Vol 2 Chapter 276: Duke's first love

"Please sit down, Martin."
Taking off his sunglasses, Duke sat with him at the round table, "Unexpectedly, you also came to Fiji."
The two have met on other occasions before. Martin Miller is not yet William Morris’s top agent. Duke can remember him only because this Jewish descent used to be Natalie Portman’s agent. .
"I'll come to see Miss Portman." Martin Miller took a beer from Duke, said thank you, turned his head and looked in the direction of the time, and continued, "I want to ask you too. Does this great director have a suitable role for her in the future?"
"I heard Nat said that she wanted to focus on her studies." Duke smiled faintly, "What I need is Ken's highly focused actors."
Having said that, Duke raised his hand to interrupt Martin Miller's words that he still wanted to say, obviously not wanting to continue this topic.
Martin Miller opened the beer, took a sip, and changed the subject on his own initiative, "Duke, have you ever thought about changing to another agency?"
"Change a brokerage company?"
Raising his head, Duke looked at him and asked tentatively, "Martin, is this what you meant by yourself?"
"No, no, no..."
Shaking his finger, Martin Miller said very seriously, 36, "I am here on behalf of the entire William Morris Company! We are very sincere..."
For Martin Miller's words, Duke was not surprised. It is normal for several major Hollywood agencies to poach each other, and with his current status, he has encountered many times in the past, and there will be more in the future.
Of course, it is normal for directors and actors to change agents. Like the rumored caa, it seems to be the master of the celebrity in the gossip media. Unfortunately, Hollywood stars have fired caa a lot, such as William Morris. . Duke also heard people mention a month ago that they dug up Ubi Gordon Fort and Sylvester Stallone from Caa.
Duke looked at Martin Miller and never said anything.
Martin Miller is also very clear, saying that future plans and other things are illusory and useless, and they cut directly into the most practical topics. "It is said that in the last agency contract you signed with Nancy Josephson, her commission was 7% of your income from directors, screenwriters and producers?"
There are not many secrets in Hollywood. The contracts of top directors and actors are the focus of attention. Duke slowly nodded.
"William Morris can reduce the commission range to your director's income." Martin Miller also said directly, "The commission ratio is reduced to 5%!"
Five percent is already the lowest level in the industry, and William Morris is really sincere.
However, these alone cannot move Duke. He really does not like to trust Sophia Coppola and Tina Fei as the new assistant Nancy Josephson, but Nancy and her team have done quite well in the past few years, and there is no harm. His actions for interest, not to mention the financial issues brought about by changing the brokerage company, trust alone cannot be established in a short period of time.
In Hollywood, if someone jumps out to say a lot of guarantees, who will directly believe it?
The issue of lowering the commission ratio raised by William Morris is not within Duke's consideration. The two-point commission is nothing to him, and it's just a movie-related business.
See that Duke has not spoken. Martin Miller understood that he really wanted to impress such a heavyweight. It would require long-term work. He slowly said, "Duke, the whole William Morris is looking forward to your joining. We will show our sincerity."
"I will think about it."
Duke smiled and nodded. In fact, this was a tactful rejection.
Martin Miller is a smart man, knowing that everything is superfluous now, so he talked a few words with Duke and left. He didn't go back to Natalie Portman, but walked towards the actors who starred in "The Matrix", obviously wanting to continue his poaching action.
"Nate, why did you accept the invitation?"
Under the umbrella on the other side, Natalie rolled her eyes when she heard her mother’s question and said,
Mom, you think too much! I’m only 16 years old. I don’t have the time or energy to fall in love with others. and……"
She looked at Duke. "That's still a famous playboy."
"You have been a little closer to him recently!"
"He is Jewish, and we are also Jewish. He is a force I can use in Hollywood in the future." Natalie's words are completely inconsistent with her age and innocent appearance. "Mom, even if Dad objected, I I won’t give up acting either."
There is no one else here, and Natalie has no scruples when she says, "I need to make friends who can help me!"
Mrs. Shelly nodded gently, and did not say anything. She will always be the manager of her daughter. There is no need to worry too much about some things. Moreover, her daughter is smart and precocious enough to take advantage of the situation, otherwise she would not be in George Lucas When visiting Michael Mann on the crew of "Stealing Fire", he easily won his favor.
It is true that the Jewish identity advantage has given them a lot of convenience, but how to use the advantages cleverly, it needs a brilliant mind.
The night slowly dropped, and a bonfire was lit on the beach. Water-like vegetables, fresh meat and beer were transported to this side. In the afternoon, happy men and women walked to the beach for a large barbecue party. Kicked off.
Grabbing a handful of kebabs and a few cans of beer, Duke turned around and quickly saw where Natalie Portman was and walked directly over.
"Hi, Nat." Duke greeted her and asked, "Can I sit here?"
"Of course," Natalie cleaned up and took the beer in Duke's hand, "just sit down."
Duke sat cross-legged on the beach, away from the crowds, to be quiet, and asked, "Why are you sitting here alone, your mother?"
"Mom is too noisy and went back to the room to rest." She pointed to the lively crowd on the left. "There is a barbecue party, almost all meat. I am a vegetarian."
"I wanted to share my barbecue with you." Duke motioned to the meat skewers in his left hand, "It seems you can only smell it."
Natalie shrugged, picked up a can of beer, took a sip after pulling it away, "I have this enough."
"Wait a minute!"
Duke stood up, walked quickly back to the crowd, specially made people cook roasted fruits and vegetables without animal fat, and found a small plastic table, holding a tray with food in one hand and the table in the other. Walked back.
Fixing the table and placing the tray on the table, Duke sat cross-legged across from Natalie, "This is vegan food."
"Thank you." Natalie took a can of unopened beer and handed it to Duke. "This is your reward."
Opening the beer, Duke took a big gulp, then picked up a bunch of toasted breadfruit, "Try it, although I didn't do it, but I made a lot of comments."
Natalie grabbed one, took a big bite, chewed slowly, and said after swallowing, "It's really good."
Her eyes flashed, and suddenly she asked without warning, "Duke, why are you trying to please me? Don't deny it, you know, I'm not stupid."
The the opposite side was sitting a little shorter than him, her brown eyes gleaming against the bonfire not far away, and she looked very imposing.
But after all, she was just a sixteen-year-old girl. Duke curled up his lips and smiled and looked down at her, "What if I want to pursue you, Nat?"
He looked at Natalie with scorching eyes, and seemed to be really tempted by her.
Natalie turned her head slightly, avoiding Duke's gaze, "Please, I'm just a middle school student."
Duke looked at her smiling, but said nothing.
Natalie seemed a little angry, grabbed a beer can and drank two consecutive sips, "Don’t think I didn’t know you were a playboy! If I believe you, you will definitely find a way to get me in bed tonight and use it. In a few days, it will throw me aside like other actresses..."
She turned her head back and looked at Duke without fear, "Am I right? Men please women, the ultimate goal is to get her into bed!"
"Going to bed is just a way of expressing intimacy and communicating feelings." Duke deliberately avoided the importance.
Natalie snorted, "Have you ever been with people formally? Don't tell me it's Catherine Zeta Jones, I'm also an actor, so I can understand some things."
"Why should I tell you?" Duke touched her beer can, and the two drank the remaining beer. Natalie wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and said, "Well, in exchange, I will say first Myself."
She threw over a beer again, "When I was in eighth grade, I had a crazy crush on a boy who had very beautiful curly chestnut hair, tall and thin, and he looked very sexy."
"You confessed to him?"
In Duke’s impression, this should be a courageous girl who would not show mercy at all to grab her boyfriend or the role, "he agreed?"
"No!" Natalie put on a gloomy expression, "I am not popular in school. I have always been the object of being excluded. He has never spoken to me."
"So..." She took another sip of her beer, "My first love ended before it even started."
Natalie's eyes rolled, "I said mine. To be fair, it's up to you now?"
"What do you want to hear?" Duke raised his head, looked at the night sky, and said frankly, "After I entered Hollywood, I haven't had any formal contact with anyone."
"It's not fair!"
Probably it was a work of alcohol. Natalie was more excited than just now, and shouted, "I have said so much, can't you just say one thing? How about this, you also talk about your first love, or you have been dating The first girl." (To be continued.)
ps: Well, can you count the votes?