I am Hollywood

[Chapter 1130: Film Reviews]

After a brief exchange with the guard, a silver BMW smoothly drove into Kensington Garden Street, soon arriving at Eric's mansion.

The driver opened the door, and Olivia Wilson stepped out. Waiting beside her was Merissa Mayer, who observed the woman known to favor black clothing and respectfully said, "Ms. Wilson, hello. I'm Marissa Mayer."

"Hello," Olivia replied with a light handshake, her gaze questioning.

Merissa gestured invitingly and explained, "The boss went to the BBC this morning for a recording. He'll be back shortly."

Olivia nodded and followed Merissa into the villa. However, instead of sitting in the living room, she asked, "Did you prepare lunch for him?"

"It's already been reserved at the Garden Hotel restaurant. It will be delivered once he gets home."

"Skip the restaurant; I'll cook," Olivia said, removing her black trench coat and glancing at the girl beside her. "Could you help me?"

Merissa instinctively took the coat, nodding, "Sure."

As Olivia surveyed her surroundings, she walked toward the kitchen and added, "I wonder if there are any ingredients here."

Merissa hung up the coat and, following her like a diligent maid, offered, "What do you need? I can have them deliver it."

"Oh, thank you."

"Not at all, it's what I should do."

...

It wasn't until Eric returned that Merissa Mayer managed to break free from her automatic role as a maid. Despite being a strong-willed woman, she found herself feeling a twinge of inferiority in front of Olivia.

Perhaps it was because this was his mother, she reasoned with herself.

After lunch, the assistant quickly excused herself under the pretext of work.

"She's a nice girl, just a bit too strong-willed. Not as easygoing as Carly," Olivia remarked while sipping coffee on the living room sofa, finally taking a good look at Eric, whom she hadn't seen in a while. "How is your hand?"

Eric raised his right wrist and flexed it. "It's fine now."

"I went to see Carmen's runway show and chatted with her."

"Carmen?"

"Yeah, I was in Japan last month to see the cherry blossoms. She happened to be in Tokyo for a show at the beginning of the month, so I caught her."

Eric nodded but felt a strange discomfort, as if he were a teenager whose shrewd mother secretly knew all his private matters.

Olivia studied Eric with a faint smile. "Carly rarely talks to me about you; it's usually me asking first."

Upon hearing this, the feeling of strangeness intensified for Eric. He tried to shift the conversation. "So, um... how have you been?"

"Really well! I came back a week early; otherwise, I could have seen the premiere of your movie in Tokyo."

"You can still come by tomorrow."

"I just had Marissa prepare an invitation, but I won't see you tomorrow."

Eric nodded, wanting to continue but suddenly unsure of what to say.

Feeling his distant demeanor, Olivia felt a touch of disappointment. After a moment of silence, she smiled and asked, "Eric, did you want me to come over for something in particular?"

"Um, just a moment."

Eric stood up and headed upstairs. After a while, he returned with a laptop bag, sitting down beside Olivia and handing her the bag. He hesitated before saying, "This contains a video file -- just in case, if something unexpected happens, you can take it out."

Olivia stroked the leather surface of the laptop bag, and as she listened, her fingertips trembled slightly. "Eric, are you suggesting... a will?"

Eric found it hard to say words like "will" with the ease; after a pause, he nodded, "Yes."

Olivia reached over to hold Eric's hand. Concern finally surfaced beneath her usually calm demeanor. "Eric, is something going on?"

Feeling the coolness of her palm, Eric held his hand back after a couple of seconds, shaking his head. "No, it's just something everyone does. I have a written will, but you know, unexpected losses and declarations of invalidity have happened before. I just want a little extra insurance."

Olivia paused, looking at her empty palm in surprise. She cautiously reached for him again, patting the back of his hand. "Don't worry; I will help you keep it safe."

"Also, the password for the video is the first 15 digits of pi, each reduced by one."

Olivia pondered for a moment and confirmed, "203048154247868, right?"

"Mm-hmm."

"What about the laptop?"

Eric shook his head. "This password is sufficient."

A Windows password doesn't really make much of a difference in the presence of someone with even basic tech knowledge.

...

The silver BMW left Kensington Garden Street again. After briefly gazing out at the street scenery, Olivia shifted her focus to the driver in the front seat and said, "Take me to Wilson Manor."

The driver, one of Eric's longest-serving bodyguards, was mostly aware of Olivia's status, so he nodded, "Of course, ma'am."

On that Sunday afternoon, the weather, which had been gloomy for days, finally brightened a bit. Mrs. Wilson was sitting on the estate lawn enjoying afternoon tea with her daughter, who had just returned home two days prior. A somewhat elderly servant rushed over, announcing, "Ma'am, Miss Wilson has returned."

Mrs. Wilson glanced at her daughter Caroline, puzzled. Did she have a second daughter? A moment later, she realized and quickly stood up as Olivia approached, carrying a laptop bag.

"Jane, what brings you over today?" Mrs. Wilson smiled and embraced Olivia, reaching out, "Let me take that."

"Thank you, I can manage," Olivia dodged Edith Wilson's hand, hugged Caroline, and pulled her toward the castle. "Carly, I need to ask you something."

"What is it about?" Caroline replied, puzzled, as Olivia held her wrist. She looked at her mother but was pulled into the castle without much resistance.

Edith Wilson stared blankly as the two disappeared through the doorway, then sighed.

The elderly servant beside her asked, "Ma'am, should I inform the master?"

"No need, and don't mention it to James either."

"Understood."

...

The commotion surrounding Eric had no impact on the outside world.

The following day, starting in the morning, media from Europe and North America began gathering at the venue for the Iron Man premiere at Kensington's Royal Albert Hall. By afternoon, street congestion outside the hall had become so serious that the city government had to dispatch officers to maintain order.

At six o'clock, the red carpet ceremony began. Besides the cast and crew of Iron Man, the entire team of Bond 19 came to show support, alongside various celebrities from London, making the red carpet glitter with stars.

Poppy Delevingne and a few friends had even arranged for a stretch limousine to attend the premiere.

However, due to the sudden traffic jam, their vehicle got stuck not far from the music hall. Holding only regular invitations, the girls couldn't access the special lane set up for red carpet guests. After waiting a while with no other option, they got out of the car and walked to the venue.

Excited yet envious, Poppy, squeezed in among the fans, eyed one star after another stepping onto the red carpet. A girl with obvious Asian descent next to her couldn't help but say, "Poppy, you must be kidding, saying you're close with Eric Williams; now we can only watch from here."

Poppy felt a bit down but replied, "Alexa, I've got five invitations, so let's see you snag one."

The girl, named Alexa, stared intently at a glamorous star on the red carpet. "Of course, I can't get one, but I'd love to try walking the red carpet."

"You can do that once you're a supermodel," Poppy replied with a glance at Alexa's slender frame and teased, "But it seems you'll never become one."

Alexa shot back, "Neither will you."

"I never wanted to be a supermodel. I'm going to be a designer."

"Well, I can be a designer too."

"Yeah, right. You'll probably end up accomplishing nothing."

The other girls laughed, and a fair-skinned girl with black hair asked, "Poppy, do you think we'll see Eric Williams later?"

"Maybe; I can't say for sure," Poppy responded hesitantly. "Eric is very busy."

The black-haired girl said, "I heard he recorded a show at the BBC yesterday. What a pity! My dad was there too. I wish I had tagged along."

"It wouldn't help; Rebecca, he doesn't know you."

"But I could at least ask for his autograph."

"Poppy, don't you have Eric Williams' phone number? Why not just give him a call?"

"I just said, Eric's really busy; I don't want to interrupt his work."

"Clearly, that means you two aren't as close as you claim."

"Not true."

"So, have you slept with him? I heard he's a playboy."

"Eric is a gentleman."

"He definitely wouldn't be into your flatness. I heard he has a thing for older women."

"That's just tabloid nonsense. And even if it's true, so what? By the way, it seems you like to bring up your dad a lot -- isn't that an Oedipus complex?"

"That's an inferiority complex; always leaning on my dad."

"I'll hit you."

"Haha."

The girls laughed and, after watching the red carpet event for a while, eagerly entered the music hall and found seats.

...

At seven o'clock, the premiere officially began.

Eric, along with the main creative team, took the stage to interact with the audience for the long-awaited film, finally appearing on the big screen.

In a convoy of Humvees moving through the desert, Eric portrayed Tony Stark, presenting an irreverent attitude while humorously joking with a few soldiers, instantly immersing the audience in a lively atmosphere with a hint of rebellious rock music in the background.

When the punchline about the cover girl of Vanity Fair was delivered, much of the audience couldn't help but chuckle.

...

In a row towards the back of the hall, a few girls continued to whisper amongst themselves.

"That description is completely inappropriate," Alexa giggled and said, "He should be talking about whether he's slept with all the Victoria's Secret Angels."

"Yeah, definitely not just twelve."

"Hey, if you keep talking trash about Eric, I'm not bringing you along next time."

"Anyone notice how Poppy looks a bit jealous? She probably wanted to sleep with Eric Williams and got rejected."

"I did not!"

"That's such an obvious admission."

"Haha."

..

As the girls chatted, the scene on the screen suddenly changed. Amid loud explosions, a Humvee was engulfed in flames, drawing the attention of all the audience members who had just relaxed into a tense state.

The shaky footage quickly transitioned back thirty-six hours prior.

For the next ten minutes, through a series of clips, the film brilliantly crafted the image of Tony Stark as a reckless playboy, with Eric's scenes alongside Natasha Henstridge captivating the audience, impressing some critics surprised by Natasha's performance, far exceeding that of a typical pretty face.

However, what most surprised the critics was how, in just fifteen minutes, the film not only kept audiences riveted but also successfully established the entire story background through clever flashbacks.

Additionally, many years later, Eric's return to the big screen also left critics with no flaws to point out. Some even humorously mused that this might just be Eric Williams' 'natural performance,' considering how similar the real Eric Williams was to Tony Stark, a rare advantage most films couldn't achieve.

As the plot progressed, Tony Stark was captured, and in a makeshift environment crafted the first Iron Man suit, leading into the film's first major climax.

Fighting for his life, Stark announced that Stark Industries would no longer engage in weapon manufacturing, leading to his encounter with Vanity Fair's journalist Christine Everhart, igniting his thirst for vengeance against Dr. Yinsen's village, unlocking his superhero attributes, and gradually transforming his character into a new persona.

Until the ultimate battle with the villain.

As the film wrapped up, critics had to concede that although Iron Man didn't boast a particularly stunning plot structure, it was undeniably a high-quality superhero film with significant entertainment value.

Due to Warner Bros.' Batman & Robin receiving poor reviews and box office results, before the premiere, most critics were not optimistic about Iron Man's future, with many labeling it as Eric Williams' mere side project.

However, by the end of the London premiere, film reviews for Iron Man began flooding the internet and traditional media, showcasing an entirely different scene from what everyone had imagined.

*****

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