19. Just be Famous

"Did you hear that, Matthew?"

Michael Sheen stood up excitedly and exclaimed, "We're going to be part of a big project! Universal Pictures' 'Gladiator'! Ridley Scott's 'Gladiator'!"

"Ridley Scott, that name sounds familiar." After thinking for a moment, Matthew asked with uncertainty, "Isn't he the one who directed 'Alien'?"

"Yes, that's him! He's a top-tier director!" Michael Sheen was clearly overly excited, grabbing Matthew's arm. "We're going to be part of an A-list project from a major Hollywood studio!"

Matthew pulled his arm away, deciding to dampen his enthusiasm a bit. "An A-list project from a major studio? We're just extras, we probably won't even have close-up shots."

Although he was somewhat excited too, he wasn't as enthusiastic as Michael Sheen.

"Oh..." Michael Sheen scratched his head, "Maybe I got carried away."

Helen Herman's voice came again, "This job requires you to stay on set for a week. If you're willing to, sign up at the front desk. If not, you can leave now."

More than ten people stood up and left one after another. The rest lined up at the front desk to sign up, including Matthew and Michael Sheen.

Even though it meant taking a week off from Red Penguin Company, Matthew decided to take the job!

As Michael Sheen had said, this job was for the "Gladiator" project by Universal Pictures. Matthew vaguely remembered watching the movie and knew it was considered a good film, reputedly even winning Oscar awards.

While waiting in line, Matthew heard Helen Herman providing more details about the job. Originally, the "Gladiator" crew planned to shoot a battle scene in England. However, during location scouting, they faced large-scale protests from environmental organizations.

The forest they planned to use for shooting was completely occupied by environmentalists. Therefore, Universal Pictures had to activate a backup plan, bringing the crew back to North America to shoot the scene in a forest in Northern California that was scheduled for logging.

Due to the last-minute change of plans, the UK intermediary company that the crew had contacted had to give up. After returning to Los Angeles, they urgently recruited suitable extras.

And Angel Talent Agency managed to secure a portion of the roles as temporary actors playing German soldiers in the "Gladiator" project.

This job lasted for a week, paying $200 per day, with the crew responsible for transportation and accommodation for all temporary actors.

In every aspect, it was much better than Matthew's previous job playing a corpse. The only inconvenience was that they had to gather at eleven without any buffer time to request time off.

After signing up, Matthew immediately called Lester and made up a story about needing to return to his hometown in Texas, enduring the other man's scolding to finally secure a week off.

"Done?"

Michael Sheen, who was also making a call to request time off, came back and Matthew nodded lightly. "Took a week off. How about you?"

Michael Sheen shrugged, "Boss wouldn't give me time off, so I quit!"

They chatted for a few more minutes, and then Matthew's gaze shifted to Helen Herman at the front desk. She was still wearing her black-rimmed glasses and professional lady's suit.

"This woman is not simple," Matthew muttered to himself.

"What?" Michael Sheen asked.

Matthew shook his head, "Nothing."

He watched Helen Herman, pondering. Angel Talent Agency had been established not long ago, yet they managed to secure resources from a project like "Gladiator." They must have deep connections, right?

However, considering Helen Herman's age, she had just graduated from college. Could someone at her age start a business?

Although Matthew hadn't been in America for long, he had rich social experience. According to his reasoning, people like Helen Herman usually came from extraordinary family backgrounds.

Angel Talent Agency might be different from other small intermediary agencies...

With this speculation in mind, Matthew made a decision: should he try to make an impression in front of Helen Herman? If she remembered him, she might prioritize him for future jobs.

For someone like him, leveraging opportunities was crucial.

After waiting for over an hour, a bus arrived outside the building. Under the guidance of the receptionist, including Matthew and Michael Sheen, all temporary actors boarded the bus. They headed north, leaving Burbank behind.

"It would be great if I could land a major role," Michael Sheen said as they sat together on the bus, looking out the window. "In a project like this, a single role could change your life."

He seemed to be glowing with excitement. "With a significant supporting role in this film, I could aim for leading roles in smaller productions!"

Matthew thought he was being overly optimistic. "A major supporting role is unlikely. Just appearing in the film with a visible screen time and having your name in the end credits would be satisfying for me."

"You're still new to this," Michael Sheen replied. "Wait until you've spent three years in Los Angeles with no progress, then you'll understand how I feel now."

"Eager to become famous?" Matthew asked.

Michael Sheen nodded vigorously, "Famous! In Hollywood, once you're famous, you have money, status, women!"

Hearing this, along with today's interactions, Matthew felt that Michael Sheen was somewhat similar to himself in certain aspects.

It wasn't surprising. Most people who entered this circle, especially actors, weren't they in it for artistic expression. Perhaps 99.9% of them, like Matthew and Michael Sheen, were in it for fame and fortune.

After two hours, the bus left the main road and entered a hilly area. After a few more kilometers, it stopped by the roadside.

Matthew and the others waited on the bus for a while. Looking through the window, they saw a small town on the outskirts, surrounded by parked vehicles. From buses to cars to cranes used for shooting, they were all there. In the distance, a sparse forest was filled with people, along with cameras set up on tracks, indicating that filming was underway.

Michael Sheen excitedly looked at it, muttering, "It would be great if I were the leading actor!"

"Brother, you're thinking too much!" A bald man in front heard him and turned around, saying, "In twenty years, you won't even compare to Russell Crowe."

Laughter erupted around them. Michael Sheen's face turned red, and he was about to stand up, but Matthew stopped him.

"No need," he said softly. "Whatever you say, they'll just take it as a joke."

Michael Sheen held back, lowering his voice, "I'll remember them! When I become famous, I'll hire them as extras in my project, and then we'll see who's laughing!"

The assistant at the front desk then called everyone to disembark. After getting off the bus, Matthew saw that Helen Herman had already arrived, apparently just finished negotiating with a bearded crew member. She led him over.

"Let's arrange accommodations for everyone first, and then I'll distribute the contracts to you."

She pointed to the receptionist, "Once you've signed, hand them over to Amanda."

"No problem." Matthew squeezed closer to Helen Herman. She glanced at him and continued, "After signing the contracts, have lunch at the hotel where you'll be staying. Then, at one o'clock, gather at the hotel entrance for transportation to the filming location for rehearsal."

"Do you have any other business?" She asked the bearded man next to her. Seeing him shake his head, she addressed the extras, "Follow me."

Matthew and Michael Sheen quickly followed. A long line of people followed behind Helen Herman and the bearded man as they entered the town.

Those from Angel Talent Agency were all staying at the same hotel. With Helen Herman looking young but experienced, she quickly sorted out the accommodation for the temporary actors with the assistance of the bearded crew member from the "Gladiator" crew. She then distributed contracts to each person.

The hotel conditions were quite good, with two people per room. Matthew became roommates with the only person he knew, Michael Sheen.

Realizing that they might be staying for a week, Matthew quickly organized his luggage and then opened the contract to take a look. It was similar to the temporary actor contracts he had signed before, but what he cared most about was the payment: a daily rate of $200!

If they really shot for a week, that would be $1,400 in income, almost surpassing his monthly salary at Red Penguin Company.

Having been in this circle for some time, Matthew understood how rare such opportunities were. He now placed even greater importance on Helen Herman, this young talent agent.

"Everything alright?" Matthew closed the contract and asked.

Michael Sheen was also meticulously reviewing it, as if it were a superstar contract.

"Not done yet," he replied without looking up.

Approaching lunchtime, Matthew and Michael Sheen left the room and went to the hotel lobby to hand over the contracts to Amanda, who was waiting there. Then they went to the restaurant to eat.

The crew seemed to be quite generous. Lunch wasn't extravagant, but it was considerably better than what Matthew usually had when eating alone.

After lunch, they rested for a while. Under Helen Herman's guidance, Matthew and the other temporary actors gathered on time and headed to the outskirts of the town, where the filming location was located.

It was a rehearsal without makeup. There were hundreds of temporary actors standing on the outskirts of the set. On both sides of the set were forests, with an open area in the middle, looking suitable for a battlefield.

"Everyone come over!"

The bearded man appeared with a megaphone. It seemed he was in charge here. "Stand in two rows along the edge of the forest, spread out! Don't stand in a line! You're a group of ignorant Germanic people!"

The hundreds of temporary actors rushed into the forest like headless flies, then came to the edge of the open area. It was chaotic, resembling a group of barbarians.

The bearded man stood at the highest point nearby. "When I say start, you all howl together! Furious howls! Got it?"

"Start!" he shouted loudly.

"Ah—"

Various strange cries instantly filled the air, echoing far away.

Matthew also shouted with all his might, his face contorted from the effort.

"Good!" The bearded man seemed very satisfied. "Let's practice the next item..."

For scenes like this, rehearsals before filming were essential. Just rehearsing the Germanic people and the opposing Roman legion took three days.

On the fourth day, filming began promptly in the early morning.

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