The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 454

"A whole crowd of reporters has gathered outside the office building."

Brown glanced at the entrance. "Should we use another way in?"

Matthew shook his head. "We're going through the front."

It was the release date for Dead Man's Chest, and according to his agreement with the producers, he was expected to answer questions from the press to generate more buzz and news.

Another Mercedes overtook Matthew's car from behind and pulled up to the building's entrance first. Three bodyguards quickly emerged and formed a simple cordon.

After the break-in, Matthew's security detail had been reinforced. Including Brown, the number of guards had been temporarily increased to four.

The twenty or so reporters who had been waiting to try their luck saw that the person getting out of the car was indeed Matthew, and they immediately swarmed him and his bodyguards.

Fortunately, most of them weren't paparazzi but journalists from mainstream media outlets, so there was still a semblance of order.

A female reporter with a Los Angeles Times press pass on her chest was the first to ask, "Matthew, what can you tell us about the record-breaking opening day for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest?"

Stepping out of the car, Matthew was ready with an answer. "The audience loved the film, and that's the best reward for all our hard work."As he finished, another reporter chimed in, "Based on the reviews, Johnny Depp's character, Captain Jack Sparrow, is clearly more popular than your character, Will Turner. What are your thoughts on that?"

The question was a veiled dig, which Matthew easily perceived. But given his friendship with Depp, he could say whatever he wanted without worrying about it being misconstrued as criticism.

"The movie is called Pirates of the Caribbean, and the leader of the pirates, Captain Jack Sparrow, is naturally the main protagonist. Depp is a great actor portraying a great character."

A male reporter from TMZ squeezed through the crowd, extending a microphone past a bodyguard toward Matthew's face. "According to reliable sources, you met with Robert Iger yesterday on South Beverly Street. Were you negotiating a new project?"

"No. It was just a casual meeting."

With that, he winked at Brown, who immediately separated from the other bodyguards and cleared a path for Matthew to the main entrance of the office building.

Although the reporters kept shouting questions, Matthew didn't answer any more of them.

He had, in fact, met with Robert yesterday to discuss a new project, and he wondered what Jerry Bruckheimer had done behind the scenes to get Robert to personally talk to him about a sequel to National Treasure.

He respected Robert enough to cut his meeting with Alexandra Daddario short and rush back to meet him. But while a meeting was one thing, getting paid for a movie was another entirely, and his position on that was clearer than ever.

Robert had also asked him about the possibility of starring in a Disney fairytale movie.

The film was an animated fantasy-romance musical drama with a $100 million budget. Amy Adams had already been cast as the female lead, while the male lead remained vacant.

Even if someone from Disney approached Helen about it later, Matthew would tell her to turn it down.

It was the wrong genre for him; he couldn't guarantee he wouldn't go crazy on set.

Of course, the main reason was his terrible singing voice. To say he wasn't very good at it would be a generous compliment. Like Tom Cruise and Leonardo DiCaprio, who never sang in their films or in public, Matthew was well aware that while some people sang for money, he had no reason to.

Besides, what real movie star had nothing better to do than pursue music? Never mind people like Will Smith and Johnny Depp—singers who had made a name for themselves but had since turned music into a hobby.

Inside the building, Matthew walked to his office, where Bella was busy with her three assistants. She now had several people working under her to help manage his fan relations and publicity.

Seeing Matthew, Bella greeted him with a smile. "Congratulations, Matthew! Pirates of the Caribbean set a new single-day box office record in North America yesterday."

"Thanks."

Even though Johnny Depp was the main star, Matthew was in a pretty good mood. His character, Will Turner, was still one of the two protagonists, and the film's box office success would be valuable capital for his future.

In fact, early that morning, he had already received the opening day statistics for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. Including the $18.5 million from preview screenings, it had set a new single-day North American box office record of $69.8 million.

Matthew went to his desk, turned on his computer, and pulled up Yahoo. Much of the film's premiere data had already been published by the media.

The average score on IMDb was 8.2, theatrical audiences had given it an "A" grade, and a media journalist poll gave it an overall score of 72.

Matching the first-day box office numbers, the word-of-mouth from audiences was generally positive.

But the reviews from critics were poor.

Dead Man's Chest was rated "Rotten" on Rotten Tomatoes. The film had received 75 reviews from professional critics, most of them negative, resulting in a freshness rating of 58%.

Matthew then navigated to the Rotten Tomatoes website and saw a slew of professional reviews, the majority of which were negative.

"This sequel is a big, flashy production that fails to deliver. The plot is illogical, devoid of humanistic thought, overly vague and convoluted, with several inconsistencies that are never even explained."

"Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is Captain Jack's story, but instead of the classic performances the trio once delivered, the elements that most captivated audiences have been replaced by an endless array of computer-generated effects. There are so many, in fact, that it feels like watching a video game." — New York Post

"Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest strives to prove that special effects alone can turn a film into something magical, and judging by the box office, it seems to have succeeded. Unfortunately, a classic only happens once, and it's difficult to try and make something more out of it than it already is." — Chicago Sun-Times

In stark contrast, fan sites were flooded with glowing reviews from the general public. The praise was overwhelming, as if everyone had been captivated by the defiance of Captain Jack Sparrow and the valor of Will Turner.

"Johnny Depp's brilliant performance, Matthew Horner's charismatic presence, the director's imaginative camerawork, and his masterful pacing make the film a joy to watch!"

"Excellent special effects, a spectacular soundtrack, and a plot with more emotional and suspenseful elements than the previous film—a fantastic commercial blockbuster."

Matthew only gave them a quick glance before closing the website.

Critics didn't buy tickets, and their opinions wouldn't add a single dime to a summer movie's box office.

From his very first leading role to this day, Matthew had always been keenly aware that he was a commercial superstar, and he couldn't let himself be lulled into a false sense of security by the critics.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, like most of Matthew's films over the years, would always be condemned by many, but that wouldn't stop it from becoming a massive commercial success.