Chapter 95: Eerie Sound

With her head on Murphy's shoulder, Carey Mulligan just cried, her tears quickly soaking his clothes. He gently patted her shoulder but didn't know what to say.

Whether living across the Pacific or now in the USA, he had always been a loner. Understanding human nature was one thing, but comforting a young girl was another, and he had no experience in this area.

"It's okay, dear," Murphy could only lightly pat Carey Mulligan's shoulder and softly say, "Everything will be alright."

Not far away, James Franco overheard this and covered his forehead, thinking Murphy wasn't as clever as he seemed.

"I'm scared, Murphy," Carey Mulligan finally lifted her head. "I'm really scared."

Murphy forced a smile. "It's over now."

This was Carey Mulligan's last scene, and it had been successfully completed.

"Stand up," Murphy tilted his head towards the others around them. "They're all watching. This isn't very ladylike."

"I don't want to be a lady."

Despite her words, Carey Mulligan wrinkled her nose and pushed herself off Murphy, standing up and wiping the tears from her face. With the syringes still attached to her, she looked quite eerie.

"Becker! Jack!" Murphy called to two people nearby. "Help Carey with her makeup removal."

He then lightly patted Carey Mulligan's hand and walked towards the director's monitor.

Carey Mulligan turned to look at him, and a smile involuntarily crept up her face. It felt great to be cared for.

Even if she had to grab pig intestines again... Carey Mulligan quickly shook her head. She hoped there wouldn't be a next time for something so disgusting.

After reviewing the footage, Murphy instructed the crew to move to another location to film other scenes. Tobin Bell, who played Jigsaw, also appeared on set.

Originally, Murphy had considered finding another actor to replace Tobin Bell, but none of the auditioned actors worked well. Sometimes, first impressions were very influential, so he had Bill Rossis contact Tobin Bell. Fortunately, Bell had played many small roles in films and wasn't too hard to find, and his fee wasn't high.

Since the conditions were suitable, Murphy saw no reason to look for someone else. After all, in his mind, Tobin Bell was the embodiment of Jigsaw.

Time passed day by day, and by the third week of filming, they had completed over two-thirds of the planned scenes. Perhaps due to his lack of experience, Murphy hadn't managed to finish filming in under twenty days, as some online sources claimed.

Another major reason was that Murphy wasn't just the director but also the producer of the project. Besides his directorial duties, he had to manage many day-to-day tasks for the crew.

This included the crew's safety and logistical management.

Matters such as personnel safety, set safety, equipment safety, and budget safety were crucial for ensuring the crew could film according to plan without any issues.

This made Murphy realize the importance of a professional producer. While he could put his name on the line as a director, taking on the actual responsibilities of a producer would be exhausting for larger projects.

He had a suitable candidate in mind, but unfortunately, his projects and company were too small, and the candidate had bigger goals and ambitions.

By mid-May, actors were arriving at the set, filming their scenes, and then leaving. Nearly all the crew members, including Murphy, had made cameo appearances. Murphy planned to move back to Stanton Studio for filming. However, before that, he gave the crew a two-day break. After prolonged shooting, most people were exhausted, and actors like Lily, who hadn't filmed yet, needed these two days for necessary rehearsals.

During these two days, except for James Franco, who was rehearsing with a few actors, most of the behind-the-scenes staff took a break. However, Murphy, after sleeping in, still went to the warehouse set in Venice to handle some work.

There were logistical and financial budgets that needed his review and signature. He also had to adjust the shooting plan for the upcoming days based on the actual filming situation.

Sitting in the office at the warehouse entrance, Murphy placed the revised shooting schedule aside and picked up a financial report. The project had nearly $150,000 left, and with the remaining few days of shooting, if the post-production went smoothly, they could complete the entire film within the initially planned $800,000 budget.

Despite the continuous devaluation of the dollar, releasing this film a few years earlier and cutting out large scenes like car chases helped keep the budget under control.

Suddenly, the office door was pushed open from outside, and Carey Mulligan, with her hair dyed back to blonde, peeked in. Seeing Murphy, her eyes crinkled in a smile as she walked in.

Murphy looked up at her briefly and continued reviewing the financial report.

Carey Mulligan took two bottles of mineral water from a box behind the door, placed one on Murphy's desk, and opened the other to take a few gulps. She pulled up a chair and sat across from Murphy.

She just watched Murphy without saying anything, seemingly afraid to disturb his work.

After a while, seeing Murphy close the stack of documents, she complained, "I knew you wouldn't rest. If you keep this up, your head will start hurting again."

Murphy looked up, smiled at her, and placed the financial report aside. "I'm resting now, aren't I?"

"Really?" Carey Mulligan widened her eyes, jumped off the chair, and pulled him up. "Let's go out for a walk. The scenery in this town is lovely."

She reached out and pulled Murphy's arm.

Since their collaboration on the last film, Carey Mulligan knew that Murphy's headaches would flare up if he overworked himself. She came to take him out for a stroll to relax.

"Hold on, just a moment." Murphy freed his arm, gathered all the documents, locked them in the metal cabinet behind him, and then followed her out of the office.

As soon as they stepped outside, they exchanged puzzled looks and then turned their heads towards the set.

Someone was there!

The warehouse, though partially renovated by the crew, was still old. Today, with no filming scheduled, the set area was dimly lit. From the office, it looked dark, and strange sounds seemed to be coming from there—almost like someone was crying, yet also laughing.

"I'll go check it out."

Murphy whispered, heading towards the set. Carey Mulligan quickly followed, grabbing his arm. "Don't leave me alone."

They tiptoed to the edge of the set. The sound seemed to be coming from a section near the back wall of the warehouse. As they got closer, they could tell it was a little girl's voice, somewhat familiar.

Carey Mulligan leaned into Murphy's ear and whispered, "Lily Collins."