America gains both fame and fortune

Chapter 391 I am the second-rate writer. Who am I afraid of?
In the psychological clinic on Sunset Boulevard, Laura seemed to be flipping through the books on the table, but her eyes were actually on Martin sitting on the couch.

Martin opened his eyes at this time, pulled off the blanket, stood up, folded it casually, and said, "It's time to go."

Laura looked at the time and asked, “So fast today?”

Martin said, "You have an audition to attend, and it's not good to be late."

Laura nodded and said deliberately: "You are quite normal when you don't say those crazy things about destroying America."

"That's not crazy talk." Martin grinned, "It's the most real thought in my heart."

He picked up his bag and walked out.

"Close the door, thank you." Laura had a feeling that this Hollywood star had at least two personalities.

According to her judgment, those crazy words should be real thoughts.

His second personality is antisocial?
After coming out of the psychological clinic, Martin relaxed a little and stood at the door for half a minute so that Ivan could take the best photos.

Bruce drove up, Martin got in, and said, "Let's go to Paramount Studios."

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" was jointly produced by Paramount and Warner Bros. Although David Fincher's previous film "Zodiac" did not perform well at the online box office, offline DVD and TV rights sales were very good and the cost had been recovered, so this film still secured a $1 million investment.

Apart from these two, DreamWorks accounts for one-third of the investment.

When they arrived at the studio, David Fincher's assistant Bob came out to receive Martin.

Accompanying Martin to the dressing room, Bob specifically said, "The makeup process will last for several hours, so the audition is scheduled for three in the afternoon."

Martin said, “It doesn’t matter.”

Bob gave a few more instructions and then took his leave.

The stylist came in at this time and reminded Martin to go to the toilet before starting to put on makeup.

Martin was very patient and cooperated throughout the process.

Bruce had been sitting nearby. When the rather effeminate makeup artist saw him staring at her with a fierce look in his eyes, her effeminate nature suddenly disappeared and she became like a normal man.

Whether it's auditioning with makeup or changing from a young person to an old man, the most tedious thing is the styling.

Martin had previously learned that the crew would use makeup and post-production special effects to achieve Benjamin's old appearance as a toddler, and had hired Industrial Light & Magic to do the special effects production.

David Fincher is not a real-life shooting fanatic like Nolan. As long as he can achieve the effect he wants, he doesn't care about the specific implementation method.

It took nearly four hours to do the makeup and styling, and Martin even felt drowsy for a moment at noon.

In the meantime, Bruce received a call from Robert, saying that the ceremony had been completed this morning.

The most basic guarantee and psychological comfort are in place.

It was almost three in the afternoon when Martin walked into the audition room for the second time this year.

After entering, he greeted Finch first: "David."

Fincher introduced the people who were auditioning: "This is Kathleen Kennedy, this is Frank Marshall..."

The couple represents DreamWorks, and people in the industry know that they are Spielberg's right-hand men.

The former is even one of the leading female producers in the industry.

After Martin said hello, Finch said, "Let's get started."

Martin returned to the camera lens and habitually looked behind the producers and directors. Seeing the union and insurance company representatives playing video games peacefully, he felt relaxed immediately.

Everything that suits his habits is there.

At the beginning of the audition, Martin first read a voice-over line according to David Fincher's request.

This was not a problem at all for Martin.

Then he acted out the appearance of an old and frail person.

It's just appearance, not personality and psychology.

Therefore, the character's appearance in old age is not particularly complicated.

The audition went very quickly and was completed in just five or six minutes.

David Fincher's work style is different from other directors. In addition, Martin was the top choice. He looked around, consulted Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshall, and announced directly on the spot: "Congratulations, Martin, you got the role."

Martin came down and shook David Fincher's hand and said, "It's my honor."

Then he shook hands with Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy one by one and said, "Thank you. It is my great honor to work with you."

The couple was impressed by Martin because he was handsome and spoke well. They said, "Your performance is vivid and most suitable for this role."

After a simple business exchange, Martin left the audition room and returned to the dressing room to remove his makeup.

Just in the corridor, I ran into a young actor who was about 20 years old.

The powerful aura of the second American youth on the other side was as strong as ten meters and eighty centimeters.

Even from a distance, that indescribable temperament seemed to tell passers-by, I am a second-rate person and I am afraid of no one.

Martin recognized him, Shia LaBeouf, the leading actor of the live-action Transformers movie and Spielberg's favorite godson.

In fact, he pleases Spielberg more than Drew Barrymore did back then.

In Martin's previous life, this person was often the focus of discussion in the group. Why did Spielberg like him so much for such a stupid and stupid person?

So much so that some gossip gurus speculated, could this be Spielberg's illegitimate child?
When the two were about to meet, Shia LaBeouf's curious eyes fell on Martin. Because Martin was wearing old man makeup, he probably didn't recognize him, so he joked: "Hey, old man, you're so cool!"

Martin suddenly grinned, showing a weird smile in the shape of an old man: "Why don't you be more serious."

Shia LaBeouf was not in good spirits. He was stunned for a moment, then jumped to the side of the corridor, as far away from Martin as possible, and covered his vital parts with both hands: "You...what do you want to do! I'm a man!"

Suddenly, he felt that the man was not safe either, so he pressed his butt against the wall and shouted again, "Don't mess around, I'll call Bumblebee over!"

Martin ignored him and turned away.

After the people walked away, Shia LaBeouf breathed a sigh of relief and asked the crew assistant who led the way: "Who is that pervert?"

"Don't talk nonsense." The assistant reminded him, and then said, "That's Martin Davis, who just passed the audition and is the male lead of the crew."

Shia LaBeouf touched the back of his head and said, "This guy is really perverted!" He muttered, "I wanted to get the leading actor role, but I could only audition for a supporting role."

The assistant continued to take him to the audition room. Although he didn't say anything, he disagreed in his heart.

The news about this idiot had already spread among the crew. Shia LaBeouf wanted to snatch the male lead role, and not only David Fincher but even Spielberg scolded him.

This person has no self-awareness at all.

Martin returned to the dressing room, and the stylist came over to remove his makeup. He said to Bruce, "Notify Thomas and ask him to come and negotiate with the crew tomorrow."

Bruce took out his phone: "There's news so soon."

Martin said: "I like this kind of clean and simple crew."

Bruce called Thomas.

Martin took off his makeup, changed his clothes, and when he came out he saw Bruce on the phone again, so he waited for him for a while.

A few minutes later, Bruce hung up the phone and said, "Kim called."

Martin packed up his things and walked out: "The videotape is on the market?"

Bruce whispered, "They've already started distributing the products. Jenna's company will officially start selling them next Monday."

Martin said, "You really didn't show your face?"

Bruce said, "Absolutely not! Not even the upper body is exposed."

"Congratulations to you, too." Martin said seriously, "You've become the leading actor."

Although Bruce felt strange, he really became the leading actor this time.

According to current predictions, it should not be difficult to sell millions of CDs. This bad idea proposed by Martin can really gain both fame and popularity as well as actual financial benefits.

As the two of them turned out of the corridor, an assistant from the crew caught up with them from behind: "Mr. Davis, please wait."

Martin stopped and asked, "What's the matter?"

The assistant came over and took a breath. Then he said, "If your time permits, Director Fincher wants to talk to you."

Martin nodded: "Okay, you lead the way."

The assistant took the two to the director's office.

After auditioning for the leading role, David Fincher returned to the office. Martin's performance was excellent and he had no worries about the leading role.

The auditions for the female lead have also been completed, but no decision has been made yet.

He sat in front of the computer and clicked on the video of the heroine's audition, and Cate Blanchett appeared in the player.

David Fincher had previously spoken with Martin's agent, Thomas, about the disagreement between Martin and Blanchett.

Although nothing was said explicitly, the meaning conveyed was quite clear.

Martin did not want to work on the same set with Blanchett.

David Fincher's previous film "Zodiac" had very poor commercial performance. With an investment of $1 million for this one, he felt tremendous pressure.

Therefore, Martin, who had performed extremely well commercially, was listed as his first choice for the leading actor.

But for the leading actress, Fincher didn't want to choose a vase. Blanchett was the best performer in the audition and the actress he thought was the most suitable.

Because the age range of the heroine is also very large, too young will not work, and too old will not work either.

There was a knock on the door, and the assistant brought Martin over. Fincher told him to do whatever he wanted and said, "After signing the contract, you have to join the crew as soon as possible. Industrial Light & Magic needs to use you as a prototype for the model."

Although Martin didn't know much about post-production special effects, he had some understanding and knew that it required a lot of preparation in advance. He said, "No problem on my side. As long as the contract is signed, I will join the team and start work immediately."

"For the female lead, I'm going to choose Blanchett." Fincher is a top director and he only slightly considers Martin's ideas.

He said directly: "I heard that you and Blanchett don't have a good relationship."

This reminded Martin of what Nicholson and Leonardo said. As a member of the Bastard Trio, he was not afraid of these challenges at all.

And if the crew really wants to use it, he can't stop it.

Martin thought for a moment and said, "Director, if you think she's suitable, I have no objection."

Finch laughed and said, "One day when you have time, we can sit down and talk calmly."

Martin seemed to have thought of something interesting and smiled: "No problem."

(End of this chapter)