The richest actor in Hollywood.

Films released over the same weekend inevitably faced the massive impact of *The Dark Knight*, which was directly reflected in the box office performance of *Hancock*. In its third weekend, the film's box office earnings dropped by more than fifty percent, bringing in $20.4 million. Combined with the $20.6 million earned during the weekdays, *Hancock* finally surpassed the $200 million mark in North America, reaching $203.6 million.

Compared to the speed at which Matthew's previous films hit the $200 million mark in North America, *Hancock* was slightly slower.

"This film's North American box office will probably settle around $300 million," said Helen Herman, sitting behind her desk in her office, updating Matthew on Warner Bros.' latest estimate. "It's unlikely to surpass $800 million globally."

Matthew nodded slightly. "Given the quality of the film, that's not bad."

Helen Herman emphasized again, "For now, avoid working with Akiva Goldsman."

"I understand," Matthew replied calmly.

They had already agreed on this point long ago, and he had explicitly declined the lead role invitation for Akiva Goldsman's *Jonah Hex*. Despite Goldsman trying to entice him with Megan Fox as the female lead, Matthew had refused without hesitation. Although Fox was indeed very tempting, she wasn't enough to make him lose focus.

Which is more important, women or career? He always kept a clear head about this. As long as his career was thriving, there would be countless women in the future. Hollywood and the modeling world were full of women like Megan Fox.

After all, if his career tanked, how many women like Nina Dobrev or Megan Fox would even glance at him?

Matthew never believed that these women were close to him because of love. He wasn't that naive. Maybe his good looks were an advantage, but they were certainly not the key factor.

Therefore, he never considered establishing a long-term, stable relationship with any of these women.

Any woman who can navigate the entertainment industry and understands how to make it big isn't simple-minded.

Take, for example, the girl who liked milk and visited Charlize Theron's set a while back. She was only seventeen or eighteen but was already playing the sweet and naive act.

In this circle, whether it's genuine or an act, everyone is selling an image. His image was that of an approachable tough guy, Emma Watson's was a feminist and scholar, Charlize Theron's was the cool queen, and the milk girl was the sweet, innocent type...

Some are self-packaging, while others are being packaged...

Living authentically in the entertainment industry is only possible after becoming a superstar. Even then, the superstar image is often a crafted persona. Trying to be real before fame likely means a lifetime of being a small-time actor.

As for the personality behind the persona, it doesn't matter much. For instance, despite the long-standing rumors about Morgan Freeman and his granddaughter, things still went on as usual.

Matthew was well aware that his personality wasn't great. The milk girl probably wasn't any better. Emma Watson, despite her scholarly image, was just average when it came to her character. But that's Hollywood—it's tough for genuinely good people to succeed.

Of course, compared to them, there were far worse characters in Hollywood, like Jodie Foster and Natalie Portman.

Jodie Foster was truly admirable, a person so formidable that her character flaws could be overlooked.

After Ronald Reagan's assassination attempt, a handwritten press release by Jodie Foster turned many people's anger and disgust towards her into sympathy.

During his PR training with Helen Herman, she had specifically asked him to read Jodie Foster's article titled "Why Me?"

Many people said Natalie Portman was smart and formidable, but she paled in comparison to Jodie Foster.

In some ways, Matthew had also learned from Jodie Foster. This smart woman excelled in creating a public image and handling media relations, to the point where there was hardly any negative news about her. Any negative press seemed trivial in comparison to the Reagan assassination attempt.

The assassination attempt on Reagan was arguably the greatest crisis in Jodie Foster's life, yet she and her team cleverly turned it into her greatest shield.

Thinking about it, Matthew couldn't help but shake his head. Just as many people were obsessed with *Leon: The Professional*, countless others were also captivated by *Taxi Driver*.

How powerful was the allure of *Taxi Driver*? And how captivating was Jodie Foster? Perhaps the allure was indescribable—she could pierce through people's hearts like an enchanted arrow.

In 1981, yet another U.S. president was assassinated—every smart American president seems to die at the hands of their own people. Perhaps this actor-turned-president wasn't smart enough; he was lucky to survive. Jodie Foster's most obsessed fan, John Hinckley, ambushed newly inaugurated Ronald Reagan outside the Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C., all in an attempt to attract the attention of the actress he was madly in love with.

That actress was Jodie Foster.

Maybe John Hinckley thought that only such sacrifice and devotion could earn him a glance from the goddess of his heart...

At this point, Helen Herman spoke again. "By the way, there's news that might interest you."

Matthew raised an eyebrow. "What news?"

"Warner Bros. has officially signed Will Smith." Helen Herman knew what kind of person Matthew was and understood that he wouldn't forget what the Smiths had done. "Will Smith will play Green Lantern."

She added, "You might have heard that *Green Lantern* will be the first film in the Justice League universe."

Matthew nodded slightly. "I heard Charles Roven mention it." He thought for a moment and asked, "Did Warner Bros. offer Will Smith a very high salary?"

Helen Herman replied calmly, "According to what I've heard, it should be a base salary of $20 million, plus a percentage of the backend profits."

"A lucrative deal," Matthew remarked.

When he subtly hinted to Charles Roven about this, he had anticipated this outcome. If Will Smith agreed to play Green Lantern, he would benefit in the short term.

"Will Smith is an A-list star, not an over-the-hill actor like Robert Downey Jr.," Helen Herman said slowly. "Although Will Smith's recent films after *The Pursuit of Happyness* haven't been particularly successful, he still maintains his A-list status and has decent box office appeal. Warner Bros. would have to offer a high salary to secure him."

Matthew deliberately remarked, "He's getting quite the deal."

He didn't mention anything more to Helen Herman.

Helen Herman noticed the tone of his voice but didn't overthink it. After all, the Matthew she knew wasn't a forgiving person. Will Smith had previously wronged Matthew, so naturally, Matthew wouldn't be happy about Will Smith's success.

"Let's not talk about that," Helen Herman changed the subject. "How was your meeting with Christopher Nolan yesterday?"

Matthew shook his head with a bit of frustration. "It's a headache." He shrugged slightly. "Nolan gave me some books about dreams to study."

Compared to his previous collaborations with Akiva Goldsman, *Inception* required much more preparation work.

In fact, his conversation with Christopher Nolan wasn't limited to just this. Nolan also brought up the issue of drug use, subtly hinting that he hoped the lead actor in *Inception* wouldn't encounter problems like Heath Ledger did.

Such problems certainly wouldn't happen to Matthew. He had always despised drugs.

He couldn't care less how others in the industry dealt with drugs, but he would never touch them himself.

Many Hollywood stars don't turn to drugs because of work pressure or depression but rather for the thrill. If taking vitamins were illegal, they'd probably do that too.

The entertainment industry often gets entangled with drugs. Young people usually start with the worst things—learning what they're not supposed to do. But is following the trend of being a "pilot" really that cool?

Anyone who's seen *Home Alone* should know the "kid" Macaulay Culkin, who peaked at eight years old and developed a drug habit before adulthood, spending $180,000 a month on drugs.

These people burn out quickly, reaching a peak, which might make some people think, "Life is short; this is what I want."

But most drug addicts never reach any peak—they just keep getting worse.

No matter what he faced, Matthew would never touch drugs. There are plenty of things in this world that can bring him excitement and pleasure. Why take the wrong path to self-destruction?

Making money gives him a thrill, and chasing beautiful women is exciting enough...

As a simple man, he would never tire of making money and enjoying women, even over fifty years. That was his biggest motivation.

Pursuing drugs and art? That's just a dangerous path.

*Inception* wouldn't start filming until next year, so Matthew had plenty of time to prepare. Although the books Nolan gave him were somewhat difficult, he planned to read them several times.

As a star-level actor, his dedication matched his pay.

As for the latter half of this year, there's also the collaboration between Paramount Pictures and Hasbro on *G.I. Joe*.

"This project has been officially titled *G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra*," Helen Herman informed him. "The negotiations for your role as the lead actor are in the final stages."

_________________________

[Check out my Patreon for +200 additional chapters in all my fanfics! $5 for all!!] 

[w w w . p a t r e o n .com / INNIT]

[+50 PowerStones = +1 Chapter] [+5 Reviews = +1 Chapter]