Behind The Spotlight Chapter 252
One by one, the executives stood up and left, avoiding eye contact, unwilling to be the last one near Salvador.
Collin glanced at Salvador, who had messy hair, far from his usual polished image. Collin noticed that Salvador's hands were trembling slightly, whether from rage, exhaustion, or helplessness, he could not tell.
Salvador was the only one left in the conference room. He slammed his fists against the table in anger, the sharp sound echoing in the empty space.
'... Why can't he let go of Shawn? With his status, he can find another actor to invest in and make into a superstar.'
Collin asked himself that question.
If one of his clients faced the same situation as Shawn Jacob, what would his response be? The thought unsettled him more than he expected.
Would Collin condone his client's actions and leave the client to destruction? Or would he do his best to protect them, even if it meant crossing his own principles?
At the end of the day, Collin didn't know the answer. He treated his clients as moneymakers, but he also treated them as friends, and that blurred everything.
Would he betray his client or not?
Or perhaps his client would be the one to betray him in the first place.
He wished he wouldn't reach that point in his life. He didn't want his principles and his work ethics to collide. He was flexible, but he had limits.
When Collin and Arnold left the room, Collin asked Arnold a question.
"If you were in Salvador's shoes, what would you do?"
"Me? Sometimes I feel like talent agents and lawyers are the same. No matter how despicable our clients are, we must protect them, because that's our job." Arnold exhaled slowly. "We have to be professional... But I also believe that Shawn is wrong and he deserves to go to jail," Arnold said, stating his opinion.
...
...
...
Aside from the Shawn Jacob's issue, December didn't have much else going on.
The PR team for Whiplash was working hard to ensure that the movie would be nominated for many awards. Naturally, Axel's PR team also cooperated, as their interests aligned.
Based on Axel's performance in the movie and the lineup of potential films that would be nominated for the Academy Awards, there was a strong chance that Axel Gunner would be nominated for the Best Supporting Actor Award, the odds were in his favor.
As long as Axel got nominated, it was already considered a win, a validation. It meant that the organization had recognized Axel's talent in acting.
"Let me ask you some questions: are you Jewish?" Paul Kim faced Axel with a clipboard in hand.
"No."
"Are you Asian?"
"No."
"Are you Black?"
"No." Axel tilted his head. He was confused as to why Paul Kim was asking him these questions.
"Are you depressed? Did something bad happen to you that can make people sympathize? Are you dead?" Paul asked flatly, as if reading a checklist.
"... Uh, I'm not depressed anymore. The biggest obstacle in my life is my divorce and being separated from my son. And no, I'm not dead," Axel answered, even though he didn't understand the situation.
"It seems like you won't get a nomination at all. Heck, even winning the award is basically impossible."
"May I ask why?" Axel frowned.
"You're a mediocre white American who doesn't have anything unique about you." Paul didn't sugarcoat it.
"If you're Jewish, you will automatically win the award. If you're Asian, they will take pity on you and get you nominated. If you're Black, you have a chance of getting nominated and even winning the award. The organization of the Academy Awards wants to show that they are not racist, even though they are."
"As for your life story, our PR team can cook up a plan to make the members of the Academy sympathize with you."
"What about my death?" Axel asked half-jokingly.
"Oh, if you're dead, you automatically win the award. They love voting for actors who have depressing stories so that people can support them." Paul shrugged.
"... That's fucked up," Axel muttered. It seemed this PR campaign was going to be difficult.
"Talk to the Academy Awards, not me." Paul Kim was unbothered, Axel was not his type.
"Anyway, the best plan our PR team can do is make divorced members sympathize with you." He flipped a page. Paul Kim had already memorized the preferences and backgrounds of several Academy members.
"We have a list of divorced men in the Academy Awards who can vote for you."
"Thank you." Even though Axel was slightly confused, he was thankful that Paul Kim was serious about this endeavor.
"You don't have to thank us, you're paying us, after all."
"..." Axel had no rebuttal.
Yes, Axel had paid the PR team $1 million to help him get a nomination at the Academy Awards, a steep price. On top of that, Axel had to spend more money to bribe people...
The expenses were stacking up.
The Academy Awards were never fair. They were always political and had agendas they wanted to maintain. It was an open secret.
Last year, they received criticism that they never let any Black actors win major awards. So, just to show that they were not racist, the Best Actor and Best Actress awards were won by Black people that same year. See how racist that was?
Still, the prestige of the Academy Awards was real. The Academy Awards were the biggest honor an actor or director could receive. It was the pinnacle of validation a film artist could get in their entire life.
No wonder actors, actresses, and directors dreamed of winning the golden statue. It meant they had reached the pinnacle of their careers and the organization acknowledged them as the best in their respective fields, immortalized by the industry.
Even with all the controversies surrounding the Academy Awards, film artists still dreamed about holding and raising that small golden statue.
Axel was also like that. The prestige of the Academy Awards was too strong to disregard. Who wouldn't want to win the highest award? Axel was just human.
Even Lawrence had the intention of trying his luck to win the award in the next few years. That just showed how influential the Academy Awards were despite their issues.
[Thank you for reading this novel.]