America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 391 I'm a complete idiot, who am I afraid of?

In the psychology clinic on Sunset Boulevard, Laura appeared to be flipping through the books on the table, but her gaze was actually fixed on Martin on the other side of the sofa.

Martin opened his eyes, pulled off the blanket, stood up, tossed it aside, and said, "Time to go."

Laura glanced at the time and asked, "So fast today?"

Martin said, "It's not good to be late for an audition."

Laura nodded, and said deliberately, "You're quite normal when you're not spouting those crazy things about destroying America."

"That's not nonsense," Martin grinned. "It's my truest thought."

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.

Based on her judgment, those crazy words were probably her true thoughts.

Is his second personality type antisocial?

After leaving the psychiatric clinic, Martin relaxed slightly and stood at the door for half a minute so that Ivan could take a good photo.

Bruce's car pulled up, Martin got in, and said, "To Paramount Studios."

"The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" is a joint production of Paramount and Warner Bros. David Fincher's previous film, "Zodiac," did not perform well at the online box office, but its DVD and television rights sales were very good, and it had already recouped its costs. Therefore, this film still managed to secure a $1 million investment.

Besides these two, DreamWorks accounted for one-third of the investment.

Upon arriving at the studio, Martin was greeted by Bob, David Fincher's assistant.

Accompanying Martin to the dressing room, Bob specifically said, "The makeup process will take several hours, so the audition is scheduled for 3 p.m.

Martin said, "It's okay."

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

The stylist then came in and reminded Martin to use the restroom first before starting her makeup.

Martin was very patient and cooperated throughout.

Bruce sat to the side the whole time. The rather effeminate makeup artist, seeing his menacing look, suddenly lost her effeminate air and became like a normal man.

For auditions with makeup on, or transforming from a young person into an old one, the most troublesome part is the styling.

Martin had previously learned that the production team would use makeup and post-production special effects to achieve Benjamin's aged appearance during his early childhood, and had hired Industrial Light & Magic for the special effects.

David Fincher isn't a practice-obsessed filmmaker like Nolan; he doesn't care about the specific methods used to achieve the desired effect.

The makeup and styling took nearly four hours, and Martin was even a little drowsy at noon.

In the middle of the ceremony, Bruce received a call from Robert informing him that the ceremony had already been completed that morning.

The most basic guarantee and psychological comfort have been provided.

Around 3 p.m., Martin entered the audition room for the second time this year.

Once inside, he greeted Finch first: "David."

Finch introduced the auditionees: "This is Katharine Kennedy, this is Frank Marshall..."

This couple represents DreamWorks, and those in the industry know they are Spielberg's right-hand men.

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

After Martin gave his greetings, Finch said, "Let's get ready to begin."

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

Everything that suits his habits is there.

The audition began, and Martin first read a short narration as requested by David Fincher.

This is not a problem for Martin at all.

Then he acted as if he were old and frail.

It's just appearance, not personality or psychology.

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

The audition went very quickly, taking only five or six minutes.

David Fincher's working style is different from other directors. Since Martin was the top choice, he looked around, consulted Kathryn Kennedy and Frank Marshall, and announced on the spot: "Congratulations, Martin, you got the role."

Martin came down and shook hands with David Fincher, saying, "It's my honor."

He then shook hands with Frank Marshall and Kathleen Kennedy, saying, "Thank you. It is a great honor to work with you."

The couple had a good impression of Martin because he was handsome and had a pleasant voice. They said, "Your performance was vivid and you are the perfect fit for this role."

After a brief exchange of compliments, Martin left the audition room and returned to the makeup room to remove his makeup.

Right there in the corridor, I ran into a young actor who looked to be around 20 years old.

The two American youths on the other side exuded a powerful aura, easily reaching 10.8 meters tall.

From a distance, that indescribable aura seemed to be telling passersby, "I'm a fool, who cares?"

Martin recognized him: Shia LaBeouf, the lead actor in the live-action Transformers movies and Spielberg's favorite godson.

In fact, he was even more popular with Spielberg than Drew Barrymore was back then.

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

So much so that some gossip experts speculated that he might be Spielberg's illegitimate son.

As the two were about to pass each other, Shia LaBeouf's curious gaze fell on Martin.

Because Martin was wearing old man makeup, he probably didn't recognize him and casually joked, "Hey, old man, you're so cool!"

Martin suddenly grinned, revealing a strange smile in his old-man pose: "Why aren't you being serious?"

Shia LaBeouf, lacking composure, froze for a moment before leaping down the corridor to get as far away from Martin as possible, clutching his groin with both hands: "You... what do you want to do! I'm a man!"

Suddenly realizing the man wasn't safe either, he braced his butt against the wall and shouted, "Don't do anything rash, or I'll call Bumblebee!"

Martin ignored him and turned to leave.

Once everyone was out of sight, Shia LaBeouf breathed a sigh of relief and asked the crew assistant who had led the way, "Who was that pervert?"

"Don't talk nonsense," the assistant reminded him before saying, "That's Martin Davis, he just passed the audition for the male lead in the film."

Shia LaBeouf scratched the back of his head: "This guy is a freak!" He muttered, "I was hoping to get the lead role, but I only got a supporting role in the audition."

The assistant continued to lead him to the audition room, saying nothing but inwardly disagreeing.

The crew had already heard about this idiot; Shia LaBeouf wanted to steal the male lead, and not only did David Fincher get past him, but even Steven Spielberg gave him a scolding.

This person has absolutely no self-awareness.

Martin returned to the dressing room, where the stylist came to remove his makeup. He told Bruce, "Tell Thomas to come and negotiate with the production team tomorrow."

Bruce pulled out his phone: "We've got news so quickly."

Martin said, "I like this kind of clean and efficient production team."

Bruce called Thomas.

Martin removed his makeup, changed his clothes, and came out to find Bruce on the phone again. He waited for him for a while.

A few minutes later, Bruce hung up the phone and said, "It was Kim calling."

Martin packed his things and walked out: "The videotapes are on the market?"

Bruce said in a low voice, "The distribution has already begun. Jenna's company will officially start selling next Monday."

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

Bruce said, "Absolutely not! They didn't even show much of their upper body."

"Then congratulations to you," Martin said earnestly, "you've become the male lead."

Bruce felt a little strange, but this time he really got to play the lead role.

Based on the current situation, it shouldn't be difficult to sell millions of discs. Martin's terrible idea really does bring both fame and real financial gain.

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

Martin stopped and asked, "What's wrong?"

The assistant, who had run all the way here, caught her breath and said, "If you have the time, Director Fincher would like to have a talk with you."

Martin nodded: "Okay, lead the way."

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

After auditioning for the male lead, David Fincher returned to his office. Martin's performance was outstanding, and he had no worries about the role.

The audition for the female lead has been completed, but no decision has been made yet.

He sat in front of his computer, opened the audition video of the female lead, and Cate Blanchett appeared in the player.

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

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

Martin didn't want to work on the same set as Blanchett.

David Fincher's previous film, Zodiac, was a commercial failure, and with a budget of $1 million for this one, he felt immense pressure.

Therefore, Martin, who has an excellent commercial track record, was his first choice for the male lead.

However, as for the female lead, Fincher did not want to choose a pretty face; Blanchett was the best-performing actress in the audition and the one he considered the most suitable.

Because the female lead's age range is also very wide; too young won't work, and too old won't work either.

A knock came at the door, and the assistant brought Martin in. Finch told him to make himself at home and said, "After you sign the contract, you need to get into the production team as soon as possible. Industrial Light & Magic needs you as the model for their production."

Although Martin didn't know much about post-production special effects, he had some understanding of it and knew that it required a lot of preparation beforehand. He said, "I'm fine with that. As soon as the contract is signed, I'll start working on set immediately."

"For the female lead, I'm going to choose Blanchett." Fincher is a top-tier director, and he only had some reservations about Martin's idea.

He went straight to the point: "I heard you and Blanchett don't get along very well."

This reminded Martin of what Nicholson and Leonardo had said: as a member of the trio of bastards, he wasn't afraid of these challenges at all.

Moreover, if the production team really wanted to use him, he couldn't stop them.

After a moment's thought, Martin said, "Director, if you think she's suitable, I have no objections."

Finch laughed: "Whenever you have time, we can sit down and have a calm chat."

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

(End of this chapter)