Leaving the press area and heading into the theater, Matthew glanced at a grim-faced Brendan.
"I don't know anything about fashion," Matthew decided to explain. "A stylist picked out my suit."
The gloom on Brendan’s face instantly vanished. He raised a hand to clap Matthew on the shoulder again. "Thanks."
Matthew nodded.
"Oh, right!" Brendan suddenly exclaid. "I see soone I know up ahead. I'm going to go say hello."
Without waiting for Matthew's reply, he quickened his pace and walked on.
Watching Brendan walk away, Matthew shook his head slightly. He wasn't a fool; he understood what was happening.
Just then, Rachel ca up from behind and asked, "What was that about?"
Matthew replied, "Nothing."
"Don't take it to heart," Rachel said with a smile. "Brendan loves being the center of attention and always thinks he's the star of the show."
Matthew didn't respond, simply walking into the screening room with Rachel.
As it happened, Matthew's seat was next to the director, Stephen Somrs, who was already there when he arrived.
"Hello, Director Somrs," Matthew greeted him.
Stephen nodded at him. "It's been a while, Matthew."
He paused for a mont, then added, "Have you stopped hitting the gym and training in boxing?"
"No." Matthew subconsciously tensed his arm as if to flex, but imdiately rembered he was next to the director and hastily stopped. "I just finished filming Black Hawk Down with Ridley Scott, where I played a brave, battle-hardened Delta Force sergeant."
It suddenly occurred to him that Stephen might have a hidden motive for asking, so he added, "The role required military training, right up until I left the set in February. I was working out five tis a week and boxing regularly."
"Good." Somrs's words seed to carry a hidden aning. "Staying in shape is good for any actor, especially those leaning toward the action genre."
Although Matthew didn't understand exactly what Stephen was implying, he agreed with his words. "That's precisely why I don't plan on stopping."
True, working out alone could be a bit tedious, but when paired with boxing practice, he found it easy to enjoy.
...
As he sat waiting for the film to start, Matthew kept pondering what Stephen had ant. But after turning it over in his mind, he still couldn't figure it out, and since the movie was about to begin, he decided to let it go for now.
The large theater was packed, and even the general admission seats in the back were full.
After all, this was the sequel to The Mummy, and building on the foundation of its predecessor, The Mummy Returns had managed to draw a large audience.
One by one, the lights dimd. The large screen lit up, followed by the Universal Pictures logo, and then the opening credits began to roll. Among the cast and crew, Stephen Somrs's na appeared first, followed by the lead actor and actress, Brendan and Rachel, then the supporting cast: John Hannah, Oded Fehr, and Arnold Vosloo, and then Matthew Horner. His na appeared eighth.
This was, without a doubt, a huge improvent for Matthew compared to Girl, Interrupted and Gladiator, where his na had only appeared in the end credits.
The opening credits weren't just a list of nas; the order of appearance, the font size, and so on—it all reflected an actor's importance to the film.
Matthew knew that with his na in the opening credits, his status had automatically climbed another rung.
The next step was to beco a mid-level star, or at least a minor one.
But the leap from a working actor to a star was a significant one. The vast majority of Hollywood actors who worked regularly, landing several roles a year and even making a na for themselves with audiences, never managed to cross that chasm.
It required talent and, of course, opportunity.
Where would his opportunity co from? Matthew had no idea. All he could do was make himself as strong as possible, so that when an opportunity did arise, he would be ready to seize it.
Most of the ti, opportunities don't just appear before you; they are there for the taking, you just have to know how to grasp them.
The film's main story began, and Matthew was the first major actor to officially appear on screen.
He had inquired earlier and knew that the Scorpion King's appearances were concentrated at the beginning and the end of the film.
In 3067 B.C., the Scorpion King leads his army in an attempt to conquer the world, but his ambitions are thwarted by a seven-year battle. The remnants of his army are forced into the Ahm Shere desert, where the harsh conditions kill off the once-brave warriors. The dying Scorpion King offers his soul to Anubis, the god of death, in exchange for the power to defeat his enemies.
Afterward, the Scorpion King and the legions of death from the underworld beca invincible, but once victorious, the death legions fell dormant beneath the earth.
Matthew watched his longest scene in the film to date. It lasted for more than four minutes, and the entire sequence revolved around his character, who was the sole focus of the action and was constantly shown in close-up.
The character's purpose, beyond providing a background introduction, was to showcase his physique. He looked quite powerful on screen, and the battle scene over the battlefield was edited to make him stand out from the rest.
The scorpion he swallows in the desert at the end was the final touch, a detail that would leave a lasting mory with the audience.
These, of course, were just Matthew's thoughts as he watched the film.
What the rest of the audience thought of his character and performance was impossible to tell for now.
Overall, it was a decent film. Perhaps because they had saved so money by having him play the Scorpion King without CGI, the special effects looked quite good. The raw visuals of Imhotep, the Scorpion King, and his deadly retinue were very striking.
The battle of the Scorpion King, the clash between man and beast in the city of Thebes 5,000 years ago, the mummy chase through the streets of London, the airship pursuit, and the final scene where the Scorpion King's Anubis legions clash with the Egyptian cavalry—it was all top-notch by the special effects standards of the era.
But to Matthew's eyes, it was nothing special; after all, he ca from an era of almost insane special effects bombardnt in films.
The film's plot was rely average compared to the special effects, and as Rachel had once said, storytelling wasn't Stephen Somrs's strong suit.
In a typical comrcial blockbuster like this, the plot was never the main selling point.
The Scorpion King appeared again at the end of the film, but this ti, unlike his human counterpart in the opening credits, he looked quite monstrous in his scorpion-like form.
It was a sha that despite the Scorpion King's formidable appearance, his combat prowess was barely showcased before he was quickly sacrificed to serve as a backdrop for the protagonist.
It was a comrcial blockbuster that definitely ended on a happy note: all the bad guys died, and the good guys managed to escape the villains' clutches just in ti to defeat them.
Even to Matthew's less-than-professional eye, The Mummy Returns was an industrial production that hit all the right notes and delivered spectacle where it was supposed to.
When the screen went dark, the theater erupted in applause. The entire cast stood up and clapped along.
Matthew stood as well, turning his head to look around. The general audience seats were too far away to see clearly, but those in the guest seats a few rows back had also risen to their feet and were applauding.
The applause was more a matter of courtesy than a reflection of how good the film actually was.
Matthew, however, clapped with all his might, both for the joy and entertainnt of the film, and for himself.
Stephen had completely set aside any prejudice he once held and had given him more than enough opportunity to shine in this film: over ten minutes of screen ti and more than a dozen close-ups.
Hopefully, it would leave a lasting impression on the audience. Hopefully, the dia would take notice of him too—or at least of his character.
These were Matthew's expectations now. This role already carried the most weight of any he had ever played. And given his suspicions, there was no way Ridley Scott and Jerry Bruckheir would give him this much screen ti in the final cut of Black Hawk Down.
A sudden feeling of dread washed over Matthew, sothing completely beyond his control.
A small-ti actor, or even a regular star, had no say when it ca to the director and producer.
...
As the applause died down, a quiet buzz settled over the screening room. People began to leave from the general audience section, but most made their way toward the cast and crew to offer their congratulations.
It was an unwritten tradition of Hollywood-style film premieres.
However, most of the guests' congratulations were directed at Sean Daniel, Stephen Somrs, and the few lead actors, while Matthew found himself largely unnoticed.
"Hey, Matthew!" Just then, Paul Walker ca over to shake his hand. "Great job! The Scorpion King was impressive!"
He added with a teasing grin, "You've got a great body without a shirt on."
Matthew laughed. "Thanks."
"Don't ntion it." Paul's smile faded, and he suddenly whispered, "I heard you had another run-in with Diesel?"
Matthew replied rather helplessly, "He ca looking for ."
He could feel Diesel's anger toward him growing, but with his current standing, there was nothing he could do about it.
After chatting with Paul for a while, Matthew was asked by a press officer from the film's crew to head to the press room. To his surprise, the journalists were actually paying attention to him after the screening.
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