"It's not appropriate to replace him directly," Eric Pole explained. "Tom Hardy has a formal contract with the crew."
As one of the producers of the crew, he considered much more than a director. There was a contract between the two parties, and the crew didn't need to pay a penalty for such a minor actor.
David Frankel immediately understood Eric Pole's implied meaning and, after a moment's thought, said, "This actor has a big problem with his mindset and doesn't know how to adjust himself. The shooting schedule is very tight, and I can't waste time on such a small role."
"How about this..." Although this was an actor introduced by the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, Eric Pole didn't care at all. "Don't fire him. You can handle the situation as you see fit. It's just a small role."
"Alright then," David Frankel called over the assistant director and the cinematographer and instructed, "Adjust the shooting schedule. For Tom Hardy's orderly role, all close-up shots are canceled."
"What about medium close-ups?" the cinematographer asked.
All NG issues occurred in medium close-ups.
David Frankel already had a plan and said, "Move behind him, over his shoulder, and give the medium close-up shot to Matthew Horner's character."
He looked at the cinematographer and assistant director and asked, "Any problems?"
The two of them simultaneously said, "No problem."
Instead of wasting time as before, it was better to make adjustments.
"You two go prepare," David Frankel first waved them off, then turned to Eric Pole and said, "The prototype of the orderly character died in a car accident. I don't think this character needs to appear in any other scenes. All the original scenes are canceled, and this character will die in a car accident in the next scene."
Eric Pole thought for a moment and said, "You shoot this scene first, and I'll truthfully report the situation to Hanks."
David Frankel nodded slightly, "You should call Hanks as soon as possible. If this kind of actor comes again, I'll go crazy!"
The two exchanged a few more words, concluding that Tom Hardy's mindset was too poor, his self-adjustment ability was amateurish, and it wasn't worth the crew continuing to spend time on him, especially for an expendable orderly role.
As for the Central School of Speech and Drama in London that introduced him, Eric Pole and David Frankel didn't care, and even felt a bit annoyed. They actually introduced such an unreliable actor!
Filming quickly resumed.
Matthew could see that the crew had adjusted the camera positions, and it seemed the camera was more advantageous for filming him.
However, he didn't think too much about it and remained as focused as before, doing his best to complete his work.
Tom Hardy was a bit worried at first, but this time the filming went very smoothly. The director didn't call a halt until that annoying guy opposite him left with his things.
In his early twenties, he didn't notice anything unusual. When he heard the director call out that the shot was good, he immediately put on his clothes, walked over to the actress, and whispered, "Are you free tonight? I'll be at the Crone Bar near the hotel tonight..."
The blonde actress smiled at him but said nothing.
Tom Hardy understood. He put on his clothes and was about to go to the dressing room to prepare for the next shot when he heard the assistant director's shout.
"Temporary adjustment to the shooting schedule!" the assistant director's voice was quite loud. "The next scene is canceled and we're going to the outdoor set to shoot the street scene ahead of schedule!"
"My scene is canceled?" Tom Hardy was stunned. "What's going on?"
He quickly found the assistant director and asked, "When will the next scene be shot?"
"It's not rescheduled!" The assistant director glanced at him and said directly, "It's canceled, the next scene is canceled!"
"What?" Tom Hardy couldn't understand. "Why?"
The assistant director said impatiently,
"It's the director and producer's decision, how would I know why?"
Tom Hardy's good mood from asking out the pretty girl vanished. He said, "But..."
"No buts," the assistant director was too lazy to explain further. "I still have work to do."
With that, he walked away.
Tom Hardy stood there, looking around. The actress he was working with had long since left, and that annoying actor opposite him was also gone. The rest of the crew were busy packing up for the location change, and it seemed he was the only idle person on set.
"I just called Hanks."
Leaving the studio, Eric Pole said to David Frankel, "Hanks said that for such an expendable minor role, we can make the decision ourselves."
David Frankel nodded, "So, should we go with my suggestion?"
"Okay!" Eric Pole had no intention of spending too much energy on such a minor matter. "You decide."
The total length of footage shot for each episode of the crew was generally more than five times that of the finished TV series. For such an expendable minor role, cutting down screen time was irrelevant.
In Eric Pole's view, this was just a minor role to support Matthew Horner.
Even he couldn't understand what capital such a minor actor had to face an actor far more important than him with an arrogant and disdainful attitude during filming?
Eric Pole saw it clearly: Tom Hardy was young and impetuous, probably not taking most people seriously, and this attitude even extended to the filming.
He shook his head. This kind of actor was still too young. Without seven or eight years of tempering, it would be impossible for him to truly make a name for himself.
Among young actors, Matthew Horner was much more mature and intelligent than him.
"The difference between people is really vast," Eric Pole muttered. "The people these British guys recommended are so unreliable. Helen Herman is trustworthy."
In the street set of the outdoor studio, Matthew stood in front of a step on the roadside. On the steps behind him were silver trays and utensils, and next to them was a Chicago typewriter.
The crew was still setting up cameras and adjusting the scenery, so filming wouldn't start for a while.
Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy came over. Both were wearing US military uniforms, clearly meant to be extras during the shoot.
"That actress we were just working with..." Michael Fassbender seemed to be going crazy in this mostly male crew. "Matthew, what do you think of her?"
"She's alright," Matthew thought for a moment. "She's pretty, and has a great figure!"
Michael Fassbender clapped James McAvoy on the shoulder, "See, James, I told you your aesthetic was off!"
James McAvoy curled his lip in disdain.
Matthew patted James McAvoy's other shoulder and deliberately said, "In James's eyes, Michael is the most beautiful."
"Go to hell, you!"
Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy both simultaneously gave Matthew the middle finger.
"He wants to hit on that girl," James McAvoy said, pointing at Michael Fassbender.
Michael Fassbender didn't deny it. "is there any woman prettier than her in the crew?"
"No!" Matthew answered with certainty.
This crew was toxic; from actors to behind-the-scenes staff, there were hardly any women.
"However, Michael," Matthew reminded him, "After the last shot, I heard that Tom Hardy asked her out, saying they'd meet at the Crone Bar tonight..."
"Him?" Michael Fassbender crossed his arms. "That bastard..."
James McAvoy interjected, "This is so unfair, even getting a girl was stolen!" He seemed a bit angry, "Michael participated in the entire training, but he didn't get many frontal shots. That Tom Hardy didn't participate in training but has so many close-ups in one episode. Isn't it just because he has a good family?"
Michael Fassbender shrugged, "That's just reality."
Matthew quite agreed with Michael Fassbender's point of view. Michael Fassbender was the descendant of a chef, and Tom Hardy, according to James McAvoy, came from a family of performers. There was a huge inherent difference between the two.
However, the advantage of family background certainly existed objectively, but it couldn't guarantee smooth sailing.
"I have good news for you two," Matthew said with a smile. "I heard from the assistant director that, except for a scene where he dies in a car accident, all of Tom Hardy's other scenes have been canceled."
Although Michael Fassbender knew Matthew wouldn't joke about such things, he asked, "Really?"
Matthew was very sure, "Of course it's true, I heard the assistant director say it with my own ears!"
"There's such good news?" James McAvoy's face was full of schadenfreude. His eyes quickly darted around twice, and he said, "Didn't Tom Hardy ask someone to go to the bar? How about we go join the fun tonight too?"
"Great!" Michael Fassbender agreed without even thinking. "I'm in!"
The two of them looked at Matthew. Matthew thought for a moment and said, "As long as the crew doesn't work overtime tonight, I'll go too."
"It's settled then!"
Seeing the assistant director start arranging the background characters, the two guys quickly left.
Afterwards, director David Frankel came over and gave Matthew a few instructions, and filming began.
The timing of the scenes here needed to be just right. Matthew, playing Captain Ronald Speirs, was carrying collected silver and other valuable spoils of war, preparing to mail them back home. After leaving, he encountered Captain Lewis Nixon's jeep, and the two almost collided.
According to the script, the scene had a certain degree of danger, but the risk during filming was very small. The jeep's speed was very slow, and what was moving at high speed was the camera mounted on a slider, allowing Matthew to easily dodge it.
As is well known, cinema is an art of deception.
However, during filming, Matthew didn't maintain his balance well, causing the silver items on the tray to fall to the ground twice in a row. This shot only passed on the third take.
There were no more scenes for Matthew after that, and the crew didn't work overtime that night. Matthew removed his makeup and returned to the hotel, changed into some loose clothes, and went to the Crone Bar early with James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender.