The Most Famous Actor in Hollywood

This meeting lasted for most of the day. In the mid-afternoon, after the meeting concluded, the Refugee Agency held a press conference, which Matthew, as the goodwill ambassador, also attended.

Facing numerous current affairs journalists, Matthew announced, "Next week, I will visit the largest refugee camps in East Africa with officials from the Refugee Agency to conduct on-site inspections and gather first-hand information. I will bring this back to Los Angeles and Hollywood to let the world know that some people urgently need help!"

Having taken on the role of the Refugee Agency goodwill ambassador, he couldn't just talk the talk; he had to walk the walk. While organizing regular charity events would suffice later on, he had to show some immediate action since he was newly appointed. Helen Herman had already communicated with the Refugee Agency, which had an official media team going to the largest refugee camps established by the United Nations in East Africa after this meeting. This was a perfect opportunity to join them.

On one hand, participating with the UN's official team ensured higher security guarantees; on the other hand, most of the official team members were journalists who could spread his actions worldwide.

Matthew was most concerned about safety. They weren't going to war zones but to refugee camps protected by peacekeeping forces.

Staging a show was one thing, but risking one's life was entirely different.

After the press conference, Matthew began preparing for the upcoming trip to East Africa. The Refugee Agency's official team would gather in Johannesburg before flying to Nairobi, Kenya's capital, and then heading to the UN refugee camps near Somalia.

The Refugee Agency allocated four spots to Matthew. Besides Helen Herman accompanying him throughout, two bodyguards hired by Helen Herman from North America would soon fly to Johannesburg to join them.

"The entire trip will only last three days."

In the hotel room, Helen Herman had just received the itinerary from the Refugee Agency and told Matthew, "We will leave Johannesburg on Monday morning and are expected to arrive in Nairobi, Kenya, in the afternoon. We will rest at a hotel in Nairobi for the night and head to the refugee camp near the Kenya-Somalia border early the next morning."

Matthew, leaning back on the sofa, remained silent.

Helen Herman continued, "After the refugee camp, the team will visit a nearby children's welfare center to see orphans who lost their parents in the war."

She glanced at Matthew and added, "That night, we will stay in the nearest city. On the third morning, we will have an interview with 'Time' magazine at the children's welfare center, then return to Nairobi. The team will disband, and we will fly back to North America."

"Okay." Matthew nodded, "Three days will pass quickly."

Although he had lived comfortably in the past two years, he ultimately came from the bottom of society and wasn't unprepared for the environment he might encounter.

"What about the bodyguards?" he asked, looking up, "When will they arrive?"

Helen Herman thought for a moment and said, "Tomorrow afternoon's flight. Both bodyguards have served in the Delta Force and later joined a security company after retiring. Their skills and credibility are top-notch."

Matthew didn't say much more. Hiring these bodyguards was just in case; it was best not to use them at all.

"We've had a very successful start to this event!" Helen Herman stood up and paced twice before saying, "There are a few things I need to remind you of."

"Go ahead," Matthew had no objections.

Helen Herman raised one finger and said, "First, do not give any gifts to the children in the refugee camps or welfare centers, especially candy and chocolate. With media reporters following, it's easy for people to misinterpret this as charity."

Matthew nodded, "I understand."

Helen Herman raised a second finger, "The current affairs journalists following us are not entertainment reporters. Be cautious when dealing with them, and avoid discussing political topics. Our trip is about charity and philanthropy. If a reporter engages you, steer the conversation in that direction."

Matthew gestured with his hand, "No problem."

Helen Herman raised another finger, "I don't care how much you dislike black people; forget all that this time. African refugees are your family and friends!"

"Hey! Hey! Hey..." Matthew protested, "Who said I dislike black people? Helen, you're slandering me!"

He had never said anything bad about black people to anyone. Some thoughts were kept in his head and never spoken aloud.

"Some things are okay to think about," Helen Herman ignored Matthew's words and continued, "but never say them out loud."

She raised a fourth finger, "Do not touch the food or water in the refugee camps! Also, no flirting in East Africa!"

Matthew immediately spread his hands and said very seriously, "Don't worry about that; I'm not in the mood for it." He then asked, "Anything else?"

Helen Herman shook her head, "Not for now. I'll remind you if I think of anything."

She was also visiting Africa for the first time and had only heard about the conditions in East Africa without seeing them firsthand.

Matthew stood up, took out a large green metal box, and said, "Kenya's climate is hot, and the mosquitoes are very aggressive. We need to bring enough mosquito repellents."

He opened the metal box, which was neatly packed with many small boxes. He took out one and tossed it to Helen Herman, "This is essential medicine for traveling to tropical areas."

Helen Herman curiously opened the outer box, took out a small glass bottle containing green liquid, and unscrewed the cap, releasing a pungent smell.

"What is this?" Helen Herman asked, unfamiliar with it.

"Essential balm!" Matthew pointed to the three Chinese characters on the package and said, "It's very effective for repelling and treating mosquito bites."

Having learned from Keira Knightley's experience, he refrained from mentioning not to apply it to sensitive areas.

Helen Herman put the glass bottle back in its box and handed it back to Matthew, "I don't need this stuff."

Matthew shrugged slightly and put it away. He had prepared a lot of essential balm in advance for this trip to Africa.

The following day, Matthew and Helen Herman continued preparing for the refugee camp visit. The Refugee Agency also sent an African expert to help them purchase necessary items, all covered by the United Nations.

Meanwhile, Angel Agency faxed over multiple reports from North American media. Matthew's appearance was not only on entertainment sections but also grabbed considerable attention in social and political news.

"Matthew Horner attends the United Nations conference as a special envoy, calling on the world to pay attention to the African refugee crisis!"

"Famous actor Matthew Horner serves as the United Nations Refugee Agency's goodwill ambassador!"

"Matthew Horner participates in the UN conference and actively speaks, causing a strong response."

Similar news filled major media outlets, and CNN even broadcasted Matthew's interviews and speech at the Thornton Conference Center, eliciting a strong reaction.

Although some online criticized him as a "white savior," Matthew noticed that both the public and the media predominantly praised him.

"Matthew is truly great. Many celebrities don't know gratitude and only demand more."

"An actual angel, Matthew has always been!"

"I don't know much about Matthew Horner, but I always had a good feeling about him. This might be due to his tough-guy persona or his charitable actions, or both."

"This is a man with real responsibility and soul!"

From the feedback on the internet and Angel Agency, Matthew had largely achieved his goal of enhancing his image and expanding his influence.

Matthew was well aware that since the 9/11 attacks, more Hollywood stars realized that participating in public welfare could significantly benefit their careers. Leonardo DiCaprio and George Clooney were typical examples.

Like Matthew and Helen Herman, a celebrity's public welfare efforts couldn't succeed without their agency's packaging and promotion.

Matthew had heard from Johnny Depp that Depp's agency, UTA, had a foundation manager, Renee Jones, who was a former senator experienced in fundraising and regularly interacted with Pentagon and White House officials. She often accompanied UN agencies or NGOs to various places to inspect public welfare projects and then recommended and guided celebrities.

The greatest advantage of agencies acting as charity promoters is integrating celebrities and charitable resources. They can enhance a star's appeal and influence in a "matchmaker" role.

As Helen Herman said, systematic planning by an agency allows a star to have another career outside of entertainment—charity.

This is especially true for serving as an ambassador for authoritative charitable organizations.

On one hand, UN agencies need stars for promotion; on the other, stars need official recognition from entities like the UN.

In fact, the UN's appointment of ambassadors is quite strict. For example, UNICEF requires its goodwill ambassadors to learn about the foundation and child issues, and the pay for these celebrity ambassadors is almost nil.

The goodwill ambassador role Matthew held paid only a symbolic one dollar but required him to respond actively to the UN's calls, with visitation conditions often being very harsh and sometimes dangerous.

In the past two years, media and public scrutiny has increasingly focused on the effectiveness of converting a star's influence into charitable actions, reassessing the value of celebrities.

This was the main reason Matthew put so much effort into his public appearances.

In the following days, the bodyguards arrived in Johannesburg on time, meeting up with Matthew and Helen Herman, and then they headed to Kenya together.

To Matthew's surprise, one of the bodyguards turned out to be someone he knew.

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