HWI 289

Hollywood What If Chapter 289



April came by and people in Hollywood started sensing the change in the atmosphere. People started seeing billboards with pictures of movies getting promoted. Advertising was everywhere, taxis had pictures of movies on them. Especially TV channels, the Big invested so much money so that people would know about their movies. 


Jane Kendall stepped out of her boyfriend's car and thanked him. 


"Thanks, Wallace, I'm going to miss you."


"Babe, you're just going to go to Canada. It's not that far. We can also call each other."


"... So you're saying you're not sad that I'll be gone, hm?" Jane narrowed her gaze, quite glaring at her boyfriend. 


"Of course not. You know that I will miss you, so much. This big!" He spread his arms to gesture how much he would miss her. 


Jane pouted. After 9/11 the security in airports became serious and traveling on airlines was not simple anymore. Jane wanted to go back to California every Sunday to spend time with Wallace but airlines have different rules now. She might spend more time in the terminal than with Wallace. 


Jane Kendall was the leader of the make-up team of Grey Pictures. Her position in the crew was quite good, especially when she was part of the original crew together with Renner Hector and Harold Witsend. The three were already part of Kazir's crew long before the director became famous.


'When was it again? Ah, I think it was 1989 or something.'


Jane didn't forget the date the original crew started their first project because that date was very memorable to a lot of people. 


Because of that, she was well respected in the crew. 


Jane and Wallace met in Wanted two years ago. Wallace was the co-leader of Grey Fans and he was one of the guests who received tickets for the premiere. The two hit it well and they decided to be in a serious relationship. 


Now, they were 1 year and 4 months into the relationship. 


The two knew that the distance might affect their relationship but they promised each other that they would remain stronger. 


The two had a mild kiss before Jane entered the terminal. Grey Pictures never had its own private plane so they would go with business flights instead. The maintenance of a plane was very expensive and Kazir didn't find the novelty of having one... Even though he was earning quite a lump sum of money. 


Jane heard that Tom Cruise would go to Canada in a private plane but that was obvious since the actor was a bonafide superstar. 


The crew had to go snowy part of Canada to film the movie. Kazir already sent Renner Hector first to check the possible filming sites and Renner already found suitable places. He also talked with the municipalities and received approval for filming. 


Most of the scenes would be filmed in Sudbury, Ontario. Renner Hector already confirmed that even though summer was arriving, the place was still cold and snowy white, an important aspect of their choice. 


Jane but farewell to her lover, she would miss him. She went to the section in the terminal and found most members of the crew. They greeted each other. Then, Jane approached Kazir who seemed busy as always. 


The man was always like this since the first time they met, at that time, Kazir was still a newbie director and had trouble doing his job, making him busier. But now, the newbie director was none to be seen. 


Only a mature guy who seemed immersed in his reading. 


"Good morning, Kazir."


"Oh, good morning Jane. Wallace took you here to the terminal?"


"That's right."


"Is he still here?"


"No, he has a job. So he left after sending me here."


"Is that so? Too bad, I want him to contact some members of Grey Fans to visit our filming set to promote the movie. I think some of the members of the Grey Fans are amateur movie bloggers."


Movie critics might be the right term but movie bloggers focused more on the internet than critics who mostly published their stuff in tabloids and newspapers. 


"If you're talking about work, you can call him instead... Wait, so you're saying that you want Wallace and the others to visit the crew?"


"That's right? Is there something wrong with what I said? Of course we have to set up a schedule for their visitation."


"... I'll call Wallace later." 


Jane left the director with excitement. 


Seems like Jane regained some of her energy after knowing that her boyfriend could visit the crew. Most of the time, visiting filming locations was off-limits to keep the content of the movies secret. Especially now that technology was improving and people could hide small cameras in their pockets. 


To visit the filming set, people usually sign a non-disclosure agreement so that the movie won't leak. 


In this regard, Kazir had no problem letting some fans visit the crew. That could give them positive impressions. 


Kazir was actually feeling the pressure because of the success of Spider-Man and Wanted. His last two films surpassed $1 billion. He wanted to work hard so that The Revenant could also experience the same treatment but Kazir knew that that would be impossible. He was not God in the first place. 


'Well, my name in another language means God but that has probably no connection whatsoever with my current predicament.'


... Or perhaps his name was the reason why he returned to the past? Was this a foreshadowing? Probably not. 


Kazir was not striving for much. Having another $1 billion movie at the box office would not be amazing. Instead, people might think that he was a robot or something. 


If he remembered it right, The Revenant exceeded $500 million at the worldwide box office, which was amazing, by the way. Only a few selected movies could do that. 


For this movie, Grey Pictures was ready to spend $100 million in budget. Of course, Kazir knew how to use the money so there was probably some money left for PR once filming was done.