Chapter 166: Zombies Rampant

Inside the makeup trailer, Murphy watched as Kerry Mulligan sat in the chair, closed the door behind him with a backward hand, and the metallic door collided with the carriage, producing a loud bang.

Kerry Mulligan didn't even look in this direction, her gloomy doll face instead wore a trace of a smug smile.

In the past, Murphy tolerated her rebelliousness enough, even if he opposed her, he would do so in an indirect way. But everything that had just happened made him very angry.

Jessica Chastain's injury would definitely force the crew's work schedule to be adjusted. If the bone was injured, the situation would become even more complicated.

Murphy walked over, stood behind Kerry Mulligan, and looked at her through the makeup mirror, his tone somewhat cold, "What are you trying to do, Kerry?"

Kerry Mulligan didn't speak, but her mocking smile became more apparent.

Having gone through struggles with Julian Feros and estrangement from her parents, her rebelliousness was far stronger than before. When someone always sided with her, it would only bury deep under that innocent and cute doll face. But when the situation was reversed, it would explode out intensely.

Murphy had seen her explode before, and at that time, the ones who got hurt were London's Mulligans, Kerry Mulligan's biological parents.

"Do you know what you did just now?" Murphy raised his voice, "You crossed the line, Kerry!"

"Crossed the line?" Kerry Mulligan couldn't stand Murphy's tone and finally spoke up, "What did I do? Didn't you tell me to push Jessica Chastain during the scene? I was just following the crew's..."

"Do you think everyone in the crew is a fool?" Murphy grabbed the arms of the chair and slightly forced it to turn around, making Kerry Mulligan face him. He leaned forward, hands on the armrests, and looked down at Kerry Mulligan, "Or do you think I'm blind?"

Looking into Murphy's piercing eyes, Kerry Mulligan didn't flinch, just like she faced her parents back then, "I will take responsibility for what I did."

"You take responsibility?" Murphy straightened up, "How will you take responsibility?"

He paced back and forth, took a deep breath to suppress the rage boiling inside him. After all, Kerry Mulligan was his girlfriend, younger and less experienced, just a bit too impulsive and headstrong.

Feeling that he might lose control if this continued, Murphy simply went to the door, opened it, and turned back to say, "Go apologize to Jessica Chastain tomorrow."

After speaking, he walked out and closed the door.

Sounds of things being thrown around came from inside the makeup trailer. Murphy saw Jack Watson coming over and said, "Calculate the losses inside later, notify Erica, and deduct it from my salary."

Jack Watson could tell Murphy was in a bad mood and mechanically nodded.

Murphy looked at the nearly tidied-up set, turned, and walked towards the bridge, standing by the railing at the bridgehead, looking at the wilderness in the distance, feeling unprecedentedly oppressed.

Perhaps because he had to rely on himself since he was young, he never feared hardships. Even when he first arrived here and had to go to jail, it didn't depress him as much as now.

"This is what first love is like," a lazy voice sounded behind him. "It's sweet, but mostly, it's painful."

Robert Downey Jr. came over, stood beside Murphy, his eyes behind sunglasses looking at him, "Does it hurt?"

Murphy looked into the distance, wanting to deny it, but couldn't find the words, feeling something heavy pressing on his chest.

"Everyone goes through it," Robert Downey Jr. patted his shoulder, rambling on, "When my first love was about to end, I was in more pain than you, wishing I could jump off the cliffs of Malibu."

He didn't wait for Murphy's response, just kept talking, "That feeling, it's worse than someone carving on your bones with a knife, worse than the agony of withdrawal, but without experiencing it once, your life will always be incomplete."

"Like you're so experienced," Murphy couldn't help but retort.

"Definitely more experienced than you," Robert Downey Jr. posed like the star he is, "I've dated more Hollywood actresses than you've even seen."

Murphy had to admit, he hadn't met many famous Hollywood actresses.

Robert Downey Jr.'s words didn't improve his mood, and Murphy's face remained gloomy.

"Haven't you noticed, Murphy?"

Compared to James Franco and others, he knew Murphy earlier and, due to his personality, was less considerate, "Your first girlfriend is extremely rebellious, doesn't listen to any opposition unless you, like before, deal with her in indirect ways."

He wasn't joking, but seriously advising, "How long can you keep this up? And don't you feel tired?"

Robert Downey Jr. looked at the sun shifting westward, suddenly becoming poetic, "You see, Murphy. The sun always sets and rises again, no one can change that. But whatever happens, tomorrow is a new day."

Tomorrow is indeed a new day, but a new day doesn't necessarily bring a new situation.

Jessica Chastain returned to the crew, her bones were fine, and after a short rest, she got back to shooting.

Kerry Mulligan didn't apologize to her. Jessica Chastain didn't notice at the time, but later guessed. Although she didn't say or do anything because of Murphy the director, she didn't show any friendliness to Kerry Mulligan, avoiding any unnecessary interaction.

Murphy tried to mediate between them twice more, to no avail. The only help was that Kerry Mulligan didn't cause any more trouble during later shootings.

Of course, Murphy had his limits of tolerance. If someone really crossed his line, replacing an actor wasn't out of the question.

This made the atmosphere on set always seem off, especially with Murphy the director, many could see his bad mood, affecting his work to some extent.

Moreover, Murphy gradually realized that Kerry Mulligan had categorized him with the Mulligans.

Just like when Murphy encouraged her to star in "Hard Candy," in Kerry Mulligan's eyes now, Murphy had become the antagonist opposing her.

Affected by personal emotions, the shooting fell behind schedule, adding more pressure on Murphy. Erica Stanberg was okay, Mila Max was still a firm supporter, but Kim Clemen from the insurance company frequently approached him, urging to speed up the plan to finish shooting within the booked time.

Pressure weighed on his shoulders, but Murphy didn't collapse. Instead, he reinvigorated his spirit, temporarily setting aside matters with Kerry Mulligan, treating her as just another actor in the crew, and fully devoted himself to the remaining shootings, catching up on some progress.

According to the plan, shooting in California and Nevada's exteriors was supposed to take three weeks, but Murphy took nearly four weeks to film the last few scenes.

In a small town not far from the bridge, dozens of residents were recruited by the crew with a daily pay of 50 dollars. They would participate in the last scene Murphy shot there.

Early in the morning before the sun rose, the central square of the town's temporary crew base buzzed with activity. Jack Watson

's makeup team became the busiest department, with dozens of temporary actors lining up here, waiting to be transformed into frightening zombies.

Murphy directed the crew to set up the scene, coordinated with the local sheriff for the use of police cars, exchanged ideas on action scenes with two action directors from Hong Kong, and instructed Jonah Hill and Robert Downey Jr. on what to pay attention to during shooting...

He was the busiest person on site, finding solace in his work from the troubles of the past few days.

Fortunately, after Kerry Mulligan finished her scenes, she returned to Los Angeles ahead of time. Not seeing that gloomy doll face, Murphy felt somewhat better.

He didn't know when the constant brooding face of Kerry Mulligan had become a source of trouble.

"Stop overthinking it."

While Murphy was lost in thought, Jonah Hill came over, "After we get back, let's go have a blast. Murphy, brotherhood is the only bond that never fades!"

Dressed in a police uniform and carrying a prop shotgun, he looked somewhat comical.

"Jonah finally said something sensible!" Robert Downey Jr. also came over, speaking from experience, "After you've been through more women, you'll find they're not reliable at all. The only reliable ones are your brothers!"

Leaning in to put an arm around Murphy's shoulder, Robert Downey Jr. blustered, "Forget about all that, we're here for you!"

He winked, lowering his voice deliberately, "As long as you continue to be successful, what kind of woman can't a successful director have?"

Murphy pushed him away, "You two, stop talking nonsense here, get ready, we're about to start shooting."

Twenty minutes later, at Murphy's command, the town turned into a post-apocalyptic world overrun by zombies. The sounds of gunfire were continuous, enveloping the shooting area in smoke. Besides the residents made up as zombies, there were also many fake zombies made from dummies, each gruesomely killed either by headshots or being torn apart by bullets.

Robert Downey Jr.'s scenes were shot separately by Murphy, intending to use close combat. After explaining his vision, Murphy left the action scenes mostly to the two action directors, taking charge of the final review.

As the shooting wrapped up, Murphy led the crew back to Los Angeles, preparing to start shooting in Venice. However, when he returned home, he found it empty and deserted.

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