Chapter 299: The Covert War

Having just seen off Gal Gadot, Murphy received a call from Bill Rossis. A movie venture capital fund, established only recently, had contacted him after hearing about the financing news for the project released by CAA. They were interested in investing in "Gone Girl" and wanted to meet with him, the director and project planner.

Murphy, of course, did not refuse and asked Bill Rossis to finalize the meeting time and place with the other party as soon as possible.

After several phone calls, Murphy and the person in charge of the movie venture capital fund agreed to meet in Century City that afternoon.

Bill Rossis's active contact played an important role in this, as CAA's work efficiency is renowned for being highly effective.

Later, Murphy called Gal Gadot again. She had arrived at Rodarte Street and was having coffee with Natalie Portman.

Inside a coffee shop on Rodarte Street, Gal Gadot hung up her phone.

Natalie Portman, sitting opposite, shifted her gaze from the script in her hands to Gal Gadot, "Murphy?"

"Um..." Gal Gadot nodded lightly, "He's meeting with a private fund manager about investment this afternoon and told me to go back in the evening."

"That's perfect." Natalie Portman smiled affectionately, "We haven't seen each other for a long time, we can hang out more."

Gal Gadot, however, pointed outside the coffee shop, "Provided that there aren't so many paparazzi following us."

"As the girlfriend of a popular director." Natalie Portman teased, "Aren't you used to it yet?"

"I guess I'll never get used to it." Gal Gadot shrugged.

"It gets better over time." After taking a sip of her coffee, Natalie Portman changed the subject and pointed at the script Gal Gadot brought, "The project Murphy is going to discuss with the investors, is it this one?"

"That's the one." Gal Gadot propped her chin with an arm, "It's Murphy's new project. He plans to start preparing for filming before the end of this year."

"Murphy is really a very thoughtful director." Natalie Portman muttered.

Gal Gadot didn't quite understand her meaning and looked puzzled.

Natalie Portman picked up the script, waving it in front of Gal Gadot, "Don't you find the setting very fascinating? Especially the female protagonist..."

"I've only read the beginning." Gal Gadot shrugged slightly, "Such a dark story isn't to my liking, so I didn't continue."

She asked curiously, "Murphy's scripts are all leaning towards dark themes. Is this 'Gone Girl' really as good as you say?"

Natalie Portman was obviously interested in the script, "It's a script that involves marriage, emotions, media, justice, and cultural differences in class, among many other layers worth discussing."

Gal Gadot, seeing Natalie Portman's enthusiasm, remarked, "Isn't it just a love story with dark colors?"

"Is it really a love story?" Natalie Portman immediately answered, "Yes, but not exactly. Rather than calling it a love story, it's more accurate to say it's a woman's story—narrating a woman's self-growth, destruction, and reconstruction."

"Everyone who's read this script probably doesn't like the female protagonist much, although she carries the halo of Harvard, versatility, excellence, and even beauty. However, her arrogance, obsession, neuroticism, and pathologically insane character make people shudder, praying for such a lunatic to stay far from their lives."

Natalie Portman, seemingly captivated by this character, closed her eyes, pondering how she would portray Amy if she played the role. This character would be disliked, yet irresistibly attractive, especially with the contrast between her before and after. The role demands a lot of explosive power in acting. As long as the director and actors are of a certain level, the character is bound to shine.

Such a character, abnormal yet spotlight-stealing, is precisely what she has been seeking, isn't it? Isn't it what the old men at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences like?

The most important thing is Amy's character setting, which, to her...

At that thought, Natalie Portman nodded lightly, believing that if she played Amy, she just needed to unleash her inner self for a natural and brilliant performance. With a capable director, she might even leave behind a classic role.

Is the director up to par? Natalie Portman had seen his movies, read media reports about him, and her agent, Martin Miller, had always thought highly of him...

All these could form a very clear judgment for her.

Suddenly lost in thought, Gal Gadot gradually sensed something but didn't pay much attention. She had heard from media reports and Murphy himself about how outstanding actors with ambitions could be surprisingly impressive when they find a role they adore.

After a while, seeing Natalie Portman open her eyes, Gal Gadot looked at her, asking, "Are you very interested in the female lead?"

"Um." Natalie Portman nodded unabashedly, "This is the most outstanding role I've seen since playing Padmé Amidala."

She closed her eyes again, "This is a woman living in her own world. She's beautiful and charming, with high education and good family background, possessing what others see as perfect conditions. She has such a clear judgment of herself that she believes, even without experiencing, that others' sayings like 'marriage is about mutual compromise, hard work, and then even harder work, communication, and compromise, followed by another round of hard work' can become the preconceived motto of her marital life."

Gal Gadot, who had only read the beginning of the script and wasn't very clear about the rest, still played a good listener.

Natalie Portman continued, "This kind of woman has the ability to convince herself of non-existent things through continuous reinforcement in her consciousness and to turn them into some kind of reality through endless imagination and concrete practice. The only purpose of her doing this is for revenge, stemming from inner unease and undeniable jealousy. Moreover, making some sacrifices against her will further stimulates her ability to reach a climax, and in this process, she gradually finds her original self."

Just reading the script strongly evoked her emotional resonance, those emotions hidden deep under public relations, promotion, performance, and pretense, resonated strongly with Amy.

She suddenly felt, with her abilities and this character's setting, she could even aim for that little gold man!

"Gal!" Natalie Portman opened her eyes, her emotions instantly calming down, returning to that smart, wise, beautiful, generous, and kind state, "Can you help me arrange a meeting with Murphy?"

Her agency, William Morris, was a direct competitor to Murphy-Stanton's CAA, and it seemed her agent, Martin Miller, had some misunderstandings with Murphy-Stanton. Going through the agent route was definitely not the best choice.

However... Natalie Portman discreetly glanced at Gal Gadot, the little girl she met in Jerusalem, who turned out to be somewhat useful.

"Arrange a meeting with Murphy?" Gal Gadot's brow furrowed imperceptibly, "You mean..."

Without any hesitation, Natalie Portman, seemingly very straightforward to her friend as if without any reservations, directly said, "I like the character Amy

, and I want to play her."

After speaking, her eyes widened and rounded, full of hope, just like Mathilda facing Leon.

But her mind was racing, this girl from Israel, her admirer, treated her as a very close friend. Young and inexperienced, although precocious and somewhat clever, compared to herself, she was a typical naive girl.

Natalie Portman was confident Gal Gadot would agree the next second and would actively help her, help her secure this role...

"Sorry, Nat." Gal Gadot's smile was full of apology, "If it's about the role, I can't help you."

"Uh..." Natalie Portman was slightly stunned.

What's going on? Why did she refuse me? Why would she refuse me?

Gal Gadot appeared no different from before, seemingly still a naive girl who admired and liked the Jewish actress opposite her, but the words she said offered no intention of helping Natalie Portman.

"Murphy doesn't like others interfering with his work." Gal Gadot sighed, looking very regretful, "I'm no exception. He'll show me what he writes or films, but he never likes to hear my advice."

These words sounded so genuine.

Natalie Portman, after all, is Natalie Portman. She was only taken aback for a moment before regaining her composure.

"It's okay." She returned to her perfect demeanor, "It was my oversight. It's not like this kind of..."

She suddenly emphasized a bit, "This kind of trivial matter should affect the deep relationship between you two."

Gal Gadot's hand under the table suddenly gripped the handbag on the chair next to her tightly, feeling an urge to grab her bag and leave. She inwardly sighed, realizing she was still too naive and straightforward compared to Murphy, the cunning old fox.

The woman opposite probably never considered her a friend, did she? Perhaps they were friends before, but as soon as she refused, that so-called friendship had already been discarded by the other party.

She just said such things, what does "trivial matter" mean? What does "affecting deep relationships" mean? Did she really think of herself as a fool?

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