The richest actor in Hollywood.

As a sequel to a highly successful movie, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" had a significant advantage. Disney Studios didn't even need to do much public relations; there would be a plethora of media outlets publishing news related to this film because they knew that topics about "Pirates of the Caribbean" would attract a large audience.

Compared to the relatively calm Keira Knightley, Matthew and Johnny Depp were Disney Studios' main promotional cards. However, the two rarely attended the same promotional events. They mostly acted separately to cover more audiences with limited time and resources.

After Lily Collins' exclusive interview with Matthew, under the operation of Disney Studios and the "Pirates of the Caribbean" crew, the girl who once sought help and her rescuer returned to Harvard-Westlake School, meeting and chatting with many fans within the school.

Harvard-Westlake School also officially announced that June 13th would be designated as Will Turner Day every year.

This news, after media hype, quickly spread across the USA and won the favor of many teenagers.

Meanwhile, Johnny Depp wasn't idle either. Just as the promotion around Matthew and Will Turner was wrapping up, it was time for Captain Jack Sparrow to take the stage.

However, Johnny Depp's appearance was not in North America but in the UK, one of Hollywood's largest overseas markets.

A video of Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow recently became super popular on TMZ and YouTube. 

In London, a young girl with cancer couldn't attend school and had to stay in the hospital. She loved watching "Pirates of the Caribbean," especially Captain Jack Sparrow. 

So, under Disney Studios' planning, Johnny Depp dressed up as his character and visited the hospital to see the girl. She was moved to tears upon seeing Captain Jack Sparrow.

Such surprises are undeniably heartwarming.

Afterward, accompanied by Helen Herman, Matthew left the USA and headed south, starting the overseas promotional tour for "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" in Mexico City.

According to their contract, Disney Studios not only provided a dedicated team to accompany Matthew on this Latin American trip but also leased a business jet for his use.

Summer and spring are the busiest seasons for Hollywood stars, especially the former, as it directly relates to future financial prospects. The summer box office season is also a crucial time for Hollywood to rake in profits.

Every summer, countless fans flock to theaters, and behind this, Hollywood studios and various media outlets are quietly rejoicing. Without millions or even billions of fans, how could they get rich? The dizzying variety of movie rankings, movie posters, magazine covers featuring sexy or cool-looking stars, and the stories behind some movies or stars hyped by other media are undoubtedly the "sugar-coated bullets" launched jointly by Hollywood studios and the media, and the weak-willed movie fans inevitably fall victim to them.

The concept that good movies are not as important as good marketing is well-known in Hollywood.

Hollywood films have the most extensive and profound brand influence in the global film market. This success is due to having the largest and most powerful film production base globally, a group of top film entrepreneurs, and world-renowned film technology and artistic talent. More importantly, they have a comprehensive set of scientific information feedback, market analysis, and marketing strategies, which provide a solid foundation and material guarantee for Hollywood films to develop and expand in the global market.

From a certain perspective, the success of Hollywood's film industry is more a triumph of film marketing than film products. Its highly professional marketing strategies have not only expanded the global film market extensively but also played a crucial role in forming the Hollywood film brand.

To achieve the desired promotional effect, substantial investment is essential. According to Matthew, Disney Studios invested over $100 million in the promotion of "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl."

Thanks to the strong foundation laid by the first film, the promotional budget for "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" was slightly smaller but still close to $100 million.

With the advent of the digital information age, many of Hollywood's operational strategies are no longer secrets. For instance, the promotional costs of some major productions can even match the production costs of the films.

Nowadays, film marketing has become as important as the film itself. If a film is made but not marketed, people won't know about its quality, and making a huge profit would be unrealistic.

For example, the production cost of "Pearl Harbor" directed by Michael Bay for Touchstone Pictures was as high as $152 million, and Walt Disney publicly disclosed that the promotional and distribution costs were as high as $75 million. Just for the global premiere of the film, Disney spent a whopping $5 million!

Walt Disney has rich operational experience in this regard. The budget for the premiere of "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" also approached $5 million.

Walt Disney is determined to make "Pirates of the Caribbean" a series. Their promotion and marketing are comprehensive. They not only turned main characters like Will Turner, Jack Sparrow, and Elizabeth Swann into various merchandise but also announced, upon Matthew's arrival in Brazil, that they would revamp the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction in Disneyland, bringing the fantastical world from the movies to life.

In Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, after a morning's rest following his flight, Matthew departed from his hotel to attend a fan meet-and-greet organized by Disney Brazil.

Before getting into the car, Helen Herman hurried down from upstairs and joined him in the Mercedes-Benz business car.

Seeing Helen Herman sit beside him, Matthew had the driver raise the partition separating the front and back of the car.

Helen Herman hurried over for a reason. She didn't waste words and said, "Bella Anderson just sent a message from Los Angeles. This morning, two of your fans tried to climb over the wall of Horner Manor. They were caught by security, and the housekeeper has called the police."

"Are you sure they are my fans?" Matthew asked.

"Yes." Helen Herman nodded. "They are members of a Los Angeles fan club dedicated to you. Many people from that club can confirm this."

Matthew frowned slightly and asked, "They? Two women?"

Helen Herman explained, "Two girls under eighteen. They are infatuated with you. According to the police's preliminary inquiry, they wanted to get into Horner Manor to find some of your personal items."

Matthew tapped the armrest of his seat, thought for a few seconds, and said, "Inform Bella to contact Lister and strengthen the manor's security. Also..."

He looked at Helen Herman. "What do you think is the best way to handle these two girls?"

"Let the police warn them and then release them," Helen Herman replied thoughtfully. "They haven't done anything extreme, and they are minors and your fans. It's not suitable to pursue this aggressively. I'll draft a public statement and have the company's spokesperson hold a brief press conference."

Matthew thought this was appropriate and said, "Do as you suggested."

In such cases, no celebrity would pursue it aggressively, especially since it wasn't like dealing with a violent, extreme fan.

"Amanda also called," Helen Herman continued, "You won't return to Los Angeles until after the 20th at the earliest. Amanda needs items for a charity auction. Johnny Depp, Charlize Theron, Keanu Reeves, Ridley Scott, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Britney Spears have all confirmed they will donate certain items for the auction."

Hearing the long-absent name Britney Spears, Matthew recalled the news he saw recently about her bodyguard expenses and asked, "Did they catch the extreme fan harassing Britney?"

Helen Herman, knowing that Britney might be the only one Matthew had genuinely cared for, immediately replied, "They haven't found him yet. However, Britney's management and record company have strengthened her security, and that extreme fan has been quiet for a while."

Matthew nodded slightly. "That's good."

"Amanda needs your auction items," Helen Herman returned to the main topic. "Two to four memorabilia and one high-value item."

She reminded him, "Rolex and Mercedes-Benz are providing items. Don't offer anything from those brands."

Matthew didn't have many luxurious items. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Call Bella and have her order a unique piece of jewelry from Tiffany or another jeweler."

Helen Herman suggested, "Better let Amanda handle it. She has more experience in this area."

Bella Anderson was just an ordinary girl, certainly not as experienced as Amanda in this regard.

"Okay," Matthew agreed directly. "Call Amanda later. For the memorabilia..."

He pondered briefly and said, "Let Amanda go to Horner Manor and ask my housekeeper for the dagger from 'Mr. & Mrs. Smith,' the coins from 'National Treasure,' and Will Turner's sword."

These items were quite memorable.

After discussing a bit more, the business car arrived at the destination. Helen Herman stayed in the car to make phone calls while Matthew got out and entered the venue.

Brazil and Mexico are Hollywood's most important markets in Latin America. Disney Studios had made extensive preparations for this event and even invited Brazilian supermodel Adriana Lima to support the event.

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