans, which instantly elicited another round of shrieks from the girls.
He couldn't believe he already had fans, Eric mused to himself, continuing to link arms with Virginia. However, the woman felt a tinge of disappointment, realizing that no one was shouting her name; she even noticed some hostility in the eyes of female fans in the audience. This emotion only subsided once they reached the media area.
"Eric, look here!"
"Over here, here!"
"Eric, Virginia, can you come a bit closer, please?"
Unlike fans who were focused on their favorite stars, the reporters in the media area quickly recognized Virginia. They had already heard that Virginia was about to star in a film backed by Firefly, for which Eric had personally written the screenplay.
Hollywood had evolved to a point where many things were understood. If an unknown but beautiful actress or a handsome actor suddenly landed a significant role in a movie, many would instinctively ask, "Who did they sleep with?" These pretty actresses or handsome actors didn't land opportunities without reason; they had to pay a price, and for them, aside from their looks, they often had little else to offer. Most people would envy rather than scorn these individuals.
Journalists' eyes sparkled with insatiable gossip, pushing Eric and Virginia to appear more intimate while crazily clicking their cameras.
Once they passed the media area, seizing the moment when an ABC reporter caught Michelle Pfeiffer for an interview, Eric took Virginia straight to the star waiting lounge.
...
"Hi, Mr. Williams, I'm Robert Downey Jr."
"Hello, Mr. Downey," Eric replied with a smile, reaching out for a handshake. He wanted to compliment his work but realized he couldn't recall the young star's major achievements from his somewhat rocky career, so he gestured toward Virginia. "This is Virginia Madsen."
Young Robert Downey Jr. politely shook hands with Virginia. He just wanted to be recognized and hoped for future collaboration opportunities, so the conversation was brief before he chatted with Eric for a few moments and soon departed. Eric took the initiative to greet others.
He mingled with Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks, Dustin Hoffman, Melanie Griffith, Patrick Swayze, Geena Davis, Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, Cher, Jane Fonda, Jodie Foster, Sigourney Weaver...
It felt like a different world as he chatted with these stars, who were still young. After a few minutes, they were prompted by staff to begin heading inside.
...
It was curious that this year's Oscars had no designated host.
Upon entering the auditorium and finding their seats for the crew, Eric immediately walked to the back stage. He was set to present the Best Supporting Actress award first. There were no strict rules for the order of award presentations, and often, to captivate the audience, the organizers would hand out significant awards like Best Supporting Actor or Best Supporting Actress first.
"Hello, Eric, I'm Tom Selleck." As he stepped backstage, a tall, rugged man approached him. "I'll be introducing you on stage."
Eric shook his hand. "Thank you, Mr. Selleck. I really enjoyed your work Three Men and a Baby; I hear this film is getting a sequel?"
That was the box office champion of 1987, and the warm comedy's success was mostly due to good fortune, as there hadn't been any standout films that year.
As for Tom Selleck, Eric had seen some performances but his strongest memory was of Selleck's character as Monica's boyfriend in Friends.
After the ceremony, Eric was planning to shoot the series for Fox. Although he remembered Selleck's character vividly, he knew he had to choose a newcomer. Selleck's career was still at its peak and asking him to star in a series would likely not go over well.
When Selleck heard Eric mention his proudest work, he laughed heartily. "Of course, but it won't release until next year. To be honest, I don't want to clash with your film."
...
Around ten minutes after a lively opening performance, Eric received the envelope with the list of winners from the staff. Guided by Selleck, he walked onto the stage.
All speeches were pre-written by the screenwriters, so the audience watching on TV did not see the stars' natural verbal skills.
"Wow," as Eric reached the center of the stage, he adjusted the microphone, exclaiming, "Actually, after I received my invitation, I asked Allen Carr, 'Why is it that every presenter gets to bring a date, but I have to go solo? That's not fair!' Allen stared at me for a long time before saying: 'Because you're too young!'"
As he said this, Eric made a playful wink at the audience, pulling an innocent face.
There was a moment of silence in the audience before they erupted into laughter, followed by applause. In the past six months, although Eric had achieved a series of astonishing feats in Hollywood, people often commented on his age, as if achieving so much at eighteen had become a "stain" on his life. While people admired brilliance, they also tended to push back against it.
After sharing a few more lighthearted jokes that had the audience laughing, Eric redirected the conversation. "In every movie, while the leading actors showcase their skills, they are always complemented by the supporting characters. A good supporting role enhances the entire film. So, let's take a look at the films nominated for Best Supporting Actress."
After concluding that, Eric made a gesture, and on the big screen, clips from the nominated films appeared, featuring Sigourney Weaver, Joan Cusack, Geena Davis, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Frances McDormand.
Personally, Eric thought the least likely contender was Sigourney Weaver, as she had won her previous Golden Globe based on less merit. He preferred Michelle Pfeiffer and Geena Davis and believed the winner should be one of those two.
Once all the nominated films had been introduced, Eric leisurely opened the envelope and glanced at the name, just as he had expected.
"The Oscar for Best Supporting Actress goes to Geena Davis for The Accidental Tourist."
Amid applause, a towering redhead excitabley stood up, covering her mouth, and hugged her fellow nominees before walking to the stage. She didn't rush to take the Oscar but instead excitedly embraced Eric, prompting him to smile and pat her back. Given that Davis was already over six feet and wearing heels, Eric looked particularly small beside her, which drew a soft laugh from the audience below.
"Hey, Ms. Davis, could you let go of me? Are you sure you're not trying to eat me?" Eric playfully patted her several times, seeing she still held onto him, he leaned in to whisper in her ear.
"You impatient little rascal," Geena Davis remarked softly, quickly letting go of Eric and taking the Oscar to begin her speech.
*****
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