The Best Actor in the Vase of Meiyu

Chapter 2046 Friendly Reminder
The waves crashed and lapped, and the winter sun shone lazily down. Having just emerged from the sea, a gentle breeze sent shivers down my spine, and I couldn't help but tremble slightly. Standing in the sea breeze for even a second longer felt like torture.

However, Brad remained lying on the ground, motionless.

Anson covered Brad with a towel. "...I was planning to introduce you to a superhero role, but it seems that the plan has to be shelved."

After saying that, Anson beckoned Chris to leave the beach, and the two walked forward.

But because he was worried about Brad, he couldn't help but turn back.

Sure enough, Brad couldn't resist and remained lying on the ground, but when he raised his head and opened his mouth, he was met with a mouthful of sand. "You two, you unscrupulous friends!"

Brad scrambled to his feet in a disheveled manner, crawling on all fours and slowly moving his body away from the beach. He finally made it back to the villa's backyard, sat down in the hot tub, and shrunk in completely, leaving only his head sticking out. The warm water relaxed his tense muscles.

"what……"

Brad couldn't help but exclaim in amazement, feeling as if he were about to melt.

At this moment, Noah brought over three drinks and handed them to them. Brad took a sip, grimaced, and let out a strange gasp.

"what is this?"

Noah explained with a smug look, “Ginger tea. It’s specially made to ward off the cold. Mr. Wood said that he must drink a cup after surfing; that’s the condition for him to surf.”

Brad was sticking his tongue out, seemingly irritated by the spiciness, hissing and looking around for the recipe.

Anson said with a smile, "You'd better drink it all, or Luca might not be happy."

Brad was completely stunned. Chris obediently swallowed the mouthful of ginger tea he was about to spit out, holding the cup with a well-behaved expression.

Anson's eyes were full of smiles. Lucas's name was quite useful; he could take advantage of the situation and not be the only one suffering now.

Brad pinched his nose, took a big gulp, and swallowed it without tasting it. His eyes, eyebrows, and nose were all out of place, and his expression was very rich.

The curse was already on the tip of his tongue, but he swallowed it back down. Brad forcibly changed the subject, "What did you just say? What superhero project? You're not just trying to trick me into thinking I drank a lot of water in the ocean by changing the subject, are you?"

Anson noticed, but didn't call Brad out on it. "If you want to change the subject, just have steak. Why waste your brains?"

Brad rolled his eyes. "...Okay, I can't argue with that."

"Haha." Anson burst out laughing, clearly very happy.

Anson didn't keep them in suspense any longer, saying, "Forest Pictures is preparing a brand new project, taking a significant step forward: a superhero movie."

"The news should be out by next week at the latest. They're looking for suitable actors in Hollywood. I think you might be interested and decide to give it a try."

Brad narrowed his eyes slightly. "A superhero? Are you sure? Anson, I'm not you, nor Chris, and even James is more suitable to play a superhero than me."

Chris chuckled, then thought about it seriously. "Yes, Hayden is a better fit than you."

The moment the name was uttered, there was a brief silence. Chris touched his nose, his smile fading. "Sorry." He quickly took a sip of ginger tea to calm himself, but his features all scrunched up together.

Anson burst out laughing. "Hayden isn't Voldemort. See, I said his name, Hayden Christensen, and nothing happened."

Anson looked at Brad again and brought the topic back, "Indeed, normally you're not suitable, but this role is a little special."

"He is a playboy, handsome and dashing, unrestrained and dissolute, with all sorts of vices, and arrogant. Although he is a superhero, his body is actually very fragile and he could die at any time. His superpowers are his armor, not only superpowers but also equipment to sustain his life."

"He has experienced many hardships, and his outward disguises are merely armor to conceal the wounds in his heart."

“I see your shadow in him.”

Everything is the truth.

After Forest Pictures acquired Marvel Entertainment, the next step was to fulfill the contractual commitments, and the first thing to do was to film "Iron Man".

Funding, script, and producers are all in place. The first step is to find a director and wait for the director to be selected. The next step is to find actors.

For superhero movies, having the right actor is half the battle; casting is crucial.

The same applies to "Spider-Man" and "Iron Man"—choosing the actors to portray superheroes sets the tone for the films.

Undoubtedly, Robert Downey Jr.'s portrayal of Iron Man in his previous life was a huge success, and he infused the character with a unique charm.

When Anson persuaded Kevin Feige, he promised that he would not interfere with Feige's creative process, and he kept his word.

On the one hand, the Marvel Cinematic Universe requires too much effort, and Anson doesn't think he has that much time to fully intervene, so it's better to leave it to professionals.

On the other hand, it's because Kevin's understanding of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is truly outstanding. Perhaps as a producer, Kevin's abilities are limited, and his talent is confined to superhero movies. After leaving Marvel, his creative output suddenly became insufficient.

Or perhaps Kevin is more of a businessman. After the huge success of Marvel's first and second phases, market feedback changed, and Kevin's subsequent innovations failed to keep up with the times, drawing much criticism. But without a doubt, in the first decade, Kevin was the best helmsman of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Therefore, Anson has no intention of interfering.

Perhaps Robert Downey Jr. will still be Iron Man, or perhaps things will change in a parallel universe, and the actor playing Iron Man will be drastically different.

Regardless, Anson has no intention of interfering; everything is left to Kevin Feige.

However, Anson also had his own understanding. He believed that Robert Downey Jr. would do an excellent job, but was he really the best choice? Weren't there any actors more suitable for Iron Man?
At least in Anson's view, the complex vulnerability in Brad Renfro gives Iron Man more room for interpretation and exploration.

To outsiders, Iron Man Tony Stark is an arrogant and disdainful jerk. Despite being a superhero, he has too many flaws. However, in "Avengers: Endgame," Tony Stark shoulders the responsibility of turning the tide and creates the most tearful moment in the series.

In Anson's view, this is a prime example of how star power determines screen time; the script was arranged this way simply because Robert Downey Jr. was the biggest star in the cast.

Of course, it's not that Tony Stark wouldn't or couldn't shoulder such a heavy responsibility, but rather that such a character arc wasn't seen in the "Avengers" series or in Robert Downey Jr.'s performance. Most of the time, Robert Downey Jr. was trying to simply and crudely cover up the roughness of the character arc and the greasy performance with his acting charm.

If—and this is just a hypothetical scenario—were to replace the actor with someone whose performance was more nuanced and understated, whose image was cleaner and more refreshing, could that bring more possibilities to Iron Man and the Marvel Cinematic Universe?
(End of this chapter)