The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 502: Accusation of Racism!

As soon as it was time for work on Monday, Spike Lee walked into his North Hollywood studio. It was a small setup, just two offices, and like most studios bearing the names of Hollywood stars and directors, it was essentially a front company—primarily for tax purposes and handling business he'd rather not deal with personally.

"Good morning."

A blonde woman greeted Spike Lee respectfully.

Spike gave her a slight nod and was already at his office door when he remembered something. "Alice, Jackson will be here later. When he arrives, send him straight to my office."

The blonde woman knew this Jackson was her boss's agent and immediately replied, "Of course."

Spike added, "Bring me a few copies of today's paper."

"They're on your desk."

The studio was nearly empty, with a minimal staff; the blonde woman served as both his assistant and the receptionist.

Spike entered his office and settled behind a wide desk. A cup of steaming coffee awaited him, along with several newspapers already opened to the entertainment section.

He lifted his cup and took a long sip of coffee, his gaze falling on the entertainment section of the Los Angeles Times.The front page was dominated by a striking image: a man in a red cape, marching forward with a spear.

Spike frowned slightly, but there was nothing to say. Even though the man was Matthew Horner as Leonidas, he had anticipated this outcome from the first day of the film's North American release.

With nearly $40 million on its first day and no strong competition, it would have been a shock if the film hadn't claimed the top spot at the box office.

As he continued to scan the page, a headline next to the photo jumped out at him—300 Smashes Records in its Opening Week!

"Record-breaker?" Spike pinched the bridge of his nose. "Did it really pull in over a hundred million in its first week?"

For the past three days, he'd been running all over town, networking, and gathering like-minded allies. The film's performance was directly relevant to the next phase of his plans.

And despite how much the lead actor irritated him, he had forced himself to watch it.

"Last weekend's epic, 300, took the North American box office by storm," the article began. "The film, depicting the famous Battle of Thermopylae from Greek history, easily overshadowed other new releases, much like the Spartan warriors fearlessly resisting the invading Persian army."

On its opening day, 300 surpassed the $37.2 million earned by The Matrix Reloaded, setting a new single-day box office record for an R-rated film at $38.5 million! It also marked the second-best November opening day in the North American market, trailing only Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire's $40.11 million.

However, 300 proved to have even stronger legs than Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, pulling in another $34.6 million on Saturday and $29.95 million on Sunday. It soared past Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire's $102.68 million weekend, grossing a massive $130.05 million. This not only set a new box office record for a November weekend in North America but also made 300 the first R-rated film in history to cross the $100 million mark in its opening weekend!

In the face of 300's powerful performance, the previous week's box office champion, Clint Eastwood's Flags of Our Fathers, fell to third place with $6.21 million in its second weekend. The second spot was claimed by 20th Century Fox's Borat, which earned $26.45 million.

"It comes as no surprise that the North American market is always buzzing when a Horner film is released. This week, the total box office jumped seventy-five percent from last week, reaching $154.06 million..."

Reading this, Spike angrily tossed the newspaper aside. 300 was even more successful than he had anticipated!

The first R-rated film in history to gross over $100 million on its opening weekend in North America.

Whenever anyone recalled that record in the future, they would naturally remember that Matthew Horner starred in the film!

That bastard was etching his name into cinema history...

Spike couldn't help but shake his head. How many consecutive box office hits had Matthew Horner starred in now? There were so many he couldn't even keep track.

He had originally thought the violence, brutality, and bloodlust of 300 would be a box office liability, but it turned out to be a non-issue.

He then picked up another paper and read an interview where Matthew Horner addressed questions about the film's violence.

"The violence depicted in this film won't offend anyone because, ultimately, it's not presented in an outrageous way," Horner was quoted. "People enjoy the film; they're drawn to its creativity. In my opinion, the film's greatest success is the word-of-mouth from the audience. You only achieve true success when viewers connect with the film and actively promote it themselves."

Spike looked up at the ceiling. It was perfectly logical—a point that even someone like him, who despised Horner, couldn't deny.

He considered his own career. After more than a decade in the independent film business, and his earlier work with the Coppola family, he still hadn't broken into the top echelon. If he weren't a black director, he wouldn't be as well-known as he was, especially with the rapidly changing landscape of twenty-first-century Hollywood.

A film could be niche, but it couldn't afford to be obscure and pretentious, artistic for the sake of being artistic.

Strictly speaking, 300 was also a relatively niche film. But it relied on Matthew to sell the spectacle and on its director's skill to create a mainstream blockbuster effect.

Spike pushed the newspapers away, a single thought circling in his mind: would 300 set the all-time North American box office record for an R-rated film? The current record-holder, The Passion of the Christ, had been a major cultural event in its time.

The next second, a smile spread across Spike's face. 300 didn't stand a chance. His plan was about to be set in motion, and if everything went well, the film's triumphant run would end on a very sour note.

A knock came from the office door. The blonde assistant opened it and announced, "Mr. James Jackson just called. He's downstairs."

Spike gave a curt nod. "Send him up."

Less than five minutes later, a middle-aged white man with glasses entered Spike Lee's office. After a brief greeting, they got straight to the point.

"I just met with Naomie Harris, the actress Jada Smith introduced us to," Jackson began. "According to Naomie, Horner outright stole her role in the two Pirates of the Caribbean sequels and gave it to a white actress, Eva Green. It caused a major conflict between her and Matthew."

Spike's mind processed the information. "Will she go public?"

James replied, "Naomie Harris has agreed to come forward and accuse Matthew of unfairly stealing a role that should have been hers."

As he said this, a look of concern crossed his face. "And what about Francis Lawrence and Paula Patton?"

"Don't worry," Spike said with a smile. "There are no problems with either of them."

"Then our grand plan can be launched," James declared, looking confident. "Given how things are going in the industry, this is guaranteed to cause an uproar. If all goes well, their film will be a big hit this awards season. Spike, you'll have a good shot at the Best Director Oscar."

He looked at Spike with considerable admiration. "With a plan like this, we won't need the Coppola family at all this awards season."

Resisting blind optimism, Spike asked, "And what does Universal Pictures say?"

James Jackson's expression soured. "Universal is too conservative. They won't get directly involved."

He then added, "But don't worry. Even though they aren't participating, the Universal executives I've contacted have given our plans their blessing."

"That's good enough," Spike nodded slowly.

"So far, everything is going perfectly on our end."

James added, "By the time this breaks, everyone who has a grudge against Matthew Horner will be piling on. They'll join in without us even having to ask."

Spike considered this a very astute observation from his agent. The situation in Hollywood was such that black people were untouchable. Racial discrimination was an absolute red line; anyone who crossed it would instantly become a reviled outcast.

With only three short weeks left before awards season, winning Sofia Coppola back was clearly impossible.

Hollywood-style political correctness was, without a doubt, the best weapon a black man could wield.

The seed of the idea had been planted the day he saw the trailer for 300 and watched Matthew angrily kick a black Persian envoy into a pit. After seeing the premiere, that seed grew into a full-fledged plan, which his agent had readily endorsed.

He would be the first to accuse Matthew and 300 of racism. Then, a series of "allies" would follow suit. The media would be brought in to amplify the conversation, pushing Horner to the wrong side of Hollywood's political correctness.

He, in turn, would position himself on the side of justice.

A plan like that, he was certain, could not fail.