Hollywood: The Greatest Showman

Chapter 154: Constant Buzzing

"Dear passengers, the plane is still taxiing. Please do not turn on your phones or electronic devices, keep your seat belts fastened, and wait until the indicator light turns off..."

The polite and gentle voice of the flight attendant came through the broadcast, yet it still couldn't suppress the growing commotion in the cabin. Andy Rogers immediately took out his phones from his pocket—one, two, three—and turned them on one by one. As soon as they were on, messages started pouring in, and there were seventeen missed calls.

Andy had three different phones: one for personal use and two for work. Among the work phones, one was for important contacts and clients, and the other was for ordinary contacts. When distributing business cards, he would give out different numbers depending on the person. Most strangers received the less important number. Skillfully, Andy picked up his important work phone first to check missed calls and unread messages.

Suddenly, his ordinary work phone started ringing. Glancing at the caller ID, he saw it was an unknown number, so he ignored it and continued replying to messages. The call rang for a while but eventually stopped. However, less than fifteen seconds later, it rang again, from the same number. Andy continued to ignore it.

After replying to all the messages on his important work phone, Andy finally picked up the ordinary work phone. The same number had called four times in a row. He called back, and the other party immediately answered, "This is Andy Rogers."

"Andy, this is Gavin Hunter, a staff reporter from 'American Weekly.'" Gavin quickly introduced himself. "Are you Renly Hall's agent?"

"Yes, I am," Andy replied smoothly. "How can I help you?"

"I would like to arrange an exclusive interview with Renly. Could we schedule a time?" Gavin got straight to the point.

At this moment, Andy's important phone also started ringing. He glanced at it and saw it was Daisy Lucas from 'Vanity Fair,' an old acquaintance. Andy didn't rush to answer it but spoke into the receiver, "Renly is currently at the Toronto Film Festival, and his schedule is packed. We can talk after the festival ends."

'American Weekly' and 'Entertainment Weekly' are among the top five entertainment magazines in the US, with similar content and target audiences, primarily focusing on gossip, popular among housewives. These are indeed significant magazines, but media interviews must align with the artist's image. For an actor like Sean Penn, even an exclusive interview with these magazines would have limited market impact.

Renly is still early in his career, where building his image is crucial, and he desperately needs exposure. Andy is cautious about media interviews and doesn't want to open the floodgates all at once. So, he didn't immediately agree but also didn't outright refuse.

"I understand. I'm in Toronto right now. I met Renly, and he suggested I call to schedule a time," Gavin explained quickly. "I genuinely hope to do an in-depth interview with Renly, not just about the Emmys but about his personal life and the newly released 'Buried.' If possible, I'd like to create a feature to deeply explore this emerging actor."

Andy, a seasoned agent, wouldn't be easily swayed by sweet talk. However, he found it interesting that this was the twenty-third exclusive interview request in the past two days—not just ordinary interviews, but exclusive ones. For a new actor, this was highly unusual.

Over the past few days, Andy had been extremely busy. Considering Renly was attending the Toronto Film Festival and 'Buried' was an independent film without a promotional strategy, he hadn't been managing things closely. However, he was aware of the general situation. He'd heard about the buzz online, monitored the Billboard Singles Chart and iTunes download rankings, but the impact seemed to exceed his expectations.

Just now, out of the seventeen missed calls, five were interview requests for Renly. Now, with 'American Weekly,' it was the sixth. Andy was curious if the call from 'Vanity Fair' was also related to Renly.

"Renly only has two films under his belt. If you want to create a feature, there won't be enough content—probably just a page," Andy countered, knowing how to handle reporters. "We all know that if 'American Weekly' wants to do an exclusive with Renly, the sincerity must be more than that."

Gavin was momentarily at a loss.

Andy immediately knew this was probably an inexperienced reporter; otherwise, he wouldn't have been so easily flustered. Veteran reporters are tough and seasoned.

"I'm serious," Gavin said, a bit anxious, "I find Renly to be a very intriguing actor. At the Toronto Film Festival, he watched 'The Illusionist,' 'Biutiful,' 'Incendies,' and other artistic films. He also attended the documentary screenings and is good friends with Ryan Gosling. They watched many films together and attended the 'Blue Valentine' premiere last night. I believe his choice of 'Buried' wasn't random. I want to learn more about 'Buried,' but I couldn't find much information. An exclusive with Renly could provide a deeper understanding."

Gavin poured out all his findings from the past three days. Initially, he was merely curious about Renly's background, but now he was genuinely intrigued by him as an actor.

Andy raised an eyebrow slightly. Renly attended the 'Blue Valentine' premiere last night? That rascal hadn't mentioned it to him and missed another great opportunity! Also, since when did Renly become friends with Ryan Gosling? That was news to him!

Andy felt a bit frustrated. Without any connection to 'Blue Valentine,' he hadn't specifically kept tabs on it; as for the Toronto Film Festival reports, without his direct management, they wouldn't mention a newcomer like Renly. So, he missed this important information. Now, the morning calls seemed more targeted.

Andy seriously considered that Renly needed an assistant; otherwise, he wouldn't know Renly's whereabouts, which was a critical issue.

"I need to check the specific schedule. How about this, you send a list of your questions to my email, and I'll review it. If the content is valuable enough, we can set up a time," Andy replied after a moment's thought.

In fact, for Renly, who aims to make a mark in independent films, an exclusive with 'American Weekly' holds limited value since its audience isn't particularly keen on artistic works. However, Andy thought it might be worth giving this reporter named Gavin a chance; it could be an opportunity for Renly to break into the commercial market.

After hanging up on Gavin, Andy's important phone rang again. Seeing the caller ID, it was Francis Parker, a senior agent at Endeavor Elite Agency. Francis was among the first to try signing Renly, even contacting Tom Hanks through connections, but ultimately couldn't make the decision.

Andy and Francis knew each other and exchanged pleasantries at social events, but they didn't have much professional interaction. Francis calling him was unusual.

Finally, the plane came to a stop. Andy quickly disembarked, making call after call. By the time he arrived at Renly's hotel, both work phones were nearly dead. He switched to his personal phone as a backup, checked into his room, and then headed to Renly's room. This time, he smartly presented his ID—the room was booked under Andy's name—and got a key card from the front desk, entering without difficulty.

Inside, Renly's room was a mess. Suits and shirts were draped over the chair backs, socks and shoes were scattered by the kitchen door—who knew why Renly took off his shoes there—and a bathrobe lay on the sofa while a towel was on the bedroom floor. Even without being a clean freak, Andy found it distressing.

"I told you, it's a terrible movie."

"Too bad, I really liked 'Infernal Affairs' before. Martin's remake, 'The Departed,' was a hit with American audiences, but I still prefer Andrew Lau's version."

"After 'The Departed' in 2006, his works lacked sharpness and depth, and this one's no exception."

...

Voices from the room's entrance reached Andy, and he soon met them, "Good morning, gentlemen."

"Oh, Andy, you're here. How was the trip?" Renly greeted familiarly.

Andy smiled and nodded at Renly, then introduced himself to the man standing slightly behind, "I'm Andy, Renly's agent. Last night's 'Blue Valentine' got rave reviews; it seems it's your year again."

Ryan shook Andy's hand with a cheerful grin, "I'm looking forward to Renly's movie release. His film choices have been eye-opening. Now I want to see his performance."

"'Buried' is also his choice. So, you can trust him," Andy said earnestly. "Are you attending the premiere?"

"Of course, that's the plan, if Renly still welcomes me," Ryan glanced at Renly, who shrugged, a "not sure" expression on his face, leaving Ryan momentarily stunned.

Andy chuckled, "Don't worry, there's a spot for you on the red carpet. We'd be more than happy to have you." Ryan exhaled in relief, smiling again, "But for now, could you excuse us? We have some business to attend to, and the premiere isn't far off."

Ryan left, looking a bit bewildered.

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