"What's going on?"
Keira Knightley looked curiously at the open door of Depp's Room. Matthew also stopped and looked over, asking, "Keira, that person just now wasn't Depp, right?"
"That person seemed to be dressed as Jack Sparrow."
Keira Knightley, who had turned into the corridor first, saw more clearly than Matthew. "Depp already took off his makeup."
Matthew heard the parrot's squawk again. Feeling that something was wrong, he quickly said, "Keira, you go notify the hotel or call the police. I'll go in and check."
"Mhm." Keira Knightley quickly nodded and pulled out her phone.
After glancing inside the open door and seeing no one, Matthew walked in. Just then, the parrot's squawk sounded again, and he followed the noise toward Johnny Depp's bedroom.
The bedroom door was also open. Matthew walked a few steps forward and immediately saw through the open door a person dressed as Jack Sparrow standing on the bedroom carpet, facing Johnny Depp, who was wearing a loose dressing gown.
Matthew slightly relaxed, guessing that it might be an avid Jack Sparrow fan who sneaked into the hotel to secretly meet their idol. If that were the case, Johnny Depp should not be in danger, as extreme fans are relatively rare nowadays.
Just then, the parrot's squawk sounded again.
Following the sound, Matthew realized that the Jack Sparrow impersonator had a toy parrot tied to his left shoulder, which, when squeezed with his left hand, would emit a sound extremely similar to a real parrot's squawk.
"Hey, buddy..."
After the parrot's squawk, Johnny Depp's voice came out, "Could you put the knife away first?"
A knife?
Hearing this, Matthew quickly shifted his angle. Jack Sparrow had been facing away from him, and in his right hand, which was previously blocked by his body, he held a gleaming short knife that appeared to be sharpened.
Matthew's eyelids twitched slightly. He looked back towards the door, wondering if Keira Knightley had made the call.
"You, Johnny Depp!" A stiff English accent sounded, clearly the voice of the Jack Sparrow impersonator.
"My favorite, I super love your pirate."
Matthew softened his steps, slowly approaching the bedroom. The soft carpet on the floor muffled all sound.
Johnny Depp was also trying to negotiate with the Jack Sparrow impersonator. "Thank you, thank you for liking my character."
Jack Sparrow's stiff English came again, "You, take off your clothes!"
Hearing this, Matthew almost laughed out loud. Had this Jack Sparrow impersonator snuck in to commit sexual assault?
But thinking about it, this was normal. Captain Jack Sparrow on the screen was flamboyant, effeminate, and full of charm, definitely a favorite of certain special enthusiasts.
Jack Sparrow shook the shiny knife, and Johnny Depp took a step back.
"Quickly!" The person spoke again, "Take off your clothes."
Matthew slipped into the bedroom while Jack Sparrow's attention was focused on Depp. Jack Sparrow had his back to the door and didn't notice at all, but Johnny Depp, facing that direction, saw Matthew enter.
Johnny Depp kept a poker face and took another step back, quietly increasing the distance between himself and Jack Sparrow.
Seeing Johnny Depp's hand placed on his dressing gown, the Jack Sparrow impersonator stood still, seemingly completely captivated by Johnny Depp.
Matthew stepped forward twice, gradually closing in on Jack Sparrow. He was now at the perfect distance to strike. The Jack Sparrow impersonator seemed to sense something and suddenly turned around.
But before Jack Sparrow could make any move, Matthew grabbed the hand holding the knife, twisted it hard, and Jack Sparrow screamed in pain. The knife fell onto the thick carpet. Matthew then kicked him in the leg, causing him to lose his balance and fall heavily to the ground.
Matthew first kicked the knife away. He felt the weight of the knife was wrong but didn't dwell on it. He pressed his knee into Jack Sparrow's back, twisted his hands behind him, pinning the man completely flat on the floor, making it impossible for him to move.
"Depp!" Matthew shouted at Johnny Depp, who was still stunned, "Find something to tie him up!"
Jack Sparrow on the ground tried to struggle, but under Matthew's restraint, he couldn't move an inch.
"Will this work?" Johnny Depp pulled out the tie from his pajama waist.
Matthew glanced at it. "Yes."
He took the tie Depp handed him and quickly bound Jack Sparrow's hands tightly behind his back. Depp then found another belt, which Matthew used to tie Jack Sparrow's feet.
"Let me go!" Jack Sparrow shouted loudly, "Let me go!"
Matthew ignored him and went to look at the kicked-away knife. Only up close did he realize it seemed to be an aluminum alloy prop knife, similar to those used by the film crew.
However, since the knife was made of metal and sharpened, stabbing someone with it would definitely cause a hole.
"Are you alright?" Matthew turned to look at Johnny Depp.
"I'm fine." Johnny Depp's face was pale, clearly frightened. He lightly patted his chest and said, "Thank goodness you arrived in time, otherwise I would have been in trouble."
He turned to look at Jack Sparrow on the floor, ignoring the man's shouts, and said to Matthew, "This world is crazy!"
Matthew shook his head. "It's good that you're safe."
It was better than anything that no one was hurt. If Depp had really been harmed by the Jack Sparrow impersonator, that would have been real trouble.
Depp had grown accustomed to a life of luxury over the years. After such a scare, he seemed momentarily lost, treating Matthew as his backbone, and asked, "Should we call the police?"
Matthew remembered Keira Knightley outside the door and said, "I already asked Keira to notify the hotel. She might have called the police too."
Just as he spoke, there was the sound of rapid footsteps outside the suite door, followed by English with a Dominica accent: "Mr. Depp? Mr. Horner?"
"We are here!" Matthew immediately replied, "We are fine!"
Soon, three hotel security guards entered the bedroom. They were startled to see the man and the knife on the carpet.
Keira Knightley followed them in. She looked at Jack Sparrow on the floor, her face instantly turning pale. She quietly walked over to Matthew, grabbed his arm, and said, "I already called the police."
She felt much better with Matthew standing next to her. She then looked at Depp. "Are you alright?"
Johnny Depp shook his head. "I'm fine. Luckily, Matthew was here."
He walked toward the dressing Room. "I'm going to change clothes."
While Johnny Depp was changing clothes, Matthew roughly recounted the incident to the hotel security staff. The leading security guard quickly notified the Hotel Manager. Subsequently, the Santo Domingo police arrived at the hotel, and Gore Verbinski and several producers staying at the hotel also received the news and rushed over.
As the parties involved, Matthew and Johnny Depp gave statements in the hotel Room. Johnny Depp also notified his Agent and agency, and the crew promptly relayed the news to Jerry Bruckheimer and Walt Disney Pictures.
Given what happened, it was inevitable that Johnny Depp would be somewhat shaken. Coupled with the incident involving the indigenous actors earlier in the day, Gore Verbinski simply canceled the filming schedule for the next two days for the three main actors: Matthew, Johnny Depp, and Keira Knightley.
The Santo Domingo authorities took this matter extremely seriously. By daybreak, the police had clarified the cause of the incident and informed the film crew.
The matter was not complicated at all. The Jack Sparrow impersonator who broke into Johnny Depp's Room with a knife was actually a Cleaner on another floor of the hotel, and he was homosexual. Due to his obsession with Johnny Depp, he specially prepared the costume, stole a hotel Room key card, and sneaked into Depp's Room when no one was around at night... The hotel subsequently offered a solemn apology to the film crew, Depp, and Matthew for their management oversight and impropriety, waived all fees incurred by the crew during their stay, gave Depp a lifetime free membership, and guaranteed that the crew would receive the highest level of security treatment for the remainder of their time at the hotel.
Matthew didn't mind. He had done this purely to help Depp. If the person involved hadn't been his friend, he wouldn't have bothered.
The film crew also didn't have much to say; the main decision rested with Johnny Depp.
The following afternoon, Johnny Depp's Agent rushed over from Los Angeles. The first thing he did upon arriving at the hotel was specifically come to Matthew to express his gratitude.
Afterward, he held a private discussion with the crew and the hotel on Depp's behalf. Matthew didn't know what terms they agreed upon, but Johnny Depp continued to stay at the hotel and did not pursue legal action against the hotel.
At the same time, the Agent brought Johnny Depp's bodyguard from Los Angeles to Santo Domingo.
Having experienced two major unexpected incidents in a row, Jerry Bruckheimer also rushed from Los Angeles to Santo Domingo to personally oversee the set, strengthening the crew's security level. The Santo Domingo authorities also paid extra attention to the crew, and a police squad continuously protected the filming throughout the subsequent shoots.
Helen Herman specifically called Matthew, but Matthew discouraged her from coming over. He was fine, and Helen Herman was currently in Los Angeles handling various matters for him, such as establishing a fan organization and a charity foundation, so coming over was completely unnecessary.
Filming in Dominica continued until the end of July. Except for the planned scenes involving cannibals and Jack Sparrow, all other scenes were successfully shot.
Before August arrived, Matthew, Johnny Depp, and Keira Knightley became the first members of the crew to return to Los Angeles. Matthew then briefly left the pirates of the caribbean crew to focus on a project that had been planned for over a year.
300 spartans, overseen by Zack Snyder, was about to enter the actual preparation phase.