America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Chapter 290: Chapter 287: Superfast Hand Speed

The atmosphere at Brooklyn Studio suddenly became quiet and harmonious, as the three film crews all restrained their members from causing any trouble here.

The studio district is too dangerous!

Rumors inevitably began to circulate, such as ones about Martin Davis being difficult to work with, which came out from the crew of "I'm Not There."

Martin didn't care, and concentrated on filming every day.

Hollywood is a place where rumors abound.

Due to the Central Park exterior shots being delayed, the crew stayed at the studio to continue filming.

With the dramatic scenes wrapped up, Director Danny Boyle temporarily handed over the reins, and the assistant director cum action choreographer Chad Stahelski took charge of the action sequences.

Martin had previously worked with him on Wanted Order, so they were particularly in tune when it came to action scenes.

Chad's intentions and ideas, once expressed, were quickly grasped by Martin, who completed them to an extremely high standard.

In the set made up to look like a penthouse apartment on the Upper East Side, Martin took off his suit jacket and tossed it to an assistant nearby as a stylist rushed over to do some last-minute makeup touch-ups.

Chad called over stunt actor Lewis, who was playing Martin's adversary, to discuss the scene, "In this scene, after Martin drinks the blood laced with 'smart drugs,' he slowly comes to, but his opponent has a gun, and you need to take him out in an unconventional way!"

He also said to Lewis, "You come over to check the situation, bending over to examine Martin's condition, and then a conflict erupts, so make sure to coordinate."

Lewis, who had already rehearsed the movements, replied, "No problem."

At that moment, Bruce entered the set, handed a prop revolver to Lewis, and gave Martin a sealed package containing a soft-tipped needle.

Chad asked, "Is that okay? Do you want to practice first?"

Martin tore open the package and said, "No need, I've practiced extensively."

In the evening, in a similar vein, he'd played games with Jennifer Aniston, which are much more interesting when men and women play together.

Of course, this didn't involve anything messy, mostly because Aniston was highly enlightened and actively cooperated with Martin in practicing crucial action scenes.

After the stylist was done touching up his makeup, Martin lay beside a pool of blood on the ground, with red blood stains still painted on his mouth, pretending to be a dead man.

Chad returned to his director's seat, surveyed the set through the monitor, and yelled, "All departments prepare, shooting in three minutes!"

Soon, the clapperboard clapped, and shooting began.

Lewis, holding the revolver, entered the spacious apartment living room, saw his accomplice and Martin both lying in pools of blood, and immediately came over to check.

He reached out to turn Martin's body, and Martin took the opportunity to roll over, spitting out the needle from his mouth.

The soft-tipped needle struck Lewis in the face, and Lewis let out a scream of pain.

Martin, following the preset routine, reached out to knock the gun from Lewis's hand, kicked him away, then swiftly rose to his feet and executed a side kick in the style of Bruce Lee.

Lewis fell backward, crashing into the preset prop cabinet, shattering the cabinet door, unable to get up.

Martin immediately followed up, delivering a punch to Lewis's face, short and powerful like an inch punch.

Lewis coordinated fabulously, his head snapping back dramatically and then lolling to one side.

Martin, breathing heavily, approached the pool of blood, picked up the revolver that had fallen on the ground, and checked the bullets.

He let his hands hang naturally at his sides, fixed his gaze on the entrance to the corridor, looking like a cowboy about to engage in a duel.

According to Boyle and Chad's vision, a montage would be inserted here showing clips of the Old Cowboy firing a revolver from "Unforgiven."

The production had already obtained the rights to use the relevant movie footage.

"Cut!" Chad liked it but, lacking confidence, asked Director Boyle on the other side, as he had done before, "Is it okay?"

Boyle nodded, "Very good!"

Only then did Chad shout, "This take is a wrap!" He also reminded, "Martin, Lewis, don't move, action team two, enter the set!"

Several male actors had already received guns from Bruce and immediately entered the shooting area according to the rehearsed route.

Chad then said, "Martin, pay attention to your shooting posture, it's not the one you're used to, but rather the Western cowboy-style revolver shooting."

Martin nodded, "Understood, rapid-fire with the revolver!"

At Chad's command, shooting started once again.

Amidst a flurry of footstep sounds, Martin, like a cowboy, performed a fancy maneuver with the revolver, and before the first person appeared, he held the revolver with one hand, and the hammer with the other.

Five gun-wielding enemies appeared in view.

Martin pulled the trigger, unleashing a round of rapid revolver fire!

His hand speed was astonishingly fast; the past two years spent excavating tunnels had honed his already swift hands, with no need for special effects to augment them!

This was something those who had experienced it spoke highly of!

Annie-Hathaway, Angelina Jolie, Blake Lively, and Jennifer Aniston could all attest to it!

Six gunshots rang out, five enemies fell to the ground, and a decorative glass panel shattered.

Chad was quite excited and shouted, "Well done! Martin, you were amazing!"

Martin tossed the revolver to Bruce and said, "No big deal."

In the gloomy and damp conditions, he could use such hand speed, not to mention when it was dry and unobstructed.

The action sequence in the apartment came to an end, and Chad yelled, "That's a wrap."

For lunch, the crew did not return to the hotel but ate on the catering truck instead.

Actors from the "I'm Not There" crew, upon seeing Martin from afar, automatically steered clear as if they had encountered the devil.

Martin, carrying his meal tray, got onto the trailer and waited for Bruce to sit opposite him before asking, "Old Cloth, am I that scary?"

Bruce, whose eyes and ears were particularly sharp in the crew, said in a low voice, "Don't you know the rumors on set are widespread? Everyone says you're difficult to handle, a real devil who brings bad luck to anyone you set eyes on."

Martin had heard the beginning before, but this was the first time he heard the end: "A real devil? What the hell, I'm the Sect Hierarch, for heaven's sake!"

"I've asked around carefully, and it started with Kate Blanchett," Bruce knew quite a bit. "She's a key member of the Australian Gang and not fond of you at all."

Martin took a bite of his vegetables, then a bite of his meat: "Doesn't she know real devils eat meat?"

Upon hearing this, Bruce's interest immediately peaked: "What, you're going to take her down?" He loved the idea of taking someone down: "How are you going to do it? Do you have a plan?"

"Stop! Stop!" Martin was puzzled: "Old Cloth, use that shit brain of yours. When have good guys like us ever taken the initiative to mess with others? We're all about self-defense!"

He emphasized, "Mouths belong to others, can you control what they say? As long as she doesn't say it to my face, let her be."

Bruce turned his head and through the catering truck window, saw Blanchett and Bale in the distance.

He had chummed up with some people from the neighboring crew. Bale had a good relationship with Heath Ledger, and he also had a big issue with Martin.

But you can't just take someone out because they have an issue with you and talk behind your back.

After eating lunch, the two returned to the trailer to rest.

Martin asked Bruce, "Have there been any news about Harvey Weinstein in the World News Report or The Sun?"

"No," Bruce handed him the latest two copies of the papers. "Harvey isn't just anyone. Unless they catch some solid evidence, the World News Report won't make a move."

When it came to scoops, scandals, and celebrity exposés, The Sun and its weekend edition, the World News Report, were renowned for their high accuracy.

The news team Martin encountered in Washington preferred to risk creating news rather than fabricating stories out of thin air.

Harvey was also a big fish.

In the afternoon, the crew continued filming action scenes, focusing solely on gunfight shots with Martin as the lead.

Long-term gun practice made it effortless for Martin to handle these scenes with ease.

Robert De Niro also appeared in the studio, formally joining the shooting.

As one of the four major actors of the seventies and eighties, the old man had a temperament not dissimilar to Jack Nicholson—difficult, but entirely professional and different during shooting compared to his regular self.

In recent years, Robert De Niro hasn't been very picky with scripts, due to his family. As someone of Italian descent who values family, the old man currently has six children and is planning for a seventh.

Raising kids is very expensive.

Martin and he were both with WMA, and with Robert De Niro's agent, Ali, acting as the lubricant, they got along reasonably well on set.

Aside from life, they also talked about mutual friends.

Martin specifically mentioned a friend they shared: "I heard from Leo that it was you who introduced him to Director Scorsese?"

Robert De Niro nodded: "I'm that punk's pops!"

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Martin's eyes widened in shock; could there be unspeakable secrets? Earth-shattering gossip?

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Robert De Niro obviously guessed Martin's thoughts. "Back in the early nineties, when we were filming 'This Boy's Life', I personally picked Leonardo out of 400 candidates to play my rebellious stepson."

This was the first Martin had heard of it and asked, "Was he that striking even back then? Chosen 1 out of 400?"

Robert De Niro: "Just a dumb kid. I chose him because he's of Italian descent!"

Martin wasn't surprised at all by this reply; ethnicity and nationality were the most obvious markers of circles in Hollywood.

De Niro continued: "Later, I recommended him to Scorsese. He's been decent, continuously improving." Then he looked at Martin and asked, "Scorsese mentioned that on the set of 'Infernal Affairs,' you blew that punk away?"

Upon hearing this, those nearby including Jennifer Aniston and Bruce looked at Martin in surprise, unable to hide the shock in their eyes, as if to say, I had no idea you were that kind of person!

"I outperformed Leonardo in acting!" Martin quickly clarified, not caring about being labeled a big devil or difficult, but something like blowing away Leonardo could ruin one's reputation.

He was quite confident in this area: "Director Scorsese said my interpretation of the character completely blew Leonardo away."

Aniston came up, not shy in the slightest, kissed Martin on the cheek in front of everyone, and complained to De Niro, "You scared me."

De Niro laughed, "No wonder you and Leo get along so well." His tone shifted: "That bastard doesn't act like someone of Italian descent, irresponsible, unwed, not valuing family, a traitor!"

Martin agreed: "He's definitely a traitor. I'll make him pay if I get the chance."