Rewind With A Superstar System

Chapter 216: Premiere!

<🎧 Song Recommendation: the cure by Olivia Rodrigo>

...

The luxurious atmosphere of Sammy Howkins’ hotel suite felt suffocating.

Julian paced back and forth across the carpet, his hands running nervously through his hair.

He had just finished explaining the disastrous reviews, his father’s terrifying phone call, and the impossible ultimatum hanging over his head.

He desperately needed an ally. He needed someone with power to help him turn the tide.

Sammy was sitting comfortably on a sofa, casually swirling a glass of expensive bourbon.

He took a slow sip and looked at the younger actor with indifferent eyes.

"After hearing all that, I have to agree. This is really bad. You’re cooked, Julian. But frankly, it’s none of my business."

Julian stopped pacing. He stared at Sammy in pure disbelief before quickly reaching into his pocket and pulling out his phone.

He opened the browser, navigated to the trending pages across all social media platforms, and shoved the bright screen toward Sammy’s face.

"None of your business?" Julian snapped.

Sammy frowned, leaning back slightly. "What am I looking at?"

"Take a good look!" Julian yelled, pointing at the screen. "Our movie, Blood Money, had its massive premiere this evening. Yet, look at the trends. No one is talking about it."

Sammy’s eyes scanned the endless articles and viral video clips of Von Varley. He firmly gritted his teeth, the realization finally sinking in. The calm, unbothered facade he had been maintaining instantly cracked.

"It’s that Von bastard. Well, it’s all temporary. The kid got lucky with a cheap television stunt. Once the public actually sees his movie tomorrow and realizes how average his acting is, they won’t talk about him anymore."

"But what if he wasn’t?"

"What do you mean?"

"What if his acting turns out being decent... or even good?" Julian asked.

The thought vividly crossed Sammy’s mind, causing a bit of genuine anxiety in his eyes. He quickly shook his head to dismiss it.

"It’s impossible," Sammy declared firmly. "Their movie can’t be good. It won’t be good. A twenty-year-old musician can’t just walk onto a set and deliver a real performance."

Julian shrugged, resuming his pacing across the room. "Well, you can’t tell for sure. If Von has good acting, the hype might just be at max, even if he’s only a little above average. The media already loves him. And then there’s the People’s Choice Awards... and then the Oscars..."

Julian didn’t even need to complete his sentence.

Sammy abruptly stood up from the sofa, his glass slamming onto the table. The realization hit him like a blow.

The Oscars. That was the only reason Sammy had taken the role of the hitman in the first place. He wanted that golden statue.

"It’s impossible!" Sammy screamed, pointing a finger at Julian. "They can’t win the People’s Choice Award! We have to win it! My campaign depends on it!"

Julian stopped pacing. A slow, sneaky smile crept onto his face seeing Sammy’s desperate reaction. He turned to face the veteran actor fully.

"Of course," Julian said softly. "None of us wants that to happen. But wanting is not enough, Sammy. We’ll have to take matters into our own hands."

Sammy stood in silence for a moment, realizing they were now both fighting for their careers against the exact same obstacle.

Seeing the mischievous grin on Julian’s face, Sammy walked closer to the younger actor.

"I’m all ears."

***

(Roy Thomson Hall, Toronto, Canada)

The energy inside the filled up theater was buzzing as everyone waited to see the premiere of the most talked about movie.

Emily sat in the VIP section, happily eating from a large bucket of popcorn.

"I’ve been waiting for this moment all week. I’d really like to see how good you really are on the big screen."

Chloe, who was sitting in the same row just a two seats down, overheard Emily’s comment. She leaned forward with a confident smirk playing on her lips.

"You better keep your expectations really high, because you’re about to be surprised."

Sitting between Zack and Emily, Von simply smiled. He was looking forward to watching the final cut himself.

He wanted to check the movie’s score through the System, so he paid close attention as the theater lights fully dimmed and the intro began to play.

However, Von wasn’t the only one paying close attention.

Sitting far back in the regular seating rows was a man named Griffin Tyler, the original author of the Perfect Trilogy.

Like most of the book fans, Griffin had not been satisfied when he first saw the cast list.

Realizing that the studio had cast a musician like Von Varley to play the complex role of Aiden didn’t make him change his stance.

Currently, he was sitting quietly in the dark theater to see the movie for himself. He hadn’t informed anyone of his arrival and didn’t need to go too heavy with a disguise because most regular people wouldn’t recognize his appearance anyway.

He just wore a simple jacket and a baseball cap.

’I really hope it’s good,’ Griffin hoped internally as the studio logos faded and the intro loaded.

It was a bit frustrating for him that he didn’t have any final say on who had gotten the film rights or how it was acted out.

But as the creator of the universe, he still had an influence over how the movie would perform with the fanbase, and he wouldn’t lend a hand unless his expectations were met.

The movie began with an atmospheric soundtrack by Dropout Boogie. The song was playing through a small bedside speaker.

The camera panned across a dimly lit, messy bedroom, revealing none other than Xander and Camila lying on the bed, making love.

Because they were in the conclusion of their intimacy, the intense scene soon digressed into a quiet, vulnerable dialogue between the two characters. The moment eventually ended after Camila had to leave the room to prepare for college.

The next scene involved Xander driving Camila to the campus. Initially, the movie moved at a pretty slow pace.

It focused heavily on showing how Camila adapted to this new glimpse of freedom, navigating her life as a fresh college student. It showed the new friends she made and the fresh experiences she was having away from Xander’s overbearing influence.

But despite the beautiful cinematography, many people in the audience were left waiting at the edge of their seats for the exact moment when Aiden would finally cross paths with Camila.

It only took fifteen minutes into the movie for that to happen.

The setting shifted to a bustling lecture hall.

"Aiden, look! That’s her!"

Aiden pushed up his glasses. He narrowed his eyes, trying to see the direction Gary was pointing in. It took a second for him to recognize the girl sitting admit the rows of chairs.

"Ohh, that’s your girlfriend?" Aiden asked.

"Yes, she is! We’ve been texting for a while now, and we finally met yesterday. But come with me, let’s go talk with her."

Aiden wasn’t keen on the idea at all. He looked like he wanted to be anywhere else, but he couldn’t exactly reject either, so he followed behind Gary.

"Hey babe!" Gary beamed while trying to remain swagger as he approached Bella, who was busy texting on her phone.

"My sweet boy!" Bella looked up and her face lighted up immediately.

To Aiden’s surprise, the beautiful girl really responded back to his friend with equal enthusiasm.

She even stood up and gave Gary a tight hug, after which they immediately began giggling and talking, completely ignoring the world around them.

After letting Aiden stand there as an awkward third wheel for a painful minute, Gary finally realized his friend was still waiting.

"Sorry," Gary chuckled. "This is my friend here, Aiden. Aiden, this is Bella, my girlfriend!"

"Nice to meet you, Aiden!" Bella was quick to shake his hand with a bright, welcoming smile.

Aiden looked at her hand for a second before shaking it. He offered a small, polite smile in return. "Thanks."

Gary soon walked forward and whispered something into Bella’s ears that made her giggle loudly. Without another word to Aiden, Gary and Bella turned and followed each other as they left the class.

Seeing his friend gone, Aiden sighed and decided to find somewhere to seat. He chose the empty space that was right next to where Bella had placed her bag on her seat.

Since Gary didn’t actually have classes in that specific hall, he had no reason to stick around and find another chair.

It was only after a while, just when the lecturer had come into the class to begin the session, that Bella finally returned.

She took her former seat next to him. She looked at Aiden and opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but ultimately decided against it. She turned to the front, and like that, the lecture began.

A few minutes later, the heavy doors at the back of the hall swung open.

It was only then Camila would make an appearance as she rushed into the hall, looking slightly panicked and wanting to find a seat.

It would seem like Bella had actually left the chair for her. When Camila reached their row, her expression turned dead serious when she found out Aiden was sitting on it.

What followed was a slightly comedic scene. Camila demanded the chair, expecting the quiet boy with glasses to fold immediately. But Aiden flatly refused to move, even proceeding to give her advice instead.

At the end, the lecturer took notice of their banter and they were both sent out of the class. That was how they would begin speaking.

From that moment on, the movie completely opened up. The pacing quickened, and the next ride was filled with a heavy mix of joy, conflict, and raw emotions as the dynamic between Aiden and Camila constantly shifted.

One specific moment that gave Griffin Tyler a massive surge of emotion in the back row was when Aiden had finally snapped at Camila.

After dealing with her attitude throughout the movie, Aiden’s had broken.

The frustration on Aiden’s face was so evident that everyone in the theater personally felt his anger.

It perfectly validated exactly what the audience was feeling toward Camila’s stubbornness at that point in the story.

That single scene made many of them fall in love with the movie immediately, solidifying Von’s acting talent.

But it only got better, because very soon, the best scene of all arrived.