Chapter 36
Because Min Seongjae had given up even his acting career out of fear that his niece, who had grown up believing he was her biological father, would be heartbroken if she learned the truth, his image was completely reversed in an instant when his story was revealed.
Min Seongjae went from being a shameless father who had hidden the existence of his daughter and pretended to be single, to an admirable man who was willing to sacrifice himself to protect his family.
Once Min Seongjae's story became known to the public, there were even directors and writers who wanted to turn his story into a movie.
If I revealed the hidden truth about Actor Min Seongjae to the world before anyone else···.
Wouldn't it be possible to turn this situation around?!
A pleasant thrill suddenly spread throughout my entire body.
“What are you suddenly talking about? You want to cast Min Seongjae in our movie···?”
After finishing lunch and returning to the office, I called Manager Baek Seonghan to the rooftop separately.
Then I asked for his opinion about casting Actor Min Seongjae in our movie.
“Yes, that's right.”
“Didn't you hear what we talked about at the restaurant earlier? It's too early for Seongjae to make a comeback. The public opinion is still···.”
“What if there's a way to turn that public opinion around?”
At my words that I could change public opinion, a spark appeared in Baek Seonghan's eyes.
“You can turn public opinion around? Is that really possible? How?”
“But before that, we have to cast Actor Min Seongjae first. That's how we can turn public opinion around.”
Baek Seonghan looked at me as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.
“Ha, Min Gibeak··· Do you really think this makes sense? No, do you even know what you're saying right now?”
Of course, Baek Seonghan's reaction was completely natural.
Even if public opinion changed, we were still in a situation where we had to think carefully about whether to cast him or not.
But I was saying that we had to cast him first in order to change public opinion.
There was no way Baek Seonghan could understand that.
“Don't you want Actor Min Seongjae to make a comeback more than anyone else?”
“Of course I do. I'm the person who wants Seongjae to make a comeback more than anyone. I've known him since he was an unknown actor, and I know how serious he is about acting. But··· realistically, it's impossible. It seems like you're asking me to convince the CEO, but this isn't right. Do you really think the CEO will listen to something this absurd?”
Baek Seonghan impatiently ran his hand through his hair.
“I'll convince the CEO myself.”
“What?”
Baek Seonghan tilted his head.
“That was my responsibility from the beginning.”
“No, if you were planning to convince him yourself from the start, why are you telling me all this?”
“Because the person Manager Baek needs to convince isn't the CEO.”
“Then who?”
“Actor Min Seongjae.”
At the words that he was the one who needed to persuade Min Seongjae, Baek Seonghan stared at me in confusion.
“What does that mean···? You're saying I have to convince Seongjae? Does that mean that even if there's a way to change public opinion, he won't make a comeback? Why?”
I calmly continued speaking to the confused Baek Seonghan.
“Actor Min Seongjae is someone who was willing to retire in order to protect his young daughter. But··· this situation could possibly hurt his daughter again. That's why Actor Min won't allow this. That's why we need you to convince him.”
The more he listened, the less Baek Seonghan seemed to understand.
Then suddenly, it seemed as if something had flashed through his mind.
He stared at me with sharp eyes.
“Could it be··· Seongjae's Sojeong···? Ah, right. Seongjae's daughter's name is Sojeong. What I mean is, besides hiding Sojeong's identity, is there some other circumstance that I don't know about?”
I nodded slightly and answered.
“Yes··· If that truth is revealed, Sojeong might get hurt. So Actor Min will probably think it's better to sacrifice himself rather than reveal it···.”
“But do you know what it is? How··· No. How you found out isn't important. What exactly is it?”
‘Ah··· What should I do··· If I tell Baek Seonghan right now that Min Seongjae's daughter is actually his niece, then considering Baek Seonghan's personality, he might think that it's better not to reveal the truth rather than try to convince Min Seongjae···.’
I thought for a moment before opening my mouth.
“I can't tell you that right now. If I fail to convince the CEO, it would be a useless card anyway.”
“A useless card?”
“Yes. I told you, didn't I? We can turn public opinion around only if Actor Min is cast in this movie. So once I convince the CEO, you have to convince Actor Min no matter what. No matter what.”
I put emphasis on the words “no matter what,” making my intention clear.
Baek Seonghan remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.
“Okay. I don't know what it is, but if it means Seongjae can make a comeback, I'll definitely help too. But do you have a way to convince CEO Han Taesung?”
“I don't know if it'll work··· but it's not like there's no way.”
“This is ridiculous. It's like playing twenty questions.”
Baek Seonghan loosened his tie with one hand, looking frustrated.
Just then, his phone rang.
“Yeah, I'm on the rooftop right now. Okay, I'll go to the conference room.”
After ending the short call, Baek Seonghan looked at me.
“It was the assistant director. The CEO is calling us.”
“Yes. You should go inside quickly.”
Baek Seonghan hurriedly left the rooftop.
The next day, on my way to work, I bought a weekly movie magazine from a convenience store and stood in front of CEO Han Taesung's office.
‘At least this gives me an excuse to meet CEO Han Taesung. Now, should I go in?’
I took a short deep breath and knocked on the CEO's office door.
Soon, a voice from inside told me to come in.
When I opened the door and entered, CEO Han Taesung and PD Choi Moonho were sitting on the sofa and talking.
Choi Moonho looked at me with an awkward expression.
“What brings you to the CEO's office, Gibeak?”
‘Damn it. I didn't expect Choi Moonho to be here.’
“Ah, well··· I have something to discuss with the CEO···. I didn't know you were in a meeting. I'll come back later.”
Just as I pretended to leave, Han Taesung called me back.
“It's fine. Come in. You said you had something to tell me.”
“Ah, that's··· No, it's nothing. I think I'll come back later···.”
“I said it's fine. We were basically finished talking anyway. Don't just stand there. Come sit down.”
At Han Taesung's urging, I eventually walked over and sat on the sofa.
Han Taesung's eyes naturally moved toward the movie magazine I was holding.
“Oh, you came because of our bet. Haha.”
‘Ah, what should I do···? I was planning to use the bet as an excuse to bring up Min Seongjae··· But Choi Moonho just had to be here···. Well, I've already started. Let's go for it. Choi Moonho will find out eventually anyway. We don't have time, so let's face them both at once!’
I quickly organized my thoughts and opened my mouth.
“Yes. These are this week's box office results. ‘Fist Smiles,’ which has passed its eighth week and is now nearing the end of its run, has reached 1.48 million viewers. But ‘Macho Dancer,’ which is only in its fifth week, has already surpassed it with more than 1.5 million viewers. At this point, without even needing to look any further, wouldn't you say ‘Macho Dancer’ won just as I predicted?”
Han Taesung nodded as if agreeing with me.
“Yes. I checked it myself this morning. Whether it was foresight or the result of perfect analysis, congratulations on winning the bet.”
Just then, Choi Moonho, who had been listening to our conversation with an indifferent expression, joined in as if he didn't know anything.
“Wait, CEO. Did you make another bet on the box office rankings? With Gibeak?”
“Ah, didn't I tell you? We made a bet for fun on the day this guy first came for his interview. But as you just saw, I lost.”
Choi Moonho continued as though he really hadn't known.
“Oh, I see. But when it comes to predicting a movie's box office performance, no one can match the CEO's analysis···. You didn't lose on purpose, did you? Hahaha.”
“That's possible···. I've deliberately lost before, but this time my analysis was simply wrong. So now I have to give this guy 0.1 percent of the shares in this movie.”
Although Choi Moonho already knew what had been wagered through Manager Baek Seonghan, he pretended to be surprised.
“Shares in this movie? That's unexpected···. You actually made a bet with this young man using shares···.”
Choi Moonho knew very well what it meant for Han Taesung to make a bet using shares.
It meant that even if he lost the bet, he would consider it an investment in the other person.
In other words, he didn't consider losing those shares a waste at all.
It also meant that he had judged the other person to be worth investing in.
That was why Choi Moonho couldn't help but be surprised when he first heard that Han Taesung had made a bet involving shares with the youngest member of the production team on the rooftop garden.
What kind of potential for investment had he seen in a rookie who had only come for his first interview?
That was why Gibeak had been an object of curiosity and caution for Choi Moonho from the very beginning.
“That's right. Gibeak, how much do you think this 0.1 percent share will be worth to you in the future?”
I hesitated before answering.
It was already difficult to think of this movie simply as the result it had achieved in the future of my previous life because so many variables had already appeared.
“Well··· A movie doesn't necessarily succeed just because the story is good. The director's ability, the actors' acting and popularity, and even social issues and the weather after the release can all affect the result···. Besides, right now, the biggest problem hasn't been solved yet···.”
“The biggest problem being the actor, right?”
I nodded instead of answering.
Just then, Choi Moonho quickly joined the conversation.
“If that's the problem, you don't have to worry. Actually, Actor Na Yoseop just said that he's willing to appear in the movie.”
‘Na Yoseop?! The guy who said there was no such thing as professional ethics in this industry? Birds of a feather flock together. Did he already coordinate things with Na Yoseop?’
More importantly, this was a serious problem.
Na Yoseop was currently an actor of a similar level to Park Jeongho.
If Na Yoseop agreed to take the role, there would be no reason for CEO Han Taesung to reject him and cast Min Seongjae instead.
‘But··· Wait···. Na Yoseop is currently filming a drama, isn't he···?’
“PD, but when we offered Actor Na Yoseop the role back then, he said he had a drama filming schedule until October···.”
“Ah, that's actually what we were discussing with the CEO just before you came in. We were talking about whether we should postpone filming until after October.”
‘And they're going to postpone filming until October?!’
Han Taesung, who had been quietly listening to Choi Moonho, slightly furrowed his brow before speaking.
“Hey, PD Choi. Didn't we say that casting Na Yoseop was something we would consider only as a last resort?”
