Hugo and Brad's situations were different.
Brad's career was currently on the rise, and he also had a formidable agent, Martin. Martin was able to dig up a lot of information for Brad, including this time when he tried to snatch the lead role of A Few Good Men from his own company's Tom Cruise. To put it nicely, before the contract is signed, everyone has a chance. To put it bluntly, it's stealing from a colleague. So, Brad definitely had some understanding of A Few Good Men. This also made Brad even more eager when facing Rob he wanted the role, he wanted to star in this script, because it was a rare opportunity.
In addition, Martin's dominance was also evident in his control over Brad. Brad hadn't grown his wings yet, and he didn't have enough strength to oppose Martin, so he could only follow Martin's instructions in hopes of gaining more opportunities. During today's audition, Brad's attitude and words more or less reflected Martin's influence, and this was the reason why.
Hugo, on the other hand, was different. He was currently an unloved outcast abandoned by his original agent Ron, with Joseph just a newcomer. After three consecutive failed films and the "honor" of a Golden Raspberry Award, if it weren't for Scent of a Woman as a bridge, today's audition wouldn't even have included him. But even so, Hugo was still at a complete disadvantage. Not to mention that Tom was currently the biggest favorite, even compared to Brad, Hugo had no advantage whatsoever.
So, Hugo chose to speak the truth. His understanding of A Few Good Men came entirely from the Transmigration. In reality, he truly didn't know anything about the film. The only thing that drove him to the audition was the desire to seize an opportunity! And Rob Reiner directing, Jack Nicholson starring those were the film's greatest assets and Hugo's biggest motivation.
It's not that one could say Hugo and Brad's audition strategies were better or worse it just depended on which actor Rob preferred provided that Tom's contract didn't go through. Otherwise, both of them would end up with nothing.
Rob didn't mention anything more about the film afterward and just started chatting casually. This was Martin's moment to shine. Joseph's inexperience immediately became evident in front of Martin. Although Joseph kept trying to maintain the conversation, the gap in experience, age, and skill meant the initiative was always in Martin's hands.
Around 9:30, Rob got up and prepared to leave. The four of them watched him get into his car, then stood in the parking lot exchanging glances.
Hugo and Brad stood face to face. Sparks still faintly flashed in their eyes as they met. This was different from their last competition over A River Runs Through It this time, they stood on the same starting line, and Brad not only didn't have the previous advantage, but was even overshadowed by Hugo. Though it wasn't said outright, everyone knew well that Tracy had played a decisive role in the A River Runs Through It audition. In other words, in terms of raw strength, Brad had lost to Hugo.
Hugo had not only made a comeback, avenging his failure in the A River Runs Through It audition, but had also made Brad stumble today. The tension between the two silently intensified again.
Brad was four years older than Hugo, already twenty-nine this year. In Hollywood, male actors typically don't truly break out until their thirties or even forties the prime years. To date, no Oscar Best Actor has been younger than thirty, with the average age being as high as forty-five.
But this also put those in their twenties, especially before thirty, in an awkward spot. On one hand, they couldn't compete with older actors in deep, complex roles. On the other hand, they lacked the "potential" appeal of teenagers under eighteen. At this stage, young actors lacked maturity in their craft, had limited roles, lacked connections, and had sparse portfolios. So most of them ended up playing extras in TV series. Becoming a lead in a film was no easy feat.
Brad had only ever played supporting roles. Hugo's real success in Dead Poets Society was also in a supporting role, while the real lead was thirty-eight-year-old Robin Williams. Someone like Tom Cruise, who shot to fame at twenty-four with Top Gun, was definitely a rarity.
Of course, after the 21st century, young actors did carve out space for themselves. With more youth-centric films, younger stars gained stronger competitiveness. But at least in the early 1990s, young actors still had relatively fewer opportunities. Johnny Depp, Robert Downey Jr., Nicolas Cage, Keanu Reeves… the number of actors under thirty who had made a name for themselves could be counted on one hand. It certainly didn't form a recognizable group.
So the competition among actors like Hugo and Brad became even fiercer. First A River Runs Through It, now A Few Good Men it was easy to imagine that in the future, direct confrontations between the two would only increase. But regardless of what the future held, at least for now, in the A Few Good Men audition, Hugo merely had the upper hand. Before Rob made a decision, everything was still uncertain.
Brad kept chewing his gum one bite after another, his eyes looking flatly at Hugo, not saying a word, but the flames burning in his eyes were more than obvious. Faced with such competition, Hugo had no intention of backing down. He looked straight back with calm confidence, a subtle smile hanging faintly on his lips a kind of unshakable self-assurance.
Standing beside them, Martin said to Joseph with a fake smile, "Tonight's performance wasn't bad." His tone was completely that of a senior advising a junior. "But you guys still need a bit of luck." The subtext was: the role would ultimately go to Brad, because in terms of connections, Joseph was clearly weaker.
Although Joseph had lost the initiative in the earlier conversation, that didn't mean he lacked ability. On the contrary, the fact that he could hold his ground under Martin's deliberate pressure showed how competent he was. "Luck—everyone needs it. If God is willing to give me luck, I'll gladly take it," he replied. Luck, like opportunity, is part of strength. No one complains about having too much. "Of course, Hugo's performance tonight really was unexpected. Who knows if that's a good thing?"
Joseph was once again poking at Martin's sore spot. Everyone had been stunned by Hugo's smooth and articulate demeanor tonight, and Martin clearly had more thoughts about Hugo now. In the agent business, there's no such thing as absolute loyalty only absolute interests. If Martin could offer better terms, it wasn't impossible for him to poach Hugo. So, Joseph's jab made Martin's face stiffen slightly, but he merely said with deeper implication, "Hugo is indeed outstanding."
"Then we'll take our leave first. Hope everything's well the next time we meet." Though Martin's words sounded courteous, there was clear mockery hidden within implying Hugo's current situation was far from good.
Joseph didn't get angry. Instead, he chuckled lightly. "Rob is waiting for your call, so I won't keep you." This line was clearly calling Martin out if it came down to strength, Brad couldn't compare to Hugo, so Martin had to rely on backdoor dealings to win. That was a blunt slap in the face. After speaking, Joseph didn't bother with Martin's ambiguous expression under the moonlight. He and Hugo simply turned and walked toward their car.
Brad hadn't said a word the entire time absolutely nothing. He just stared intently at Hugo, as if a flower might bloom on his face. Yet this simple gesture revealed Brad's unwavering resolve: Hugo, you're my rival now!
Hugo could feel Brad's piercing gaze from behind and let out a light breath. Others might not know, but Hugo was fully aware of Brad's future success. That meant he had just become a rival to one of Hollywood's most iconic leading men. And just as the situation hadn't even stabilized yet, he'd already made another enemy it made him want to facepalm.
However, Hugo wasn't someone who would easily admit defeat. So what if it was Brad? Since he had managed to transmigrate here, it meant that history's trajectory could be changed. Of course, what mattered most was Hugo's own effort. If he gave up first, then the outcome of the competition would already be determined. Man can triumph over destiny but only through hard work!
"Phew, my performance tonight was downright awful," Joseph grumbled in frustration after getting into the car, clearly dissatisfied with how things had gone earlier.
Hugo chuckled, "I thought I did pretty well."
Joseph rolled his eyes from the side. "You know I wasn't talking about you," he said as he started reversing the car.
"Hah, but I'm the one who did the audition, wasn't I?" Hugo knew Joseph still wished he could have played a more pivotal role, but truth be told, facing someone as aggressive as Martin and still managing to perform well wasn't easy. That's why Hugo shifted the focus back to himself. "I think Rob had a really good impression of me. Or... was that just my own wishful thinking?"
Hugo's teasing finally made the corners of Joseph's mouth curl up a bit. "I think so too." Joseph finished reversing the car and looked toward the highway. Through the windshield, the two of them could still see Brad and Martin standing in the parking lot. Both their expressions didn't look great. It seemed Martin was voicing his displeasure to Brad about the audition earlier.
But as Joseph drove past, Martin and Brad both stopped and turned their gazes toward the car. The four of them locked eyes for a moment, and then the car continued forward passing them by for good.
The curve on Joseph's lips instantly widened. His mood had clearly lifted quite a bit.
...
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