In Hollywood, there were plenty of idols who made their debut based on their looks, charisma, or physique. However, truly top-tier male actors were a rare breed. Currently, only Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Cruise, and Brad Pitt stood at the pinnacle of the industry.
This standard was based on their market value. Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Will Smith, and even Johnny Depp, who had seen his market value soar thanks to "Pirates of the Caribbean", were still a step behind.
The top three had entered the $20M club first in this new millennium.
As for Leonardo, he had been chasing an Oscar for years, trapped in a cycle of repeated attempts and failures, unable to break free.
Tom, on the other hand, was an actor who both Paramount and Warner Bros. highly endorsed. He had risen to fame early on, and his box office success had proven his worthiness of such accolades.
Brad, however, had a less straightforward journey. He had struggled in his early career, and if it weren't for his wife Jennifer Aniston and her connections and support, Brad might have remained a relatively unknown actor.
Of course, if you claimed that he had made it on his own merit, I won't argue. After all, there were many who had the looks, charisma, and physique, but opportunities to appear in films were scarce each year.
Moreover, Brad had faced some awkward moments in recent years.
Due to some emotional reasons, his wife Jennifer Aniston had numerous complaints against him. Rumors about their marriage struggles had even surfaced several times. However, Brad himself didn't seem too keen on maintaining the relationship, taking it rather casually.
But in his career, he couldn't afford to be casual.
After gaining significant recognition with films like "Seven" and "Fight Club", he struggled for several years without any notable hits. Even more frustrating was his decision to turn down the role in "Fury", leaving him regretful. This was particularly unsettling for Brad, who had always prioritized his career and worked diligently for a long time before finally gaining recognition.
What irked him even more was that his biggest competitor, Tom Cruise, had roles that often overlapped with his own and was frequently used as a comparison by the production companies. Tom had been doing quite well.
Let's not even mention the sequels of "Mission: Impossible", which had been successful, but "Collateral" had also garnered astonishing box office numbers.
Damn it, it was like missing a crucial move in chess, and there was no way to take it back. Director Lattes, that doggone director, was quite petty and didn't even pay attention to the requests for cooperation and reconciliation.
In any case, one was on an upward trajectory, while the other seemed to be stagnating or even declining.
So, there were high hopes for "Troy".
In order to secure the role, Brad had even used some of his studio's funds to shoulder a portion of the production risk. This was commonly known as investing in one's own project.
He aimed to solidify his position through the hottest genre of the moment: epic films.
Warner Bros. was a veteran film company, and their interest in a project brought a certain level of assurance.
...
On the evening of May 13th, "Troy" held its premiere at the Chinese Theater.
Lyman had received an invitation from Warner Bros. and attended the event.
To be more precise, it was Barry Meyer himself who made the phone call to invite him, and he had to save face. Otherwise, he really didn't want to see Brad's hypocritical face.
It was quite uncomfortable.
At this moment, on the grand red carpet, Brad was chatting about his arduous filming experience under the deliberate guidance of the host.
"Brad, we heard that actors getting injured was a common occurrence during this shoot. Do you have anything to say about it?"
The host's question was well-crafted. If it hadn't been prearranged, it would have required some extra payment. They were really good at creating a buzz.
Didn't you see the audience on both sides laughing? I wonder if there were really that many people interested.
Upon hearing the question, Brad displayed a relaxed smile and quipped, "Actually, I'm okay. The action scenes were relatively simple for me. The most affected was Eric; he really suffered for it. During filming, since we did our own fight scenes, the two of us privately agreed to compensate each other for any accidental hits. We used a hundred bucks per hit to soothe the pain." With that, Brad chuckled and pointed to Eric Bana beside him.
Well, the Eric in question was the actor who played the Hulk in Ang Lee's version of "The Hulk", his full name is Eric Bana. He also played in "Troy". Speaking of which, because of the failure of "The Hulk", he really needed a successful project to revive his career.
Eric Bana took over the conversation, wearing a smiling expression as he said, "Thanks to this agreement, I made $900, but in return, I had some bruises on my body. This guy Brad really didn't hold back; his hits really hurt. But for the sake of the film's effect, we had to do it."
Immediately, many audience members burst into laughter and applause.
On the side, Lyman watched the cast and crew on stage chatting away with amusement, shaking his head slightly.
Today was quite the grand event.
The influence of Warner Bros. was indeed astonishing, with a multitude of A-list celebrities in attendance.
Brad's wife Jennifer, Oscar winner Julia Roberts, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Bruce Willis, Angelina Jolie...
And many more renowned film critics and producers. This string of distinguished guests created a significant buzz.
With over a hundred media reporters in attendance, the interviews were luxurious, always brimming with topics.
When it came to Warner Bros., its influence and restraint over these media outlets were truly unparalleled.
Such scenes were not seen often, and one could imagine that Warner Bros. had great expectations for "Troy".
They also hoped it would shine brightly in the summer season, or else they wouldn't invest such substantial resources.
Yet, even so, when Barry Meyer greeted Lyman, there didn't seem to be much joy on his face.
Could it be that their internal market research was not optimistic?
Lyman secretly wondered.
Perhaps it was, but due to the nearly $200M invested, they couldn't just stop and were unwilling to do so. They might as well bravely continue.
Brad was still very happy. When he saw Lyman also present at the scene, his delight was even more sincere.
A warm smile bloomed on his face, and he extended his hand in a friendly and polite manner.
The two men shook hands without many words.
"Welcome."