Just after returning to Los Angeles, Matthew didn't expect to receive such an email from Rachel Weisz. Darren Aronofsky truly lived up to his reputation as a Hollywood man, passionate about the glorious work of "keeping it in the family," much like himself.
Mila Kunis also proved her worth as a Hollywood actress, expertly stealing her best friend's boyfriend without hesitation.
But none of this surprised him. Such things were far too common in Hollywood.
If men didn't cheat, and women didn't have affairs, could it even be called Hollywood?
Matthew knew this situation would definitely drive Natalie Portman mad. After all, having a friend steal your man is something that would frustrate and anger anyone.
However, this wouldn't fundamentally harm Natalie Portman.
It was possible that Natalie had fallen in love with Darren Aronofsky, but how deep that love went was hard to say.
From his own perspective, Matthew suspected that Natalie was more likely using Darren Aronofsky to break into the indie film scene. Once she achieved that, she might kick Darren to the curb when the time was right.
If he truly wanted to hurt Natalie Portman, the ultimate goal had to be to sabotage her Oscar aspirations.
This summer, John Carter was set to release, and Natalie Portman was the female lead. If the film performed as he anticipated, her commercial career would take a severe blow. If she then failed to win anything at the Oscars, she would be highly likely to become a certified box-office poison, dropping several ranks on casting lists at various production companies.
At that point, not only would her dreams of becoming a true A-list star be dashed, but even her status as a B-list actress would be at risk.
In the end, whether Hollywood invested in commercial films or indie art films, the goal was always commercial profit.
Without a heavyweight Oscar to back it up, it would be tough for a film like Black Swan to turn a profit.
After Rachel Weisz had come to see him last time, Matthew had taken the time to watch some of Darren Aronofsky's previous films. Without major awards, it would be difficult for his niche style to even recoup the budget on small indie films.
The protagonists of Aronofsky's films often had self-destructive personalities. This director tended to portray his characters' journey to madness and self-destruction in a way that was painful to watch.
In Aronofsky's films, the body becomes a sacrificial altar to the suffering of the mind. Ambition, loneliness, desire, and yearning are all depicted through a bleak lens.
In niche circles, these kinds of films had a high level of artistic credibility.
It was no wonder Natalie Portman took the initiative after seeing the script for Black Swan in Rachel Weisz's hands.
After thinking it over, Matthew gave Rachel Weisz a call. He advised her to focus on sabotaging Black Swan's Oscar run, using the favorable circumstances they had created to damage the film's chances as much as possible.
Perhaps under Rachel Weisz's careful maneuvering, the Black Swan production team might end up staging a drama even more exciting than the movie itself.
He planned to watch the drama unfold, and if necessary, lend Rachel Weisz a hand.
Rachel was still in action, and from what Matthew had heard, she had even temporarily set aside her own work this year to focus solely on this task.
A determined woman could be quite terrifying sometimes.
Take Jennifer Lawrence, for example.
Upon hearing that Matthew had returned to Los Angeles, Jennifer Lawrence came to visit him personally, eager to secure the final round of auditions for The Hunger Games. She was more than willing to pose in various ways for a new series of nude art photos he shot.
Jennifer Lawrence was an actress who would do anything to become famous.
Although she came across as a bit of a goofball, Matthew knew she was very clever. At just under twenty years old, she was already more calculating than some actresses who had been in Hollywood for years.
So, both during her last photo shoot and this one, Matthew secretly filmed everything.
These videos, which clearly showed Jennifer coming to him voluntarily, would be locked away in his safe, and he hoped they would never need to be used.
Matthew was a man of his word. After the final round of auditions for The Hunger Games, Jennifer Lawrence got the role of Katniss Everdeen, just as she had hoped.
Additionally, British actor Taron Egerton secured the role of Peeta, and Sam Claflin, also from the UK, was cast as Gale Hawthorne.
The casting for The Hunger Games was complete. Like Twilight, the cast consisted of relatively unknown actors with some acting experience.
The production also chose a few skilled but affordable actors for supporting roles, such as Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harrelson, and Donald Sutherland.
Filming was set to begin in mid-April, and if everything went well, the movie would hit theaters in North America in April 2011.
Given the success of the Twilight franchise, The Hunger Games was generating a lot of buzz, especially since Matthew was investing in it.
To promote the film, Matthew made sure to mention The Hunger Games during a press event for Fast Five, specifically highlighting Jennifer Lawrence as the lead.
"Mr. Horner," a reporter from The Hollywood Reporter asked, "What led the production team to choose Jennifer Lawrence for the lead role in this film?"
Since the final decision on casting was in his hands, a well-known fact, Matthew didn't shy away from it. He replied frankly, "Jennifer Lawrence is a very creative actress. Director Patty Jenkins was also very impressed with her. Her performance during the audition really blew us away—calm, natural, and with incredible intensity."
Since he had chosen Jennifer Lawrence, Matthew would do everything in his power to elevate her for the sake of the film. "A few years ago, when I visited Charlize Theron on the set of The Burning Plain, I saw Jennifer Lawrence for the first time. She truly has the talent of a first-rate actress, capable of delivering a compelling performance."
In some sense, he wasn't lying. Jennifer had left quite an impression when she fell flat on her face during that encounter.
That memorable entrance made her stand out.
Matthew's words were a mix of truth and exaggeration. "Later, I met with Jennifer Lawrence and found her to be a highly versatile actress. That's why I brought her onto the project. The other leads were chosen in a similar way, after I had reviewed their films."
The reporter from The Hollywood Reporter glanced at his notes and, with some hesitation, asked, "According to the production notes, Jennifer Lawrence is almost twenty years old. Given the character of Katniss, isn't her real age a bit too old? Could this age difference cause challenges for her performance and the film?"
The age of the actor was indeed an issue, especially for white actresses who mature quickly by their twenties. It was hard to convincingly play a character in their mid-teens.
Take Jennifer Lawrence, for example. Perhaps because of his recent "deep exploration" of her talents, she now looked more like a woman than a girl.
But it was an unavoidable situation. Fifteen- or sixteen-year-old actresses often found themselves in a tricky spot in Hollywood, much like the many female stars approaching forty who were unwilling to move from lead roles to supporting ones, but found few opportunities.
For teenage actors, particularly girls, the situation was complex. They faced stiff competition from child stars for younger roles, had little chance of landing adult roles, and when auditioning for roles their own age, they competed against actresses in their late teens or early twenties, who often had the upper hand in terms of experience and confidence.
"I discussed this issue extensively with director Patty Jenkins and author Suzanne Collins," Matthew said after a brief pause. "And Collins did have some thoughts about Jennifer's age."
He paused for effect. "But the key here is to find someone who can embody Katniss' essence from the novel while also fitting the physicality of the role. Finding an actress who's both that young and at the right performance level is almost impossible."
Spreading his hands in a gesture of acceptance, he added, "As it stands, no one matches Jennifer Lawrence in terms of acting, appearance, and character portrayal. In fact, both Collins and I see Katniss not as a young girl but as a young woman, which Jennifer Lawrence captures perfectly."
A strong female lead on-screen and a down-to-earth, goofy persona off-screen, Jennifer Lawrence was the perfect choice to help promote The Hunger Games.
To be honest, Jennifer Lawrence wasn't particularly stunning, but her carefully crafted public image played a huge role in her popularity.
Comparing the public personas of Jennifer Lawrence and Anne Hathaway, it was clear that Jennifer was much more liked by the media and public.
The Hunger Games would be developed into a series. Suzanne Collins had already completed the second novel, though it had yet to be published. The release date for the book would align with the promotional timeline for the film.
This adaptation was about to begin filming, but another book that had been on Matthew's radar had already made a name for itself just a month after hitting the shelves.
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