Entertainment: Starting as a Succubus, Taking Hollywood by Storm

The 82nd Academy Awards were held at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, hosted by Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin. The event was broadcast live by ABC.

Catherine Bigelow's The Hurt Locker and Martin's Joker emerged as the biggest nominees of the year. The Hurt Locker earned nine nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Editing, Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, Best Art Direction, and Best Original Score. Joker also secured nine nominations, such as Best Picture, Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Sound Effects.

Martin didn't mind too much, though, since The Hurt Locker was backed by Meyers Pictures. On paper, it was a guaranteed loss—and reality bore that out. The film, a sanctimonious American production glorifying its invasion of other countries, was unpopular not just abroad but also in the U.S. It lacked the heroic figures audiences craved, the grand explosions of a blockbuster, or gritty, visceral battle scenes. In truth, its real purpose seemed to be documenting the sweaty, miserable living conditions of American soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Martin had a sneaking suspicion: The Hurt Locker might just be Catherine Bigelow's love letter to her ex-husband, James Cameron. Yes, Bigelow and Cameron had been married, divorced, and somehow remained good friends. Cameron's knack for staying chummy with all his ex-wives was something else.

Plenty of American soldiers, or their families, bought The Hurt Locker on VHS or DVD. In the end, it clinched Best Picture and Best Director, while Joker took home Best Actor, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Art Direction. Natalie Portman also won Best Actress for Black Swan. As for the box office juggernaut Avatar, it only snagged a few technical awards.

During her acceptance speech, Catherine Bigelow made a point to thank Martin for his financial support of the film.

But on April 1st, a bombshell dropped. When the news first broke, many thought it was an April Fool's prank. It wasn't until James Cameron responded that people realized it was real.

Artist Roger Dean, a 1968 graduate of the Royal College of Art in London, filed a lawsuit claiming that many of Avatar's set designs were "deliberate, planned plagiarism, extensively exploited for promotion and profit." Known for his paintings and sculptures, Dean created imaginative works that resonated widely, often featuring floating islands and elegant, towering arches. He pointed out that Avatar's "Tree of Life" and Na'vi designs bore striking similarities to his works like Pathways and Floating Jungle. "These visuals are nearly identical to my art, blatantly and consistently so, ruling out mere coincidence," he argued.

The legal troubles didn't stop there. On April 9th, Maryland-based sci-fi writer and screenwriter Bryant Moore sued James Cameron, 20th Century Fox, and Meyers Pictures, alleging Avatar's script plagiarized two of his own. On April 11th, another screenwriter, Eric Ryder, also filed a lawsuit against Cameron and the Avatar team.

Cameron was swamped, rushing to courtrooms across four locations, some even overseas. Martin, on the other hand, was quietly thrilled. Not out of schadenfreude, but because he saw the lawsuits as free publicity for the film. In the end, all the lawsuits were resolved in favor of Cameron and the Avatar team.

While Cameron was busy dodging legal battles, Martin was at home, playing with his son and enjoying a rare visit from his family.

...

In a blue-painted villa on a farm in the Los Angeles suburbs, things were less relaxed.

"Hey, old man, can't you get your butt off the couch and lend a hand?" Kelly Fendley, drenched in sweat, snapped at her husband lounging on the sofa.

"That's what ticks me off," her husband, Bill Fendley, grumbled. "Isn't it enough that I'm giving away my daughter? Now I've gotta roll out the red carpet to make him happy?"

"It's called courtesy, not sucking up! Are you getting up to help or not?" Kelly issued her ultimatum.

"Fine, fine, I'm up, alright? Geez, that little punk hasn't even shown his face yet, and he's already putting me in my place!" Bill muttered under his breath.