On the last Monday of May, Memorial Day, a traditional American holiday, has been a national holiday since 1971. Since Hollywood's concept of the summer blockbuster, this long weekend has become one of the best release windows for movies. Every film premiering during this period is a top contender among big productions. However, not everyone can enjoy this holiday.
Early Monday morning, the Wachowski siblings arrived at Plan B Entertainment. Due to Brad Pitt needing to handle the final details of Jennifer Aniston's withdrawal of investment, the originally scheduled 9 a.m. contract signing was postponed by an hour.
In a lavishly decorated conference room, lawyers and notaries were finalizing the contracts. The Wachowski siblings had nothing to do. Andy Wachowski picked up today's newspaper from the rack and started reading it in a chair.
He quickly turned to the entertainment section of the Los Angeles Times.
"Lana, when someone is lucky, do they succeed in everything they do?" Andy Wachowski suddenly asked.
"What's up?" Lana Wachowski, not understanding his point, asked, "What do you mean?"
Andy Wachowski flicked the newspaper in his hand. "Matthew Horner's latest film is another box office hit."
"Pirates of the Caribbean 3? The weekend box office numbers are out?" Lana Wachowski asked immediately.
"Yes," Andy Wachowski sighed. "It made $137.9 million in three days."
He shook his head and said, "Another box office smash starring Matthew Horner."
"That's good," Lana Wachowski smiled. "We can continue to leverage his popularity."
Andy Wachowski nodded, "I agree."
Originally, "Cloud Atlas" was a project Warner Bros. had doubts about, but by leveraging Matthew Horner's fame, it became one of the most talked-about projects in the industry. Many investors actively sought them out, including Brad Pitt and his Plan B Entertainment.
Given Matthew Horner's influence, it would be a waste not to use it.
Lana Wachowski, twirling a lock of her red hair around her finger, proudly said, "He only gets used when it comes to brainpower compared to us."
This project didn't absolutely need anyone except themselves, not even Matthew Horner. Approaching him was purely because they saw his immense value. Now they've utilized his value without any cost and attracted Brad Pitt, who promised a $100 million investment. It's truly killing three birds with one stone.
The conference room door opened, and the Wachowski siblings thought Brad Pitt had arrived. They looked up to see Natalie Portman walking in.
"Hi, Lana. Hi, Andy." Natalie Portman greeted them with a smile, pulled out a chair, and sat down. "Haven't started yet?"
"No," Andy Wachowski shook his head and added, "Pitt is dealing with something and will be a bit late."
Natalie Portman looked worried, "There won't be any issues, right?"
This project had Brad Pitt promising her a substantial salary. If he backed out, all previous efforts would be in vain.
Lana Wachowski confidently said, "Don't worry."
As she spoke, the conference room door opened again. Brad Pitt entered with his lawyers and related personnel.
Seeing the Wachowski siblings and Natalie Portman, Brad Pitt warmly greeted them. The Wachowski siblings were his guarantee to return to A-list status.
Subsequently, under the witness of lawyers and notaries, both parties signed a series of formal contracts, initiating the collaboration on the "Cloud Atlas" project.
After the contract signing, Brad Pitt, the Wachowski siblings, and Natalie Portman held a joint press conference to officially announce the news.
In Helen Herman's office at Angel Agency, after watching the news broadcast, Matthew took the remote and turned off the TV.
He looked over at Helen Herman, relieved, "Finally signed."
"Yes, as you wished," Helen Herman said pointedly. "When 'Cloud Atlas' is a box office hit and Brad Pitt returns to A-list stardom, you'll regret today's decisions."
Matthew spread his hands, "Then I'll just have to admit defeat." He stretched, "This is like an investment, there's always risk. Who can guarantee 100% success?"
Helen Herman removed her glasses and rubbed her forehead, "Let's hope things go as you predicted."
Among the three who plotted the Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie incident, besides Matthew, the initiator, she and Elena Boyar also strongly supported turning Brad Pitt into a minor character.
Matthew nodded but said nothing more. The news showed Brad Pitt, representing Plan B Entertainment, officially signing with the Wachowski siblings, committing to invest $100 million in the "Cloud Atlas" project, and announcing Brad Pitt and Natalie Portman as the lead actors.
"What a pity..." He felt a bit regretful, "The investment in this film is still a bit low."
Helen Herman said, "It's not little. You might not know, Jennifer Aniston completed her withdrawal from Plan B Entertainment last week, transferring all her shares to Brad Pitt. Plan B is now truly Brad Pitt's private company."
Matthew thought for a moment, "I remember Plan B had three founders?"
"Yes, besides Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston, there was Brad Grey, now the CEO of Paramount Pictures." Helen Herman put her glasses back on and said flatly, "After the box office disappointment of 'Troy,' Brad Grey gradually exited Plan B. Later, when Viacom hired him as Paramount's CEO, he sold all his shares to avoid conflicts of interest, transferring them to Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston."
Matthew nodded, "Plan B isn't a public company, right?"
"No, it isn't. From what I understand, with Jennifer Aniston's shares, Brad Pitt now holds over 90% of Plan B's shares, with the rest scattered among some managers."
She added, "This is normal. Many stars' production companies have shares concentrated in one person."
"Cloud Atlas has a $100 million production budget," Matthew frowned slightly. "How does Plan B plan to raise funds? Jennifer Aniston just pulled out, and Plan B doesn't have that much cash on hand."
Helen Herman shook her head lightly, "I don't know yet. I guess Brad Pitt will use a combination of personal investment and external financing. The exact proportion is still unknown; we can't find out."
Matthew drummed his fingers on the chair's armrest. This project was far from sufficient, but he couldn't find another suitable project to undermine for now.
"By the way," Helen Herman changed the subject, "I received an invitation this morning."
Before Matthew could ask, she said, "Harvey Weinstein and Quentin Tarantino have jointly invited you to star as the male lead in a major project for Weinstein Company."
"Decline," Matthew didn't even bother asking what the project was. He had refused many times before, "I have no interest in working with Weinstein Company."
Helen Herman didn't persuade him, "I'll call and decline."
Weinstein Company's so-called major project could only be a $60-70 million investment at most, which didn't match Matthew's positioning.
Matthew didn't think much of it. In his impression, Harvey Weinstein mostly produced and operated indie art films for awards season or Quentin Tarantino's cult movies. He had no interest in Oscar-bait indie films.
As for Quentin Tarantino's films, their style was too different. He was on the mainstream commercial path and didn't want to get involved in cult films. It wouldn't benefit him.
Besides, could Weinstein Company afford his high salary? Should he lower his rate for Harvey Weinstein?
It's not a few years ago anymore.
Helen Herman then reminded him, "Akiva Goldsman called you, right?"
Matthew nodded, "Yes. 'Hancock' starts filming on July 10. I remember."
This project is produced and distributed by Warner Bros., with Akiva Goldsman as the producer and young director Peter Berg directing. He and Charlize Theron will play the lead roles.
Additionally, the film is set to be released in North America during next year's Independence Day weekend.
"Charlize Theron's agent called me," Helen Herman calmly said, "asking if you could rekindle your past relationship with her."
"Whose idea is this?" Matthew asked.
Helen Herman replied, "Charlize Theron probably doesn't know. Her agent wants to hype it up."
"Forget it," Matthew directly refused.
At this moment, his phone rang. It was an unfamiliar number, but when he answered, it was Andrew Stanton.
"The first draft of the 'John Carter' script is finished," he said over the phone. "I've sent it to your email."
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