DOS Ch-344

“It’s so cool to see you two together, doing a movie!” the woman in front of me gushed excitedly. “Don’t tell this to anyone, but you two are my favorite celebrity couple of all time.”

I laughed and pointed at the camera placed behind her. “Thank you, but I think you just told everyone yourself.”

She turned back to the camera and said, “Sorry, Brangelina, you two came second by just a single point. The competition was neck and neck.”

Scarlett laughed at that and added, “There’s no way we beat Brangelina. Those two are like a brand. Our names, on the other hand, don’t roll that well.”

“Of course we do,” I argued. “Together we make a Toilet.”

As the lady in front of me laughed, Scarlett facepalmed before giving me a side-eye. “You just had to say that, didn’t you?”

“Won’t lie,” I added with a grin, “I’ve been waiting to say that in an interview for a while.”

“I’m sure you were,” Scarlett deadpanned, while the interviewer was eating up our easy banter with a huge grin.

While this interview wasn’t scripted, Scarlett and I knew what we were doing. We had to come off as a likable, happy couple for this set of interviews to work. People don’t realize this, but an interview can make or break your image as a celebrity. Some people are just bad at talking without a script. Names like Jesse Eisenberg, Rachel Zegler, and Brie Larson are just a few such celebrities who are terrible at interviews.

On the other hand, some celebs have nailed the art of interviews. Especially couples like Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively, John Krasinski and Emily Blunt, or David and Victoria Beckham. All of them lean heavily on their spouse to make themselves seem more likable to the audience.

I don’t like using a tactic like this in my own interviews, but I was forced to do it since Scarlett and I were promoting the same movie.

“Why did you choose to do this movie?” she asked me. “As far as I’m aware, Disney is a rival studio for you.”

I laughed and shook my head. “They’re not. Or at least I don’t think of them that way. Mostly because I’m an actor first and foremost. I don’t care which studio or production house is making the movie. If I like the script, I’ll do it. It’s as simple as that. As for why I specifically chose to do [Rapunzel], that’s easy. I made the film for a little girl I know who complained that her parents forbade her from watching most of my movies. So I wanted to make something everyone could enjoy, especially little kids.”

Then I put a hand to the side of my face. “Not to mention, when I found out I’d be working with this hot chick sitting beside me, I had to do it.”

“Aww,” Scarlett cooed, leaning forward to peck me on the cheek. At least that’s what she was hoping for, until I turned my head toward her and let her peck my lips.

“Now that’s the type of kiss I like,” I added with a grin.

The interviewer fanned herself exaggeratedly before adding, “What about you, Scarlett? Why did you choose to play [Rapunzel]?”

“Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to be a princess,” she announced. “So while it’s not practical or appealing to become a princess in today’s day and age, I thought I’d be happy to just lend my voice to this character. And she’s beautifully written by our talented writers and animated even better. I’m in awe of how good everything about this film is.”

The woman looked at her notes before adding, “You two also sang a song together in this film, which is your second collaboration after [Die With A Smile], which earned you two a Grammy. Do you think you’ll repeat that record?”

“We don’t make music or movies for the awards,” I said seriously, and I meant it as well. With the number of EGOT trophies I had in my kitty, it didn’t make sense to vie for another one. “We make them because we love doing it. I could’ve easily retired from acting after Harry Potter if I wanted to, but that’s the thing, I don’t want to. As long as the audience keeps watching my movies, I’ll continue making them. It’s as simple as that.”

Scarlett leaned closer to me, her fingers intertwined with mine. “That’s why Troy and I get along so well. We both have similar ambitions, and he has never once put his career above mine. That’s something you don’t find in a man easily.”

As the interview continued, I couldn’t help but look at Scarlett every time she spoke. Just sitting here beside her, doing this, made me realize how different our career paths could be in the future if we didn’t plan this properly.

I’d been told by older actors that a couple together on the same set is a recipe for disaster. Doing this press junket with her opened my eyes. I didn’t really mind doing more press junkets with her. The best part? We could bring the twins with us and keep them in the hotel room, going back to them as soon as the work was done. This was perfect.

The moment the interview ended, and it was just the two of us, I turned to Scarlett and said, “So, I was thinking.”

“Oh? You do that? Since when?” she teased.

“Ha. Ha,” I deadpanned. “I’m serious. Why don’t we make some more films together? And not just animation. Something live-action.”

“[Disturbia 2]?” Scarlett offered. “I wouldn’t mind doing it, to be honest.”

I shook my head immediately. “I’m trying to avoid making [Avatar 2], my highest-grossing film ever, and you want me to redo my worst-reviewed movie instead?”

“Then what do you want to make?” she asked.

“Something unique,” I shot back. “And if we’re working together, we can keep the kids close to us. Especially if the shoot is remote.”

Scarlett nodded slowly. “Yeah, that makes sense, but what exactly can we work on? Do you have a script or something?”

I shook my head. “Not at the moment. But I only need to express interest. The moment I do, I’ll have thousands of scripts in front of me.”

“Stop exaggerating,” she snorted, but her laughter was short-lived when I didn’t laugh with her. “Really?”

I shrugged. “I’m a very in-demand actor. What can I say?”

“Sometimes, I forget all about your fame and star power,” she said seriously. “I just thought you chose your scripts on your own and then finance them.”

“I do,” I agreed. “But the moment I announce that I’m looking for a script, literally every director or writer working in Hollywood sends me something. It could be a detailed script, a summary, a book, or even just a concept. Even if the main character isn’t my age or has different physical characteristics, they’re ready to change those parts of the script to suit me. Benji and Tobias have a full team of experts reading scripts and stories and writing short summaries for me so I can quickly decide which ones to choose and which ones to pass.”

She shook her head. “I don’t know whether to be jealous of you for having this kind of access or pity you for the number of people who just want to use you for their gain.”

“You can have access to those resources as well, you know?” I offered as we stood up and started walking toward the exit. “What’s mine is yours.”

She laughed, wrapping her arm around mine. “That may be so, but I’d like to pass for now. I’m not really considering projects beyond Marvel. Once I’m done with Avengers and the standalone [Black Widow] movie, I’ll consider other projects then. If you find something good for us in the meantime, I can consider that, but only that, because I too want to work with you again.”

I took out my phone from my pocket and sent the same text to Tobias and Benji.

‘Scarlett and I want to do a film together. Find a good script where we can work together. Probably a romance.’

(Break)

A week later, I was regretting sending that text. The release of [Rapunzel] was right around the corner, but I was busy scouring through pages upon pages of script summaries. Anyone who thinks acting is an easy job has no idea how much you really have to read regularly for this career. And this is when I already have the benefit of foresight.

“Troy!” a young girl sang my name as she ran into the room. “Big bro, Troy!” she sang again when I didn’t reply immediately.

“I heard you the first time, Helen. What is it?”

She raised two dresses, one red and one black. “Which of these do you think will look better on me for the premiere?”

“The red one,” I replied immediately. “But why? Didn’t I tell you that I’d arrange a special screening for you? You won’t have to go to the premiere then.”

“But I want to go to the premiere!” she shot back. Then she lowered her voice. “Are you… ashamed of me or something?”

“Of course not!” I walked closer to her and knelt down to her level, holding her shoulders lightly. “I love you, and I can never be ashamed of you. You get that?”

After seeing her nod, I continued, “The reason I don’t want you to go there is that it’s not a good place for a child to be. You’ll get a lot of media attention if you go there. Right now, you are mostly anonymous. People know that I have a sister, but not who she is. And that’s mostly because the media has this unspoken rule these days that they don’t photograph minors unless they are celebrities themselves or have attended public events like red carpets. Once you attend the premiere, everyone will know you’re my sister, and they’ll follow you. Even back in Britain. I’ll have to assign more security for you then.”

She grimaced at that. Her parents already complained a lot about the two security guards I had assigned for her safety. They didn’t understand that someone could potentially kidnap Helen for ransom, or worse, just because she’s connected to me.

“But I really wanna go!” Helen protested, despite knowing how sound my logic was.

“How about this?” I countered swiftly. “You attend the special screening for now. It’s exclusively for kids your age, and you’ll get to watch it before anyone else. Then later, when you turn 16, I’ll take you to your first movie premiere officially.”

“But brother—”

“Nope,” I interrupted her. “Not gonna happen. Your safety is more important than anything else in the world. So no, I’m not going to compromise on that.”

She pouted before saying, “That movie better be great.”

“It is,” I promised.

The moment she left me alone again, I went back to my work, which was reading more and more script summaries. It felt like luck was on my side, because I had just found a script that was perfect for Scarlett and me. Moreover, it was one of my favorite films of all time. Now the only thing left to see was whether the writer-director would let me play the lead role.

(Break)

William looked carefully at the boy, or rather the man, through his computer screen. He was the one who had single-handedly shaken up the British monarchy without anyone even knowing the truth of the matter.

“How can I help you today, Will?” Troy asked jovially. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I have a movie screening to get to with a lot of overeager kids, so if you can be a little quick about it, it’d be appreciated.”

“You know why I called,” William deadpanned.

Troy acted innocent and inclined his head in confusion. “Do I?” Then he grew serious and added, “By the way, I’m sorry for your uncle’s incarceration. How is Her Majesty handling the news?”

“She’s… handling it fine.”

That was a massive understatement. Ever since the mass boycott of the semi-annual honours began, common people had become much more vocal against the monarchy. The government had tried its best to catch the people who tried to coerce honourees into giving up their knighthoods, but to no avail. The team had grown clever and stopped approaching the honourees in person, contacting them only through calls and emails.

When things became too serious with Andrew, and it became clear that the Crown wouldn’t be able to save him, he was finally arrested and his case was fast-tracked. With the way things were going, it seemed highly likely that the trial would result in a conviction. International media went into a frenzy when the news broke, and the intense scrutiny of the royal family increased massively.

Now the Crown and the government wanted to find a way to do some damage control.

What better way to do it than by knighting one of the finest actor-singers the UK has ever produced? The same actor-singer who had rejected knighthood the last time it was offered to him. The same man who had repeatedly shown that he had an unshakable moral compass. Troy endorsing the Crown, even indirectly, by accepting the knighthood, would go a long way toward making the public return to how things were a few years ago.

Knowing that William was on friendly terms with Troy, he had been tasked with this seemingly impossible mission.

“I thought we had an understanding,” William said after a moment. “We both had a common goal. One that we achieved. I think it’d be fair to say that you can now end this boycott.”

“I have,” Troy replied immediately. “I’ve disbanded the team that ran this operation. Everything will go back to normal from the next honours session. At least as long as we get a conviction out of this trial.”

“We will,” William said softly. “That brings me to the reason I called you. Would you accept your knighthood if it were offered to you again?”

Troy seemed genuinely surprised by William’s question, but William knew he needed an answer as soon as possible if it was to happen in the New Year’s Honours list.