Many actors in this crew belonged to Angel Talent Agency, and Matthew was well aware of this. The person in front of him, Duff Bilia, was one of them. From what he knew, this person was considered one of the more successful among the many minor actors at Angel Talent Agency.
Matthew glanced at Duff Bilia, walked over, and locked the dressing room door. "Speak your mind."
"It's like this," Duff Bilia said with a mysterious expression, his voice particularly low. "I heard someone on set today planning to harm you."
"Oh?" Matthew raised an eyebrow.
This time, he was the male lead in the crew, and he was the earliest actor confirmed. He was also highly appreciated by the two producers, Sean Daniel and Stephen Sommers. Among all the actors, including the female lead Kelly Hu, no one had more weight than him.
Who would bother him for no reason?
To be honest, he didn't really trust Duff Bilia, even though they were from the same talent agency.
In Hollywood, being overly trusting was definitely not a good quality.
"It's true," Duff Bilia said, seemingly trying to curry favor with Matthew. "This afternoon, Steven Brand—the actor playing Manon, also from Angel Talent Agency—and another Angel Talent Agency actor, Clark Bernard, were discussing how to ruin you."
Matthew knew the two people Duff Bilia mentioned, especially Steven Brand, who was well-built.
Matthew didn't speak, just watched Duff Bilia, waiting for him to continue.
"It's like this," Duff Bilia continued. "They plan to find an opportunity to invite you to the Black Mamba Bar for a drink, and then tempt you to use cocaine. Once you get addicted..."
He didn't finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.
"Tempt me to do drugs?" Matthew couldn't help but snort. In other areas, he might fall for it, but he wouldn't even touch drugs. He had lived in a society that severely cracked down on drugs and knew how harmful they were. But he was still a little puzzled. "Even if they tricked me, they wouldn't become the male lead of the crew."
Did these two people foolishly think that if he was ruined, they could smoothly take his place as the male lead? Don't be ridiculous... Suddenly, Matthew realized something.
Sure enough, Duff Bilia said, "They believe you're blocking their path in Angel Talent's agency, preventing them from climbing higher." He hesitated, then added, "They think the agency's resources are too heavily skewed towards you. You're getting the meat, and they can't even gnaw on the bones."
He glanced at Matthew and continued, "Especially Steven Brand. His career path is similar to yours, and he believes that with you blocking the way, he won't have a chance to stand out."
Matthew nodded, his mind racing. He asked, "I remember you often hung out with those two..."
Duff Bilia understood the implication and immediately said, "You are the person the company values most. There's no conflict between you and me, so there's no need for me to follow those two and hit a wall."
Although he had said some things in front of those two, he never seriously considered doing anything. Matthew Horner was on a completely different level than them. If he really did something, with Helen Herman's personality, would they become the company's priority clients?
Steven Brand and Clark Bernard were desperate for fame, but he saw things clearly.
On one side was Matthew Horner, who was very likely to become a star, and on the other were two minor actors similar to him. Whom should he choose? Was there even a need to think about it?
"You have no conflict of interest with me?" Matthew tilted his head, looking at Duff Bilia.
"Yes, none," Duff Bilia said, flicking his own face. "Look at me. Could I possibly follow your path? I'm well aware that even if I'm lucky enough, I'll only be a comedy star, which is completely different from your path. We won't compete for Angel Talent's limited resources."
Matthew stood up, put his backpack back on, and asked, "Tell me, what do you want from me?"
In some ways, Duff Bilia's words made a lot of sense. His appearance and slender build inherently disqualified him from certain roles.
"If you come across a role suitable for someone like me..." Duff Bilia smiled, not without flattery. "If you could help recommend me, I'd be satisfied."
Matthew tilted his head but didn't answer directly. Instead, he said, "Keep an eye on those two."
Duff Bilia understood Matthew's meaning and immediately said, "Don't worry, I'll keep a close watch on them."
"Alright, it's quitting time," Matthew said, opening the dressing room door. "Time to go home."
Duff Bilia walked out of the dressing room first, followed by Matthew.
Upon arriving at the entrance of Warner Bros. Studios, he got into his newly bought BMW. In the past few days since filming began, many reporters had gathered outside the studio. Matthew was one of the main targets of their containment. Warner Bros. Studios had also granted them a small privilege, allowing them to drive their cars inside the studio, but they had to park near the main gate.
He thought about what had just happened and called Helen Herman. Helen Herman was still the same, not overly concerned, but she did say she would have someone keep an eye on them.
Matthew didn't say much more. Having been in this industry for over two years, he naturally understood some things. Let alone a small talent agency like Angel Talent, even top-tier entertainment agencies like CAA and UTA had relatively defined internal resources. If some people received more, others naturally received less, and who wouldn't want to be the one who received the most resources and shone the brightest?
At this stage, Matthew didn't plan to do too much to Steven Brand and Clark Bernard. A warning at an opportune moment would suffice, as he was the male lead of this film, and it had the greatest impact on him.
If it succeeded, he would be the actor who profited the most; if it failed, he would also be the one who fell the hardest.
According to his calculations, if the film failed, Helen Herman would no longer value him as she did now. Without Steven Brand and Clark Bernard doing anything, his so-called "roadblock" would silently collapse.
Filming had already begun. If he got rid of Steven Brand and Clark Bernard, these two important supporting actors, it would only bring unnecessary complications to the crew, possibly leading to unforeseen negative consequences. There was no need to take such a risk.
It was better to have someone keep an eye on those two guys.
As for Duff Bilia, he would have to be out of his mind to trust someone like that.
Everything would have to wait until after the film was completed and released. As long as the film was successful, he would have leverage, and it wouldn't be difficult to have Helen Herman kick those two out.
Starting the car, Matthew drove out of Warner Bros. Studios, ignoring the reporters who swarmed around him, and headed directly onto the highway.
Originally, this crew was the most relaxed he had felt since starting his career, and as the male lead, he thought no one would be so foolish as to cause trouble... Unfortunately, competition was ubiquitous in this industry.
To avoid being stepped on, one had to step on others to climb higher.
In the following days, filming continued at Warner Bros. Studios. A minor actor invited him to a bar for a drink, claiming many actors from the crew would be there, but he declined.
Other than that, Matthew didn't notice anything unusual and kept his focus on his role.
Before this film, he had prepared thoroughly, and some of the training he underwent for his other films could also be applied to this shoot. His condition was excellent, especially for action scenes. Even some highly difficult action sequences often passed after only two or three takes.
Matthew knew that this could barely be considered a culmination of long-term effort finally paying off.
This excellent state lasted for a very long time, making the filming exceptionally smooth.
"Matthew, they're outnumbered, don't fight them head-on."
Inside the studio, an action scene was about to begin. Action director Tim Madsen stood in front of Matthew, giving his final instructions. "Just like you've shown before, you need to display both strength and speed! You need to move, fully utilizing your agile footwork and excellent agility, inflicting maximum damage on the enemy through rapid movement! And this is a long take, so don't be rigid; adapt flexibly to the situation!"
"I understand."
This action scene had been rehearsed several times during training, and Matthew was confident. He checked his equipment to avoid a repeat of what happened during the first shoot, then said, "I'm ready."
Tim Madsen left the set and gave a thumbs-up to director Chuck Russell, and filming immediately began.
The studio was set up to look like a cave, eerie and chilling. A pair of soldiers entered, pursuing Mathayus, played by Matthew... In this scene, Matthew only had a few on-screen appearances; the rest of the time, he was moving rapidly, fully utilizing the terrain and his speed advantage to ambush and take down one opponent after another.
Unlike before, this was a long-take action sequence, but like before, Matthew's performance was consistently excellent. Filming only took one take, and director Chuck Russell called "cut."
The entire morning was spent filming action scenes. In the afternoon, similar to the previous plan, the crew shifted to filming dramatic scenes and moved to the constructed tents.
The female lead, Kelly Hu, also appeared in the studio, continuing to film with Matthew.
This scene involved the male lead, played by Matthew, and the female lead, getting intimate in bed. This was an indispensable segment in Hollywood commercial entertainment films; otherwise, why cast handsome men and beautiful women as leads?
Since the theatrical release needed to aim for a PG-13 rating, the scenes shown on the big screen couldn't be overly explicit. However, the footage shot by the crew had a much larger scale, as they also had to consider the DVD and video market beyond the box office.