6
The Caldwell Corporation owned a media company that was currently funding a major blockbuster film. They had cast the nation’s
youngest Best Actor winner, Julian Croft, as the male lead.
Julian was young, devastatingly handsome, and had legions of fans, but he was also notoriously difficult to work with.
I had some free time that day, so I decided to visit the set.
The moment I arrived, I walked into a tense standoff. The entire crew was standing around, and the director was chain–smoking off to the side, a thundercloud on his face.
I walked over. “Mr. Davison, what’s going on?”
He saw me and looked like he’d just seen a guardian angel. “Ms. Caldwell, thank God you’re here! You have to talk to him. Julian is
refusing to film!”
“Again? Why this time?”
“He said… he said the green peppers in his lunch weren’t sliced thin enough, and it ruined his mood. He can’t get into character.”
I paused.“.
I had to have misheard him.
Because the peppers weren’t sliced thin enough?
What kind of prima donna nonsense was that?
I walked over to Julian’s massive trailer. His agent was pacing nervously outside.
He rushed over as I approached. “Ms. Caldwell, please, don’t be angry. Julian just has… an artistic temperament.”
“Artistic temperament?” I laughed. “I’ve heard of professional ethics, but not an artistic temperament. Tell him to come out.”
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The agent looked pained.
I ignored him and knocked sharply on the trailer door. “Julian, it’s Zoe Caldwell. Come out. We need to talk.”
Silence.
I raised my voice. “If you don’t come out, I will have this trailer towed to a scrap yard. Do you want to test me?”
The door finally swung open.
Julian was still in costume, lounging on a plush sofa, wearing sunglasses, and looking thoroughly unimpressed.
“Ms. Caldwell, is it? Just because you’re the investor, does that mean you can do whatever you want? That you can disrespect an
actor’s creative process?”
He was already trying to paint me as the villain.
“My respect is earned, not give
today. It’s about peppers.”
toda
I said, pulling up a chair and sitting down right outside his trailer. “I heard why you’re not filming
He seemed to realize how flimsy his excuse sounded and turned his head away. “I’m just not in the right headspace today.”
“Oh, not in the right headspace,” I nodded. “That’s fine. We can replace you.”
Julian whipped his head back, snatching off his sunglasses. His eyes were wide with disbelief. “What did you say?”
“I said, we can replace you,” I repeated, my voice even. “The Caldwell Corporation has invested three hundred million dollars in this
film. I have neither the time nor the inclination to indulge your ‘artistic temperament.‘ If you don’t want to film today, fine. The brea-
ch of contract penalty is five hundred million. Pay it, and by tomorrow, a new lead actor will be on set.”
His face flushed a deep crimson. “You wouldn’t dare!”
“Watch me.” I took out my phone and pretended to make a call. “Laura, contact the backup for the male lead. Tell him to be on the
next flight-”
“Wait!” Julian scrambled out of the trailer.
“Ms. Caldwell, let’s just talk this through,” his agent pleaded, rushing to smooth things over. “Julian didn’t mean it. He’s just… he’s exhausted today.”
“If he’s tired, he can go home and rest,” I said. “We have the budget to pay him to do nothing. I’m just not sure his fans have the
patience for an idol who’s unprofessional and throws tantrums on set.”
The color drained from Julian’s face. His reputation and his fans were the two things he cared about most.
“Ms. Caldwell, I was wrong,” he finally conceded, his expression still stiff. “I shouldn’t have been difficult. I’ll go back to filming right
now.”
“There we go.” I stood up and patted his shoulder. “Julian, remember something. Acting is a job. You take the paycheck, you do the work. If you want people to respect you, you have to act like a professional first.”
I turned and walked away, leaving him standing there, his face a mixture of humiliation and fury.
From that day on, there wasn’t a single problem on set. Julian Croft became the most dedicated actor anyone had ever seen, the
first to arrive and the last to leave.
Everyone on set said Ms. Caldwell was a force of nature.
I just thought that most “artistic temperaments” were just bad behavior that had been enabled for too long.
The cure was simple.
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