Chapter 48: Role Confirmed

The amusement park and theme park every child in the world dreams of visiting.

As the greatest theme park on Earth, it was a place everyone—young, old, male, female—wanted to go.

That’s why even quiet Hye-yeon couldn’t help but have sparkling eyes.

Why not go?

The kids cheered with joy at the mention of going to Midni Land tomorrow.

If I’d known they’d be this excited, I should’ve brought them earlier.

Midni Company…

I’ve signed contracts with many OTT platforms, but never with Midni Company.

It’s not that they never offered.

They reached out for Rat Hole, but the terms were so poor I declined.

They’re in no rush.

Despite recent backlash over PC issues, Midni Company has enough talented people to offset it.

There’s even a joke that successful and failed works coexist equally at Midni.

Above all, we don’t match.

My works, which pursue tragic endings, don’t align with Midni Company’s worldview.

“Why not go?” I said.

“Really?” Hye-yeon asked.

“Yeah. I’ve never been either, so it’s perfect.”

At that, the kids playing with Benjamin lit up.

Since I’d never been to Midni Land, taking the kids sounded fun.

“Writer-nim, you’re going to Midni Land?” Benjamin asked.

“Yeah.”

He approached with a grin. “Can we come too?”

“No way. Stay away.”

“Why not? I want to enjoy your last day in the U.S. with you!”

If a beautiful woman had said that, I’d have been thrilled.

But coming from Benjamin, it reminded me of those old gay rumors.

No wonder those rumors spread when he talks like that.

“Stop talking nonsense!”

Thwack!

Chrissy kicked Benjamin in the waist.

“Urgh!”

It was so hard that even Benjamin, who works out regularly, doubled over.

“Writer-nim needs to rest with the kids! He came to this far-off land and worked so hard!” Chrissy said.

It’s not exactly a far-off land.

Canada and the U.S. are close, with similar food.

Sure, it’s a plane ride away, but it’s not some distant exotic place.

“Still…” Benjamin muttered, fidgeting.

Despite his height over 180 cm, seeing this sturdy guy fidget made him seem a bit pitiful.

Chrissy shouted at him, “No matter how much you want to, you can’t cling like that! He came for work! And you, really…!”

I chuckled at Chrissy’s scolding.

Benjamin, always acting on his own terms, often gets called rude.

Even knowing he means no harm, it’s hard not to feel burdened.

They suit each other.

Chrissy seems to keep Benjamin in check.

Being a strong presence herself, she reins in his antics.

Midni Land…

I fell into thought, watching them.

***

The next morning, a new post appeared on Letflix’s SNS.

“<Papa Role Confirmed! Starring Morgan Jackson!>”

ID: @Letflix+

[Photo of Morgan Jackson]

[Photo of Director André and Morgan Jackson]

Acclaimed actor Morgan Jackson will star as the protagonist in Adele Louis’s original novel Papa.

It was about Morgan Jackson’s casting.

Upon seeing the post, one thought crossed people’s minds.

He’s… really unattractive.

Not to be racist, but he’s just really unattractive.

Wow… I know I shouldn’t say this, but he’s pretty unattractive.

Some even posted those thoughts as comments.

Even Yongsu thought so at first—Morgan’s appearance was hard to call average.

Having worked tough jobs since childhood, Morgan had scars and sagging skin.

Looks like he’s done rough work. I mean that literally.

└ Yeah, his body looks worn out.

└ His eyes look so tired.

└ His face is full of wrinkles. He doesn’t look 40.

In photos, Morgan looked exhausted.

Partly because André pushed him to keep acting.

But also because of lingering, ingrained fatigue.

Morgan Jackson? Who’s this guy? Never heard of him. Anyone know?

This nobody’s starring in Papa? Ha! Letflix is done for.

I was so excited for Papa, but Letflix got infected with dirty PC. Ugh!

Some criticized Morgan.

After all, Papa’s protagonist was originally a white man.

But the controversy quickly faded.

You think Adele Louis is some nobody? You think they’d cast just anyone in front of that writer?

Adele Louis seems hands-off with adaptations, but their influence is huge, don’t you know?

They probably cast him because he fits Papa’s story! You think Adele Louis is an idiot?

Remember Chameleon? The director tried to write a trashy script, and Adele Louis got pissed and fired them.

10000001 Yeah, I remember. The director posted on SNS that Adele Louis meddled in everything, then got replaced. Turned out the director’s script was garbage.

Adele Louis gives full control to trusted directors. But if they don’t like something, they wield influence instantly.

You don’t mess with quiet people. Adele Louis is as scary as they are quiet. If they get mad, they’ll cancel contracts without caring about money.

Chameleon, a Goncourt Prize winner, had a highly creative and free story.

It’s about a person adapting to any environment, but the director suddenly made the protagonist transgender.

Yongsu nodded, saying it could work depending on the adaptation.

Chameleon’s protagonist being transgender? Adele Louis just smiled and let it slide.

Yeah, it could fit the story. It’s about “adapting to society.”

The issue was the script and supporting cast. Especially the casting. They tried adding unnecessary characters.

But the problem came later.

Not only did the script ruin the story’s meaning, but the director also tried changing the supporting characters’ significance arbitrarily.

Yongsu notified the production company and director of contract termination, even offering to pay back the advance.

He also declared he’d never work with anyone tied to that company again.

Faced with Adele Louis’s readiness for a legal fight, the company raised the white flag and replaced the director and actors.

Adele Louis was at the audition, right? Then this actor must have skills they approved of.

A nobody? He’s done some extra roles, but that’s it… What did Adele Louis see in him? I’m curious about Papa’s release.

I hope the movie comes out soon.

Fans anticipating Papa’s adaptation eagerly hoped for its release.

In reality, André rewrote the script after seeing Morgan.

Wonder how Loony’s doing?

Unaware of the online buzz, Yongsu arrived at Midni Land with the kids.

Loony had gone back to the company, and we planned to enjoy Midni Land until our evening flight.

“Wow…”

“Wow!”

“Wooow!”

The kids’ reactions at Midni Land varied.

Hye-yeon couldn’t hide her awe at the surroundings, Yuri gasped in admiration, and Jiyu, eyes sparkling, grabbed my hand to drag me somewhere.

“Uncle! Uncle! Hurry! Let’s go play!”

“Haha, no need to rush. Let’s take it slow.”

Surprisingly, there weren’t many people today.

I’d heard you could get crushed by crowds at Midni Land, so I expected a packed park.

But it was quieter than expected, and with Chrissy’s VIP tickets, we could skip lines.

“Oh, let’s each get one of those,” I said.

“What?” Jiyu asked, following my finger.

There was a shop renting costumes and accessories.

“Wow! Jiyu loves it! Jiyu’s the best! Jiyu wants to do it! Jiyu wants to be a princess!”

“Alright, Jiyu, do whatever you want.”

I looked at Hye-yeon and Yuri.

Their eyes were sparkling too.

“Come on, let’s go change.”

“What about you, Uncle? You should change too!” Yuri said.

“I’m fine.”

I was wearing the suit the kids bought.

It was already uncomfortable—adding a character costume on top felt like too much.

“No way! Your base is good, so a prince outfit would suit you!” Yuri insisted.

“Yeah!” Hye-yeon agreed.

“No! Uncle doesn’t suit a prince—mmph!”

Hye-yeon quickly covered Jiyu’s mouth.

The kids laughed, finding the situation funny.

“It probably won’t work. It’s not Halloween season.”

“What? Why?” Yuri asked.

“I think costumes are only for kids under 14.”

The kids looked disappointed.

They’d been excited to see me in a costume.

Or maybe they wanted a funny scene.

“But Hye-yeon, how old are you?”

“Me? 15.”

“In international age?”

“13.”

“Then you might be okay.”

I wasn’t sure, but Hye-yeon might qualify.

We entered the costume shop.

“Wow! Jiyu wants that! That one! Ice princess!” Jiyu exclaimed.

Jiyu wanted a costume from Frozen Kingdom.

California stays warm year-round, but since it was January and snowy elsewhere, it felt fitting.

“Alright, Jiyu’s an ice princess. Hye-yeon and Yuri… are picking theirs.”

Looking around, the kids were all choosing outfits.

Seeing their smiling faces as they picked costumes, I couldn’t help but smile too.