The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 359

Helen said it was a watch endorsement, and given her strategy, it certainly wouldn't be for a low-end brand. High-end brands tended to be far more particular about their standards.

Back then, there was even a saying: "The poor show off their cars, the rich show off their watches."

Helen must have put in considerable effort to land him an endorsement from a watch brand.

"What brand?" Matthew asked curiously.

"Rolex," Helen continued. "You'll be one of their global brand ambassadors. I expect someone from Rolex headquarters will fly out to Los Angeles next month to sign the contract with us."

Matthew asked again, "Isn't there a test, like there was with Mercedes-Benz?"

Helen shook her head. "No."

Her voice remained calm and even. "As long as you're on board, we can simply sign the contract when the Rolex representatives arrive in Los Angeles."

Matthew shrugged. "Why would I object?"

He added, "I just thought it might be Patek Philippe.""Patek Philippe doesn't use celebrity endorsers. They've always stuck to a marketing strategy where the product itself is the star." Knowing Matthew wasn't entirely familiar with the landscape, Helen elaborated, "For a popular celebrity, Rolex is basically the pinnacle of watch endorsements you can get. Rolex is the king of branding, of value stability, and of distribution channels, whereas Patek Philippe is the king of the high-end niche."

She paused for a moment, then put it more simply: "Patek Philippe is positioned as exclusive, high-end luxury, while Rolex is mainstream luxury."

Matthew recalled Helen telling him that the very top-tier brands generally don't use celebrity endorsers.

He knew, of course, that Rolex was still a luxury brand, and landing an endorsement like this would definitely boost his prestige. Helen had never mentioned it before, likely because she wanted to prove that her skills as an agent were on par with those of the top agents at the major firms.

A Rolex endorsement didn't conflict with his Mercedes-Benz deal, and since the brand was interested, he would certainly accept.

Helen added at that moment, "Rolex is looking to sign you to a five-year contract, and—"

"They have good timing," Matthew couldn't resist cutting in. "With two Pirates of the Caribbean sequels on the horizon, I'm guaranteed to stay popular for at least five more years."

"Rolex isn't a charity," Helen said, finding his observation perfectly normal. She continued, "The fee is fifteen million dollars for five years. Plus, as part of the deal, Rolex will provide you with a full range of their high-end watches for both personal and public use. The contract requires you to wear a Rolex at high-profile events like premieres, award ceremonies, and on talk shows."

"No problem," Matthew replied, ever the pragmatist. "I guess I can save some money on watches from now on."

Then he asked, "Isn't that fee a little on the low side?"

Helen seemed to have anticipated his question and had an answer prepared. "You’re only one of their global endorsers—Rolex has many. This time, they're bringing on three new ones besides you: Swiss tennis star Roger Federer and supermodel Cindy Crawford. Of them, Roger Federer has the longest contract, probably ten years for twenty million dollars. Cindy Crawford signed a similar three-year contract, and as a woman, her endorsement fee is likely a bit lower than yours."

"I trust your judgment on this," Matthew said, more than satisfied. After all, her commission was tied directly to his earnings. Then, he asked curiously, "Does Rolex often sponsor tennis stars?"

"You don't usually watch tennis, so you wouldn't know," Helen explained casually. "Rolex sponsors several major tournaments. Roger Federer is Swiss, and endorsements from the tennis world are generally considered more upscale."

She paused for a moment before adding, "We'll have to discuss the details when the Rolex representatives arrive."

Matthew nodded. "Sounds good. Just let me know when they get here."

If he managed to sign with Rolex, he'd be making seven to eight million dollars a year from endorsements alone. And as long as he stayed popular, he could land even more.

Helen was clearly thinking along the same lines. "According to my plan, you should be able to land at least five endorsement deals. Mercedes-Benz and Rolex are just the beginning."

"Don't worry," Matthew said. He knew Helen well enough to read between the lines. "I have no intention of jumping ship when we have such a good thing going."

Unless another company made him an offer he simply couldn't refuse, staying with the Angel Agency was the smartest move for the time being. He was their number one star, and the agency's resources—and Helen's personal attention—would always be focused on him first. They were even focusing all their efforts on the publicity surrounding his romance with Charlize.

He wouldn't get that kind of treatment at another agency.

More importantly, the career path Helen had mapped out for him was largely in line with his own ambitions.

"Anything else?" Matthew glanced at the wall clock. "If not, I should get going."

"Actually, there is one thing I need your help with," Helen said directly. "Eva Green, an actress I signed, bombed in her first Hollywood film, which makes her future career path very difficult. The Pirates of the Caribbean sequels are casting for several supporting roles. There's a part for a witch, and I think her look is perfect for it. If you get a chance, could you help her out?"

Matthew considered it for a moment. It shouldn't be too difficult. "I'll see what I can do," he said.

...

After leaving Helen's office, he hadn't even made it downstairs when his phone rang. Matthew pulled it out and saw it was Michael Fassbender, calling to invite him out for drinks at a pub that evening. James would be there too.

He stood there for a moment after the call, first texting Charlize, then heading back to Helen's office to ask for a copy of the scripts for the two Pirates of the Caribbean sequels to read.

Matthew had received the scripts for the next two sequels from Disney Pictures about a month ago and had read through them many times. Even so, the screenplays weren't finalized yet, which was typical for a Jerry Bruckheimer production.

Of course, the core plot was unlikely to change.

While the scripts for the two sequels still maintained the three-protagonist structure, they had been significantly adjusted to reflect the popularity of the characters from Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl: Captain Jack Sparrow, Will Turner, and Elizabeth Swann.

Most noticeably, Will Turner's role was being expanded. While he still wasn't as central as Captain Jack Sparrow, he could now be considered a co-lead, driving the story forward alongside him.

Given the film's limited runtime, cutting down the screen time of the most popular character, Captain Jack Sparrow, was out of the question. Instead, Will Turner's role was expanded at the expense of Elizabeth Swann's.

While Elizabeth Swann had felt like a supporting character in The Curse of the Black Pearl, these two scripts confirmed she would be a true supporting role in the sequels.

He wondered if Keira Knightley would have a problem with that. She had been at the engagement party the other day, but Matthew had only spoken with her briefly and hadn't mentioned the script or her role.

Regardless, Keira Knightley would still be billed as the female lead.

Her career path was changing, too. Matthew had heard Helen mention that after the King Arthur fiasco, Keira Knightley had no plans to do any more big commercial films aside from the Pirates sequels. She was shifting her focus to independent literary dramas, and her new film, Pride and Prejudice, was set to be released this year.

Matthew figured it would be hard to see Keira Knightley in any commercial films outside of the Pirates franchise, not just because of her own choices, but also due to the fallout from King Arthur's failure.

...

Filming for the two Pirates of the Caribbean sequels was set to begin at the end of the month.

After looking through the two scripts, Matthew saw it was nearly the end of the business day. He left the Angel Agency and drove to the bar where he was meeting his friends. Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy arrived within the next ten minutes.

The three of them had a good time, drinking and chatting about everything from Hollywood gossip to political topics.

Matthew learned that Michael and James were not going to return to London, but were staying in Los Angeles, where there was less competition, but also fewer opportunities.

This was certainly good news for Matthew.

"I've got a project in the works," Matthew said, wanting to help Michael and James. "I'm one of the producers and I'll be playing the lead. It's a film based on the graphic novel 300, a military epic with a couple of excellent supporting roles."

He added, "It'll probably require a lot of physical training before shooting starts."

Matthew didn't say any more. It was up to the two of them to decide if they were interested; he wasn't going to pressure them.

...

A few days flew by. At the end of the month, Matthew put his other commitments on hold and headed over to the Disney studios.