ADVENTURES THROUGH TIME (2025 Edition) by Michel Poulin - HTML preview

CHAPTER 13 – ACTION!

11:46 (California Time)

Wednesday, February 26, 2014 ‘A’

‘CROSSROADS’ movie set, Universal Productions studios Universal City, Los Angeles County

California, U.S.A.

‘’CUT!... AND PRINT! Good job, people. Let’s break for lunch. Be back on the set for one o’clock.’’

On the word of movie director Anthony Gilroy, Channing Tatum picked himself up from the broken furniture debris, accepting the helping hand of Nancy, who pulled him up to his feet.

‘’Thanks, Nancy. I have to say that I barely saw that last kick coming. Remind me never to get into a real fight with you.’’

Nancy chuckled at that and brushed quickly with one hand Chanum’s back, full of plaster fragments.

‘’The Shadow Dancer is supposed to be a tough girl, Chan.’’

‘’Yeah, but you’re the first actress I met that is as dangerous in reality as her fictional character. I have to say that it is a bit intimidating.’’ Nancy grinned while eyeing the handsome, hulking actor.

‘’You? Intimidated by me? I was expecting another kind of reaction than that.’’ Channing in turn eyed her athletic but also sensual body before replying.

‘’Now now! You know that I am a happily married man, Nancy. Besides, Jenna is jealously watching over me, especially when you are around. This said, let’s have lunch together, if you would like.’’

‘’Of course, I would like it, Chan.’’

The both of them then went off the set, going to an adjacent lounge where a studio caterer had prepared a mixed buffet. They joined the short lineup at the buffet table, ending up behind one of their co-stars, Krysten Ritter, who made a point of inspecting Tatum from head to toe.

‘’So, the big bad Nancy didn’t rough you up too much, Chan?’’

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‘’It could have been worst, Krysten.’’

‘’It will be worst before I am finished with him.’’ added Nancy with a malicious smile. Krysten, who played Channing’s love interest in the movie, laughed briefly at that.

‘’They should create a new Oscar category just for you, Nancy: Badass of the Year.’’

Both Nancy and Channing laughed at that before serving themselves quickly at the buffet and going with Krysten to an empty table, sitting down to eat. Channing ate a few bites before looking cautiously at Nancy and asking her a question.

‘’Uh, what is happening with those Israeli accusations against you, Nancy? Are they still holding a grudge against you, even after being basically forced to sign an armistice with Iran?’’

‘’More than ever, unfortunately.’’ said Nancy, sighing. ‘’On the other hand, Interpol has cleared me from its wanted list and even those idiots at TSA and DHS finally saw the light. At least, I can now travel around the World without being arrested at every airport…as long as I avoid Israel.’’

Krysten Ritter, a thin, delicate-looking woman of 32 who was a bit shorter than Nancy and who was more accustomed to play in comedies, hesitated a bit before speaking.

‘’I know that this may sound wrong, Nancy, but could I ask you how many people you had to kill in your life?’’

While Channing Tatum eyed Kristen a bit crossly, probably thinking that she shouldn’t have asked such a question in public, Nancy noted the fact that a few studio set technicians and assistants sitting at a nearby table were suddenly paying attention discreetly to their conversation. Nancy didn’t however take offense at Krysten’s curiosity: she after all had been the talk of the studio since her arrival on set, thanks to her impressive physique and her risk-filled other jobs.

‘’You may ask, Krysten. While most of my overseas tours as a Canadian Army officer were as part of peacekeeping missions, I saw combat in Darfur and during my three tours in Afghanistan, where I killed either in self-defense or as part of combat operations a total of close to a hundred men, most of them Taliban extremists. It could have been more, but I didn’t keep a count, contrary to some deranged nut jobs I met over there. When you throw grenades at night, it is quite hard to figure how many enemies you cut down. I also had on one occasion to kill a few men at the point of my bayonet, during a rather desperate fight against an enemy much superior in numbers. As a war correspondent, I saw even more combat, but was of course unarmed.’’

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‘’With your martial arts skills, I am sure that you could have killed with your bare hands, Nancy.’’

Nancy made a devilish grin at Krysten, pointing her with one finger.

‘’Which reminds me: I am due to have a one-on-one explanation with your Jane Hearst in a coming scene, if I remember well the script.’’

‘’Oops!’’ said Krysten, making a face before passing an arm around Channing’s shoulders. ‘’Hopefully, my boyfriend will come to my rescue.’’

‘’Good! More lumps to give away.’’

The trio then burst out laughing before continuing to eat, their talk switching to the coming scenes to play. Nancy ate lightly, knowing that she was going to have to do more action scenes this afternoon and did not want to fight with a full stomach. She returned to the floor of the set ten minutes before one, to stretch a bit and warm up before her scenes.

At around five O’clock, as she was resting a bit and reviewing her dialogue, two men whom she had seen shake hands earlier with the movie director and had talked with him between two takes came to see her. One of the two men looked quite old, with white hair and moustache and wrinkles on his face. She definitely got the impression that she had seen his picture before and got up from her chair as they approached. The younger of the two men, who was still easily in his advanced fifties, had an awed look as he eyed her from head to toe.

‘’My God! She would be perfect. She even has green eyes.’’ The older man also eyed Nancy with obvious satisfaction before presenting his hand.

‘’Miss Laplante, my name is Stan Lee, of Marvel Comics, and this is John Buscema, also from Marvel Comics. Could we talk for a minute with you?’’ Nancy’s face lit up as she shook hands with them.

‘’Stan Lee? As The Stan Lee who created most of the superheroes of Marvel Comics, like Iron Man, The Hulk, Thor and Black Widow? This is quite an honor to meet you. I am not due back in front of the camera for at least another half hour, but let’s move to the lounge next door, in order not to disrupt the filming due to start in five minutes.’’

‘’Of course! I wouldn’t want to ruin some of Tony Gilroy’s work. Lead the way, miss.’’

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Once in the resting lounge, Nancy invited her two visitors to sit with her at one table, then eyed them with curiosity.

‘’Well, what could I do for such a prestigious writer as you, Mister Lee? You are here on behalf of Marvel Comics, I suppose?’’

‘’Uh, not exactly, miss.’’ replied Lee, surprising Nancy. ‘’I and John do work for Marvel Comics, but we came here today to explore an issue interesting the Marvel Studios and Disney Pictures.’’

‘’The Marvel Studios? The ones which produced the blockbuster ‘THE

AVENGERS’ in 2012?’’

‘’That’s correct, miss. We did talk with Universal executives before coming to see you and they told us that you only have at the moment a single film contract on a trial basis with them.’’

‘’That’s right, Mister Lee. In theory I am free after this film, but Universal Productions could ask me for more films if ‘CROSSROADS’ turns out well. I also have a part-time job as a war correspondent with CNN. As for my military career with the Canadian Army, I officially left the service this January. As you can see, I have some time available, but I have to schedule it carefully. So, what can I do for you and Mister Buscema?’’

Stan Lee looked quickly around him, then lowered his voice, speaking in a conspiratorial tone.

‘’You will not be surprised to learn that the Marvel Studios, in view of the huge success of ‘THE AVENGERS’, have decided to produce a sequel to it. However, both the Marvel and Disney executives and Director Joss Whedon want to add another female superhero to the group’s lineup and that has created quite a heated discussion, which has already delayed the writing of the script a lot. One superhero character that they would want to add to that future movie is the She-Hulk, which I created decades ago and which John here drew first in cartoon form in 1980. You do know what the She-Hulk is, do you?’’

Nancy grinned, seeing now what Lee was getting at.

‘’Yes, I do know, Mister Lee. In normal form, she is Jennifer Walters, a cousin of Bruce Banner, the alter-ego of Hulk. She once received a blood transfusion from Bruce Banner, which gave her some of his powers. I understand that her story and character since 1980 has changed many times, but that she is now a high-flight, principled lawyer

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in normal life, and that she can control her changes into the She-Hulk and back as Jennifer Walters.’’

Stan Lee nodded approvingly, obviously satisfied.

‘’Excellent, miss. You should then know as well that the She-Hulk is one of the most popular comic book characters and is ranked 11th sexiest woman in comics by the Comics Buyer’s Guide.’’

‘’Really?’’ said Nancy, grinning even more widely. ‘’I am starting to see where your problem is, Mister Lee. You want a powerful-looking and also pretty, intelligent and sexy actress to play the She-Hulk, but have only found either muscle-bound monstrosities without much of a personality or with zero acting talents, or beautiful ones who are too wimpish-looking. Am I right on that?’’

‘’You’re bang on the money, miss. The catch is that Disney is not ready to include the She-Hulk in their lineup unless they find a suitable actress for the role. When we heard the rumors floating about you around the Universal studios, we came to see by ourselves. We watched some of your takes this afternoon and I have to say that, even though you are a novice at acting according to your résumé, you actually played your scenes very professionally.’’

‘’Uh, what kind of rumors did you hear about me, Mister Lee?’’ asked Nancy, her smile fading. Lee gave her a reassuring smile.

‘’Oh, only the kind that we were hoping to hear about you, Miss Laplante. You are said to have the body of an Olympic athlete, but also a quick-witted mind and a lot of personal charm. I watched last December the debate on CNN in which you participated after returning from Iran and the Middle East. You then verbally skewered your critics on camera in grand style indeed. That kind of sharp, quick-witted tongue would go perfectly with the personae of Jennifer Walters, the high-flight lawyer. On the other hand, your powerful but feminine physique, with some CGI remodeling of course, would be perfect to play the She-Hulk. After seeing you on scene, I also know now that you have the necessary acting talents for that role. So, would you be interested in presenting your candidacy for the casting of the She-Hulk, with my warmest personal recommendations in your support, of course?’’

‘’I suppose that I would have to be painted green all over, plus have my hair dyed dark green?’’

‘’That would be one price to pay temporarily, miss. One word of caution: if you accept the role and you are approved by the Marvel Studios and Disney for it, then you

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are to keep that strictly confidential. The fact that the She-Hulk will be in ‘THE AVENGERS 2’ is to stay secret until the first promotional trailers are produced and published online.’’

‘’That is quite understandable. Very well, Mister Lee. You can tell Marvel Studios that I am very interested in taking the role of the She-Hulk. The production of ‘CROSSROADS’ should be completed in about two months, but if you need to take some casting shots of me, I will have a few days free in two weeks, when my Shadow Dancer character is not required for a few days.’’

‘’Excellent!’’ replied Lee, most happy. ‘’A photographer and makeup artist from Marvel Studios will contact you this weekend to arrange a session with you here in Los Angeles.’’

‘’I will be awaiting eagerly their call, Mister Lee. Here is my card, by the way.’’

‘’Thank you! Hopefully, I will see you again…on the floor of the Marvel Studios, miss.’’

‘’I hope so too, Mister Lee. Mister Buscema, it was also a pleasure to meet you. You are a great artist indeed.’’

‘’Thank you, miss.’’ replied Buscema, shaking hands with her before leaving with Stan Lee. Nancy watched them leave, her mind already dreaming what it would be like to play the She-Hulk.

14:15 (New York City Time)

Sunday, April 27, 2014 ‘A’

Roof parapet of 1, World Trade Center (417 meters above street level) New World Trade Center complex, Lower Manhattan New York City, U.S.A.

Krysten Ritter, firmly held by her belt by Channing Tatum while she looked down over the guardrail of the parapet, became as white as a sheet, while she tensed up from a near-panic fear: the cars below at street-level looked like mere specs from the altitude of 417 meters of the parapet. Her head was nearly swimming and her heart was beating furiously when she was finally able to break free of that near-hypnotic sight. She straightened up to look with horror at Nancy, standing with her and Channing on the parapet, which itself stood ten meters above the roof of the top floor of the tallest tower of the New World Trade Center complex.

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‘’You…you really want to do this, Nancy?’’

Nancy, her face most serious, nodded once and spoke up to be heard above the owl of the wind blowing around at the top of the giant tower.

‘’Yes, I do, Krysten. It should make quite a scene for the grand finale of the movie. But don’t worry too much: I am a very experienced skydiver and the winds are presently favorable for this. Talking of winds, I think that we should take our positions for the big take, before they change direction.’’

Krysten didn’t say a word then, giving instead a last ‘be careful’ kind of look at Nancy before Channing escorted her to the safety ladder connecting the parapet to the roof of the 104th floor of the building. Nancy turned around and gave a thumbs-up signal to Tony Gilroy, who was sitting on a chair put on a large elevated platform built especially for these scenes filmed on the roof. Two cameras and a sound gaffe also were on that platform, while more cameras and sound gaffes were strategically placed along the parapet which surrounded the roof, with its wide glass panes held in stainless steel frames. Tony Gilroy returned Nancy’s signal, but his face still reflected some misgivings. This particular scene had been suggested by Nancy herself as a modification to the original script, with the goal of providing a truly stunning finale to the film. While Gilroy had recognized the tremendous potential impact of such a scene, he was still deeply worried for Nancy’s safety, who had become well-liked by the whole production crew during the three months of filming.

Walking to her designated start position, near the South corner of the parapet, where the façade of the tower formed a near-vertical wall all the way to street level, Nancy checked for the last time that the opening handle of her parachute, hidden under her specially made ample, long leather coat, was easily accessible. The coat’s back was actually split in two pieces held by thin Velcro bands, to allow her back parachute to open after she pulled the coat apart. Satisfied, she took a last look down over the parapet and took a deep breath to calm her heartbeat: even for her, this stunt was a crazy, risky one.

‘’Nancy, you are one serious nut case.’’ she told herself before facing Channing Tatum, who also stood on the parapet, about ten meters away, a pistol in his hands. Tony Gilroy first made sure that all the cameras and sound gaffes were properly positioned and pointed, while he also ordered by radio for the cameraman sitting in a helicopter hovering nearby and below the roof level to be ready: there would be no

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second or third take for this scene. He had no intention of forcing Nancy to perform this mad stunt more than once.

‘’ALRIGHT! EVERYBODY READY? THEN…ACTION!’’

On cue, Channing Tatum pointed his pistol at Nancy in a two-hand stance and looked fiercely at her.

‘’GIVE IT UP, SHADOW DANCER! THERE IS NO WAY OUT FOR YOU NOW.’’ Nancy, her acting helped by her centuries of life experiences, including more than a few lives as a dancer and musician, slowly raised both hands to hip level while looking resolutely at Channing.

‘’THERE IS NO WAY THAT I AM GOING TO SPEND THE REST OF MY LIFE IN A JAIL, KEN.’’

‘’THE ONLY WAY YOU WILL ESCAPE JAIL IS IF I KILL YOU. DON’T FOOL YOURSELF: I WILL NOT HESITATE TO SHOOT YOU.’’

Nancy made a devilish smile as she tensed her body.

‘’I KNOW, KEN. NO HARD FEELINGS, THOUGH: YOU SIMPLY DID WHAT YOU HAD TO DO, WHILE I DID WHAT I WAS PAID FOR. SEE YOU IN HELL.’’ She then quickly turned around and ran a few steps along the parapet towards the corner, then jumped, landing one boot on the top guardrail and propelling herself forward over the grounds of the National September 11 Memorial and Museum, 417 meters below. She immediately adopted a swan dive stance while falling head first, her arms extended to the sides and with both feet together. Followed from various angles by a total of six cameras, including the one aboard the helicopter hovering a hundred meters away, she watched the ground rise towards her, her heart beating furiously under the flow of adrenaline rushing through her veins. The danger now was that the wind would push her towards the glass façade of the tower and make her slide against it, something that would be fatal for her. Her levitating power came handy now, making it possible for her to use it discreetly, if need be, to keep away from the façade. She however didn’t need it, being able to stay away from the tower by positioning her hands to act like the ailerons of a plane.

Up above, on the parapet, Channing Tatum leaned against the guardrail to watch her fall, doing his role and also praying mentally for Nancy’s safety. However this would turn out, it was going to be definitely a breathtaking scene and a worthy finale to the movie, especially when viewed in 3-D. Standing beside Director Gilroy on his platform,

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Krysten Ritter also followed anxiously Nancy’s fall on the TV monitors which showed what the various cameras were filming.

‘’God, please, make Nancy come out of this alive and well.’’ she said fervently in a low voice to herself. On his part, Tony Gilroy tried to keep his mind on the professional aspect of this, taking notes on which camera takes seemed the best choice for various moments of Nancy’s fall. Twenty seconds after her jump started, Nancy was still falling, still in a swan dive stance, and was approaching the 200-meter altitude mark. By now, Krysten was nearly hysterical with fear.

‘’Come on, Nancy! Open your damn parachute, now!’’

Another four seconds passed, raising further her anxiety and making even Gilroy nervous. A white spot finally appeared in Nancy’s back, opening up and quickly becoming a white rectangle. Everybody on the set blew air out in relief then, Krysten first. Wild cheers and applauses went around when Nancy was seen on a ground-level camera, landing smoothly on the pavement, a huge grin on her face. Gilroy let his people cheer for a moment, then called for them to quiet down.

‘’ALRIGHT! WE WILL CELEBRATE THIS LATER. NOW, WE HAVE A FEW FINAL TAKES TO DO UP HERE. CHANNING, KRYSTEN, TAKE YOUR POSITIONS.’’

Those last takes went well and were all completed to Gilroy’s satisfaction by the time that Nancy was back on the roof, her parachute stuffed inside a duffel bag. Krysten ran to her at once and hugged her emotionally.

‘’My God, Nancy, I was terrified for you.’’

Nancy returned her hug, still feeling some of the adrenaline from her base jump.

‘’Thank you for caring like this, Krysten. How about celebrating together tonight, the bunch of us. I believe that this deserves a few drinks.’’ She then shook hands with Tony Gilroy, who had come to her.

‘’How was the take, Tony?’’

‘’Perfect!’’ exulted the director. ‘’It will make a spectacular finale for our movie. I have to say that, in my whole cinema career, I never saw a stunt as crazy and spectacular as this one.’’

Michael Cerveris, who had played the role of the Shadow Dancer’s employer and whose character had been killed earlier on by Channing’s character, also came to shake hands with Nancy.

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‘’That was a great stunt, but also great acting, Nancy. You are a real pro at this, despite your previous lack of experience or training in acting. This will make your name in the industry.’’

Nancy smiled to the bald actor, truly appreciating his compliment. Apart from having played many roles in films and on television, notably in the Fox series ‘FRINGE’, Cerveris was a consummate theater actor. He was also a great human being. The fact that he was rumored to be a homosexual was totally irrelevant for Nancy.

‘’Thanks, MC.’’ she replied, using Michael Cerveris’ nickname. ‘’Coming from you, that’s quite a compliment. You will come celebrate with us tonight, I hope?’’

‘’It will be a pleasure, Nancy. Count on me.’’

Nancy then smiled to Channing Tatum, who was waiting next in line to congratulate her.

‘’Come here for a hug, you nice hunk.’’

Tony Gilroy grinned while watching his main actors, happy and hugging each other as a photographer was taking shots which would later be put into the movie production’s album.

‘’Well, that leaves us with the film editing and soundtrack arrangement work. If everything goes well, we should be able to release this film at the planned date, this July. I hope that you will be present at the premiere, Nancy?’’

‘’Me, missing the premiere of the first ever movie I played in? No way!’’ Krysten Ritter looked at her, curiosity on her face.

‘’What will you do until then, Nancy?’’

‘’Well, I will stay around for another week or two, in case a scene has to be redone, then I will go pay myself a trip in Syria, in order to cover the civil war there for CNN. But don’t worry about me, Krysten: I will come back from there in one piece. I wouldn’t miss the premiere of our movie for all the gold in the World.’’

‘’You better, or I will kill you!’’ replied Krysten, making Nancy and the others laugh.

19:20 (California Time)

Thursday, July 17, 2014 ‘A’

Red carpet premiere of the movie ‘CROSSROADS’ Egyptian Theatre, 6712 Hollywood Boulevard

Hollywood, California

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‘’THAT’S TATUM AND HIS WIFE!’’

The shout from a paparazzi waiting at the gate of the courtyard of the Egyptian Theatre immediately made a dozen more paparazzi rush in with their cameras at the ready, as a valet opened the rear right-side door of a limousine that had just pulled to a stop in front of the gate. Channing Tatum, dressed in a black tuxedo, stepped out first, then helped out his wife Jenna, who wore a rich gala gown. The couple then smiled and waved a hand for the benefit of the press photographers and of the onlookers gathered around the main gate. Channing made a point of taking the time to give autographs to fans and admirers, the majority of them girls and women, before walking through the open gate with his wife, entering the courtyard and following the large red carpet, laid along its close to fifty meters of length and bordered on both sides by palm trees. There were more fans, press reporters and photographers along the courtyard’s sides, plus a few television cameramen, all standing behind red velvet-covered chain barriers.

The next limousine to stop in front of the gate made many of the reporters and paparazzi perplex, them not recognizing at first the tall woman who got out first until a photographer shouted.

‘’THAT’S NANCY LAPLANTE, THE NEWBIE WHO PLAYED THE TOP VILLAIN IN THE MOVIE.’’

The paparazzi, along with the fans, then flashed away at Nancy, who was wearing a magnificent emerald green dress with a long side slit and a very revealing cleavage. They took more photos when a tall, powerfully built man and a very beautiful teenage girl with reddish-brown hair stepped out as well from the limousine. The trio paused for a moment to let the photographers take all the shots they wanted, then walked through the gate of the theatre, with Nancy stopping frequently to give autographs. Finally entering the theatre lobby proper through its antique Egyptian style doors, Nancy led Mike Crawford ‘B’ and Ingrid Weiss ‘B’ towards a large group of persons which included Channing Tatum and his wife Jenna. The couple stared at once with interest at Nancy’s trio as it approached them: Nancy had never told anyone on the movie set about either Mike or Ingrid. While Jenna Dewan discreetly admired the hulking Mike, who stood even taller than her husband, Channing and the other men in the group frankly devoured with their eyes Ingrid, who was wearing a beautiful Chinese embroidered silk dress with a long slit on each side of the skirt.

‘’Well, Nancy, you sure are in nice company tonight, if I may say so.’’

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Nancy smiled proudly and presented her companions.

‘’Sorry if I was a bit discreet about them until now, Chan. May I present to you and Jenna my boyfriend cum unofficial husband, Mike Crawford, as well as a very good friend I consider like my adopted daughter, Ingrid Weiss. Mike, Ingrid, I present you Channing Tatum and his wife Jenna.’’

They exchanged handshakes and, in the case of the women, kisses on the cheeks, before Chan spoke again, showing the rest of his group.

‘’Since you are new to the cinema industry, Nancy, I suppose that you wouldn’t know these ladies and gentlemen, who happen to be some of the top cinema critics in the country. First, here is Owen Gleiberman, from Entertainment Weekly. Then, you have Claudia Puig, of USA Today, Betsy Sharkey of the Los Angeles Times, Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times and Alynda Wheat of People Magazine.’’ There was a new round of handshakes before Jenna Dewan looked at Nancy.

‘’So, won’t you tell us about your friends, Nancy?’’

‘’Well, what is there to say? Mike is an ex-Corps of Engineers ordnance specialist, whom I met during one of my stints as a war correspondent, while Ingrid studies Oriental history in Berlin. She was orphaned at the age of fourteen and, when I met her, we became instant friends. I then gave her my support so that she could complete her university degree. That’s it in a nutshell.’’

Jenna then looked soberly at Ingrid.

‘’I am sorry to hear about your loss, Miss Weiss.’’

‘’Thank you, miss. I have now mostly gone over that. I was however very lucky to have met Nancy: she gave me a new shot at life and is like a mother to me. But this night should be about her, your husband and their movie. Have any of the critics in this group seen parts of this movie yet?’’

‘’Only a couple of trailers, just enough to wet their appetites.’’ answered at once Channing. ‘’Universal wanted to keep the punch for tonight.’’

‘’And we certainly are impatient to see the complete movie.’’ replied Owen Gleiberman, of Entertainment Weekly. ‘’So, Miss Laplante, if this movie does well at the box office, do you intend to continue on as an actress full time?’’

‘’Full time, no. While acting in this movie was fun, I will still work part-time as a war correspondent. It will help keep me current on how to dodge bullets and shells for my next action movies…if I get other role offers. After all, I am still a complete newbie in

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Hollywood, despite my reporting on CNN. Building a reputation as an actress, so that I could attract contract offers, takes time.’’

‘’True, Miss Laplante.’’ said Alynda Wheat, of People Magazine. ‘’So, you haven’t had any other role offers yet?’’

The malicious smile Nancy then made got her the complete attention of the five cinema critics around her.

‘’Let’s say that I may be sitting on a surprise, ladies and gentlemen. I am however not at liberty to discuss that subject further. Sorry.’’

‘’Not even a little hint, miss?’’ asked Alynda Wheat, her curiosity now piqued. Nancy shook her head at that.

‘’The only thing I will say is that I may play next in another action movie.’’

‘’Oooh, this is going to start some wild rumors.’’ said Jenna Dewan, smiling. Nancy laughed at that, then excused herself with the group, so that she could present Mike and Ingrid to the other actors and crew of the movie present in the lobby.

Just before eight O’clock, the crowd of actors, film crewmembers, critics and reporters, mixed in with a few invited celebrities and local personalities, was invited to go sit down in the 616-seat Lloyd E. Rigler theatre for the projection of the movie. Ingrid and Mike got to sit in the first rows, with the other actors and main movie staffs, flanking Nancy on each side. Mike thus got to sit next to Krysten Ritter, who was obviously pleased to have the powerful, handsome engineer near her. Nancy smiled at that, then gently pressed the hands of both Mike and Ingrid as the movie projection started. The joy and pride of having both of them with her for this very special moment in her life made her forget about her earlier misgivings at making them appear in this century. Not having seen the finished, edited product yet, she genuinely enjoyed the movie, even more so while experiencing Mike’s and Ingrid’s reactions to it. Her big finale, with her death dive from the top of 1 WTC tower, drew sucked-in breaths and horrified gasps from the whole audience, as the added 3-D effects for that scene only made that jump look even more terrifying. Nancy felt a wave of happiness wash over her when the end of the film brought unanimous applauses and cheers from the spectators. The moment she was out of the theatre and back in the lobby with the rest of the audience, she became surrounded by reporters and critics who wanted to congratulate her and tell her how her finale had blown them away. Tony Gilroy and the executives from Universal who were present also basked into what appeared to be an overwhelmingly positive

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response from the critics and guests. Daniel Whitfield, who had hired Nancy for the movie, gave her a happy thumbs up signal from a distance while discussing the film with a few critics, making her grin and return his signal. Raising her glass of champagne, Nancy exchanged a toast with her costars and their family members, along with Mike and Ingrid.

‘’Next stop: the box office. May this movie make the millions it deserves.’’

‘’Amen to that.’’ replied Channing Tatum. ‘’And may this mark the start of a successful career for a talented new actress.’’

‘’Hear! Hear!’’ Was the collective response.