The last shot of the afternoon was a dramatic scene between Matthew and Duff Villa. After several NGs, it was already late when filming was completed. By the time he removed his makeup and arrived at the Crew Publicist's office, he found everyone waiting for him.
In the office, it wasn't just the Publicist and Helen Herman; producer Sean Daniel was also there. He managed all major and minor affairs of the Crew, so Matthew wasn't surprised to see him. What was somewhat surprising was that Kelly Hu and her Agent were also waiting in the office.
Matthew greeted everyone one by one and sat down on the single sofa next to Helen Herman.
"Everyone's here now," the Publicist said, glancing at Sean Daniel. "Let's begin."
Sean Daniel didn't speak, just nodded.
The Publicist continued, "Everyone, the reason I've called you here today is that the Crew has a promotional plan." He first looked at Matthew, then at Kelly Hu. "We need to get your opinions on it."
Hearing this, Matthew couldn't help but feel curious. When the Crew makes a publicity plan, actors just cooperate. Neither he nor Kelly Hu were big stars, so when did their opinions need to be solicited?
He glanced at Kelly Hu's side; Kelly Hu and her Agent also looked a bit puzzled.
The Publicist quickly explained, "If possible, we would like to ask Matthew and Kelly to announce a romantic relationship during the pre-release publicity phase. Of course, you two only need to play a couple in front of the public and the media to create news for the film..."
Matthew immediately understood; they wanted them to pretend to be a couple to attract attention.
He wasn't against this strategy. Movie promotions were full of tricks, and many things were fake. For example, at the last press conference, he, Sean Daniel, Stephen Sommers, and Chuck Russell had all been full of lies.
But not being against it didn't mean he would agree.
"May I say something?"
Taking advantage of the Publicist's temporary pause, Matthew interjected, "Everyone, may I offer my opinion?"
Helen Herman turned to look at Matthew, showing no intention of stopping him. She knew what Matthew was going to say. This kind of thing was based on voluntary participation, and if the actors didn't agree, the Crew wouldn't force them.
The Publicist looked at Matthew. "Please speak."
Matthew didn't beat around the bush and said directly, "Sorry, I can't do that. I have a girlfriend, and I don't want her to have any misunderstandings."
Sometimes he couldn't even figure out Britney's way of thinking, so it was better not to try something like this.
"You have a girlfriend?" The Publicist was a bit surprised.
It wasn't his first time working with Matthew; he had been the Publicist on that Crew and had never heard of Matthew having a girlfriend.
"Yes, it's true." Matthew glanced at Helen Herman next to him. "We've been together for over a year. Helen knows too."
Seeing that Matthew didn't want to mention Britney's name, Helen Herman said indifferently, "That's right."
The Publicist spread his hands and said no more. He had assumed both parties were single, which was why he had this idea. Now that one party disagreed, there was no point in continuing.
Kelly Hu quickly said goodbye and left. Matthew chatted with Sean Daniel for a few more minutes.
Helen Herman, meanwhile, was communicating with the Publicist. This was an important position in the Crew, and good cooperation between them would also benefit Matthew's personal publicity.
Afterward, the Publicist took Matthew and Helen Herman to a large office nearby to retrieve the footage shot yesterday, so Matthew could upload it to his personal blog. It would be even better if they could utilize Angel Talent Agency's publicity channels.
When he received the USB drive,
Matthew saw the poster template the Crew was designing for early promotion. It wasn't that he intentionally looked; this wasn't a confidential project. Probably to observe the effect, the poster was hung on the wall directly opposite the office door, quite conspicuous.
This was clearly a film poster, not an individual character poster. Although the poster had not yet added text such as the film title and actor names, the images of the main actors had already been composited.
Matthew took an extra look. He, the lead actor, was in the center of the poster, next to him was Kelly Hu, and then other actors like Clark Bernard, Duff Villa, and Steven Brand were on either side.
"There's something wrong with this poster," Helen Herman frowned slightly.
He didn't need her to say it; Matthew had also noticed that he, the absolute protagonist, despite being in the center of the poster, didn't stand out.
But neither of them spoke. This was not the right place. Not to mention the poster hadn't been finalized, and Matthew himself was present. Once a dispute arose, it would also be detrimental to his relationship with the Crew.
The two didn't stay long and left quickly.
It was already late, so Matthew and Helen Herman quickly left the Crew's office area, found a four-wheeled electric cart, and Matthew drove towards the studio gate.
"If the final version of the poster is still like this..." Matthew said directly to Helen Herman, "I want you to negotiate with the Crew."
Helen Herman didn't hesitate. "I know."
Matthew then said, "I have some other thoughts, about the other actors."
"Go ahead," Helen Herman knew what kind of person Matthew was and was mentally prepared for this. "Don't go too far."
"Absolutely not too far." Matthew turned the steering wheel, and the electric cart entered the main road leading directly to the studio gate. "Putting everything else aside, even for your sake, I wouldn't argue with them."
For the sake of the movie's impact on him as the lead actor, he couldn't mess around. If the film failed, the supporting actors would still be supporting actors, but he, the lead actor, would be finished.
A minute later, the electric cart stopped at the studio gate, and Helen Herman was the first to get out.
She stood by the car and said to Matthew, "Okay. If the poster designed by the Crew is still like today's, I will negotiate with them."
Matthew's actor contract included a clause that gave his party the right to make suggestions regarding projects such as posters and stills featuring the lead actor.
"Alright," Matthew jumped out of the electric cart and waved to Helen Herman. "Goodbye, Helen. Have a good night's sleep."
Helen Herman waved back at him and walked out of the studio.
Unlike Matthew, who was harassed by reporters, she needed to park her car outside.
Matthew drove home and uploaded the photos he got today to his blog. These were photos the Crew wouldn't use. Now his blog had four-digit followers, and some newspapers even reprinted the pictures and blog posts from it.
However, he couldn't casually post things like Crew stills and on-set photos; he had to get the Publicist's approval before uploading them.
In the following days, Matthew, as before, continued to fully immerse himself in filming. Having Helen Herman handle any issues was enough.
As the scenes filmed in the studio ended, the Warner Bros. Studio exhibition area needed time coordination. The Crew left Los Angeles and went to the Nevada desert to begin filming outdoor scenes.
The first scene upon arriving in Nevada was Matthew being buried alive by the Crew.
The Crew dug two large pits in the sand, then buried specially ordered boxes inside. Matthew and another actor, Duff Villa, stood in the boxes, which were then covered, leaving only their heads exposed. Sand was spread over the covers, creating the illusion of being buried alive.
This was the simplest method, but actors had to endure some stuffiness and heat. There were more relaxed filming methods, like directly using a green screen, but that would cost more, and the Crew clearly wanted to save expenses.
Anyway, there would be no danger, and with various safety measures in place, Matthew still completed his scenes according to the Crew's plan.
Filming started quickly.
The glaring sun shone on his head, and Matthew's face quickly broke out in a sweat. The desert sun was a bit blinding. He looked down at what was in front of him: a very realistic skull, with faint traces of what looked like decaying flesh on it.
"Impressive, right!"
A voice came from beside him. Matthew turned to look. Duff Villa, like him, had only his head exposed above the ground and said with a smile, "They're smoking fire ants out of their nests to feast on our heads."
Matthew's face showed corresponding tension. He looked at Duff Villa, then at the towering fire ant nest, and began to struggle.
"Do you find this funny?" he asked the guy next to him who was laughing.
Duff Villa looked very relaxed. "A little. Because I can escape, but you? You can only wait to die..."
Filming went smoothly. In one morning, the Crew completed all the scenes of Matthew and Duff Villa escaping from being buried alive. As for the non-existent fire ants, they would be added in post-production using special effects.
After lunch, Matthew, led by a trainer, came to a white dromedary camel. There were many scenes involving him and the camel later, so he needed to quickly familiarize himself with this specially trained camel.
This camel was also an animal actor hired by the Crew with a hefty sum, and its salary was even higher than Duff Villa's.
Matthew knew a little about this: in Hollywood filming, some animal actors' salaries were considerable, especially for cat and dog actors. The top ones could definitely command salaries comparable to minor stars.
Frankly, he wasn't very fond of pets. Keeping animals as decorative items was fine, but he didn't like intimate contact. This was also related to his past life, where he had to strive for basic survival and had no leisure to care about the lives of other creatures.
Fortunately, this camel was well-trained and gentle, and did not resist him riding it.
This also reduced a lot of trouble, and Matthew could practice riding the camel smoothly. Since it wasn't a galloping shot, he didn't need a stunt double.
Matthew's filming in Nevada was largely smooth, but Helen Herman, who remained in Los Angeles, approached the Crew to negotiate about the early publicity poster.