The richest actor in Hollywood.

After lunch, Akiva Goldsman returned to Warner Bros. Studios, pondering Francis Lawrence's words. Both Murphy Horner and Will Smith had their advantages. However, Murphy Horner was someone he had worked with before and was more familiar with, while he hadn't had much interaction with Will Smith previously.

Out of precaution, he had investigated Will Smith's salary demands. Starting with "Ali," Will Smith officially entered the $20 million club. His salary for "Men in Black II" was $20 million plus 10% of the box office gross. For "Bad Boys II," not only was his upfront salary $20 million, but his back-end share reached as high as 20%.

"I, Robot" didn't include a box office percentage, but the salary alone reached a staggering $28 million.

Without needing to negotiate with Will Smith's agent, Akiva Goldsman knew that Will Smith's salary couldn't be less than $20 million.

After several rounds of negotiation with Helen Herman, his psychological bottom line for the lead actor's salary had increased from $15 million to $20 million. Any higher, and even Warner Bros. would have issues with it.

If Murphy Horner and Helen Herman wouldn't lower their price, and if Will Smith's side insisted on a $20 million salary, he could consider Francis Lawrence's suggestion to replace Murphy Horner with Will Smith as the lead.

During his previous interactions with Kevin Huvane, Akiva Goldsman had probed and found that Will Smith's bottom line seemed to be $20 million.

"My father was one of the founders of CAA, as you know."

As they walked back towards the Warner Bros. Studios gate, Helen Herman said to Murphy, who was on her left, "Although he was ousted in the power struggle at CAA, most of his supporters also left, but there are a few who remained hidden. If I ask them, they might give me some information."

Murphy had long heard about Helen Herman's background.

As they entered Warner Bros. Studios, Helen Herman continued, "Will Smith and Kevin Huvane's bottom line is $20 million. For a big commercial project, they would never voluntarily leave the $20 million club."

She turned to look at Murphy, "As I told you before, if you lower your price, the next role will give the production company a legitimate reason to cut your pay."

Murphy understood this well, "It's easy to leave the $20 million club, but getting back in is difficult."

For many Hollywood stars, the allure of the $20 million club even surpassed that of winning an Oscar for Best Actor. Given the chance, no one would voluntarily leave.

Helen Herman and Murphy chatted as they walked towards the soundstage where the "I Am Legend" crew was located. According to the plan, Murphy would meet with Akiva Goldsman before Helen Herman negotiated with the two producers.

After all, he had worked with Akiva Goldsman on "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," which was a box office hit.

"I've heard Kevin Huvane is quite influential?" Murphy asked.

CAA's reputation was well-known, and he couldn't help but be influenced by media reports.

"Don't worry," Helen Herman seemed to understand what he was thinking, "Kevin Huvane is just one of many small partners at CAA."

She suddenly smiled, "In the early days, CAA's PR and publicity mythologized CAA so much that even some of CAA's partners believed CAA was an invincible tool in their hands. They forget that CAA has long ceased to be an agency run by agents."

Murphy was curious, "What do you mean? Isn't CAA a partnership of agents?"

Helen Herman shook her head, "Agents? All CAA agents combined hold how much of CAA's shares? The real ownership of CAA belongs to TPG Capital, which holds a controlling stake in CAA."

Murphy didn't know this, but he didn't say much. Helen Herman had had some unpleasant experiences with CAA, so her assessment might not be entirely fair or accurate.

They soon arrived at the soundstage where the "I Am Legend" crew was working. The set was filled with props, indicating that the crew was already in the preliminary stages of preparation.

A staff member led Murphy to Akiva Goldsman's temporary office, where Akiva Goldsman was not alone. A middle-aged man with short black hair was also present.

Helen Herman needed time to prepare for the negotiations and would go in after Murphy left.

"Hi, Murphy."

Akiva Goldsman came over to shake his hand enthusiastically, "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

From his tone, one might think the negotiations were going smoothly without any disputes.

"It has been a long time," Murphy said warmly, shaking Akiva Goldsman's hand firmly, "I fondly remember the chemistry we had while working on 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith.'"

Akiva Goldsman laughed, then introduced the short-haired middle-aged man to Murphy, "Murphy, this is David Heyman, a producer from Warner Bros."

He then introduced Murphy to David Heyman, "David, this is Murphy Horner, a remarkable actor."

Murphy shook hands with David Heyman and then said, "David, you're an outstanding producer. Without you, I wouldn't have been able to enjoy the Harry Potter movies."

This remark hit David Heyman's soft spot, making him smile, "I was just lucky to meet Joanne Rowling. Good things never go unnoticed."

Murphy didn't need to be told that David Heyman represented Warner Bros.' interests in the crew.

Even without an introduction, Murphy recognized David Heyman. In recent years, his name and photo often appeared in the entertainment sections of newspapers and magazines alongside the Harry Potter films.

Although Michael Barnathan was the lead producer hired by Warner Bros. for the Harry Potter series, anyone who followed the series knew that David Heyman was the one who first recommended it to Warner Bros.

According to media reports Murphy had read, back in 1997, when David Heyman was looking for a children's film script, his assistant recommended J.K. Rowling's "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." The book was then quietly lying on bookstore shelves, unnoticed.

The rest is history. David Heyman had several lunches with Rowling to discuss adaptation plans, then recommended it to Warner Bros., which recognized the series' commercial potential and mobilized massive resources for its promotion and marketing across the Western world. The Harry Potter series went from a little-known novel to a global phenomenon.

This series taught Murphy the importance of publicity and marketing. As some media put it, without Warner Bros.' full support, the Harry Potter series wouldn't have become such a hit.

Murphy read the already published Harry Potter books and watched "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." Being accustomed to Eastern magic and mythology, he couldn't understand what was so special about the Harry Potter series.

He even thought that some novels he had read on Chinese web novel platforms were much more imaginative and well-structured than the Harry Potter series.

Unfortunately, those books didn't have Warner Bros. backing and couldn't be as fortunate as J.K. Rowling.

He believed that Rowling's success wasn't just because she wrote the Harry Potter series but also because she had Warner Bros.' support.

Since becoming a lead actor, Murphy had always considered projects from the six major studios due to this influence and his past experiences.

"I'm working on '300 Spartans' in collaboration with Warner Bros."

Before the negotiations, Murphy was the real protagonist of this meeting. He said to David Heyman, "I'd love to continue collaborating with Warner Bros. I believe we can reach an agreement."

"Of course!" David Heyman smiled. Warner Bros. had issues with Murphy's asking price, not his commercial value or appeal. "Right now, every production company in Hollywood wants to work with Murphy Horner."

Murphy feigned surprise, "I didn't know I was so in demand." He then joked with Akiva Goldsman, "When 'I Am Legend' starts filming, you must prepare a special feature for me to shut up those who spread rumors about our negotiations breaking down."

Akiva Goldsman nodded, "No problem."

Murphy put on a serious face, "A few days ago, I was in New York for the 'Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest' promotion and took a walk around First Avenue and Wall Street. I wondered what it would be like if I were the last person in New York. Would the loneliness of walking among skyscrapers drive me crazy?"

Akiva Goldsman chimed in, "Different people might have different feelings. If it were me, I'd definitely go crazy."

David Heyman nodded, "After all, humans are social animals."

"Very true." Murphy nodded, then added, "For some reason, I felt I might enjoy that solitude. Maybe it's an illusion. Could I be antisocial?"

He laughed, and David Heyman and Akiva Goldsman laughed too.

After chatting for over half an hour, Murphy excused himself, citing work with "300 Spartans" as a reason, and left the office.

Helen Herman quickly went in to negotiate with the two producers.

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