Capítulo 306: Cast
The filming of The Three-Body Problem 2 movie is in full swing amid the attention of the outside world.
Levi assigned various tasks, but that didn't mean he could simply rest. He still needs to do many things, none of which are easy. It can even be said that he has to have a hand in almost everything in the company now.
For example, in terms of script adaptation, they do have a novel in their hands. However, if they want to adapt it into a movie, there must be a structural problem. Levi needs to take care of how to set up this structure better because he is going to shoot the movie, and as a director, he always has to have an idea about the structure. Bob has a strong foundation in writing lines, but he still has to listen to the director in terms of film structure.
Levi also expressed his opinion on this.
As Levi pointed out, this is an ensemble scene. In this movie, various characters navigate crises in diverse ways. To effectively capture their differences, the first step is to determine the actors, as their interpretations will distinctly shape the characters.
In the first part, the movie was divided into three clues. After being compiled into a story, the conclusion was gradually presented to people.
But in the second part, Levi can no longer do this.
With four Wallfacers, Zhang Beihai pursuing his own path, the involvement of the United Nations requiring explanation, and shifts in civilian lives, presenting all these elements in the same manner as the first part could result in a disorganized narrative with an excess of clues.
Furthermore, the unfolding narrative in the first part was structured in this way due to a hidden suspense surrounding the alien presence, and the entire process was dedicated to gradually unveiling this suspense layer by layer. It was effective to decrypt the story in a step-by-step fashion.
However, in the second part, the primary suspense revolves around how to confront the aliens right from the start. This shifts the dynamic, requiring a different approach to maintain the tension and engagement throughout the storyline.
If there is no way to advance layer by layer, then this model will not be easy to use.
Therefore, Levi considered an alternative approach to filming: right from the beginning, bring the four Wallfacers onto the same stage. Have them convene within the United Nations and present their plans directly to the audience.
Then, while constantly showing their plans, they also let the audience know there is a wall breaker and let the audience join the wall breaker. Try to find out what their plans are - each of these plans is more cruel than the last.
When the audience speculates on these plans, they will also be brought into the movie and follow the Wallfacers to speculate on the characters' thoughts.
If we consider the first part, the three clues gradually converge and ultimately intertwine like a rope. Therefore, the second part can be likened to a vast tree spreading its branches and leaves, revealing progressively that every path seems obstructed. Yet, in the end, a solution is found, allowing the story to soar into the sky.
This kind of structure is what Levi wants.
The main line of this movie will still be in a suspense style: the science fiction component of science fiction movies itself is that there are too many unknown factors.
Only by using suspense to shoot science fiction movies can we continuously reveal all the questions in the movie.
This is the best way.
This model was finalized by Levi long ago. After finalizing, he gave this general idea to Bob to complete in detail. This aspect of the script still has to rely on Bob.
As for the script, it is actually a small matter after all - there is a novel and an outline, and Bob can do it well. Comparatively speaking, what Levi considers more is the actors in the play, who is better to play the role.
What Levi considered was that the four Wallfacers and the people from the United Nations would appear together at the beginning. Such a scene would allow these actors to compete in acting skills from the beginning. Therefore, it is also very important who these people choose.
Even if this movie were shot in 3D mode, the primary allure might be the special effects rather than the actors' performances. However, Levi maintains the belief that for a movie to be truly exceptional, it cannot overlook the importance of having skilled and compelling actors.
Levi would definitely not be able to accept the idea of just hiring a few random people to shoot a movie with such a large investment. Levi was also thinking about who to invite for this movie.
And when he thinks about it, he also hopes that all the stars will gather in his movie.
Among the several actors, Levi was the first to confirm that Meryl Streep would play the role of United Nations Secretary-General Say in the play.
This character should be a Filipino in the original work, and his appearance should be closer to that of an Asian. He changed this character to a female.
It is regrettable that, according to the original work, the character was supposed to have the appearance of an Asian woman. However, Levi struggled to find an actress who fit this description, particularly a Filipino actress, despite extensive efforts in his search.
The film industry in the Philippines is not particularly developed, and it is a little different for people from other Asian countries to play Filipinos.
Levi somewhat understood Liu Cixin's intention of arranging a Filipino here: the Philippines is a former colony and was ruled by the United States, but it is an Eastern country. Such a place represents a fusion of Eastern and Western cultures to a greater extent.
The nationality of several people in the novel is also a cultural and humanistic consideration in a sense.
If you want to show people after the integration of East and West, it is certainly possible, but there is no need to use people from the Philippines.
Even if Streep were cast in the role, the issue could be resolved by assigning her a nationality or background. When producing a film independently, adhering strictly to the nationality depicted in the novel is often not entirely feasible.
In this position, his choice is still to let a white woman play the role. Meryl Streep is a well-known actress, and in Levi's memory, she has indeed played a politician role and achieved success, so it is natural for her to play the part.
Say, in this drama, is a politician after all. Although she doesn't have as crazy and bold plans as some of the Wallfacers here, she still has a series of actions.
She has consistently made significant contributions, from her involvement in the Human Memorial Project to compelling the protagonist to work hard. Such a woman embodies a strong, assertive female presence.
She is not a simple UN-style vase. In such a situation, she needs to have her own abilities. And Meryl, as an actor, can perform to her abilities.
Moreover, her salary was not very high. It also meets Levi's requirements.
Streep's salary has consistently remained relatively modest. While she earned a groundbreaking salary of 3 million in the 1980s, making her the highest-paid actress of that era, her compensation hovered around 5 million until 2005.
While she is undoubtedly a skilled actor, she cannot escape market conventions, especially in Hollywood. Older men may remain highly sought after in the industry, but unfortunately, the same is not always true for older women.
Once an actress gets older, her acting career will become much narrower. Older women are not needed in commercial blockbusters, and they are not needed in romantic comedies. What they can only act in are some tender and affectionate literary films. The pay will not be high no matter how good the actor is.
It stands to reason that a movie with an investment of 300 million does not need to care too much about the salary, but Levi does not want to reduce the cost of special effects production by inviting too many stars.
And in this movie, she won't have many roles as a supporting character who doesn't appear often. Her salary is probably one or two million, which is probably enough.
However, how to convince her to act in commercial films is a more important issue. Levi hasn't thought about this in too much detail.
But this doesn't need to be considered now: after all, he hasn't finished the script yet, and there is still a lot of preliminary work to be arranged.
Even if he invites actors now, the schedule cannot be finalized, and other logistical details cannot be set in stone. These issues can be resolved at a later stage.
When there are too many stars in a drama, it is natural to consider the stars' schedules. No star can wait forever for a movie. They are all people who don't have to worry about film appointments.
How to find a suitable schedule? This is also a very important question.
Now, these names are just plans written in his notepad.
The second name he recorded was the actor who played the character Manuel Rey Diaz in the movie. For this candidate, he chose Javier Bardem.
This character is a Latin American politician in the setting. In terms of political philosophy, he is relatively antagonistic to the United States and has always advocated that his country develop nuclear weapons.
There are already many such politicians in real life, but they are in places like North Korea and Iran.
There are politicians in Latin America who are incompatible with the United States, but very few can deter the United States, as in the novel.
However, Levi still adopts this setting in the movie.
Such politicians have quite distinct characteristics. They are indeed capable, and his approach is also quite feasible in the plot.
However, their problem is that they are too radical. Although they love the people, their methods are somewhat unacceptable. They cannot make mainstream society understand them.
This approach is also the biggest problem that prevents them from succeeding. In the movie, Ray Diaz failed for the same reason: he did not lose to aliens but to humans.
This kind of character is actually very close to the character of the Latin people: romantic, adventurous, passionate, but reckless. Setting up such a person as a Latin American politician may not make sense politically, but it does make sense in terms of character.
This image is not too difficult to interpret, but the trouble is that he needs to be a Latin American. It is not easy to find actors in Latin America - actors in this region are not particularly well-developed in movies, and among Europeans who look like Latin American, the most outstanding actors should be those from Spain.
Among Spanish actors, the most suitable one is naturally Javier Bardem. This actor, who can be called a Spanish national treasure, has excellent acting skills.
Whether portraying a charming lover or a depraved cold-blooded killer, he can effortlessly embody any role. Levi is confident that if he were to play the part of a Latin American politician, he would also excel in that role. Because whether it is the charming side of a politician or the cold-blooded planning side of a politician, he can do the best.
Levi believed that it would not be too difficult to invite him. Although he is very famous and has great acting skills, he is a European, after all. It is difficult for a European to refuse an invitation from a Hollywood blockbuster. Levi is confident that he will star in his own movie.
After finalizing him, one of the four Wallfacers was confirmed.
*****
Thanks and kudos for my patreons
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Scott DePaepe
Oluwatimileyin Olayemi
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