On Academy Awards night, Evelyn Hugo and Rex North sit together, holding hands to sell their staged romance. They lose gracefully and spend the night drinking and dancing, while Evelyn scans each party for Celia St. James without success. At the William Morris party, Evelyn and Harry Cameron joke about future wealth, fueling Evelyn’s reflection on how her ambitions keep escalating.

Near dawn, Evelyn and Rex return home drunk. Evelyn undresses alone, struck by the loneliness of their arrangement and haunted by thoughts of Celia, even imagining Celia with John Braverman. Rex enters her room and begins seducing her; Evelyn is tempted, enjoying the attention and the danger, but recognizes the risks to their business arrangement and to her sense of self.

When Rex grows more persistent, Evelyn draws a firm line and sends him away, preserving the boundaries of their marriage of convenience. She notes how easily Rex shifts personas and how uncertain his sincerity can be.

The next morning, Harry wakes Evelyn with news that Paramount’s Sam Pool wants to sign Evelyn and Rex to a blind three-picture deal—produced by Evelyn and Harry, starring Evelyn and Rex, with salaries of their choosing. Initially wary of losing autonomy, Evelyn agrees when Harry clarifies they will select the projects and terms. Harry adds that Sam Pool is motivated in part by a desire to outdo Ari Sullivan.

Accepting the offer means extending Evelyn’s public marriage to Rex, but it also consolidates her leverage and earning power. Harry concludes that Evelyn is about to become the highest-paid actress in Hollywood, a victory that aligns with her relentless ambition even as she still longs for Celia.