The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 567

To secure the director's chair, Justin had not only meticulously studied the script, analyzing the successes and failures of the trilogy to understand the reasons behind the first film's triumph and "Tokyo Drift's" downfall, but had also made an effort to understand the project's power structure and the personalities of its key decision-makers.

He knew that the person who truly held the final say on this planned fourth film, from promotion to creative choices, was Matthew Horner.

This was one of the reasons he was pursuing the project. He believed that by learning from the failure of "Tokyo Drift," he could mitigate many of the risks in directing a new installment in the same vein. Matthew's decision to back this series was proof that "The Fast and the Furious" franchise still had immense potential.

Everyone knew that Matthew's projects were, without exception, successful. In the past, he had only been an actor, but now he was putting up tens of millions of dollars of his own money as a direct investment. That meant he must have even greater confidence in this venture.

From the moment he heard the news and had his first meeting with Matthew and David, Justin had been preparing to direct the new "Fast and the Furious" film, and his preparations were extensive.

"I know I messed up with 'Tokyo Drift'," Justin said with sincerity. "The first film in the series was the best, and the sequels didn't live up to it. The last one, 'Tokyo Drift,' was a failure both at the box office and in terms of its reception."

Matthew folded his arms and watched Justin, saying nothing. A director with the courage to admit failure was worth something.

If he had tried to spin that failure as some kind of "success," he would be a director living in his own world, completely unsuitable for a mainstream commercial film of this genre.

Justin continued, "I listened to all the criticism after 'The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift' was released, and I took it to heart, along with some of the challenges I faced directing a film of this type for the first time..."

He paused briefly before stating slowly, "This time, I believe the plot needs to connect to the previous films. Audiences are curious about where the main characters from the first two movies ended up. So, the fourth film will follow the second, with a story built on the character relationships established in the first two. It will be something fans of the original films will be interested in."Bearded Jack unexpectedly interjected, "I assume you've read the script? We're planning the death of Dominic Toretto."

"That's perfect! I was wondering how to handle that, and I actually went to video stores and asked a lot of viewers what they thought," Justin replied, clearly having done his homework. "Dominic Toretto only appeared in the first movie, six or seven years ago. Audiences haven't been thinking about him for a long time. Brian O'Conner, on the other hand, left a much deeper impression, along with the drag racing and the hotter action scenes. So for this movie, my goal comes down to two words: faster and stronger. The first thing we need to do is make the race sequences even faster and more thrilling, which means designing various scenes and testing their feasibility over and over. Besides that, I want this film to bring closure to the previous stories. The audience needs an answer."

Matthew continued to watch Justin, thinking his words sounded quite solid.

"We'll let the audience know Toretto's fate as a way to introduce a new character, and that will be the answer. On the other hand, bringing back Paul Walker and Jordana Brewster is enough to remind existing fans that this is 'The Fast and the Furious' franchise."

His demeanor suddenly turned intensely serious as he declared, "I think I've found the right direction for the series. The actors need to have a spark in their eyes, the plot must be rich and solid, and the scenes have to be spectacular. Commercial films that get those three things right won't be hard to watch and won't perform poorly at the box office. We'll add more clanging metal and shattering glass, more noise, more engine roars, more action sequences, and more beautiful women! Speed and passion! That's the ultimate theme for the series!"

At that, a slightly weary smile touched his lips. "It took the failure of 'Tokyo Drift' for me to figure all that out."

Bearded Jack nodded slightly, clearly finding merit in Justin's words.

David glanced at Matthew, but Matthew remained still. The words had struck a chord, reminding him of the films that had once been so successful in this series. Unfortunately, the director of this series wasn't as eccentric as the Wachowski brothers, and he couldn't recall the director's name.

But talking and doing were two different things. Saying something didn't guarantee it would be done as promised.

Just then, Justin opened his briefcase, pulled out a thick stack of papers, placed it on the table, and slid it toward Jack.

The stack of papers was five or six times thicker than the movie script.

Justin added, "This is the plan I've prepared. It includes fan research, scene concepts, character relationship designs, and much more. I've done it all myself over the last few months."

Bearded Jack took the stack of papers, opened it, and glanced through the pages. He then exchanged a look with Matthew and David before telling Justin, "That will be all for today. I'll review your plan carefully and let you know the result as soon as possible."

"Alright." Justin stood up. "I hope we have the opportunity to work together."

He walked out of the conference room, escorted by a staff member.

***

Inside the conference room, David was the first to speak. "He's thinking along the right lines. Out of all the directors we've seen, his philosophy is the closest to ours."

Matthew nodded. "Yes. If it weren't for the failure of 'Tokyo Drift,' he might be a good fit for this series."

"That's not necessarily a bad thing," Bearded Jack said suddenly. "Some directors can learn from their past failures and then make the right adjustments. Based on what I just saw, Justin seems to be that type."

Helen chimed in, "I'll get in touch with him."

Matthew understood what she was planning. "You want to poach him for the agency?"

Helen didn't deny it, just nodded discreetly. "We've seen a lot of directors, before and after, and Justin is the only one who came this well-prepared."

David was hesitant. "But 'Tokyo Drift'..."

There was no getting around the fact that "Tokyo Drift" was the reason Universal had shelved "The Fast and the Furious" series in the first place.

Matthew frowned, thought for a moment, and said, "Let's work through Justin's proposal first."

He looked at Helen. "Stay in contact with him for now."

Then he turned to Bearded Jack. "Jack, have a thorough conversation with him."

"David," Matthew finally addressed David, "how about we make him our number one candidate for the time being?"

"If you think he's the right fit, that's fine by me." David had exceptional confidence in Matthew.

The meeting ended on that note. Although no final decision on the director had been made, a real candidate had emerged, though Matthew remained cautious and wanted to vet Justin more thoroughly.

With tens of millions of dollars of his own money on the line, it was better to be careful.

Losing money wasn't something even a wealthy man like David wanted, let alone someone like him.

Helen was the first to leave Skydance Pictures, presumably to contact Justin soon.

Bearded Jack had someone make copies of Justin's plans, ready to give one to Matthew and another to David.

Matthew didn't leave, partly because he was waiting for Bearded Jack's copy and partly because he had something to discuss with David.

The two of them went to David's office.

***

"You have to call me for something like this! I'd be angry if you didn't let me in on it!" David pumped his fist. "Matthew, there are fewer and fewer things these days that I find exciting. Driving a major Hollywood star into bankruptcy? Now that's going to be really fun."

Matthew frowned. "Don't be so loud. This won't work if word gets out."

David chuckled. "Don't worry. We've dug a small pit, and now we'll dig a bigger one together."

He suddenly asked, "Are you sure this project won't work? If he actually turns a profit, we'll be the laughingstock."

"I'm eighty to ninety percent certain." Matthew deliberately put on a confident air and casually explained his reasoning. "I've had several in-depth conversations with Andrew Stanton. He's a brilliant master of animation, but he wants to apply those same principles to a live-action film, and they are two completely different genres."

Because of the massive success of "300," David trusted Matthew's vision. "I understand. Just like last time, I'll work with you on this."

The copy arrived from Bearded Jack's office. Matthew didn't leave right away, instead discussing many more details of their plan.