I Will Raise This Family to Greatness - Chapter 408

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Chapter 408
J.J. Simmons shrugged his shoulders and fixed his gaze on me. It was the look of someone trying to see right through me.
“CEO Jeon Sung-guk, I’ve only just met you today. You’ve only just met me too. You haven’t even seen my acting, so how can you bet such a large sum?”
I felt a twinge of regret internally.
In truth, it was a somewhat hasty bet.
“J.J. Simmons, I’ve already seen your acting work. Through many dramas and films.”
“But you haven’t seen me in this role.”
“That’s a fair point too. Then, will you come to today’s audition? If you do come to the audition, the contract terms will be valid.”
J.J. Simmons set down the script for “Whip” that he’d been holding. Then he smiled faintly.
“CEO Jeon Sung-guk, is this a matter of choice? Choosing Marvel, or choosing this film.”
“No. I’m not that cruel of a person.”
[J.J. Simmons. I’m a generous man.]
J.J. Simmons looked at me with an intrigued expression.
“Come to our audition after the Marvel audition. We still have enough flexibility to wait for you.”
“Well, I suppose there’s no helping it. Fine. I’ll discuss it with the agency.”
“The agency’s opinion is important, but I’m casting my vote on the fact that you have an eye for good films.”
J.J. Simmons pondered for a moment, then smiled.
“You really are something else. Giving me the audition time like this, of course I should see the audition for “Whip” as well.”
“Then I’ll be waiting. J.J. Simmons.”
[Simmons, this is where you belong. Stretch out both legs and rest easy!]
* * *
Dennis spoke in an excited voice the entire way to the Audition Hall.
“Sung-guk, but what if J.J. Simmons really doesn’t win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor?”
“I have that kind of money.”
To be honest, J.J. Simmons’ current appearance fee was expensive compared to rookie actors, but it wasn’t exorbitantly so. Even if it were ten times that amount, with Bitcoin in my portfolio, it wasn’t a sum I needed to fear.
Dennis’ eyes narrowed.
“Sung-guk, then… can we cast other roles with bigger names too?”
“Dennis, the greatest appeal of your film is casting fresh faces. It’s the charm of a low-budget movie… isn’t discovering new talent the mark of a director’s foresight?”
“You always slip out of these things. But… from what I hear, the filming schedules for Marvel and our film overlap almost completely. Will J.J. Simmons choose us?”
“If J.J. Simmons is a smart man, there’s no reason he wouldn’t choose “Whip.” Let me be frank with you, Dennis.”
Dennis nodded.
“What percentage do you think J.J. Simmons or his agency would estimate his chances of winning the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor?”
“They’d think it’s almost nonexistent.”
“Exactly. But if he doesn’t win, you’re giving him ten times his appearance fee. So from J.J. Simmons’ or his agency’s perspective, there’s no reason not to do this film. The script is good… the direction is unproven, but the short film was excellent. Excellent enough that Steven Spielberg had high expectations for it.”
Dennis smiled in disbelief.
“Sung-guk, the new SNS you launched didn’t get a good response, so are you planning to shift entirely to films?”
“Dennis, I go where the money is and where it matters. And this SNS won’t fail. It just takes time.”
“Really… I want to learn that confidence from you too.”
I crossed my arms and closed my eyes for a moment.
“Dennis, let me rest a bit. These past few days have been really exhausting.”
“Got it. I’ll wake you up when we arrive at the Audition Hall.”
At those words, I fell into a deep sleep.
* * *
The actors who showed up for the audition of “Whip” were far from glamorous.
They all looked slightly nervous, and their faces were unfamiliar.
There were some handsome actors, but those actors couldn’t act.
Dennis whispered beside me.
“The lead role is supposed to have a bit of a nerdy vibe, but… everyone’s performances are so flat.”
“This is the second round of auditions. Weren’t they already filtered?”
“They were, but… maybe that’s why they’re worse in the second round. I didn’t get this feeling when I saw them the first time.”
Then Dennis’s eyes widened again.
“Oh, this guy! Keep an eye on this one. He’s someone I thought was decent.”
“Got it.”
[Dennis, don’t worry. I already know who the lead of this film is.]
Soon, a tall man with a gloomy face walked in.
He was an actor who had gained some recognition from appearing in a previous work—a film featuring Nicole Kidman, famous as Tom Cruise’s wife. But he still lacked prominence in terms of recognition.
The actor entered the audition hall and looked back and forth between Dennis and me.
Dennis quickly introduced me.
“Miley, this is our second time, right?”
“Yes, Dennis.”
“This is Jeon Sung-guk, the investor in our film. He’s the CEO of FaceNote and, well, doing a lot of other things too.”
Miley Tails.
He really was as unremarkable as his name suggested.
An indecisive face. But perhaps because of that face, he actually looked more attractive among the handsome actors.
Miley Tails nodded when he saw me.
“I think that’s a Korean-style greeting.”
“You knew I was investing?”
“I didn’t, but… all the guys coming out kept mentioning it. They said they got more nervous in this round than the first because a more handsome FaceNote CEO was sitting here.”
Moderate flattery wasn’t so bad.
“You know how to flatter, don’t you.”
At my words, Miley Tails smiled slightly.
“Actually, I was sitting in the hallway listening to the other actors talk, and I thought I absolutely had to say this. But now that I see you in person… what I said isn’t wrong.”
[That’s true.]
Dennis nudged my side next to me.
“Sung-guk, watch the audition properly.”
“Dennis, don’t worry.”
I straightened my posture again. And I looked at Miley Tails.
“Miley, sorry, but flattery doesn’t earn you any points. From now on, show me what you can do as an actor.”
“Of course.”
Miley Tails composed his expression and performed a scene from “Whip” flawlessly.
It was truly breathtaking acting.
Dennis sat in a dazed state the moment the performance ended.
I quickly gripped Dennis’s shoulder and whispered quietly.
“Dennis, snap out of it.”
“Oh… Sung-guk. Got it.”
Dennis quickly regained his composure and, true to his role as director, requested a few more takes.
Miley Tails, still a newcomer, obliged all of Dennis’s demands, and I watched his performance in quiet admiration.
[The lead is decided….]
But now the real work was about to begin.
After Miley Tails left, I whispered to Dennis.
“Dennis, it’s him.”
“Sung-guk, you think so too?”
“Of course.”
“Then should we skip the rest of the auditions?”
“Are you serious? If that guy finds out he’s the frontrunner, his Agency will try to raise his fee. We need to cast him as if we have no choice. It’s a low-budget film.”
“Sung-guk, you know you’re ruthless when you’re like this?”
“Dennis, remember this one thing. I’m the one making this movie happen!”
Dennis laughed with an exasperated expression.
“I really can’t handle you.”
I shrugged my shoulders.
* * *
After the lead actor’s audition ended, the auditions for the conductor role finally began.
J.J. Simmons, who would arrive after the Marvel audition, was scheduled last.
The two actors who came for the second round had familiar faces, but honestly, their performances didn’t impress me.
Dennis and I yawned repeatedly the moment the actors left.
“Sung-guk, was there a decent actor among the two?”
“There wasn’t—we both know that.”
What mattered now was J.J. Simmons’s arrival.
But there had been no word from J.J. Simmons’s side yet.
Dennis looked at me with a slightly dejected expression.
“Sung-guk, even though you went to all that trouble… it looks like J.J. Simmons isn’t coming. Marvel is attractive, though. Once it hits, it’s a massive success, and your face gets known worldwide.”
“Hmm… let’s wait a bit longer.”
I folded my arms.
Just then, my phone rang. Who could it be?
Steven Spielberg’s name appeared on the screen.
I quickly answered the phone.
“Steven!”
– Sung-guk, you should have told me you came to Los Angeles.
“We were supposed to meet tomorrow anyway. I’m in the middle of Dennis’s film auditions today.”
– J.J. Simmons contacted me.
Steven Spielberg knew how to hook people just like his films did. Suddenly, curiosity sparked within me.
“What’s on your mind, Steven?”
-I met this fellow named Jeon Sung-guk, and he asked if I was a con artist. You see, when I met J.J. Simmons the other day, I mentioned I was preparing a film about you.
A con artist?
“Steven, so what did you tell him?”
-What could I say? I told him that the reason I’m preparing a film about someone named Jeon Sung-guk is simply because it’s remarkable that such a person exists in this world.
“What do you mean by that, Steven?”
-What I mean is, I told him he’s incredibly intelligent and brilliant. At first, I even wondered if this man was a con artist myself, but after working with him and observing various things, I realized that Jeon Sung-guk is someone ordinary people simply cannot comprehend.
“But why didn’t J.J. Simmons come to our audition?”
Steven chuckled briefly.
-Sung-guk, just remember one thing: everyone needs mental preparation before meeting you.
[Steven, I’m a generous man.]
“I’ll remember that, Steven. You didn’t say anything else to J.J. Simmons, did you?”
-Ah… since J.J. Simmons mentioned that you promised him over ten times his usual fee if he doesn’t win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in this film, I told him to go ahead and try what Sung-guk boasts about. After all, you either gain honor from this film, or if you don’t, you at least make money, right?
“Thank you, Steven. We’ll see you tomorrow.”
-I’ll be waiting.
And so our conversation came to an end.
Then came a knock on the door.
Dennis and I locked eyes.
Finally, it was time for the person we’d been waiting for to make his entrance.
The door opened, and J.J. Simmons appeared.
J.J. Simmons shrugged his shoulders and looked at us with a somewhat embarrassed expression.
“I’ve finished the Marvel audition. May I proceed with the audition for Whiplash now?”
“Of course!”
Dennis answered readily.
* * *
J.J. Simmons’ performance was overwhelming.
He knew precisely when to apply pressure and when to release it, and throughout his entire performance, he truly embodied the conductor of Whiplash itself.
Dennis and I watched in rapt fascination.
After finishing his performance, J.J. Simmons exhaled and looked at us.
“Dennis, Sung-guk… let me be honest with you.”
J.J. Simmons took another moment to steady his breathing, then fixed me with a clear, intense gaze.
“Honestly… I desperately want this role in Whiplash. You don’t even need to put that condition Sung-guk proposed into the contract. I just want to do this role! Really!”
At that moment, Dennis shot up from his seat.
“J.J. Simmons! I want to work with you too! There’s truly no one else suited for this role.”
Dennis looked at me as if hoping I would say something.
In this moment, there was only one thing I needed to say.
“J.J. Simmons, you’re cast in Whiplash. And… my condition still stands. If you don’t win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, I will pay you ten times your usual fee. So, let’s do this together!”
At my words, J.J. Simmons broke into a wide grin.
“For a role like this, with an offer like that, I’d abandon Marvel in a heartbeat!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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