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Once the assistant was out of earshot, I told Liam to grow up. He pulled out the blotting napkin tucked into his collar, balled it up and tossed it at me.
I laughed and did a mock lunge towards him.
“Hey, don’t even think about messing up my hair,” he whined.
“You look halfway decent,” I commented. “Not even wearing shorts. Good for you, man.”
Whitney was about to go live, the cameraman counting down silently from five on his fingers.
Liam counted down on his own fingers toward me, but in a much different order. All digits had been folded down but the middle one and he gave me a satisfactory smile.
Asshole. But I stifled a laugh.
“And after the commercial break,” Whitney began, “the stars of Velram’s hottest film to date!”
The cameras cut and we were ushered to our seats opposite the bubbly host on her stage that was decorated like a comfortable living room. I was seated on the sofa with Lauren while Liam and Rodney took stools behind us.
Whitney took a sip from her mug before placing it on the side table. “You all look so great!” she beamed. She had a megawatt smile, lots of enthusiasm and she reminded me a bit of Kelly Ripa, but with darker hair.
Lauren complimented her on her shoes and then the commercial break was over.
The main camera was zeroed in on Whitney as the theme music slowly faded away. “This morning’s guests are here to talk about their upcoming film,Koil: A Hero Among Us,set to drop on September 30. Please welcome Jake Stanley, Liam Davies, Lauren Seidel, and Rodney Tomlinson!”
A full pan of the set now showed us all while the audience went absolutely wild with applause, whistling, and piercing screams. It was hard not to get caught up in it all, beaming from ear to ear knowing that these people were here because they enjoyed our work.
It was validation that what we did resonated with people. That hopefully they found some sort of themselves in our characters and maybe even offered hope to others.
“Thank you all for being here this morning,” Whitney gushed, clutching her cue cards. “This is it, right? The last film for Velram. How does that make you all feel?”
Liam spoke first. “Who knows what the future holds—I mean, I know whatmyfuture holds—but it’s been a wild ride, man.”
Whitney took his double entendre and latched on to it like a suckling babe. “Is there anything else you can tell us Liam about what’s in store for you or your character?”
Glancing at the camera, I saw Liam slip his hand low and toward Rodney. Rodney gave him what looked like a low-five, but it wasn’t lost on me that Liam had played Rodney for a fool and pocketed the cash he had bet him an hour ago.
“I think what Liamcanreveal about his character is that they are really quite similar,” Rodney interjected slyly, “minus the whole flying and superspeed bit.”
The audience laughed on cue, enjoying the joke that Rodney had used at a panel a few days ago.
“Now, Rodney,” Whitney addressed, “you are new to the franchise and you play the supervillain, Vider. It’s obvious you get along with these guys,” she observed, sweeping a hand in our direction, “so how hard was it to play someone who ultimately wanted to kill them?”
Rodney paused, thinking for a second. “It was all kinds of bollocks, to be honest.” The audience laughed at his candid nature. “Here’s the thing,” he disclosed, “you’re on set with these wonderful people, but at the end of the day, I’m a method actor. I wanted to get this role absolutely perfect, give it my all, so when the cameras weren’t rolling, I retreated to my trailer. I was reclusive. I inhabited Vider’s mindset. I kept myself at a distance and I hope when you see the film that the sincerity will show.”
“It’s true,” Lauren agreed. “He never ate with us or hung out after a long day of shooting.”
“Yeah. He was a miserable human being,” Liam deadpanned.
Whitney laughed, if not a little uncomfortably. “So, Jake. Only having seen the trailers, it looks as if you and Lauren had excellent chemistry.” She turned her attention on Lauren. “You play Koil’s love interest in the film. Must have been a tough day at work, am I right?” she joked.
Impressive. Most people tried confirming their assumption about us within the first few minutes.
Lauren was gracious with her answer though. “I mean, look at the guy,” she played along. “No, in all seriousness, I was thrilled when my agent called and told me I had gotten the part. I had been a fan for so long, it was a dream come true.”
Perfectly executed, Lauren.
“Lauren’s been a fantastic addition to the cast,” I added, hyping her up because she deserved it. “She brought a level of enthusiasm and professionalism to the set each day and I can’t wait for you all to see her as Peyton Powell.”
More applause. And then Whitney turned to the audience.
