First audition

Hugo moved forward a little bit and found that all the actors waiting around him once again focused their gaze on him, making him feel a spasm in his stomach. Most of the owners of these gazes were probably looking to make fun of him, especially the stooges who brazenly looked at Hugo with provocation.

Hugo took a deep breath and calmed himself down, ignoring the various gazes around him. Then he stepped forward, ready to walk towards the conference room at the end of the right corridor. But after taking only one step, he felt a pull from behind. He instinctively turned around and saw Joseph holding the newspaper in his hand. Hugo realized this and quickly let go, allowing Joseph to pull the newspaper back. Then Hugo moved forward again.

Halfway through, Hugo saw Brad Pitt walk out of the conference room. He was an actor who had just finished auditioning before Hugo. At this time, the young and frivolous Brad had undone the top three buttons of his shirt, youthful and sexy, radiating immense confidence from head to toe. The smile on his face was like that of a quarterback in a school football team, without malice, but always ready to face competition, as if they were born to be the axis of the world.

At this point, Brad was 29 years old, which was no longer considered young and energetic by normal standards. However, Brad didn't become a real actor until he was 28 years old. His sudden success in "Thelma & Louise" made him taste the flavor of popularity. The media's accolades came in like a tide, and the gathered spotlights made Brad momentarily lost. The entertainment industry had such power that age and experience paled in the face of lights.

So right now, the 29-year-old Brad was like a young man of 19. He was bold and confident, unrestrained and unruly.

Brad confidently waved to the interviewer, then walked towards Hugo with a firm step. He spread his hand on his forehead and brushed his hair back while tossing his head, a gesture full of 90s style. While others might have found it stylish, it almost made Hugo burst into laughter because of its comic effect.

Brad walked past Hugo with a strut, swinging his shoulders to create an air of confidence. This type of walk was often seen on campus and was very stylish. He also threw a confident gaze at Hugo, as if saying, "my audition is almost a sure thing. It's your turn to play". The competitive meaning was as clear as day.

However, Hugo looked at Brad's figure but didn't have the mind to accept the challenge. His entire thoughts were drawn to Brad's flashy posture. In the end, he couldn't hold back and laughed out loud. But soon, Hugo realized that it wasn't Brad's humor that was too much, but his own thoughts were too advanced. For example, Brad's bell-bottom jeans were really hard to look at. So, Hugo quickly lowered his head, biting his lower lip to control his smile, then walked quickly forward.

Brad noticed the oddity of Hugo's behavior, slowing down his pace slightly, and looked back at Hugo's back as he walked forward. Light and confident, sunny and youthful, that tall figure didn't have any dazzling light, but there was a warmth that made people unconsciously linger longer. Regardless of what others said, Brad considered Hugo to be the biggest competitor in the audition for "A River Runs Through It", and now it seemed that Hugo was indeed a heavyweight opponent.

However, looking back on his performance during the audition, Brad soon regained his confidence and stepped forward again, moving in the direction of his agent under the attention of other auditioning actors.

Hugo walked to the door of the conference room and suddenly remembered something. He turned back and looked at Brad's back, wrinkling his brow in wonder. He remembered reading Brad Pitt's profile before and it said Brad's height was 6 feet (1.83 meters) - the same as Hugo's height. However, when they passed by just now, Brad was obviously shorter than himself, only about 5 feet 10 inches (1.78 meters) at most. This was a big difference. Hugo thought that the most famous short person in Hollywood was Tom Cruise... Could it be that Brad was still developing? Or had the height-increasing insole not been invented yet?

"Hugo." The female worker standing at the door shifted her gaze from the back of Brad to Hugo in front of her, interrupting Hugo's thoughts. When she saw the face of Hugo turning around, her eyes could not help but show a glimpse of amazement. She was shyly looking away when she saw Hugo's misty peach-blossom eyes and warm sunny smile. Hugo did not notice this abnormality and still showed a polite smile. He whispered a "thank you" to the female worker as he opened the conference room door and entered the room.

The conference room door behind him closed. Hugo looked around the room with a steady gaze, unsure if this was the conference room at the Four Seasons Hotel or if it had been rearranged specifically for the audition. Anyway, the setup inside was simple: two desks stacked with a pile of messy materials, a stack of chairs high on the right side, and several large boxes in the corner on the left. However, the luxurious carpet and elegant chandelier still indicated the meticulousness of the decoration.

The door of the conference room behind him was closed. Hugo looked at the decoration of the room quietly. He was not sure whether it was the conference room of the Four Seasons Hotel or whether it had been specially rearranged for the audition. Anyway, the decoration inside is very simple now. There are two desks with a lot of messy materials on the top, a lot of chairs on the right side, and several large boxes in the corner on the left side, However, the exquisite decoration can be seen from the gorgeous and tidy carpets and exquisite chandeliers.

There were two people sitting behind the office desk, a man and a woman, who were obviously Jon Hutman and Elisabeth Leustig. The latter was a middle-aged woman around 40 years old, not beautiful, more like a typical homemaker, making it hard to tell that she was a successful casting director; Jon was at least 40 years old, with a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, somewhat scholar-like, but the Mediterranean hairstyle revealed his middle-aged uncle's temperament.

"Hey, Hugo, it's great to see you again." As the casting director, Elisabeth naturally took the lead in the interview. Jon, who was sitting next to her, was only present as a representative of the actors' union to protect the rights of actors, and would not directly participate in the decision-making of movie casting. "This is Jon, the representative of the Screen Actors Guild. If you have any questions, you can ask him." Elisabeth briefly introduced and Jon smiled, nodding his head, without interrupting Elisabeth's words.

"How do you feel?" Elisabeth's question was very common, but today, it was meaningful. It was probably referring to the front page of the "Los Angeles Times".

Hugo didn't think so much. He just smiled brightly and said honestly, "It's OK, except for some nervousness."

Despite Hugo not responding positively, Elisabeth didn't mind and her eyes were filled with delight as she saw Hugo's charming, sunny smile. In Hollywood where handsome actors and beautiful actresses were aplenty, there were countless actors with good looks, and casting directors had seen tens of thousands of actors and were aesthetically tired, but even so, the surprise produced when encountering a truly "excellent breed" was even more impactful.

"Hugo, you know, Paul needs to be healthy, sunny, handsome, and unrestrained. Our requirements for the body are very strict." Elisabeth smiled lightly and had no special expression. Hugo heard it and didn't have a big reaction, typical of a novice actor's performance. Although Elisabeth was surprised, she didn't mind and continued, "Take off your shirt, I need to see your physique. If necessary, you'll need to go to the gym for a while."

Elisabeth's words were too straightforward, showing a professional demeanor. But Hugo knew this was Hollywood's "unspoken rule" put directly on the table without hiding anything. If Joseph hadn't hinted at it earlier, Hugo wouldn't have realized. Before his time travel, he was only a supporting role or extra and had not yet reached the level of encountering the unwritten rules, or he wouldn't have been stuck in that position for so long.

Hugo understood and didn't hesitate. Models only wear close-fitting underwear during interviews, and actors need to exercise to fit the role, which is normal. Besides, for men, taking off their shirts was no big deal. Hugo quickly unbuttoned his shirt, revealing his chest.

Despite his body leaving due to excessive drug use, in reality, his physique was quite impressive. This was due to the popularity of muscular men in the 1980s, from Sylvester Stallone to Bruce Willis, Arnold Schwarzenegger to Dolph Lundgren, as well as Mickey Rourke and Jean-Claude Van Damme. The success of action films has always permeated Hollywood's admiration for muscles and fitness. Under this trend, almost all male actors would work out to impress producers with a healthy, sunny, and robust appearance.

Hugo was also like this, although not as ridiculous as having eight-pack abs, the evenly toned six-pack abs combined with the smooth chest muscles still had a strong visual impact. In Hugo's sunny smile, the image of a surfer athletic guy was one of very pleasing quality.

Elizabeth stood up and raised her right hand towards Hugo who was standing in front of the desk. Then she landed her hand on Hugo's arm and pinched it twice. This... is she checking if the pork has been watered down? Hugo didn't know if he was inexperienced, but he found the scene a bit funny. His first reaction was to look at the actors' union representative, Jon, sitting nearby.

At this time, Jon still sat quietly beside her and took a panoramic view of Elisabeth's actions without any reaction. Obviously, he thought that Elisabeth's behavior was not inappropriate. In fact, Hugo also understood that if he felt that he really needed a good figure, it would be natural for the interviewer to pinch and test it, and many female artists would even dress somewhat scantily in order to attract the interviewer's attention, which was not surprising. But the problem was that Elisabeth and Jon were too frank.

Suddenly, Elisabeth's right hand that was holding Hugo's arm exerted a slight force, and the warmth of her palm clearly transmitted through the cloth. This playful gesture made Hugo shift his gaze from Jon back to Elisabeth. He saw her eyes slightly tilt up, with a hint of charm in the flickering light.

Was this flirting? Hugo froze. Was he being harassed by an older woman?