Charlize Theron easily commanded the entire room with her presence. As a top-tier actress, she had her own circle of friends — something Gilbert never interfered with.
Of course, she knew her limits and never crossed any lines. The others in Hollywood understood the unspoken rule as well — no one dared to touch Gilbert's woman.
But there were always a few reckless newcomers — young investors who had just entered Hollywood, unable to suppress their desire and tempted to make a move on the dazzling Charlize Theron.
"Hello, Miss Theron," one man who fancied himself charming took the first step.
Holding a glass of wine, Charlize turned around with a look of mild confusion. "And you are?"
"Allow me to introduce myself," the man said. "I'm John Maxon, head of the GRF Film Foundation."
"Mr. Maxon, nice to meet you. What brings you here?"
Her polite tone made John Maxon feel that this was his chance — after all, she hadn't rejected the conversation.
He gestured to a waiter, grabbed another glass of wine, and said with a smile, "I was wondering if Miss Theron would care to join me in a private room, so we can exchange our thoughts on cinema."
Charlize's smile could have melted ice. "I'm afraid if you want to talk about movies, you should find Gilbert," she said sweetly. "No one understands film better than he does."
"Oh?" Maxon's tone shifted slightly. "Well, if we're not talking about movies, we could always discuss something else… like—"
Before he could finish, he reached out to touch her waist. But the next instant, he felt his neck tighten as someone yanked him backward.
"Who—?" Maxon barked angrily, turning around—only to meet Gilbert's icy stare, cold enough to make his blood freeze.
Charlize quickly added fuel to the fire, wrapping her arm around Gilbert's and cooing, "Darling, he said he wanted to take me to a private room to talk."
Gilbert had been chatting happily with a few acquaintances moments earlier when one of Charlize's friends came running to tell him that she was being harassed.
So Gilbert personally intervened — by pulling Maxon away.
Caught red-handed trying to flirt with another man's woman, Maxon panicked. But surrounded by so many onlookers, his youthful pride refused to let him back down.
"Director Gilbert, this is a public place," he said stiffly. "Please mind your manners."
Among the onlookers, someone muttered under their breath, "Where did this idiot come from?"
"I don't know," another replied. "But he's got guts, I'll give him that."
Indeed, guts or stupidity. Before Gilbert could even act, Christian Bale, who happened to be at the banquet, suddenly splashed a glass of wine right in Maxon's face to help him "cool down."
Bale was set to work with Gilbert on the Batman series and hoped to star in his future projects. This was the perfect chance to show his loyalty.
If it had been someone else, he wouldn't have lifted a finger. But this guy? Bale found it easy enough to put him in his place.
The crowd burst into laughter. Maxon's face burned with humiliation. Enraged, he tried to lunge at Gilbert but someone in the crowd conveniently stuck out a foot, sending him sprawling face-first to the floor.
The laughter only grew louder.
Michael Ovitz hurried over. Seeing the scene, he immediately called out, "Enough! Let this gentleman go rest for a while."
Maxon was helped out of the hall, his face red with embarrassment. He clearly didn't have the nerve to stay any longer.
Ovitz looked troubled. After dispersing the crowd, he turned to Gilbert and apologized. "I'm sorry — this was my oversight. Please believe me and David, we didn't arrange for this to happen."
Gilbert replied calmly, "It's fine, Michael. I know it wasn't you."
Charlize, having regained her usual cool and elegant demeanor, added, "Good thing you showed up in time, Mr. Ovitz. Otherwise, Mr. Maxon might have left here on a stretcher."
When filming The Matrix, Charlize had trained extensively in action choreography. She'd also kept herself in excellent shape over the years.
To put it simply taking down someone like John Maxon would've been no problem at all.
And the best part? Maxon wouldn't even be able to defend himself.
Charlize could easily say he tried to harass her, and that she was merely acting in self-defense. Any judge would take her side.
It was a small incident, but it sent a clear message throughout Hollywood: Gilbert's woman was not to be provoked.
There were plenty of beautiful women in Hollywood, no one needed to take such a dangerous risk.
David Ellison wasn't surprised when he heard about what happened. He cursed under his breath, calling John Maxon an idiot. How dare he provoke Gilbert of all people?
Only he, David Ellison, was qualified to be Gilbert's rival. Everyone else needed to step aside.
By then, most of the guests had arrived, and the celebration banquet officially began.
The main creators of Transformers—director Michael Bay, lead actors Andrew Garfield and Megan Fox, and producer David Ellison—appeared at the center of the ballroom.
Martin Bob took on the role of temporary host, reading out the long list of achievements Transformers had accomplished, earning a round of loud applause and cheers.
Gilbert felt a bit disappointed not seeing Mel Gibson there—he had been looking forward to teasing that fiery Australian. Perhaps Michael Ovitz had decided it was best not to invite him, knowing that Mel Gibson was bound to stir up trouble.
While clapping, Charlize Theron leaned close to Gilbert's ear and whispered, "If someone didn't know better, they'd think Transformers had surpassed Titanic."
Gilbert chuckled and replied, "For Sky Dance Studios, this movie might actually be more meaningful than Titanic. It proves that David Ellison is capable of making real achievements in Hollywood. Larry Ellison will likely support him even more firmly from now on."
Charlize frowned slightly. "Doesn't that mean more trouble for us?"
Gilbert comforted her softly, "Don't worry. On a larger scale, Sky Dance Studios still has a hard time gaining real influence among the major companies. One successful movie can't hide the fact that Hollywood still keeps them at arm's length."
Charlize smiled and said, "Let's just hope Transformers doesn't get a second, third, fourth, fifth, or sixth movie—otherwise, that'd be a nightmare."
Gilbert laughed. "Even if it does, it's fine. Movie studios may produce films, but they don't necessarily live off movies."
Strategically, Gilbert didn't see Sky Dance Studios as a real threat. But tactically, he treated them seriously—after all, the Transformers series was indeed highly profitable, giving Sky Dance Studios a stable source of income.
Now, it all depended on whether David Ellison's ambition would start to inflate. Gilbert had even planted a few traps for him—he just didn't know when they'd explode.
As the party officially got underway, Gilbert found himself more curious about Andrew Garfield's night.
It was clear that the young actor, who had only just appeared, looked distracted and nervous. Poor guy—David Ellison had practically sold him off to a few so-called "industry big shots."
Those old men had quite an interest in the handsome young actor. Whether Andrew Garfield managed to protect himself that night was anyone's guess.
When Garfield spotted Gilbert across the room, his eyes lit up with relief, as if he'd just found a lifeline. Before the older men could drag him away again, he hurriedly walked straight toward Gilbert…
....
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