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Beverly Hills, Ritz-Carlton Hotel.
The eyes of the entertainment media were all focused here today, as the 84th Oscar nominees luncheon was about to take place.
In the past half month, Hollywood had been in a state of chaos, arguably the most disordered Oscar publicity campaign in history.
Every contender vying for the major awards seemed to be getting hammered, and yet each one was hammering someone else.
When had the Oscar pre-show phase ever been this lively?
In the hotel's lounge, Academy President Tom Sherak finally breathed a sigh of relief and said, "I did not expect it to be this chaotic."
Vice-President Tom Hanks replied, "If it were just one production team causing trouble, we could kick them out, strip them of their Oscar eligibility, but when all the teams competing for the major awards join in, it's not so easy to handle."
It wasn't just not easy to handle, it was impossible; the Academy's executive committee had simply turned a blind eye and deaf ear during this time.
Another Vice President, Katherine Kennedy, said, "There are benefits too. They've done a thorough job heating things up, making this Oscar highly anticipated."
She laughed and said to the two Toms, "Isn't that what we wanted?"
Sherak replied, "Had it not been for stirring up excitement and attracting public attention, would I have let them make such a ruckus until now?"
Hanks understood the implications; the Oscars' viewership had been on the decline year by year. Continued this way, it would become a real in-house Hollywood self-indulgence.
This was about the face of the film academy, the best way they could assert their presence.
Tom Sherak then said, "After the announcement of the nominations, these things will quickly calm down, and anyone not following the rules will have their eligibility terminated."
Hanks and Kathryn Kennedy both expressed their agreement.
Now that the heat was up, it was time for the Oscars to hang back up their sophisticated shingle.
The luncheon was about to start, and guests were gradually arriving in the hall filled with round tables and chairs.
Wearing his round glasses, Spielberg arrived at the War Horse crew's table, and just as he was pulling out a chair, he noticed several people coming from the diagonal back.
The Moneyball team's director, Bennett Miller, and lead actor, Matt Damon.
Upon seeing Spielberg, Damon quickly came over to greet him, "Steven..."
Spielberg acted as if he did not see the hand extended to him, glanced over Matt Damon, nodded slightly, and showed no intention of engaging in conversation.
Damon sullenly withdrew his hand, feeling perplexed. Wasn't everything already cleared up from that year's incident? The main culprit was already in prison, was there a need for this?
Spielberg turned his head away, no longer looking in that direction.
At his level, not to mention one Matt Damon, even ten Matt Damons wouldn't matter.
Just as Damon was about to sit down, he noticed Spielberg turning his head back around.
Not only did he turn his head, but he also showed a smile.
Damon followed his gaze and saw three people.
Leonardo, Nicholson, and Martin Davis.
The three most famous scoundrels in Hollywood nowadays!
Spielberg waved at the trio.
The three went over, greeted Spielberg, and exchanged a few words.
In Spielberg's view, The Martian's target was surely the Best Actor award, whereas War Horse hadn't even been put forward for this category, thus there was no competition between them.
On the contrary, Warner Bros. wanted Moneyball to seize Best Picture, Best Director, and Best Actor.
Spielberg had always believed that the challenge had been initiated by Warner Bros. and Matt Damon.
Especially Damon, who had acted as a whistleblower back then.
In the packed banquet hall, many saw Spielberg's cold treatment of Damon, yet his warm welcome for the Trio of Scoundrels.
Matt Damon still had his good-natured face, showing no sign of change.
His agent beside him said, "Don't worry about these trifles, let's get the nomination first, then we can think of a strategy..."
The recent snubbing incident had Damon frazzled, and he had lost confidence in winning; all he said was, "Getting a nomination for Best Actor will suffice."
The Trio from The Martian returned to their table and took their seats.
Not many from the crew were present, just enough to fill the table. Ridley Scott had not even come; he was in Morocco with his assistants preparing for the new Alien movie, Prometheus.
According to Ridley, at most he would get an Oscar nomination for Best Director; winning was out of the question.
Sitting at the same table, Louise Mel said to Martin, "During the next voting phase, I will mobilize all the resources I have. If you can't win this time, don't expect my resources for the next three years, they won't be willing to help."
Martin understood, "Our plan should succeed."
Leonardo shook his head, "I've succeeded in selling my despicable character, but you haven't with your hard-luck story, which doesn't make sense."
Nicholson gave him a pat, "Martin's misfortunes seems more credible."
Leonardo told a harsh truth, "Because Hollywood is full of trash."
Matt Damon noticed the neighboring table, all members of The Martian crew. He slightly turned his head to look at the center where the three scoundrels were seated.
Nicholson noticed, immediately turned his head toward Damon, and the old scoundrel grinned, revealing a bizarre smile.
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Just like the Joker he once played.
Matt Damon turned his head away, no longer looking in that direction, constantly reminding himself that they were three idiots, three mad dogs with water in their brains, and that one should not stoop to the level of mad dogs.
Without such mental preparation, he was afraid he couldn't restrain himself from taking action.
On the other side, Martin completely ignored the "Moneyball" crew, as if they didn't exist at all.
Neither side was any good, he wielded power against Matt Damon, and Matt Damon was likewise using various methods to smear him and "The Martian."
As for whose actions were more effective, the answer would soon become clear.
The banquet hall was filled with people, but the atmosphere was somewhat odd, with a sense of rivalry between the various crews.
There were even arguments breaking out between some crews.
Nicholson said, "See that, Leo? Could your sob story have this kind of effect? Martin's plan is the better one, indeed!"
Martin said, "I've gone from seeking sympathy to showing off wealth, to whom can I complain?"
He looked at Leonardo, "Do you know how many NGOs and charitable foundations have been calling me to donate recently? They wish I'd donate all my wealth! I declined some charity dinner invitations, and as a result, the haters attacked me for lacking compassion, saying I spend all that money on eating, drinking, and entertainment without helping others."
Leonardo, as shameless as Martin and Nicholson, grabbed Martin's sleeve, "Donate your entire fortune to my environmental foundation, and you'll never have to face these troubles again."
Nicholson said, "I've realized that the most shameless one is still Leo."
Martin said, "After all, a hundred meters..."
Leonardo frowned, stared with eyes wide and mouth agape, then whispered softly, "The luncheon is about to begin."
Academy President Tom Sherak and luncheon host Jessica Chastain walked onto the stage of the banquet hall together.
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One by one, the nominations for the awards were announced. It was a real off-year for the Oscars, with only a few films attracting attention.
As far as Martin was concerned, aside from "The Martian" and "War Horse," he had barely any recollection of the other films.
The nominations were announced one after the other, and actually, after so many preliminary awards, the nominations were close to what was predicted, with the media's previously estimated lists having at least a ninety percent hit rate.
Because the Hollywood guild awards, which correlate highly with the corresponding Oscar categories.
Finally, it came to the four major award categories.
Tom Sherak read out the list of five nominees for Best Actor.
The first was, "Martin Davis, 'The Martian'!"
There was a quiet cheer from his crew.
Nicholson and Leonardo gave Martin high-fives.
Leonardo completely let go of his shame, whispered, "Without the failure of my sob story, where would the success of your shoddy plan be?"
Martin said, "I really should thank you, one of these days I'll bring over a bunch of Thai beauties to throw a thank you party just for you!"
Leonardo gave him the finger.
Tom Sherak continued announcing the list, "Gary Oldman, 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy'; George Clooney, 'The Descendants'; Joel Edgerton, 'Warrior'..."
With each name read out, Matt Damon's heart tightened a fraction more, having spent so much time and energy, having beaten down so many crews while also being beaten down by many, there must be some payoff, right?
There was one last Best Actor nomination left, and his heart was lifted.
Tom Sherak's voice did not skip a beat, "Demian Bichir, 'A Better Life'."
Cheers erupted from another crew.
Martin was smiling all along, winning fair and square.
Matt Damon still wore an honest face, sitting in his seat like a stone sculpture.
After all that, he didn't even get a nomination!
His agent noticed Matt Damon's abnormal state and consoled him, "We'll continue next year."
"I've failed," Matt Damon said softly.
The agent felt helpless too.
Matt Damon reflected on the past half-month's experiences and quickly identified the crux of the problem, the attacks from the women involved in the Weinstein scandal!
But he was very surprised not to have even gotten a nomination.
At the next table, Leonardo was about to fist bump with Martin to celebrate, "Congratulations, your shoddy plan was successful, your biggest competitor didn't even get a nomination."
Nicholson concluded, "When it comes to stirring things up, Martin, you are much more reliable than Leo."
Leonardo said, "Didn't you know? Martin excels at dragging high-end opponents down to his level, or even lower, and then defeats them with his vast experience of being a bad guy!"
Martin, seeing the hope of taking home the Oscar for Best Actor, said, "Gentlemen, deploy all your resources."
The nominations had just been announced, and Matt Damon made an early exit.
On his way out, he had to walk past Martin's table.
Matt Damon held his head up, not giving the three scoundrels a glance.
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