America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 195 Teacher Martin

In the photography studio and on the training field.

Action director Chad Stahelski wields a cleaver and engages in close combat with Martin.

He also has a role in the film, the Butcher in the League of Assassins.

Martin rolled on the spot, picked up the cleaver from the ground, and parried Chad's slash perfectly.

Both of their movements were meticulously planned, and each knew exactly what they were doing.

Martin parried Chad's knife and they began to clash, the prop knives clashing repeatedly.

Compared to ordinary stunt performers, these two guys with real skills, at least when they fight, it looks really good and is quite intimidating.

Julie changed into her training clothes and came out of the locker room. She saw the two people on the training field from afar and immediately quickened her pace to the edge of the field, staring at Martin with great interest.

Women love to compare themselves to men they know.

Jolie shook her head inwardly. Compared to the agile Martin, Pitt during the filming of "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" was simply clumsy.

Martin stopped over there, and Julie noticed him looking this way, so she nodded slightly.

Martin nodded and discussed with Chad how the action scene could be improved.

Director Leterrier joined in.

As Chad gestured, he said, "The top assassins of the League of Assassins can get their adrenaline pumping and enter a bullet-time-like state. This scene needs to be fast-paced."

Martin worked as a professional stuntman for several years in his previous life. After coming here, he maintained his training and gradually regained his form. He was very confident: "As long as the action routine is well designed, speed is not a problem for me."

"You're fine," Chad said, shaking his hand. "I can't take it."

Director Leterrier has extensive experience in handling action scenes: "Long takes can be used appropriately, and some action shots can be broken down. There are two main types of shot presentation: one is absolute speed from the audience's perspective, and the other is relative slowness from the character's perspective."

"Everyone has their own expertise," Martin said. "As for lens design, you're in charge."

Leterrier chimed in, "Besides the impact of the action, we also need to focus on one more factor: coolness! This is a movie, not real-life combat. If the audience can't help but shout 'Cool!' when they see the finished film, then our movie will definitely be a success."

The life-or-death duel between Wesley and the Butcher is one of the few close-quarters combat scenes in the film, and everyone wanted to make the presentation even more outstanding.

After discussing for a while, Leterrier further conceived the shot, Chad picked up a prop knife and gestured to improve the action design, Martin had some free time and walked over to Julie.

Julie is stretching her body under the guidance of Chad's assistant.

Compared to her future "skinny" figure, her current physique is more in line with normal people's aesthetic standards.

Martin approached Julie and said, "Thank you for the casting of The Departed."

"I didn't do anything," Julie smiled slightly. "I just mentioned it casually."

She then said, "You taught me a lot too."

Martin smiled and said, "I hope you can use those ideas."

Julie replied, "If I encounter similar problems in the future, can I consult you?"

Hollywood is not only about fierce competition, but also about interpersonal relationships, so Martin certainly wouldn't refuse: "You can contact me anytime."

Julie glanced at Martin's training clothes and suddenly became interested: "How about we have a competition?"

Martin looked slightly surprised: "You and me?"

Julie nodded: "Don't underestimate me. Before filming Mr. & Mrs. Smith, I went to a secret service school for two months."

The so-called "spy school" is an organization founded by Hollywood stunt performers that specializes in providing professional services for action films and actors.

Martin cautioned, "I won't hold back."

Julie took a step back, striking a pose: "Bring it on!"

People nearby saw Martin and Julie about to spar and came over to watch.

Martin also took a step back and nodded to Julie: "You go first."

"Drink!"

Julie took a big step forward and tentatively threw a punch.

In Martin's eyes, Julie was too slow and her punches were weak and powerless.

He grabbed Julie's wrist and exerted force with his hands and feet at the same time, causing Julie to lose her balance and fall to the ground.

Before the man could fall, Martin pulled him up again with force.

Julie grabbed Martin's arm to steady herself and smiled, "Most of them are not very good at it."

Martin said, "The main problem is that you're not strong enough."

Julie nodded: "I don't want to get all muscular like Hilary Swank, that's horrible."

Because of their close conversation about the scandal and her attempt to clear her name, she felt closer to Martin and even joked, "I don't need a fake penis to get an Oscar."

Martin said, "You can be a top star without an Oscar."

Angelina Jolie completely agrees with this statement. Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, and Will Smith are arguably the most influential superstars in Hollywood today, yet their combined Oscar wins are zero.

In the distance, at the edge of the office area, Menez opened a bottle of Coke and handed it to Bruce.

Bruce took a sip, felt the taste was a bit off, and asked, "What year was this Coke made?"

Menez didn't understand: "Don't worry, it's not expired." He looked at the two people in the training area: "Old Bu, it feels like the boss's spring is coming again."

Bruce downed half a bottle of cola and said, "Why do women value appearance so much? People like me, who have substance, get no attention."

"That's not right," Menez rarely retorted. "Besides appearance, they also care about money!"

He praised, "Boss, you're good-looking and have a bright future. According to you, you could even blow up the earth. If I were a woman..."

Bruce thought to himself, he had originally planned to relax for a few days and take a vacation, but it looks like he'll have to start cleaning up the mess Bruce made again.

Thomas then came out of the back office.

Bruce called him back, pointing towards Martin and Julie: "Let's come up with a publicity plan in advance."

Thomas, sitting in the chair next to him, said, "Do you think Martin will go after Julie?"

"No." Bruce still remembered Martin's scumbag quote: don't take the initiative, don't refuse, and don't make promises.

He's an incredibly awful guy who makes the woman have to initiate the breakup.

Thomas, being an entertainment agent, roughly understood what Bruce meant; on-set couples were far too common in Hollywood.

Male and female actors who act opposite each other, regardless of whether they are married or not, often end up getting together while filming.

Once the film crew disbands, the crew will naturally disperse as well.

At noon, Martin and Julie left the studio together to go out for lunch.

Thomas began to consider how to maximize Martin's interests.

Inside the Smoke House restaurant, pianist Sebastian plays a jazz piano piece.

Julie mentioned something: "Have you noticed? Ever since the production team announced that they had signed me, a lot of media outlets have been attacking me."

"The American media are all bitches; they'll do anything for news." Martin also positioned himself as a victim of media gossip: "When I broke up with Anne Hathaway, countless media outlets criticized me."

A question arose in Julie's mind: Why did Martin break up with her?

Looking across at the other side, I suddenly felt that Martin's charm had faded somewhat.

She sighed softly, "There are too many media outlets that are attacking me."

Martin laughed: "People who are unconventional are always more likely to attract criticism."

Julie, of course, thinks this is true, but she's not as thick-skinned as Martin, so she added, "It's a bit difficult to deal with because my past relationships have indeed been quite chaotic."

This kind of talk also applies to Martin, so he shamelessly retorted: "Emotionally confused? Angie, they're all talking nonsense! We just sleep with the people we like!"

Julie's fork clattered onto the table, shocking even a real flirt like her.

Now I finally understand why Martin was able to come up with those solutions.

Compared to Martin, her skill level is a bit low.

So Julie decided to study diligently and humbly ask, "Do you have any suggestions?"

What Martin just said was all fluff; when it came to the actual situation, he put on a serious, thoughtful act.

"In this respect, you are absolutely qualified to be my teacher." After Julie uttered the word "teacher," she suddenly felt that Martin's charm had increased dramatically, even subtly surpassing his former appeal. She immediately reached out and firmly shook Martin's hand, her expression serious yet respectful: "Teacher Martin!"

Martin wondered to himself, how did I become a teacher? What kind of teacher? This felt very strange.

Julie placed her hand on Martin's: "Teacher, please teach me."

Martin pointed to his head: "Let me think about it."

A promiscuous woman and a scumbag man sitting together at the same table—how fascinating!

Martin wouldn't let such a combination down. After a while, he said, "Instead of being passive, be proactive! Angie, you've been in the industry for many years, you must know many editors-in-chief or chief editors of entertainment media. Contact one of them who is willing to cooperate and proactively leak past scoops to them."

Julie immediately understood: "In terms of written expression, is it biased towards me? For example, is the focus on my changes?"

"Yes, you are a mother now, a loving mother. What wrong can a mother do for her child? The hardships of the past are just embellishments to your inspiring life!" Martin tapped the table: "By actively participating, public opinion will not be completely out of control, and it can even be used to my advantage."

He suddenly laughed: "You've leaked this information to the media, so it's only right that you ask them for payment. You could even contact a publisher, find a ghostwriter to write a book, and continue leaking information."

This is what Jolie did a few years later: she exposed her dirty secrets to the media and sold photos of her children for publicity, all to get a good price and keep the power of discourse firmly in her own hands.

Julie remembered every word Martin said and willingly exclaimed, "Mr. Martin, thank you for your guidance."

Martin sighed inwardly, realizing how much effort he had put into ensuring the wanted posters sold well.

A movie that is cool, stylish, and entertaining may not necessarily be a box office hit.

With this as a foundation, and supplemented by sufficient buzz, the box office performance is bound to be good.

After the good teacher Martin taught the promiscuous female student, Julie obediently paid the bill.

But this is Hollywood, where people who use others for publicity will also be used for publicity.

The crew of "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," whose release date had been confirmed, took the initiative to come to us.

We need to talk to Martin about publicity.

(End of this chapter)