The long corridor was dimly lit, creating an eerie silence. Footsteps suddenly echoed, and Margot Robbie, dressed in a sharp suit, walked into the frame, moving steadily towards the camera.
Next, the camera controlled by Philip Lasher slid along a track, capturing Margot Robbie's profile from the side.
Maintaining a steady pace, Margot Robbie approached a large glass window, separated from the corridor by iron bars, forming an isolated space. Inside, several people were seated, watching a man in a dark red suit who appeared to be performing some comical antics.
She turned to look inside, and Lasher's camera followed her gaze into the room.
At the same time, another camera operated by a cinematographer's assistant began shooting from a corner inside the room.
Murphy ignored the monitor showing Margot Robbie's footage, focusing entirely on James Franco.
Lasher's camera panned over Robert Downey Jr., Seth Rogen, and Jonah Hill, giving each a close-up before finally settling on Franco.
Franco now looked like a complete lunatic.
Before the shoot, Murphy had instructed Franco to deliver a performance full of energy and madness.
And Franco did just that.
"Do you know what this is?" Franco pulled a plastic ball, the same color as his suit, from his pocket, holding it up and shaking it before the dozen or so people in front of him, his face a mask of manic expression. "Do you think this is an ordinary plastic ball? Hmm? Do you? Do you think it is? Or is it not? Or maybe it is, maybe it isn't?"
The dozen people in front of him showed little interest. Robert Downey Jr. was reading a newspaper, Jonah Hill was drooling at Seth Rogen, who stared blankly...
Few cared about what Franco was saying or doing.
But Franco didn't care and continued loudly, "Wrong! You're all wrong! You think this is a plastic ball, but it's not!"
As he said this, he squeezed his right hand, and when he opened it, the plastic ball was gone. The camera quickly panned to his left hand, where the plastic ball reappeared.
Franco raised his left hand, looking at the ball. "This is the key to chaos! Chaos and killing are the best medicines to save the world!"
At the right moment, Lasher's camera shifted back to Margot Robbie. A person quickly approached her.
"Was he also sent here by the police?" Robbie asked, looking at Franco. "I don't recall having his file."
The staff member beside her quickly shook his head. "He's not. He's a magician with mental issues."
Robbie took one last look at Franco, shook her head, and walked away, muttering, "A magician?"
For some reason, she paused, contrary to the script, and added, "A very strange man."
"Cut!" Murphy's voice called out, and Robbie quickly snapped out of character. She thought she had made a mistake and anticipated a retake, but Murphy's voice came again, "Margot, James, well done! This take is good!"
Robbie was stunned. "This take is good?"
She realized her spontaneous performance was approved by Murphy.
Behind the director's monitor, Murphy waved off the assistant bringing him water, signaling he didn't need it yet, and instructed the assistant director to prepare the next scene. He then reviewed the just-shot footage.
Robbie's final act wasn't in the script, but Murphy wasn't a rigid director. Robbie's spontaneous performance inspired him to think that there might be more depth to explore in scenes between her and Franco.
Franco's magician would be a key character in the second installment and responsible for killing Robbie's character, Jay Rachel, making the story darker and more somber...
This was also why the studio only signed Robbie for two films, as Jay Rachel wouldn't appear in the third installment.
However, from the interested look Robbie gave Franco, Murphy suddenly felt that Jay Rachel could continue to exist and have more interactions with the magician.
The magician was a mad villain with his own logic, which had a certain allure. If the magician shattered Jay Rachel's beliefs, what would she do without her faith? Would she become more vengeful or abandon her ideals altogether?
Human nature is complex, and when faced with extreme situations, people often make unexpected choices.
Murphy could increase Jay Rachel's significance to showcase the potential results of ideological shifts.
However, a film's time is limited, and increasing Rachel's role would inevitably reduce other characters' screen time. Balancing the characters without feeling disjointed would be a challenge.
Perhaps, he could remove another prosecutor character...
This thought surged in Murphy's mind and grew stronger, feeling almost inevitable.
However, Murphy knew that such changes would require a complete overhaul of the second installment's story, characters, and structure. Handling Rachel's fate cautiously, whether she died at the end of the second film or appeared in the third, needed careful consideration.
This situation could indeed be described as a domino effect.
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Murphy refocused on the ongoing shoot. Whether or not to change Robbie's character could wait until the film was completed.
"Hey, Murphy."
Seth Rogen's greeting interrupted Murphy's thoughts. He turned to see Rogen approaching and nodded. "Are you leaving soon?"
Along with Franco, they didn't have many scenes in this film.
"They're exploring the set," Rogen replied, pulling up a chair and sitting beside Murphy. "My new project is about to start. Would you have time after finishing this film to play a role?"
"Me?" Murphy pointed to himself. "You know my acting skills. *The Hangover* received a lot of criticism. I don't want to drag you down again."
Rogen wasn't giving up easily. "This time is different. You forgot? You're playing yourself in the film."
Murphy had already read the script and plans, knowing that the film wouldn't feature fictional characters. All the roles were based on real-life identities.
For example, if Murphy participated, he would still be Murphy Stanton, the Hollywood director, exactly as he was in real life.
This would significantly lower the difficulty of acting.
Rogen continued, "I want this to be a grand gathering of the Stanton gang. The main characters are us and our friends. Without you, it wouldn't be complete."
"Have the others agreed to participate?" Murphy asked.
"Of course!" Rogen wouldn't tell Murphy his plan. "I've already invited many people."
After thinking for a moment, Murphy finally nodded slowly. "Alright, count me in."
Rogen breathed a sigh of relief but didn't leave. "Bring Gal along too."
"Don't come to me for that," Murphy waved. "You can talk to her yourself."
Rogen shrugged. "Alright, I'll go talk to Gal."
In their eyes, Gal Gadot always centered around Murphy. If Murphy agreed, convincing Gal wouldn't be hard.
Actually, besides Robert Downey Jr. who left due to other commitments, Rogen, Hill, and Franco didn't plan on leaving. They split up, roaming around the Venice set, frequently interacting with Murphy's production team, using all kinds of persuasion to get them to appear on screen.
Their efforts paid off. Rogen successfully persuaded Gal Gadot and, leveraging her influence, brought in Margot Robbie and her brother David Robbie. Franco secured Philip Lasher and Helena Espara. Hill had fruitful conversations with Christoph Waltz and others.
Of course, most were just cameos. Otherwise, the actor fees alone would crush the budget.
The film's budget, set at $30 million by Stanton Studios, couldn't support so many star roles.
Thus, most celebrities would merely make cameo appearances.
Over the following period, Murphy, while focusing on filming, had Gal update him on the project's progress. In mid-November, Rogen officially began preparations, abandoning the original title *Apocalypse* and renaming it *The End of the World*.
Additionally, Rogen, Franco, and Hill's efforts brought in more celebrity cameos.
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