Chapter 80: Giving You a Chance

"Don't worry about that," Murphy reassured James Franco after some thought. "You two won't have any scenes together."

Franco bit his lip, seeming to make a significant effort to come to a decision. "I'll talk to my agent."

As Murphy and Franco wrapped up their conversation, Seth Rogen squinted and cautiously asked, "Are you discussing a movie?"

Murphy nodded.

Franco, with a slurred tongue, added, "His first movie just finished its run in North America. He's preparing for his second one."

"Oh..." Seth Rogen, looking quite innocent but far from naive, had been bouncing around Hollywood for months without landing a single minor role. He quickly said, "Director Stanton..."

"Murphy," Murphy corrected him, "Call me Murphy."

Seth Rogen nodded, scratching the back of his head before squeezing out a sentence, "I'm... also an actor."

Despite his old appearance, which made him look older than Franco, he was new to Hollywood and hadn't yet developed a thick skin.

"Even though we had a little misunderstanding," Murphy looked at both Rogen and Franco, "I feel we got along quite well. How about this? Come to my studio tomorrow, and we'll discuss it further."

"Do you have a pen?" he asked Franco. Franco dug into his pocket and handed over a pen. Murphy noticed the pen still had a new tag and teased, "Where'd you snatch this from?"

Franco shrugged, neither confirming nor denying it.

Murphy wrote down his contact information and the studio's address on a napkin and handed it to Seth Rogen.

After dinner, the three of them chatted a bit more before finally parting ways in the early morning.

The next morning, Seth Rogen showed up just as Murphy finished breakfast.

"Paul, this is Seth Rogen, an actor from Canada," Murphy introduced them in the studio's living room. "Seth, this is Paul Wilson, my assistant director."

After the introductions, Murphy led Rogen to a room on the left, converted into an audition room. Murphy was cautious and wouldn't just bring anyone into his crew without some assessment, especially someone as new as Rogen.

Murphy handed him a scene script and asked him to perform a short improvisation, serving as an initial interview.

Unlike Franco, with whom Murphy had worked before, he didn't know much about Rogen and wouldn't easily give him a significant role.

However, Rogen's performance was impressive. Winning second place in a comedy competition wasn't just talk. After a two-minute improvisation, Murphy was favorably impressed.

They chatted further, and Murphy learned that Rogen was actually younger than he looked, despite appearing over thirty.

"The project hasn't officially started yet," Murphy told Rogen as they left the audition room. "Filming might begin in late April or early May, so arrange your schedule accordingly."

"No need to arrange anything," Rogen squinted. "I have nothing else to do. Murphy, I'll be waiting for your film."

He wasn't stupid. Last night, after returning home, he researched online. Franco was already somewhat known, and Murphy Stanton's name could be found on IMDb. His last film, "Hard Candy," had grossed nearly $1.5 million in North America on a $300,000 budget...

Compared to the minor roles he'd been auditioning for, this opportunity in a movie was too good to pass up.

Reflecting on last night's scuffle, it seemed beneficial. They had a good chat, and if he performed well, he had a good chance of getting a role.

With plenty of work to do, Murphy let Rogen explore the place while he began his busy day.

He interviewed applicants for the finance position, contacted Franco's agent, communicated with Bill Rossis about the crew, and continued revising the script...

By noon, he finally emerged from his study.

Downstairs, Murphy saw that Rogen hadn't left but was helping Paul Wilson move some items. It reminded Murphy of Rogen's words—having him around as temporary free labor might not be bad.

Lunch was takeout, and the receptionist/cleaner/phone operator got double portions but kept to herself, quietly enjoying her doughnuts and fried chicken legs at a potentially collapsing chair.

Murphy and the two others gathered around a table.

"Don't be shy, Seth," Murphy handed a lunch box to Rogen. "The studio is just starting, so the lunch is simple. Hope you don't mind."

"No problem, no problem," Rogen said, sitting back in his chair, waving his hand. "It's more sumptuous than Canadian work lunches."

Paul Wilson raised his cola glass, taking a big gulp. "Most Hollywood sets have worse lunches than ours."

They all laughed.

"Seth is quite capable," Wilson added. "He wrote a script for a Canadian TV show, which was actually used."

Rogen scratched his head modestly. "It was just a local Vancouver TV show."

"Didn't know you were so multi-talented," Murphy said, seemingly ignoring Rogen's modesty. "Seth, are you interested in working behind the scenes in a crew?"

"Actually..." Rogen smiled shyly. "Besides writing, I also want to be a producer and director."

He sighed, "Those were dreams in Vancouver. After coming to Los Angeles, I realized how hard it is to break into Hollywood. I can't even find a role to showcase my acting skills."

"I can give you a chance," Murphy proposed. "If you're interested, you can work with me temporarily in behind-the-scenes roles."

"Really?" Rogen looked delighted. "Can I?"

"Of course," Murphy nodded seriously. "You can start anytime."

He glanced at Wilson. "You can be Paul's assistant for now."

"Great! Great!" Rogen's face lit up with joy. "I've been worried about having nothing to do. Thank you, Murphy."

If Rogen could pass the audition, Murphy could give him a secondary title like assistant director or co-producer, which wouldn't cost anything but would earn him a dedicated free worker.

Although Wilson was reaching out to classmates for internships, the more free labor, the better.