The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 102

"Who is it?" Matthew was curious; not many people could claim to be a common enemy to all three of them, so he couldn't help but ask, "Tom? The instructor?"

James sat up and shook his head. "No."

He looked at Michael. "It's Tom Hardy. His agent contacted the producer, Jerry Bruckheimer, and landed him a small supporting role through an internal audition."

Michael frowned slightly. "An internal audition?"

"Yeah," James said. "I heard that Hardy's experience on Band of Brothers played a big part in his audition."

Matthew, for his part, shared what he knew. "Director Ridley Scott took over the project from Simon West and is on a tight schedule. All the actors are being cast through internal auditions. It's a war drama based on real events, and even the mandatory military training for the cast has been shortened, so actors who've recently been in similar films will have an advantage."

"What role are you auditioning for?" James asked.

Matthew answered, "Sergeant Hoot."

James remarked with a touch of envy, "That's one of the major roles, much more substantial than mine."

Michael warned them, "Tom has always been cocky and arrogant, and I doubt he's forgotten that incident at the bar. James, Matthew, if you get cast, watch out for him. He might try to pull something."Matthew countered, however, "This is a Ridley Scott and Jerry Bruckheimer film. He wouldn't dare."

James nodded in agreement.

"Then again, what am I talking about?" Matthew couldn't help but shake his head. "We're talking as if we've already gotten the parts."

James and Michael laughed, and James asked, "Michael, aren't you going to try out? That way, the three of us could be on the same set again."

Michael considered it for a moment. "I'll go back and talk to my agent, but it's a long shot. My agent doesn't have a direct line to Ridley Scott or Jerry Bruckheimer."

After all, the only reason Matthew and James even had a shot at the internal audition for Black Hawk Down was thanks to their agents.

The three of them ate until almost two in the afternoon, after which they each went their separate ways.

Matthew didn't leave Burbank, instead heading to the Angel Agency to meet with Helen. She had already secured him an audition for Black Hawk Down, and due to the tight schedule, it was set for the following Tuesday.

Helen had spent the last few days meeting with Ridley Scott at a temporary production site in Pasadena. All things considered, Matthew's chances of passing the audition were still relatively high.

She estimated his chances at fifty percent.

"Don't get complacent," Helen warned, wanting to make sure Matthew didn't slip up. "If Jerry Bruckheimer is at the audition and turns you down, there's nothing Ridley Scott can do."

"I know." Matthew couldn't afford to be careless.

After discussing the Black Hawk Down audition, Helen suddenly changed the subject. "How are things with Britney?"

"Good."

Matthew was a little surprised by Helen's personal question. "Since when do you care about my life outside of work?"

"Outside of work?" Helen's tone sharpened slightly. "Matthew, do you really think your personal life is separate from your job?"

She gave him a sly smile. "For actors, especially stars, there's no such thing as 'off the clock.' Your personal life is part of the job."

Matthew had to admit that Helen was right.

"Then don't worry," he said simply. "Britney and I are stable, and we have no intention of going public with our relationship yet. Besides, no journalists have noticed anything so far."

In reality, Matthew knew full well that the main reason the reporters and paparazzi hadn't noticed them was because he and Britney saw each other so rarely.

There was nothing to be done about it; they were both busy with their work, with their careers.

Helen was curious, but she didn't ask any more questions.

She figured it wouldn't take long for the young couple to break up, being so far apart from each other.

Time and distance are the ultimate relationship killers. In Hollywood, plenty of married or dating couples had broken up for that very reason.

What she hadn't expected was for Matthew to speak as if he and Britney were in a genuinely stable relationship.

She glanced at Matthew, considered Britney's public persona, and quietly wondered: Perhaps these two lovebirds, wired so differently, have found a unique way to get along?

...

Matthew stayed at the Angel Agency for the rest of the day. When he got home and finished a quick dinner, he found the book Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War and began to flip through it. It was a work of non-fiction, featuring interviews with many of the participants in the actual events.

For instance, the author noted that while some American troops entered Mogadishu as part of a UN humanitarian peacekeeping mission, the Rangers were simultaneously executing a U.S. interventionist policy. Their goal was to weaken the Aidid junta by capturing high-ranking Somali generals, with the ultimate aim of overthrowing Aidid himself.

Matthew had reviewed the book multiple times, but he knew perfectly well there would be a significant difference between the source material and the final script. Black Hawk Down: A Story of Modern War could only serve as essential reference.

Ridley Scott's bearded assistant, Jack, had informed him that the internal audition would focus on résumés and appearance.

Matthew suddenly remembered Hawk Breton, the instructor who had trained him for his Ronald Speirs audition, and he hastily pulled out his phone to find the man's number.

Breton answered the call, and Matthew quickly explained the situation, telling him he wanted to hire him for a few days of training before his audition for Black Hawk Down.

Breton happened to be available and readily agreed. After all, Matthew was paying for his services, not asking for a freebie.

Though he wasn't sure how much it would ultimately help, Matthew spent the next two days training. In addition to studying the materials provided by the Angel Agency, he once again borrowed Helen's small farm to begin a short, intensive session on basic military skills.

Helen supported his decision, and Matthew asked her to use a digital camera to take a few photos of the training.

The intensive preparation continued until the day before the audition, and although it only lasted a few days, Matthew felt as if he were back on the set of Band of Brothers.

The final training session lasted only half a day, after which Matthew paid Breton and left the farm to return to Westwood. He meticulously cleaned himself up, cutting his overgrown hair short and shaving the beard he hadn't touched in a while, all to better fit the image of Sergeant Hoot.

Back in his apartment, Matthew turned on his computer and went online. A search on Yahoo yielded no news about casting for Black Hawk Down, as if the auditions were being kept within a very specific circle.

The internet here was far more popular and developed than Matthew could have imagined, and it allowed him to enjoy all the conveniences it brought.

Matthew browsed several movie sites before landing on one dedicated to box office statistics. He discovered that Gladiator had ended its domestic run a few days prior, with a final North American gross of over $187 million. Its worldwide total was already approaching $400 million, and the film's international run was far from over.

He then read a few more news articles related to Gladiator and learned from them that the film had already entered the top 40 highest-grossing films of all time and was a strong contender for the highest-grossing film of the year.

Such were the differences that came with time. Matthew vaguely remembered that, sometime after 2010, films grossing over a billion dollars would start appearing regularly.

But for now, there was only one film, Titanic, that had grossed over a billion dollars worldwide.

It was already late, but before going to bed, Matthew took out a flash drive and uploaded the training photos Helen had taken to his personal blog.

His blog now had five subscribers, although the only person who ever left a comment was still Ilana.

After writing a short accompanying post, Matthew shut down his computer and went to bed. He woke up on time the next morning, got ready, called Helen, and then drove to the city of Pasadena to prepare for his Black Hawk Down audition.