America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Chapter 494 Have Fun and Stay Safe (Alliance Hierarch Additional 1)

"Are you sure Martin came to the party?"

Walking through the crowd, Tom Cruise asked his assistant on the side, "Are you certain?"

The assistant quickly said, "Yes, I asked at the entrance; Martin came with Leonardo and Nicholson."

Suddenly, a cheer erupted, and when Tom Cruise turned to look, not too far away, more than twenty girls surrounded three men playing a game.

In the middle of them, sandwiched by four or five girls like a patty, was Martin Davis, one of Hollywood's hottest male stars right now.

If we're talking about popularity and appeal from last year to this, even Tom Cruise would concede.

But he has been cooking up a storm in Hollywood for nearly thirty years without getting burned, which shows he is a smart man.

Finding an appropriate opportunity, Tom Cruise walked over and greeted, "Hi, Martin."

Hearing his voice, Martin turned and saw Tom Cruise, appeared slightly surprised, spit out the ribbon of a bra he had just untied, and shook hands with him, "Tom, you're my idol."

He had said this countless times, and it sounded completely sincere: "Back in the day, 'Top Gun' nearly shocked me into becoming an aviator, and later 'Mission: Impossible' made me consider joining the CIA for a while. Too bad I didn't have the credentials; they wouldn't take me, otherwise poor Langley!"

Tom Cruise said with a smile, "Your latest two movies were fantastic; now, I'm a fan of yours."

"So we're fans of each other?" Martin pointed to the beautiful girls around and asked, "Join us for a bit? It's quite fun."

Tom Cruise waved his hands, "Can we talk alone somewhere?"

Martin gave the bra back to Holly, "You guys play on your own for a while."

Holly, putting it on, said, "I know a spot that's suitable for talking. Shall we go over there?"

Martin and Tom Cruise followed her to the backyard, which was much quieter compared to the bustling front yard, with tables and chairs sporadically set up along the corridor and the lawn for resting.

Holly got some drinks and glasses from a waiter, placed them on a table under a pavilion, and pointed to the distance, "I'll be over there, call me if you need anything."

Martin nodded slightly and waited for her to walk away before asking, "Tom, what did you want to talk about?"

Cruise opened the bottle of wine, poured two glasses, and said directly, "I wanted to ask you about your secret to success."

Martin was quite surprised, "But you're Tom Cruise! My idol, Tom Cruise!"

With a career spanning thirty years, Cruise had seen a lot and said with a smile, "That doesn't stop you from being more successful than me in the last three years."

He raised his glass toward Martin, "Countless examples tell me that learning from someone successful makes it easier to succeed."

Martin responded in kind and drank with him, saying, "Everything I've done is out in the open; there's nothing special about it."

Cruise, seeing Martin wasn't refusing, asked directly, "The action scenes in 'John Wick' were especially brilliant. Did you do all those difficult stunts yourself?"

"Difficult?" Martin thought for a bit and said, "The truly difficult stunts all used doubles. The insurance company wouldn't let me take the risk."

Cruise frowned, "Impossible, those long takes..."

Martin said, "All the long takes were done by me personally. After rehearsing a few times, it wasn't hard at all."

Cruise understood then—their understanding of action difficulty wasn't on the same level.

What he considered extremely difficult, Martin found not so hard, maybe even easy, enough that even the insurance company had no objections.

Cruise said, "No wonder, during your promotional marketing, you didn't make a big deal out of performing those difficult action scenes yourself."

Martin was reminded by this and slapped his forehead, "We overlooked that; it was indeed a good point for publicity."

Cruise, however, figured out why: "Warner thinks it's normal for you to do those things, your crew thinks it's normal, so nobody thought it was worth marketing."

Martin thought about it, and it made sense; he picked up the wine bottle, poured more for both of them, and toasted Cruise, "Thank you for reminding me."

Cruise clinked glasses with him, "Even if I hadn't said anything, you would have thought of it soon enough."

After chatting a bit more, Martin noticed that Tom Cruise was positioning himself quite humbly.

Having been a superstar for nearly thirty years without falling off like Depp and others, but rather continuing to thrive, there must be something commendable in certain aspects.

Cruise, after a moment of thought, said, "I don't have your youth or physical ability. If I were to do an action movie, how could I create a selling point like 'John Wick'?"

This was what bothered him, Brad Bird, and their whole team the most.

In the past ten years, as Hollywood adopted action styles from Harbor City, they had pretty much tried all sorts of action routines.

With 'John Wick' coming out of nowhere and being hailed as a classic of new-style action movies, it seemed only right for Cruise to learn from someone successful.

Martin ventured to ask, "If I may be so bold, Tom, are you planning to shoot a sequel to 'Mission: Impossible'?"

Cruise smiled, "The fourth installment is already on the schedule."

Martin considered for a moment; Tom Cruise represented a major force in Hollywood. Some things he wouldn't need to mention, for the other side would likely figure them out after some time. Wouldn't it be better to do a favor?

Especially since it concerned 'Mission: Impossible' anyway.

He slightly organized his thoughts and said, "Personally, I think 'Mission: Impossible' and 'John Wick' have completely different styles. If you use the action model from 'John Wick', the effect will be greatly reduced."

Cruise listened and nodded slightly.

Experience new stories on My Virtual Library Empire

Martin continued, "Tom, I can complete those actions because I've undergone many years of rigorous training."

Considering my past life as a stunt double, saying it took ten years to perfect a sword wouldn't be an overstatement. "Since it's an impossible mission, why not go big? Find a super landmark that's globally recognized, climb it yourself, pilot a plane on your own, or do something like a high-altitude skydive. When you publicize that you did it all yourself, the promotional effect...

BOOM, it would be explosive!"

Cruise thought of someone, "Jack Chen from Harbor City?"

Martin nodded, "Even better than him, a super landmark plus the most modern means of transport, plus high altitude, high mountains, and cliffs! You are one of Hollywood's top superstars. Imagine the wonder people will feel when you perform yourself."

Glancing at Cruise, seeing that he was truly taking it in, Martin emphasized, "It would also create an image of extreme dedication and attitude, and repair your image."

That last statement made Cruise take Martin's words even more seriously.

Tom Cruise's recent years had been anything but pleasant. Since he fired his agent and with his messy personal affairs, scandals and negative press had been a constant.

It was only because he had worked hard for over twenty years, building up a thick skin, that his situation hadn't collapsed.

Why relaunch Mission: Impossible? Because that franchise was the most stable, able to help him claw back from his decline.

Tom Cruise poured himself another drink, "Martin, here's to you."

Martin raised his glass, "Don't mention it."

Tom Cruise clinked glasses with him, "I owe you one."

Martin didn't say anything but just drank his glass.

Tom Cruise took the initiative to exchange personal business cards with Martin, "If you ever need me, give me a call."

Martin wasn't shy, "I will."

Tom Cruise quickly left the place.

Holly came over from afar, "Are you done talking?"

Martin stood up, "Let's go, shall we continue our game?"

Holly walked with him back to the front yard, saying as they went, "A few more rounds, then I'll call the girls, and we can go out together."

Three people approached, looking disheveled.

The man's pajama top was nowhere to be seen, wearing only a pair of trunk briefs. As he walked, the trunk swayed comically from side to side.

He had an arm around the shoulder of a girl on each side, all three of them getting handsy, seemingly looking for the right spot.

Martin thought the man looked familiar but couldn't recall his name. After taking another glance, they passed each other by.

Holly, paying attention, whispered, "That's Charlie Sheen, another Hollywood star. He was in Platoon and Two and a Half Men."

Martin immediately connected the face to the name, "Charlie Sheen! Does he come here often?"

Holly casually mentioned, "From time to time. He always brings a bunch of girls with him. Don't worry, I've never gone out with him..."

Martin cursed silently and quickened his steps toward the front yard, but he didn't head back to where they were playing games. Instead, he found Bruce, who had been watching him from a distance.

He spoke directly, "There's an emergency. Call Chad, Marcus, and Thomas, tell them to come near my place. Tell the butler to prepare drinks and a late-night snack. I'm going to find Leo and Jack."

Bruce didn't understand what had happened but complied anyway.

Holly asked, "Are you leaving?"

Martin took out the check he had prepared earlier and tucked it into Holly's waistband, "A little something for you, thanks for your service. I had a great time tonight, but I have an urgent matter and must go."

Holly pulled out the check and was very pleased with the amount, smiling, "Next time you come, make sure to look for me."

Martin nodded casually and went to find Leonardo and Nicholson, hoping the two hadn't been seduced by the beauty around them.

Because, upon hearing Charlie Sheen's name, he remembered the widely spread rumor from his previous life. Sheen had contracted AIDS, causing panic in Hollywood.

Engaging recklessly in private was one thing; most would be cautious about that, but in such a setting...

Martin couldn't recall the specific year it happened, but safety came first in such matters.

Among a crowd of women, he found Nicholson and Leonardo, who were only messing around.

"There's a bit of an emergency, can you come with me?" He seemed to be asking, but he grabbed Leonardo and Nicholson, "Let's go, we'll drink at my place."

"We just got here not long ago." Leonardo was confused.

Nicholson, old and wise, saw Martin's seriousness and slapped Leonardo, "Let's go."

The three didn't go looking for Hefner; they just got in the car and left.

Leonardo asked, "What's going on?"

Martin explained, "I just saw in the backyard, a lot of girls without any protection, messing around with guys. It's surely not the first time. There were rumors of AIDS in the industry before, I think it's better we stay away from here."

He looked at Nicholson, "Jack, can you handle a Jennifer Lawrence?"

Nicholson, holding his aged back, said, "Ah, I'm getting old."

Martin then asked Leonardo, "Can you handle all those supermodels?"

Leonardo, upon hearing this, thought it made sense, "The quality here is indeed a bit low."

Martin spread his hands, "We want to have fun, but we also want to stay safe, right?"