Eddie took a deep breath. He couldn't believe the twist of fate. He acknowledged that the two screenplays were somewhat mediocre, but after all, he was an author by nature who had turned to directing midway through his career. For him to have written to this level was not bad at all, right?
But seeing Shiller persist, Eddie continued reading. He refused to believe he couldn't write a story that would satisfy the client.
Then the opportunity arrived, because what followed was a documentary about Stark's wedding journey, which was basically a gathering of all the superheroes. This was definitely promising material, especially since it had already blown up online before. There was no need to fret over publicity; as long as there were no issues with the script and the shooting, it was bound to be a blockbuster.
The challenge was that writing an ensemble script is even harder, because there is already limited time, yet it has to be divided among many main characters, and each one needs their own story and emotional arc. On top of that, there must be a coherent main plot that holds it all together without becoming scattered. It was a true test of the writer's and director's skills.
Eddie rubbed his hands together with excitement; after all, he had been the director of the wedding documentary and remembered many details very clearly. Although he could use this advantage to produce a variety show full of gimmicks, making a movie would not be a letdown either.
After some thought, Eddie realized that what's most important in an ensemble drama is each person's motivation. Random entries without motivation could seriously disrupt the pace, and all motivations must ultimately intertwine, otherwise, the story would flicker from start to finish without a focal point.
In the end, Eddie still set his sights on the space station.
Stark had provided most of the technology needed for the space station, so he was quite proud of it. He even bragged about it during the preparations for his wedding banquet, with remarks that didn't hide his sarcasm towards the magic side.
Strange, as the Supreme Magician, found this belittling attitude towards magic very disagreeable. He believed that in humanity's journey to the interstellar seas, science should not be the only force at play—magic also needed its place. Therefore, he thought this was the right time to talk with Stark and emphasize the role of magic in the exploration of the space station and the Solar System.
The situation for mutants in the Andromeda Galaxy was good, but they believed their capital planet should have a facility similar to a space station on its outskirts. Thus, the leaders of the mutants had contacted Wanda who had just given birth, hoping she would feel out Stark's position at this gathering and see what kind of deal could be made for such technology.
Asgard was indifferent to how humans explored the Solar System, but they believed that the Supreme Magician should indeed have a stronger say in things, as they themselves were part of a Divine Power civilization. Put simply, they were there to back up Strange.
Peter, who had come as a researcher, and Captain America, with his public identity revealed, were concerned about another matter—whether jobs like those offered at the space station could continue to provide more employment for ordinary people, allowing them to benefit from such technological advancements.
And Shiller, he represented S.H.I.E.L.D. in mediating the various interests to prevent them from coming to blows. Of course, Nick also hoped that in the process, S.H.I.E.L.D. could gain more influence.
After checking several times, Eddie felt that everyone's motives were very much in line with the public's stereotypes of them. What followed was a series of encounters and negotiations. On the surface, everything seemed harmonious, but beneath, there was an undercurrent of mutual speculation, questioning, bargaining, and compromise.
Eddie had great ambitions. He believed this film should be different from any superhero documentary filmed before. It was not about emphasizing that they were superheroes, but that they were also individuals. They had their own interests to fight for, and like ordinary people, they would not give an inch in this regard. Superheroes had their own fields of fame and gain.
This fresh perspective was indeed attention-grabbing. In the public eye, superheroes are always righteous—seemingly unified on the surface, helping and supporting each other, eager to assist the needy.
If the audience saw them fighting over certain interests, arguing, or even coming to blows like lions fiercely clamping down on their opponent's flesh, being cautious in their approach, over-interpreting, and full of doubt, it would highlight the human side of their nature even more.
The theme of "The Real Superheroes" would definitely propel the movie to soar high and become an international sensation in no time.
To be honest, this was already a bit beyond Eddie's capabilities as a director who switched careers midway. He thought about collaborating with some well-established directors who would likely be interested in this kind of behind-the-scenes superhero script.
Yet Shiller still disagreed.
In the end, Eddie had no choice but to focus on the incident of the space station's fall—a disaster movie, a genre where if not done well, the film, the director, and the investors all face disaster, so to speak, especially if it's an adaptation of a real event. Treating it frivolously would be tantamount to committing career suicide.
Such films are often co-financed by government agencies from various countries. Generally, they carry a message of remembrance and warning, so they must be taken very seriously to fully convey a somber memorial. There is no room for entertainment-oriented interpretation.
For a director, this is like an added level of difficulty, as if having to dance in shackles. Eddie was not entirely confident he could write a good script, so he chose the most conservative approach, presenting the facts as if making a documentary.
However, a movie is different from a documentary. A movie needs a main viewpoint, and Eddie thought the safest approach was to tell the story from the perspective of the ordinary staff, showing how people in the air helped each other during the disaster, and how countries on the ground coordinated their response.
As Eddie was painstakingly revising the script little by little, his phone suddenly rang. Then, the exclamations of his colleagues came from outside the door. Eddie quickly checked his phone and saw that his favorite short video app had pushed a top news story to him.
The cover of the news was Mysterio's big face.
```
Unsurprisingly, Jameson chose to expose Mysterio.
When the video was opened, the content was very straightforward—simply put, the former editor of the Daily Bugle was invited by the mysterious person for an interview but discovered that it was Mysterio, the hero who saved the space station. Throughout the interview process, he found this person riddled with inconsistencies. After the interview details were spoken, the image of a boastful, insecure, and ignorant charlatan jumped off the page.
The footage that followed corroborated this, showing Mysterio fleeing in panic when faced with a huge spider monster. He tripped over a rock halfway through his escape and ultimately smashed his helmet, revealing the face of Justin Balk, the only seriously injured survivor from the previous space station downfall incident that also attracted much attention.
Colleagues who had previously worked with him at Stark Group quickly recognized him, declaring he was not really Balk but Quentin Beck, a madman who wreaked havoc in the lab.
As more videos about Beck were released, people gradually pieced together the complete image of the fraudster: someone who caused trouble but wouldn't face the consequences, switched identities to escape accountability, infiltrated the space station, and threw everything into chaos, only to end up unsuccessfully attempting to play the savior and being exposed for it.
His reputation couldn't possibly get any worse.
However, Eddie, watching the news, didn't join in condemning Beck like the other netizens. Instead, he suddenly wondered if Aux was actually the innocent one and had been wronged if Mysterio was the behind-the-scenes manipulator.
Eddie immediately had an inspiration. He thought he should reinterpret the space station falling incident from Aux's perspective.
After all, he was an insider himself, having heard some news that Aux had been receiving psychological treatment since leaving the space station, which proved there was something wrong with his mental state.
Eddie thought that maybe he could use magical realism to portray the terrifying space station from Aux's perspective at the time. Not only would that serve as a caution for others, but it also could help Aux regain his social status.
Of course, he would start the story from the moment Aux boarded the space station, struggling under the weight of family responsibilities, facing difficulties at work, and being manipulated by villains, which gradually caused his emotions to spiral out of control. More and more illusions appeared in Aux's mind, eventually leading him to blame himself for everything.
Eddie was writing smoothly and quickly filled several pages with drafts. While writing, he was also explaining his thoughts to Shiller—distinguishing between the real world and illusions, portraying Aux's inner pain and struggle, and how to simultaneously address the space station's emergency situation.
Rarely did Shiller listen intently, but when he finally spoke, Eddie felt like banging his head against the wall. Shiller said, "Why did you only write about one half of the space station running out of oxygen? What about the other half?"
Eddie opened his mouth to respond, "I mentioned it, Aux received a message while trapped in the room that the other half of the space station had fallen..."
"And the details of the fall?"
"That's irrelevant to the movie," Eddie said. "Our main character is Aux, not the people on the other half of the space station. Movies need a certain degree of artistic interpretation, we can't film everything, or else it just becomes a mishmash."
Before Shiller could reply, Eddie cut him off, "I'm not saying the staff on the other half of the space station aren't deserving of sympathy. Besides documenting facts, a film should also reflect ideology and style and achieve complete unity in character, setting, storyline, and the spirit conveyed; otherwise, it's an outright terrible movie."
"It's like when you film a teenage love story, you can't possibly record every math class they attend, even though in reality they definitely attended them. But those details don't reflect their character or drive the main story forward, so there's no point in filming them."
"Like in the story I'm writing, the other half of the space station indeed faced disaster, but it had no impact on this half of the space station, it's unrelated to the main storyline, it doesn't contribute to the emotional development of Aux, nor does it better shape the spirit of everyone working together to overcome disaster and adversity; therefore, it's meaningless to this movie."
"I don't care, you have to film it," Shiller insisted, staring at Eddie. "And all the previous scripts are no good, you have to stick to facts."
"Then tell me what's wrong with them," Eddie, equally frustrated, swung his chair around, crossed his arms, and looked at Shiller.
"First, there's no character growth for Robbins," Shiller claimed. "Change his storyline after he goes to Kamar-Taj to him being defeated, captured, and then escaping."
Eddie was stunned and asked, "Why change it? I've crafted a character who isn't inherently bad but is reckless and impulsive. In this style of movie, the protagonist definitely needs to grow…"
"Because that's how it actually happened," Shiller said without much fuss. "Sandman needs changing too, make it so he was kidnapped by Robbins, and with hypnosis, his powers went out of control, which is why he pursued from the East Coast to the West Coast."
"Hold on, this is no longer about the movie," Eddie said. "What about the motivation? Why would Robbins kidnap Sandman?"
```
```
"I don't know, no explanation was given," Shiller shook his head and said, "If I had to guess, he might want to stir up conflict between Sandman and Spider Man."
"What does Spider Man have to do with this?" Eddie was utterly perplexed as he said, "Does Spider Man have a grudge against Robbins?"
"No," Shiller shook his head again, "Based on my speculation, his actions may be due to a desire to expose the hypocrisy behind the facade of superheroes."
Eddie was even more baffled as he said, "He kidnaps a super villain to fight a superhero and then thinks that this can expose the superhero's hypocrisy? What kind of logic is that? It doesn't make any sense!"
"Or maybe he's just naively trying to teach a superhero a lesson, or simply wants to throw a superhero group into chaos. Didn't Sandman encounter The Avengers in Los Angeles?"
Eddie took a deep breath and said, "But he needs a motive, you understand? Every character in a movie must have their own perspective, stance, and motive. What is Robbins' view of The Avengers? What position is he taking against The Avengers, and what is his motive for doing so?"
"I don't know," Shiller shook his head, looking clueless, and in fact, he really didn't know because the behind-the-scenes mastermind didn't explain anything.
"This won't do," Eddie said, "Without a main storyline, the character setups are confusing... no, that's not right."
Suddenly, it dawned on Eddie, "You said this happened in real life, right? But Peter told me that William isn't naturally bad, he just has a bit of a temper and unstable mental state. Without any hatred towards The Avengers, why would he want to wipe them out?"
"That's the problem," Shiller said, "Just assume someone has the power to forcibly change character settings. There are even more illogical things to come."
Before Eddie could continue asking questions, Shiller said, "The superhero part also has to be changed. This section needs to be about Tony and Steven arguing..."
"Why are they arguing?"
"Over some joke about 'God's full body,'" Shiller said with a reminiscent expression, "Then over here because Steven habitually breaks finger biscuits, this is where Tony brings up a small town in Massachusetts, and then this part on the beach is because Steven showed a disdainful expression when Tony went surfing..."
Eddie was utterly confused, "Yes, I know they had many arguments during this process, don't forget I filmed the entire thing, but no audience likes to watch these trivialities. The dramatics in a movie come from the conflict of strong motives. Arguing and bickering over finger biscuits? What kind of issue is that?"
"Moreover, with invisibility cloaks and super villains in the previous scenes, the tone is very serious. You can't just insert a segment of everyday comedy here, it would completely collapse the atmosphere that has been created before."
"Don't rush, because after this, we still have to connect it to the space station," Shiller dropped another bombshell, then said, "At the same time, a subplot begins. The Robbins who initially escaped followed the border to Hong Kong and, with the support of an unknown person, conjured up a large sum of money and paid Mysterio's team to sabotage the Space Station project."
"What???"
Eddie's features all crumpled together, but Shiller knew what he was talking about was true, for through the communications with S.H.I.E.L.D. and SWORD, they had almost figured it out. The mysterious backer supporting Sofia's team was none other than the escaped Robbins.
But where Robbins' money came from, where the accounts came from, how he transferred the money, no one could clarify, just as no one could clearly trace how Mysterio had managed to change his identity.
After viewing Mysterio's expose, Eddie also had the same question, "If you want me to incorporate Mysterio's story first, then you need to tell me how he changed from Quentin Beck to Justin Balk. There must be some key figure who helped him, right?"
"Isn't it written there? Sofia Adra."
"But she's a scientist, how could she possibly fool so many law enforcement agencies and alter the records so perfectly? If the records aren't perfect, how do you explain how Mysterio got on the space station?"
"I don't know," Shiller gave an unexpected answer which Eddie had not seen on Shiller's face before. It was as if he truly knew nothing, and more importantly, he didn't want to know anything.
"Is there something out of your control?" Eddie seemed to have guessed a little, but quickly realized something else and said, "No, if there really was something out of your control, would you be sitting here so calmly instructing me?"
Eddie and Shiller's relationship was quite close, mainly because he frequently visited the mental clinic to save on diagnosis fees, and he believed he understood this psychologist quite well.
Shiller hardly ever accepted that anything in this world could be out of his control, except in the rare instances involving his friends, and eventually, things indeed got back on track.
But this time, with such a significant incident, someone other than him, a behind-the-scenes manipulator, had planned so many conspiracies in a row, and Shiller was completely unaware of many of the details, yet he did nothing and sat here idly.
"Why?" Eddie asked sincerely.
Shiller turned away and sighed, "Now there's a pile of dog shit in front of you. If you take two more steps, you'll step in it. Would you walk forward?"
Eddie shook his head, and Shiller said, "But you don't know the exact feeling of stepping in that dog shit."
"Why would I want to know?"
"Then why would I want to know?" Shiller retorted, "When you already know it's dog shit, why would you want to get clear on the specifics?"
"Moreover, I don't have to investigate it, I can guess it out. The success of a conspiracy mainly relies on prediction, changes in character setting make no sense, the main storyline is basically nonexistent, motives and stances are completely unexplained, content is mostly filled with rubbish, and the conclusion is against the human race. The overall quality is worse than Bruce's psychology papers."
Eddie was at a loss for words. He sat back down and looked at Shiller, "Since you know it's a pile of dog shit, why would you still make a movie out of it?"
```
"I'm not arrogant," Schiller suddenly said. "I can't be the only one to get dirty; if there's dirt, we all get dirty together."
"So, you're retaliating against society, huh?!"
Eddie finally understood that Schiller might want to take revenge on the behind-the-scenes manipulator, but his main purpose was definitely to enjoy everyone's expressions after they ate the dirt. That's just the kind of person he was.
Eddie knew he couldn't stop him, but he still decided to make a final struggle. He said, "I can shoot it according to your requirements, even without any payment. I just ask for one thing."
"What?"
"Absolutely do not put my name on it." Eddie stretched out One Hand to emphasize, "You can't let anyone in this world, no, not just this world, all worlds know this crap was shot by me! That's my bottom line!!!"
Because he could already entirely imagine what a monumental pile of shock this was going to be. He wasn't any good director, but he didn't want to be remembered for a movie like this.
Schiller once again averted his eyes.
Eddie, enraged, slammed the table and stood up. He said, "You're just trying to pin this pot on my head! Schiller! How have I ever wronged you?!!"
"It's because of that damned documentary you shot!" Schiller finally revealed his true fangs. He too stood up, glaring at Eddie, and said, "Would I be in this mess if it wasn't for your malicious editing?!"
"That was just for performance... Okay, I admit I wronged you in that regard, but you can't take revenge on me this way. I absolutely won't accept it!" Eddie roared.
"It's no use you not accepting it! Even if I don't have you shoot it, I'll still put your name at the top of the producers' list!" Schiller roared back.
There's a limit to what one can bear, and there's no need to bear anymore!
"Mask!!!!"
Venom surged out, the big mouth slowly closing over Eddie's face. Schiller took a step back in shock, but he still stared at Venom and said, "You'd better think carefully, can you beat me?"
Venom didn't even glance at him. With a cold snort, black slime erupted, and in an instant, several computer keyboards in the office were stuck by the slime and flew up, numerous tentacles began to rapidly type away.
"Revelation, the top psychologist Schiller Rodriguez's unknown academic journey and secret past?"
"Schiller's female companion reveals? The psychologist's unknown wild love history!"
"Stark and Strange! Who is really the first choice for a good doctor? The real reason behind Iron Man and the Supreme Magician's confrontation is him!"
"Black Widow's once-in-a-century kiss, the heart-stealing assassin and her psychologist's untold story."
Numerous shocking headlines accompanied by the tentacles' rapid typing appeared on the screen, Schiller's eyes widened as he looked at the keyboards surrounding him. When had Venom evolved into the internet age's strongest superhero keyboard warrior?!
"Stop!!!!" Schiller raised his voice and shouted, "Don't send it out! Right now, the entrance to my sanatorium is blocked every day; I can't get any more famous!"
He slumped his shoulders and sighed, saying, "Okay, Eddie, you got lucky this time..."
"I'll always be lucky after this." Eddie apparently hadn't let his guard down and said, "If you expose me, I'll expose you. If it comes to it, we'll both go down together."
"You've definitely been influenced by this evil alien creature." Schiller said with a heavy heart, "You must have been bewitched by him!"
But Venom just stood there with his arms folded, even putting on an oversized pair of glasses for himself. Astonishingly, a somewhat refined air could be seen emanating from that tall, fearsome black figure.
Such was the horror of combining Batman and Iron Man's intelligence.
Schiller waved his hand and sat back down, saying, "Alright, I give up. Put the keyboards down first."
Eddie didn't seem to fear that he would go back on his word. He retracted Venom and sat back down, then said, "I guarantee I can complete the movie to your exact specifications, but let me say it again, if it's shot the way you've described, I can't even fathom how terrible it'll be."
"Just shoot it," Schiller said. "What's a rotten film anyway?"
In fact, Eddie was indeed very professional. He finished all the shooting quickly. When Schiller got the screener, he found that the film's length had reached a staggering seven hours.
But that was okay, it's just a little long, right? At most, it's just boring enough to make one fall asleep.
Schiller didn't think too much of it and left the film in his office at Arkham Sanatorium. He then turned to call about the situation in Centaurus, preparing to invite a few turkeys over for a screening.
Schiller, leaving the office, didn't notice that a dark shadow appeared in the corner of the office, and a pale, thin hand landed on the videotape.
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