A few weeks passed, and I arranged to meet the actors James had found in the meeting room at Seonghyeon KMD Pictures.
As I entered the room, four actors were looking at me, all dressed plainly with naive expressions in their eyes.
“Oh, ah! Hello!”
Starting with one actor’s greeting, the others bowed their heads in unison.
Since they were young actors who hadn’t even become prospects yet, they looked quite nervous.
The group consisted of actors in their early to mid-twenties, fitting for the roles, and one in his early thirties.
“Yes. Hello, everyone. Haha.”
I almost laughed out loud thinking about how much their appearance fees would be if converted to 2020s values.
“Now, I assume you’ve heard the gist of it from Mr. James?”
I didn’t know exactly what James’s specialty was, but thanks to him tracking down actors even from the English countryside, things were progressing smoothly.
“Yes. This is for a movie offer, right? And you’re… the director of Space Vagabond…?”
“I only knew it wasn’t a scam because he even paid for my plane ticket…? Until then, I thought it was a total scam…”
“Yes. It’s not a scam. Haha. You’ve all read the script, right?”
Everyone nodded at my question, staring at me with wide eyes as if they still couldn’t believe the situation.
From art college students to active actors who had yet to see the light.
Suppressing a chuckle at their plain appearance before they became glamorous stars, I spoke.
“Now, you will all find your spotlight in my movie. Although these are supporting roles, they will be sufficient stepping stones to lead you to other films. That’s because your talents are dazzling.”
At my words, they looked at each other and smiled shyly. Looking at those pure smiles, I added:
“I’m not joking. Instead…”
As I trailed off, the actors focused intently on me.
“Let’s spruce you up. First of all.”
Their current looks were far too frumpy.
Their star quality seemed buried under that plainness.
Only by revealing that star quality could they contribute to the success of the film.
“Now, I’ll assign a professional to each of you. From now on, shed the frumpiness and be reborn as glamorous stars. Does everyone understand?”
“Yes!”
“And once you’re ready, we’ll start the script reading within a few days.”
The progress was faster than they expected; the gathered actors just blinked, unable to find words.
“Does this mean… we’ve already been cast?”
“Yes. You’ll sign the contracts tomorrow. We’ll also do camera checks at the same time.”
“Does movie filming usually happen this urgently…? Don’t you need to verify anything? Our faces aren’t famous… actually, I don’t even know who the other actors here are.”
“Probably the same for everyone. Does anyone here know each other?”
Because they were actors only I knew, they were even more important.
I already knew exactly what kind of acting they excelled at and where they were lacking.
Since I had assigned roles that suited their acting styles, there was nothing to worry about.
However, the expressions of the actors in front of me weren’t particularly bright.
“Everyone. This is your Hollywood debut. Aren’t you excited?”
“It feels like a dream… but it’s so much like a dream that I don’t know. Just last week, I was sweeping the floors of a theater… and suddenly, Hollywood…?”
“You’ll be on a roll from now on. Just prepare your acting according to the script. I’ll be looking forward to it.”
Lee Junseong observed the actors Gyeong Chanhyeon had brought into the meeting room.
Chanhyeon had put in a lot of effort, even paying for their plane tickets out of his own pocket, but in Lee Junseong’s eyes, none of them possessed any charm.
‘How is it that not a single person among the four appeals to me…?’
Lee Junseong forced a smile and nodded as the actors left the room with bright faces.
Then, he caught Gyeong Chanhyeon as he was the last to leave and asked:
“Hey, why on earth did you bring unknown actors by paying for their plane tickets…? And First Class? Have you lost your mind?”
“You have to treat talents who deserve it with that kind of respect. It’ll come back to us in a bigger way.”
“Sigh… And I don’t see a shred of star quality. If anything, they look incredibly frumpy.”
At Lee Junseong’s words, Gyeong Chanhyeon smirked and said:
“That’s because they aren’t styled yet. Their star quality is just hidden. That’s why I assigned people to them. By the time the script reading happens, they’ll appear as completely different people.”
“You even assigned people to them?”
“Yeah. To buy clothes. Just wait until the script reading. Those actors will support Robert Penn perfectly.”
Leaving those words behind, Gyeong Chanhyeon walked away with a light step, and Lee Junseong let out a deep sigh while watching him go.
“Is this really the right way…?”
A few days later.
“Honey, today is your script reading, right?”
At his wife Susan’s question, Robert, who was chewing on a cheeseburger he had picked up that morning, smiled and nodded.
“Do a great job.”
“Hmm?”
It was a simple well-wish, but Robert stared at her, noticing the worry laced in her voice.
“Did you hear something?”
“…”
As a film producer herself, Susan was quick to hear the rumors circulating in the industry.
That Director Gyeong Chanhyeon was struggling with the casting of Robert Penn.
Because of that, she was naturally more concerned.
“No, it’s nothing. The actor issue was resolved well, right?”
“Yeah. Well, today is the first meeting. I’ll have to see.”
“I hope they’re decent people.”
Susan looked at Robert with worried eyes.
“Why, are you anxious because there are actresses? Don’t worry, I won’t even look at them.”
“It’s not that.”
“Then what?”
“They’re all young, so I’m afraid it’ll feel like child’s play. I’m worried. Especially since this is Director Gyeong Chanhyeon’s Hollywood debut, he must be nervous. Please take care of things.”
At Susan’s words, Robert crumpled the cheeseburger wrapper and laughed loudly as if it were absurd.
“Me?”
“Still, you’ve spent much more time on film sets.”
“That’s because you’ve never met him personally. There’s something unusual about his eyes.”
Robert tossed the crumpled paper into the trash can.
As he smiled with satisfaction seeing the trash slide in cleanly, Susan asked:
“What do you mean, unusual?”
“There’s a madness in his eyes. Remember what I told you before?”
“The thing about the temple? The day he just tossed the Detective Graser script at you like it was garbage?”
“Yeah. With eyes like that, there’s nothing for me to take care of. Everyone will be terrified and fall in line on their own.”
At Robert’s words, Susan tilted her head as if she wanted to ask something, but she soon smirked and nodded.
“Alright. I’m sure he’ll do fine. You’re basically telling me not to nag, right?”
“No, it’s not that… he’s just a really strange person…”
“Enough. Just get going. You don’t have much time. Are you planning to be late for your first official meeting?”
When Robert checked his watch, he was surprised by how tight the time was. He kissed Susan on the forehead and hurried toward the Seonghyeon KMD Pictures building.
Feeling like he was actually commuting for the first time in a while, he drove with the script in the passenger seat.
“Phew…”
The moment Robert took a deep breath in front of the building.
A voice that sounded both unfamiliar and familiar came from behind.
“Hello?”
“Ah… yes.”
At the sight of CEO Lee Junseong, Robert put on a sly smile and extended his hand first.
“I apologize for going against your words, CEO.”
“Is this the attitude of someone who’s sorry?”
“Being sorry is one thing, but this is my expression of intent to do well moving forward. We’re in the same boat now; I can’t stay sorry forever, can I?”
At Robert’s playfulness, Lee Junseong let out a smirk, as if baffled.
“It seems you’ve changed a bit.”
“As Director Gyeong Chanhyeon said, I’ve come around a little. I still have a long way to go.”
“Haha, honestly…”
Then, after shaking hands, he spoke.
“Well, I have things to be sorry for too. As Mr. Robert said, since we’re in the same boat, let’s focus on doing a good job rather than feeling sorry.”
“We’ll get along better than I thought. I love that we aren’t wasting emotions or time on useless things.”
Lee Junseong smiled back at Robert’s smile, and together they headed toward the script reading room.
“This is your first meeting with the newly joined actors, right?”
“Yes. This is the first official schedule, isn’t it?”
“Haha. I just saw them a moment ago… and wow. Something unbelievable has happened.”
At Lee Junseong’s words, Robert frowned and asked:
“Is it something bad?”
“No. It’s so good that it’s strange because it doesn’t make sense.”
Lee Junseong spoke to Robert with a mysterious expression.
“You started acting when you were young, right?”
“Yes. I debuted at eight.”
“Then you must have seen a lot of actors?”
“Of course. But why?”
“Then, have you ever seen someone’s image change completely in just a few days?”
At Lee Junseong’s question, Robert tilted his head.
“How does the image change?”
“Like a farmer digging potatoes in Ohio suddenly hitting the lottery and becoming polished and sleek?”
“What?”
Robert had thought Lee Junseong was sane, but feeling that he might be more out of it than he thought, he frowned and asked.
“It doesn’t make sense, right? Right?”
“I’ve never seen anything like that, but…”
“Actors who looked like country mice just a few days ago suddenly showed up as bundles of charm. Seriously… I keep wondering if this is even possible.”
“Haha… we’re here. Let’s talk more later.”
The room was packed with production staff and actors.
Entering the room, Robert felt a surge of anticipation at being back on a set after so long.
‘What’s this? Who are these actors?’
The unfamiliar actors caught his eye first.
They were actors he had truly never seen before, and he had no idea where they had been sourced from.
However, they didn’t give off a single hint of the raw, inexperienced scent typical of rookie actors.
“Hmm…”
Hiding his surprise, Robert sat in his designated seat.
Shortly after, Gyeong Chanhyeon entered.
“Now, has everyone been doing well?”
The staff and actors looked at Gyeong Chanhyeon as he stepped forward.
“You’re all aware of the strange rumors circulating about the movie we’re filming, right? Things like how I was rejected by all the actors I tried to cast as supporting roles. Rumors like that.”
The production staff looked at each other and remained silent, while Robert Penn focused on Gyeong Chanhyeon’s next words, curious about what he would say.
“Those rumors. Well, half are true, and half are lies. I did make offers, but they asked for more money. I figured it was the agencies playing games, so I just recruited entirely new faces. We have a friend who is crazy about money, Lee Junseong, so we don’t need to be played by those kinds of people.”
Gyeong Chanhyeon smiled while pointing at CEO Lee, and Lee Junseong responded with a smirk and bowed to the surrounding staff.
“Now that I’ve introduced the producer, let me introduce myself.”
Gyeong Chanhyeon cleared his throat and took a sip of water with a relaxed smile.
“I am Gyeong Chanhyeon, the director of Detective Graser. It’s a pleasure to meet you all. My goal is to become a director who, together with all of you, will devour Hollywood.”
The people in the script reading room broke into continuous applause, and Robert Penn also clapped enthusiastically, thinking to himself:
‘Devour Hollywood…? What a bold expression.’
A smile naturally formed on Robert Penn’s lips at the thought that this would be a quite enjoyable shoot.
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