"A brief, cautious sojourn in antiquity, the film's costume design deliberately flaunts the athletic, muscular bodies of several male actors, and dresses the female stars in corseted robes that can be easily removed. Director Wolfgang Petersen and lead actor and producer Brad Pitt's primary concern was how to avoid appearing ridiculous."
Just as Helen Herman predicted, after its release, "Troy" quickly suffered a decline in critical reception. While not as overwhelmingly negative as "Van Helsing," it was only marginally better.
Moreover, its opening weekend box office of $46 million in North America completely dashed Warner Bros.' plans to create an epic masterpiece akin to "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy.
The two films that kicked off this summer's blockbuster season didn't exactly flop, but neither met the expectations of the industry or the public.
"Van Helsing" saw its second weekend box office plummet to $20 million, and "Troy" was projected to earn around $130 million in North America.
In the following week, the box office performance of both films confirmed external predictions.
In this era, a North American box office exceeding $100 million was considered a remarkable achievement for most films. However, given the substantial investment in these two films, even surpassing $100 million in North America was not enough to be considered a success.
A chorus of voices emerged on several websites, led by TMZ, and in many traditional media outlets, claiming that Brad Pitt's commercial appeal did not match his status as an A-list star.
"Looking at Brad Pitt's filmography, since 'Seven' in 1995, he has never, as the absolute lead actor, carried the box office of any film. The highest-grossing film he participated in was 'Ocean's Eleven,' but the lead actor in 'Ocean's Eleven' was George Clooney..."
Brad Pitt's name certainly sounds impressive, but in reality, very few of the films he's starred in have been genuine box office blockbusters.
"Brad Pitt's consistently poor box office appeal severely hampered 'Troy,' and as the lead producer, he bears undeniable responsibility for the film's low quality and poor critical reception."
By mid-May, as the auditions for "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" approached, even the most casual moviegoers could discern the declining box office performance of "Troy."
Of course, "Van Helsing" performed even worse than "Troy."
Many media outlets pointed fingers at Orlando Bloom. With two consecutive major productions underperforming at the box office, Orlando Bloom would have been utterly disgraced if not for the reputation and confidence he had accumulated from "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy.
Even so, he was severely affected.
Fortunately, Ridley Scott and the crew of the film, now titled "Kingdom of Heaven," did not abandon him and still honored the acting contract they had signed.
Matthew also met with Orlando Bloom for drinks at the Black Mamba bar. Orlando Bloom was in good spirits for the time being and showed no sign of connecting the situation to himself, especially since Orlando Bloom had secretly put in a lot of effort to secure the role in the first place.
The two also agreed to go on vacation together when they both had time.
Afterward, Matthew continued his work on gun training and script study, entrusting all other matters to Helen Herman. He was confident that Helen Herman could handle them well, as their interests were closely intertwined.
In a coffee shop on the ground floor of the Fox building in Century City, Helen Herman awaited Akiva Goldsman.
"Long time no see, Helen," Akiva Goldsman said, sitting at the coffee table and looking at Helen Herman across from him, getting straight to the point, "You asked to meet me about the audition, didn't you?"
With their good relationship, Helen Herman saw no need to deny it. She admitted, "Yes, my top client, Matthew Horner, will soon be auditioning for the lead role, and his main competitor is an A-list superstar like Brad Pitt."
She said, with a deliberately playful tone, "I've known you for over ten years, so of course, I'm going to ask for some preferential treatment."
"Matthew is good. His films in the past two years have been continuously successful; even a zombie film of his nearly grossed $100 million in North America," Akiva Goldsman actually had a very good impression of Matthew, "But in terms of fame and influence, he's still not as good as Brad Pitt."
He clasped his hands on the table and said, "Helen, this project has a production budget of $100 million. It's the largest investment project since I started producing independently. I don't need to tell you how much pressure I'm under. If this project fails, I'll never have the chance to touch an A-list production again."
Listening to these words, Helen Herman kept nodding gently. What Akiva Goldsman said was true.
Akiva Goldsman looked at Helen Herman and said, "Let me put it this way, Helen. The real contenders for the lead role in this project are currently Matthew Horner and Brad Pitt. The others who received audition invitations are merely due to personal favors I couldn't refuse. If you want me to choose Matthew Horner, you need to give me compelling and sufficient reasons."
"Matthew is positioned as an action star," Helen Herman had already prepared her arguments. "From his breakthrough in 'Band of Brothers,' to his supporting roles in 'The Mummy Returns' and 'Black Hawk Down,' all were action-oriented films and characters. After becoming a leading man, 'The Scorpion King,' 'Pirates of the Caribbean,' and 'Dawn of the Dead'—these films and roles that truly made him famous—were also in the action genre."
Akiva Goldsman remained silent, simply watching Helen Herman.
Helen Herman continued, "Matthew's last three films as a lead have all been box office hits! The lead in 'The Scorpion King' continued the success of 'The Mummy' series. His co-starring role with Johnny Depp in 'Pirates of the Caribbean' was hailed as one of the best on-screen pairings in recent years. His absolute lead role in 'Dawn of the Dead' proved his ability to carry a film's box office on his own."
Without needing Akiva Goldsman to say anything, Helen Herman then shifted, "In contrast, Brad Pitt has had very few box office hits in recent years! Let's not even talk about the last three years; comparing Matthew's box office performance from the last three years to his wouldn't be fair to Brad Pitt!"
Hearing this, Akiva Goldsman almost laughed. He thought back and realized that Helen Herman was indeed right. If they only compared the box office of films starring them in the last three years, Matthew Horner would completely overshadow Brad Pitt.
Helen Herman hadn't finished yet. "Let's start from Brad Pitt's films around 2000. 'Fight Club' in 1999 had a production cost of $63 million but only brought in $37 million at the North American box office. I'm sure you remember that this failed investment led to a Fox vice president stepping down. 'Meet Joe Black' had a production cost of $90 million and a North American box office of $44 million. 'The Mexican' had a production cost of $60 million and a North American box office of $66 million. 'Spy Game' had a production cost of $115 million and a North American box office of $62.3 million..."
She raised her voice slightly, "Only two films can truly be considered box office successes: one is 'Snatch,' and the other is 'Ocean's Eleven.' But the lead actor in the former is Jason Statham, and the lead in the latter is George Clooney, and both are ensemble films!"
"And look at the currently released 'Troy.' Brad Pitt's poor performance has been uniformly criticized by the media and moviegoers. If this epic blockbuster doesn't experience a miraculous surge in overseas box office, Warner Bros. will face immense pressure from losses!"
Helen Herman concluded directly, "All of Brad Pitt's past films as a lead show that he lacks the ability to carry a commercial film's box office alone, and he is also not suited for action films. The one-on-one fight between Achilles and Hector has become a universally ridiculed joke."
At this point, Helen Herman took out a statistical document from her bag and pushed it across to Akiva Goldsman. Akiva Goldsman looked down and saw that the document contained precisely the data Helen Herman had been discussing.
This data was easy to find, so Akiva Goldsman wasn't worried that Helen Herman would falsify it.
Of course, Helen Herman would not falsify data that was so easily verifiable.
Akiva Goldsman picked up the document and scanned it. He had only had a vague idea before, but now it was instantly clear: Brad Pitt, from around 2000 until now, had never, as the absolute lead actor, made any film a North American box office hit.
Helen Herman then opportunely added, "This phenomenon is very strange. In these films starring Brad Pitt, he is the one who becomes famous, and he is the one who benefits, but the films and the crew are the ones who suffer..."
She paused there, knowing when to stop talking.
Akiva Goldsman frowned slightly. Some things, unless specifically researched, often go unnoticed. Only upon careful scrutiny does one realize how astonishing the facts are.
An absolute lead actor, if he cannot drive the box office of the commercial films he stars in, is such a lead actor qualified? He naturally thought of this question.
Helen Herman secretly breathed a sigh of relief. In fact, it was only after she had meticulously collected data and conducted research that she discovered that the vast majority of films starring the hugely popular Brad Pitt over the past seven or eight years had performed poorly at the box office.
If "Troy" had been a box office hit, these underwhelming performances wouldn't have mattered much. However, the current situation was quite the opposite: "Troy" once again proved Brad Pitt's insufficient box office appeal.
As for why this was the case, she hadn't had time to investigate. If it were any other star, their career would have already been on the decline, yet Brad Pitt had remained popular all along.
Perhaps this also had an inseparable connection with his marriage to Rachel.
"Helen, what you've said..." Akiva Goldsman put away the document, "I will consider it carefully when I get back."
He said no more and quickly left the coffee shop.
At the same time, Jennifer Aniston returned home early.