Niall, a bit stunned by the director’s gesture, chose to glance at the script for a couple seconds.
Then, leaning back into his chair with a thoughtful expression, he began to run through the reasons for Igraine’s supposed harsh shift in his head.
This wasn’t something he had picked up on when he’d been going through the script.
Afterall, to him, it seemed perfectly normal that the naive princess would begin to grow into a pragmatic and wise queen fit for the throne given her circumstances.
Besides, he’d been mostly focused on improving Julien’s character. It just so happened that a lot of the parts Julien was in, made it so that he couldn’t ignore obvious flaws in the script.
A few seconds later though, an interesting realization dawned on Niall, his cool-gray irises shimmering with depth as he audibly muttered;
"There’s no inciting incident..."
"Huh? What do you mean by that?" Emily queried, her electric-blue irises reflecting her confusion... a sentiment every other person in the room shared.
Clearing his throat, Niall leaned forward and proceeded to explain;
"Like you said, given her circumstances, Igraine’s forced to suck up and grow,"
"But underneath all that supposed growth, is still a scared princess who’s afraid to lose even more people,"
"As a result, her growth doesn’t feel natural, but rather, forced." he continued.
"So, you could say, that the undercurrents of what she’s feeling isn’t growth, but rather pressure."
"And that’s why you’re unable to truly get into her head in those scenes," Niall concluded, a thoughtful expression on his features.
To that, Ivelia and Emily’s expression shifted slowly in realization, to which the director then asked;
"And what do you suggest might be a good inciting incidence,"
Without thinking twice, Niall coolly stated;
"The death of some of her knights,"
"More specifically, the death of Julien Lancaster, her personal knight and childhood friend." Niall added, his expression contemplative.
For a while, the room fell into a heavy, tense silence, eyes darting warily between the young actor and the renowned director.
It was almost an unspoken rule in Hollywood that most directors were stubborn lots that didn’t particularly enjoy the idea of being told how their stories should be written.
Yet, a frankly lesser-known B-lister had dared to suggest such a crucial change to the plot.
A few more seconds passed in heavy silence, everyone choosing to simply remain quiet.
Then, all of a sudden, a slow smile spread across Ivelia’s face.
"That," she began, tapping her pen on the script;
"...is very usable."
"Good job, Niall." she added casually and then, relief crashed over everyone in the room.
Everyone except Niall whom had known that Ivelia wasn’t the stereotypical Hollywood director.
With a light smile, he simply gave a curt nod in response.
Emily and David on the other hand, alongside several actors in the room glanced over to the young man, their expressions impressed.
And just like that, the session continued.
By the time they’d reached the final pages for the day, the energy in the room had shifted, becoming less tentative and more collaborative.
"Alright," Ivelia closed her script with a soft flip.
"That was far more productive than I’d have imagined. Good job, everyone." she said, looking around the table with an impressed smile.
A few relieved chuckles followed in response to that as she continued;
"This, is exactly why a reading session’s necessary,"
"To build a solid foundation, and to point out discrepancies. Now, as I’m sure we’ll all agree, the movie will be all that much better for it."
To that, everyone in the room nodded in genuine affirmation.
Then,
"Without further ado, that’ll be all for the session. I’ll be looking forward to seeing you all next month in England." she concluded and the room erupted into cheers and applauds.
Soon enough, after exchanging pleasantries and small talk, most personnel began to file out of the room.
As for the dirty-blonde haired actor whom had stolen the spotlight for the day, he was currently locked in a conversation with Emily, David and Gareth.
"No truly, you breathed new life into the script, and admittedly all of our characters." the lead actress smiled in appreciation.
"Which is why," David interjected smoothly with a raised finger.
"As the Bard whose name I absolutely cannot recall for the life of me from that one play said best," he paused for effect before continuing.
"I can no other answer make but thanks, and thanks, and ever thanks," he finished with an exaggerated bow, one arm sweeping toward the young actor.
"Sebastian. The bard’s name is Sebastian," Niall genuinely chuckled in response, remembering the exact scene from William Shakespeare’s [Twelfth Night].
More than that though, he was recalling how much of a goofball David was, a stark contrast to his ruggedly striking features.
That dichotomy was something the marketing team had extensively used during the promotion of [The Promised Queen].
"Ignore his theatrics," Emily cut into the conversation with a light roll of her eyes.
"He just came off a successful Broadway run and hasn’t let anyone within a one-meter radius forget it." she sighed in mock exasperation.
"Gee. Golly. Thanks, mum," David offered a dry, sarcastic comment.
"You, son, are most welcome. Should I tell him about the time you fell off stage too? That’s always a great conversation starter," Emily added nonchalantly, her thumb flicking off her pinky.
"Traitor!" David’s eyes widened in mock disbelief, a hand placed to his chest.
"Whatever do you mean?" Emily replied, clearly feigning ignorance.
Before Niall quite realized it, the two had slipped into an easy, harmless, back-and-forth that was oddly entertaining to watch... one that he had no knowledge of from his memories.
This had to be an effect of his having his presence felt today. One that seemed to have opened him up to a new side of his colleagues.
Running a hand through his dark-brown hair though, his inky-black irises suggesting that he’d seen this song and dance one too many times, Gareth gave Niall an expression that simply implied;
You’ll get used to it.
Before the young actor could offer a similar gesture in response though,
"Niall. I’d like to see you in my office. I have a few things to discuss with you," the director casually called out to him as she made her way towards the door.
Judging from the way his scripts were littered with pen marks and notepad tabs, evidence of a whole lot of prior preparation on his part--a detail that most in the room had missed--Ivelia couldn’t help but imagine there was more the actor wanted to say but couldn’t, given the limited time of the session.
And for Niall whom had been looking forward to said opportunity, he quickly yet respectfully excused himself from the trio to meet up with Ivelia.
A couple minutes later, he was seated on a plush leather couch in the director’s office, the woman seated across him.
Separated by a sleek, glass table, Ivelia then spoke as she placed her cup of tea on the saucer;
"I’ve heard a lot about you from the stunt crew and fight choreographers. Borg especially has been nothing but praises about how great you are at soaking things up."
"I do my best," Niall curtly replied, his smile professional as he raised the cup of tea to his lips.
"I can see that," Ivelia nodded in acknowledgement.
"Which is why I’m curious," she began.
"Julien Lancaster... what are your thoughts on his role in the script," she inquired, intrigue in her steel-blue irises as she gazed at Niall who slowly placed down his cup.
This was the moment Niall had been waiting for.
All the efforts he had put into getting the director to notice him had finally paid off.
That said, the more he had read about Julien, the more he’d felt that his role was immensely underused.
And then there were his memories from the past. Of critics and the audience alike stating how they weren’t particularly fans of the pseudo love triangle between Igraine, Uther and Julien.
In fact, some had outright stated that without Julien in the movie, the plot would’ve remained mostly the same with little to no changes in the outcome of things.
Fair criticism, Niall had believed.
Which was why, after giving it more thought, he had felt something was off with the way the character was written.
And because he’d come to that realization, instead of simply giving a response that could encompass his thoughts on the shoddily written Julien like Ivelia was expecting, he instead replied with a more pragmatic take;
"It felt like he was written in at the last minute."
No sooner had Ivelia heard that, her eyes widened slightly, the expression on her face shifting into genuine surprise as she leaned back into her chair.
Then, with a slightly amused scoff, arms folded across her chest, she muttered audibly;
"I told them. I freaking told them, but they wouldn’t listen,"
To that, Niall tactfully remained quiet, and then proceeded to cautiously ask a few seconds later;
"Whom did you tell, and what?"
"The Executives of Silver-Crest Studios! I told them it wouldn’t gel well but they didn’t listen!" Ivelia exasperatedly gestured, a frustrated sigh escaping her lips as she continued;
"Since they’re the ones calling the shots, they wanted me to add a stronger element of romance to the story to appeal to the wider demographic of teen girls and young adult women,"
"As if Igraine and Uther’s wasn’t already good enough," the director groaned, the words escaping her lips in an annoyed mutter as she placed a palm to her face.
"That was why I had to write in Julien to appeal to them," she continued, her voice muffled by said palm.
"And I’d thought that was the end of it, but no!"
"Those dumb ’know-it-alls’ who don’t even have the slightest clue about what truly sells, read the script, and figured the love-triangle taking center stage was the next best thing!" she let out with a pissed expression.
"Can you imagine that?!" she demanded with an irritated huff, gesturing to the young actor whom had simply remained quiet through her rant.
Quickly, Niall backed her up, his voice calm;
"I can,"
"And it truly sucks." he sympathized with her.
"It does," Ivelia tucked a few stray strands to the back of her ear, her flushed face slowly returning to its original shade.
"Anyway, I’m sorry you had to see that. It’s just been quite annoying to work with them," she waved off her annoyance with a vague gesture.
"Also, since you’d seemed to put in a lot of work into the script, I just couldn’t watch you go into acting out a character that might get you bashed by critics and audience alike without having you know why." she explained to which Niall nodded quietly.
Then, a few seconds later, he spoke;
"You know,"
"There’s a way for both you and the executives to have your cake and eat it," he offered, his tone of choice, genuine.
To that, Ivelia tilted her head curiously, gesturing for him to go on.
"All you’ll need..." Niall turned his gaze towards his marked script.
"... is a couple tweaks to Julien’s persona and character."