The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 644

"Disney wants my Marvel shares?" Matthew asked, a frown creasing his brow. "I'm just a minority shareholder. Why target me?"

Robert wore a sincere expression as he stressed, "You aren't a minority shareholder, Matthew. You're a major one."

He smiled. "And your fame and influence carry enormous weight."

Matthew understood the implication. "Bob," he began, "since Disney is preparing to acquire Marvel, you're surely aware that its stock price has been climbing steadily since the first week of *Iron Man*'s box office run. No one is looking to sell their shares right now."

"Disney is very sincere," Robert said, clearly prepared for this. "We're willing to buy your stake for a ten percent premium above the current market price."

Matthew simply smiled, saying nothing.

Robert added, "Should Disney complete the acquisition, we will honor all the agreements you've made with Marvel."

"Bob, I'm not short on cash at the moment."

Since this was a business negotiation, Matthew didn't mince words. "The agreements I signed with Marvel are fair and legally binding."

The message was clear: he wasn't satisfied with Disney's terms.Robert, however, smiled. His initial offer had been a test. From Matthew's response, it was clear he wasn't entirely opposed to selling his shares.

"We're old friends, Matthew," Robert said, getting straight to the point. "Tell me what's on your mind. What do you want?"

Matthew didn't hesitate. "I think Disney's approach to acquiring Pixar was a good one."

Robert understood immediately. "A stock swap?"

"That's right," Matthew confirmed calmly. "I'm interested in becoming a Disney shareholder."

Robert considered this for a moment. "I can't give you an answer right now."

Matthew nodded. "What I've proposed is just an idea. The specifics would need to be worked out."

"Alright," Robert said with his customary smile. "Let's stay in touch. We can discuss the details later."

"Okay," Matthew replied.

They shook hands, and Matthew took his leave.

Robert watched Matthew's retreating figure and nodded slightly. Dealing with Marvel's leadership wouldn't be a problem for Disney Pictures, but handling the numerous, scattered minority shareholders would be far more troublesome. If they could make a breakthrough with Matthew Horner, the rest of the process would be much smoother.

Securing a star shareholder would have a far greater impact than dealing with an average one.

The logic behind Disney's acquisition of Marvel was straightforward. Having completed the purchase of Pixar Studios, Robert had realized that when organic growth in film and television production was lacking, acquisition was one of the simplest, most direct, and most powerful methods.

The success of *Iron Man* solidified the idea of Disney acquiring Marvel outright.

Prior to this, Disney's assessment of Marvel was simple: its 5,000 characters were its greatest asset—a dormant gold mine.

Disney's massive platform would allow for the effective development and expansion of Marvel's thousands of heroes, giving them full representation within Disney's global distribution network.

---

Matthew left the golf club, got into his car, and headed for Burbank. The entire drive, his thoughts were consumed by his conversation with Robert. Disney was undeniably on the path to building a super-entertainment empire.

Throughout the decades of Hollywood's development, it was easy to see that, with the exception of Disney, all the other major studios had changed hands multiple times and were now part of larger media conglomerates. The only major Hollywood film company that had truly evolved into an entertainment media conglomerate was The Walt Disney Company.

In the 1990s, Disney bought Miramax and acquired ABC Television. In the new century, after Robert took the helm, he completed the acquisition of Pixar Studios for $7.4 billion in cash plus seven percent of its stock.

In fact, even someone like him, who wasn't well-versed in business operations, could see that Disney's entertainment empire wasn't built overnight. At every critical juncture, it relied on the capital operations method of "mergers and acquisitions."

To a certain extent, the Disney playbook could be summed up as follows: when you can't effectively penetrate a content segment with your own business capabilities, mergers and acquisitions are the most practical approach.

Disney was never going to get DC Comics from Warner Brothers, which made Marvel Comics the best available option.

Matthew arrived at the Angel Agency and gave Helen the gist of the conversation. She supported his idea. If Disney wanted to buy Marvel, and Marvel's leadership didn't resist, there was a very high probability the acquisition would go through.

"I have another piece of information," Helen informed him. "Disney isn't just looking to buy Marvel. They're also interested in George Lucas's Lucasfilm."

Hearing this, Matthew was instantly on alert. "Disney wants to reboot the *Star Wars* franchise?"

Helen didn't have to think about it. "If you were in their position," she countered, "how would you maximize your return on buying Lucasfilm?"

The question answered itself. It was, without a doubt, the *Star Wars* franchise.

"Here's my suggestion," Helen added. "You shouldn't just trade for a stake in Disney. It's almost certain that Disney will have to issue more stock to complete both acquisitions. You should do everything you can to secure the right of first purchase when they do."

Matthew nodded. "You're thinking several steps ahead."

He smiled. "Helen, you'll have to lead the negotiations."

For once, Helen sounded almost grumpy. "That's beyond the scope of an agent's duties."

Matthew replied casually, "Then you can be my business manager."

Helen raised a hand to adjust her glasses, saying nothing more. In her mind, she was already preparing to negotiate on Matthew's behalf.

In truth, the commissions Helen earned from him had long surpassed those of a typical agent. For instance, with the *Iron Man* investment, as the one who directly negotiated the deal with Marvel, she was entitled to a ten percent share of Matthew's returns.

---

In the new week, *Hancock* continued to dominate the North American box office, but with the release of *The Dark Knight* fast approaching, the film's promotion was clearly winding down. Warner Bros. was shifting more resources and energy to Christopher Nolan's new film.

The publicity for *The Dark Knight* was overwhelming, with countless people joining in the spontaneous promotion of the film because of Heath Ledger.

Warner Bros., of course, wasn't about to miss this final opportunity to squeeze the remaining value from a dead man.

The cast and crew released a video of Heath Ledger's audition for the Joker, which showed him in a creepy and unsettling light.

Since then, more videos had surfaced online.

"He locked himself in his room for six weeks to play the smiling killer, constantly trying to understand his voice and movements. Keep in mind, he's a psychopath with not an ounce of empathy."

A video of an interview with Heath Ledger also appeared, which strongly contributed to the narrative of his death: "While filming in London, I had trouble sleeping at night. Last week, I averaged only two hours of sleep a night. I couldn't stop my thoughts. Even though my body was already exhausted, my mind kept going."

Christopher Nolan also issued a statement, claiming he felt a responsibility for Heath Ledger.

"The truth is, a person's greatest fear is being helpless in the face of grief, not knowing what to do. And so, for him—for Heath Ledger—I feel a weight of responsibility on my shoulders unlike any I've known. His passing is an unbearable pain for everyone, especially his family and friends. As a director, when you feel that level of responsibility for an actor, it's for one reason only: because their brilliance in front of the camera is simply overwhelming."

Facing the press, Christopher Nolan inevitably leaned into the overall marketing narrative: "When I saw Ledger's Joker in the editing room, I suddenly felt this excitement, like electricity running through my body, because there was no second take. This is all he left us, and I knew I had to try to preserve the greatness he gave us with his performance."

On the other hand, the success of this marketing campaign was reflected in the popularity of the Joker action figures even before their release. Warner Bros. released them early and sold them directly from the warehouse.

Specifically, Warner Bros. also released an oversized 1:2 scale Joker statue with a wax head sculpt and perfectly rendered details, sold as a limited edition of 1,000 worldwide.

All the statues sold out on the day of release...

So, given all of the above, Hollywood and the major box office forecasters believed that *The Dark Knight* would set a new North American box office record for a Hollywood film.

Warner Bros. had executed a nearly flawless promotional marketing campaign.

Amid all the hype, the premiere of *The Dark Knight* was fast approaching. The red carpet would be replaced with a black one, and Warner Bros. had taken the initiative to suggest that all guests wear black in honor of Heath Ledger, who had died during the film's production.

Many A-list stars would be in attendance at the premiere.

Matthew also adjusted his schedule, playing the part of a special driver to pick up Emma Watson from the airport, preparing to attend *The Dark Knight* premiere with her.