Chapter 32 – Rising Star
After Aaron recommended Giuseppe Tornatore's A Journey of Family to Disney, he began waiting for their response.
Unexpectedly, Aaron learned that Richard Lovett, a young agent at CAA, had joined CAA's longtime rival, ICM. Aaron suspected it might have something to do with that night on the hotel balcony when he had scolded him.
A young agent leaving wouldn't normally matter to CAA—after all, they had over 150 agents now—but Lovett had taken with him a new female talent: Julia Roberts. Once Pretty Woman premiered next year, she would become an overnight sensation, even more popular than Meg Ryan this year.
"Tsk, I can only imagine the expressions on Michael Ovitz and Ronald Meyer's faces," Aaron mused quietly. Yet he didn't dwell on it—by next year, he expected to have left CAA anyway.
Meanwhile, casting had begun for Francis Ford Coppola's The Godfather Part III. Thanks to Al Pacino's recommendation, Jennifer Connelly had traveled from the Bay Area to New York to audition.
Adding to the drama, on October 17, 1989, a 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck northern California in Loma Prieta, causing significant damage to Stanford University.
"Talk about bad luck—your transfer coincides with a major earthquake!" Aaron said from the suite at the Regency Hotel in New York, flipping through the newspaper.
Jennifer Connelly stuck out her tongue. "That area's always been seismically active."
"Alright, for this audition, the role is the Godfather's daughter," Aaron explained. "The final decision will ultimately be up to Director Coppola. Many actresses have tried out before—Julia Roberts, Madonna Ciccone, among others—but none satisfied Coppola."
Aaron shrugged. Italian directors tended to run family-style operations; Coppola's Godfather series famously employed most of his relatives.
Jennifer Connelly felt a little nervous. With The Godfather Part III about to begin filming, she wasn't very confident.
"Let's go. We'll get there early," Aaron said, patting her shoulder.
"Okay," she replied.
As they left the hotel, Aaron brought along the script for A Journey of Family, planning to have Al Pacino pass it along to Coppola. Coppola had his own production company, and while it was an Italian art film, Aaron knew that if Disney wasn't interested, Coppola could likely find another U.S. distributor—provided the script impressed him.
Before long, Aaron drove Jennifer Connelly to the New York set of The Godfather Part III. Staff escorted them to a lounge to wait.
"The filming locations for Godfather III will include New York and parts of Italy," Aaron told her. Though he wasn't optimistic about the audition, he wanted to give her a realistic picture.
"No problem," Jennifer said. "My first leading role a few years ago was in an Italian thriller, and I also speak French and Italian—so communication should be fine."
Aaron twitched at the corner of his mouth. "Relax—English will do. Al Pacino and Diane Keaton don't speak Italian."
These two were, of course, the leads of the Godfather series.
Aaron glanced at Jennifer and added, "Since you know some Italian, you could also consider Giuseppe Tornatore's A Journey of Family. If you're interested, you could play the youngest daughter."
Jennifer looked at Aaron. "Do you think I should?"
"You can give it a try. I'd rather you focus on something like this art-house film than a commercial script. It's a better fit for your talents."
The investors for A Journey of Family were still being sought, but Aaron wasn't worried. Even without U.S. funding, it wouldn't be a problem—Europe had dedicated film grants, and Tornatore's reputation made him an ideal candidate.
Having Jennifer involved wouldn't be an issue; she already had some recognition, and Tornatore would have no objection.
After a short wait, the staff escorted in two more people—Winona Ryder and her agent.
Winona Ryder was now 18, while Jennifer Connelly was 19—roughly the same age. They had even crossed paths previously at the Pretty Woman audition.
Winona's agent, Jessica, was also a CAA employee and undoubtedly had more experience than Aaron.
Yet now, Aaron Anderson had risen to become one of CAA's top young agents; no ordinary agent could match his track record.
"Aaron, what a coincidence! I'm Jessica," Winona's agent greeted him warmly as she approached.
"Hello, Jessica," Aaron replied with a smile, shaking her hand. Then the two moved to a quieter spot to talk.
"So, Winona, you just wrapped Edward Scissorhands, right? Tim Burton directing, Johnny Depp starring?"
Burton's Batman had been a huge hit this year, and the romance between Johnny Depp and Winona Ryder was making headlines everywhere.
Jessica chuckled. "Winona's already filmed two movies this year, but who could refuse a call from Director Coppola?"
Aaron nodded, subtly glancing at Winona. Her beauty was striking, her gaze deep and expressive. Hard to imagine her dating someone as rock-and-roll and erratic as Johnny Depp.
"Good actress… though young people are always easy to lose their way," he mused inwardly.
Johnny and Winona were famously inseparable, with plenty of media coverage. Jessica sighed—Depp had a reputation for every vice imaginable: women, alcohol, and drugs. Meanwhile, Winona, having starred in Great Balls of Fire and Heathers, was a rising star in the teen film scene, her career on the ascent. And yet, she was involved with a rocker nearly ten years her senior?
Truly a pity—love often clouds judgment.
"I didn't expect you to sign Jennifer Connelly," Jessica said. "Last time she auditioned, her mother was the one accompanying her!"
Aaron shrugged. "What can I do? Other than Steven Soderbergh, I don't have many clients. Jennifer's mainly focused on school, not much else, so I thought I'd give it a try."
Jessica smiled. "Aaron Anderson, you're practically CAA's poster child for film representation now. No need to fight the small players for scraps."
Over the past six months, Aaron had met numerous producers and heads of film companies. Everyone knew his future was destined for film production; being an agent would only be a stepping stone.
At that moment, the staff came in to call the actors.
The audition was about to begin…