Inside the café, Matt Damon was silently reading the script, images constantly forming in his mind.
After some time, the café door opened. Ben Affleck walked in and sat down directly across from Matt Damon.
These two good friends, though now each owning their own places in LA and no longer roommates, still made sure to meet up monthly when their schedules allowed.
Matt Damon looked up, seeing the lingering effects of overindulgence on his friend's satisfied face, and couldn't help but say, "Dude, you need to rein it in a bit. There's no shortage of actors who can play Batman. If you don't perform well, it'll put Mr. Meyers in a tough spot."
Ben Affleck felt a bit annoyed internally but still nodded. "Alright, I know. I've been partying too much lately."
He could still take his old friend's advice to heart.
His attention then fell on the script in Matt Damon hand.
"Is this the script for that new project you mentioned? Has Martin seen it? What does he think?"
Holding up the script, Matt Damon revealed a smile. "It's fantastic, truly fantastic."
Then, with a moved expression, he recited his favorite line from the script, based on the images in his head:
"Humans have an instinct to help each other. If someone gets lost mountain climbing, people organize a rescue; if there's a train accident, people line up to donate blood; if a city is flattened by an earthquake, people worldwide arrange emergency supplies. This is the most basic human nature, true everywhere around the globe, without exception. Sure, there are a few assholes who don't care about others living or dying, but there are far more people who care than those bastards... No matter what happens, tell the world, tell my family, I've been trying my best to find a way home."
"Wow, that's a really moving passage. Is it from the script?"
"Yep."
"Congratulations."
Ben Affleck said sincerely.
...
The end of 2015 was approaching.
Hollywood media used an article to summarize Hollywood's performance in 2015:
"Looking back at 2015, if we had to use one word to describe Hollywood films this year, 'disappointing' might be the most fitting."
"Recall last year, from the Berlin Film Festival at the beginning of the year with the groundbreaking Boyhood and The Grand Budapest Hotel killing it all the way to award season, or from Christmas stretching right past the Oscars with Get Out, or films from previous years like Gravity that were both critically acclaimed and commercial successes—this year, Hollywood films overall presented a rather bleak picture."
"Whether everyone was making way for the presidential election or respecting the turmoil in Europe, many films with decent pre-release buzz or works by famed directors deliberately postponed their releases to next year. So what was left for us this year was mostly Hollywood theatrical releases lacking force, indie works that were dull and monotonous, and dark horses that came out of nowhere. Even many hardcore film buffs who are usually feasting at this time found themselves fatigued and unenthused."
"However, although most films this year were disappointing, there were still surprising works."
"Carol was the most outstanding among them. This film has attracted much attention since its project establishment several years ago. After several rounds of financing and cast changes, it finally premiered at this year's Cannes Film Festival. From that moment on, it became the hottest film of the year, bar none."
"Whether you follow the film world or not, when you open Twitter or Facebook, you'll find this film has an extremely strong presence. Its quality, of course, didn't disappoint the audience, jumping to become one of the highest-rated films of the year."
"Besides this, other excellent films this year include the transgender story The Danish Girl, the marriage equality love story Freeheld, the exploration of a gay couple's desire to have their own child in Nasty Baby, and the biopic of Saint Laurent founder Saint Laurent, etc."
"On the TV side, traditional networks still had quite a few aging but robust works, like Fargo and The Walking Dead, making audiences marvel at their vitality. New dramas were barely worth mentioning, with only The Muppets, Quantico, and Blindspot being somewhat recognizable."
"In terms of web series, sites represented by Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu, unshackled by traditional conventions and holding vast data on user preferences, along with better user experience systems and most importantly, a quality-over-quantity development policy for series, have allowed web series to secure an important place in the hearts of viewers and media in just two years..."
"The talk show world also underwent earth-shaking changes. David Letterman retired; Craig Ferguson, Jon Stewart, and Jay Leno all stepped down."
"The years-long 'Late Night War' between David Letterman and Jay Leno was replaced by Jimmy Fallon and Stephen Colbert, who realized viewers wanted higher-level entertainment forms and more interesting viral videos; but for those late-night show viewers hoping to see sharp, witty dialogue, Seth Meyers managed to combine Jon Stewart's sharp political views with David Letterman's humorous style, his show gradually growing into a stalwart of late-night."
"Variety/Reality TV saw little major movement, with only Lip Sync Battle, relying on celebrity guest impersonations and unrestrained spirit, creating a brand-new show that achieved both fame and quality in one season. Notably, two reality ace shows, America's Next Top Model and American Idol, both announced their conclusion, drawing a period to the era of talent shows."
"After successfully launching the political conspiracy drama House of Cards, Netflix this year boldly released two more brilliantly executed scripted works: Narcos and Bloodline."
"But, after taking stock of 2015 and past film achievements, we find the name 'Meyers Pictures' is unavoidable. Get Out, Carol, Joy, The Muppets, American Idol—this name can be seen in the credits of these films and TV shows, even appearing on Netflix's shareholder list."
"Since Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer went bankrupt, Hollywood only had the 'Big Six.' Perhaps we can now add Meyers Pictures to make it the 'Big Seven.' In fact, this film company founded by Martin Meyers at twelve has already, unknowingly, become a behemoth!"