Chapter 267: Brokeback Mountain

"It should be correct."

In the office, Helen Herman said to Matthew, "If there are no surprises, it should be that action-adventure project related to the 'Declaration of Independence' that Jerry Bruckheimer is holding."

Matthew nodded lightly, "I remember you telling me last year at this time that Jerry Bruckheimer was preparing two new projects. Now that 'King Arthur' is almost finished, this project still hasn't settled on a script."

Helen Herman wasn't surprised and said, "Without sufficient funds, even Jerry Bruckheimer can only wait. I've learned from inside Disney Film that the script has been in the works for nine months now, and Jerry Bruckheimer has overturned it at least six times. It's still not finalized."

She adjusted her glasses, "This time you're directly participating in a costume audition, and the specific content is unknown. Right now, we have no idea what kind of male lead this is. Not to mention the outside world, I guess even Jerry Bruckheimer and those two screenwriters haven't settled on the character design for the male lead."

Matthew nodded again, "I understand."

This was definitely going to be a peculiar audition. Having been on the desk for so long without being announced, some information must have leaked out. Since it's an audition, that means more than just him received invitations. Under these circumstances, this is actually very advantageous for him.

Others are unsure what role this is, but Matthew vaguely remembers some details.

In the film he once saw, Nicolas Cage played a character whose family, for generations, sought the treasure of the Knights Templar. It wasn't until his generation that he finally obtained some clues, and he himself was an expert in the history of the American Revolutionary War and decryption...

With over a week until the audition, he knew he needed to prepare and review materials related to the American Revolutionary War.

"This is just one of our backup projects," Helen Herman spoke up at this moment, "This project has been delayed back and forth for so long, its future is too uncertain. If it fails..."

Matthew didn't know if this film was also like this back then and asked, "Do we have other options?"

Based on Hollywood's history, if a film keeps being delayed and changed, the chances of it becoming a flop are very high.

Helen Herman looked at him, "Of course!" She obviously said this on purpose, "You're off on vacation chasing girls; you don't think I took a vacation too, do you?"

Matthew didn't take Helen Herman's bait but instead said, "Let's hear it."

"The incredibly high box office of 'Pirates of the Caribbean' and Will Turner being well-liked by audiences have caught the attention of many directors and producers," Helen Herman pulled out a document from a drawer and pushed it in front of Matthew, "This is a compilation of the productions and related information that have sent you invitations."

Without waiting for Matthew to browse through it, she simply said, "Michael Bay has invited you to audition for his new project, a film about cloning. Ridley Scott personally called me to ask about your schedule; he's preparing a super big production about epic warfare. Focus Features and Oscar-winning director Ang Lee want you to play the lead in a film adaptation. Then there are some small projects with budgets of only a few million dollars, which you basically don't need to consider, as they don't match your current status and direction."

While listening to Helen Herman, Matthew quickly flipped through the document. Invitations for small projects indeed didn't need consideration. For example, a reboot of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" - if he participated in such a project, which role would he play? A brainless youth hacked to death by a chainsaw killer or the masked murderer?

He's now a second-tier star, and a second-tier star who has never played in youth-themed films. Taking such roles would be a step backward, wouldn't it?

Probably the other party was just trying it out. After all, sending an invitation doesn't cost anything. What if the invited person foolishly agrees? Even if they don't agree, they don't lose anything and can hype news like "Matthew Horner was interested in starring but sadly missed out due to scheduling conflicts," leveraging his popularity for their benefit. It's a win-win situation.

Those who make it in Hollywood either have very good family backgrounds or are cunning.

Matthew also realized that ever since he transitioned from a small actor to a star, the situation around him had fundamentally changed. Almost no one directly confronted him anymore; instead, like Hollywood's external image, all competition was hidden under a glossy exterior.

Of course, his fame was still short-lived. After becoming a star-level actor, he had only starred in "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Dawn of the Dead." He got along very well with Johnny Depp and Keira Knightley in the former, with any conflict and competition staying at the agent level. In the latter, he was the absolute male lead invited by Sean Daniel without even needing an audition, the biggest name in the cast, so there was no talk of competition or conflict.

In any case, Matthew felt that he belonged to the luckier group.

After browsing through the document, Matthew asked Helen Herman, "What do you think of these invitations?"

"Most of them are just trying to ride on your and 'Pirates of the Caribbean's popularity," Helen Herman saw clearly. 'Pirates of the Caribbean' had just withdrawn from North American cinemas with a box office of over 350 million dollars, and the sequel had been officially announced to start. It was the time when Matthew, one of the male leads, was getting attention. The invitations Johnny Depp received were probably not fewer than Matthew's. She said, "Apart from the three projects I mentioned, the rest can be directly rejected."

Helen Herman added, "Of all the invitations, only these three projects have a preliminary budget in the tens of millions."

Matthew knew this was Helen Herman's style. Whenever there was a project, the first consideration was never whether it could win awards, but its commercial value.

"What about the three projects with investments over ten million dollars?" he asked again.

Helen Herman's approach to Matthew had unknowingly changed. The toothpaste-squeezing way of speaking and the simple and crude attitude disappeared as Matthew became a second-tier star. Even if she believed she was more professional and her choices were more appropriate, 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 changing, shifting from a decision-maker to a service provider.

This is something the agents behind the stars must get used to. The California Talent Agencies Act clearly stipulates that the maximum contract period between entertainment agents and clients cannot exceed three years. Stars have a broad right to choose, and agents or agencies cannot blacklist stars.

In Hollywood, you always hear about Jews blacklisting certain stars, never about CAA or agents blacklisting stars, because the longest an agency contract can last is three years.

Stars listen to their agents mostly because it's profitable. It's a win-win situation.

Once there's a conflict of interest, it's normal for stars to fire their agents, like Tom Cruise who, after failing to win an Oscar again, directly fired CAA and his agent Pat Kingsley. Although CAA and Pat Kingsley

 were quite resentful and privately made many moves against Tom Cruise, from his beliefs to his personal life and sexual orientation, Tom Cruise remained Tom Cruise, and his superstar status didn't change because he fired CAA and Pat Kingsley.

Not to mention someone of Tom Cruise's level, even Charlize Theron, a second-tier star, fired her agent to change her vase image and aimed for the Best Actress Oscar with "Monster."

This agent was to Charlize Theron what Helen Herman was to him, the agent who discovered and promoted them.

But for greater profits, Charlize Theron didn't hesitate to fire that agent.

If he remembered correctly, from then on, Charlize Theron's career took a big step forward.

Of course, Matthew felt very in sync with Helen Herman, whether it was the future style or the principle of prioritizing commercial films. He had no thoughts of changing agents.

Helen Herman obviously had already considered it and said, "The invitation from Focus Features and Ang Lee can be ruled out first." She gave a straightforward explanation, "First, the film's investment is very low, just over 10 million dollars. If you were to participate, you'd have to reduce your salary. Second, director Ang Lee just messed up 'Hulk,' making working with him a higher risk. Lastly, and most importantly, this is a film adapted from a novel by Annie Proulx, which tells the story of a homosexual man."

"A homosexual man?" Matthew immediately thought of "Brokeback Mountain."

This work was too famous, even someone like him who only watched popcorn movies had heard the name. Where he lived at that time, Brokeback even became synonymous with homosexuality.

Although he had never seen the movie and didn't know the specifics, a film with such influence must have been a huge success.

If his acting was outstanding and he wanted to aim for awards and was ready for a transformation, "Brokeback Mountain" would definitely be an excellent choice.

Unfortunately, Matthew had a clear self-awareness. His acting was average, an Oscar performance award was optional, he wasn't even a first-tier star yet, and transformation was unnecessary. Moreover, he didn't want to mix in the independent art film circle.

Also, he had no interest in gay themes, even for filming. Just thinking about it made him shiver.

So, after only a few seconds of consideration, he nodded to Helen Herman, "Okay! We can rule that out!"

Seeing Matthew follow her advice without hesitation, Helen Herman didn't pause and continued, "Then there are the other two options."

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