The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 527

Despite his reluctance, Shia couldn't defy Spielberg. He stepped forward until he was standing directly in front of Matthew.

"I'm sorry." He looked sincere. "I apologize for what happened yesterday."

The words were delivered at a neutral volume, neither too loud nor too soft. Matthew simply nodded. He didn't care whether Shia's apology was genuine; he was doing this purely for Spielberg's sake.

Shia bowed his head in a show of contrition, but the sharp glint in his eyes betrayed his true feelings.

Matthew looked over at Megan. "There's someone else who deserves your apology more than I do."

At Matthew's words, Shia's head snapped up. His gaze fell upon Megan, the alluring woman he had always despised.

It was obvious she was using Horner for protection, and he suspected they had already slept together.

For a long moment, the apology lodged in his throat. He couldn't bring himself to say the words to this woman—a woman he desperately wanted but couldn't have.

Spielberg watched Shia but remained silent. Everything that needed to be said had already been said on the way over.

Finally, Shia muttered, "I'm very sorry."Megan just scoffed, lifting her chin ever so slightly.

"Alright, let's get back to it," Spielberg interjected, stepping forward. "You two can go. I need to speak with Matthew alone."

Matthew asked curiously, "What's this about?"

Spielberg adjusted his glasses. "Something work-related."

He gestured toward the door. "Let's talk somewhere else."

Matthew followed Spielberg out of the dubbing room.

As Matthew left, Shia shot Megan a look of pure, unconcealed malice.

But with director Michael Bay nearby, there was nothing he could do.

However, as Michael Bay consulted with the sound engineer, Shia closed the distance between himself and Megan.

"Slut," he snarled under his breath.

Megan gave him a cold stare but didn't say a word.

Shia sneered. "Did you service Horner so well that he decided to stand up for you?"

"That's right. We were together all night," Megan retorted, her voice suddenly sharp. "I had a great time with Matthew, and believe me, he had a great time with me."

"You fucking slut," Shia swore again.

Megan held up her phone, her expression suddenly calm and composed. "You were completely unhinged, screaming that you were going to kill me and Matthew. Good thing I recorded the whole thing."

Shia froze on the spot.

"But I have no desire to see your ugly face plastered all over the papers or on TMZ," Megan said, channeling Matthew’s composure. "So just keep your mouth shut. And stay away from me, you freak."

"You..."

Megan raised an eyebrow. "Do I need to spell it out for you? From now on, stay away from me unless we're working. Otherwise, I can't guarantee this video won't find its way online."

Shia was only in his early twenties, and his outburst was fueled by a reckless combination of old habits, substance abuse, and the knowledge that he had powerful people backing him up.

But if she really had a recording of him...

"I get it," Shia said grimly, then turned and walked away.

***

Sitting in a private lounge, Matthew asked Spielberg curiously, "What did you want to talk about?"

"You took quite a hit from the press a while back," Spielberg began, his words sounding a bit odd. "All those false accusations from Spike Lee and his crowd. But in the end, it was clear that Spike was the one with the problem."

Matthew wasn't sure where Spielberg was going with this and replied cautiously, "I never expected Spike Lee to try and sabotage my career over a petty grudge."

Spielberg smiled. "Spike is someone that I, and frankly, most people I know, can't stand. I've heard that many studios have blacklisted him... In any case, DreamWorks won't be working with him again."

The statement only deepened Matthew's confusion. Spielberg was undeniably his superior in both status and wealth. For him to suddenly bring this up, there had to be an ulterior motive.

He and Spielberg had never been friends.

Matthew knew this perfectly well, and Spielberg had never treated him like a friend, either.

In that brief moment, Matthew's internal alarms went off. He knew there was a hidden agenda.

"Thank you," Matthew said, remaining cautious. "People like Spike Lee should be run out of Hollywood."

Spielberg nodded. "Lee won't be around for much longer."

He then shifted the topic abruptly. "Back then, there were others Spike Lee pressured into saying some... very inappropriate things about you."

Matthew slowly started to put the pieces together. It was well known that Vin Diesel and Spielberg had a good relationship. Although Diesel's career had hit a rough patch in recent years, he was still a B-list star, a status he largely owed to Spielberg's patronage.

"Diesel said some things he shouldn't have," Spielberg continued. "He can be impulsive. Don't take it to heart."

What was this? It was like watching a father apologize for his son...

But Spielberg's words made him a little uncomfortable.

"It's nothing," Matthew replied nonchalantly.

Spielberg smiled again.

He'd heard from many people that Matthew Horner was no pushover.

Matthew looked at Spielberg. It would be difficult for Vin Diesel to ever again reach the heights he'd achieved with The Fast and the Furious franchise.

Of course, if the right opportunity arose, he wouldn't hesitate to put Vin Diesel in his place.

"It's getting late," Matthew said, standing up. "If there's nothing else, I'm going to get back to work."

Spielberg nodded.

Matthew left the lounge and returned to the dubbing room. He exchanged a few words with Michael Bay and then rejoined the voice-over session.

The rest of the day passed smoothly. Shia kept to himself, though Matthew caught him glaring several times, his eyes full of undisguised resentment.

He could afford to ignore Shia for now, but if the kid tried anything, he wouldn't hesitate to act.

In this business, if someone bullies you and you don't fight back, you're just inviting more people to walk all over you.

"Today went well." Megan got into Matthew's car and asked, "Where are we going?"

Matthew replied, "I'll take you home first."

Megan asked, "Want to try something new tonight?"

Matthew turned his head to look at her full lips.

Megan lowered her voice. "I came up with a new scene. It's where Megatron captures Mikaela and uses... every means at his disposal... to torture her for the location of the Allspark."

Matthew was instantly on board. "I like the sound of that script."

The Mercedes limousine pulled up to the house "Mikaela" was renting. "Megatron" effortlessly subdued his captive, carried her inside, and began a long session of torturous interrogation.

***

For the next few days, Matthew followed a strict routine: punctual arrival at DreamWorks Pictures for his voice-over work as Megatron, followed by a trip to Megan’s place to spend the night.

All in all, it was a life Matthew knew he would miss.

Once the voice work for Megatron was complete, Matthew finally broke away from that routine and returned to his estate, which he hadn't seen in nearly a week. Megan truly was a captivating vixen.

With his life returning to normal, Matthew went back to the set of "I Am Legend" to resume filming. After five intense days, they had successfully wrapped up the bulk of the remaining scenes. The final shots were scheduled for after the New Year.

Everything was put on hold for the time being, because the 2006 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show was set to take place at the Kodak Theatre over the upcoming weekend.