America achieves both fame and fortune

Chapter 887 Kicked Out of the Film Crew

Rogers, representing DC Films and DC Comics, traveled from Los Angeles to New York, routinely notified the crew, and after a short rest overnight, entered the Brooklyn studio the following morning.

As a representative of the copyright holder, it is normal for him to visit the film crew regularly.

Martin is busy filming, so there's no need to pay him any attention.

Louise was the one who received them.

Rogers arrived at the open-air film set, stood outside the street where the set was being built, and watched the crew working, without rushing to speak.

If the production crew is already a mess, he doesn't need to say anything more.

Rogers remained silent, patiently watching the film crew shoot.

In half a morning, the crew filmed more than twenty scenes, and Rogers found that the situation was completely different from what he had expected.

Hollywood insiders generally agree that The Shallows was a decent film, but director Martin Scorsese was clearly taking shortcuts. The film had very few scenes and characters, and the plot was so simple that it was more like a low-budget episodic drama.

His boss, Hamada, even suspected that the film wasn't actually directed by Martin, but rather that Martin was waving money around and having his experienced deputy direct it, while he was just a mascot on set.

Rogers discovered that this was not the case at all.

After watching for half a morning, it was clear that the Joker crew was completely under Martin's control. Almost all the filming decisions were made by Martin, and everyone else cooperated unconditionally. The operation of each department was as smooth as silk, just like a mature Hollywood crew.

Furthermore, his superior Hamada's concerns are becoming a reality.

After a morning of filming, Rogers was completely certain that Martin's new film, which he directed and starred in, had almost nothing to do with the comics except for its name. It was simply a story that used the Joker's name and costume to tell a different story.

If the film fails, that's one thing, but if it becomes a huge success like "The Dark Knight," the impact on the Justice League cinematic universe would be catastrophic.

Just like movie fans around the world who are not comic book fans, they think that Batman's character is one who doesn't use guns and doesn't kill people. How would they feel if they saw the Bats in the Justice League not only using guns and machine guns, but also killing people like crazy?

They'll definitely say, "What kind of crap did you make? Is this Batman?"

Then, one by one, people gave bad reviews, one by one they hated the film, and bad word-of-mouth spread automatically.

In the afternoon, Rogers decided to make his move.

Regardless of what the production team does, he has to do what needs to be done, because it is DC, not this production team, that determines his future and fate.

Martin, dressed as a clown, entered the film set and went into the alley. As filming began, he got into a fight with several thugs.

These action scenes were physically demanding to film, and after shooting for more than an hour, Martin asked the crew to take a break.

Rogers looked around and saw Martin go to the nearby rest area to get a drink of water, so he quickly went over to him.

Before he even got close, he was stopped by two bodyguards and quickly said, "Hello, Martin, I'm Alexander Rogers, the copyright representative from DC. I'd like to speak with you for a few minutes."

Martin, also curious about Warner Bros.' plans, waved for his bodyguards to let the man over, shook hands with Rogers, and said, "I've heard Louise mention you; welcome to the crew."

"Thank you." Rogers seemed very polite, but his next sentence specifically emphasized, "DC is the copyright holder, so someone has to keep an eye on the project's progress."

Martin stated directly, "Please rest assured, filming is progressing smoothly, and all filming will be completed in July."

Rogers wasn't concerned with the filming schedule. Warner Bros. had been sending executives to its production teams to directly interfere with the filming process for years, which had become a routine practice. Even Jon Berger's brilliant invention, which drew ridicule from both inside and outside the industry, did not fundamentally change this practice.

Instead of sending multiple executives with similar power at once, which leads to endless arguments when opinions differ, they now focus on having a single executive take the lead.

"I see, Martin, you're a very insightful actor and director." Rogers knew exactly why he was there and said directly, "But as a representative of DC, I have a responsibility and an obligation to remind the production team that this is a superhero movie adapted from a comic book, and the film's setting and main storyline must align with DC's strategic plan..."

Martin nodded casually, letting it go in one ear and out the other.

Rogers, turning into a troublemaker, continued, "I don't mean to interfere with your normal filming, but the current state of the crew gives me reason to believe that your actions will seriously damage the Joker and its related copyrights!"

He stated righteously, "Please halt filming temporarily and make necessary revisions to the script and character settings..."

Hearing this, Martin didn't respond. He nodded to Louise, who was walking quickly over, and said, "That's enough for now, Mr. Rogers. I need to get to work."

"Director Martin Davis!" Rogers tried to stop Martin.

Two bodyguards came over and blocked Rogers's way.

Martin walked into the film set without looking back.

He now understood what DC and Warner Bros. were doing. They had clearly sent someone to cause trouble. They couldn't change the project, but they could still annoy them.

Martin called over several actors and explained the blocking and precautions for the next scene.

Rogers was still figuring out how to cause trouble when Louise arrived with several security personnel.

She glanced at the DC representative: "Let's find a place to chat for a bit."

Several burly security guards subtly surrounded him. Rogers, who worked in Hollywood, still valued his basic dignity and replied, "Okay."

Louise led him away from the film set and said directly to the security supervisor who followed them, "Take back Mr. Rogers' temporary credentials."

Originally, she didn't want to completely break ties with DC, but in order for the crew to operate normally, she simply adopted the simplest and most effective approach.

The security supervisor approached Rogers and extended his hand: "Sir, please give me your crew credentials."

Surrounded by muscular men, Rogers, not wanting to be paired with another man, could only remove the name tag from his chest, while reminding Lois: "I represent DC Films and DC Comics. How can you treat a copyright holder's representative like this…?"

Louise interrupted him directly: "If you have any questions, you can have Hamada call me. There's no need to say anything else."

Rogers removed his temporary badge, handed it to the film crew's security supervisor, glanced at Louise, and turned to walk out of the studio.

Louise instructed the security personnel: "Remember this person, and don't let him near the film crew again."

The security supervisor replied, "Okay."

Their pay was paid by the production crew, and they only followed the crew's arrangements.

As for DC, they have absolutely no connection with them.

Rogers arrived at the parking lot, got into his rented car, stared in the direction of the film crew, calmed himself down a bit, and dialed the Los Angeles number: "Tell the boss that Martin Davis and Louise Mayer have kicked me out of the crew, and that we'll be going with the second option."

The reply came quickly: "Sure."

Before Rogers arrived, he had already devised several plans, and as a troublemaker for the Warner Bros. team, he was prepared to be kicked out of the production team.

However, he did not expect Martin and Louise to be so straightforward and brutal. On the first day of filming, before they could even say a word, they were kicked out.

Rogers hung up the phone and then called an entertainment reporter friend: "Do you have time to chat? I have some juicy gossip, absolutely explosive, about Martin Davis's new film 'Joker'."

"Breaking news? Great!" The other end immediately asked, "Where are you? Lunch is on me."

The two sides agreed on a time and quickly arrived at a restaurant in Manhattan. Rogers, facing the recording device of an entertainment reporter, made many remarks attacking the Joker crew.

For example, Martin acted arbitrarily in the theater, refused to accept the copyright holder's suggestions, and even rudely kicked the DC representative out of the crew, just like a fascist.

The Warner Bros. team and the crew they control are all geniuses who always manage to do things that shock the film industry and even the world.

…………

Filming is still proceeding normally at Brooklyn Studios.

More and more extras joined the set, but the crew had a team of twelve assistant directors, each with at least three films' worth of on-set shooting experience. They could help Martin manage the huge set.

Martin manages the set through his team of assistants, while he can focus his energy on just a few main actors.

Today's scene is very important. Before filming, Martin specifically called a meeting with assistant director Steve Downton, cinematographer Jeff Crowes, editor Joel Negroon, and supporting actor Robert De Niro.

Martin glanced around the set and said, "Steve, is the trash ready?"

Downton said, "It's all been delivered. I need to wait for the lighting crew to be set up before the trash can be brought in."

Martin added, "Controlling the emotions of the extras—they're dissatisfied but not yet at the level of a riot—is the beginning of a social upheaval."

Downton replied, "I'll take care of the extras."

Martin told Crowes, "First, shoot wide-angle close-ups of the street trash and the extras."

"I'm ready," said Clonewes.

Martin then called over the other actors and said to everyone, "During the script reading, I said that the cruelty of society created the Joker, and the following scenes are a direct depiction of social unrest."

Pointing to the film set, he emphasized, "The garbage truck workers went on strike for more than half a month. Their demands were for better wages and benefits, but the Gotham City government's response was to refuse to compromise and declare a state of emergency for the entire city. As a result, garbage was scattered all over the city's streets and corners, and then a super rat appeared."

The others nodded in agreement, which is closely related to social reality. When similar incidents occur, the first thing the authorities do is not to deal with the incident itself, but often to deal with the people involved.

"To avoid escalating the situation, we must divert attention." Martin looked at Robert De Niro: "There's no better tool for doing that than the entertainment industry."

Robert De Niro, who comes from a humble background and has years of experience in acting and field research, immediately grasped the essence of his character in this scene: "The stand-up comedian I play needs to divert the attention of Gotham City's elite. I make a social issue entertaining, and then the elites use various pretexts to shift the focus instead of solving the core problem."

Martin said, "All of this fueled social unrest, leading to the major riot at the end, which deified the Joker, elevated him to a pedestal, and made him a symbol."

The reasoning behind this is simple: most movie consumers are ordinary people, or "poor people" in the real sense, and their stance and emotional values ​​naturally align with those of the poor.

Anti-elitism is a common trope in Hollywood movies. For example, the Washington authorities are all a bunch of idiots, the CIA is always killing its own people, and even the quarterbacks on campus are a bunch of brainless brutes.

Martin Scorsese knew exactly who the audience for this film was, which is why the Joker had to stand with the poor.

In the movie's plot, this is reflected in the fact that Gotham's elite created the Joker's image, making him a symbol, a concept widely accepted by the poor—using the Joker as a symbol of the resistance movement!

Today, the gap between the rich and the poor in North America has widened further, and social conflicts have become so acute that various organizations, such as demons and monsters, are needed to divert attention. The Joker not only meets the needs of the poor people in Gotham, but also serves as an outlet for the emotions of ordinary people in reality.

Piles of garbage were transported to the film set on the street, and many of the following scenes would be shot against the backdrop of the "garbage dump".

Martin also arrived on set, and filming began quickly.

The set immediately erupted into chaos, as if a Black Lives Matter movement had broken out.

Filming did not go smoothly, with various problems constantly arising. Occasionally, Martin would need to consult with the heads of various departments to find solutions to some of the difficulties.

One advantage he has is that while he may not be an expert in the behind-the-scenes industries, he is never lacking in decisiveness and can always choose the best solution from various opinions.

This in itself is a talent and ability.

There is always a gap between theory and practice, and Martin's mastery of these scenarios gradually went from unfamiliar to familiar.

However, the repeated filming put considerable pressure on everyone in the crew, including Martin himself.

When the weekend came, Martin simply booked out a famous Manhattan nightclub for the crew to relax.

When they returned to work on Monday, the crew's morale had improved significantly, and filming went much more smoothly.

Many problems in this industry can be solved with money, especially the enthusiasm and dedication of the staff.

They keep making empty promises, and the staff below get fed up after a few tries.

All the promises made can be converted into real money, and without Martin needing to mobilize the entire crew, their enthusiasm will soar.

During this period, rumors have been circulating in the media, such as Martin controlling the crew like a fascist and brutally driving away DC representatives from the crew. These rumors have been repeatedly hyped by some entertainment media.

There are also news reports that Martin Scorsese is just a figurehead director, with the actual work done by other people, which are widely circulated in gossip media.

Martin and Louise were well-prepared. In addition to the routine press conferences and interviews with the crew members, such as Robert De Niro, they also held two media open days, inviting journalists and colleagues to the set to get in touch with the crew and observe the filming process.

After these actions, the false rumors quickly diminished.

Many media outlets are even praising Martin, saying he has the potential to become another successful actor-turned-director, following in the footsteps of Clint Eastwood and Kevin Costner.

(End of this chapter)