Chapter 172: The Fussy Nicholas

Chapter 172: Chapter 172: The Fussy Nicholas

Irene looked up, her gaze fixed on the looping audition clips of the four actresses opposite Henry, and said firmly, "I choose Keira Knightley."

Her words stunned the room. Irene continued, "Rosamund’s nobility is too heavy. It would make the class difference between Elizabeth and Will feel forced. Emily’s performance is too seasoned and lacks a young girl’s innocence. Kirsten has strong audience appeal, but her modern vibe clashes with the classical tone of a pirate film."

"But Keira—her rawness, her wildness, and the unpolished chemistry she has with Henry are exactly what Elizabeth needs."

"Her rawness is Elizabeth at the start. We can strengthen her aristocratic etiquette through training while preserving her wildness. That will make the character more three-dimensional."

Irene pulled up the final clip of Keira’s audition. "Look here. The moment she’s kidnapped by pirates and her eyes shift from fear to determination—there’s no transition, yet it feels completely real. That’s the core of Elizabeth: courage that suddenly awakens in a desperate situation."

Jerry thought for a moment, then nodded. "I agree. Next year’s market needs fresh blood, and Keira’s unfamiliarity can generate buzz. Plus, her salary is lower, so we can put more funds into effects and action sequences."

John immediately chimed in, "I’ll arrange a dedicated etiquette coach and sword-fighting instructor to focus on Keira’s weaknesses. We’ll make sure she meets the requirements before filming starts."

Amy and Adelaide exchanged a glance and finally relented. Amy said, "Keira’s audition is compelling. For publicity, we can push a ’newcomer’s comeback’ angle, and use Henry’s rising momentum to build buzz around two newcomers."

Adelaide added, "We can talk to Rosamund about a female pirate captain role. Her presence fits. Emily’s acting is worth working with, and we can prioritize her for future Fox projects."

Jerry clapped his hands and made the call. "Then it’s settled: Keira Knightley. Notify her to join the crew next week for a month of intensive training. Etiquette, sword fighting, horseback riding—none of it can be skipped."

Everyone nodded.

After confirming Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Swann, the tension in the conference room eased.

Just as Irene finished going over Keira’s training details with Jerry, her phone vibrated in her pocket. It was a message from her new cousin-in-law, Lisa Marie Presley.

Her appendectomy had gone well, but that box of "dinosaur fossils" belonging to Nicholas had already arrived at LAX. He refused to let an assistant pick them up, insisting that "only Irene understands how delicate these treasures are," and complained that no one was watching the loading and unloading in case they got scratched.

Irene rubbed her temples and sighed.

Her cousin was always like this. He’d complain that assistants weren’t "careful enough" to pick things up, then complain he didn’t have "enough strength" to move them himself. In the end, he dumped the trouble on her. If he hadn’t been kind to her as a child, she’d have washed her hands of it.

She’d planned to stay at the studio to coordinate Keira’s training plan with Martha, but now she had to adjust her schedule and drive to the airport.

Los Angeles International Airport was busy in the afternoon. Irene, in a simple denim shirt and black trousers with sunglasses on, stood at the arrivals gate. Her eyes locked on the familiar figure by the luggage carousel. Nicholas was squatting beside a huge suitcase, checking the zippers, his fingers tracing the case as if afraid of a single scratch.

"Nicholas," Irene said as she walked over and nudged his heel with her foot. "Can you hurry up? I have a lot to do this afternoon."

Nicholas looked up and immediately put on an aggrieved expression. "You’re finally here! The things inside were sourced by professionals I hired. They’re extremely valuable! The baggage handler nearly flipped the case just now. It scared me to death." He patted the suitcase like it was a treasure. "Only you can handle this properly. An assistant might dent it."

Irene rolled her eyes. "You make a fuss over nothing. Only you would treat a pile of bone fragments like treasure. How much did you get ripped off this time?"

"Speaking of money..." Before he could finish, a flurry of shutter clicks erupted behind them.

Seven or eight reporters surged out of nowhere, pushing microphones and cameras into their faces. Nicholas’s flight info had clearly leaked.

When they saw Irene there too, they shoved their microphones forward even faster.

"Mr. Cage! Captain Corelli’s Mandolin just barely crossed ten million at the North American box office, not even recouping its production cost. Was it the script adaptation, or a lack of chemistry with Penélope?"

"There are rumors you only care about the paycheck when choosing films and don’t read scripts. Is that true?"

"Will you and Ms. Lisa Marie Presley be getting married at the end of this year?"

"Did Lisa Marie Presley interfere in your relationship with Patricia Arquette?"

Nicholas’s face changed instantly. He scrambled to explain, but afraid of saying the wrong thing, he stammered and only managed, "I... I think the film has artistic value. The market acceptance just wasn’t great... As for Patricia and me, it’s..." Before he could finish, another question cut him off.

"Ms. Irene! We heard you just broke up with Loren, the son of the Fox president, because he was being ambiguous with other women?"

"Did Loren actually cheat?"

"In what way do you think you’re inferior to the other woman?"

Camera flashes were blinding, and the questions grew sharper.

Irene’s fingertips tightened. She kept her temper in check, doing her best to control the impatience on her face. She had no interest in responding to hearsay, but Nicholas was still dawdling, trying to negotiate: "Everyone, please calm down. Box office can’t be judged by numbers alone... Patricia and I also had a peaceful..."

"Let’s go!" Irene couldn’t take it anymore. She grabbed Nicholas by the wrist, her grip firm.

"Sorry, I can’t comment on private matters." Her voice was clear and calm. No rebuttal, no defense. She dragged Nicholas—who kept glancing back and muttering, "Won’t this look bad?"—straight toward the parking lot.

The moment she shoved him into the car and closed the door, Nicholas was still muttering,

"Do you think they’ll write nonsense? If people decide I’m ’box office poison,’ it’ll be hard to get roles. And if Lisa sees these comments, she’ll be angry with me again. She just had surgery. Sigh, how did the reporters find me?"