The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 576

"Hello, Kristen," Phyllis said, her voice echoing slightly in the bustling Los Angeles International Airport. "It's Phyllis Beretta."

"Oh, hey, Phyllis," a voice replied from the other end. "I was just looking at the photos you uploaded to the site. There are some really great shots in there!"

"Kristen, could you do me a favor? Can you lend me five hundred dollars?"

"What?" The voice on the other end sounded surprised. "Is it an emergency?"

"I need to buy a ticket back to New York." Phyllis’s face was a mask of sorrow, her voice trembling as if she were about to burst into tears. "The police just called. My parents... they were in an accident. I have to get back right away, but I don't have the money on me..."

Kristen's reply was immediate. "Give me your account number, and try to calm down."

Phyllis hastily recited her bank account number to Kristen. After a few more brief words, she ended the call. A message arrived shortly after, confirming that a thousand dollars had been deposited into her account.

Phyllis sent a grateful message to Kristen and then rushed to buy the first available flight back to New York.

***

Meanwhile, after finishing up her work at the computer, Kristen posted a message about Phyllis on their fan site. She briefly explained the situation, hoping that others might be able to offer some help as well.Phyllis came from a middle-class family in Queens, New York, and wasn't particularly well-off.

Putting the matter aside for now, she prepared to wash up and get an early night. After all, being a devoted fan of Matthew Horner was just a hobby; she had her own career to think about.

***

Matthew spent the remainder of the week filming 'Hancock' on the streets of Los Angeles, shooting scenes that involved rescuing hostages from banks and chasing down robbers on the freeway.

While there were a few minor mishaps here and there, filming generally went smoothly and stayed on schedule, just as director Peter Berg had planned.

Once his scenes were wrapped, he temporarily left the set to prepare for an upcoming trip to Geneva, where he was scheduled to attend a global UN conference on issues affecting women, children, and refugees.

He had a few matters to attend to before he left.

First, Matthew saw off Alexandra Daddario. Helen had secured her the lead role in a low-budget horror film shooting in Australia, a project that was expected to be a lengthy one.

The day before she left, the two spent one last wild night together. They parted amicably, bringing their six-month relationship to a close.

Next, he met with David Ellison to discuss the fourth installment of 'The Fast and the Furious.' The writing team had been busy refining the script, focusing on keeping the plot straightforward to leave ample room for the action sequences.

Movies like this typically aimed for a two-hour runtime, and dedicating too much time to the narrative would inevitably cut into the screen time for the action.

Matthew might not have been a seasoned producer, but he had a keen sense of what audiences wanted most from this kind of movie.

A solid story was the foundation, and a simple story could be a solid one. But it was the spectacular stunts and action sequences that truly sold tickets.

After reviewing the latest draft and consulting with Justin Lin and Bearded Jack, Matthew remained unsatisfied with the script. He instructed Gary Scott Thompson's team to continue making revisions. Since filming wasn't set to begin for a while, they still had plenty of time to get it right.

He also met with Daniel Wu, a Chinese-American actor. After a special makeup and costume audition conducted by director Justin Lin, it was officially confirmed that Daniel would have a role in the film.

Matthew also had a long talk with Daniel. Having grown up in the United States, Daniel was well-versed in American culture, particularly the world of drag racing and car tuning. His fluency in English and familiarity with the American lifestyle would help prevent any unnecessary conflicts on set down the line.

These were the primary reasons Matthew had ultimately chosen him for the part.

In reality, Helen was right: their primary consideration had to be the North American market, Hollywood’s number one territory. For a quintessential popcorn movie like this, anything that became a hit domestically was almost guaranteed to be a blockbuster overseas.

The North American market came first; everything else was secondary.

The North American film market was notoriously insular, a fact Matthew had experienced firsthand over the past few years. Much like navigating Hollywood’s brand of political correctness, a film had to actively adapt to the prevailing social climate to succeed.

For 'The Fast and the Furious 4,' they hadn't sought studio financing or engaged in pre-sales. It was funded entirely by his and David’s own investment, a move designed to give them the freedom to sidestep creative elements that could doom the project to failure.

Following inquiries from Universal Pictures, Warner Brothers, Paramount Pictures, and Lionsgate, Walt Disney's distribution label, Bowery International, also approached them about securing the North American and international distribution rights for the film.

Matthew and David weren't rushing their decision. They were in negotiations with several distribution companies, naturally intending to go with whoever offered the most favorable deal.

Furthermore, Mercedes-Benz had already confirmed they would continue to sponsor Matthew’s film.

Perhaps Matthew’s good fortune on the cinematic front over the past two years had spilled over into the commercial realm. Since he became the face of Mercedes-Benz, sales for the brand—for both their SUVs and their business-class sedans—had been on a steady incline.

As a result, Mercedes-Benz was interested in extending his contract for another five years and was prepared to begin formal negotiations with Helen before the year was out.

Meanwhile, the two films starring Matthew were still performing well at the box office following their summer releases. 'Pirates of the Caribbean 3,' which had premiered in late May, was now at the tail end of its theatrical run, having grossed $345.68 million in North America and $885.61 million worldwide.

The film still had some potential left in its domestic run, and with several overseas territories where it had either just opened or was yet to be released, it stood a very good chance of crossing the billion-dollar mark worldwide.

'Transformers' was also a massive hit, pulling in $285.2 million in North America in just over a month and had already surpassed $500 million globally.

DreamWorks had long been planning a 'Transformers 2,' and according to the latest buzz Matthew had heard, both DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures were discussing a separate spin-off film centered on Megatron. They had even reached out to Helen again, but his exorbitant fee had once more caused them to backpedal.

Such a high salary could be a headache for the studios, as a massive investment always came with a correspondingly massive risk.

Of course, Matthew had no intention of lowering his quote for a voice-over role.

He loved the 'Transformers' franchise and the character of Megatron, but he had already done his part with the first film's voice-over. Once was enough.

Matthew then set those matters aside to focus on the speech he was scheduled to deliver at the UN conference in Geneva, working on it with both Helen and Amanda.

He would be taking the stage in his capacity as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UNHCR.

Once they had finalized the speech, Amanda brought up the subject of his charitable foundations.

"I almost forgot to congratulate you."

Sitting in the living room, Amanda gently brushed back her short blonde hair. "You're a billionaire now," she told Matthew.

She looked at him, a gleam in her eyes. "Just how much have you made on those Apple shares you're holding?"

Matthew simply smiled, not answering her question.

On June 29, when the first-generation iPhone went on sale, Apple's stock had skyrocketed, jumping nearly nine percent that day and another five percent the next. It had been climbing steadily ever since, though not as dramatically as during that initial surge.

Apple's market capitalization had now surpassed one hundred billion dollars—more than twenty-five times its value of four billion when Steve Jobs returned to the company in 1997.

All of his initial purchases were of publicly traded stock, the quantity of which had been limited. Now, the market value of his holdings was just over two hundred million dollars.

Combined with his other assets, however, it was more than enough to make him a billionaire.

Seeing that Matthew was only offering a smile and had no intention of answering, Amanda didn't press the issue. It was, after all, a private matter.

"Matthew, about your two charitable foundations..." She changed the subject. "I have a new idea. I think we need to make a few adjustments."