Chương 50: Digging for info

Insiders see the way, outsiders see the spectacle.

In the midst of the anticipatory crowd, "The Pacific", shining brightly, not only attracted thousands of viewers to watch the live broadcast, but also garnered attention from industry insiders such as film critics, journalists, actors, and directors. Unsurprisingly, it became the foremost topic on the evening of March 21st, including, of course, agents.

During the period leading up to this moment, news that a newcomer with no acting experience would be one of the three main leads in "The Pacific" had already spread throughout Hollywood. Especially after last night's premiere, the name "Renly Hall" had entered everyone's consciousness.

However, this failed to trigger a chain reaction. The media were hesitant to focus too much attention on Renly for the same reason, but fundamentally, it was because, as a miniseries, "The Pacific" lacked the heft required. In the eyes of industry insiders, the fervor around Tom's appearance at the premiere made the intentions behind it clear: generating news and shifting the focus away from pressure.

A newcomer actor in a miniseries, no matter how astonishing, ultimately had limited influence.

Tonight, after "The Pacific" made its debut, the situation underwent subtle changes. The newcomer actor demonstrated refined acting skills and remarkable on-screen presence, genuinely capturing the audience's attention. But if that were all, it wouldn't be enough to spur further action. However, during last night's premiere, his witty and humorous interaction with journalists, his poised and charismatic responses, were rarely seen talents. Coupled with his handsome appearance, his potential skyrocketed exponentially.

Frances Parker dialed Tom Hanks' phone, "Tom, honestly tell me, where did you dig up such a gem? His acting is innate, and he exudes a rare charisma in every gesture. Given time, he's bound for the top tier."

Tom chuckled on the other end, "I thought you were well-versed and wouldn't be surprised by newcomers like this." Frances was a senior agent at WMA (William Morris Endeavor), one of Hollywood's top five agencies, with their strength primarily lying in television shows. "Heroes", "Prison Break", and "30 Rock" were all shows produced for their clients.

Frances seemed a bit impatient with Tom's roundabout answer, "You know I don't joke around. Despite being a newcomer, he's already shown the potential of a superstar." Tom's light laughter came through the phone, "The Pacific" has only aired its first episode, and Renly's screen time was merely three minutes. It seemed Frances was being overly extravagant with his words by already using phrases like "potential superstar."

However, Frances wasn't deterred, "Both you and Steven haven't stopped praising him, have you? Give me five years, no, three years, and he'll surely have the ability to join the top ranks. Does he have an agent now? Has he genuinely not worked on anything else before this? What other information can you tell me about him? Give me his contact information now. I'll immediately get him signed. Who knows, he might appear in one of your productions again soon. By the way, how old is he this year?"

"If I recall correctly, he should be under twenty-one," Tom's answer almost made Frances dislocate his jaw.

Simultaneously, it wasn't just Frances alone; at least four agents were making contact with the "The Pacific" production team through various means, attempting to unearth more information about Renly. As for those using other connections and methods to investigate, those numbers were incalculable.

Anticipation, curiosity, excitement, exploration... the attention directed toward this newcomer actor was undeniably unusual. It wasn't an exaggeration to say that the name "Renly Hall" was stirring up quite a stir within Hollywood's inner circles. On the night of "The Pacific" premiere, Renly unexpectedly stole the limelight and overshadowed many. However, they were destined for disappointment.

"Nothing, absolutely nothing?" William searched through IMDb's actor database, then went through Wikipedia, yet he came up empty-handed. No information, not even a trace. To be precise, Renly didn't even have an IMDb actor page, as if... as if he had sprung out from between the cracks in a stone.

William was left dumbfounded. Even for a newcomer, this was too odd. He didn't even have basic personal information like his birthdate. This was genuinely absurd. In the current IMDb introduction page for "The Pacific", the actor column for "Eugene Sledge" was marked "Renly Hall", yet clicking on it yielded a blank page.

Renly Hall. Work list: "The Pacific".

That's all the information they could find up to this point—a page as clean as a blank sheet of paper.

William couldn't help but feel a bit disheartened. His impression of Renly was deep-rooted, starting from him being the only unlucky fellow who didn't make it to the battlefield in the first episode. But what truly moved him was that stunning performance. It seemed like an underpowered display at first, but as time passed, it gradually gained clarity. Thirty minutes had passed since the premiere ended, yet the image of that rich young man in his mind was becoming increasingly vivid. This was truly remarkable.

Even "Band of Brothers" couldn't achieve this.

"Billy, how about searching on Google? Or... Facebook?" Graham suggested.

William's eyes immediately lit up. "Right, Facebook!"

By 2010, Google had undoubtedly become the largest website in the United States, covering more than 80% of the population. Following that were Yahoo, Microsoft, and Facebook. Among them, Facebook had already reached 53% of the U.S. population. Furthermore, Facebook's traffic had surpassed Google, making it the most visited website in the U.S., with Google, Yahoo, and YouTube trailing behind.

However, upon opening Facebook, William tried multiple name combinations for his search, but still failed to find any information. This was truly unexpected.

"This can't be right, can it? Isn't Renly a young person? Why hasn't he registered on Facebook?" William found the situation increasingly intriguing. His curiosity about this newcomer actor was soaring. He then did a quick Google search and finally found something. Most of it was news from last night's premiere. Aside from that, there was only one extra piece of information, from an actor's Facebook page.

He was an utterly unknown actor, primarily active in New York's Off-Broadway scene. He also had a regular job. Clearly, he belonged to the category of those who compromise with life after struggling to the end of their acting careers. On Facebook, he mentioned that they were currently rehearsing an original play for Off-Broadway, and one of the participating actors caught everyone's attention:

"Coming from London's West End, having appeared in at least three plays, solid foundational skills, performances brimming with spirituality. Jesus Christ, we've struck gold! Renly Hall, with him on board, our play is bound to be a sensation."

"He's British!" William's eyes widened. There wasn't a single flaw in that Texan accent of his in "The Pacific" "And he comes from a theater background! My God, think about it. If we search the professional drama schools in England, can we find his name?"

Unlike the U.S., Britain still adhered to a strict process for actors' careers. A professional academy education, polishing in London's West End, challenging unconventional roles—only actors who followed these steps gained recognition from their peers. In recent years, with Hollywood's influence, this tradition had loosened a bit, leading to the emergence of some overnight grassroots actors. However, deep down, the traditional pride of British actors hadn't changed.

Hence, most British actors could be found in those drama school listings.

"Billy, Billy, look!" Graham nudged William's shoulder excitedly, pointing at the computer screen. It was a link from YouTube, titled: "Cleopatra", Performer: Renly Hall.

"...Isn't this a namesake?" William questioned.

Graham held a different perspective. "When we searched "Renly Hall" just now, we didn't find any namesake. Besides, why can't actors sing? Everyone can sing; the only difference is whether they're in tune or not. Maybe he casually recorded himself singing at home and uploaded it to YouTube?"

William couldn't argue with that. He became excited himself and immediately clicked on the link. Due to his excitement, he clicked three times before finally succeeding. As he entered the familiar YouTube page, William scanned it quickly. Surprisingly, the video had been uploaded last August. Eight months had passed, yet the views were barely below two thousand, and there were only a pitiful thirty-nine likes.

On YouTube, a video like this would typically have around eight hundred thousand to a million views. Without any special gimmicks or professional promotion, a video like this might get buried within an hour by countless new videos. No one would notice it.

William was starting to believe Graham's idea. Maybe this was just a video Renly recorded for his own amusement, and that's why it hadn't caught the attention of internet users.

Upon opening the video, the screen showed a man holding a guitar. A milky spotlight cascaded down, landing on his broad shoulders. The slightly curled golden-brown short hair seemed to add a touch of world-weariness and loneliness. "It's him! It's him!" William couldn't help but exclaim, shaking Graham.

Graham felt like he was about to fall apart. "Look, look!" He could only use this method to calm William down.

At that moment, the two of them noticed that it was a bar—a formal performance setting, not just a casual bedroom recording. There was an audience beneath the bar's stage. From the recording angle, it seemed like the person recording was standing behind the bar counter.

As the guitar strings traced the first note, William's mind was drawn in. The melancholy that overflowed from the joyful melody was truly moving. When the song finished, the surging emotions within him couldn't be stilled. They lingered, slowly settling, as if the entire world had quieted down.

"My God!" That was the only reaction William could muster.