Chapter 259: Shock

A worn iron fence stands on the coast behind the police station. Matthew runs up and, using his hands and feet, climbs over the fence, jumps down from the top, looks back to see no zombies following, and breathes a sigh of relief. He then continues along the fence towards the riverbank ahead.

Not far along, he spots a section of the fence that's broken, with a steel pipe about a meter long tangled in the middle of the collapsed wire. Thinking of his escape from the police station without even a gun, he hurries over, picks up the steel pipe, and steps on the fence, trying to pull the pipe out of the tangle.

It seems the prop master made it too tight; even with Matthew's great strength, he can't pull it out. He has to grasp one end of the pipe with both hands and step harder on the fence, finally freeing the pipe from the entanglement amidst a harsh frictional noise.

Matthew swings the pipe a few times, seems very satisfied, nods, and prepares to move on.

"Stop! Cut!"

From behind a camera, director Zack Snyder's voice comes through, "Are the two actors and the zombie actors ready?"

The assistant director immediately responds loudly, "All set!"

Zack Snyder then commands, "Adjust the camera positions, prepare for the next shot."

Matthew, following Zack Snyder's previous instructions, stands still as two cameras move along the preset tracks, both kept to his left, one filming opposite him, the other his frontal shot.

With Zack Snyder's command, filming quickly resumes.

Holding the steel pipe, Matthew shows utmost alertness, his vigilance mixed with a bit of fear and nervousness towards the unknown, walking forward. As he reaches the turn in the fence, he suddenly stops because of the sound of approaching footsteps.

Matthew quickly walks a few steps and peeks ahead; a man and a woman are running crazily towards him. The man is a middle-aged actor in his forties, and the woman is naturally Alexandra Daddario.

Behind them, a large group of extras made up as zombies follows, their claws bared as if mad, running fast.

The two lead actors are not slow either, as if using all their strength, and as they get closer, the set suddenly becomes unusually quiet.

The entire crew seems to pause for a moment.

The sound technician watching the actors approach opens his mouth slightly in surprise.

Two female makeup artists marvel, their eyes expressing envy and jealousy.

"It's too big... too big..." the prop master mutters to himself, "It's just too big..."

Not just them, even Matthew has a moment of distraction, watching Alexandra Daddario running towards him, her ample bust bouncing as if it could jump out at any moment, a sight that could only be described as magnificent.

"Both seventeen or eighteen, and Kayla can't even reach A..." Matthew wonders, "Alexandra Daddario must be at least an E? Maybe even an F."

And at her age, it's unlikely she's had surgery; it must be natural.

Not just Matthew, even director Zack Snyder has a moment of astonishment. Hollywood has actresses like her, but the visual impact of her running so wildly is truly... shocking!

Zack Snyder realizes the atmosphere on set is off, clears his throat, and loudly commands, "Cut!"

Matthew shakes his head, knowing this take will definitely have to be redone.

Indeed, Zack Snyder's voice comes again, "Reset, we'll start shooting again in five minutes!"

With Zack Snyder's shout, the crew returns to normal. Matthew looks ahead as the zombie extras scatter back, the two lead actors bent over, panting heavily.

He first looks at the middle-aged actor, then his gaze falls on Alexandra Daddario. Noticing someone watching her, Alexandra Daddario looks up at Matthew, and seeing him watching her, she gives a shy smile.

Matthew nods slightly to her, and Alexandra Daddario smiles back, then turns to walk away.

The five minutes pass quickly, and filming promptly resumes.

With Zack Snyder's command, Matthew goes back to the fence's turn, Alexandra Daddario, and the male actor run crazily towards him, followed by a group of extras crazier than them.

"Switch the shot!" Zack Snyder tells the camera operator, "Focus on Alexandra Daddario's chest for a close-up."

The live footage shown on the monitor in front of Zack Snyder seems truly shocking, and he thinks it could be even more so with high-speed slow motion for this scene. Playing it back on the big screen in high-speed slow motion could probably stun many viewers.

Unfortunately, Sean Daniel disagrees with him using high-speed slow motion.

After finishing this film, once he accumulates enough capital, his next film will definitely select a theme and genre where he can play to his strengths.

He sees in the monitor's live feed, Matthew charging at Alexandra Daddario and the male actor, then immediately calls a halt to the shooting.

Next up is the zombie fighting scene. Before, Zack Snyder, along with the props team and stunt coordinator, saw Matthew rehearsing. Matthew's strength is extraordinary, and with a real steel pipe in hand, hitting an extra's head would not be amusing.

The crew had prepared realistic dummies early on, their heads and skin made of resin materials close to reality, filled with blood plasma.

Of course, the first to shoot with Matthew are the stunt actors made up as zombies.

"Hurry up! Come here!"

Seeing Alexandra Daddario running towards him, Matthew immediately charges forward. He already noticed that those following her are similar to those who attacked him in the police station, with white skin and decaying bodies...

"Help! Help!"

Like all beautiful vases, at this time, Alexandra Daddario has only two tasks: to continue flaunting her figure and to scream at the top of her lungs.

Matthew lets the two pass and faces the leading zombie, kicking him in the chest. The extra playing the zombie falls to the ground perfectly, turning into a rolling gourd. With the running distance creating a gap of five or six zombies, Matthew confidently takes them on one by one, using his immense strength to knock down three zombies in succession.

Another zombie charges at him, its gaping mouth aiming for his left arm.

"Ah!"

Alexandra Daddario is still screaming.

Matthew dodges the zombie's attack and strikes it hard with the steel pipe, making it fall to the ground.

But before he can deal with the last two weaker female zombies, the one he knocked down gets up again.

"What are they!" Matthew yells at Alexandra Daddario, "I broke his ribs, why can he still get up!"

"Ah!"

Alexandra Daddario continues to diligently fulfill her role as a vase.

The middle-aged man says, "I shot them, they won't die!"

The zombies all get up, their mouths oozing black, nearly solidified blood. Together with the two female zombies that catch up, Matthew finds himself surrounded.

"Cut!" Zack Snyder shouts loudly, "Switch to dummies!"

An assistant quickly brings a water bottle, and Matthew takes a couple of big sips through the straw. Seeing Alexandra Daddario's chest heaving, seemingly in discomfort, he tells the assistant, "Give Anna a bottle of water."

Soon, an assistant brings a water bottle to Alexandra Daddario, saying, "Matthew asked me to give this

 to you."

Alexandra Daddario opens the bottle, inserts a straw, and takes a few sips, feeling a bit better. She turns to look at Matthew, sees him watching her, and nods with a smile.

The crew quickly sets up the dummies, and Alexandra Daddario returns the water to the assistant, catching her breath. Screaming is also a physically demanding task.

Filming resumes, and Matthew resumes swinging the steel pipe, smashing the heads of six dummies in various ways, with brain matter bursting and blood flying, a gruesome sight to behold.

Blood and other substances also splash onto Matthew's face and clothes.

This is definitely a scene not for the faint-hearted.

Matthew knows this is one of the selling points of zombie movies; violence and gore are essential components of commercial films, especially R-rated ones.

Afterwards, the crew takes a short break. Matthew sits in a chair at the temporary rest area, and Alexandra Daddario brings a chair over to sit beside him.

The two casually chat, and Alexandra Daddario suddenly asks, "Did something happen just now? So many people were staring at me."

Matthew looks at her, feeling the urge to ask what she's been eating to grow up like this, but he refrains and gently reminds her, "Most of the crew are men, why do you think they were staring?"

Alexandra Daddario quickly understands, not embarrassed in the slightest, "Oh, I see."

"By the way, Matthew," she suddenly changes the subject, "I only have my character's script, have you seen the complete script?"

Matthew nods lightly, "Yes, I've seen it."

Alexandra Daddario asks, "Is the female lead's role significant?"

"Not really," Matthew slowly shakes his head, "She's hardly the female lead, at most a supporting role. Jessica Alba's role isn't very big either."

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