**Chapter 252: Luca, Your Karma Has Come**

"Good afternoon, Mrs. Lance!"

"Good afternoon, Mr. Kelly!"

At noon, Luca arrived at the branch of the talent agency, greeted the staff, and knocked before entering Ed's office.

The office was filled with smoke, with Ed holding a cigarette, his brow furrowed, and the gray hairs at his temples more noticeable than before.

"Ed, has the world ended? Why are you so down?"

Luca opened the window, letting the thick smoke roll out with the fresh air.

"Take a look at this. After you read it, you might feel the same as I do."

*Bang!* Ed grabbed some newspapers and documents, tossing them on the desk.

"What's this?"

Luca picked up a copy of *The Los Angeles Times*, focusing on a section highlighted in marker.

On page eight of *The Los Angeles Times*, in the entertainment section, there was a headline that read: *Luca Kelly Returns to the Fashion World for a Cash Grab.*

It talked about how he couldn't make it in Hollywood and had no choice but to return to his old line of work, going all-out for money, accepting every contract, and participating in every fashion show. They claimed he had participated in over a dozen runway shows in one week.

Rumor had it he almost passed out from exhaustion, and they even posted a picture of him.

In the picture, his head was lowered, his face pale, looking miserable.

The article was written in a mocking tone, recounting how he had entered Hollywood with great ambition, landing three film roles at once.

But after the first movie was released, it faced overwhelming criticism, and his career suffered a major setback. He had no choice but to return to the fashion world, working like crazy to make money.

The article ridiculed his return to his "old trade," listing the brands he worked with: Armani, CK, Zara, and more.

Most of these were top-tier brands, but the paper intentionally categorized some niche brands as second-tier, trying to portray him as having fallen from grace, from a "media model" to a "commercial model."

Media models focus more on fame, often working for lower pay to accumulate social capital like prestige, reputation, and style, which they can later cash in when entering higher-end markets with better returns.

Commercial models, however, work primarily for money, catering to mid- and lower-end markets.

In the modeling world, media models are seen as higher tier, represented by supermodels like Kate, Bundchen, and KK.

Luca had once been a media model, but the article claimed he had now fallen, becoming a commercial model, cashing in on his fame and burning through the reputation he had built.

"Besides *The Los Angeles Times*, there's also *The New York Times*, *The Miami Herald*, *The Hollywood Reporter*, and many others—all reporting similar news."

Ed tapped the newspapers on his desk, his face looking a bit gloomy.

"Is that all?" 

Luca set down the paper. "It doesn't seem like this affects me much."

"No, it does. Acne Studios, Marant, and Vanessa Bruno were all interested in hiring you as their lead model or even a brand ambassador. But with all the negative press these past few days, many brands are starting to change their view of you. Just yesterday and today, I received eight rejection calls, meaning..."

Ed sighed deeply and said, "You've been blacklisted!"

"Blacklisted?"

Luca raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, maybe not entirely, but in the fashion world, making further progress will be very difficult."

Ed shook his head, then tapped on another stack of papers.

"Take a look at this. *Honey* has been in theaters for over half a month, and the total box office is only 35 million dollars. There are now only around 200 theaters still showing it. Media analysis suggests the total box office won't exceed 38 million, meaning the movie barely broke even."

The media considered it a failed film.

When analyzing the reasons, they unanimously blamed you, saying if it weren't for you, the box office numbers would have been better."

"That's bullshit!" 

Luca fumed. Even without him, the movie's box office numbers would still have been bad. He remembered that in the past, it had only grossed 32 million, so now it had an extra 6 million because of his involvement.

He had contributed to the film's success, yet now they were making him a scapegoat. What a bunch of jerks!

"And there's this."

Ed pulled out another set of papers. "Several crew members claimed in interviews that you acted like a diva during filming, and someone even accused you of being racist."

"They said you insulted them in a language they couldn't understand. Is that true?"

"What do you think?" Luca said helplessly, remembering he had just cursed "idiot" in Chinese.

"Alright, that's a small issue I can handle," Ed shook his head. Being Black himself, he knew it wouldn't be hard to clear up that misunderstanding.

"Even though these are minor issues, they're affecting how the film studios view you. I've been in touch with several film projects lately, but as of yesterday, every single one has been rejected. It's as if..."

"I've been blacklisted from the film industry too?" Luca frowned.

Ed nodded heavily. "That's about right."

"How did this happen?" Luca asked, puzzled. "Blacklisted in both fashion and film? Who has that kind of power? I don't recall offending anyone big."

"What do you think?" Ed sipped his coffee. "You know better than anyone who you've crossed."

Luca rubbed his chin, thinking. Suddenly, he remembered what Brad Pitt had said to him at a party, telling him to watch his back.

"Brad Pitt?" 

He shook his head. "I don't think he has that much power. Sure, he's a big star, but blacklisting me in both fashion and film? He's not that influential yet."

Ed frowned deeply. "Perhaps it's not just him."

"But other than him, I don't recall offending anyone."

"Really?" Ed smirked. "You've made a lot of enemies—Leonardo, Matt Damon, Jonah Hill, and all the male model agents in the fashion world."

"Now that you're down, they're all happy to step on you. If you fall, they can rise."

"And don't forget, Kate's enemies are also yours. Remember Anna's influence in the fashion world. Everyone knows about the feud between Kate and Anna, so it wouldn't be surprising if she's behind this too."

Ed sighed. "There's also a rumor going around that you have conflicts with Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio, two of Hollywood's hottest stars, and box office guarantees. Many film studios work with them."

"After the rumor spread, it wouldn't be surprising if the studios decided to curry favor with them."

"So I'm getting ganged up on?" Luca's face darkened.

"That's right, but isn't this all your own doing?" Ed said bluntly.

"Ed, what do you mean? Are you joining the gang-up too?" Luca retorted angrily.

Ed grinned, his teeth gleaming white as he said, "I warned you before, in the entertainment industry, you have to watch your image and stay clean. But what did you do? In less than a year, you've been linked to five or six female stars, all of them major stars—Britney, Aniston, Jessica, Bundchen, and so on. And many of them already have boyfriends, some even married."

"If you hook up with them, isn't it reasonable for their boyfriends to take revenge on you?"

"But I was innocent with most of them," Luca stammered.

"Most of them?" Ed raised an eyebrow. "So there were a few where you weren't innocent. Since it's the truth, don't feel too wronged. What you need to do now is accept it, reflect on your mistakes, and try not to repeat them in the future."

Luca snorted. "Ed, stop playing word games. Out of the names you mentioned, only Britney had anything to do with me. The others? We were just friends, or not even that. The media just made things up."

"So, I don't think I did anything wrong, and I don't deserve this kind of blame."

"But the blame is on you." Ed spread his hands. "Now all you can do is lay low, wait for the storm to pass, and maybe you'll have another chance. I'll also try to get you into some smaller projects. Hopefully, some studios will still be willing to work with you."

"Alright, after working so hard these past few days, I was planning on taking a break anyway. Looks like now's the perfect time."

Luca patted his leg, stood up, and prepared to leave.

These past few days, he had been constantly rehearsing for shows and was truly exhausted. With no upcoming plans, he might as well treat it as an extended vacation.

*Ring, ring~*

Ed's desk phone rang.

After a brief exchange, Ed's dark expression grew even worse.

"What happened?"

Luca asked, puzzled.

"It was the assistant producer for *Collateral*," Ed said.

"Collateral?" Luca recalled this was Tom Cruise's new film, in which he had a small cameo as a contact.

"Yes, your role has been cut."

"Why?"

Luca said calmly.

"Their explanation is that the film is aiming for the Oscars, and they can't afford any flaws. They're worried your involvement would lower the quality of the movie, so they replaced you."

Luca said calmly, "They're saying my involvement would lower the quality of the film? Did Tom Cruise agree to this?"

"What do you think?"

".Fuck!"