Chapter 59: Thelma & Louise

Such losses were nothing to Sony anymore. After all, they had indeed become the owner of Columbia TriStar Pictures.

At the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills, Castle Rock and Columbia TriStar threw a grand celebration banquet for the crew of Sleepless in Seattle.

After all, it was a film that grossed over a hundred million dollars domestically, with its upcoming international release projected to bring in several more tens of millions of dollars.

Arthur contemplated that both Ghost and Pretty Woman were slated for release in July and September, marking the pinnacle of romantic films.

Shortly after, Arthur saw his agent, Tracey Jacobs, rushing towards him.

"Arthur," Tracey Jacobs pulled him to a sofa in a corner of the lounge area. "There's a cameo role, you absolutely have to try for it!"

"Ah, but I'm about to start filming The Silence of the Lambs," Arthur wanted to explain.

"I understand, this film is different. The competition is fierce, but I managed to snag an audition for a small role with just a few minutes of screen time," said Tracey Jacobs, pulling a photocopied file from her bag and handing it to Arthur. "This is the basic script information for the movie and the specific details for your audition role. You can take a look first!"

Arthur nodded and began reading. It was Ridley Scott's feminist road movie, Thelma & Louise.

No wonder the competition was fierce. Ridley Scott, the director of the first Alien and later Blade Runner, needed no introduction. The two leading actresses were longtime Hollywood stars Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon.

The movie's strong feminist themes and underlying messages represented a formal challenge to male dominance.

"Road elements, feminism, it's exactly what the Academy likes. The main crew is also impressive," Arthur quickly grasped the details after a brief look. "It really is a rare, good script. Even though the role I'm auditioning for isn't lengthy, it's quite spotlight-stealing, and it appears to include a love scene with one of the female leads."

Tracey Jacobs nodded. "A young, handsome man with a great physique, a small-time thief with a record, who deceives the female leads and steals their money. He's directly linked to the tragic ending of the two female leads."

Arthur pointed at himself, "I'm a newcomer. Would they even consider me?"

"Give it a shot. Playing this role in this movie is better than playing several supporting roles in other films," Tracey Jacobs did not hide the truth from Arthur.

"The crew had considered Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Sean Penn, among other established actors, but none came through. Johnny Depp also auditioned but bowed out in the second round; his vibe didn't quite fit. Now, the crew is still holding auditions. I submitted your profile, and they thought you looked great and invited you to try out!"

Arthur understood he was Johnny Depp's backup. However, Arthur remembered that Brad Pitt eventually got the role.

"When's the audition?" Arthur asked, showing some interest, curious to see which other stars would be auditioning.

"Thursday morning, straight to MGM," Tracey reminded him. "The film is about to start shooting, and this is the only remaining role."

"Today's only Monday. No problem," Arthur nodded, mainly interested in working with the renowned director Ridley Scott.

Arthur returned home early that evening and planned to call Brad Pitt to ask if he had received the audition call. That's when he noticed there was a voicemail.

"It's from Jennifer Connelly. No wonder she hasn't contacted me for so long; she's in New York," after listening, Arthur immediately called Jennifer Connelly back.

"It's me, Arthur Smith!"

"Arthur, did you come home?"

"Yeah, today was the celebration for Sleepless in Seattle. I attended and came home early."

"Really? You're amazing. Sleepless in Seattle made over a hundred million at the box office."

"Not bad. By the way, are you home right now?"

"Yeah, I went back to New York with my mom, then came back to L.A. alone after picking up two scripts."

"A love story?" Arthur guessed it was another film that would play on Jennifer's sex appeal.

"No, one of them is Disney's superhero movie The Rocketeer, and they want me to play the female lead."

"A superhero movie?" Arthur facepalmed. "Are there any good superhero movies right now aside from DC's Superman and Batman?"

Apparently, Marvel's Captain America was being filmed in Europe by 20th Century Fox, but it was a B-movie at best and likely wouldn't make it to mainstream theaters.

"Yeah, the script is pretty good," Jennifer Connelly's voice sounded cheerful over the phone.

"Alright, I'll drive over to your place and help you review the script. You know, I wrote the script for Sleepless in Seattle, and the one I'm currently filming, Sleeping with the Enemy, is also mine. The script for American Pie, which is currently being released by Universal, is also mine. You can absolutely trust my cinematic insight!"

Jennifer Connelly chuckled over the phone, "Of course, I know you're great. Come on over; I'll be waiting at home."

"Okay," Arthur quickly hung up, grabbed his car keys, and headed out.

Arthur had driven Jennifer Connelly home before, so he knew where she lived and didn't need directions.

In the car, Arthur saw his cellphone on the passenger seat. No wonder he felt like he had forgotten something.

Back home, Arthur initially intended to call Brad Pitt to ask if he was going to MGM for the Thelma & Louise audition. After all, the guy had left the Sleeping with the Enemy set in Iowa to shoot other scenes in Los Angeles.

But after the call with Jennifer Connelly, he had completely forgotten.

"Damn it, how could I get distracted thinking about something else during such a crucial moment? Brad Pitt isn't even a girl," Arthur chastised himself before stepping on the gas, heading toward Jennifer Connelly's place.

*****

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