The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 801

After a short while, Matthew found Amanda, who was kind enough to introduce him to several prominent figures from New York's business circles, including Donald Trump and his daughter. The woman was tall, and the magnificence of her bust was arguably the second-greatest peak of nature he had ever witnessed, surpassed only by Alexandra Daddario.

Matthew felt a flicker of interest, but after a moment's thought, the idea vanished.

"Interested in her?" Amanda glanced at the tall, busty blonde.

Matthew shook his head. "No."

Amanda smiled. "Her father is a master of hype. If you got involved with his daughter, he'd undoubtedly be talking about it for the next ten years."

Matthew shot another look at the father and daughter. "That's not a game I can afford to play."

Amanda looked puzzled at first, but then she just shook her head and dropped the subject.

Suddenly, she spotted two interesting people and nudged Matthew with her finger. "Look, an old friend of yours is over there."

Matthew followed Amanda's gaze and saw Natalie Portman chatting with an older Jewish man who seemed to be from the film school circuit. Both of them looked quite happy.

She was also holding hands with a man who looked familiar.Matthew recalled seeing him years ago on the set of "The Mummy," back when the man was still courting Rachel Weisz.

That must be Darren Aronofsky.

So, Natalie Portman and Darren Aronofsky had reached this stage.

Matthew then remembered the information Rachel had given him: Darren Aronofsky and Natalie Portman were both Jewish, which offered a certain subtle advantage in Hollywood. If Rachel didn't do something, those two might actually make some noise at the Academy Awards.

Seeing Matthew staring at Natalie Portman, Amanda offered a word of caution. "There's more to that woman than meets the eye."

Matthew nodded slightly. "I know."

"There are rumors in New York circles," Amanda said, leaning in to gossip. "They say Natalie Portman had an abortion when she was nineteen, back when she was studying at Harvard."

"Is that true?" This was the first Matthew had heard of it.

Amanda shrugged. "I'd say it's about eighty percent false." She lowered her voice. "The woman comes from an average family and has average looks, but she carries herself like she's already won at life. Naturally, there are a lot of people in New York who can't stand her."

Matthew looked over at Natalie Portman again. As if sensing his gaze, she suddenly turned her head, met his eyes, and offered a smiling nod.

"I'll go say hello."

Since they'd run into each other, not exchanging a few words would be rude. Besides, on the surface, he and Natalie Portman had always maintained a friendly relationship.

As Natalie and Darren were parting ways with the old film scholar, Matthew walked over and greeted her with a smile. "Hey, Nat."

"Good evening, Matthew."

Natalie Portman returned his smile brightly. She glanced at Darren Aronofsky beside her and was about to make an introduction when Matthew extended his hand. "Hello, Director Aronofsky."

Darren Aronofsky, who had almost no dealings with commercial cinema, shook Matthew's hand and replied politely, "We met once, many years ago."

Honestly, he had no warm feelings for this commercial star, who seemed to have nothing to offer but his looks.

But he wasn't a fool; he knew he couldn't afford to get on the wrong side of someone like Matthew Horner.

So, after a brief exchange of pleasantries, Darren Aronofsky casually made an excuse about seeing an acquaintance and moved to another part of the room.

Natalie Portman, however, stayed behind. In her eyes, Matthew still held considerable value.

"I hear 'Fast Five' has started filming?" Natalie Portman deliberately brought up the topic. "Is it going well?"

Matthew nodded. "We should be wrapped by May."

Natalie asked in a deliberately playful tone, "Do you have any extra roles in future installments? Maybe you could save one for me?"

How could Matthew possibly agree to that? What use was Natalie Portman to a commercial blockbuster? It could only be a joke.

"I heard you went back to independent film," Matthew replied vaguely. "Have you finished shooting your new movie?"

Natalie smiled. "Yes."

She looked at Matthew and announced with a wide grin, "The new film is called 'Black Swan,' directed by Darren. It's set to premiere at the Venice Film Festival this year."

Matthew nodded. "I've heard people talking about it."

"The film is aiming for this year's awards season." Natalie didn't need to hide it; the project's intentions had been clear from the start. "Can I count on your support?"

She had heard whispers about this year's Oscars. "The Hurt Locker," which had won Best Director and Best Picture, had apparently received backing from Matthew's camp.

While it was hard to judge how significant that influence was, it was believed to have played a part.

Matthew gave a rare, disingenuous promise. "No problem, Nat."

Natalie Portman couldn't help but smile. "Thank you in advance, then."

In her mind, the films Matthew starred in were never Oscar contenders, so there was no direct competition between them. And, as far as she could tell, she had a good relationship with him.

"Don't mention it," Matthew said with a smile.

Would "Black Swan" make it to the Oscars? He couldn't be sure, but he and Rachel Weisz had prepared something special for it.

Moreover, Rachel's flame of hatred was burning brightly.

After exchanging a few more words with Natalie Portman, Matthew excused himself and returned to Amanda, who was now talking with a middle-aged man in glasses.

Seeing Matthew, Amanda gave a rather helpless smile, gestured to the middle-aged man, and said, "This sci-fi writer has been looking for you. He insisted I introduce him."

Matthew glanced from her to the man and understood. This so-called writer, whom Amanda probably didn't know either, had likely seen them talking and used her as a way to get to him.

"Hello." Matthew, always affable in public, looked at the man and asked, "How can I help you?"

The middle-aged man smiled, his expression a little stiff. "Hello, Matthew." He didn't seem particularly articulate. "I'm a fan of yours, and I... I've always loved the sci-fi movies you've been in. I'm Andy Weir, the deputy director of the creative department for Warcraft at Blizzard Games."

Hearing this, Matthew grew slightly curious. What did someone from Blizzard want with him? Were they looking to adapt World of Warcraft? Video game adaptations in Hollywood were an absolute cesspool.

He'd heard of World of Warcraft's fame and had even downloaded and watched the movie once, but as a casual viewer, he'd found it utterly uninteresting.

The man named Andy was becoming a bit clearer. "Last year, I wrote a novel, serialized it online. It's science fiction."

He pulled out a flash drive and held it out to Matthew. "Here's a copy of the novel. I was hoping..."

At this point, Andy Weir scratched his head in embarrassment, seemingly unsure what to say next.

Matthew took the flash drive and asked with a smile, "You want me to see if there's potential for a film adaptation?"

"Exactly! That's it!" Andy replied, a hint of timidity in his voice. "Could you take a look?"

Matthew slid the flash drive into his pocket. "Yes."

Andy quickly added, "I left my contact information on there."

Matthew nodded gently. "I'll let you know after I've had a look."

"Thank you." Andy let out a sigh of relief.

He had pitched his book to numerous companies in Hollywood. Thanks to his position at Blizzard, he knew many studio executives and producers, but almost no one had shown any interest in his novel.

After all, it was just a sci-fi novel serialized online, not even physically published. Grabbing a film company's attention was an uphill battle.

It was just by chance that he saw Matthew Horner tonight. He happened to have a copy of the first half of his serialized novel on a flash drive and decided to try his luck on a whim.

It seemed that luck was on his side.

Matthew didn't give it much thought. He chatted with Amanda for a bit longer, then wandered through the banquet hall. During his rounds, he also ran into that Elizabeth Holmes woman, who exchanged a few pleasantries before directly asking if he was interested in investing in her company.

Matthew's name was near the bottom of the list of North American billionaires, but he was certainly the most famous member of that group.

"Mr. Horner, this is a rare opportunity," Elizabeth Holmes said, skilled at leveraging a situation. "Mr. Rupert Murdoch has already confirmed his intention to invest in my company. If you join, it will undoubtedly be a wise decision, comparable to your investments in Apple and Marvel."

Matthew was well aware that he was now qualified to be a kingmaker investor.

However, he was a very conservative and cautious person; otherwise, he wouldn't own just two properties at this point.

"I don't have the liquidity." Matthew spread his hands and politely declined. "I've invested in several film projects, and my cash flow is very tight."

But Elizabeth Holmes suddenly changed her tune. "In that case, may I invite Mr. Horner to be a spokesperson for Theranos?"

Hearing this invitation, Matthew frowned slightly, then said, "You should probably contact my agency about that."