The three judges were all famous figures in show business: renowned screenwriters, actors, and directors. They were Director Lance, screenwriter Ivy, and the top actor Aether.As for the contestants, aside from Ethan and Jett, there were three others.First was Vivian, a rising young actress who had recently begun gaining attention. She shared that she joined the program with the goal of further honing herself and proving her true abilities.Next was Cliff, an actor who had spent many years in the industry. He could be considered from the same generation as Aether, since he debuted only slightly later than him. He had been quite prominent in supporting roles but had never once been cast as the lead in any film. Naturally, he felt very dissatisfied being placed in the same program as newcomers like Ethan and the others.But he needed to maintain his popularity. Although he felt this show was truly beneath him, it was a contract arranged by his company, and there was nothing he could do

There was a very good reason why the program gave participants ten minutes to prepare for their first script. But Cliff had been far too arrogant. He had always been like this, believing himself to be perfectly talented and that the world owed him everything.So when the stage lights shone down, when the large camera closed in, and when the attentive gazes from below were ready to evaluate his every move—He forgot his lines.Under normal circumstances, this would have been a simple matter. If it were a regular set, the director would just call “Cut,” and he could glance over the script once more before everything returned to normal. But this was Acting Stage. Any mistake in acting could not be redone, and would instead be magnified.After a full minute passed without Cliff making another move, Lance directly struck the clapper again. The gazes directed at Cliff seemed to twist and devour him.His Adam’s apple bobbed as he forced out the most confident yet stiff smile he could manage.

“Do you really feel that sad? Because Ethan’s reaction isn’t the same as before, right?”Vivian’s sudden words almost made Jett break character. He looked at her in confusion, only to see her smiling. “I’ve met Ethan before. He wasn’t like this back then.”Jett frowned inwardly, feeling that Vivian was truly hard to read. She even spoke like a madwoman. On the surface, he could only give a faint smile. “I’ve always wanted to be friends with Ethan, but many things have made it impossible for our relationship to move in a peaceful direction…”At that moment, Liona suddenly spoke up. “But didn’t Ethan tell you not to get close to him?”Vivian nodded. “Wanting to talk to someone who hates you—either you have malicious intentions, or you’re an M. I really wonder which one you are.”Jett was left speechless. When dealing with girls, he had always behaved like a polite gentleman, sometimes even appearing shy. In front of the camera, he was always the kind of boy girls liked and pampered. He

Lance had seen Ethan’s debut performance at SR Company. That day, he had come to find Ethan without the slightest hesitation.To be honest, the fact that Lance could still remember Ethan’s face even though they had been separated since they were very young truly surprised Ethan. More than that, at the very beginning Ethan himself had not even realized that the brilliant Director Lance was the older brother from his childhood.So many things had happened that Lance had long since vanished from Ethan’s memories.But that day he suddenly appeared, and without saying anything else, he demanded that Ethan leave the showbiz industry, promising that he would pay the contract breach penalty for him.Ethan had worked so hard to debut—how could he really withdraw just because of a few words from Lance?Moreover, he truly owed too much money. If heaven had given him this face, then perhaps it was the fastest way for him to shine and earn a lot of money.Lance felt that he only wanted what was be

As soon as Ethan finished speaking, Jett almost immediately lowered his gaze and bowed his head, making sure not to reveal any unnecessary expression. On the surface, he looked gentle and innocent—so what if he ended up benefiting from it? It was all the company’s fault, as simple as that...At the same time, the editorial team of Acting Stage began working at full capacity to produce the trailer for the first episode.Naturally, the closing line was Ethan’s statement. It instantly stirred up a wave of mixed opinions, though curiosity was certainly not lacking![What does Ethan mean by saying that? Is he implying that he only acted poorly because SR was suppressing him?][Something like that actually happened?][Or is he just using this as an excuse because he’s afraid of embarrassing himself? Hahaha.][Maybe I wouldn’t have believed it before, but after seeing proof that SR used Ethan’s fame to boost Jett’s popularity, I feel like it’s not impossible...][If Ethan said something like