Hollywood: The Greatest Showman

Chapter 70: A Great Opportunity

"Turns out it's 'The Amazing Spider-Man'! This is definitely a project beyond expectations."

What surprised Renly wasn't 'The Amazing Spider-Man' itself, but the fact that Sony Pictures actually announced such a top-notch casting opportunity so generously, opening it up to all actors. This is definitely news big enough to shake up all of Hollywood. No wonder Lisa was so secretive just now.

As everyone knows, the release of 'Spider-Man' in 2002 was groundbreaking. Not only was it the first film in history to break $100 million in its opening weekend, but it also revitalized the genre of comic book adaptations, ushering in a new era of blockbusters—the dominance of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Over the past few years, the 'Spider-Man' trilogy has set numerous enviable records, unquestionably one of the most successful film series of the 21st century. It can be said that the current 'Spider-Man' is the only superhero in the market that can be compared in brand value with Superman and Batman. Even among the younger generation, Spider-Man's appeal is subtly leading.

After the successful conclusion of 'Spider-Man 3' in 2007, Sony Pictures never gave up on the development of this film series. With the strong rise of 'Iron Man,' the plan for 'Spider-Man 4' naturally came up. However, the director of the series, Sam Raimi, believed that the series had lost its vitality and needed to be rebooted rather than continued with sequels.

And thus, 'The Amazing Spider-Man' was born.

Generally, top projects with investments of over 100 million are highly anticipated battles of interests, with all resources firmly held by the big five agencies. It's like 'Thor'; only a small group of people can access these projects, and the exchange of benefits and utilization of connections are the key factors in determining the cast lineup.

But now, Sony Pictures has generously announced the 'The Amazing Spider-Man' project, even selecting the lead actors!

It's no exaggeration to say that the 'The Amazing Spider-Man' project is enough to attract any young actor's participation. With an investment of 230 million, the success of the previous installments, Sony Pictures' strong support, and the widespread attention—all of these are enough to make this project the center of attention and attract young actors in droves.

In comparison, the entire scale of 'Thor' has shrunk by a notch, both in terms of investment and the project itself. It's incomparable. Not to mention Lisa, even those top-tier agents who are accustomed to the grandeur of the industry are bound to be stirred.

Renly had to admit that Sony Pictures' publicity strategy played out beautifully. Before 'The Amazing Spider-Man' even started filming, the news of the audition for the lead actor would inevitably cause a frenzy among major media outlets, marking the first shot fired in the film's promotion.

As for the final actor selection, it's likely to come from among the newcomers in the hands of those big-name agents. For example, Andrew Garfield, who had the last laugh in the previous iteration. Sony Pictures has garnered attention and profit, achieving multiple goals and standing in an unbeatable position.

However, Renly who had declined 'Thor,' naturally showed no interest in 'The Amazing Spider-Man' either.

Firstly, because the essence of these two series is essentially the same, with not much difference. If Renly were to choose a superhero himself, he would be most interested in Deadpool from the 'X-Men' series, Star-Lord from 'Guardians of the Galaxy,' or Ant-Man from 'Ant-Man.' These uniquely styled and unconventional superheroes are the most interesting, much like Captain Jack Sparrow from 'Pirates of the Caribbean.'

Secondly, 'The Amazing Spider-Man' is a series that is utterly disappointing. Sony Pictures was too eager to reboot the series, resulting in unclear positioning and storyline, and unsatisfactory box office returns. Although it didn't incur losses, after only shooting two out of the planned trilogy, Sony Pictures voluntarily stopped production, completely halted it, and then reselected younger high school actors to launch a more youthful new 'Spider-Man' series.

Therefore, having declined 'Thor,' Renly had no reason to choose 'The Amazing Spider-Man.'

Thinking about this, Renly couldn't help but feel absurd. He was now a newcomer with nothing, yet here he was being picky and critical. Not to mention whether he would be willing to play 'Thor' or 'The Amazing Spider-Man,' in fact, 'Thor' only gave him a chance to audition, and even if he did audition, it wasn't guaranteed he'd be chosen. In the current situation, he was the one waiting to be chosen, not the one with the choice.

Renly pursed his lips, couldn't help but smile. It's good this way. If they don't see value in him, he doesn't see value in them either.

Shifting his gaze away from 'The Amazing Spider-Man,' Renly carefully scanned the bulletin board.

In fact, Renly enjoyed browsing the bulletin board of the Actors Guild very much because he could always find countless information here, referencing his memories from his previous life to find what he needed. Not only were there big projects like 'The Amazing Spider-Man,' 'Super 8,' and 'Rise of the Planet of the Apes,' but also many independent films that he hadn't even heard of, showing the lesser-known side of Hollywood.

In reality, Hollywood only releases less than 600 films in theaters every year. Taking the year 2009 as an example, there were only 521 films released in theaters or screened or premiered or shown publicly throughout the year. Additionally, there are art cinemas in North America and Europe that specialize in showing niche art films. However, operating art cinemas is very difficult, and the number of screens is very limited. Each year, only about a hundred films get the opportunity to be screened.

So, what about other film projects? Every year, there are over two thousand registered film projects, or even more. Among them, more than half of the projects cannot be released in theaters. They either go directly to DVD distribution, choose to upload to the internet, or just gather dust in a corner.

This is the real face of Hollywood. The glitz and glamour under the spotlight are just the tip of the iceberg. Darkness occupies a much broader world.

Now, Renly was groping in the dark world, 'The Pacific' just lit up a dim candle, wanting to illuminate the entire world still requires a long road ahead.

Without the filtering and screening of agents, Renly was fishing in a sea of opportunities within the guild, trying to find the right project, which was not an easy task. Even with the advantage of reincarnation, the bulletin board in front of him was so dazzling that it made his eyes sore, let alone those actors who didn't have this advantage? Therefore, Lisa also suggested that Renly seize the opportunity of 'The Pacific,' find the right agent, and kick-start his career quickly.

Looking at the last corner of the bulletin board, a vast amount of information slipped rapidly like gravel through the cracks. Another day of futile search. Renly slightly pursed his lips, every time at this moment, he would question whether his persistence was in vain. If he had agreed to Andy Rogers' signing invitation, if he had agreed to the audition invitation for 'Thor,' if...

Wait a minute.

Renly's pupils contracted, his gaze falling on the white chalk words in the corner.

The so-called white chalk words were the most common type of projects in the Actors Guild: uncertain investment costs, generally likely to be independent productions below one million dollars; uncertain investment companies, generally companies without official registration information, possibly newly established small capitals, possibly projects established relying on independent fundraising, possibly small foreign companies; uncertain actor salaries, generally not too high, even for the lead roles, a hundred thousand salary would probably suffice; uncertain shooting schedules, generally ranging from one week to one year...

To put it simply, a recent graduate from a film school won a scholarship of a hundred thousand dollars from a foundation. They want to shoot a film with their own script, directing it themselves. Successfully going through official channels, submitting registration information, passing the official review of the American Actors Guild, and then they can submit the formal actor hiring information.

Such projects often garner the most attention from newly graduated actors and actors ranging from the fourth to the eighteenth line. If unlucky, they might end up in a super bad movie, but at least they can get a few thousand dollars in payment, pay their rent, and can also claim to be 'someone who has been in front of the camera'; if lucky, they might end up in a good movie, perhaps even go to the Sundance Film Festival, regardless of the feedback, this is a qualitative leap for new actors.

Compared to big projects like 'The Amazing Spider-Man,' these white chalk words projects are much more approachable.

Of course, white chalk word projects are a gamble. Many times they don't even see the script and can only hear a basic concept. They can't judge the quality of the work, and can only brace themselves and go ahead.

This kind of gamble is even more thrilling than Russian roulette. Unless they're desperate, most actors are unwilling to try. Otherwise, like Penny in 'The Big Bang Theory,' starring in a terrible R-rated movie, that's a stain that can't be erased for a lifetime.

However, as Renly saw this row of white chalk words, adrenaline began to surge endlessly, the suppressed excitement rumbling in his lungs, like boiling water reaching its boiling point, big bubbles starting to rise to the surface, ready to burst at any moment. The slightly contracted pupils slowly blossomed, the light in the depths of his eyes becoming brighter and brighter.

Renly knew, the project he had been desperately searching for had appeared again! Not because this work can attract as much attention as 'Thor,' not because this work can cooperate with Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks like 'The Pacific,' not because this work can sweep awards at the end of the year, but because this work can realize his dream, his actor dream!

The white chalk words read boldly: 'Buried.'