America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

As if by premeditation, overnight, many gossip media outlets burst forth with numerous reports singing the praises of Martin Davis, the male lead in the wax museum.

The film's first-week box office exceeded expectations, so naturally, Martin had to be the absolute male lead.

And he had every right to fight for it.

In the living room of the villa, Louise stood in front of the bar and poured herself a drink. She asked, "How much did it cost?"

Martin roughly said, "Those gossip tabloids didn't cost much, they're not front-page material. The most significant was the Hollywood Reporter, Thomas applied for resources from the company."

Louise handed him a glass of whiskey: "The male lead of the box office champion, WMA giving a push is quite normal."

Martin clinked glasses with her: "To celebrate me."

Louise chuckled lightly: "To celebrate you becoming a bottom-tier star."

Martin downed his drink: "From a producer's perspective, am I now worth a million-dollar paycheck?"

Louise wouldn't mislead Martin and directly said, "No, for a simple reason, you're not the wax museum's first leading role. If 'The Hills Have Eyes' could get such box office, your paycheck would definitely be over a million dollars."

Martin knew that risk and reward were proportional.

The lead role bears the severe consequences of failure, naturally enjoying the greatest dividend of success.

Louise poured more drink: "Tonight's liquor tastes particularly good."

Martin said: "Because this movie's earnings will make you money." He tossed aside his dignity: "Seriously, I'm really envious of Mene. Once Paris agrees, his life is worry-free. Rich woman, please support me; I really don't want to struggle anymore."

Louise took out a box and pushed it towards Martin: "Take a look."

Martin was surprised: "Do I still have to sign an agreement? I think it's unnecessary, mine is yours..."

Louise said: "Shut up and just look."

Martin opened the black box, inside was a phone with a battery cover thick as a brick.

He'd seen similar things before; older knock-off phones claimed to have a standby time of a month.

"For me?" Martin was puzzled.

As it turns out, Louise could play too: "This phone can last a whole half night on a call."

Martin understood right away: "You want to call Kelly."

Louise stretched out her long fingers, playfully lifted Martin's chin: "The male lead of your movie won the box office crown. You must call your former boss to share this joy with her, don't you think?"

Martin strongly agreed: "Let's go upstairs and call Kelly."

A few minutes later, Kelly Gray in Atlanta cursed a thousand times in her heart, then turned on the speakerphone.

......

The next morning, Martin called Bruce and drove with Mene straight to the jail where Paris Hilton was being detained.

Today was Paris' big release day.

Of course, the film crew wouldn't miss out on this tasty cake; they had already communicated with Mene in advance.

"Boss, do I look all right?" Mene, holding a bouquet of flowers, asked.

Martin scrutinized him, straightened Mene's tie, and said: "Very dashing, an absolute killer among middle-aged and older women."

Bruce said: "We're close now, there's a lot of people and cars, we can't get through."

In the open space in front of the prison gate, countless media reporters and paparazzi were gathered, and a few television stations had simply driven their broadcasting vans over.

Mene asked: "What if she doesn't come out this way?"

"She'll definitely come out this way, Susan has already arranged it with her," said Martin. "Trust me, she won't miss out on an opportunity to make herself even more famous."

Susan had already communicated with Paris' agent, and Paris had been persuaded, understanding that rebounding from rock-bottom was her only path forward.

Bruce honked the car horn, but the crowd in front didn't want to give way.

Martin patted Mene: "Roll down the car window, stick your head out, those clowns will give way automatically."

Mene rolled down the window and shouted: "Guys, don't delay my proposal, will you?"

Many reporters and paparazzi turned around, saw Mene's fiery face, and very conscientiously made way, also yelling for those in front to clear out and not block Mene's path.

Bruce drove smoothly up to the nearby gate, looked back at Mene: "Buddy, go for it."

Martin pulled out a box and handed it to Mene: "In case she says yes, don't forget to put the ring on her finger."

Mene opened the box, a huge diamond shone back: "Boss, this..."

Martin said: "Don't worry, it's fake. If Paris doesn't want it, keep it for the next one."

Mene scratched his head: "If she really says yes, it's not great to put a fake diamond ring on her, is it?"

"No problem," Martin said with a bad idea. "If she agrees, let her pay and then you can buy a real one."

Mene agreed: "Makes sense."

Martin checked his watch: "It's almost time, go ahead."

In the moment that followed, Martin and Old Cloth would not steal Mene's thunder.

Mene got out of the car, adjusted his suit, straightened his tie, grabbed the rose bouquet, and strode toward the prison gate.

At that moment, the focus of dozens of cameras and video cameras was all on Mene!

Mene was standing about ten meters from the prison gate, waiting for his goddess to come out.

This scene was bound to snatch away too many headlines from the gossip media tomorrow.

Bruce unbuckled his seatbelt and said, "This business is too much fun, way more interesting than being a sweeper."

Martin asked, "Hooked already? Don't lose yourself to the allure of gold."

Bruce laughed, "Once the movie's promotional period ends, so will this."

Martin mocked again, "You don't sound like a civilized man, more like a scumbag."

Bruce said, "Can't help it, I learned everything from you."

The prison doors opened at that moment, and Paris Hilton, with a bag on her back, came out from inside.

Countless flashlights lit up, and the media feast began.

Mene, holding a bouquet of roses, walked towards Paris and came to a stop two meters in front of her, fell to one knee with a thud, and presented the roses, "Paris, marry me!"

The surrounding reporters and paparazzi joined in the commotion, shouting loudly, "Marry him! Marry him..."

The magnitude of the spectacle was breathtaking.

After all, if Paris agreed, the love story of a poor boy and a princess would be grand news, sure to cause an explosion.

Paris, taken aback, looked carefully at Mene, the unknown little actor from the crew, sneered to her ear, took the roses, and threw them on the ground, "A boring trick."

She turned and walked toward her own car, where her agent was waiting in front.

Mene squeezed his eyes forcefully; although his acting skills couldn't compete with his eloquence, he hadn't let them go to waste, and two streams of tears rolled down.

Suddenly, an idea popped into his head. What if he accused Paris of racism for not accepting him right here? How would that turn out?

Mene slowly got up, head down, and with tears streaming, walked towards the Volkswagen.

Incredibly, many media cameras turned their lenses towards him.

Love unattainable!

The tragedy was maxed out!

As Paris got into her car and left, this farce finally came to an end.

Mene didn't want to be surrounded by dozens of reporters and paparazzi, so he got into the Volkswagen before they could come over.

With the intended effect achieved, Martin told Bruce to start the car and make a quick getaway.

Mene wiped away his tears, sentimentally said, "My love that ended before it began."

Martin received a call from Susan, talked for a while before hanging up, then told Mene, "Buddy, I've got good news for you. Susan asked me to tell you that the next movie she's producing will have a supporting role for you, no less significant than the one in 'Wax Museum'."

Mene perked up immediately, "What's the movie, boss, are you in it?"

Martin shook his head, "The lead actor is Susan's fiancé, Robert Downey Jr.; I can't compete with that, so I won't be involved."

There was no need to try and maneuver into such a role, as the chance of success was practically zero.

Mene, having thrown his failed marriage proposal to the back of his mind, said to Martin, "Boss, ever since I met you, my luck has changed for the better."

Martin thought for a moment, "My luck hasn't been too bad either, you've brought me good fortune as well."

Indeed, although the ratings and word of mouth for 'Wax Museum' kept sliding downhill, thanks to continuous promotions, the box office trend did not experience a massive plummet.

As Halloween, the traditional prime time for horror movies, approached, Hollywood's horror films began to cluster in theaters, and 'Wax Museum's' reign as the box office champion lasted only a week before it was overtaken by Columbia Pictures' "The Grudge (US Version)."

However, $9.58 million was enough to secure 'Wax Museum' the second spot at the box office during the second weekend.

Including the box office earnings from Monday to Thursday, the film's cumulative North American box office reached $36.14 million.

Surpassing $50 million in North America was not a problem.

Global distribution is one of the core strengths of the big six companies in Hollywood, and Warner Bros. launched the film into multiple overseas markets including England, Mexico, and Germany this weekend, quickly pushing 'Wax Museum's' overseas box office past $15 million.

Silver Pictures, the production company, along with Warner Bros., the distributor, jointly held a celebration party for the film.

The party also featured a brief red carpet ceremony.

This too was a standard form of promotion.

When Martin walked the red carpet again, the media treated him completely differently.

Not many fans at the hotel entrance let out bursts of screams, camera flashes never ceased, and some reporters even called out to him for an interview.

Martin only accepted interviews from his partners, speaking eloquently in front of the Warner Television Network cameras.

"The box office success is the effort of the entire crew; every member has worked hard for this." He lived high-key but low-profile, "Personally, I'm very lucky. Silver Pictures gave me the opportunity to act, Warner Bros. brought the movie to the audience, and Susan and Zomi provided me with a lot of help on the set."

While speaking, director Zomi Silla came over.

He opened his arms and hugged Martin tightly, clearly a sign of a good relationship.

Facing the interview, Zomi spared no praise, "Being able to work with such an outstanding actor like Martin in the very first film I directed is very lucky for me; he is a genius in acting, and he perfectly fulfills any demands I have, I never have to worry about his performance."

The two had a great relationship and were happy to boost each other's business.

Then Susan came over and highly praised the work of Martin and Zomi.

The film was a success and everyone benefited, so naturally, in front of the media, it was all goodwill.