Chapter 254: When Love Becomes a Thing of the Past

Ding-dong—

The phone rang. Brian Lister, who was pruning potted plants in the yard, glanced towards the house. Just as he was about to resume his work, Mrs. Lister's voice came from the house, "Brian, it's your phone!"

"Coming!"

Brian Lister responded, put down his tools, took off his gloves, and hurried into the house. He took the receiver from his mother's hand and said, "Hello, this is Brian Lister."

"It's me, Brian." A crisp girl's voice came from the receiver, "Daenerys."

"Ah, Dany, hello." Brian Lister chuckled. After watching the premiere of "Pirates of the Caribbean" together, they exchanged phone numbers and MSN and would contact each other from time to time. He asked, "Dany, is there something you're calling about at this time?"

Daenerys seemed very excited, her tone was high-pitched, "I have some great news! Matthew has broken up with that ugly, annoying Keira Knightley!"

"They broke up?" Brian Lister was surprised, "When did this happen? I checked Yahoo Entertainment today and visited Matthew's blog, but I didn't see this news."

"It's absolutely true!" Daenerys spoke very fast, "I was searching for Matthew's information on Google today and found a new website, seems like it's called TMZ, which reported that Matthew and Keira Knightley broke up last night."

Brian Lister became even more curious, "TMZ? I've never heard of this website."

Daenerys continued, "You should check it out. I'm so happy today, Matthew finally broke up with a woman who doesn't deserve him."

After a few more words, Brian Lister hung up the phone, ran back to his room, sat in front of his computer, turned it on, quickly searched TMZ on Google, and then entered the website.

The TMZ website's homepage had just loaded when he saw a large photo and a striking headline!

The photo showed Keira Knightley, looking gloomy, dragging her suitcase out of Matthew's house at night, with Matthew standing by the door looking quite unhappy as well!

The headline was in bold and enlarged font: Exclusive Shocking News! Hot star Matthew Horner and English Rose Keira Knightley Officially Broke Up Last Night!

Although Brian Lister wasn't particularly fond of Keira Knightley, the British woman, he felt that determining Matthew's breakup with Keira Knightley based on just one photo was too hasty.

He scrolled down and clicked on the news. More photos and text appeared.

Brian Lister glanced subconsciously at the news, which was posted by a journalist named Elena Boyar, and then scrolled down the webpage, looking at each photo.

These photos were clearly taken at the same time, showing a lot of details. Keira Knightley dragging her suitcase out, Matthew chasing after her, the two standing by the roadside obviously arguing, then a taxi arrived, Keira Knightley got in and left, Matthew angrily throwing his phone at the taxi, and finally going back inside and closing the iron gate.

Seeing this, Brian Lister felt that even if they hadn't broken up, they must have had a big fight and it was very unpleasant.

There were more photos afterward, the paparazzi obviously followed Keira Knightley all the way to a hotel in Burbank.

Further down, there was a short video. Because it was dark and secretly filmed, it wasn't very clear, but after seeing the above photos, Brian Lister could recognize that the people in the video were Matthew and Keira Knightley. The distance wasn't too far for the stealth filming, and because it was particularly quiet nearby, one could faintly hear the two arguing.

The video was very short, only a bit over a minute, and when the taxi arrived, Matthew and Keira Knightley's voices clearly got louder.

"We're done!"

Matthew's words were quite clear, and Keira Knightley's British accent was also clear, "That's right! You and I are done!"

Keira Knightley got into the taxi, and the video ended.

Brian Lister scratched his head, no wonder the title of this exposé was so sure of Matthew and Keira Knightley's breakup; it turned out there was a video of this segment.

"Breaking up is good!"

As a die-hard fan of Matthew, Brian Lister never liked Keira Knightley, "Those whiny British media can also shut up now!"

He closed the website, went to Matthew's blog, and saw that because it was close to noon, a significant number of people had seen the related news, with many leaving comments on the blog.

"Matthew, did you really break up?"

Messages seeking confirmation like this were the most common, as the video could also be interpreted as spoken in anger.

"Celebrating Matthew's breakup!"

There were also not a few messages like this one, Brian Lister often visited Matthew's blog and knew that most of Matthew's fans actually didn't like Keira Knightley.

"This woman neither has the figure nor the looks, and is a self-righteous Brit, better off broken up!"

Perhaps this kind of comment best represents the views of Matthew's supporters.

Brian Lister thought for a moment and also left a message in the comment section, "For your next girlfriend, maybe find someone with a better figure."

Mrs. Lister's voice calling him came from outside, Brian Lister closed the webpage and left the room.

With the news of Matthew and Keira Knightley's breakup enriching the content, Elena Boyar made a strong debut at her new company. The newly launched TMZ website also received a lot of attention, and after obtaining the website's agreement, many online and print entertainment media sources began to repost this news.

Riding the wave of the breakup's heat, Matthew and Keira Knightley once again entered the media and public eye, becoming hot topics in entertainment news.

Of course, the casts of "Dawn of the Dead" and "King Arthur" wouldn't miss such an opportunity. Leveraging the attention brought by the breakup, they also conducted some early publicity.

Matthew has not made any reply, whether at the doorstep of the economic company or when going to the Universal Studios crew office. Faced with questions from reporters, he always kept his mouth shut. Keira Knightley did the same, never answering directly or indirectly whether they had broken up.

Gossip rumors about breakups have a shorter shelf life than news about getting together. Since it was a carefully planned action, both parties naturally followed the pre-arranged pace.

The gossip about Matthew and Keira Knightley's breakup was hot for four or five days before gradually fading.

As planned, the second wave of publicity arrived on time. The same day Keira Knightley went to London with the "King Arthur" crew, she admitted to an ABC television entertainment channel reporter that her relationship with Matthew was a thing of the past.

Matthew deleted all the blog posts and pictures showing affection with Keira Knightley and posted a new photo of a mirror broken in half, with the caption "When Love Becomes a Thing of the Past"!

Thus, the media launched a second wave of hype, and Matthew and Keira Knightley, as well as their respective crews, once again attracted attention, garnering countless eyeballs

.

This kind of hype may seem morally questionable, but it's common in the industry. Matthew is not someone with a moral obsession. From the beginning of planning to saying goodbye after breaking up, he not only did not oppose but actively cooperated. Keira Knightley did the same, both fully aware that this would make them more famous.

In the entertainment industry, fame means a lot.

Moreover, Disney Studios also conducted a rough summary of the publicity and hype about the scandal between Matthew and Keira Knightley, concluding that their various actions to show affection and attract fans brought at least eight million dollars more in North American box office revenue for "Pirates of the Caribbean."

For all parties involved, it was a very profitable deal.

After completing this plan, Matthew also had more insights and fully understood why so many stars like to show off their love because it brings real benefits.

Hollywood stars, dating can be treated as business, showing affection can be business, and breaking up can also be turned into business.

No wonder celebrity love shows often end quickly; their motives were impure from the start. Compared to stars who love to show affection, those who are relatively low-key may last longer.

From this perspective, could his previous relationship with Britney be considered true love?

Matthew didn't think too much about it. Some things, once past, are past. He wouldn't look back but look forward.

Affected by the rumor of Matthew and Keira Knightley's breakup, "Pirates of the Caribbean," which was in a relatively calm period of screenings, actually saw a rebound. The North American box office for the eighth weekend surged by twenty-three percent compared to the seventh weekend, returning to the ten million dollar range with over eleven million dollars, and the North American box office crossed the three hundred million dollar mark!

This was the second film in the North American movie market this year to surpass three hundred million dollars in box office after "Finding Nemo."

Many media and research institutions also provided new forecasts, believing that "Pirates of the Caribbean," stimulated by a series of favorable events, could potentially aim for a final North American box office of 350 million dollars.

Additionally, the film's overseas box office was also close to 300 million dollars, with the global box office just shy of 600 million dollars.

Based on Matthew's estimation, it wouldn't be too difficult for the film to surpass 700 million dollars in global final box office.

The counter-trend surge in weekend box office numbers also indirectly confirmed Matthew's influence. Every event related to him since the release of "Pirates of the Caribbean" showed a superstar on the rise.

Matthew was clear that as long as he succeeded in two or three more films, proving his solo box office capability, he would inevitably become a top star.

A bright future seemed to be waiting for him, and the life he dreamed of seemed just ahead.

With the blockbuster success of "Pirates of the Caribbean," Walt Disney specifically held a thank-you reception, and Matthew naturally would not miss it.

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