Hollywood Director 1992.

Chapter 395 A Half-God, Half-Beast Man, A Woman Half-Willingly Complaining

Charlize Theron is in New York filming her new movie "The Devil's Advocate." It's her first time playing the lead role in a blockbuster, so she's understandably nervous, worried that she won't do a good job, and also concerned that Keanu Reeves and Al Pacino might act like divas and be difficult to work with.

What made her most nervous was the advice given by her agent, Sam Haskell.

After signing her in 95, Sam Haskell kept talking about Link in front of her, telling her how Link went from a stevedore to the movie mogul he is today.

At first, she thought Sam Haskell wanted to use Link's story to inspire her, to learn from Link, to work hard, and to become a star actor as soon as possible.

Therefore, she adopted an aloof demeanor and rejected the advances of many men.

She is dedicated and committed when filming, striving to portray her characters better. While others are shopping, going to bars, or dating, she stays at home reading, honing her acting skills, and never missing any opportunity to improve herself.

She thought that this would make her a star actress and allow her to establish herself in Hollywood.

But after several failed film auditions, she gradually came to realize the truth.

She believed she performed exceptionally well in those auditions and that the roles were a perfect fit for her, but she still failed to pass the auditions.

She played eight roles, both big and small, in 94 and 95, most of which she obtained through resource exchanges with her agent rather than through auditions.

This discovery greatly discouraged her, and she went to Sam Haskell to complain, lamenting how dark the film industry was, how many unspoken rules there were, and why no one was doing anything about it.
Sam Haskell told her that the reason she was going through all this was because she herself wasn't of much value and wasn't an indispensable resource for the crew.

For example, the roles she auditioned for were not only suitable for her, but also for other young actresses. This is Hollywood, where there is no shortage of beautiful women.

If she wants to avoid these unspoken rules, she would have to possess scarce resources, such as becoming a star with high box office appeal, becoming a veteran actor who can carry a film with superb acting skills and improve its quality, or having a powerful background that benefits the production company.

If you have nothing, you will inevitably be subject to unspoken rules.

Charlize Theron was even more discouraged; Sam's words made all her past efforts seem worthless.

However, Sam Haskell also pointed her in a clear direction—to befriend Link.

Sam asked her if she knew where the resources he used for trading came from.

Charlize thought it was from WMA agency.

Sam said no, the resources allocated to the agency are very limited, and they simply cannot support so many agents and artists under their management.

In Hollywood, top agents need to learn to build their own networks and find resources. The bigger the agent, the more they pay attention to this, and the more resources they will have.

And he is one of the top agents in the industry.

Sam then asked her if she knew how he became a top agent.

Charlize Theron said it was due to his personal ability and hard work.

Sam shook his head and said it was luck, because he met Link, who later became a Hollywood mogul.

As Link's manager, I can earn a lot of commission every year just by getting a little bit of resources from Link, and I can also arrange for my three artists to be cast in film crews.

This is one of the reasons why his three artists never lack roles.

Charlize Theron had mixed feelings after hearing this inside story. She had always thought that the roles she got in the past were due to her agent and agency, but now she knew that it was all thanks to Link.

Her feelings toward Link were also very complex.

Before coming to Hollywood, she had heard of Link's name, seen his movies, and knew a certain amount about him.

In the media, Link is a remarkable person—powerful, wealthy, and incredibly talented, the pinnacle of the film industry, and the 'king' and 'sun' in the hearts of aspiring actors.

Over the past year, she had met Link several times and spoken with him a few times through Sam Haskell's connections, gaining a deeper understanding of him.

As Sam said, Link is handsome, refined, and approachable. He has the air of a great director rather than a top billionaire, and he is a very interesting man.

This is the good side of Link.

The bad side is also obvious: he is too promiscuous. It is rumored that he has more than 50 girlfriends. Almost every pretty and famous actress in the industry has a relationship with him.

It is said that he lived a life of luxury, residing in a palace-like villa with a ten-meter-long and ten-meter-wide bed in his bedroom. He was said to have slept with at least ten beautiful women every day, which was extremely perverted.

Charlize Theron had heard of Link's greatness and also knew of his twisted side. In her mind, Link was a demigod, a handsome and great god on one hand, and a ferocious beast on the other.

After her conversation with Sam Haskell, Sam bluntly told her that if she wanted to take a shortcut to fame quickly, she should go to Link, whether as his lover or friend. As long as she could get to know him, she would have access to more resources.

For example, Jim Carrey, Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Renée Zellweger, Ryan Phillippe, and many others started as nobodys. Because they knew Link, and with his help, they gradually rose to become major movie stars, earning tens of millions of dollars per film. And she, being beautiful and sharing the same agent as Link, had an easier time getting close to him than others.

This is her biggest advantage in the film industry.

Charlize felt conflicted after hearing this.

She is a strong-willed girl. After becoming an actress, she hopes to gradually grow from a small actress to a big star through her own efforts, rather than taking shortcuts and exchanging her body for resources.

However, she also knew that Sam was right. In Hollywood, unless you are very lucky or very talented, very few ordinary people can achieve success through their own efforts alone. Even if there are such people, they will encounter many hardships on the road to success.

Charlize Theron admits she is not someone who can withstand hardship, but choosing shortcuts does not align with her personal values.

One is a shortcut to success, the other is a rugged road to the unknown.
How to choose?
She hesitated for three days afterward before finally deciding to give it a try.

Her idea was simple: actively befriending Link didn't necessarily mean becoming his woman; she could befriend him, like Sofia Coppola, Jodie Foster, and Michelle Pfeiffer. It's said that they weren't Link's women, but they had frequent contact and close relationships in private.

She had met Link a few times and could become friends with him.

This is also why she took the initiative to visit the Link film crew after arriving in New York.

"Sally, have you met Keanu Reeves?"

Link asked while eating.

Charlize Theron snapped out of her reverie, blinked, and said, "I've met him twice, at company script meetings. He's cool and doesn't talk much."

"Keanu is rather introverted and not very enthusiastic towards people he doesn't know well, but he's a good person and a friend worth getting to know. You can invite him to the next gathering so you can get to know each other better and make it easier to work together when filming a movie."

"Okay!"

Charlize Theron winked and smiled, “Link, you seem even better than the rumors say.”

"Really? Tell me what rumors you've heard?"

"There are too many. You're a Hollywood legend. Everyone looks up to you, everyone wants to be like you. There are all sorts of rumors, mainly falling into three categories: first, your movies; second, your wealth; and third, your private life. Which one would you like to hear about?"

Charlize Theron winked slyly.

“I’ve heard a lot about the first two in the newspapers, but I’d like to hear about the third one.”

Charlize Theron was surprised. Link's greatest success lay in his career; his films and wealth were the envy and admiration of everyone. However, his private life was so chaotic that it was subject to a great deal of criticism, and the rumors surrounding it were also very negative.

Link wanted to hear her talk about his private life. Did he want to hear people call him a scumbag and a playboy?
Charlize Theron smiled and said, "There are a lot of rumors about your private life, most of which are made up. For example, there are rumors that you have more than fifty girlfriends. That should be false, right? Sam said that you are very hardworking and have a very full schedule every day. You shoot several movies every year and manage the company. It's impossible for you to have so much time to spend on women."

"More than fifty girlfriends? Last year, the tabloids claimed I had more than thirty girlfriends, and now there are more than ten more?"

"Who made you so popular? Now, if your name is in the newspaper, people will buy it to read it. The media treats you as a source of traffic and keeps hyping up your news, regardless of whether it's true or not."

Charlize Theron paused for a moment, then said jokingly, "Link, can I ask you how many girlfriends you actually have?"

Link thought for a moment, “I’m not sure. I don’t have the habit of counting the number of girlfriends. Whenever I meet a woman I’m attracted to, I chat and drink with her. If she’s willing to accept me, we start dating. If she’s not, I stop bothering her. I don’t keep count of the number of them because a girlfriend is a girlfriend. Each one is a special individual, and our relationship experiences are also special. They can’t be represented by numbers.”

Charlize Theron felt a strange sensation. The first strange thing was that Link didn't know how many current girlfriends he had. The second strange thing was that Link and his girlfriends weren't just playing around, but were actually in a relationship.

The first point can be explained by the fact that Link has too many girlfriends and he doesn't have time to keep track of them.

The second point is definitely wishful thinking on Link's part.

As a woman, she understands women better; no woman wants to share her lover with other women.

The reason those women were willing to stay by his side was for the resources he possessed, not because they had any feelings for him.

Link was probably fooled by those women.

Charlize Theron shook her head, secretly feeling sorry for Link. Link was excellent in every way, but his only flaw was that he didn't understand emotions and mistook a group of women who were sucking his blood for true love.

Suddenly, another question occurred to her. Link had just said that he would ask any woman he liked to have a drink and chat with her, and she was having a meal and chatting with Link right now. Did that mean Link had feelings for her?

Charlize Theron blinked and lowered her head, her mind in turmoil, unsure whether she should accept Link's advances.

(End of this chapter)