I was Mistaken as a Monstrous Genius Actor [EN]: Chapter 380

‘World Disney Pictures’ boasts a massive fandom, not only domestically but also worldwide. Its scale was immeasurable, transcending age, gender, and nationality. They had numerous iconic animated films and an abundance of incredibly popular characters. Of course, these characters are still beloved even after several decades.

These were the power and driving force of ‘World Disney Pictures.’

Therefore, when new animated films or sequels were released, fans from all over the world flocked to them. The same was true for live-action adaptations of animated films. Especially when the popularity of the animated film being adapted was high, the atmosphere became even more heated. And ‘Beauty and the Beast’ was one of ‘World Disney Pictures’’ most iconic works, known worldwide, with its OST [Original Sound Track] instantly recognizable just by hearing the title.

That ‘Beauty and the Beast’ suddenly.

-[It’s not a troll, lololol. I live in LA, and there’s a real rumor that Disney is preparing a live-action remake of Beauty and the Beast, for real??]

Started being mentioned in a Korean online community. It was the largest film-focused community, with a correspondingly large user base. Of course, Kang Woo-jin’s ‘Drug Dealer,’ ‘Island of the Missing,’ and ‘Leech’ were also reviewed and discussed extensively here.

Now, it was ‘Beauty and the Beast’ that was hot.

A huge number of people rushed in instantly.

-[Huh? Beauty and the Beast? Seriously? If it’s not a lie, I’m super excited???]

It was an unusual sign.

Meanwhile, in LA.

A massive studio lot, a place where many people still come and go. It was the location of one of the ‘Big Five’ film studios, also famous as a tourist attraction in LA, with a familiar logo on a round sculpture at the entrance.

-‘World Disney Pictures’

It was ‘World Disney Pictures.’ Like other major film studios, ‘World Disney Pictures’ was as large as an amusement park, with warehouse-style stages for filming and outdoor sets that were second to none. However, the difference was that familiar characters were scattered throughout the studio grounds.

Inside one of the large offices at ‘World Disney Pictures.’

A U-shaped desk and several chairs surrounding it, with multiple monitors and large screens neatly arranged in front. At first glance, it looked like an editing room, but seeing the foreigners filling the desks, it seemed more like a conference room disguised as a studio.

Tablets and scripts were placed on the desks of dozens of foreigners.

-‘Beauty and the Beast’

They were the team in charge of the live-action film adaptation of ‘Beauty and the Beast’ at ‘World Disney Pictures.’ They continued their serious conversation while flipping through their tablets. On the tablet screens, top Hollywood actors, both male and female, were being displayed. Miley Cara was just seen.

“Has there been a response from Miley Cara’s side?”

“No, not yet.”

“Hmm—wasn’t she the most desired actress? Did we not show enough eagerness when we made the offer?”

“Not at all, we even told her she was our top priority. She seemed eager during the meeting, but it seems she’s taking longer to consider than we thought.”

“If we don’t hear back by today, let’s follow up.”

“Yes.”

Leaving aside the actresses who had not yet had preliminary meetings, the topic shifted to the male actors who had already completed their preliminary meetings. The conversation became intense as the names of prominent figures were listed.

“Okay, the preliminary meetings with the male actors all went well, and we’ve received all the responses, right?”

“Yes, we can proceed with auditions and tests for the ‘Beast’ role.”

“Is the OST song for the vocal test ready?”

“It will be soon.”

“If it’s difficult, can’t we just use the OST from the original animated film?”

“That’s true. But it’s better to use an arrangement that’s already completed.”

“Hmm, I see. What about the piano piece?”

“That will take a bit longer.”

Various matters related to auditions and tests were discussed, and then a hot actor’s face appeared on the tablets of the ‘Beauty and the Beast’ team.

“Kang Woo-jin. What should we do?”

Kang Woo-jin had already completed a preliminary meeting with the ‘Beauty and the Beast’ team a few days ago. However, right after the preliminary meeting, ‘Columbia Studio’ announced Kang Woo-jin as a candidate for the movie ‘Pierrot,’ creating a slightly awkward situation.

“I didn’t know ‘Columbia Studio’ was also after him.”

“It must have been a top-secret project, like ours.”

“We should have contacted him a little earlier.”

Concern filled the faces of the dozens of foreigners gathered.

“Should we proceed as planned? Or should we exclude Kang Woo-jin from the ‘Beast’ role?”

“…There’s an ambiguous aspect. There’s also the possibility that the schedules of the two projects will clash when production begins.”

“Is it possible to do both projects? It’s theoretically possible, but realistically, it’s rare to do two projects simultaneously in Hollywood. The actor’s stamina wouldn’t hold up.”

At this point, someone from the casting team chimed in.

“But Kang Woo-jin is known for working on multiple projects simultaneously in Korea. In fact, ‘Leech,’ which caused a sensation at Cannes, was also done concurrently with other projects.”

“Oh, really?”

“However, the production systems in Korea and Hollywood are completely different.”

“That’s difficult.”

A tall man with an aura of authority among the foreigners spoke.

“Whether we keep him or exclude him. Let’s watch the video from the preliminary meeting again.”

Soon, a few staff members moved. A video was quickly displayed on the largest of the several monitors in front. A black-haired, indifferent-looking Kang Woo-jin appeared. He was conversing with the foreigners in fluent English, then suddenly stood up and moved. He sat at a black piano and began to play calmly.

-♬♪

During the preliminary meeting, the ‘Beauty and the Beast’ team had asked Woo-jin to play the piano, and Kang Woo-jin had accepted their request without a second thought. Then, Woo-jin’s piano melody echoed throughout the meeting room. The song was one of the hit OSTs that ‘World Disney Pictures’ had released to the world.

It was a very famous song, but somehow.

“The feeling is completely different.”

“Right? It’s a performance infused with his own color.”

“It’s still absurd to watch, is he really an actor?”

When Kang Woo-jin played it, it sounded like a completely different, unique song. After listening to the piano performance for a few minutes, the music suddenly stopped in the office. The video had been paused. Then, the tall foreigner put his hands together and spoke.

“It’s possible for projects to overlap, it’s not uncommon in Hollywood. Of course, it’s a bit concerning that the overlapping project is with ‘Columbia Studio’—but after hearing that performance, is there anyone who can give up on Kang Woo-jin?”

“……”

“……”

The foreigners fell silent, the atmosphere became quiet.

“We asked all the candidate actors for the ‘Beast’ role to play the piano, but Kang Woo-jin was the only one who captivated my ears. Isn’t it too wasteful to give up on him just because of overlapping projects? We haven’t heard his vocals or seen his acting yet. More than anything.”

The tall foreigner spoke definitively.

“His piano performance had its own color, it sounded as if the ‘Beast’ himself was playing.”

At this time.

Two large vans were driving through downtown LA. In the front van, a familiar blonde woman was visible. She was looking out the window with her legs crossed.

It was Miley Cara.

She was on her way to a year-end fashion show, her next schedule, but.

“……”

Cara’s face was full of worries. It was about something other than the fashion show.

‘Maybe—it would be better to give up on Beauty and the Beast.’

It was about the ‘Beauty and the Beast’ offer she had recently received. Cara had been thinking a lot about it since then. What she had heard from the ‘Beauty and the Beast’ side, her current situation, and the side with the bigger ambition. After much deliberation, she swept back her loose blonde hair.

‘Kang Woo-jin is already a candidate for ‘Pierrot.’ Even though he’s just a candidate, with his momentum, he’ll probably get the role. That means he’s already secured one project in Hollywood, and if you consider Joseph’s project, his schedule for next year is probably full.’

On the other hand, for Miley Cara, who still had a new album schedule and various other commitments, if she accepted ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ her schedule for next year would be full.

She frowned, looking troubled.

Soon, she arrived at a hotel in downtown LA, the venue for the fashion show. She took her coat and got out of the van. The entrance was crowded with hundreds of reporters and staff. As she walked with her team and several foreign guards towards the stairs where the reporters were gathered, she heard a man’s voice from behind.

“Miley!”

She turned around and saw a fairly close, brown-permed Hollywood actor waving his hand. Thanks to that, the guards who were with Cara made space, and the male actor, smiling, approached her and suddenly whispered.

“I heard you got an offer for ‘Beauty and the Beast’? Me too. But how did Kang Woo-jin get the ‘Beast’ role? You’re kind of close to him.”

At that moment, Cara’s blue eyes widened.

“Wait, what?”

In ‘Beauty and the Beast,’ the main roles were the ‘Beast’ and ‘Beauty Bella.’ Among them, the role of ‘Beauty Bella’ was one of the most popular female characters in the history of ‘World Disney Pictures.’ In the original animated film, ‘Beauty Bella’ was a blonde, stunning beauty, but also quirky.

That was one of the reasons why Miley Cara was offered the role as the top candidate.

Of course, her acting skills, popularity, and vocal and musical abilities were also significant factors. There were few global superstars who were both actors and singers, and Miley Cara was among the top tier of those figures. Including Cara, there were a total of five actresses who were candidates for the ‘Beauty Bella’ role. For reference, there were also five candidates for the ‘Beast’ role, including Kang Woo-jin.

The male actors had already completed their preliminary meetings, but the female actors, including Cara, had only received offers, and preliminary meetings had not yet taken place. In terms of the order of work, the auditions and screen tests for the male lead would come first.

In any case, ‘World Disney Pictures’ was very eager to have Cara, but she was leaning towards rejecting the offer for various reasons.

But that thought was just shocked.

‘…Kang Woo-jin? Kang Woo-jin got the Beast role?’

Thanks to the comment made by the brown-permed Hollywood male actor, who was quite close to Cara, whom she met at the fashion show venue. Soon, Cara’s blue eyes, which had stopped abruptly on the stairs where hundreds of reporters were gathered, widened, and she smiled and stared intently at the Hollywood male actor next to her.

The male actor, sensing something was off, asked again.

“What? What’s wrong? Is it because I’m too handsome after not seeing each other for a while?”

He made a joke, but Miley Cara’s serious expression did not change.

“…Wait, let’s move quickly.”

“Huh? Uh, okay?”

Suddenly, Cara grabbed the male actor’s arm and quickly went up the stairs. The male actor had a what-is-going-on look on his face, but he let himself be led by her. A few minutes later, they were out of the reach of the hundreds of reporters and entered the lobby of the building where the fashion show was being held. There were still many people here, but at least there were fewer reporters.

Cara, looking around, turned her head sharply and spoke to the male actor again. She lowered her voice as much as possible.

“Kang Woo-jin? Did you say Kang Woo-jin earlier?”

The male actor scratched his brown permed hair and replied.

“Ah—I did. Did you not know? Oh, dear.”

He was slightly flustered. It was understandable. He wondered if he had inadvertently leaked a secret. In fact, the male and female candidate actors who had received offers or been confirmed for ‘Beauty and the Beast’ were fundamentally top-secret, but rumors and talk were circulating among the actors. Of course, only among those who had received offers or been confirmed as candidates.

Miley Cara also knew some of the Hollywood actresses who had received offers, excluding herself.

But she had never heard of Kang Woo-jin.

That was because there had been little sharing between the ‘Beast’ and ‘Beauty Bella’ actors yet. Well, the fact that the actor casting process had not been long was also a factor. Either way, rumors spreading among actors were quite common in Hollywood. That was why the male actor in front of Cara had spoken so casually.

“Pretend you didn’t hear it, I asked because I knew you were quite close to Kang Woo-jin.”

“I already heard it. Don’t worry, I’ll keep it to myself. But is it certain that Kang Woo-jin is a candidate for the ‘Beast’ role?”

“I don’t know about the preliminary meeting results, but it’s true that Kang Woo-jin received an offer, including me.”

Miley Cara was momentarily stunned and muttered. Of course, to herself.

‘If this is true, it will shake things up severely. Hollywood. No, the world will be several times more than it is now.’

End