Hollywood has never been short of ingenious publicity methods to attract attention and earn more profits. Promoting a scandal between Matthew and Keira Knightley can only be described as one of Hollywood's conventional tactics.
At Angel Agency, Matthew entered Helen Herman's office, looked around, and asked Helen Herman behind the desk, "Why haven't I seen Amanda these past two days?"
Helen Herman said indifferently, "She went back to New York."
Matthew didn't ask further. He pulled out a chair, sat opposite Helen Herman, and said, "I have something to tell you. Keira Knightley and I couldn't resist and got together."
Helen Herman wasn't surprised at all. A young man and woman, both good-looking and at the most impulsive age, living under the same roof, it was perfectly normal for them to get together. Matthew wasn't a good guy, but was Keira Knightley a good person? Anyone who agreed to use such a publicity method to gain more attention wasn't exactly a saint.
She thought for a moment and asked, "You and Keira Knightley aren't serious, are you?"
"Getting together is real."
This matter was different from purely personal private life, so Matthew certainly had to inform Helen Herman to prevent her from being caught off guard if something unexpected happened. He then added, "Of course, being boyfriend and girlfriend is still fake."
Matthew pondered for a moment and added, "Keira is more rational than I thought. We just really enjoy..." He coughed. Facing a seemingly conservative woman like Helen Herman, some things were hard to say. He changed his words and said, "You don't need to overthink it. The previous plan regarding Keira and me should be executed as planned."
Helen Herman understood, "I know."
She suddenly picked up a letter from her desk, pushed it in front of Matthew, and said, "This is a letter mailed to Disney Pictures by one of your young fans. Disney Pictures forwarded it to me."
"Why are you showing me these?" Matthew was quite curious.
In the past, fans had mailed him letters, but Angel Agency had dedicated staff to respond, so he never had to worry about it.
Helen Herman didn't answer him. Instead, she pointed to the letter and said, "Read it first."
Matthew nodded, opened the letter, and read it carefully.
"Dear Matthew Horner, dear Will Turner..."
The handwriting in the letter was delicate and neat, much better than his own crooked letters.
Matthew continued reading.
"I am an ordinary girl from Harvard-Westlake School. Ever since I watched 'Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl' in the cinema last weekend, I've been madly idolizing you. You must be the hero who appears with a shining light and saves me from the bad guys!"
Upon reading this, Matthew couldn't help but scratch his head. This sounded so much like a Disney fairy tale: a princess in distress, waiting for a prince to arrive... "At my middle school, there's a very bad principal who always targets and bullies me. It's not just me; all my classmates around me are constantly being threatened by him. We've been plotting to resist, but we don't have enough confidence."
"Matthew Horner, you are the powerful blacksmith Will Turner. You can easily defeat a dozen pirates by yourself. How I wish you could appear at school and eliminate the tyrannical principal..."
The further Matthew read, the more he felt like laughing. This letter from a little girl went on to describe his heroic bravery and the principal's various misdeeds, endlessly longing for him, this powerful and handsome blacksmith, to rescue them from their so-called misery and completely defeat the principal.
Matthew guessed that the school management must be extremely strict, and the principal probably liked to make examples. This girl was likely made a negative example by the principal, then resented the principal, wanted revenge but didn't have the courage, could only silently endure, and finally resorted to this virtual idol.
This was essentially the same as children he had seen who fantasized about Ultraman defeating all the bad guys.
At the end of the letter, there was a sentence that made Matthew laugh and cry at the same time.
"If you can defeat the bad principal, I will definitely fall in love with you!"
The signature read, "Lily, a girl suffering from bullying by bad people!"
After reading, Matthew put the letter on the table and asked curiously, "Helen, why did you specifically show me a letter like this?"
He believed that with the success of "Pirates of the Caribbean," there must be many fans writing to him.
Helen Herman suddenly laughed, and her smile was very bright. She rarely smiled like that.
"It's just a little girl's boring fantasy. is it that funny?" Matthew really couldn't stand her unusual expression. "Didn't you have similar fantasies when you were a little girl?"
"Me?" Helen Herman seemed to recall something and said, "I really never thought that way."
Matthew extended a finger and pointed at her from a distance, "You lack a sense of fun."
Helen Herman stopped smiling, didn't respond to Matthew's comment, and instead said, "How about you help this little girl realize her dream?"
"What?" Matthew suspected he had misheard. "What did you say?"
Helen Herman said calmly, "You're not hallucinating. What you just heard was correct."
Matthew scratched his head a little, "You really want me to go and defeat the principal?"
"Not me." Helen Herman quickly explained, "After receiving this letter, Disney Pictures' publicity department planned an event for you to help a kind little girl deal with her bullying principal."
At this point, she smiled slightly, probably also finding Disney Pictures' planned publicity event interesting, "Of course, media reporters will accompany you throughout, and cameras from Disney Channel and ABC Entertainment will follow you throughout."
Matthew also laughed, "Disney Pictures is really..." He originally wanted to say 'insane,' but then realized that this kind of promotional method could attract a lot of attention and was also very helpful to him personally, so he changed his words and said, "It's indeed a good idea."
The benefits of such a promotional event for him personally were obvious. It could easily attract a group of loyal fans, and it also created the illusion that he was very caring, making it easier for people to develop a liking for him.
"I should have no problem dealing with a school principal." Matthew then frowned, "What about all the teachers and security guards at the school? How do we deal with them?"
Helen Herman waved her hand, "You don't need to worry about that. Disney Pictures has already contacted Harvard-Westlake School, and the school principal has agreed to such an event."
"Agreed?" Matthew was even more surprised. "The principal actually agreed?"
In his impression, principals were always high and mighty, sacred and inviolable. Let alone students, even teachers had to be cautious when facing the principal. In a school, the principal was the absolute authority, whose word was law.
Helen Herman was very sure about this. "The principal of Harvard-Westlake School has officially confirmed with Disney Pictures that he will convene a school-wide student meeting in the school auditorium this Wednesday. You will appear at that time, subdue him in front of all the teachers and students, and let everyone see it."
Matthew completely didn't understand and could only ask, "Why?"
"It's actually very simple. Harvard-Westlake School is a prestigious private school." Helen Herman saw that Matthew genuinely didn't understand and briefly explained, "The school's management is very strict. Strict management can bring good order and atmosphere, but it can also cause psychological backlash among students. According to the principal of Harvard-Westlake School, doing this can effectively alleviate students' rebellious psychology and is beneficial for future management."
Matthew understood this principle. If people's nerves are taut, they shouldn't be further pressured to become even tighter, as that would only lead to greater trouble. At this point, appropriate relaxation is beneficial for both the school and the students, especially for those in adolescence.
From the letter from the girl named Lily, it was not difficult to see that the principal was usually a very strict presence. Being defeated in front of many students at this time would certainly allow the students to release all their resentment and pressure.
Then, Matthew thought of another point: by collaborating with Disney Pictures, the name of Harvard-Westlake School would subsequently appear in numerous media outlets, which could be considered free publicity, riding on the popularity of "Pirates of the Caribbean."
Undoubtedly, this was a very clever principal.
Helen Herman then added, "The event is scheduled for Wednesday. I have already contacted Elena Boyar, and she will be there. Online coverage can explode on Wednesday, and then it can be on Disney Channel and ABC News on Wednesday night. Thursday is for traditional print media. With these two days of hype and fermentation, it will also be very beneficial for the film's box office performance in its third weekend."
Matthew nodded and asked, "Are there no activities for Depp and Keira?"
"They all have them." Helen Herman said, "Disney Pictures has arranged corresponding promotional activities for everyone. We don't need to worry about them; we just do our own thing."
She specifically reminded him, "The sooner the North American box office exceeds 200 million US dollars, the more favorable it will be for my negotiations with Sean Daniel. Sean Daniel has already proposed to Universal Pictures to appropriately increase the budget for 'Dawn of the Dead,' so he must also be mentally prepared to pay you a high salary."
Matthew only said, "I'll handle it; you can rest assured."
Helen Herman nodded slightly. Matthew was indeed very reliable in his work and had not made any major mistakes so far.
"Alright, that's all for today." Helen Herman put away the letter and said to Matthew, "Go back and prepare early. Remember to bring the prop sword the crew gave you."
"Got it." Matthew stood up, ready to leave.
Helen Herman reminded him again, "Don't mention this to Keira Knightley."
Matthew knew that Helen Herman was being cautious as a basic precaution and said, "I understand."