Chapter 279: The Storm Rises
Eric saw Aron Campbell"s expression that was likely to burst out at any moment, so Aron left without further delay, leaving a business card with his contact information and said, "Mr. Williams, feel free to call me whenever you want to talk."
After he finished, Aron left. Eric threw the business card into the trash can and went to the study room. He took out his recorder and pressed play. Conversations between two people could be heard. Then he took out the video tape he had just recorded from the machine with a monitor in the study room and inserted it into the video player and pressed play.
Aron Campbell"s figure sitting in front of the camera appeared on the television screen. The clear picture made every gesture of Aron stand out and even an ordinary person could guess what he was saying from the movements of his lips.
It"s funny to think that no one would usually install cameras in their own home, but this mansion was built in imitation of Tony Stark"s mansion from memory.
Since it"s a copy, these small details can"t be forgotten. Not only in the living room, but many places in the estate are connected to cameras in his study, so Eric can know the wind and gra.s.s of any place in the estate as long as he wants.
Unexpectedly, the impulse at that time today brought him a gain that was very important to him.
On January 1, 1990, New Year"s Day.
Jeffrey returned to Los Angeles around 10 o"clock in the morning. Chris Hanson was also with him. Chris had resigned from Morgan Stanley. He had been preparing Eric"s investment company. After hearing what Eric said from his father, Chris was uneasy and followed him to Los Angeles.
After understanding the situation in detail, the three of them not only did not discuss any solutions, but found that Firefly was now facing many difficult problems, but Jeffrey and Chris never suggested that Eric compromise with those people, and finally agreed to see what happens next.
New Year"s Eve seemed to pa.s.s quietly. But it was like the last peace before the storm.
On January 2, Eric got up early and asked the servants to get today"s newspaper, the Los Angeles City Times, with the headline on the front page in black and bold.
"Eric Williams: Hollywood"s Most Shameless Playboy"
"Humph, they are not leaving any room for me," Eric glanced at the few photos on the front page, and his group photo with several women appeared on it without leaving a trace.
Since the end of the studio era, Hollywood"s film industry has become increasingly developed, and the so-called unwritten rules have lost the soil to survive. Stars are no longer powerless members in the studio, so they don"t have to be manipulated by powerful people. However, this does not mean that the unwritten rules have disappeared, but that it has been put in the open.
The article in question distorted the story of Eric chasing women in a large-scale way, and painted him as a shameless person who could not get roles without giving physical favors.
Although the more famous Los Angeles Times did not have this news, many newspapers of the next level had similar reports.
In Hollywood, an actor has to work hard to make it to the top without any background support. As a result, years later an American magazine listed dozens of secrets to success as a star, with the first one being that no matter your gender or s.e.xual orientation, if you want to make it big, you must always be ready to offer s.e.xual services to those who can open doors for you.
Of course, although this kind of thing is very common in Hollywood, most people silently abide by the rules and don"t cause any big waves.
Of course, the public is not completely unaware of the situation in Hollywood circles, but they only get to see the most glamorous and sunny side of it. Therefore, the image of most Hollywood stars in the public"s eyes is very positive, and everyone is happy to indulge in this glamour.
Today, suddenly someone distorted the rumors linking Hollywood director Eric Williams and many female actors, and then widely publicized it. Eric was undoubtedly pa.s.sively become the rebel of Hollywood rules, so after seeing these articles, Eric"s image in the public"s mind was certainly plummeted.
In just a few hours after the new day"s newspaper was published, Eric"s mansion in Malibu was surrounded by paparazzi who had received the news. Eric originally planned to go out, but seeing this situation, he could only stay at the manor obediently.
... ...
In a small cottage in Beverly Hills, Famke Janssen waved a newspaper in her hands and shouted desperately to Sharon Stone sitting at the table: "Why, why, I took you as a good friend, but you hooked up my boyfriend, you and Drew Barrymore are all b.i.t.c.hes, and Julia Roberts, and...".
The little girl was excited and read out a series of names on the newspaper, then ripped it up and threw it at Sharon: "You are all b.i.t.c.hes, I"m fed up!"
Sharon calmly took out the sc.r.a.ps of paper that flew into her collar and said, "You say we are all b.i.t.c.hes, then what are you? If it weren"t for Eric, could you get the role of the female protagonist in Friends, could you have the fame you have now?"
Aniston was speechless, then said: "I"m the one who"s his girlfriend!"
Famke Janssen asked coolly, "So what if you got married? What difference does it make?"
The girl pointed at Famke and gritted her teeth before storming off to her bedroom. She grabbed her stuff and put them in a simple leather suitcase before returning to Famke with a check. "This is my rent, from today onwards I have nothing to do with you."
Famke took the check, folded it, and stuffed it in her bra with a flirtatious look to Sharon Stone. She said, "The extra money is a tip for me."
Sharon cursed before walking away with her suitcase.
Famke watched the door slam shut and picked up a newspaper fragment off the table to look at its contents. She murmured, "What an idiot, she can"t even tell when Michael Eisner is in trouble, all she knows is to be jealous."
... ...
Aniston put her suitcase into her car and just opened the gate of the courtyard without waiting to get in the car, but was surrounded by several paparazzi.
"Miss Aniston, what do you think about the content in today"s newspaper?"
"Famke, will you break up with Mr. Williams?"
"Miss Aniston, living together with Miss Nicole Kidman, does it mean that you are already clear about her and Eric Williams?"
"... ..."
Famke Janssen pushed away the recorder in front of her anxiously, shouting, "Get out of here, I have nothing to do with Eric Williams from now on, don"t bother me anymore."
The reporters were even more excited when they saw Aniston"s outburst, that"s exactly what they wanted. If she kept her composure, they wouldn"t be able to get more explosive news.
"Jenny, will you continue to play in Friends?"
"Miss Aniston, are you sure you just said you are going to break up with Eric Williams?"
"Jenny..."
Famke Janssen coldly pushed her way through the crowd and got into her car, slowly driving away from the paparazzi. She aimlessly drove around the streets of Los Angeles for a while before her cellphone rang. Upon answering, she heard her father"s voice, and she slowly pulled her car over to the side of the road, finally breaking into tears into the phone.
... ...
We are now live in front of the estate of Eric Williams in Malibu Point for an update on the scandal involving Eric Williams and several female celebrities that broke out two days ago. 72 hours have pa.s.sed since then and the estate’s gates remain closed and Eric Williams has yet to come out and make any clarifications.
A woman in a blue blazer and holding a microphone stands in front of the bustling crowd of reporters and towards the closed gates of the estate. Despite the fact that it has been three days since the news first broke, the controversy is yet to die down and the number of reporters in front of the estate only continues to grow and is currently over a hundred.
This week, due to the scandal of Eric Williams, the five films currently released by Firefly have all been affected to varying degrees, with the most serious impact being felt by Seattle Nights, which suffered a drop of more than 40% in its box office in the following week, earning only 17 million US dollars. The other three films, Home Alone 2, Steel Magnolias, and Pretty Woman, also experienced a drop in ticket sales beyond expectations. Pretty Woman, which had a limited release, was least affected. According to statistics from relevant agencies, the total box office losses due to the Eric Williams scandal for the five films may exceed one hundred million US dollars.
Due to the scandal, the three famous actresses, Drew Barrymore, Julia Roberts, and Nicole Kidman, have all been silent and no statement has been issued by any of them. It is not known whether they were warned by certain forces. On the day the scandal broke out, Jennifer Aniston, Eric Williams" publicly known girlfriend, announced her break up with him. The copyright of Friends, which Jennifer Aniston stars in, belongs to Firefly, so after the couple became enemies, there is a great suspense in the cast of the second season of Friends.
Famke Janssen, a famous model with an outstanding performance in Home Alone 2, revealed to a reporter at the Manhattan Morning News that Eric Williams was a very gentle and considerate man and the attacks on the young director by many newspapers were completely libelous. This was the only actress who defended Eric Williams among all the movies he has directed.
In the mansion of Maribou, Eric sat motionless on the sofa, watching the rolling news about himself on the TV not far away. Various newspapers were spread out on the coffee table and floor.
Drew carried a small tray with some delicacies carefully to Eric: "Eric, would you like to have something to eat?"
Eric"s eyes, which had been fixed on the TV, moved slightly, then he turned to look out the window. The blue sea still had a few pieces of "garbage" floating on it, and somehow the sky had darkened again.
"Hold on, I"ll eat later,"
Drew obediently put down the tray he was holding on the coffee table and tidied up the scattered newspapers before carefully moving closer to Eric. After being with Eric for so long, she could keenly sense any slight change in his emotions. Now, she could tell that Eric was very angry and could erupt at any moment. Even though she was sure Eric would not take it out on her, she still shrank back in fear.
After sitting quietly by Eric"s side for a while, the little girl said, "Eric, do you want me to find a woman for you?"
"Hm?" Eric looked at her confusedly.
"I think, I feel that you might need some venting," Drew said cautiously.
Eric smiled bitterly, "Find who? Aren"t things complicated enough as it is?"
Drew slowly crouched down to the floor and crawled over to Eric"s side, reaching out to unbuckle his belt.
Eric stopped her, gently patting her fuzzy head and forcing a smile, “It"s okay, I"m not in the mood for this right now.”
Upon hearing this, Drew stopped, but stayed close to Eric, rubbing her face against his thigh, “Eric, no matter what they do, I will always be yours.”
“You are misunderstanding, Drew. I called them and asked them not to speak. In this situation, it is best if they don"t say anything.”
“Mm,” Drew hummed quietly, knowing that whatever Eric said was right.
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