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Chapter 135: Red Carpet Rules
🕑 Added 2025-01-01 08:54:52 +0000 UTCA week later, young Taylor Swift officially joined Angel's Declaration and began her music lessons under the guidance of professional teachers.
Her treatment differed from that of the customer service ladies and the Tokyo girls. In addition to public classes, she had her own private lessons.
Thus, young Taylor's days were exceptionally full, packed with courses that left her no time to rest.
While things were settling into a routine, the Golden Globe Awards were announced.
As expected, Chicago swept all the awards related to musicals, just as Ethan had predicted. This increased the film's buzz in the newspapers.
The media speculated that Chicago would be among the nominees for the Academy Award for Best Picture. Whether it would win, however, depended on the judges' tastes.
While the judges' preferences for films were unknown, their dining tastes were no secret.
A tabloid published a humorous report claiming that after tracking and analyzing Academy members' restaurant choices during PR company invitations, they discovered that French cuisine was the most popular.
This was followed by Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, and Indian cuisine.
As for British cuisine? Unfortunately, it wasn't chosen at all.
The report also pointed out the judges' surprising dining habits. Meals always included expensive wine, salads, or fresh vegetable dishes.
The tabloid summarized these traits and painted a portrait: "Age 40 to 60, highly educated, a wine collector, and a health-conscious vegetarian or advocate of healthy living. If you meet someone like this, don't doubt it—they're likely an Academy member."
This report was a sharp critique of the chaotic PR landscape surrounding the Oscars. The tabloid sold out immediately upon release but retracted the article within three days, claiming it was fabricated.
This sudden retraction baffled many readers but amused industry insiders like Ethan. It was evident the paper had been "handled."
Amid this peculiar cycle, the eve of the Oscars arrived.
Ethan was busy selecting outfits for the ceremony when he received a call from Anne Hathaway.
"Darling, what are you doing?"
"I'm picking out a suit. What about you?"
"I'm still on set, but I have some great news that will surprise you."
Ethan raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you're coming to the Oscars?"
"You guessed right! Yes, I'm attending the Oscars. Are you excited?"
Ethan forced a smile, finding the situation tricky. Over the phone, though, he expressed his delight.
"Of course I'm happy, Anne. After the ceremony, we can even head home together."
"Uh... sorry, darling. After the ceremony, I have to rush back to the set."
Ethan sighed in relief, his worries easing. "That's fine, Anne. Let's meet after you're done with your filming."
"Haha, sure. But it's great we'll see each other at the Oscars. Who knows, I might even get to watch you win an award. Oh, by the way, there's something else," Anne suddenly remembered. "Ethan, you don't need to pick out a suit because a stylist will be contacting you soon."
"What?" Ethan was puzzled.
"For stylists, this is a big money-making opportunity."
Through Anne's explanation, Ethan learned about the unwritten rules of the Oscars' red carpet.
From the ceremony's inception, the dazzling red carpet had become a battleground for fashion brands.
Each year, they spent millions persuading stars to wear their outfits and accessories.
However, fashion brand PR teams didn't deal with the celebrities directly. Instead, they categorized stars by their tier and assigned them outfits accordingly.
For instance, wearing a brand's haute couture on the red carpet signified being on their A-list.
Conversely, there was a blacklist for stars involved in scandals.
After determining these rankings, brands then "placed bets" on award nominees.
Actors nominated for Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Director, and supporting categories spent the most time on stage, providing the most exposure for brands.
But with limited nominees and fierce competition, the middlemen—celebrity stylists—came into play.
Stylists became the darlings of fashion brands during Oscar season. As the ones responsible for a star's appearance, their recommendations often decided the brand a celebrity represented.
To sway stylists, brands sent sketches ahead of the Oscars, and stylists chose outfits that matched the star's image.
Winning over the stylists? That was all about money.
For instance, accessorizing with earrings cost $125,000, necklaces $75,000, bracelets $50,000, and rings $25,000.
Most of this money went to the stars, which explained the frequent last-minute outfit changes during the Oscars.
Ethan received several calls from stylists as soon as his nomination for Best Cinematography was announced.
These included lesser-known stylists and even Quentin Tarantino's go-to stylist, Kashawn Alpha.
Kashawn, a flamboyant Black stylist known for working with Nicole Kidman and Morgan Freeman, welcomed Ethan warmly.
After taking Ethan's measurements, Kashawn said, "Ethan, you'd look stunning in Armani, Prada, or Hermès. But for the money, I recommend Prada."
"Why?" Ethan asked.
"Prada is aggressively investing in menswear this year. Their designs are fantastic, and their payout is generous."
"How much are we talking?"
"Shirts are $8,000, jackets $30,000, pants $15,000, and ties $13,000. I take 40%, you take 60%, so you'd pocket $39,600. That doesn't include the watch."
"Wow, that's a sweet deal," Ethan chuckled.
"And the watch?"
"Richard Mille. They're offering $80,000 and an extra $20,000 if you win."
Ethan agreed without hesitation.
A week later, just as everything was settled, the Oscars made a sudden announcement.
