Chapter 181: He’s a Bastard
Chapter 181: He’s a Bastard
“Hey, Eric, I’ve watched all your movies, but aside from Running Out of Time, I think the others were only average.”
“Thank you for the praise, Elisabeth.”
“I’m not praising you,” the woman said angrily. “I’m just curious why those films of yours managed to achieve such astonishing box office results. It’s a very interesting subject. I plan to use it as my graduation thesis.”
“You study… media?” Eric guessed, connecting it with her family background.
“Of course. I study at Vassar College in New York. I graduate next year.”
Eric merely nodded and did not offer any opinion. Although he had occupied this body and inherited most of its memories, he still could not even list all the Ivy League schools completely, let alone know something like Vassar College.
The woman was somewhat dissatisfied with Eric’s indifferent reaction. “You’ve never heard of Vassar College?”
Eric spread his hands. “Elisabeth, honestly, I only graduated high school. I can’t even remember all the Ivy League schools, so…”
“Alright then.” The woman shrugged helplessly, but inwardly became even more interested in Eric. A young man who had not even graduated college yet managed to achieve so much in such a short period of time. It was really… strange.
The executives from Universal and MGM arrived almost exactly at two o’clock. Once everyone had arrived, the staff led the group into a luxurious screening room inside the Sunset Tower Hotel.
Eric merely nodded at Virginia and the others before taking a seat in the first row. On his left and right sat Michael Eisner and Paramount president Ned Tanen respectively, with the executives from the other five major studios seated farther out. The first row had exactly eight seats arranged.
As for the uninvited Elisabeth Murdoch, she did not make things difficult for the staff. She voluntarily sat among the cast and crew members of The Others and Steel Magnolias in the back rows and even moved over beside Julia.
Julia glanced at the unfamiliar woman who had suddenly appeared beside her and felt something strange in her heart. She did not know who this woman was, but thinking about Eric’s flirtatious nature, she instinctively categorized Elisabeth Murdoch into a similar role as Virginia and therefore felt a faint hostility toward her.
Although Julia had already made up her mind not to have too much emotional or physical entanglement with Eric anymore, Eric had still inevitably left a deep imprint in the woman’s heart. This imprint even caused Julia, whenever she interacted with other men, to unconsciously compare them to Eric. And then… there was usually no “then.”
During the filming of Steel Magnolias, Dylan McDermott, who played Julia’s husband in the film, had once pursued her. He was tall and handsome, graduated from Fordham University’s drama school, personally talented, gentle, and considerate, completely unlike Eric’s overbearing personality. Julia had tried to get along with him, but even after Steel Magnolias finished filming, under the interference of that shadow in her heart, she still failed to spark much chemistry with him. In the end, everything simply faded away without result.
Because of this, Julia had been resentful toward Eric during this period. She felt Eric had affected her private life. To avoid that influence deepening further, even though Julia had remained in Los Angeles after Steel Magnolias finished filming, she had not met Eric a single time.
While the staff prepared the screening, Elisabeth Murdoch greeted Julia. After receiving a response, she casually leaned closer and softly asked, “Miss Julia, what kind of person do you think Eric Williams is?”
“He’s a bastard!” Julia, perhaps because of Elisabeth’s approach, inexplicably sank into a certain emotional state and blurted it out without thinking.
“…”
Elisabeth looked at Julia speechlessly and strangely.
Julia’s voice had been very low, and there were other quiet conversations in the screening room, so only the two or three people nearby heard her words. Sally Field, seated on Julia’s other side, could not help laughing. As someone experienced in life and having heard certain rumors about Julia and Eric, she naturally understood the sour, dissatisfied emotions of a little woman hidden within Julia’s words.
After reacting, Julia immediately turned red with embarrassment, so awkward she almost wanted to flee on the spot. Fortunately, at that moment, the lights in the screening room dimmed, finally allowing Julia to breathe a sigh of relief.
Elisabeth Murdoch straightened her posture and could not help glancing at the woman beside her a few more times before finally turning her attention to the movie screen.
As the film Eric valued most among the three movies he had invested in, The Others was naturally arranged as the finale of the second half. The first film screened was Herbert Ross’s Steel Magnolias.
The plot of Steel Magnolias appeared very fragmented, mainly revolving around the daily lives of six women, using important occasions such as the Eatenton family wedding, Easter, Christmas, New Year, and funerals as the main narrative thread. Although Herbert Ross had added some comedic elements, fundamentally this was still a drama film.
The movie opened with the wedding of Shelby Eatenton, played by Julia. Through the first dozens of minutes of narration, various trivial matters were woven together, gradually presenting the six female protagonists with their completely different personalities before the audience.
After Shelby’s wedding came the New Year. Annelle, the hairdresser who had originally been shy and insecure because of certain experiences, gradually became more open. She met a waiter during Shelby’s wedding, the two fell in love, and soon began living together. Feeling that this happiness had not come easily, Annelle began becoming somewhat obsessed with Christianity, never forgetting to pray at every moment.
Shelby suffered from hyperinsulinism, which was exactly the opposite of diabetes caused by insufficient insulin. This illness caused severe hypoglycemia, and whenever an episode occurred, she would faint as her blood sugar dropped. Therefore, under her doctor’s advice, Shelby was not suited to having children.
However, after marriage, because Shelby’s medical diagnosis prevented her from adopting a child, she hid it from her parents and insisted on becoming pregnant.
Life passed bit by bit. Shelby’s child was born safely, but another piece of devastating news descended upon the entire family.
Because of childbirth, Shelby’s kidneys suffered severe damage and failure. Under these circumstances, her strict and rigid mother secretly stepped forward and donated one of her own kidneys to her daughter.
The surgery was successful, and Shelby seemed to return to a normal life. But life rarely goes as one wishes. Her son slowly grew up, and Shelby continued devoting herself to the profession she loved. Yet one day, while caring for her child at home, Shelby collapsed onto the floor.
By the time she was sent to the hospital, the poor woman could only maintain vital signs through life-support equipment. Her mother stayed beside Shelby day and night, yet still failed to wake her. In the end, her husband signed certain documents through tears, and the hospital removed the life support.