Chapter 199: They Are Coming

The news of Megan Fox's withdrawal from Fifty Shades of Grey quickly made headlines in Hollywood Reporter. At the same time, Norton's Eye also announced that Cindy Shea's schedule clashed, and she would no longer be participating.

Finally, the female lead role was given to Leighton Meester, who was overjoyed and declared to the press that she would do her best to play the character.

Many men were disappointed by this, but the female audience, the main box office drivers, were indifferent.

As for the male lead, Ethan chose to cast Allen Tweed, as Chris Evans didn't quite fit with Leighton Meester, and Allen Tweed had garnered more votes. Clearly, women preferred the "puppy dog" type of young CEO.

Moreover, casting these two actors was more cost-effective for the production, as otherwise, actor salaries would become a huge expense.

Once the actors were finalized and some money saved, Fifty Shades of Grey officially entered the pre-production stage.

MGM sent a producer, David Clay, to assist Ethan in coordinating the filming location, and after a global search, they decided on Canada as the filming location. This was because the film would involve many high-rise buildings, offices, mansions, and yachts. Filming in the U.S. would be extremely costly, but in Canada, they could save around 30% of the budget.

With the location settled, David Clay went off to arrange the venues.

Ethan, now with some free time, was invited to the Venice International Film Festival. The organizing committee invited him to join the jury as one of the judges for the main competition films.

It was an exciting experience, as Ethan had never been a judge before, so he eagerly accepted the invitation.

Just as he was preparing to head to Italy, he suddenly received a phone call from Anne Hathaway.

"Ethan, I heard you're a judge at the Venice Film Festival? Oh my god, what a coincidence!"

"Oh? Why?"

"My movie, Brokeback Mountain, has been submitted to Venice."

"I see, is that Ang Lee's film? But I won't go easy on it."

"I'm just saying we could meet up then."

"Right… but I should probably avoid any suspicion, right? Otherwise, if they catch a photo of the jury members and actors staying together, haha, that might lead to some rumors."

"That's true, but I don't care," Anne said with a bit of playful selfishness. "I just want to see you."

"I want to see you too."

Just as they were talking, Ethan's phone rang again. He checked the caller ID and quickly ended the call with Anne, citing work.

"Hey, my little devil, are you free?"

"Yeah, Ethan! I finally finished my tour! Oh my god, it was amazing, really amazing!" Avril's voice came through, and Ethan could even hear the background music and cheering.

She hadn't released an album this year, but she had been busy performing and even won the Juno Award for Best Artist.

"So, what are you going to do next?"

"I'm heading to the island to perform at the dojo there, but that's a few months away. Ethan, now that I'm free, where are you?"

Ethan smirked and answered honestly, "I'm heading to Italy soon to be a judge at the film festival. I might be busy for a few days."

"No worries! I was just thinking of traveling too, Ethan. I'll come find you! Bye!"

Before Ethan could respond, Avril hung up.

Ethan silently peeled an orange, already sensing that the situation ahead might be tricky.

Thankfully, Scarlett was currently in Australia, so he wouldn't have to deal with the most troublesome of the bunch.

Ding ding ding!

The phone rang again. Ethan picked it up to see it was Jessica Alba.

"One more," he muttered to himself as he answered the phone.

"Hey, darling, what's up?"

"Darling, are you at the office? I miss you."

"Oh… sorry, I'm about to board a plane to Italy."

"Really? What for?"

"I'm going to the Venice Film Festival, I'm a judge."

"Wow, that's awesome! Ethan, you're already a judge now, that's great. I'm thinking of going to the Venice Film Festival too."

"However, I can't guarantee I'll be able to spend all my time with you, darling."

"It's fine, I'll explore by myself, but you have to spend one day with me, just one day."

"Okay, no problem, my angel."

After hanging up, Ethan lost interest in peeling his orange for the first time.

He knew these women would eventually meet, but the suddenness of it all had disrupted his plans, catching him off guard.

After thinking for a moment, he called his good friend Jimmy into his office.

Ten minutes later, Jimmy's voice could be heard from outside the office, shouting, "WTF! Ethan, you've really gone and done something huge!"

Inside the office, Jimmy looked at Ethan with a teasing expression. "I thought Anne Hathaway and Scarlett were already enough for you, but I didn't expect you to have Avril and Jessica Alba too! My god, are you collecting them?"

Ethan shrugged. "I guess you could say that."

"That's just unfair! If I had that many women, Lily would kill me," Jimmy said, looking up helplessly.

"So we can't let them know, at least not now," Ethan replied, handing him half of his peeled orange.

Jimmy took the fruit and ate it in one bite. "Alright, I'll go with you then."

Ethan patted his shoulder. "Good, I'll make the arrangements."

"Don't worry… I don't want my good friend and boss ending up dead in the streets of Venice or having reporters expose his multiple relationships."

The next day, Ethan and Jimmy flew to Italy.

Once they landed, Ethan immediately called Avril. "Hey, baby, where are you?"

He planned to settle one of the unstable factors before the festival officially started.

"I'm on the plane!"

"Great, I've missed you so much. Call me as soon as you land."

"No problem!"

"Let's go, Jimmy, the plan starts now." Ethan hung up the phone, put on his sunglasses, grabbed his suitcase, and headed for the hotel with Jimmy.

When Avril arrived at the airport, she immediately saw Ethan waiting beside a sports car.

"Hey! Baby!"

"Ethan!"

Avril excitedly ran toward him, throwing herself into his arms. The two of them spun around by the car, exchanging kisses.

"It's crowded here, let's get in the car," Ethan said, and the two of them got in.

On the way, Avril kept holding Ethan's arm, unwilling to let go.

"Ethan, you know what? My concert was so cool. My classmates, those bitches, came to watch, and they almost fought over seats, it was hilarious."

Avril continued to share everything about her recent life with Ethan, telling him about her emotions, joys, and troubles.

Ethan listened while gently stroking her hair.

When they entered the hotel's underground parking lot, Avril suddenly grabbed Ethan, stopping him before he could get out of the car.

"Ethan…" Her eyes flickered slightly. "How about we…"

Ethan heard her words and glanced around the dimly lit area, feeling a sudden surge of interest.

He locked the car doors, and without another word, they embraced and kissed.

The car started to tremble slightly, the intensity growing, accompanied by low moans.

It wasn't until half an hour later that the car stilled.

When Avril took the elevator, she felt a little weak in the knees.

Thankfully, she was holding onto Ethan. She pulled her large hat over her face, concealing her looks.

"Excuse me," they walked through the crowded hotel, but no one recognized them. People just hurried past.

Once they reached the door, Ethan swiped the key card and opened it. Avril immediately pushed him inside.

"Ahh..." Ethan collapsed onto the bed, looking at Avril's delicate side profile. "What are you going to do, my dear little devil?"

"I'm going to devour you!" Avril said playfully, then leaned in to kiss him.

The rest of the day in the room was filled with noise and passion.

That evening, when Jimmy arrived at their door and was about to knock, he could faintly hear inappropriate sounds from inside.

"Really now," Jimmy mumbled to himself as he looked down at the trembling floor and couldn't help but chuckle. "Looks like Ethan's going to be in big trouble. Hopefully, he can still stand tomorrow."

The next morning, Ethan walked into the restaurant to find Jimmy.

To Jimmy's surprise, Ethan didn't look pale or exhausted. Instead, he appeared as if nothing had happened, completely at ease.

"It wasn't too bad. This little devil has a lot of energy," Ethan commented lightly. "I'll be judging tomorrow, has the hotel booking been finalized?"

"Don't worry, it's all set." Jimmy handed him two room cards. "The two hotels are next to each other, and the underground parking lot is connected."

"Good," Ethan examined the cards carefully and put them in different pockets.

"Do you really think you can handle all this?" Jimmy was still skeptical. If it were him, after two days of such high-intensity action, he'd probably be unable to get up for a week.

"I should be fine," Ethan replied confidently. "I've been working out regularly, and I have natural talent. As long as it's not a few days in a row, I can manage."

"Alright, I'm off. She should be waking up soon." After receiving the room keys, Ethan picked up a plate with some pasta that Avril liked for breakfast and headed back to his room.

For the rest of the day, Ethan and Avril toured Venice, had a meal, and even took a boat ride.

They acted like a couple, enjoying each other's company and having fun.

However, when they returned to the hotel at night, it was time for another round of military training.

In the early morning, Ethan, seeing Avril finally exhausted, gently touched the tip of her nose and said, "I'll be participating in the evaluation tomorrow."

"Mhm, go ahead," Avril replied, content, as she lay in Ethan's arms with her eyes closed.

"I'll just stay in Venice for two days on my own. When you're done, we'll talk."

"Alright, if you need anything, just use my bank card." Ethan grabbed his wallet, but Avril pushed it back.

"I have money, Ethan. I just need your company." Avril opened her eyes, her long, thick eyelashes fluttering, and her high, straight nose brushed against Ethan's arm, making him feel a little ticklish.

After saying that, she suddenly buried her nose in the crook of his neck and took a deep breath. "Your scent is really nice. What is that?"

"The hotel's body wash," Ethan answered honestly.

"No, it's not the body wash. It's your natural scent. I like it." After sniffing, Avril leaned back onto the pillow and fell into a deep sleep.

Ethan suddenly realized something.

That is, different hotels use different body washes, and if he got it wrong, it could be bad if several women noticed.

He gently ran his fingers through Avril's golden hair, thankful that his little devil had reminded him.

Early the next morning, Ethan placed breakfast in the room before walking over to Avril's bed, kissing her, and then leaving.

The organizing committee had already started gathering.

"Ethan!"

"Hello, Ethan!"

"I've seen your films!"

As soon as Ethan entered the cinema arranged by the committee, he was greeted with attention and inquiries.

Ethan smiled and greeted everyone, and the chairman of the jury, Dante Ferretti, an old Mediterranean man, walked over from the side. "Ethan, welcome to join us."

"It's an honor," Ethan replied.

He looked at Dante Ferretti, the director of The Aviator and Cold Mountain, who had won the Academy Award for Best Art Direction the previous year.

After the pleasantries, Ethan looked around the venue. Since it wasn't an official event, no one was in formal suits; everyone wore casual attire.

There were Americans, Chinese, Icelanders, Germans, and others.

Under the chairman's lead, Ethan was introduced to each of the committee members.

"A-Cheng." This was a Chinese member of the jury, who was also a screenwriter and author.

Though his name wasn't very familiar, once Ethan heard the films he had written, he immediately recognized him.

Spring in a Small Town, a film that had once won the Venice Film Festival's Golden Lion, was written by him.

"Amos Gite." The director of Atonement Day, who had won awards at the Cannes Film Festival, was also an Israeli.

"Emiliana Torrini ." A musician from Iceland, famous for singing the ending song of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers.

After meeting all the committee members, the committee moved on to the film screening session.

They sat in a small screening room, just like film critics attending a private screening, waiting for the film to begin.

Ethan sat between A-Cheng and Emiliana. In front of them was Dante Ferretti. After a few casual chats, the lights in the screening room dimmed, and the film began.

However, Ethan didn't expect the first film to be such a heavyweight!

Brokeback Mountain. As soon as the deep-toned opening scene appeared, Ethan immediately recognized the name of the film.

"How interesting," Ethan murmured to himself, resting his hand on his chin as he began to appreciate it carefully.

.....

Hi For access to additional chapters of

Director in Hollywood (20 chpater)

MV Director (30 chapter)....

Douluo Dalu:Breaking Clan(30 chapter)

Made In Hollywood (50 Chapters)

Join pateron.com/Translaterappu..