The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 506

Awards season—that special time of year that holds an inexplicable allure for the vast majority of Hollywood's elite. Even commercial superstars like Will Smith were no exception.

"You mean..."

As an agent, Kevin hadn't considered it before. But he was, after all, a top agent at CAA, and Smith's words immediately struck a chord. "Use this opportunity..."

He clenched his fist, brought it to his mouth, and cleared his throat. The topic was a sensitive one, and he chose his words carefully, pausing before he nodded. "Indeed. It would create a more favorable climate for you heading into awards season."

Will opened a drawer in the coffee table, pulled out a printout, and handed it to Kevin. "This is the speech I had Jada prepare. It’s mainly to stir things up and drag Horner through the mud in the process—a little payback for him stealing the lead in I Am Legend."

Kevin took the pages, glanced over them, and nodded. "There are a few spots where the phrasing needs to be handled delicately. Have a pen? I'll make a few adjustments."

Will retrieved a pen from the drawer, passed it to Kevin, and asked, "So? What do you think?"

"Do it. This should get a massive response," Kevin said as he made his edits. "Attack Matthew, but keep it subtle. Hit the right notes, and never make it about yourself."

"I understand." Will gave a measured nod, clearly having considered the fallout. "If this blows up, I'll personally go and apologize to him. I'll just say I wasn't aware, and everyone knows Jada..."

Kevin handed the printout back to Will. "Take a look."Will took the papers and reviewed the changes.

Kevin rose to his feet. "I'll get in touch with the press."

****

At almost the same moment, a man with a distinctively bald head walked into a West Hollywood café. After ordering a latte, he unfolded the newspaper in his hand and began to read.

When he turned to the entertainment section, the bald man broke into an unexpected smile. He recognized the person on the front page—a minor actor he'd once had fired from a project. Now, that same man was a major star.

Unfortunately for that major star, he'd recently run into serious trouble. A group of black actors, led by Spike Lee, were accusing him of racism.

Humming to himself, the bald man unconsciously touched his chest. He remembered the punch he'd taken on set several years ago; it still ached at the memory.

He remembered that punch from Horner all too well.

The waiter brought his latte. Vin Diesel took a small sip and went back to the paper.

"Matthew Horner's Racism Confirmed Beyond a Doubt—Our Paper Has the Proof!"

The paper Diesel was holding was a tabloid, not a major publication like the Los Angeles Times, so the story was naturally written to be as sensational as possible.

"Is there really any hard evidence?"

His eyes scanned down the page to what the paper was calling its "proof."

"Consider the women Horner has dated and slept with. From Britney Spears to Charlize Theron, from Jessica Alba to Adriana Lima—not a single one of them is a black woman..."

The paper had even published photos of every actress and model rumored to have been involved with Horner: Britney, Scarlett Johansson, Rachel McAdams, Eva Green, Jessica Alba, and Charlize Theron. They were all white, with the exception of Jessica Alba and Adriana Lima, who had slightly darker complexions.

"For a typical Hollywood playboy, what else can you call it but racism when he hasn't dated a single black woman?"

Reading that conclusion, Diesel nearly spat out his coffee.

This tabloid was really stretching to create a scandal. If that was racism, then how many people in the country weren't racist?

He shook his head. As much as Horner annoyed him, he had to admit the tabloid was full of absolute crap.

Diesel folded the paper, flagged down the waiter, gave him a tip, and asked him to find a copy of The Hollywood Reporter.

Flipping to the entertainment section, he was met with a close-up of Spike Lee. The accompanying story reported that Lee had issued another public statement, calling for a Hollywood-wide boycott of racism. He urged the major studios and producers to stop hiring anyone suspected of racism and to drive them out of the business for good.

It looked like public opinion was turning hard against Matthew.

Over the past few days, Diesel had read numerous reports about Horner being attacked by a chorus of voices from both the media and the industry. It was reminiscent of what happened to Tom Cruise a few years back. But Horner wasn't as entrenched as Cruise, who had over two decades of deep industry roots. Horner's alleged transgression was far more severe; he could easily become the next Mel Gibson.

It would be satisfying to see that bastard blacklisted, wouldn't it? How long before the industry devoured him whole?

Diesel was a big star himself. What he said could influence a lot of people and a lot of media outlets.

He left the café and immediately contacted a reporter he knew well, ready to add his own statement about Matthew's supposed racism.

***

Another day passed, and instead of subsiding, the wave of public opinion exploded. Spike Lee quickly issued two more public statements, both aimed squarely at Matthew.

Several black extras seemed to appear out of nowhere, adding their voices to the media attacks on Matthew. A little digging revealed they had indeed been on the sets of projects Matthew had filmed.

An invisible web of coordinated intent was being cast over Matthew, and others were now stepping forward to help Spike Lee pull the strings.

Matthew had stepped on the heads of countless competitors to reach the top tier of Hollywood, snatching opportunities from many people, both seen and unseen.

When he was on top, with everyone cheering and applauding, these people could only watch with envy and jealousy. But now that he was on the verge of becoming a fallen star, they were undoubtedly eager to leap out of the shadows and make their mark.

A video recorded by Jada Pinkett Smith in her mansion surfaced online. In it, she declared, "You always see black presenters and performers at the Oscars, but you rarely see winners. Isn't it because they can't make great films? We are a forgotten people, and our creative achievements are seldom recognized. It’s shameful that even today, people still discriminate against black talent and use their influence to interfere with productions and remove black actors! I agree with director Spike Lee—people like that need to get out of Hollywood!"

Later that same day, a video interview with Vin Diesel surfaced online.

"Back when Horner was filming The Fast and the Furious, I had a problem with him," he said. "I was sleeping in my trailer one day when I heard someone outside call someone else the n-word. I went out there immediately. When I found out it was Matthew Horner, I demanded he apologize, but Matthew just cursed at me and refused. We argued, it almost came to blows, and in the end, the production fired him."

The net was tightening, ready to ensnare Matthew completely.

Of course, Hollywood is intrinsically linked with the media world, especially entertainment news. The two spheres are so intertwined that one cannot be separated from the other.

Just as a media veteran like Ilana could easily see the truth behind most Hollywood stories, many people working inside Hollywood could also see through the chaos of the entertainment media to its core.

"It's obvious Matthew pissed off some powerful black figures."

Jerry Bruckheimer told Gore Verbinski in a post-production suite at Disney Studios, "To be more precise, our boy Matthew somehow ran afoul of that agitator Spike Lee, who's now teamed up with everyone Matthew has ever pissed off and is getting ready to give him a thrashing."

Gore Verbinski, however, looked worried. "If Matthew really is a racist..."

Jerry cut him off. "In all the time you've worked with him, have you ever once seen Matthew discriminate against a black person?"

"No." Gore Verbinski thought for a moment more before confirming, "No. I never even heard a whisper of a rumor about it until all this started."

Still, he was troubled. "But—"

An unexpected knock came at the door. A staff member opened it and announced, "Helen Herman is here, in the lobby."

Jerry nodded to Gore. "Let's go meet with Helen and see what she has to say."

***

Half an hour later, Helen emerged from the Disney Studios building. She crossed South Beaufort Street and entered the Walt Disney headquarters on the other side. First, she went to the floor that housed the offices of the Pirates of the Caribbean producers. After that, she met with Robert Iger, with whom she had a previously scheduled appointment.

Matthew currently had several major film contracts underway, with investments totaling well over one hundred million dollars. If this scandal proved true, he wouldn't be the only one with something to lose.