Versatile Superstar: Rise In Hollywood

[Action Hero] spreaded like a fire in a jungle among teens and they filled the theatres to watch it. Some of them watched it a few times as it was a great experience to watch it with friends. 

One more thing was that Titan studios made the tickets dirt cheap for teenagers, making it the ideal choice for them to watch this. 

This was Ava’s plan and it completely crushed [Stars on the Ground]. The movie had a below average weekend and having any hope of it even touching its budget was stretching too far. 

United Pictures was already frowning at the loss, especially at the hands of an indie movie which had become a rage out of nowhere. 

It should be noted that the original budget was over 60 million dollars, so Aiden was glad he missed this trainwreck. Though, when he was about to sign it, the situation was very different. 

If not for the miracle that was [Action Hero], the movie would have actually managed to break even. 

The success of [Action Hero] was also special for Hollywood. 

It was a knowledge to everyone, even the audience that Hollywood was in a very weird state. The industry has evolved always with different things being the rage in different eras. 

In the past, especially the 80s and 90s, some indie movies have become huge hits only to become franchises. These movies made by young directors were solely successful on innovation and good stories.

They worked because people gave them a chance by seeing them in theatres. 

But in the current scenario, it’s been a long time since an indie movie has managed to become such a rage. It was almost non-existent now as most of these would be taken up by streaming platforms and people would only see them on the screens in film festivals. 

Releasing an indie movie in the theatres was considered a loss move from the start. 

During this, an indie movie with extremely bad reviews was able to not only become a hit, it also became much more than that. 

It became a topic of research for a lot of people. Especially the critics who have first bashed the movie. 

One of them was Greg Hendrickson from Hollywood Reporter who gave it only 2 out of 5 stars. He wrote an extensive article on [Action Hero] on his blog. 

He wrote, “Just two weeks ago when I watched [Action Hero],  I felt like it was a movie that tries too hard to be something different and for that, it gives up on a lot of things. My article still is available on the internet where I told people to not go and watch it. But two weeks later, I find myself watching the movie for the fourth time in the theatres. My thoughts have obviously changed after that. Although I still believe [Action Hero] isn’t your typical Hollywood indie movie, it prioritises entertainment over everything, taking a lot of inspiration from Hong Kong cinema and making the audience feel excited. That’s the reason for its success. It tries to be an entertaining movie and it succeeds in that. There’s nothing more and maybe this is the answer other Hollywood studios, even the Big 6 should follow.”

His words were repeated by a lot of other critics. They also noted points like how [Action Hero] might not be a great movie for adults but it fit right in with teenagers who wanted nothing but entertainment. 

Moreover, the movie was very aware of what it was trying to be. Asano said this a lot in the interviews that followed the success. 

Though, there were also some critics, reporters and even actors who weren’t able to take in the success of the movie. 

One of the critics from Vanity Magazine wrote, “[Action Hero] might be a successful movie but it’s certainly among the worst movies made this year.”

There were a lot of other articles like this too. With even some actors not knowing how it became such a success. 

Undoubtedly, it has become a case study for Hollywood that has forgotten how to entertain people without using VFX. 

It was also very hard to accept for celebrities that Aiden, someone with no connections, had made himself a star.

There were even signs of him having great box office potential, something that most studios noted. 

The demand for him was never this much, especially because no other actors in his age group were creating the same impact he was creating. First with singing and now with acting, Aiden was now without a doubt one of the faces of Hollywood. 

With [Agnas] and [Black Saints 2] releasing after it, it was his golden chance to break into the A list. 

For now, he was basking in the success of [Action Hero] which collected over 39 million dollars in the second week, taking the total to 62.3 million dollars. 

With low ticket prices and more screens, it was expected to cross 100 million dollars in the next two weeks, making Aiden’s second indie movie to do this feat. 

***

“He’s there. Look, he finally came.”

“He looks more handsome in person than I thought.”

“People are calling him the next superstar of Hollywood already.”

“Isn’t it too exaggerated?”

“It is but he just delivered one of the biggest hits of this year out of nowhere. It will die down but for now, he’s going to get a lot of praise.”

“I should get a chance and introduce myself.”

Although Aiden wasn’t able to hear the hushed up conversations that were happening all around him, the eyes with which people looked at him were giving him all the information he needed. 

‘This is going to be one long night.’

Aiden thought as he tried to find Omar and Asano in the crowd of people. He was currently attending the success party of [Action Hero] that was hosted by Titan studios. 

A lot of people have attended it from all around Hollywood and he noticed a lot of familiar faces. As he avoided parties, people were not going to leave a chance to socialise with him. 

“Hello, I’m XXX from XXX. It’s a pleasure to meet you. I have worked on this and that.”

He heard this line a lot of times from the mouths of many people who approached him. The words were the same, just the name and occupation was different. 

He met studio producers, executives, actors, actresses and for some reason, a lot of struggling actresses and models came to him to make a ‘connection’. 

Wade besides him took all the business cards thrown at him. It was only after talking to 15 people that Aiden found Omar and Asano. 

“Ah, Aiden, my lucky charm, you are finally here.”

Wearing a suit that looked more expensive than his car, Omar came to greet Aiden and immediately hugged him. 

“I’m your lucky charm now?” He said, getting himself out of the uncomfortable embrace. 

“Aren’t you?” Omar smiles cheekily. “You made me tens of millions. I’m going to give you a big gift for it. Just wait and see. Your pay was too low for [Action Hero].”

He said, looking intoxicated with alcohol. 

“Then, I would wait for it.”

Aiden said and looked at Asano. The Japanese origin director looked like he couldn’t get the smile off his face. 

There were a lot of reasons for him to be happy. After all, this movie has cemented his position as a great commercial director. His career had gotten a second life. 

They talked a bit before Asano gestured to a table where a few people were drinking alcohol and talking to each other. They looked like important people. 

“Who are they?” Aiden asked. 

“They are executives from Dream Light pictures. I have a meeting with them next week.”

“For what?”

Aiden raised an eyebrow and Asano smiled before whispering. 

“They want me to direct a superhero movie in their universe. A big 150 million dollar blockbuster made for the big screens. It’s not something that is confirmed but they seemed keen to have me on board.”

He struggled to not have a reaction to that news. Dream Light pictures were stalwart  in getting superheroes to become the face of Hollywood. They have tens of billions and this has made them the highest earning Big 6 studio in the industry. 

Even Titan studios were just planning a footing in this. It shows how much Dream Light pictures were ahead in time. 

Them being interested in Asano was a sign of his great future as a commercial director. 

“Don’t forget me after crossing a billion dollars at the box office.”

Aiden said and Asano shook his head. 

“Actually, I would even ask the studio to get you for the lead role in the movie if you want to. I owe a lot to you and we work well together. You didn’t lose hope when I did. I feel like I want to work with actors like you more and more.”

Asano said, looking very sincere and for a moment, Aiden almost wanted to accept his proposal. 

“I’m sorry I already have enough movies on my plate for now.”

In the end, he rejected it. 

“Yeah, I forgot how much in demand you are.” Asano gave a wry smile. 

“I would still do a cameo if you want me to. Just give me a call.”

“I will.”

Saying that, Asano walked up to the table of executives from Dream Light pictures. For a while, Aiden’s eyes followed him and stopped at the table. 

Just for a second they changed and showed some kind of conflict before the emotion died down. He sighed and walked away to talk to a few other people.