Chapter 286: The Fraudulent Film Crew? Little Leo's Invitation

Li An's refusal did not discourage Martin.

As he thought about the movie Li An was about to shoot, a mysterious smile crept onto his face.

That was Li An's Waterloo—the film that nearly made him consider retiring after its failure.

Perfect. Once he fails with this grand project, Martin would have the chance to drive the price down.

After all, thanks to the massive success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Li An's director's fee had soared to over 800,000 USD, making him the top-paid Asian director.

With that in mind, Martin pushed the script outline Li An had handed him back toward him.

[TL/N: It was Brokeback Mountain script.]

He chuckled, "Director Li An, there's no rush. We can wait until after you finish The Incredible Hulk to start this project. Keep this outline, and feel free to ponder it."

Li An was genuinely moved by Martin's "sincerity."

He didn't continue to refuse but instead took the script outline and solemnly said, "I appreciate your trust. I'll take on this script, and don't worry—once I'm done with The Incredible Hulk, I'll start preparing for this film."

Martin hurriedly smiled, "No rush, no rush. Let's wait until The Incredible Hulk is released. That way, you can fully focus on this script."

Martin's "thoughtfulness" deeply touched Li An, evoking a feeling of "I would die for someone who truly understands me."

He added, "Martin, I will give this film my full attention."

"Good, I trust you."

The two shook hands and exchanged smiles, understanding one another—well, at least Li An felt that way.

...

After securing Li An, Martin flew to London to visit the Harry Potter set.

Several young actors were ecstatic upon seeing Martin.

Emma Watson sprinted over. "Oh my God, Martin, do you know? Your portrayal of Legolas is just so handsome! So handsome! Wait, where's my poster?"

"Daniel, have you seen my poster?" she shouted behind her.

"Here, here!"

Daniel Radcliffe jogged over holding a poster, but not paying attention, he stumbled, nearly losing his glasses, but managed to catch them in time.

"Oh no, my poster! My Legolas poster!" Emma Watson screamed.

While Daniel was adjusting his glasses, he forgot he was holding the poster. As he let go, the wind swept the poster away.

Just then, Rupert Grint, with his bright red hair, passed by and caught the poster.

"Ah, awesome! Rupert, you're amazing!" Emma Watson exclaimed, jumping up and rushing over to take the poster from him.

Rupert shrugged, "Wow, Ron finally got Hermione's praise!"

Daniel Radcliffe walked over, embarrassed, "Sorry, Emma, I wasn't paying attention."

"No worries, the poster is fine, that's all that matters!"

Emma Watson, now ignoring Daniel, rushed back to Martin, holding the poster in both hands.

"Martin, no—Legolas—please sign it for me. Can you write in Elvish: 'Legolas is Emma Watson's best friend?'"

Martin smiled. "Of course."

He took a pen from the crew and wrote on the poster with a flourish.

Emma Watson, beaming with joy, cradled the poster in her hands, gazing at the Elven prince drawing of Legolas with his bow and arrow. She couldn't bear to fold it.

"I'm putting this above my bed!" she announced loudly.

Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint also asked Martin to sign their Harry Potter scripts.

After a few days in London, Martin also had some secret meetings with Deanna.

Then, he hurriedly left London for New York.

The Matrix was about to be released.

Although the premiere was scheduled for Los Angeles, Martin needed to participate in the promotional activities happening in New York.

Legolas's popularity hadn't waned, and now the savior was coming.

To be honest, Martin felt like he was going to be unstoppable in late 2001 and early 2002—like he could defeat anyone, whether gods or demons.

At that moment, Leonardo's call came in.

"Martin, my new movie Don's Plum is premiering. Could you come to the opening?"

Martin was a little stunned. Little Leo starred in this film? How come he didn't remember this?

Was it a flop?

In reality, Leonardo did indeed appear in this film, though not as the lead.

The lead actress was someone named Ebo Benson—never heard of her, right?

The male lead was Scott Bloom—also unfamiliar?

Yep, this film was a small-budget experimental project, showing in American theaters for only five days before moving on to Germany.

As for the box office… well, let's just ignore that.

So, why did Little Leo appear in this film?

He was asked by his good friend Tobey Maguire.

Yes, the Tobey Maguire who played Spider-Man in the original timeline.

Tobey owed Ebo Benson a favor and had to swallow his pride to ask his friend Leonardo to help prop up the film.

Tobey even had a tiny role in the movie with barely any lines.

Leonardo was being a good friend and showing loyalty!

...

When Martin arrived and looked at the incredibly simple red carpet, he was stunned.

"WTF!" he cursed inwardly, "This crew looks like a makeshift operation!"

He quickly walked across the red carpet, where only a few scattered fans cheered loudly, their excitement marking the highlight of their day.

One of the fans, thrilled, said, "It's totally worth it! I came just to join the crowd, and now I'm seeing both Leonardo and Martin, two big stars—this crew's got some face!"

As Martin walked down the carpet, he was greeted by a pair of unfamiliar white actors—Scott Bloom and Ebo Benson, the film's leads.

Ebo Benson was also the producer of the film.

"Welcome, welcome, Martin, we're so glad to have you here!"

Martin, suppressing his irritation, exchanged a few pleasantries before entering the reception area, where Little Leo was already waiting.

Martin, seeing Leo, snapped, "You jerk, I feel like I've been scammed. Are you sure this film isn't a fraudulent project?!"

There were many fraudulent film crews in Hollywood. Even big stars like Julia Roberts, Halle Berry, and Robert Downey Jr. had fallen victim to such schemes.

The usual trick was to use fake scripts to lure stars into signing contracts or even investing, and once the stars were committed, they'd use those contracts to secure investment. When the money came through, they'd toss the script aside and either disappear or finish the project with a makeshift crew.

Martin's words made a young, short, white man standing next to Leo awkwardly stiffen.