The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 260

Armed with the massive box-office success of "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," Matthew, Depp, and Keira held a distinct advantage in their contract negotiations—even against Walt Disney, one of Hollywood's six major studios, and Jerry Bruckheimer, a producer with a Midas touch in the industry.

Big-name actors like them, the faces on the screen, had far more leverage in these talks than even the director, Gore Verbinski.

It was only natural that the actors and their agents wanted to capitalize on a hit film poised for a sequel, aiming to secure the most lucrative deals possible.

And, of course, Disney Pictures and Jerry Bruckheimer Films, as the producers and investors, wanted to keep salaries down to avoid bloating the sequels' budgets to astronomical levels.

Sequels to major blockbusters might seem easy to greenlight, but no one could guarantee a 100% success rate. The higher the investment, the greater the risk.

Matthew wasn't privy to the specifics of Depp and Keira's negotiations, but on his end, Helen's talks with Disney Pictures were not exactly smooth. The single, unyielding point of contention was the size of his paycheck.

Helen had initially pitched a $12 million fee for Matthew, but Disney, of course, couldn't agree to such a high number. Depp's salary would undoubtedly be even higher than Matthew's, and Keira's wouldn't be insignificant either.

Johnny Depp was a more established star than Matthew, so he was guaranteed a larger paycheck. And while Keira Knightley was a B-list actress in a leading role, and actresses were typically paid less than their male counterparts, her fee would still be a formidable sum.

Shelling out over $40 million just for the three leads was a cost Disney Pictures was unlikely to swallow.

And that was just the price for the second film. Although the second and third movies were planned, no actor or agent would be foolish enough to ask for the same pay for the third installment. The fee for the third film would inevitably be higher than the second—that was standard industry practice, and Disney Pictures couldn't refuse it.Ultimately, Helen's counteroffer for the film series came to $16 million.

That's right, she proposed $16 million for Matthew's work across both sequels, a figure that, if Disney agreed, would catapult him into the industry's top tier.

If Disney had accepted, Matthew would have become one of Hollywood's highest-paid actors. But such a proposal was, predictably, unacceptable to the studio.

As a result, the negotiations over his compensation dragged on, with the haggling continuing for three long months.

Just like in labor disputes, the sticking point was always the money.

After three months of tug-of-war, Helen and Matthew finally reached an agreement with the co-producers, represented by Disney Pictures.

Matthew then signed the agreement.

It was a contract over a hundred pages thick, detailing conditions down to his food, drink, and lodging. The main event, naturally, was his salary.

To reduce the upfront budget and mitigate their investment risk, Disney Pictures offered Matthew a payment structure of a base salary plus a share of the back-end profits. The base salary was $8 million, exactly what Matthew and Helen had been aiming for.

Given Matthew's status and actual box-office draw after the success of "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl," a $6 million fee for a commercial film with a more than adequate budget was reasonable. For a sequel, however, that fee would automatically increase by about 20 percent, making $8 million a perfectly fair number.

However, the first film had been so wildly successful that it put the lead actors in the driver's seat. Disney, though reluctant, agreed to a "reduced base salary with a share of the post-release profits."

The percentage was quite small: one percent of the North American box office gross once the film broke even, rising to a maximum of two percent if it crossed the $300 million mark.

Next came the payment for the third film, which was more complex to calculate. Matthew had to spend half a day reading through the contract before he could agree.

According to Helen, Matthew's salary for the third movie was directly tied to the box office performance of the second.

His base fee was set at $11 million, with an automatic increase of $3 million if the second film surpassed the first in both North American and worldwide box office receipts.

Then there was the back-end deal. The break-even point remained the cost of production, and the profit-sharing structure would be the same as for the second film if it recouped its costs in North America, but with an additional clause.

If the second film grossed over $400 million in North America, Matthew's share would exceed the 2 percent cap and rise to 3 percent.

There were other agreements covering TV rights, DVD sales, and internet distribution, but the percentages were all very low, none exceeding one percent.

Of course, when the agreement was signed, the contract clearly stipulated the production costs, using the budget already announced by Disney Pictures as the standard. The budget for the second film was set at $225 million, and the third was projected to be up to $250 million.

Lowering the upfront payment and adding a corresponding back-end share was precisely the outcome Disney Pictures wanted. It allowed them to control the investment size, reduce unnecessary risks, and tie the stars more firmly to the project's success.

This, in turn, was the result of multiple discussions between Matthew and Helen. It might seem like a concession to have his guaranteed salary reduced, but Matthew knew that the "Pirates of the Caribbean" series would eventually extend beyond three films and that the next two sequels were destined for massive success.

He and Helen were demanding a share of the North American box office gross, not a share of the profits. Box office numbers were collected by numerous agencies and published by the National Association of Theatre Owners, so even though a gross-point deal was several times smaller than a profit-point deal, there was no need to worry about Disney Pictures cooking the books on profit calculations.

Normally, it would be difficult for a Hollywood star of Matthew's caliber to get a piece of a film's back-end, let alone a percentage of the North American gross. But "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" had been so successful, and the characters played by Matthew and Depp so popular, that it left Disney Pictures in a relatively passive negotiating position.

Furthermore, Helen had managed to dig up some information suggesting Depp was being paid $15 million and $20 million for the two sequels, while Keira was getting $4 million and $5 million.

Whether they also had a back-end deal was a trade secret that Matthew and Helen couldn't uncover.

Much like Matthew's contract, all the post-release agreements beyond the base salary were confidential clauses, and he was forbidden from disclosing them to the public.

The salary figures also made it clear that Matthew, Depp, and Keira were divided into three tiers. Depp, the most popular and famous of the three, enjoyed A-list status. Matthew, thanks to the sequel, was now firmly in the second tier.

Keira was also in the second tier, but considering the mixed reception of Elizabeth Swann and the fact that she was an actress, the numbers were largely in line with her actual market value.

Again, it was normal for female stars in the second tier to be paid half as much as their male co-stars. It was a long-standing Hollywood practice of unequal pay for equal work, and actresses were generally treated worse than their male colleagues.

The $20 Million Club was an exclusive circle that, among actresses, only Julia Roberts had managed to enter. Yet even she, when later starring in a new film opposite a less prominent male actor, still received a smaller salary for the lead role.

That was the reality of Hollywood. Even the most powerful and iconic actresses of the day, let alone Keira, were powerless against the old system.

Once Disney had settled the contracts for Matthew, Depp, and Keira, they called a press conference to officially announce that the creative team—Jerry Bruckheimer, Gore Verbinski—and the principal cast—Depp, Matthew, and Keira—would all be returning for the "Pirates of the Caribbean" sequels. The second and third films were slated for release in the summers of 2006 and 2007, respectively.

"I'm thrilled to be returning to 'Pirates of the Caribbean.' It's going to be a wonderful journey," Matthew told the reporters, his expression one of genuine excitement. "The team has the best director, the best actors, the best cinematographers."

He praised everyone involved before concluding, "I'm confident that 'Pirates of the Caribbean' will become one of the most successful film series in cinema history!"

With that, Matthew sidestepped a question from a persistent journalist asking if he and Keira would be getting back together. He turned and left the press room, heading into an adjacent conference room with Depp.

"Hey, Keira." Matthew walked in and greeted Keira, who had just arrived. He looked her over and remarked, "You're darker than before."

Keira replied, "It's from being on an outdoor set."

Matthew leaned in closer and asked in a voice only they could hear, "Are you free tonight?"

Keira hesitated for a moment before slowly shaking her head. "I have a six o'clock flight back to London."

Just then, Jerry Bruckheimer entered and announced loudly, "Ladies and gentlemen, we're about to start working together again. The actors need to coordinate their schedules. Filming is tentatively scheduled for late 2004 to 2005. I'll get the exact schedule to your agents once it's confirmed."