The day after signing the contract, Matthew was told that on September 15th, he was to et the film crew and travel by bus to Edwards Air Force Base, located near Los Angeles, for basic military training. After that, they would take a charter flight to Morocco for a shoot that was expected to last four to five months.
He was cast as Sergeant Hoot, a mber of Delta Force and, to put it simply, a classic tough guy.
In that regard, Ridley Scott and Jerry Bruckheir were experienced and had a keen eye for actors.
Then, Matthew received a call from Jas McAvoy, who had also passed his audition.
This was welco news; at least there would be a familiar face among the cast.
With less than a week before filming, Matthew didn't wait around in Los Angeles. Instead, he flew to East Asia to et up with Britney Spears in Japan, the dumping ground for Arican pop culture.
As on previous occasions, their eting was a rushed affair with almost no ti to spend together. While the cast of "Black Hawk Down" was already assembling, Matthew spent less than two days in Tokyo before returning to Los Angeles.
Upon his return, he began preparing for the upcoming trip to Africa.
In Matthew's mind, Africa was synonymous with chaos and poverty. He did so research online and discovered that the situation in Morocco was much better—it was one of the rare politically stable countries on the continent. However, located on the northwestern edge of Africa and bordering the Sahara Desert, its climate was exceptionally hot.
For this reason, Matthew bought so sunscreen, just in case.
On the day of the eting, Matthew hailed a taxi and arrived at the designated location on ti, hauling a large suitcase.
He wasn't too early; many actors had already gathered in front of the small building and in its lobby.
He soon spotted Jas McAvoy walking in and quickly waved him over. "Jas, over here!"
Jas approached Matthew, a bag slung over his back and a suitcase in tow.
"I saw that bastard Tom on my way here," Jas said, wasting no ti.
Matthew shook his head slightly. "Just pretend he doesn't exist."
Jas set down his suitcase and added, "It's a sha Michael isn't here."
Forget an audition; Michael Fassbender hadn't even received an invitation to try out for a role.
Matthew clapped him on the shoulder. "That's not up to us."
"Look," Jas said, nudging Matthew. "Tom's coming in."
Matthew turned his head toward the door and frowned slightly when he saw Tom Hardy walk in with another familiar man. "Why is he with Jonny Lee Miller?"
The man who had entered with Tom Hardy was none other than Angelina Jolie's ex-husband, Jonny Lee Miller.
Jas wasn't surprised. "Tom and Jonny have the sa agent," he said casually.
Matthew nodded and didn't pursue the topic, taking the initiative to change the subject. After about twenty minutes of chatting with Jas, two buses chartered by the crew pulled up in front of the building. They grabbed their bags and lined up to board.
Their destination was about one hundred and fifty kiloters from Los Angeles. Jas pulled out his phone, played a ga for a while, and soon fell asleep in his seat.
Matthew also tried to sleep but couldn't, so he took out his script and began to read.
Although he hadn't had the script for long, he had already morized Sergeant Hoot's lines. What he was doing now was placing the character's personality within the broader context of the story.
In a film based on real events, one that touched upon military and international politics, an actor needed to understand not only his own character but also the background of the entire movie.
Limited by his social class, he had no intuitive feel for international politics and could only try to grasp it through the materials he was given.
From what Matthew understood after reading the information, the chaos in Somalia was a result of the colonization and plundering of Africa by Western countries, and the presence of Arican troops had done nothing to improve the situation.
At the ti, the Cold War had ended. Somalia was not a strategically important location and had no valuable resources, so the United States was initially uninterested in deploying troops for peacekeeping. It was only when the UN took the initiative and asked for help that George H.W. Bush took on the project for the sake of appearances, sending troops to deliver aid supplies.
Then, as the situation in Somalia continued to deteriorate, the UN was forced to pass a new resolution authorizing the use of force to carry out rescue operations and ensure peace.
At that point, George H.W. Bush had just been re-elected, and Matthew guessed he thought it would be a huge PR victory if the world saw the Arican military taking action to bring peace and food to the Somali people.
And then a Black Hawk was shot out of the sky.
Of course, his knowledge of politics and military affairs was extrely limited, and all of this was just nonsense he'd pieced together after reading the materials.
The backstory of such an event was undoubtedly more complex than he imagined, or even than what was expressed in the script.
Staring at the script and mulling over all this nonsense, Matthew drifted off to sleep at so point. By the ti he woke up again, the bus had already left Los Angeles behind.
"Hey, man." An actor in his twenties approached him and asked, "Got any gum?"
Matthew grabbed his bag, rummaged through it, pulled out a full pack, and handed it to him.
The guy, who seed to have a fiery temper, took the pack. "Thanks, man."
He unwrapped a piece, popped it in his mouth, and turned back to Matthew. "I'm Ben Foster."
"Matthew Horner." Matthew gestured to the still-sleeping Jas. "This is Jas McAvoy, my friend."
They chatted in low voices for a while, and thanks to Matthew's ability to keep the conversation flowing, the quick-witted Ben Foster soon told him all about himself.
Originally from Massachusetts and of Jewish descent, he already had a few film roles to his na, albeit minor ones.
"What's your role?" Ben asked.
Matthew replied, "Sergeant Hoot."
"Wow," Ben said with a touch of envy. "Your role is a lot more significant than mine."
After chatting a bit more, Matthew noticed the bus was growing quiet as more people fell asleep. He took the initiative to wrap up the small talk with Ben, closed his eyes, and drifted off again.
Finally, after a two-hour drive, the bus pulled up to the entrance of Edwards Air Force Base. As it was one of the most important military bases in the U.S. Army, the bus was not permitted to enter freely. Nearly one hundred actors, including Matthew, had to get off and proceed on foot.
After getting off the bus and collecting their luggage, a still-drowsy Jas followed Matthew toward the base gates.
At the front of the line, Bearded Jack was in conversation with a coordinator from the Pentagon.
With the bright sun overhead, Jas finally woke up completely. He reached for his phone, found nothing, and hastily told Matthew, "I left my phone on the bus."
Matthew took his suitcase and said, "The bus hasn't left yet. Go get it quickly, I'll wait."
Jas shoved his backpack into Matthew's hands and dashed back toward the bus. Just as he ran off, the guards at the gate began letting the scattered line of actors onto the base.
Matthew didn't move, standing his ground as he waited for Jas to return.
Probably noticing the line moving, a few of the more well-known actors who had been hiding from the sun on the bus finally erged and walked over.
Matthew saw the lead actor, Josh Hartnett, followed by Jonny Lee Miller, who in turn was followed by Tom Hardy.
A short distance away, Jas was jogging back, phone in hand.
As Jas returned to Matthew's side, Josh Hartnett walked past. He glanced at Matthew, who offered a smile, and the big-na actor smiled back.
The next thing Matthew felt was a glare, sharp enough to pierce him. It was, of course, from Tom Hardy.
Matthew ignored him and picked up his luggage as Jas rejoined him.
Suddenly, Jonny Lee Miller, who was walking with Tom Hardy, slowed his pace. He turned his head to look at Matthew, then froze, a flicker of disbelief crossing his face.
Matthew noticed Jonny Lee Miller's gaze and even faintly saw the strange expression, but he maintained a calm exterior as he pulled his suitcase along, falling slightly behind Tom Hardy and Jonny Lee Miller.
"Could Miller have recognized ? But how?" The thoughts raced through his head.
Jonny Lee Miller entered the base gates, then glanced back at the two n still going through security. He asked, "Tom, do you know those two?"
"You bet I do," Tom Hardy replied. "The tall, stocky one is Matthew Horner, and the other is Jas McAvoy. Both of them are bastards."
Jonny Lee Miller fell silent, seemingly lost in thought.
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