The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 247

August had just begun, and while Pirates of the Caribbean was still enjoying a feverish run at the box office, news began to surface in the media that negotiations between Disney Pictures and the film’s three main stars were not going well. It was reported, in particular, that Matthew Horner was preparing to star in a remake of Dawn of the Dead, which was in development at Universal Pictures.

Over the next two or three days, this story appeared on the front pages of numerous media outlets.

"Matthew Horner to Team Up with Universal Pictures for Remake of Zombie Classic Dawn of the Dead!"

"Famed Producer Sean Daniel Confirms Deal with Matthew Horner; Will Turner to Enter the World of Zombies!"

"George A. Romero Slams Universal Pictures for Recklessly Altering His Vision, Doesn't See Matthew Horner in the Lead Role."

There were many similar reports, and it was clear that Sean Daniel, an experienced A-list producer, was cleverly leveraging the buzz from Pirates of the Caribbean to launch the first wave of advance publicity.

On the morning of August 4th, the film’s production team held a press conference at Universal Studios, where they officially signed a contract with Matthew.

The production team had previously invited George A. Romero to participate, but Romero, deeply displeased that they had rejected his idea of a female-led story, declined the invitation. Some of the media reports quoting Romero's comments were not fabricated.

But Romero was no George Lucas, and Dawn of the Dead was no Star Wars. Like the vast majority of directors, Romero held no rights to the films he had once made; all rights belonged to the studios. Since Universal Pictures had purchased the remake rights, the old man had no recourse but to vent his frustration to the media.

"I've worked with Matthew twice before, and he's an excellent actor."Facing a large crowd of reporters, Sean Daniel was naturally full of praise for Matthew. "I'm delighted to be working with him again. Adding Matthew to the film is the most important and welcome news for our cast."

He went on to discuss the film's investment size, a rough shooting schedule, and its North American release date. As Matthew had learned earlier, the publicly stated production budget was $28 million. Filming was scheduled from late August to mid-October, with a release planned for mid-April of the following year.

The reporters then bombarded Matthew with questions, many of them quite perplexed by his decision to appear in such a small-scale film.

"When Zack and Sean approached me, I was impressed by their completely fresh take," Matthew explained, naturally adopting the persona of a genre enthusiast, just as he had done for Pirates of the Caribbean. "I’ve been fascinated by zombies since I was a kid. All my ideas stemmed from wondering what the world would be like if death wasn't final, if you were only half-dead while your body was still alive. That’s why I fell in love with the films Romero made."

Matthew didn't say anything particularly groundbreaking at the signing press conference. With Pirates of the Caribbean still in the midst of its theatrical run and the buzz from his romance with Keira and the Harvard-Westlake School incident still fresh, his mere presence at the signing was big enough news. He didn't need to add any extra fluff.

At the end of the press conference, Matthew and Sean signed the contract.

Of course, like all signing press conferences, it was merely a ceremony; the official contract had been signed earlier.

After several rounds of heated negotiations between Helen and Sean, the biggest sticking point had been his fee. To reduce upfront costs, Universal Pictures had agreed to give him a share of the box office gross, albeit a very small percentage.

Ultimately, his base salary was set at $5 million, with the film's $28 million production cost serving as the trigger point for his back-end deal. Once the box office gross surpassed $80 million, he would receive three percent; at $90 million, four percent; and at $100 million, five percent.

Five percent was also the cap.

This was a common Hollywood payment structure, designed to lower initial production costs, incentivize the creators, and share the risk. It was not at all rare among B-list stars.

After the press conference, Sean made a point of finding Matthew.

"The shoot will be in Toronto," he told Matthew. "The crew found a dilapidated shopping mall there. Get ready to start filming soon."

Matthew nodded.

Sean added, "I heard from Helen that your personal blog has a lot of followers?"

"You could say that," Matthew replied. "Tens of thousands of active followers is something."

After Pirates of the Caribbean became a hit, the number of his blog subscribers had surged past 100,000, though the number of active users was relatively smaller. Helen had suggested letting the agency manage his personal blog on his behalf, but he hadn't agreed yet, feeling the time wasn't right.

"Excellent," Sean continued. "I have information that a book called the 'Zombie Survival Guide' is being released by Three Rivers Press in September. It would be useful for promoting the film. Could you recommend the book at the top of your blog?"

After a moment's thought, Matthew said, "Alright, you can send it to me in advance."

The title "Zombie Survival Guide" seemed familiar, something he might have seen on his smartphone. He recalled reading an article about the movie Resident Evil, and remembered the editor mentioning that the author of Brad Pitt's World War Z was the same person behind the "Zombie Survival Guide."

After his conversation with Sean, Matthew soon left Universal Studios in Helen's car, where he also told her about Sean's proposal.

"Matthew, your personal blog is becoming a good platform for self-promotion and publicity," Helen noted, not objecting. She added seriously, "It needs to be managed properly. If possible, it would be best to entrust it to someone."

"I know," Matthew said. He didn't want to hand over full control to the agency, which wouldn't be in his best interest. "I can handle it for now, but I'll think about it later when I get too busy."

Lately, he had been posting about three times a week. Even when he didn't have time to write, he would still post a few of his latest photos. The blog had become a gathering place for his most ardent fans.

Over the past month or so, his blog posts had centered on four main topics: Pirates of the Caribbean, showcasing his romance with Keira, the photo shoot at Harvard-Westlake School, and Dawn of the Dead.

While Matthew wasn't a professional, he wasn't so foolish as to be unaware that bloggers were a novelty at this time.

After they chatted a bit more about the blog, Matthew turned to Helen's negotiations with Disney Pictures. "How are the talks for the Pirates of the Caribbean sequel going?" he asked.

"Not very well," Helen answered bluntly. "Disney Pictures is offering $14 million for two sequels."

The two Pirates of the Caribbean sequels were meant to be filmed back-to-back, so no one would be foolish enough to treat it as payment for just one film.

Matthew frowned. "That’s not a sincere offer."

At his current level, $7 million for a single film was by no means a small sum; it was still in the upper echelon for all B-list stars. The problem was that Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl had been such a massive success that the two sequels couldn't be calculated that way.

Sequels to blockbuster films were generally a less risky proposition. A payout of $7 million for the third film, should the second Pirates movie become another box office smash, would be not just low, but insultingly so.

Helen understood this, and so did Matthew.

"Even if you split it, a salary of $7 million for the second film might seem generous, but it's not much at all," Helen grumbled. "Disney Pictures is deliberately ignoring the fact that you're starring in a major film sequel during these negotiations."

Matthew wasn't in any hurry. "Just take your time. We have plenty of it."

Since the film was selling so well, all three main actors, even the least prominent Keira, had shifted their negotiation positions with the production team and Disney Pictures. The initiative now belonged entirely to the actors, and no production team or studio would dare replace a lead actor without taking a colossal risk.

Besides, Will Turner was no longer the humble blacksmith he once was, but the universally beloved Mighty Blacksmith.

Helen added, "Standard industry practice is for a lead actor's salary in a sequel to increase by twenty to thirty percent of their current rate. For two sequels, Disney Pictures isn't even offering $20 million."

She didn't elaborate, but Matthew knew exactly what she was getting at.

As the car entered Burbank, Helen remembered something else and advised Matthew, "Never sign more than one contract with any single studio at any given time."

Matthew nodded. "I know. I'm not an idiot."

He was no longer the desperate, unknown C-list star he once was; he was definitely cautious in that regard.

Arriving at the Angel Agency, Matthew got out of the car but didn't go inside, preparing to switch to his own vehicle to go pick up Keira, who was in training at the Disney studio.

Seeing no reporters around, Helen asked, "Have you two talked about the breakup?"

"Yes," Matthew said, opening his car door. "Contact Ilana. Tell her to wait for my signal next Monday."