I Was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor - Chapter 437: Beast (6)
Translator: Dreamscribe
Kang Woojin had received an overwhelming proposal, but his response was remarkably concise.
“I don’t need anything else. Bring me the script first.”
Soon, the executives from ‘Columbia Studios’ were slightly taken aback. Some even furrowed their brows.
‘Given the atmosphere, I thought he would at least verbally agree?’
‘He’s playing the first villain, ‘Joker’. That holds significance and is an honor for any actor, but it seems that kind of thing doesn’t mean a damn thing to him.’
It was a natural reaction.
From the beginning, the script for ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’ had been handed over by Director Ahn Ga-bok, not by these executives. Essentially, this was their first time directly seeing Woojin’s reaction regarding his casting. Regardless, Woojin maintained a solemn expression, but he wasn’t particularly serious about it.
‘Sure, ‘Pierrot’ had a great rating and turned out well, but who knows about the next movies? If they flop, there’s no reason for me to do them.’
In a ‘Cinematic Universe’, actors who are cast in a series of films typically continue appearing as their assigned characters for the sake of continuity. There are various reasons, ambition for the character, honor, and so on, but one of the core factors is maintaining the established fandom.
In other words, influence and an exponential rise in recognition.
However, for Woojin, who had access to the Void Space, such secondary reasons held absolutely no meaning.
The ones who were at a disadvantage were ‘Columbia Studios’.
Recognizing this, the bald executive from ‘Columbia Studios’ spoke again.
“Of course, once the script is complete, we plan to deliver it to you immediately, but haha, Mr. Kang Woojin, just as Director Ahn mentioned, you are quite ruthless.”
“For me, the script is more important than anything else.”
The bald executive nodded as if he understood. At the same time, he proceeded to brief Woojin on the plans for the next year and the year after that.
Though the explanation was lengthy, it could be summarized as follows:
One of Hollywood’s ‘Big Five’, ‘Columbia Studios’, had staked everything on a ‘Cinematic Universe’ project that had been in planning for several years. The starting point is this film, ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’, with its first villain being ‘Joker’.
Since a villain had been introduced, a hero had to emerge as well.
Naturally, the second movie would focus on the first hero to debut, and that hero’s world would intertwine with ‘Joker’. Additionally, in the third film that would follow, another hero would appear, along with villains other than ‘Joker’. Of course, all of this would be set within the same universe. They planned to construct the storyline while simultaneously fleshing out the worlds of each character.
But this was only the early phase of the ‘Cinematic Universe’ that ‘Columbia Studios’ had planned.
Their goal was to release a total of three films by the year after next.
Whether that happened or not, Woojin’s cynical expression remained unchanged. In fact, he was quietly fascinated.
‘Ohhh- somehow this is making my heart race? The scale is insane?’
However, due to his deeply ingrained poker face, all the executives, including the bald man, assumed that Woojin was not particularly impressed.
‘So it’s really the script first? Or is it the money?’
Another executive chimed in.
“Mr. Woojin, the planning document also includes your estimated appearance fee. Have you seen it?”
Both Kang Woojin and Choi Sung-gun lowered their gazes. Soon, Woojin spotted his staggering paycheck.
‘Whoa! Shit!’
He almost let out an audible reaction. The reason was simple, it was even higher than what he had received for ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’.
Honestly, at this point, Woojin wasn’t even sure if these numbers were real money anymore. Choi Sung-gun, though keeping a composed face for strategic reasons, couldn’t hide his internal shock.
‘Crazy- Hollywood class!!’
But as always, Kang Woojin’s voice, veiled in bravado, remained calm and composed.
“Yes, I have confirmed it.”
Thus, the meeting, which had lasted for about an hour, came to an end. As Woojin stepped out of the conference room, he maintained his indifferent demeanor while thinking to himself.
“Wow- damn, my price is going crazy? Seriously, as long as the script isn’t bad, I might as well just do it.”
Meanwhile, inside the conference room, the executives of ‘Columbia Studios’ were deeply concerned. They had no way of knowing Kang Woojin’s true intentions, and his reaction had been lukewarm.
“Kang Woojin didn’t seem interested… This is troublesome.”
“I still think it’s about the money. It must not have been enough.”
“That could be part of it, but he also seems to be placing great importance on the content of the next film.”
“Sigh… We already offered him a pretty high salary. Raising it any further is out of the question.”
Various opinions were tossed around.
“Either way, if we want to secure Kang Woojin, we need to act before the year ends. His schedule is already locked in with ‘Beast and the Beauty’ and ‘Universal Movies’ projects until next year. If he commits to another film, there will be no room for ours.”
“……We might have to consider another actor for the next film.”
“For ‘Joker’?”
“I’m saying we should at least be prepared.”
At that moment.
-Swoosh.
The previously silent bald executive ran his hand over his smooth head and recalled Kang Woojin’s ‘Joker’ performance from the audition. Along with all the acting he had seen from him so far.
Then, slowly, he crossed his arms.
“Another actor? Who could possibly surpass Kang Woojin’s ‘Joker’? No one can even come close to replicating it. We’ve already seen it, our standards have been set impossibly high. If it were just us, it wouldn’t be a problem, but-“
A subtle smile appeared on the bald executive’s lips.
“What about the global audience? After watching ‘Joker’ in ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’, do you think they’ll be satisfied with another actor?”
“……”
“……”
The previously noisy conference room fell silent in an instant. Then, as if just imagining the consequences made him uneasy, the bald executive shook his head.
“If we replace Kang Woojin as ‘Joker’ with another actor… No, 100%, the massive interest we’ve built up will come crashing down. And that would mean the entire ‘Cinematic Universe’ collapses.”
Soon, he tapped the section in the transparent file that listed Kang Woojin’s salary with his index finger.
“In short, we must secure Kang Woojin. Even if it costs us twice as much.”
Meanwhile, Kang Woojin was inside a van, heading to his next destination. It wasn’t too far. The set for ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’, located within ‘Columbia Studios’. But since the studio was so vast, walking wasn’t an option.
At that moment, Woojin was looking at his phone.
‘It’s still chaotic.’
The heroic story of how he saved Cara’s life, which had erupted yesterday, had spread beyond Hollywood and was now making waves worldwide.
『LA TIME / Kang Woojin, who saved Miley Cara, had similar heroic tale in Korea!』
As Woojin read through the various articles, his confusion deepened. It was understandable.
‘But where the hell did this leak from?’
Although it was a major incident that could shake Hollywood, Miley Cara’s side had kept it quiet to minimize damage. Not that it really mattered to Woojin. He hadn’t done it expecting anything in return, and in the end, saving Cara had led to a clear reward.
Cara had bought him a mansion in LA and, for the first time in her acting career, agreed to star in a Korean production, ‘Beneficial Evil’ Part 1.
Additionally.
‘I also got closer to Miley Cara.’
Before his Hollywood debut, Woojin had known practically no one in the industry. But now, he had secured a massive connection in Cara.
Satisfied with that, Woojin had completely forgotten about the incident where he had saved her.
Yet, suddenly, this hidden story had surfaced.
『CNM / The culprit who attacked Miley Cara is already in prison, Miley’s team says, “We are grateful to Kang Woojin.”』
Moreover, Hollywood was in an uproar over it. The entertainment media was treating it as an exclusive scoop, plastering words like “breaking news” and “exclusive” over every report about Miley Cara’s attack. Even major news stations were covering the story.
Even though it was an incident from quite some time ago, the firepower behind it was immense.
Because the person involved was none other than Hollywood’s top-tier actress, Miley Cara.
The attack on her, a global superstar, a top predator both as an actress and a singer, had been buried quietly, only to resurface. It was only natural for it to cause an uproar. Moreover, the one who saved her was none other than Kang Woojin, the hottest name in Hollywood right now, whether for better or worse.
With the stories of these two stars intertwining, the sensation multiplied several times over.
On top of that, photos and short videos from that time were circulating. While the full details weren’t captured, there were clear images of Kang Woojin subduing a woman, the weapon in her hand, the chaotic music video set, scenes filled with screaming and panic. Both Cara and Woojin were prominently featured in the footage.
What made it even more interesting was this:
『BBX / Kang Woojin, once controversial over ‘Tonight Show’, sees his image rapidly recover thanks to his heroic actions to save Miley Cara.』
The flood of negative comments that had lingered around Woojin since the ‘Tonight Show’ incident had dramatically shifted. The global public’s reaction was now entirely different, as was the tone of the media.
Just as Woojin was casually browsing articles, communities, and social media.
-Bzzzt, bzzzt.
His phone vibrated. The caller ID showed Miley Cara. Woojin exchanged glances with Choi Sung-gun before putting the phone to his ear.
“Yes, Miley. It’s me.”
Cara’s voice on the other end was unexpectedly calm.
“Woojin, have you seen the articles?”
“Yes. I’ve been reading them since yesterday, did this leak from your side?”
It was a natural question. The easiest way for something buried to resurface was for the one who covered it to bring it back up. But her answer was a firm no.
“Of course not. We only found out by reading the articles ourselves. We’re trying to figure out where the leak came from, but it’s been a while, and there were a lot of staff on set back then, so it’s not easy to track down.”
“That makes sense.”
“But we knew we couldn’t keep this buried forever anyway, right? We talked about that back then too.”
She was right. Back when the incident happened, Kang Woojin and Cara had discussed it. They had agreed that it wouldn’t stay hidden forever. Woojin nodded absentmindedly.
“Yeah. But it surfaced so suddenly. Are there any issues?”
Cara’s response came with a laugh.
“Wouldn’t ‘Are you okay?’ be a better question in this situation? ‘Are there any issues?’ – what kind of phrasing is that?”
“…Are you okay?”
“That’s more like you. Hmm, there’s nothing problematic. Everything being reported is true, after all. We covered it up back then because things were chaotic, but now? It doesn’t matter at all. What about you, Woojin?”
Me? I feel the same. There was nothing about this incident that could negatively affect Kang Woojin.
“I’m fine too.”
“Then we can just let it be. Let the media and the public have their fun.”
“Sure.”
After Woojin’s simple reply, Cara changed the topic.
“Have you eaten? Ah- you’re probably heading to the set, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Make sure you grab something to eat when you arrive.”
After a bit more casual conversation, Cara ended the call. As Woojin lowered his phone, his poker face remained intact, but his heart was beating strangely fast.
‘What was that last part of the conversation? That totally sounded like we’re dating??’
At that moment, Choi Sung-gun interjected.
“What did Miley say?”
Woojin quickly slipped back into his usual persona, lowering his voice.
“She says it wasn’t leaked from their side, and it doesn’t matter at all.”
“Really? Hmm… that’s odd. I was sure Cara was the one who leaked it. The timing is too perfect. Your image was getting a little messy, and suddenly, this heroic story explodes? That doesn’t just happen by coincidence.”
Choi Sung-gun stroked his chin, deep in thought, before shrugging it off.
“Whatever. Neither side has a problem with it, so let’s just let it play out.”
Suddenly, he smirked.
“But don’t you think the situation is kinda funny?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, right now, ‘Columbia Studios’ is betting everything on their ‘Cinematic Universe’, and you’re playing the first villain in it. But in real life, their ‘Joker’ ended up saving Cara’s life. It’s ironic, isn’t it?”
Choi Sung-gun, who had been smiling, curled his lips upward, just like ‘Joker’.
“When ‘Pierrot’ is released, this whole incident will be brought up again.”
And then, time melted away.
Amidst the constant stream of issues erupting in Hollywood, Kang Woojin was stuck in an endless cycle of filming. Of course, there were plenty of miscellaneous and tedious schedules as well, but the core focus was always filming.
“Cut, OK. Woojin-gun, how about trying it freely this time?”
“Understood.”
Now that the restrictions had been lifted, the veteran Director Ahn Ga-bok was overflowing with energy several times more than before. For reference, unlike in the beginning, Nora’s visits to the set had noticeably decreased.
Just like that, another week vanished in the blink of an eye.
It was already the third week of July. To be exact, Monday, the 18th. Early morning. While various news stories were pouring in from both Hollywood and Korea, Kang Woojin, wearing a neutral expression with his cap pulled low, had just stepped out of his LA mansion.
-Thunk!
He boarded the waiting van. Soon after, Woojin greeted Choi Sung-gun and his team in a low tone before picking up a script.
‘Let’s see, let’s see-‘
It wasn’t ‘Pierrot: The Birth of a Villain’. It was ‘Beast and the Beauty’. The reason was simple.
Right now, he was on his way to.
『Kang Woojin, the ‘World Star’ thriving in LA! On July 18th, he is attending the script reading for ‘Beast and the Beauty’!』
The script reading venue for ‘Beast and the Beauty’.
Search the NovelFire.net website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.
