On April 3rd, the weather was clear.
Tom Cruise sat in his agent's car, heading towards West Hollywood.
They bypassed the media reporters already piling up at the entrance of the Paramount headquarters' reception hall and entered through a side door before taking the elevator up to the third floor.
The elevator doors opened, and Tom and his agent, Pat Kingsley, headed towards the dressing room.
As for the styling and wardrobe for the movie "Miscreant", it was relatively simple since it was a contemporary film. They only needed to design the outfits in accordance with regular dressing.
Tom had come here today for the character's still photoshoot and for the pre-filming publicity activities.
The two of them pushed open the dressing room door and were greeted by a dazzling array of clothes. Several wooden racks beside them held various tattoo stickers.
"Where's Director Lyman?" Pat caught a busy staff member and asked.
"He's in the first room on the right inside."
Upon hearing this, they walked along the corridor and stopped at the first room on the right.
Through the spacious and bright floor-to-ceiling windows, they could clearly see various costumes inside, and the staff members were busy back and forth.
"Lyman," Tom greeted as he opened the door.
Lyman, sitting on an office chair, heard the voice and also stood up to greet, "Tom, you're here. Try on the costumes first. We have the opening ceremony later."
"Okay."
Due to Tom's high status, his fitting room was arranged separately.
As he entered the room, a slim and tall man followed Pat and approached.
The man showed a polite smile, "Mr. Cruise, hello. I am the costume designer for the crew and will be in charge of your styling today."
Being an undercover agent of a capable gang with influence naturally required him to have a certain status. After fixing his hairstyle and putting on a custom-made black suit, Tom stood before Lyman, exuding a sense of dominance.
"Not bad, let's go downstairs," Lyman said.
Nicolas Cage, Heath Ledger, and the other cast members, whose costumes were already confirmed, also followed and went down to the reception hall on the first floor.
...
"Can you tell us what kind of genre this movie is?"
"It's a crime film."
Many media reporters were present in the hall, and under the coordination of the Paramount public relations personnel, Lyman answered several questions before immediately retreating to the back, pushing several lead actors forward.
"Mr. Cruise, what kind of role will you be playing?"
"I can guarantee to everyone that this will be the most challenging role of my acting career."
"And you, Mr. Cage, what will be your role in the movie?"
"It's a very interesting character."
"..."
They were skillfully using the techniques of handling the media, avoiding the critical points and adding some hype.
An hour later, Lyman gave a signal to the public relations personnel, and the pre-filming press conference came to an end.
"Clear the venue."
Looking at his watch, it was already 4 pm. Lyman said to René beside him, "Inform everyone to speed up; we need to finish the still photoshoot quickly. The media will use them for publicity tomorrow."
"Okay."
Just moments ago, the reception hall, where they were being interviewed by the reporters, was quickly transformed into a conference room setup.
For the still photoshoot, they chose a simple scene depicting a meeting of high-ranking gang members.
Nicolas, Heath, and Tom were all dressed in black suits, followed by a few henchmen, entering the conference room in a cool, cold, and ruthless manner, each embodying the aura of their respective character settings.
There were two factions in total: Heath's group, representing the old guard, were the second in command of the gang, while Nic's group, the rising new force, were the third in command, with Tom as their right-hand man, joining forces to confront them.
"Thomas, is the camera set up?"
"OK, and the tracks are ready too."
"James, it's up to you." Lyman didn't plan to be in the shot this time. He stood aside and had the newcomer, James Wan, who had joined the crew, sit behind the monitor to observe.
The actors, who had reapplied their makeup, took their positions.
With everything ready, they began the first trial shooting.
In the spacious conference room, several slightly older middle-aged men sat around the table. In the frame, Heath led the way, followed by his henchmen as they entered the room. One of the henchmen immediately pulled out the chair on the right side at the head of the table...
"Click."
Well, although Lyman wanted to let James shoot this segment to gain more experience, he couldn't help but "intervene" when he saw someone make a mistake.
It's like when watching a movie, the villains always like to boast a bit to show their superiority, but they always get caught by the protagonist, and at this point, many viewers would itch to take over and handle it themselves. That's how Lyman felt now, and he couldn't help but speak up.
"Jason!" Lyman waved at him.
"Director Lyman."
Jason Statham quickly walked over. He had a tiger head tattoo on his right arm, combined with his bald head and burly physique, exuding a vibe of a villain no matter how you looked at it.
"Were you nervous just now?"
Jason's face was full of apology.
After the audition ended, his agent told him that he was selected, but he had always felt like it wasn't real.
As an actor, he was almost past the theoretical golden period for actors.
He had acted in many films and TV shows, even as the lead actor, but since coming to Hollywood, he hadn't received many opportunities, occasionally having to return to the UK to make a living.
He had moved to Hollywood because the film market in the UK wasn't big enough, but he still didn't do as well as he did when he was in the UK.
As for his qualifications, Hollywood didn't recognize his achievements in the UK.
His starting point here was slightly higher than that of an ordinary actor.
But this time, he played the role of a top combatant in the second-in-command camp of the gang, set to be proficient in firearms and close combat. His character was responsible for killing the third-in-command played by Nicolas Cage and Tom Cruise's wife.
He had quite a lot of screen time, even though he was still playing a supporting role.
But not all supporting roles were the same; could a supporting role with an investment of a few million dollars be compared to one with a budget of nearly a hundred million dollars?
Especially when it came to Lyman, a director with very good box office results.
Opportunities came out of nowhere, to the point where even his agent asked if he knew anyone or used connections to secure the role.
Jason looked completely bewildered. Although he was eager to know if Kate Beckinsale used some connections to secure the lead role among numerous A-list Hollywood actresses, he was also aware of her current predicament. "Pearl Harbor" didn't live up to expectations, and many critics criticized her acting skills.
That's why he cherished this opportunity even more. He had pondered his role repeatedly, but unexpectedly, he made a mistake during the photoshoot.
"Your walking motion just now was a bit awkward, and your expression didn't achieve the desired effect," Lyman observed him seriously and asked, "What is your character's role?"
"A gang member."
"Alright, you need to be more confident. In this scene, your gang is holding a meeting. You are one of the trusted confidants of the current leader. Although it's just a regular company meeting, since the big boss died, you need to show some dominance to assert the leadership, and at the same time, test the reactions of the various factions in the gang. Do you understand?"
"Don't change your facial expression when you enter, and have a fierce look in your eyes. When you pull the chair out, do it with force and make some noise."
"Director Lyman, I understand," Jason nodded repeatedly.
"Get ready, let's do it again."
The actors resumed their positions, and the shooting started quickly.
This was a scene with many characters, and some experienced veteran actors were playing the roles of senior gang members on the verge of retirement.
J.K. Simmons, Hugo Weaving, and Samuel L. Jackson.
The first two might be unfamiliar to many, but the latter would later play a Jedi Master in "Star Wars: Episode I" and also become the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The scene was meant to depict the signs of turmoil within the gang, as undercover agent Tom Cruise had planned a car accident for the gang's leader the previous night, leaving the high-ranking members anxious and full of speculations.
As the heads of the factions arrived, the atmosphere in the conference room became more tense.
The second-in-command managed the gang's shipping dock, the most profitable operation. The third-in-command managed the "entertainment industry", involved in more than just flesh trade, overseeing nightclubs, and other places, with the most manpower.
The third-in-command had contributed significantly during the gang's territorial expansion and held great prestige within the gang.
Nicolas and Heath exchanged smiles and greeted each other warmly, seemingly having a cordial relationship, but their eyes didn't hide their animosity.
With the big boss dead, who was responsible? Who would fill the vacant position?
Both of them were wary of each other and suspected that the other had a hand in it.
A car accident? How convenient. The big boss had just been released from prison, and the security was at its laxest, and he had an accident.
Who would believe that?
The remaining high-ranking members in the conference room exchanged glances.
It was time to take sides.
Jason looked with interest at each person's face, the coldness in his eyes making Tom uncomfortable, about to speak up, but stopped by his associate, Nicolas.
"Everyone, please take your seats."
The Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. eased the tension.
"Cut." Seeing that Lyman had not spoken all along, James excitedly shouted.
Is this what being the director is? So awesome.
Lyman nodded slightly to the side. Veteran actors were indeed different, effortlessly taking control of the standoff.
Pretty impressive, that acting with the eyes, no doubt.