As soon as the premiere ended, Lily Collins didn't leave immediately. Instead, accompanied by her driver, she stood at the entrance of the El Capitan Theatre for a while. Because of an unexpected commitment, she arrived later than usual today and missed the red carpet ceremony. She was a little disappointed not to see Matthew's familiar figure, so she waited there specifically, hoping to see if Matthew would come out.
After waiting for more than twenty minutes, no one came out of the cinema entrance, and Matthew was nowhere to be seen.
"He's probably still at the press conference," the driver advised at this point. "It's getting late, so why don't we… go back first?"
Lily Collins stood on tiptoe and peered into the theater, but she couldn't see anything except a sea of lights.
"Alright." Seeing that the cast and crew wouldn't be coming out anytime soon, Lily Collins decided to head home. She told the driver, "Let's go."
She got into the car with the driver, still a bit down. After the car started, she stared blankly at the streetscape outside the window, her thoughts drifting to the movie she had just seen.
Matthew is so handsome and so cool! Especially when he knocked down the big oaf, his charisma was off the charts!
Also, the decryption part was great. Matthew not only showed his combat skills but also his high intelligence, much more impressive than the coolest teacher at Harvard-Westlake School!
"This is really a good movie," Lily Collins murmured, resting her chin on her hand. "I really don't understand what those film critics are thinking. With such a cool male lead like Matthew, watching him unlock each puzzle and occasionally display his superb skills, isn't that enough?"
She shook her head gently. "After this movie, Matthew's fame will be even greater, right? If I could interview him one more time, my column would definitely be even more popular."
Last time, after her column interviewing Matthew at the Teen Hollywood Awards was published, she even received a "Teen Red Carpet Reporter Award" from the organizers. She returned to school with great pride, further solidifying her status as the queen bee of Harvard-Westlake School.
The car turned into a mansion. The Hollywood area is not far from Beverly Hills. Lily Collins came back to her senses and realized she was already home.
Getting out of the car and entering the house, her mother clearly hadn't returned yet. Lily Collins changed her shoes and went straight to her room upstairs. She dropped her handbag and sat in front of the computer. After the computer booted up, she first checked Matthew's blog.
It was bustling with activity, full of praise for "National Treasure." Clearly, many people had just seen the movie.
"For someone like me, Matthew's movies are even better than women! Okay, I admit I lost my composure…"
Lily Collins rolled her eyes and continued to read the comment section.
"Matthew's new film is truly captivating. Besides the still brilliant action scenes, his decryption is also a tightly woven sequence."
"I actually really like Matthew's movies, even though I've always thought he looks a bit strange, too rugged, like a savage…"
Seeing this, Lily Collins wrinkled her nose. "You idiot, you have no taste!"
Afterward, she closed the blog and checked several other movie review websites.
Influenced by her family, Lily Collins understood Hollywood better than most girls. After checking a few websites, she found that the word-of-mouth for "National Treasure" was completely polarized.
Professional reviews were overwhelmingly negative.
"Matthew Horner's performance is fine, and the plot is generally fine, but why did my mood never fluctuate much, without unexpected surprises or fresh feelings while watching the movie? Although it came out so many years after 'Raiders of the Lost Ark,' it's nowhere near as exciting as the latter. It severely underestimates the audience's intelligence, simply following the formula of a commercial film. I actually watched it very intently, but even by the end, I didn't feel that satisfying rush; it just lacked that final spark."
Of course, she also saw some critics speaking positively.
"'National Treasure' is a film full of passion and drive, and it fully showcases Matthew Horner's unique wild charm."
Compared to professional reviews, the audience's ratings were much better.
"The story is tightly woven, the rhythm is distinct, and the battle of wits between the protagonist and antagonist is quite exciting. Humorous details alleviate tension, and Matthew Horner is indeed the hottest young star today!"
Lily Collins browsed through several fan-gathering websites and found that audiences who had already seen the film widely approved of it and of Matthew as the male lead.
She sat in front of the computer, thought for a while, and then re-entered Matthew's blog to leave a comment.
"This film has both a progressively unfolding intellectual game and thrilling action chases and fights. The treasure hunt scenes are grand and spectacular, and even the second male lead, who is responsible for lightening the mood, is adorable. It's hard to imagine that Matthew would be so suitable for this type of role. It seems Matthew's acting range and skills are quite reliable!"
After posting this, Lily Collins turned off her computer.
In another mansion not far away, Robert Iger hadn't gone to sleep yet and was patiently waiting in his study.
Walt Disney was currently in turmoil, with constant internal struggles, and he too had joined the fray.
Michael Eisner was under intense scrutiny from shareholders and was in a difficult position. It was possible that at any moment, the shareholders' meeting would cast a vote of no confidence. If this happened, it would mean that the giant aircraft carrier that was Walt Disney would need a new captain.
Robert Iger very much wanted to contend for that position.
Although he had been promoted by Michael Eisner from ABC television and had always been Eisner's capable assistant and staunch supporter, it would be disingenuous to say he had no aspirations when such a good opportunity arose.
As a professional manager, taking the helm of Walt Disney was an absolute dream come true.
Moreover, over the past year or so, he had done a lot of work behind the scenes, gradually entering the core of Walt Disney's board of directors. He was also known within the group for his strict adherence to professional ethics and his frank and fair style. As long as he could maintain the performance of Disney Studios, which he effectively controlled, there was a chance to replace Michael Eisner.
However, the painful failure of "King Arthur" this summer dealt him a heavy blow. If "National Treasure," which also involved a large investment, faced another setback, many of his plans would vanish into thin air.
It was understandable that if he couldn't even manage a small Disney Studios well, why would those shareholders and directors trust him to bring glory back to Walt Disney?
Frankly speaking, he was a bit worried about "National Treasure." Jerry Bruckheimer's film production style, to some extent, had a considerable degree of similarity. While his style had been widely accepted by the market in the past, "King Arthur," produced with the same model, suffered a disastrous box office failure, leading many to suspect that audiences might be tired of this monotonous style.
"King Arthur" had poor word-of-mouth during its initial test screenings, and the professional reviews for "National Treasure" during its test screenings were also mediocre. This gave Robert Iger a very bad psychological premonition.
Even though the pre-sales and estimated data were good, he couldn't help but worry before seeing the actual box office numbers.
After all, there were big-budget films that had excellent estimates but disastrous box office results. "Van Helsing" in May of this year was a prime example.
If "National Treasure" suffered a disastrous failure like "King Arthur," he would really have to seriously consider the future of Disney Studios' collaboration with Jerry Bruckheimer.
Even if Jerry Bruckheimer was a golden producer, two consecutive failures of super-big productions would prove that the market's acceptance of his style had problems, and Disney Studios should consider abandoning him and his studio.
And the actors, if "National Treasure" had problems, the male lead Matthew Horner… Just as he thought of this, the fax machine in the study started, and a fax came through. Robert Iger stood up, walked over, picked up the fax, glanced at it, and shook his head with a smile. He was being a bit too anxious.
The early screening box office for "National Treasure" was $6.2 million! Based on past experience, it was 99% likely that the opening weekend box office would reach the anticipated $40 million.
As for Matthew Horner, whom he had just thought of, Robert Iger felt that the idea was too absurd. In the on-site audience surveys conducted by Disney Studios' investigative agency, over 60% of the early screening audience purchased tickets, and the most important reason was that they came for Matthew Horner.
In other words, at least half of the early screening box office was directly brought in by Matthew Horner.
Although the proportion of fans in early screening audiences was much higher than in regular screenings after the official release, it was still enough to prove Matthew Horner's appeal to the film.
This appeal could directly translate into commercial benefits for Disney Studios.
Robert Iger sat back in his chair, re-read the data on the fax document, confirmed that Jerry Bruckheimer still had value, and then decided that the focus should still be on winning him over.
He had no intention of resting and kept staring at the data, thinking about how to avoid such a painful failure as "King Arthur" in the future.
Suddenly, Robert Iger remembered something. Jerry Bruckheimer had once invited Matthew Horner to star in "King Arthur," but Matthew Horner had declined due to a scheduling conflict with the filming of "Dawn of the Dead."
By this year, "Dawn of the Dead" was a box office hit, and "King Arthur"… Judging by Matthew Horner's demonstrated appeal, if he had taken on "King Arthur" back then, perhaps the film's box office wouldn't be as disastrous as it was now.
Robert Iger sighed, a thoughtful expression gradually appearing on his face. Was Matthew Horner the most appealing among the actors born in the late 70s and early 80s? It seemed that his starring films had never failed at the box office.
Perhaps he should have a good talk with Jerry Bruckheimer and continue to strengthen Will Turner's role in the sequels of "Pirates of the Caribbean," maintaining a dual-protagonist rivalry with Johnny Depp.