Conflict of Interest

The moment Gianna Scroitto walked into the room, Wes Taylor knew he had his leading lady.

It had been nearly two decades since the Bronx-born actor wrote the script for "Conflict of Interest," a comedy about Trevor Goodwin, a high-profile defense attorney modeled after the late Johnnie Cochran, who is hired to defend New York City Mafia kingpin Pasquale Pasolini against federal racketeering charges-and finds himself falling for Pasquale's daughter Marisa. Back in the late-1990s, Wes didn't have nearly enough star power to have his script produced, but now his box-office appeal was strong enough to realize his dream project, on which he would make his directorial debut.

Wes was thrilled that his first and only choice to play Pasquale Pasolini-the legendary actor and singer Vincent Martino-agreed to take the part. Casting Marisa Pasolini, however, proved to be a far more difficult process...until Gianna showed up to audition for the part.

Wes was tongue-tied by the petite Brooklyn beauty, his eyes immediately savoring her long curly dark-brown hair, her lovely olive skin, her gorgeous chocolate-brown eyes, her lovely smile, her Cindy Crawford-like beauty mark, her sizable derriere. She seemed to completely embody Marisa Pasolini. A part of Wes wanted to cancel the audition and immediately give her the role.

Gianna read two scenes with Wes-one in which Marisa is comforted by Trevor after describing her fears of her father going to prison, and one in which Marisa tells Trevor of her plan to intimidate a witness whose testimony could be key to convicting her father. Gianna nailed both scenes, and Wes gushed with praise over her work. A few days later, Wes called Gianna and told her that she had the part.

"Thank you!" Gianna yelled. "Your script was awesome, and I can't wait to be a part of this."

"I can't wait for you to be a part of this, either!" Wes replied, in a moment of excessive candor.

There was one scene in particular that Wes couldn't wait to shoot with Gianna...

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The filming of "Conflict of Interest" over the course of the summer in all five boroughs of New York City went relatively smoothly; working with veteran cinematographer Dieter Wallhaus, Wes managed to keep things moving ahead of schedule-and keep Vincent Martino's legendary ego under control. Wes and Gianna had an easy, natural chemistry in their scenes together-a chemistry that Wes wanted to build up before the last scene to be filmed for the movie.

That scene was a fantasy sequence in which Trevor and Marisa, unable to hold back the sexual tension between them any longer, finally make love, resulting in Marisa becoming pregnant-and Trevor becoming the father to Pasquale's grandson. When the day came to film the scene, Wes, Dieter and a limited crew did as much as they could to ensure that Gianna was comfortable.

Amazingly enough, Gianna called "cut" on the second take of the love scene. Wes was confused.

"Come on," Gianna whispered. "You know it's gonna look artificial, just like the first one."

Wes couldn't deny that there was something excessively mechanical about the first two takes of the scene.

"You have any ideas what to do about it?"

"Go for it."

"What?"

"You heard me. Fucking go for it."

"You're kidding."

"No, I'm not. You can't lie to the audience. Let's make it as hot as possible, and really go for it. I can tell you want to."

"Oh no."

Gianna laughed.

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In March of the following year, "Conflict of Interest" premiered in Los Angeles in advance of its national release. By this point, Wes and Gianna were officially a couple, and there was tremendous interest in the film where they hooked up.

The premiere audience was stunned by the sexual ferocity of the fantasy sequence; while Wes and Gianna weren't revealing any trade secrets, it was obvious that the raw enthusiasm they both displayed onscreen could not have been simulated. The erotic fire of the scene was a major draw for audiences; within a matter of weeks, the $40 million film had grossed $200 million worldwide.

There was intense pressure on Wes to write a sequel, but the actor/director initially insisted that a second installment could not possibly top the original. A few weeks later, however, Wes announced that he would in fact write and direct "Conflict of Interest II," focusing on Marisa Pasolini taking over her father's Mafia empire. Asked what made him decide to change his mind, Wes declared:

"When it comes to someone as lovely and as talented as Gianna, I guess you can say that giving her another chance to showcase what she can do is an offer I can't refuse!"