From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

Garry Marshall was a little irritable and a little depressed. Actually, he didn't want to get angry. The doctor said that his high blood pressure needed attention and that he should keep his emotions calm. But looking at the mess in front of him, he couldn't suppress his temper. The more he thought about it, the more absurd and angry he became, and his voice couldn't be suppressed either, getting louder and louder.

"Marcia, I know your ability, and I know your strengths."

"The whole of Hollywood knows that the most difficult and crucial part of a romantic comedy is the female lead. A likeable actor can give the romantic comedy a soul. Julia is like that, and Meg is like that. This is the difficulty of any romantic comedy project."

"Now, we have overcome the most difficult and core part, but you are telling me that the huge Hollywood can't find a male lead?"

Marcia: …

It's not that we can't find one, but the requirements are too outrageous, okay?

A nerd and a rocker?

But she can't.

If Garry had a sudden heart attack and fainted, her reputation might spread throughout Hollywood.

"Marcia, you might think I'm particularly picky. As for the female lead, we experienced a little bit of turbulence. How many actors did we audition in total? Two thousand? Or two thousand three hundred?"

Marcia didn't respond, but silently said in her heart: Two thousand four hundred and forty-seven.

With Garry Marshall's name, not only the five major agencies, but also other small and medium-sized agencies sent actor resumes as soon as possible.

It's no exaggeration to say that they should have seen all the actresses currently aged seventeen to twenty-two. Even if it's not 100%, it's at least 80%.

The intensity of the competition is unbelievable.

Among these two thousand actors, there are many who have already made a name for themselves: Reese Witherspoon, Kirsten Dunst, Cameron Diaz, Clair Danes, Jessica Biel.

In addition, there are Kate Beckinsale, Katie Holmes, Eva Mendes, Drew Barrymore, Brittany Murphy, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and so on.

Among them, there was also a parachute. Goldie Hawn, who had worked with Garry in a movie, personally arranged an audition for her daughter Kate Hudson, hoping that her daughter, who had just starred in a movie, could get this precious opportunity.

However!

The final decision still fell between the emerging Liv Tyler—the daughter of Steven Tyler, the lead singer of the famous band Aerosmith—and Anne Hathaway, a newcomer with no acting experience.

Ultimately, it was because Garry wanted to find a new face, just like Julia Roberts ten years ago.

Although the decision has not yet been finalized on who to choose between the two, the selection of the female lead has finally become clear after such a toss.

This is not "a little bit of turbulence."

Marcia really wanted to complain back, but she couldn't.

Garry didn't notice and continued to speak.

"We have successfully completed such a difficult thing. Whether it's Liv or Anne, I believe they can handle the work of the movie. In comparison, the selection of the male lead is not a big deal at all."

"You gave me some choices. How many actors have we auditioned? Seventy? Or eighty?"

Marcia: One hundred and fourteen. But, hey, who's counting?

"This is not enough."

"People think that the core of a romantic love movie is the heroine. This is the truth, but people ignore one thing. The hero is the highlight of the movie."

"Who is the target audience for romantic love movies? Women!"

"They sit in front of the screen and appreciate the story of Cinderella over and over again, fantasizing about becoming Cinderella, meeting the prince, meeting love, and changing their lives. So they always put themselves into the heroine and look forward to their own ugly duckling transformation, projecting their shadows on the heroine."

"But in the end of the story, who do they need to see? The prince!"

"They need to fall in love with the prince, they need to believe that this prince can become the key to their happiness. If there is no prince, nothing exists."

"'Pretty Woman' made Julia, but never forget that it was because the object was Richard that the movie conquered the female audience."

"The male lead, he is a vase, just like a mascot, but he can't just be a vase. He needs to project all the women's fantasies about romance and happiness. If the female lead is the core of the movie's success, then the male lead is the upper limit of the movie's box office."

"We can't just settle for anything."

"Marcia, I need you to cheer up and give me a male lead."

"Not just any young actor, but a male lead who is truly charming."

Garry was a little excited.

In fact, Garry also knew the difficulty of casting. The most important thing is—

Age.

Generally speaking, a man's charm often comes from the polishing and precipitation of the years. He can give promises and take responsibility. Therefore, the male protagonists of romantic comedies are mostly successful middle-aged people. The situation of a big star falling in love with an ordinary bookstore owner like in "Notting Hill" is a contrast, but the focus is that Hugh Grant used his charm to make up for the gap in status.

So, the most difficult problem in front of them is, where does the charm of an eighteen-year-old boy come from?

If the target audience is high school students, then there is no problem. An eighteen-year-old boy also has his charm among his peers; but facing the entire film market, it is not easy for an eighteen-year-old boy to attract women who have entered society.

So, they picked and picked, but still couldn't find a satisfactory choice.

Young and mature, low-key and flamboyant, youthful and charming, these seemingly contradictory words must be displayed in one character.

It is indeed difficult.

Garry was also a little impatient, because he really wanted to make this movie well, but without the finishing touch of the male lead, he didn't think he could do it.

Marcia's swear words finally remained on the lips. She thought that maybe an unexpected candidate could bring surprises. Anyway, Garry wanted to pick a new face, didn't he?

Thinking of this, Marcia handed the magazine in her hand to Garry.

"There is a candidate here."

"I know it's a bit of a gamble, and unconventional, but I think maybe we can give him a chance, just like Anne. Maybe it can bring surprises."

Garry took the magazine with a puzzled look and glanced at the cover, "Hugh Jackman? I remember he is already thirty years old."

Marcia quickly gestured, "Not the cover, but the inside. I put a label underneath, just open it directly."

Garry's expression was not very good. This is a magazine, and it's "GQ". What the hell is this?

Marcia didn't have confidence either. When she flipped through the magazine today, she was unexpectedly amazed and inspired. At that moment, she thought it was a good idea, but as time went by, she became less and less confident. This is indeed very absurd, but now there is no way to turn back, so she can only bite the bullet.

"Anson. This actor is called Anson, eighteen years old. Not long ago, he caused a lot of talk because of his guest appearance in 'Friends', and he has no acting experience other than that."

"But I think, you can try it."

The third update.