Chapter 123

"Good evening, Charles!" Jodie Foster smiled and greeted Charles Capet.

"Good evening, Jodie," Charles had a lot of respect for this talented Hollywood actress.

However, he had experienced Mel Gibson's loose tongue firsthand. Was Charles angry?

Of course, but he couldn't start a fight with Mel Gibson here.

This was a public event, and Charles did not want to be a laughingstock or become fodder for tabloid stories.

After locking eyes with Mel Gibson for a few seconds, Charles shook his head slightly and walked away.

Several partygoers breathed a sigh of relief. After all, one was a Hollywood action star and the other a young, newly rich Hollywood producer.

They all thought the young and fiery Charles Capet would lose his temper and do something rash, but he merely glanced at Mel Gibson.

"Jodie, I'm not wrong. Charles Capet shouldn't be making this film!" Mel Gibson said with a slight frown.

Jodie Foster, who had a deep friendship with Mel Gibson, kindly reminded, "Currently, Brokeback Mountain is receiving countless praises and is a strong contender for Best Picture at the Oscars. You shouldn't belittle it in public."

"I was really worried Charles would snap and argue with you. You have enough on your plate right now; you shouldn't be making new enemies, especially not a genius filmmaker like Charles Capet!"

Mel Gibson stubbornly replied, "I'm fine, Hollywood needs me. The Passion of the Christ indeed changed my life, but I can still bring profits to movie studios."

"And I've also taken on Disney's project Apocalypto, an action-adventure film about the Mayans!"

Jodie Foster sighed inwardly. Her old friend always liked to speak out of turn. While criticizing a movie was one thing, this time the developer himself had heard it. Charles Capet was not to be underestimated at this moment.

Jodie Foster was very worried that Mel Gibson's loose tongue would offend some powerful alliances or corporations.

After entering the banquet, Charles struck up a conversation with Doug Liman, the director of Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

"Post-production should take about another month. The test screenings received positive feedback. Pitt and Jolie's performances are really outstanding!" Doug Liman said, glancing at Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, who were chatting happily in the distance.

Charles smiled. The relationship between Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie was almost public, though neither had officially acknowledged it.

At the Cannes Film Festival, even though Brad Pitt attended with Jennifer Aniston and didn't meet Angelina Jolie, who was also at Cannes, the newspapers still had plenty to say.

Moreover, at the premiere of Troy, Angelina Jolie had attended with her adopted son.

The rumors were flying. Charles also glanced over. Angelina Jolie's previous two husbands had both married her while engaged to others, and she had frequent rumors with her married co-stars.

"I believe with Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, our film won't lack for publicity!"

Charles didn't care about these scandals. After all, in Hollywood, who was a saint?

Doug Liman nodded with a smile, "Universal is also paying a lot of attention!"

After a while, Donna Langley joined their conversation.

"Charles, Brokeback Mountain is an excellent film. It's normal for some to oppose it!" Donna Langley knew about the incident at the banquet hall entrance and tried to comfort Charles.

Charles smiled and said, "Since when has Hollywood not allowed people to criticize films? If I got angry about that, I wouldn't survive in Hollywood anymore."

Doug Liman, sensing the two had something to discuss, quietly left.

Donna Langley called over a waiter, and after she and Charles each took a glass of champagne, she smiled and said, "He's a Catholic conservative with strong prejudices against a film like Brokeback Mountain. But he has his own troubles now, so he might be having headaches too!"

Charles knew well that The Passion of the Christ had angered many Jewish groups by exposing scars, but Mel Gibson was still running his projects as usual. Besides The Passion of the Christ, he had four other films releasing this year that he was involved in, because he was indeed capable.

"Hollywood can make or break someone overnight, right!" Charles laughed knowingly.

Donna Langley nodded with a smile. Even the greedy Jewish individuals have their bottom lines since it is their foundation. Touch it, and they could easily discard someone like Mel Gibson.

However, Charles thought that in the future, when Mel Gibson made those anti-Semitic remarks, it would probably be genuine. A few too many drinks and his mouth ran wild.

"How's the The Departed project? Have the director and actors been decided?" Donna Langley asked about their next collaborative film.

"I've talked with Ridley Scott. We plan to cast Brad Pitt and Christian Bale as the leads and Jack Nicholson as the mob boss. The other roles will be decided through auditions."

"Brad Pitt? Didn't he turn down Martin before?"

"This time he's playing Billy, the cop undercover in the mob. In Martin's script, Billy had much more screen time than the other lead, Colin. We've adjusted the settings a bit, giving more weight to Colin's role, but Billy is still the main character. His role is more challenging, so I'm sure Brad Pitt will accept."

Charles explained truthfully. Without Leonardo DiCaprio to outshine, Brad Pitt likely wouldn't have any objections.

"Christian Bale, huh. His performance in the Spanish thriller earlier this year was unforgettable!" Donna Langley, being who she was, knew the film well.

"Yes, in The Machinist, Bale lost almost 60 pounds for the role, then regained the weight for Batman Begins. His dedication to acting is remarkable!" Charles hadn't seen The Machinist, but he had read up on it and knew of the film.

Donna Langley glanced around, then patted Charles on the shoulder with a smile, "With me here, I'm probably scaring away many young ladies. I'll leave you to mingle!"

With that, Donna Langley walked away.

*****

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