Night fell, and the dining area was brightly lit.
The white light illuminated the tables, and Matthew could see that Michael Sheen was very unhappy.
He sighed inwardly but said nothing more, knowing that once the balance in a person's heart was broken, it would be very difficult, even impossible, to restore.
His phone suddenly rang.
Matthew pulled it out to answer, and it was indeed Helen Herman calling.
He quickly went to a trailer on the set to participate in a temporary audition for a role.
It was a small role, and since he wasn't a member of the Screen Actors Guild, the audition was simple.
The casting director and Ridley Scott's assistant looked at Matthew's appearance, then had him roar a few times, and nodded in satisfaction.
After passing the audition, Helen Herman handled the remaining matters.
Matthew walked alone towards the town, returned to his hotel, took a quick shower, and went to bed early.
He had a busy day and had to get up early tomorrow, so he had no time to waste.
Matthew didn't know when Michael Sheen returned.
He woke up close to 3 AM, washed up, and went straight to the restaurant, where he met Helen Herman and her assistant, Amanda, at the entrance.
The three had breakfast together, and Helen Herman handed over the other extras to Amanda, personally accompanying Matthew to the set.
Ridley Scott had given Angel Agency such a role, such an opportunity, and she certainly had to show appropriate respect.
Aside from other aspects, this was at least a sign of respect for Ridley Scott.
The crew was starting early, and many people were already walking out of town.
Matthew was always a bit curious about this role, and now that it was just the two of them, he couldn't help but ask, "This role wasn't in your original plan, was it?"
"It was a last-minute acquisition," Helen Herman, dressed in a new navy blue professional suit today, seemed to be in a good mood.
She briefly explained, "The original actor for this role had a clear clause in his contract with the crew stating that he must have no less than five lines of dialogue."
Her flat leather shoes clicked crisply on the hard road.
"The day before yesterday, that actor joined the crew and found that all five lines were similar to the howling you guys did yesterday.
He was very dissatisfied and had a bit of a friction with the crew, so director Ridley Scott decided to replace him."
"That actor was fired?" Matthew asked, concerned.
Leaving the town, the two walked towards the forest set.
Helen Herman continued, "No, he's a union actor, and firing him would be very troublesome.
It would also mean the crew would breach the contract, and breaching the contract would require compensating him for a month's salary.
His daily salary is $8,000, which is very uneconomical."
Matthew thought of some unpleasant things and asked again, "Does the crew have a way to sideline him without breaching the contract?"
"The crew will temporarily have him act as a barbarian soldier, and then a second director will specifically film a scene for him with five lines of dialogue," Helen Herman said casually.
"During post-production, all his scenes will be discarded, and he can be dismissed for a few hundred dollars."
"is that so...?" Matthew grimaced, "That works too?"
Helen Herman said blandly, "Just an ordinary British actor."
Matthew nodded.
An ordinary small actor, even a union member, couldn't contend with a crew the size of "Gladiator."
Then again, that British actor Helen Herman mentioned was probably an impulsive person, wasn't he?
Arriving at the forest set, Matthew followed Helen Herman to the crew's daily office trailer first to re-sign a contract with the legal department.
The contract contained clear legal provisions for basic wage guarantees, insurance, and workers' compensation.
In case of disputes, Angel Agency and Helen Herman would handle them.
After signing the contract, an assistant director handed Matthew a script for the role.
The script was two pages long and detailed the barbarian leader's scenes.
Broadly speaking, the role's scenes were divided into two parts: first, standing alone in front of many barbarians, roaring loudly at the Roman legions; second, being surrounded by Roman soldiers and killed!
They were mostly close-ups and medium shots.
Therefore, when Matthew arrived at a large makeup trailer, he received personalized service.
A seemingly glamorous male makeup artist and his female assistant worked together to do Matthew's makeup.
This time, the makeup was quite meticulous, especially the beard on Matthew's face, which was basically glued on hair by hair.
Clearly, actors who were just a quick shot in a long shot received completely different treatment than those with close-ups.
The makeup was quite troublesome and took a long time.
At one point, Matthew even almost fell asleep; he was woken up by angry shouts from outside the makeup trailer.
"Who is that guy? Whose connections is he using!" It was a man's voice with a London accent, "How dare he steal my role! I'll show him..."
"Macon..." Someone seemed to be trying to persuade him.
It quickly quieted down outside the makeup trailer.
Matthew guessed it might be the British actor Helen Herman had mentioned.
The young female assistant makeup artist glued a beard hair onto Matthew's face and whispered, "That British bloke, relying on his time at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, always looks down on people with his nose in the air.
He thought Ridley Scott would help him because they were both British, but he forgot this is America!"
"Haha..." Matthew didn't know how to respond, so he just chuckled twice.
The makeup continued until it was bright outside, and Matthew's look was finally done.
"Thank you!"
Ready to go to the costume and props departments, Matthew was very polite as he left, "You two worked hard!"
Having been at the bottom of society for many years, he was still very good at dealing with people.
"You're welcome," the female assistant smiled.
The glamorous male makeup artist suddenly stepped forward, slipped a note into Matthew's hand, and whispered, "Handsome, my number's on there.
Call me sometime, and we can hang out."
Matthew was momentarily stunned, then understood.
Without another word, he left the makeup trailer.
After walking some distance, he quickly threw the note into a trash can.
Next, he went to the costume department to change into a thick fur costume and received a long-handled war hammer inlaid with totems from the props department.
As he left the props department, Matthew saw Helen Herman standing outside the props trailer, apparently waiting specifically for him.
Seeing Matthew approach, Helen Herman asked, "Was it smooth?"
Matthew nodded, "It was okay, just took a bit long."
The sun was high in the sky now, probably past 8:30 AM.
Just doing the styling took over four hours.
Fortunately, all the scenes for this role could be filmed today.
Helen Herman led the way, with Matthew walking beside her, heading towards yesterday's filming location.
Walking through the path in the woods, the two arrived at the edge of the open ground.
Hundreds of extras had already gathered there, waiting for today's scenes to begin.
Michael Sheen leaned against a tree and spotted Matthew immediately.
Even from a distance, he could see clearly that the fur on Matthew's body was exquisitely made, his makeup was even more realistic, especially the beard, which looked just like a real one, a world apart from the obviously fake ones on his own face.
"He's only been in Los Angeles for a few months?" Michael Sheen felt very unhappy.
"I've been in Los Angeles for over three years!"
Shouldn't a friend help out at a crucial moment?
But he wouldn't help him...
Thinking of this, Michael Sheen strode over, "Hi, Matthew."
Matthew was chatting with Helen Herman when he heard the familiar voice.
He immediately turned his head and greeted, "You're here, Mike."
He acted as if nothing had happened yesterday, as if there was no difference from before.
"Yesterday..." Michael Sheen intentionally trailed off, "I got a little hot-headed and said too much."
Matthew shook his head, "What happened yesterday? I've forgotten all about it."
Michael Sheen smiled.
It seemed Matthew still considered him a friend.
Helen Herman didn't understand what the two were talking about.
She first looked at Matthew, then at Michael Sheen.
Noticing Helen Herman's eyes turn to him, Michael Sheen immediately smiled and said, "Hello, Helen.
I'm Michael Sheen, Matthew's good friend, and also your actor."
"Hmm," Helen Herman remembered seeing him yesterday, "Hello, I remember you.
You were a mover."
"That's right!"
Hearing her say that, Michael Sheen's smile grew even brighter, "That's when I met Matthew.
Our common interests made us friends.
Matthew has appeared in..."
He subtly emphasized his words, as if reminding Helen Herman, "...appeared in one role, and I've appeared in over twenty roles.
When we chat, Matthew often asks me for advice."
Helen Herman's eyes were hidden behind her glasses, making them hard to read, and a faint, professional smile always graced her face, "is that so?"
Matthew also showed a hint of a smile, but it was unfortunately hidden by the thick beard on his mouth.
Making a casual acquaintance, Michael Sheen was really learning on the fly.
Just then, Ridley Scott, accompanied by the bearded man, walked onto the set.
Helen Herman said to Matthew, "Director Scott might be directing personally.
I'll take you over to meet him."
Matthew was more than happy to, and followed Helen Herman.
Michael Sheen also followed, but after only a couple of steps, Helen Herman noticed him and said, "Your scene is about to start.
Go back and get ready."
Hearing this, Michael Sheen had no choice but to stop, watching helplessly as Matthew and Helen Herman approached Ridley Scott.
"Uncle Scott," Helen Herman greeted first, "Are you going to direct this scene yourself?"
"Hmm," Ridley Scott nodded, "is your actor okay?"
Helen Herman came up to him, pointed at Matthew, and said, "This is Matthew Horner.
Last month, he played a character actor in the movie 'Girl, Interrupted,' acting alongside Winona Ryder and Angelina Jolie."
Seeing Matthew's tall and strong physique and his rugged, wild appearance, and hearing Helen Herman's words, Ridley Scott felt relieved and instructed the bearded man, "Prepare to start filming!"