Chapter 407: Follow-up

Chapter 407: Chapter 407: Follow-up

After a few pleasantries, Irene spoke frankly and openly.

"To be honest, the reason I came here specifically this time, besides supporting you and the film, is that I have a private purpose. I have always admired Will Smith’s acting and professionalism, but I have never had a suitable opportunity to be formally introduced. Today, taking advantage of the premiere, I would like to meet this top Hollywood superstar."

Adelaide understood immediately upon hearing this and readily agreed, a knowing smile in her eyes.

"That is no problem at all, it is so simple! I will take you over. Will is actually resting in the inner room right now, so I will introduce you properly."

After saying this, Adelaide directly raised her hand to lead the way, taking Irene through the partition screen and into the exclusive lounge area inside.

Under the lights, Will Smith was dressed in a crisp dark suit, standing tall with a friendly smile.

He had no airs of a top superstar and was gently chatting in a low voice with the staff, humble and courteous to everyone.

"Will, let me introduce you to one of the most worth-knowing genius directors in Hollywood." Adelaide said with a smile, her tone full of praise, "This is Irene Coppola, the Oscar Best Picture winner for Million Dollar Baby, who is currently directing the top Paramount production Transformers."

Will Smith immediately looked up upon hearing this, a flash of obvious admiration and appreciation in his eyes.

He stepped forward quickly and reached out to greet her, his smile sincere and open, his tone full of approval.

"Irene, I have long admired your name! I have watched every one of your works carefully. Whether it is the narrative skill, lens language, or the polishing of the character’s core, they are all top-notch in the industry. You are currently the most inspired and visionary director in Hollywood. I have always been looking forward to the opportunity to work with you. Finally having the honor to meet you in person today is truly an honor."

Facing the sincere praise from the superstar, Irene reached out to shake his hand calmly, her smile appropriate, and she replied politely.

"Mr. Will Smith is too modest. Your acting, box office appeal, and screen presence are all recognized globally as top-tier. Every character you shape is full of vitality, and you are a high-quality actor that all directors want to work with, reaping both box office and popularity. I am also very much looking forward to the opportunity to work together in the future."

The two complimented each other, their words sincere and not forced.

Since delivering the completed Brokeback Mountain to Ang Lee to follow up, she had been calmly reviewing her future development.

She knew very clearly in her heart that her goal was never to be a conveyor-belt commercial film director, but rather a top-tier legendary director like Steven Spielberg, who could handle top commercial blockbusters and control the box office market, while also delving deep into humanities and arts to win authoritative awards, possessing both commercial value and industry status.

Being like Michael Bay, who only excelled in explosions and special effects and conveyor-belt popcorn flicks, being solidified by industry labels and always confined to commercial assembly lines, was not the path she wanted to take.

Precisely because of this, Irene had long ago made up her mind that after successfully finishing Transformers, this heavy-industry super commercial blockbuster, she would not touch any large-scale special effects commercial projects for at least a year.

After all, after continuously filming the Pirates of the Caribbean 2 sequel and Transformers, her commercial value had already reached the first tier in Hollywood.

Since she chose the route of Steven Spielberg, what she needed to do next was to deliberately slow down the pace of commercial films, return to literary and realistic themes, solidify her high-end art director persona, balance commercial heat and artistic reputation, and avoid being labeled by the market and audience as someone who "only knows how to shoot special effects blockbusters," completely distancing herself from conveyor-belt commercial directors.

But at the same time, she also had an extremely clear self-awareness.

As a transmigrator, the number of classic literary films she was familiar with was extremely limited.

She could neither deeply understand nor had the ability to create or polish the core of those obscure, profound, avant-garde literary films with deep historical and philosophical depth.

Forcing it would only be counterproductive and consume her reputation and persona.

Therefore, her subsequent layout of literary films could only be screened from classic films she had fully watched, understood, and thoroughly digested in her past life.

And coming to attend the premiere of I, Robot this time was exactly a plan she had made after careful consideration.

Previously, during a schedule meeting for Pirates of the Caribbean 2, when she heard the project information for I, Robot, a high-quality film that perfectly suited her subsequent planning, The Pursuit of Happyness flashed in her mind.

This inspirational biographical film adapted from real life experiences perfectly matched her current needs: the theme was warm and healing, the core was inspirational and profound, and it belonged to a down-to-earth realistic literary theme, which could perfectly maintain her high-end director persona.

At the same time, the film’s plot was moving and had high empathy, with a very wide audience coverage, suitable for all ages.

After its release, it would reap both box office and reputation.

It would not be too niche or obscure to detach from the market, nor would it be too commercialized to lose its artistic texture.

It was an excellent high-quality project between literary films and commercial films.

And the only core male lead of the film was the Will Smith in front of her.

Precisely because Irene knew the value of this project, the moment she received the invitation to the Fox premiere, she unhesitatingly finalized her itinerary, specifically coming to get to know Will Smith to pave the way for securing the project and finalizing the cooperation later.

After close contact, Irene’s favorable impression and understanding of Will Smith deepened once again.

He was indeed a rare smart person among black actors in Hollywood.

He was highly consistent both on and off screen, full of affinity, humble, hardworking, low-key, and motivated, without any arrogance or impetuousness of a top superstar.

Even with top box office appeal and a massive global fan base, standing at the center of Hollywood fame and fortune, he was still gentle with others, low-key in his dealings, humble and polite to staff, and sincere and modest to peers.

Regardless of whether he was pretending or not, compared to other Hollywood top stars Irene had contacted—the casual, free-spirited, and occasionally unruly Johnny Depp, the flamboyant and sharp Leonardo DiCaprio—the gentleness, steadiness, low-key, and self-discipline that Will Smith showed were rare in Hollywood.

This also made Irene feel much more relaxed inside.

At least from the way the other party presented himself, she could completely use the original cast and did not need to spend effort on recasting.

With her thoughts settled, Irene no longer hesitated.

Taking advantage of the gap before the film officially started and while everyone in the venue was still chatting, she took out her phone, walked to a quiet corner of the lounge, and dialed the number of her assistant, Vera Cecil.

The moment the call connected, Irene gave a work instruction directly.

"Vera, I am arranging an urgent task for you now. Immediately conduct a full-network survey, comprehensively search for a successful person named Chris Gardner, investigate his relevant information, verify his life experience, and try your best to contact him in person, striving to get the film and television adaptation rights for his real life story."