The Greatest Showman

Chapter 83

Success Achieved!

Joyful emotions lightly collided in his chest, and the corners of his mouth couldn’t help but curl upward. Eventually, he couldn’t be suppress it any longer, as a he clenched his fist tightly, and then swung it vigorously twice, finally releasing all the excitement.

It wasn’t until he left the scope of Amsterdam’s Avenue that the reality finally set in for him — he had really secured the role of Paul Conroy.

When Ryan appeared, Renly knew that he was in an unfavorable situation. From any angle, Rodrigo had no reason to reject Ryan. So, Renly had to do his best to create a reason for Rodrigo to choose him.

Renly realized that his only advantage lay in his acting and his understanding of the character. That was his only bargaining chip. Standing at the door, he was thinking about how to get a second chance before Rodrigo made his final decision, and at the same time, he was contemplating the character of Paul and how he should interpret it and perform it.

When Scarlett appeared, Renly sensitively sensed that his opportunity had come.

So, he decided to go with the flow, as he interacted with Scarlett, and explored the complete character of Paul, trying to showcase his performance. Renly wasn’t sure if Rodrigo could see it, but this was his only chance. Unfortunately, Scarlett was too clever and quickly saw through his intentions, putting an end to all his attempts.

The gap left for Renly was indeed too small, and he almost thought he was going to miss the opportunity to be in “Buried,” so he hadn’t had a chance to unleash all of his energy.

However, he did it! He finally secured his first major film role, “Buried”!

Almost seven months after the end of the filming of “The Pacific,” he finally got the chance to challenge his acting skills once again, and this time it would be on the big screen. He took a solid step forward on the path of an challenging actor’s profession.

It’s worth mentioning that this time, he won the role in a direct competition with the previous actor who played the character in his previous life. This achievement is even more commendable! It not only proved his talent but also demonstrated that history can be changed, even though he already did it once with him getting the role for “The Pacific.” This time, it was more direct and obvious.

The trajectory of history is gradually taking a turn, and he, as “Renly Hall,” is slowly changing the future of the film industry. Perhaps in the near future, even Renly himself will not be able to predict what will happen. The excitement between the known and unknown is causing his adrenaline to slowly release.

Of course, more important than the work itself is the opportunity for him to challenge himself and his acting skills. This may well be a turning point on the path to achieving his dreams.

He had imagined what roles he might play and what difficulties he might encounter, but he never expected that his first film would offer such a rare opportunity. Not only is the role incredibly challenging, but this is also an independent production, and amazingly, it will be a solo performance! This means he can fully immerse himself in the exploration of acting, using all of his skills to see how high he can reach.

Perhaps, as his parents say, he really has no innate talent, and the world is not short of geniuses. However, not all geniuses can reach the pinnacle, and he isn’t even a genius. Maybe, he really possesses the spirit for acting, just as David Nutter said. He can carve out his own world on the actor’s stage.

But no matter what the result is going to be, he won’t regret it, and he doesn’t want to regret it.

At this moment, Renly is holding the acting contract for “Buried” in his hand. This thin document is as heavy as a thousand pounds to him. It signifies that the weighty role of Paul Conroy is on Renly’s shoulders, and the success or failure of the entire movie depends on Renly’s performance. It’s a heavy burden, but that is just making his blood boil even more.

“Buried” is a completely independent film. After inquiring, Renly found out that the investors are an independent company from Spain. Before this, they had only invested in a film with a budget of less than five hundred thousand. This time, they provided a verbal budget of three million for “Buried,” but this includes the subsequent promotional expenses. Independent film promotions mainly involves participating in film festivals, but whether it’s the Sundance Film Festival or the Toronto International Film Festival, there are fees to be paid for exhibition, not to mention the collective promotion costs after that.

So, strictly speaking, the production cost of “Buried” is estimated to be less than two million.

Independent productions like this naturally don’t follow the official processes like HBO. Just look at today’s audition, and you’ll notice that the American Actors’ Union didn’t even send a public agent to oversee it. So, the signing process was also unconventional. Rodrígo directly handed the contract to Renly, and Renly can have the contract reviewed by a lawyer or an agent and then sign it after confirming its accuracy.

Once everything is in black and white, Renly can officially join the “Buried” cast.

After looking at the contract in his hand, Renly thought carefully and then dialed Roy Lockley’s phone number. The phone rang for quite some time without anyone picking up. You can imagine that Roy was probably extremely busy, and just as Renly was about to give up, someone finally answered the call, “This is Roy Lockley.” His response was as brisk as ever.

“Renly Hall.”

“Renly?” Roy sounded somewhat surprised and said to someone nearby, “Yes, these are the documents. Send them by fax.” Then, he turned back to the phone and asked, “So, what’s up?”

“I have taken on a new project, and I already have the actor contract in hand. I need the Union to review it for me,” Renly summarized the matter succinctly.

Roy held the phone on his shoulder and made a note on the desktop calendar, “No problem, just fax it over. What kind of project is it?”

“An independent film, funded by a Spanish company,” Renly’s reply remained concise, without much explanation. However, his words exuded confidence without any extra emotions – no regret, no excitement.

Roy couldn’t help but pause and chuckled. To others, it might not be a big deal, but Roy knew that Renly had turned down an audition for “Thor” and now chose a relatively unknown independent film. This is truly interesting.

“What about the pay? Do you need me to negotiate it for you?” Generally, actors wouldn’t discuss “money” themselves as it could damage their image and relationships; it should be handled by their agents. Since Renly didn’t have an agent, Roy was willing to lend him a hand.

Renly chuckled lightly, “No need, it’s already been negotiated. One hundred thousand.”

“Buried” isn’t a well-funded production, that is for sure. However, as the sole leading actor carrying the film, his salary still seemed a bit low. After all, the entire film’s budget was mostly allocated for Renly as the lead actor, with a few other actors providing voiceovers. In other words, almost all of the budget was centered around him. If not three hundred thousand, he should have at least be paid two hundred thousand dollars.

But, after conversing with Rodrigo, Renly agreed to the contract with the pay of one hundred thousand dollars. Because of that, extra funds could be fully invested in the project, and within the limited budget, they could truly create an outstanding work.

Renly understands that if he wanted to make money, he shouldn’t have chosen an independent film like “Buried” but instead opt for commercial films like “Thor.” Even with a lower salary, he would have higher income.

Roy chuckled softly, as Renly’s income this time is even lower than during “The Pacific” period, not at all like he had landed a movie project. However, Roy didn’t say much and just quipped, “It looks like this is definitely going to be an outstanding work.”

“Of course,” Renly’s response was unwavering. Roy could sense his determination and unwavering focus that indicated that Renly truly wanted to be a part of this project, rather than settling for it as a last resort. “So, is this why you introduced the ‘Thor’ project to Chris Hemsworth?”

Renly hesitated, not understanding the meaning of Roy’s words, and blurted out, “What?” He knew that, according to the previous timeline, ‘Thor’ would ultimately end up in Chris’s hands. But why did Roy say it was him who introduced it to Chris?

Originally it was just a joke, so Roy had to explain it once more, “News leaked internally yesterday that Chris will play the role of Thor, and it’s expected that they’ll officially announce it by the day after tomorrow. Wasn’t it you who introduced ‘Thor’ to Chris?”

“Why do you think so?” Renly felt something was odd but couldn’t articulate a reason what is.

Roy also sensed the doubt in Renly’s words. After some thought, he began to explain in detail, “Before that, Charlie Hannam had already stood out quite substantially, and Kenneth Branagh was somewhat hesitant between him and Channing Tatum. Suddenly, Chris came out of nowhere, and his understanding and interpretation of Thor impressed Kenneth. So, Chris then decisively got the role.”

Up to this point, though it seemed peculiar, Renly couldn’t discern its connection to him. Chris had a powerful agent; that was no secret.

“But a few days ago, someone from Paramount called me, and they hinted at something. Although they didn’t say it explicitly, the implication was that Chris had already read the script in advance and had been very well-prepared. The script for ‘Thor’ doesn’t have a confidentiality agreement, but the scripts they sent out were in limited number, and each one is marked. Not just anyone can get hold of a script. From what I gathered, it seems Chris read the script that belonged to you? So, I’m guessing…”

Roy’s words stopped there, and what followed was self-explanatory.

Renly furrowed his brows, as the details of that evening rushed back to him, making all the puzzle fell in its place. An odd feeling echoed in his mind and turned into a sardonic smile, “No, at that time, I left the script on the bookshelf and didn’t show it to anyone.”

Roy paused for a moment, then said with a meaningful tone, “Oh.”

T/N – Yeeeeah, so about that, I think the friendship between our boy and Chris might not be the same after this😅😅.

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