On a cool morning, in the woods of the small park near the apartment building, Matthew met with Elena-Polyar, who had come specifically for the appointment.
"You seem to have lost weight."
Sitting at the stone table, Matthew sized her up, "You really have lost weight."
Elena-Polyar, sitting opposite, tossed her golden ponytail behind her and said, "I've been on a diet recently."
Matthew gave her a thumbs-up, "The effect is quite noticeable."
Elena-Polyar, once robust and tall like the tennis player Sharapova, was now noticeably slimmer.
"You called me here," Elena-Polyar wasn't concerned about her figure, and asked directly, "What's the matter?"
Matthew took out a bottle of mineral water from the bag under the table and threw it to Elena-Polyar, saying, "Aren't you looking for news? I have a piece of information you might be interested in."
When signing the termination agreement, he had greeted Helen-Herman, who had no objections.
"You still remember to provide me with news?" Elena-Polyar raised an eyebrow in complaint, then asked, "Let's hear it."
Matthew didn't beat around the bush and asked directly, "Do you know Van Diesel?"
"Of course." Elena-Polyar followed his lead, "Spielberg once created a role specifically for him in 'Saving Private Ryan,' and he was the leading actor in 'Galactic Legends' released in February. Some people in the industry even rumor that he's Spielberg's illegitimate son..."
Hearing this, Matthew's gossip heart surged, asking, "Is he?"
Elena-Polyar shook her head, "As far as I know, he shouldn't be." She continued on the topic, "Van Diesel seems to be filming 'Fast and Furious' recently..."
At this point, she realized something and looked at Matthew, "I remember you're also participating in 'Fast and Furious.' You've had a conflict with Van Diesel."
"Am I that kind of person?" Matthew asked rhetorically.
Elena-Polyar looked at Matthew, first snorted, and then said seriously, "You are!"
"If you say so." Matthew changed to a mysterious tone, "I'll reveal a piece of top-secret news to you, so you won't complain."
"Hurry up and say it." Elena-Polyar urged.
"I've been terminated by the 'Fast and Furious' crew." Matthew took out another bottle of mineral water, unscrewing the cap while saying, "The mastermind behind it was Van Diesel."
Elena-Polyar doubted, "You were plotted against?"
Matthew drank a sip of water and said, "Do I need to lie about this kind of thing?"
Putting down the water bottle, he roughly described the recent events in the 'Fast and Furious' crew, but omitted the punches.
"That exaggerated?" Elena-Polyar was quite surprised, "He's at best a third-rate star!"
Matthew spread his hands, saying, "The reality is even more exaggerated than what I've told you. You can go to the crew for an interview, I believe someone will gladly vent their dissatisfaction with Van Diesel."
Elena-Polyar understood the implication behind his words, "Don't worry, we have a long-term cooperation relationship. I definitely won't mention you, even if I can't interview others, it will still be news leaked by well-informed sources."
"If I didn't trust you..." Matthew was not worried at all, "I wouldn't have sought you out."
"Hmm, I'll try to interview people from the crew." Elena-Polyar also unscrewed a bottle of mineral water and took a sip, "I'll write a special report and put it online."
"Online?" Matthew asked curiously, "Not in 'American News Report'?"
Elena-Polyar directly said, "I fired 'American News Report.' I'm now working for Yahoo Entertainment." She seemed to remind Matthew, "Using the internet for entertainment news offers higher timeliness, flexibility, and freedom. Internet entertainment gossip media is the future for entertainment journalists like me."
"May your future be as Hollywood's number one gossip!" Matthew casually replied.
"Thank you." Elena-Polyar generously accepted the 'praise,' stood up to leave, and suddenly remembered something before going, "Recently, there's a rumor in the industry that Britney Spears has a boyfriend."
Matthew calmly said, "Really? I haven't heard of it."
Elena-Polyar glanced at Matthew, seeing no abnormality, and continued, "It's said to be a rumor spread by Christina Aguilera, there's a lot of bad blood between her and Britney, so it may not be accurate."
She waved at Matthew, "Okay, I'm leaving. Call me if there's anything."
Matthew waved back at Elena-Polyar, waiting for her tall figure to disappear into the woods before he walked in the opposite direction.
Shortly after returning to the apartment, he received a call from Helen-Herman. The agent informed him that the 'The Mummy Returns' crew had already booked him a flight to London. He was to depart the next morning to join the filming of 'The Scorpion King.'
Thanks to Helen-Herman's negotiations, Matthew's ticket was in business class.
Furthermore, Helen-Herman had learned that the film's producer, Sean Daniel, who had returned to Los Angeles to deal with financial matters, would be on the same flight, though in first class.
Matthew knew that his success in the audition for 'The Scorpion King' was supported by Sean Daniel. If not for this conservative Southerner's somewhat obscure recognition, he might not have been able to edge out Dwayne Johnson.
Universal Studios, after Sean Daniel finished his work, he walked out of the office area towards the coffee shop where they had agreed to meet.
The previous afternoon, a high-level executive from Universal Pictures called him, saying a very promising star wanted to meet him. Seeing it was on this person's behalf, he agreed.
As soon as Sean Daniel entered the coffee shop, a bald man approached him.
"Hello, Mr. Daniel." The bald man introduced himself with a cold and stern voice, "I am Van Diesel."
During the conversation, Van Diesel extended his hand.
"Hello." Sean Daniel glanced at Van Diesel's face and the arms exposed outside of his short-sleeved shirt, a barely noticeable disgust flashed by momentarily.
He politely shook Van Diesel's extended hand.
"This way, please." Van Diesel led the way.
Following Van Diesel, Sean Daniel discreetly wiped his right hand on his trouser leg as if he had touched something dirty.
Knowing he was meeting such a person, he wouldn't have come.
Out of courtesy and for the face of that senior executive at Universal Pictures, Sean Daniel sat opposite Van Diesel and asked directly, "You wanted to see me?"
"I'm currently involved in Universal Pictures' 'Fast and Furious.'" Van Diesel said indirectly, "I'm friends with Jett Breton from Universal, he's in charge of this project, and I've helped him secure a significant investment..."
Sean Daniel, not interested in chatting with this person for long, interrupted, saying, "Please, get to the point, okay?"
Van Diesel was stunned, not understanding why Sean Daniel's attitude was so hostile. He hadn't offended him, even presenting Jett Breton as his advocate...
"Maybe we should forget it?" Van Diesel started to hesitate, "Whatever I say might be in vain."
Their coffee arrived at this moment. Van Diesel raised his hand to add sugar to his coffee, the pain in his shoulder reminded him of the incident that afternoon.
His hesitation quickly vanished, and he reaffirmed his initial intention.
The man opposite was just a film producer. He would soon become one too; it was no big deal. Even if Sean Daniel disagreed, they could simply part ways.
Van Diesel was, after all, a very arrogant and self-important person.
"I need your help with something simple," he became direct, "Your 'The Mummy Returns' crew has an actor named Matthew Horn. He's a jerk; he smashed mine and Jett Breton's car. Jett Breton was furious. After discussing it, we decided to make him disappear from all films produced or invested in by Universal!"
Sean Daniel remained expressionless, not saying a word. Of course, he remembered who Matthew Horn was; he was the actor he had insisted on casting for 'The Scorpion King.'
"Mr. Daniel..." Van Diesel, trying his luck, said, "I believe this is a small matter for you."
Even when saying such things, he maintained a cold expression, appearing boastful.
However, Van Diesel truly held himself in high regard, adding, "Jett Breton and I would owe you for this favor."
Sean Daniel looked at Van Diesel's head and smirked sarcastically, "Owe me a favor? You?" He scoffed, "Van Diesel, right? Better mind your own business and stop meddling in others'!"
With that, Sean Daniel intensified his tone, "My crew, is it something you're qualified to meddle with?"
Van Diesel was stunned, apparently not expecting Sean Daniel to speak so harshly.
Sean Daniel pulled out his wallet, took out a bill, slapped it on the table as payment for his untouched coffee, and left the coffee shop without caring for Van Diesel's reaction.
'The Mummy Returns' crew was busily filming at Pinewood Studios. Sean Daniel flew back to London the next day, with Matthew on the same flight, though they were in different cabins and did not see each other.
Arriving at the hotel prepared by the crew, Matthew completed the check-in process and rested early to adjust to the time difference. The filming of 'The Scorpion King' was about to start, and he had to be in good spirits to face a director who was prejudiced against him.
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