The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 615

Seeing Brad Pitt, Matthew instinctively tapped the brakes. He brought the electric cart to a stop beside him, only to realize he had nothing to say.

Just as he was about to drive off, Pitt turned his head and looked his way.

Never one to deliberately avoid people, Matthew greeted him. "Hey, Pitt."

Pitt was oblivious to what Matthew had in store for him. Matthew gestured to the electric cart. "Want a ride?"

The moment Pitt saw Matthew, his mind raced through his recent actions. After a brief hesitation, he nodded and climbed into the passenger seat.

In the brief moment it took Pitt to get in, Matthew had already decided on his opening. He started the cart, pulling forward slowly, and then asked, "Pitt, we're not friends, but we were never enemies before, were we?"

Pitt stated flatly, "Not before, and not now."

Matthew paused, then pressed on. "If we're not enemies, then there's something I don't understand. Why do you keep trying to sabotage my projects?"

He held up one finger. "The Wachowski brothers and *Cloud Atlas*."

Then a second finger followed. "Andrew Stanton and *John Carter*."Pitt scoffed, his question sharp and rhetorical. "Did the Wachowskis commit to you? Did you sign a contract? Did Andrew Stanton promise you the lead? Was *John Carter* obligated to take your investment?"

Matthew appeared taken aback by the question and fell silent.

Pitt continued, "It's just business, Matthew. The Wachowskis and Andrew Stanton were already talking to me when they reached out to you. Naturally, they chose the more generous and..." he added, with deliberate emphasis, "...stronger partner."

Matthew shot a look at Pitt, who met his gaze defiantly.

"By the way, aren't you developing two projects yourself? What are they... *Fast & Furious 4* and *Twilight*? You weren't the only one interested in them at the time, were you?"

"No, I wasn't," Matthew admitted honestly.

Pitt raised a finger, tapping it in the air between them. "By your own logic, couldn't I say that you deliberately sabotaged others to get those projects?"

Matthew was speechless. Pitt had seemingly cornered him with his own logic.

"Directors and producers in Hollywood choose who they want to work with. I offered better terms than you did, so of course they chose to work with me. It was their decision—the Wachowskis' and Andrew Stanton's."

As he said this, Pitt added, "And Matthew, I hear you just started your own studio? Well, you should know that investing and producing are a different game from just acting. You still have a lot to learn."

"Maybe so," Matthew replied nonchalantly. The electric cart had reached the entrance to the Disney studio lot. He parked it and turned back to Brad Pitt. "Alright, I'll give you this one. You got me."

Pitt broke into a wide smile. "See you around, Matthew."

He hopped out of the cart. "Hope we get a chance to work together sometime."

Matthew's reply was pointed. "I'd rather we didn't."

Hearing the clearly resentful remark, Pitt remained unfazed. With the air of a victor, he gave Matthew a casual wave and walked out through the studio gates.

Matthew remained in the cart, watching Pitt's retreating figure.

Work together? How could they, when the pit he'd dug was only big enough for one?

***

After a moment, he left the studio as well, climbing into the Mercedes-Benz waiting at the entrance. He asked the driver to pick up Nina Dobrev from the Angel Acting Agency first, then head back to Beverly Hills.

"How have you been?" he asked Nina.

"It's been stressful lately." Nina, who had recently turned nineteen, looked tired.

Matthew leaned back against the comfortable car seat. "Being too nervous will affect your audition."

Nina was prepared. "I know. I've been getting some coaching for it lately."

She asked, "Will you be running the *Twilight* auditions?"

"No," Matthew said flatly. "The auditions are entirely in the hands of Sean Daniels and Sofia Coppola. I'm not going to let my personal feelings get in the way."

Two people he knew well were auditioning for the most important female roles: Nina Dobrev and Lily Collins. Looks and age weren't an issue for either of them.

But whether they were right for the parts was another matter entirely.

Nina Dobrev would be fine; he'd done a couple of scenes with her and knew she had the fundamentals of acting down. Lily was more of a question mark. After all, imagining a role and actually playing it are two very different things.

As these thoughts drifted through his mind, Matthew gave Nina a contemplative look.

***

In the following days, Matthew went to the Disney studio every day, but instead of attending the auditions, he left everything entirely in the hands of the producers and directors of both productions. Because of the upcoming shoot for *Fast & Furious 4* and the possibility of landing the role of Duke, he slightly increased his weekly training regimen, upping his trips to the shooting range he usually visited three times a month to twice a week.

This was all in preparation for the upcoming filming. With his current acting skills, he could handle these commercial film roles without any issues, which made the action scenes his main focus.

Although Matthew was hands-off and rarely interfered in the specific affairs of the crew, lest he do more harm than good, he stayed informed of their movements, with updates from both sets being sent his way at the earliest opportunity.

The *Fast & Furious 4* crew finished auditioning all the actors, and the director called all the main cast members, including him, to participate in pre-shoot training. The goal wasn't to teach the actors practical skills like driving, but to teach them how to pose for the camera with a sense of realism and to understand the importance of safety and self-protection.

The protection of actors, even extras, was something no film crew could afford to neglect.

Matthew, Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster, Daniel Wu, and Gal Gadot would form the primary team in *Fast & Furious 4* and introduce the "we are family" concept.

The Black characters wouldn't appear until *Fast & Furious 5*, which is when it would become a full-fledged blockbuster with a multi-ethnic cast.

But the reality of the United States was that a film's multi-ethnic groups had to project an image of harmony and beauty.

As for the villain in *Fast & Furious 4*, Bearded Jack and Justin Lin decided to cast a veteran Hollywood character actor who often played villainous roles.

It was a safer choice, and Matthew certainly had no objections.

For *Twilight*, the auditions for the lead and supporting actresses were still ongoing. Ultimately, Nina Dobrev and Lily Collins emerged as the winners. They weren't the top performers in the auditions, but their undeniable beauty was a major asset, and since their acting skills met the basic requirements, Sean Daniels and Sofia Coppola logically chose the two of them.

For the male lead, Sofia had her eye on a young actor named Liam Hemsworth, who had come to Los Angeles from Australia. He was good-looking, but his resume was short, not much longer than Nina's.

The team tentatively named him as the first choice, but it would all depend on whether a more suitable candidate for the lead role could be found.

***

In mid-January, the writers' strike in Hollywood continued, affecting the Oscar ceremony. The Academy canceled the nominees' luncheon and announced the nominations directly to the public.

Warner Bros. had previously submitted *I Am Legend* for a number of nominations, including Best Actor, but since Matthew didn't do any campaigning, he was naturally excluded from the Best Actor nominations.

*I Am Legend* received only a single, token nomination for Best Makeup.

But shortly after the Oscar nominations were announced, a major news story broke about a certain Hollywood actor.