The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 285

In North America, where the vast majority of horror films—especially those in the slasher genre—have burn-bright, fade-fast theatrical runs, Dawn of the Dead took a significant dip at the box office on Sunday, dropping forty percent from Saturday to earn $7.1 million.

When the box office results were tallied on Monday, Dawn of the Dead reigned supreme atop the North American charts with an opening weekend haul of $34.1 million.

In just three days, the film had already surpassed its production budget at the domestic box office.

A film that cost a mere $28 million and grossed $34.1 million on its opening weekend was bound to attract widespread attention.

"$34.1 million! Who would have thought!"

Setting aside the newspaper, Doug looked at Goldsman. "The opening weekend for The Bourne Identity was just over $27 million."

Goldsman was reading a document that had just come through the fax machine. He looked up and asked, "Impressive numbers, but can a zombie horror film really be compared to a secret agent thriller?"

Doug nodded. Aside from the genre, the two films had a certain comparability—one was a remake, the other based on a popular novel, and both had a built-in audience. However, The Bourne Identity had a budget of $60 million, while Dawn of the Dead cost less than half that amount.

As he drew the comparison, it suddenly occurred to Doug that Matt Damon's audience appeal during the release of The Bourne Identity wasn't nearly as strong as Matthew Horner's was now.

"How much do you think Dawn of the Dead will make at the North American box office?" he asked Goldsman."Definitely not as much as Bourne," Goldsman stated confidently. "CinemaScore is projecting Dawn of the Dead will finish its run with around $80 million."

That figure was roughly in line with what Doug himself had estimated. "It only cost $28 million to make! With $80 million domestic, and considering the foreign box office, it could hit anywhere from the mid to high $200 million range worldwide. That’s a pretty impressive return for Universal Pictures on such a small investment."

It was clear that Dawn of the Dead was going to be a massive success.

Goldsman nodded, a hint of envy in his voice. "If only we could have a return that high."

In truth, Doug knew his colleague was under considerable pressure. A production with a $100 million budget wasn't considered top-tier in modern Hollywood, but it was still a major undertaking. If it failed, Goldsman would likely be blacklisted by the six major studios and shut out of any future mainstream productions.

As the director, his own situation wasn't much different from Goldsman's, but thankfully he had The Bourne Identity, which was already poised to become a series, giving him a bit more stability.

Doug understood perfectly that it was this pressure that had pushed Goldsman to cast two of Hollywood's biggest stars—actors who commanded high salaries but also guaranteed greater box office appeal and media buzz. Take Matthew, for example; Doug refused to believe that his affair with Scarlett Johansson hadn't been meticulously planned.

The current box office numbers for Dawn of the Dead were a perfect example of how well that hype had worked.

For some reason, Doug felt that, purely from a star-power perspective, Matt Damon couldn't compare to Matthew. After attending the premiere party last week, he had made a point of trying to figure out which of Matthew's statements had been genuine and which were just excessive modesty or outright lies.

Using the needs of his new project as a starting point, he mentally pictured Matt Damon and Matthew Horner and made a few comparisons.

Matt Damon's acting was slightly better than Matthew's, but only by a limited margin. He was also a decent screenwriter, but that was essentially useless in this context.

Physically, Matthew was far superior to Matt Damon, with an athletic build and a rugged masculinity that appealed to North American audiences. He had professional training in handling firearms, was a "plug-and-play" type of actor, and had an excellent reputation with every crew he worked with. Anyone Doug asked who had worked with Matthew Horner would invariably use the words "hardworking" and "dedicated" in their comments.

And then there was the perception that Matthew was more shameless than Matt Damon.

Doug didn't underestimate that aspect; it was reflected in the countless media frenzies surrounding Dawn of the Dead.

How many previously uninterested eyes had been drawn to Dawn of the Dead by all the hype?

Being audacious and bold when it came to generating buzz was definitely a major advantage for a Hollywood star.

A knock on the door interrupted Doug's thoughts. An assistant walked in with a fax, handed it to Goldsman, and left.

Goldsman scanned the page and announced, "The stats from Universal are in."

Doug looked at him curiously. Goldsman didn't keep him waiting. "According to the audience survey Universal conducted during the opening weekend of Dawn of the Dead, the first-week viewers fell into four main categories. The first group went to see it because of the original film's influence. The second was drawn in by Matthew himself or the news surrounding him. The third went because they couldn't find a better option among the new releases, and the fourth was a mix of other factors."

He glanced at the document again. "The first group accounts for thirty-seven percent, the second for thirty-five percent, and the rest is split among the others."

"Does that mean..." Doug stood up. "Matthew Horner's personal appeal brought in a third of the opening weekend box office for Dawn of the Dead?"

He was astonished. "That's a staggering percentage!"

Goldsman remained calm. "You can't put it exactly like that. The third of the audience that came for him can't all be considered his fans. A large part of them came because of the media hype."

Doug nodded but countered, "Ultimately, it all comes back to him."

Stars attract attention in a myriad of ways. That attention translates into financial returns for the films they're in, which is precisely what makes them so valuable to commercial movies.

Compared to that, things like acting ability were secondary.

Goldsman handed the fax to Doug. "No more waiting. Now that we've finished the script, send Horner an invitation to audition. Have him come in at the end of May."

Matthew had proven himself perfectly capable of drawing a crowd in modern action roles. Sending him an invitation early was a good idea; it would give the actor time to prepare and adjust his schedule. It was also a professional courtesy to Helen.

Doug agreed. "Matthew would be a good candidate."

Suddenly, another question popped into his head. "What about Brad Pitt?"

Just last week, Brad Pitt's agent had put his client's name forward for the role.

"No rush," Goldsman said immediately. "Have you looked at Brad's resume? He has a great reputation, a standard A-list star, but how many commercial productions has he actually carried at the box office? In the last three years—none! If you go back five years, the only film he truly sold was Ocean's Eleven, and that was an ensemble piece where he wasn't even the main lead."

Doug thought back and realized it seemed to be true.

Goldsman added, "Among the current crop of male A-listers, Brad Pitt is one of the most average in terms of commercial appeal. On top of that, he wants to bring capital into the film, but we don't need the funds right now; the $100 million will be available soon."

"Should we turn him down?" Doug asked.

"No. Send him an audition invitation," Goldsman said, his strategy clear. "We'll wait and see the numbers for his film Troy, which comes out in early May."

It was the best course of action. If Troy didn't perform well enough at the box office and Brad Pitt failed to demonstrate sufficient drawing power, they could find a reason to reject him at the audition—perhaps he wasn't right for the part or something similar.

Besides, Goldsman was skeptical about Pitt bringing capital to the set. An actor who invests in a project has to be a producer, and that could become a real headache if problems arose.

There was a current counterexample in Hollywood: Vin Diesel constantly brought money into projects and consistently sabotaged the director on set.

Goldsman would never allow a character like that on his set, and Brad's reputation in that regard wasn't exactly sterling.

Agreeing to bring in outside capital would also mean that many of their preliminary plans would have to be pushed back, and the negotiations alone would take a significant amount of time.

In any case, he was in no hurry to make a decision. There was still time to see how Troy's box office numbers played out.

Doug discussed the film's preparations with Goldsman a little longer, then left the office. Goldsman watched the door close, thought for a moment, and dialed Helen's number.

"Helen, you mentioned you were interested in the script for my new project?"

Having decided to invite Matthew to audition, Goldsman didn't mind doing her a small favor. "I have a copy of the script here, and I don't need it at the moment. Come by and pick it up sometime. Just don't pass the script on to anyone else."

He hung up the phone and pulled a copy of the screenplay from his drawer, ready for Helen to come and collect it.

...

Since Universal Pictures and the Dawn of the Dead crew hadn't scheduled much post-release promotion, Matthew quickly returned to the set of National Treasure. The remaining scenes were mostly interior shots to be filmed at the studio.