America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 885 Walking in Fire: Full of Evil

Brooklyn Studios, New York.

The largest studio, Studio One, was set up as the three main filming locations: a bar, a theater, and an old-fashioned apartment.

First assistant director Steve Downton is directing the set design and props teams to revise several unsatisfactory parts, as requested by Martin.

Editor Joel Negroon arrived on set early and sat in a quiet place reviewing Martin's storyboard sketches. He would observe the filming from beginning to end to facilitate the later editing process.

The lighting crew is adjusting the lights.

Cinematographer Jeff Crowes stood in front of the laid-out camera tracks, discussing the filming of the first scene with Martin.

Martin not only prepared storyboards, but also clearly conveyed the desired shot effects.

After a while, Steve Downton also arrived, and the three of them talked for a long time.

In the afternoon, Martin put on makeup and went to the blue screen on set to pose in various pre-designed positions to shoot promotional posters.

The production team will soon officially begin filming. On the day of the start of filming, a promotional campaign will be launched, and several concept posters will be released.

The Joker is, of course, the most important character.

The first promotional poster has been finalized. It will use city flames as the background for the clown, while blurring the clown's face.

In terms of marketing, this Joker movie is considered a prequel to The Dark Knight, so the Joker's design will be somewhat different.

Once the promotional photos were taken, someone immediately took them to process them, and they will soon be released across the United States.

Preparations for the film are progressing smoothly. Martin Scorsese has drawn heavily on the concepts and methods used by David Fincher in filming "Split." The focus of the plot in "Joker" will be on the character's own experiences.

"We're not making a DC Joker!" Martin said to the heads of various departments at the production coordination meeting. "We're filming how a person becomes the Joker; the focus is on the person!"

He emphasized: "Everyone, put aside your memories of the Joker in comic books, your memories of the Joker in The Dark Knight. This is a completely new character."

Screenwriter Bradley added, "When I was writing the script, I didn't refer to any previous Jokers."

The others were mostly just listening.

Martin then looked at the actors, including Robert De Niro and Saoirse Ronan: "All the characters and backgrounds are black, dark, oppressive, and there's not a ray of light in them."

Robert De Niro, who had previously spoken with Martin, said, "Bad people are never born, they are made or created. Something happens in their lives that makes them abandon their faith in humanity."

"That's right." Martin snapped his fingers and glanced at Bradley.

As the screenwriter, Bradley further explained the Joker and the script to help the actors immerse themselves in their roles more quickly: "Before his transformation, the Joker lived a miserable life and was somewhat neurotic, but not to the point of madness. It was the dark side of society that constantly seeped into the Joker's heart. After suffering all kinds of discrimination, mockery, and abuse, the most terrifying criminal, the Joker, was born."

Martin said, "In short, a cruel society created the Joker."

In recent years, he has been more influenced by David Fincher and Christopher Nolan.

Nolan's various marketing and publicity tactics greatly benefited Martin, and in this respect, the two can be said to have influenced and progressed together.

However, in terms of film style, Martin actually prefers David Fincher's dark style.

Perhaps for personal reasons, he prefers characters who are both mad and evil.

This is neither a comic book superhero movie nor a commercial film that follows the usual Hollywood formula.

Martin was also taking advantage of the current social situation.

As for whether the film will explore any theme or idea, Martin will say yes during the promotion, but in reality, people in the industry understand what's going on.

A few days later, when Martin was interviewed by The New Yorker, he looked serious and said something very insightful.

Sitting in front of the first Joker poster that had just been completed, Grant, a top reporter for The New Yorker, asked Martin: "Your last Joker role is hailed as one of the most iconic villains in film. How is this one different from the last? There are multiple versions of the Joker in DC Comics. Which version did your film primarily use?"

Martin thought for a moment and said, "When we were writing the script, I, Daniel from Warner Bros., Lois from Pacific Films, along with screenwriter Bradley, and Nolan and Emma Thomas who were involved in the pre-production work, had several discussions and finally decided not to follow any of the comic book content. We ended up writing a completely new version that describes how the Joker became the agent of chaos."

Grant added, "Could you talk about what kind of character this Joker is? Besides chaos, madness, and evil?"

"From the project's initial inception to the scriptwriting stage, and now that preparations are nearing completion, many people have asked me this question," Martin said with a straight face, seemingly spouting nonsense: "What kind of character is the Joker? Why does he possess such charisma? Because he represents freedom!"

Grant was slightly surprised.

Martin, that bastard, has always been adept at manipulating public opinion and mainstream social values.

Even in America today, where demons and monsters abound, and where organizations like the LGBTQ are rampant, they still wave the banner of freedom.

Therefore, the Joker is chaotic and evil, but he is also free.

The freedom to set fires, explode, and kill is so fitting for the free spirit of America.

After all, the United States promotes democracy and freedom around the world in these ways.

Faced with such accurate words, Grant was slightly taken aback before asking, "But the Joker's freedom might bring destruction."

This question didn't stump Martin. He said, "I think the Joker's goal isn't to see the world destroyed, but to see it reborn."

Grant thought to himself, "You're the director of the film, so whatever you say makes sense."

After the interview was completed, it was successfully published in The New Yorker, and the film's poster also became a feature in the latest issue of The New Yorker.

The production team seized the opportunity to launch a promotional campaign, establishing an official website and social media accounts for the film, all featuring the poster of Martin as the male lead.

This has attracted widespread attention.

The poster features a burning city as a backdrop, with Martin, dressed in a crimson suit, strolling arrogantly through the flames, embodying the Joker's madness and evil.

It's as if chaos inevitably descends wherever the clown goes.

Multiple film publications and websites have joined the coverage.

The first poster for "Joker" has been released, featuring Martin Scorsese walking amidst fire, exuding a sinister aura!

Also announced was that filming for "Joker" will begin at Brooklyn Studios in New York, and the exact date for its North American release next year.

The Joker has long been a legendary figure among movie fans and on the internet.

Martin's version is hailed as the greatest villain in film history.

The announcement of the Joker solo film immediately sparked a strong reaction from movie fans.

"Martin's Joker is so charming, Batman is nothing compared to him."

"The poster is absolutely stunning, I can't wait!"

"Martin's previous Joker was legendary; now he's challenging himself, and hopefully he can surpass himself."

"Looking forward to Martin Scorsese's masterpiece!"

"No comic book style, no fake comic book backgrounds, it has to be a realistic film!"

"If Martin Scorsese wins Best Supporting Actor for his role as the Joker, and then goes on to win Best Actor, that would be amazing!"

While online comments are best taken with a grain of salt, some of them do make sense.

In her hotel room, Saoirse Ronan, who had just given Martin a dance performance showcasing her flexibility, was scrolling through social media on her phone, saying, "Could this role really win me another Oscar for acting?"

Martin, looking refreshed, poured two glasses of wine, handing one to Saoirse: "I can't say for sure about other aspects, but there's no problem with the nature of the role."

"What is the nature of the character?" Saoirse earnestly asked her teacher, "What specific aspects are you referring to?"

Martin stated directly, "Of course it's about playing the victim. When I was chatting with Nicholson and Leonardo, they told me that the Oscar for acting should be renamed the 'Playing the Victim Award.'"

Saoirse thought for a moment and said, "That seems to make some sense."

She recalled carefully: "I don't know about the distant past, but in the last twenty years or so, most of the actors who won Best Actor and Actress awards had roles that were quite tragic when they won the awards."

Martin nodded slightly.

Saoirse gave several more examples: "Jodie Foster's roles were criticized, Tom Hanks first played an AIDS-addicted homosexual and then a mentally challenged character, Daniel Day-Lewis played a cripple, Charlize Theron almost ruined her image, Russell Crowe's entire family died..."

There are just too many examples of people playing the victim; she can't count them all at once.

Saoirse discovered that, if this theory were followed, the character was indeed fine.

The Joker absolutely fits the criteria of the Oscar-winning sob story club.

Martin picked up his glass, took a sip, and said, "Don't worry about that for now. The most important thing is to get the film out smoothly. This movie is much more difficult to shoot than 'The Shallows'."

Saoirse encouraged Martin, "Teacher, you can do it!"

Martin was still somewhat under pressure, and slowly took a sip of his drink.

Saoirse knew her teacher too well and immediately sensed the pressure Martin was under. As a good student, she naturally wanted to help her teacher relieve that pressure, so she said, "I'm inviting some friends to a party in New York soon, teacher. Do you have time?"

Martin certainly has time: "I should be able to attend."

Saoirse said, "They're all people we know who's coming: Sofia Stallone, Elle Fanning, and the Dakota Fanning sisters. They'll be visiting me on set after filming starts."

Martin remembered that they had known Saoirse for a long time.

As the new week began, preparations for the production continued. In addition to his directing duties, Martin also took time to rehearse with actors such as Saoirse Ronan and Robert De Niro.

The preparations he made for Split can also be applied to his performance as the Joker.

The characteristics of a split personality would certainly not appear in the Joker; the character Martin created would only develop towards madness and chaos.

Meanwhile, Louise reached an agreement with New York City Hall regarding location shooting.

Since the production team will not be filming on location in Manhattan except for New York City Hall, the location scenes will mainly be filmed in Queens, making the filming schedule relatively easy to adjust.

Then there's the New York subway. After scouting the location, the crew said that the old subway didn't need any special setup; they could just film it directly to achieve the desired effect, since the earliest line had been in operation since the early 19th century.

In addition, a suitable filming location was found at Wayne Manor.

To keep the wealth within the family, Martin owns an apartment on the Upper East Side of New York City and a villa on Long Island.

The villa can then be rented to film crews for shooting.

While preparations were underway, Martin left New York in late April for Houston, Texas’s largest city, to attend the premiere of “Sicario,” a film produced by Davis Studios.

Because the film touches on issues between the Texas and Mexico border, the premiere was specifically held in Houston.

Martin walked the red carpet and posed for photos with the cast and crew.

Director Denis Villeneuve is riding high. Due to the huge success of "The Town" and the overwhelmingly positive reviews after several test screenings of "Sicario", he has received an invitation from 20th Century Fox to direct the sequel to the classic science fiction film "Blade Runner".

The film was a huge financial disaster back then, but after many years, thanks to the positive word-of-mouth it had built up offline, the profits it generated finally convinced 20th Century Fox to put a sequel on the agenda.

Martin didn't say much, but congratulated Daniel Villeneuve and declined Villeneuve's offer to play the male lead.

High-concept sci-fi films have a higher chance of flopping.

Josh Brolin, who was later confirmed to play Thanos, also came over to greet Martin.

The main creative team entered the theater together, and Martin was finally alone.

Alexandra Daddario came over, took his arm, and said, "This leading lady is so strange."

Martin asked, "What's strange?"

"During filming, I thought I was the absolute lead," Alexandra said with a shrug after having already seen the test screening. "But when the film was finished, I found out that halfway through, the lead role had been changed. My character, Kate, had become a dispensable role, a mere tool and an observer."

Martin chuckled. "That's why director Denis Villeneuve is a genius."

He thought for a moment and then said, "I'll give you a disaster movie script later, so you can get to know the female lead better."

Alexandra asked directly, "Is it the project you mentioned last time? The male lead is a member of the fire and rescue team, and you're going to star in it."

"That's right." Martin said simply, "I'm not entirely satisfied with the script, and I'm having the screenwriter revise it. It should be ready around next month."

The main cast and crew entered the theater, and Martin went to sit in the second row. The film soon began to play.

This is not a purely commercial film; it carries the strong personal style of director Denis Villeneuve, who seems to want to find a balance between commercial success and art, and to explore the issue of "boundaries."

Although the changes among the main characters were unexpected, the film was still very exciting overall.

(End of this chapter)