"It should be right."
In the office, Helen Herman said to Matthew, "If nothing unexpected happens, it's the action-adventure project that Jerry Bruckheimer has been holding onto, which is related to 'The Declaration of Independence'."
Matthew nodded slightly, "I remember around this time last year, you told me that Jerry Bruckheimer was preparing two new projects. Now 'King Arthur' is almost finished, but this project still hasn't finalized a script."
Helen Herman didn't find it strange and said, "Without sufficient funds, even Jerry Bruckheimer can only wait. I've learned from inside Disney Pictures that the script has been in development for nine months, and Jerry Bruckheimer has rejected it at least six times. It still hasn't been finalized."
She adjusted her glasses, "This time you're directly participating in a costume fitting audition. The specific content of the audition is unknown, and we don't even know what kind of male lead this is. Let alone the outside world, even Jerry Bruckheimer and the two screenwriters probably haven't finalized the character setting for the male lead."
Matthew nodded again, "I know."
This was definitely a very strange audition. This project had been on the table for so long, and although it hadn't been publicly announced, some news must have leaked out. Since it was an audition, it meant he wasn't the only one who received an invitation. This situation was actually very advantageous for him.
While others weren't sure what kind of role this was, Matthew remembered some details.
In the film he had seen, the character played by Nicolas Cage came from a family that had been searching for the Knights Templar treasure for generations. It was only when it got to him that some clues finally emerged. He himself was proficient in the history of the American Revolutionary War and decryption… There was still over a week until the audition, and he knew he needed to prepare by looking up more information about the American Revolutionary War.
"This is just one of our backup projects," Helen Herman said then, "This project has been repeatedly delayed for so long, and the future uncertainty is too great. If it gets messed up…"
Matthew didn't know if this film had also gone through such a process, and asked, "Do we have any other options?"
According to Hollywood's past history, if a film is constantly delayed, revised, and postponed, there's a very high chance it will end up as a flop.
Helen Herman glanced at him, "Of course we do!" She clearly said intentionally, "You're on vacation with a girl, you don't think I'm on vacation too, do you?"
Matthew didn't respond to Helen Herman's comment.
Instead, he said, "Tell me about it."
"The huge box office success of 'Pirates of the Caribbean' and the audience's love for Will Turner have attracted the attention of many directors and producers," Helen Herman took out a document from her drawer and pushed it in front of Matthew. "These are the invitations from film crews and related information that I've compiled for you."
Before Matthew could look through it, she briefly said, "Michael Bay has invited you to audition for his new project, which is a film about clones. Ridley Scott specifically called me to inquire about your schedule; he's preparing a super-production epic war film. Focus Features and Ang Lee, who has won an Oscar, want you to star as the male lead in an adapted film. Then there are some small projects with budgets of only a few million dollars, which are basically not worth considering, as they don't match your current status and career path."
As Helen Herman spoke, Matthew quickly flipped through the document. Indeed, those invitations for small projects were not worth considering, such as the reboot of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." If he participated in such a project, what role would he play? The brainless, rebellious youth sawed down by the killer, or the masked killer himself?
He was now a second-tier star, and one who had never acted in a youth-oriented film. Playing such a role would only be a step backward.
Presumably, the other party was just trying their luck. After all, sending an invitation didn't cost anything, and what if the invited person, in a moment of madness, accepted? Even if they didn't accept, they wouldn't lose anything; in fact, they could even hype up news like "Matthew Horner was interested in starring but unfortunately missed out due to scheduling conflicts," leveraging his popularity for a win-win situation.
Those who make it in Hollywood either have excellent family backgrounds or are incredibly shrewd.
Matthew also noticed that ever since he moved beyond the realm of a minor actor and became a star, the surrounding situation had fundamentally changed. Almost no one directly confronted him face-to-face anymore. Instead, just as Hollywood outwardly presented, all competition was hidden beneath a glamorous exterior.
Of course, he had only been famous for a short time. After becoming a star-level actor, he only appeared in two films, "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Dawn of the Dead." In the former, he got along very well with Johnny Depp and Keira Knightley, and any conflicts or competition between them remained at the agent level. The latter was a project where he was the absolute male lead, personally invited by Sean Daniel, without even needing an audition, and he was the biggest star on set, so there was no talk of competition or conflict.
Anyway, Matthew felt that, overall, he belonged to the lucky ones.
After looking through the document, Matthew asked Helen Herman, "What do you think of these invitations?"
"Most of them are just trying to capitalize on your and 'Pirates of the Caribbean's popularity." Helen Herman saw it clearly. "Pirates of the Caribbean" had just finished its North American run with over 350 million dollars at the box office, and the sequel had just been officially announced. Matthew, as one of the male leads, was currently receiving a lot of attention. On the other hand, Johnny Depp probably received no less invitations than Matthew. She said, "Aside from the three projects I mentioned, all the others can be directly rejected."
Helen Herman added, "Among all the invitations, only these three projects have initial budgets reaching the tens of millions."
Matthew knew this was Helen Herman's style; whenever there was a project, her first consideration was never whether it could win awards, but rather its commercial value.
"What about the three with investments over ten million dollars?" he asked again.
Helen Herman's approach to Matthew had subtly changed. The grudging way she used to speak and her blunt attitude had completely disappeared as Matthew became a second-tier star. Even if she believed her choices were more professional and suitable, she would patiently and thoroughly explain the reasons.
In fact, Matthew himself was aware that as he transitioned from a small actor to a star, Helen Herman was also quietly transforming, from a decision-maker to a service provider.
This is something that agents behind stars must get used to. The California Talent Agencies Act explicitly states that the maximum contract term for an entertainment agent and client cannot exceed three years. Stars have a relatively wide range of choices, and agents or agencies cannot blacklist stars.
In Hollywood circles, you always hear about Jewish people blacklisting certain stars, but you never hear about CAA or agents blacklisting stars, because agency contracts are a maximum of only three years.
Stars listen to their agents mostly because there's profit to be made; it's a win-win for everyone.
Once interests clash, it's common for stars to fire their agents. For example, after this year's Oscar ceremony, Tom Cruise, who failed to win an Oscar again, directly fired CAA and his agent, Kevin Huvane. Although CAA and Huvane were quite resentful and privately engaged in many smear tactics against Tom Cruise, from his beliefs to his private life and sexual orientation, Tom Cruise remained Tom Cruise. His superstar status would not change because he fired CAA and Huvane.
Not to mention a star of Tom Cruise's caliber, even a second-tier star like Charlize Theron, in order to change her fixed image as a pretty face, fired her agent to pursue an Oscar for Best Actress with "Monster."
This agent, for Charlize Theron, was like Helen Herman for him—both were agents who discovered and made them famous.
But for greater gain, Charlize Theron unhesitatingly fired that agent.
If he remembered correctly, Charlize Theron's career took a big step forward from then on.
Of course, Matthew felt that he was currently very compatible with Helen Herman. Whether it was their future style and direction or their principle of prioritizing commercial value in film selection, their philosophies were quite consistent, and he had no intention of changing agents.
Helen Herman clearly had already considered it and said, "Focus Features and Ang Lee's invitation can be excluded first." She immediately explained, "Firstly, the film's investment is very low, probably only a little over 10 million dollars, so if you want to act in it, you'll have to lower your salary. Secondly, director Ang Lee just messed up 'Hulk,' so collaborating with him carries higher risks. Finally, and most crucially, this is a film adapted from Annie Proulx's novel, and the original novel tells a story about a gay man."
"Gay?" Matthew immediately thought of "Brokeback Mountain."
This work was so famous that even someone like him, who only watched popcorn movies, had heard the name. In the place where he lived at the time, "Brokeback" even became a synonym for homosexuality.
Although he hadn't seen the movie and didn't know the specific details, for a film to have such an impact, it must have achieved tremendous success.
If he had exceptional acting skills, wanted to chase awards, and was ready to transition, "Brokeback Mountain" would certainly be an excellent choice.
Unfortunately, Matthew had a clear self-awareness: his acting was mediocre, Oscar acting awards were optional, and he wasn't even a first-tier star yet, so a career transition was unnecessary. Moreover, he didn't want to get involved in the independent art house film scene.
Also, he had no interest in gay relationships, even for a movie; the thought alone sent shivers down his spine.
So, after only a few seconds of consideration, he nodded to Helen Herman, "Okay! We can rule that one out!"
Seeing Matthew follow her advice, Helen Herman didn't pause and continued, "Then there are the other two options."