Chapter 140: Major Changes

"You three, go drink over there..."

Murphy waved at James Franco and the others, then called out to the lighting technician David Robbie, who was chatting with Paul Wilson on the other side. "David, come here, come here."

"Coming." David Robbie hurried over.

"David," Carey Mulligan spoke first, "we were talking about vacations just now, and Murphy and I are planning to go on one."

"Are you planning to go to Australia?" David Robbie handed his cup to Jonah Hill, who was walking away. "Now is not the best tourist season in Australia."

Carey Mulligan didn't care at all, instead saying, "I don't like places with high temperatures; might as well stay in Los Angeles then."

Murphy knew David Robbie was Australian but wasn't aware of his hometown, considering Australia's vastness.

"David," he asked, "where is your hometown? Sydney?"

"Oh, no," David Robbie swayed his slightly dizzy head, waiting until he was a bit more sober before saying, "It's in a small city in Queensland, near the Gold Coast."

The Gold Coast is a famous tourist destination in Australia, which Murphy had heard of.

David Robbie continued, "My home is in the countryside, a large farm passed down from my grandparents, plagued by rabbits and deer. Now is the best hunting season."

After saying this, he looked at Carey Mulligan, who then looked at Murphy with hopeful eyes. Murphy thought for a moment and slowly nodded.

Going to Australia for hunting sounded good, considering he had lived on the Pacific coast for so long without ever firing a gun.

The celebration party continued until dawn. When leaving, Murphy discovered paparazzi following his car. Once, he used to chase others for a living, but now he had become the target of others' livelihoods, which made him somewhat reflective.

The world changes so quickly.

Although they said they were going to Australia for a vacation, it wasn't a matter of just going. "Saw" hadn't yet finished its run in North America, and there was a series of work to be dealt with between Stanton's studio and Fox Searchlight. Plus, with the approaching September 11, Murphy was somewhat resistant to flying, feeling the safest option now was to stay on the ground in Los Angeles.

In the following days, Murphy kept in touch with friends, discussing painting and stealing talents with James Franco, how to create humor and jokes with Jonah Hill, and the uses of a fat person in film shooting with Seth Rogen...

And Kara Firth, though they hadn't gone out for coffee due to their busy schedules, maintained phone contact. According to Kara Firth, she was about to get promoted again, possibly moving to Fox's Los Angeles division to take on a very important position.

In short, she was too busy to leave Los Angeles.

As for Ross, although their paths had diverged and their relationship had cooled, Murphy hadn't forgotten him. Ross seemed to have encountered some troubles recently but wouldn't leave the City of Angels.

As for Carey Mulligan, Murphy didn't need to worry at all. She maintained her routine between the acting school and Stanton's studio, rarely going elsewhere except for occasional shopping trips with Elizabeth Banks.

All of Murphy's close associates wouldn't be in the wrong place at that special time.

Even if the butterfly effect caused changes on Uncle Sam's side, it was unlikely to target Los Angeles, lacking tall buildings, as a target.

On a regular Tuesday morning, after Murphy went for a run, he returned to Stanton's studio, showered, and turned on the TV in the second-floor study, flipping through various news channels, hoping to catch relevant news first-hand.

He vaguely remembered the attack happening around nine o'clock. By market calculations, it should have happened by now.

CNN, Fox News, CBS, NBC... As the clock hands passed six o'clock, Murphy searched all major news channels without finding any reports related to the terrorist attack.

After waiting another half hour, the past still hadn't occurred.

Could his insignificant presence as a butterfly cause such a massive change in the world?

Murphy frowned, doubting the extent of his influence.

It wasn't underestimating himself, but since arriving in this world, he really hadn't done much. Even if changes occurred, they were limited to individual fates within Los Angeles or Hollywood at most.

Waiting until seven o'clock, Murphy stood up and walked to the south-facing window, looking up at the distant sky. The sun gradually moved to this side, its bright sunlight bringing a distinct Southern California heat.

Yesterday, he thought of paying attention to the news after eight-thirty, but a casual remark from Carey Mulligan reminded him—this is Southern California's Los Angeles!

Southern California? California? This is the West Coast, while New York is on the East Coast. Having been here so long, he was still accustomed to a unified national time, not differentiating between Pacific and Eastern time.

The 9/11 event occurred in New York, the East Coast of the United States, while he was in Southern California, on the West Coast, with a time difference!

Aside from promoting "Saw" and traveling a bit, he had stayed in Los Angeles, completely overlooking the existence of the time difference, misled by his previous habits.

Realizing this, Murphy got up early to wait for that special news.

Everything unfolded as he had seen in reports before, only later than the original time. A plane crashed into the North Tower of the World Trade Center, with reports coming from the side, not as impactful on people. Then, another plane flew across the TV screen and crashed into the South Tower of the Twin Towers, with flames and smoke billowing from the impact site, causing panic among hosts, civilians, and rescue workers alike.

Few knew what happened, and even fewer understood the impact this would have on the world.

About ten minutes later, Murphy's phone rang, with Carey Mulligan's slightly panicked voice on the other end, "Did you see the news? New York seems to have been hit by missiles! It's terrifying!"

"I saw it," Murphy reassured, "Dear, God will bless New York."

He continued to instruct, "Stay in school, don't go anywhere."

After hanging up with Carey Mulligan, Murphy's phone rang again, this time from James Franco.

"Hey, Murphy!" he asked loudly, "Did you see the news? Do you know what happened in New York?"

Murphy calmly replied, "It seems to be a terrorist attack, no exact news yet."

Just like Murphy's small circle, this event quickly became the focal point of discussion across America, from traditional TV programs to emerging online media, forums, and blogs, all filled with related information.

Murphy only confirmed one thing: none of his friends in New York, none at the World Trade Center.

That was enough for him.

Then, everything that was supposed to happen did—the Pentagon was hit, the Twin Towers collapsed one after another, American airspace was closed to all civilian flights, President Bush spoke out, confirming it was a terrorist attack...

Undoubtedly, this was the heaviest blow suffered on American soil, shattering the peaceful fairy tale that America could stay out of world affairs. Another societal transformation was about to begin.

Watching everything unfold on the TV screen, Murphy thought of "Fahrenheit 9/11." If he made this documentary, he could become famous overnight, even spreading his name across America and the world.

But was it worth it?

After pondering for just two seconds, Murphy shook his head.

No matter how many times Washington was criticized in the film, the power held by the White House was undeniable. Standing against the government at such a critical moment was foolish.

True, "Fahrenheit 9/11" was popular and sparked many debates, but it never became the mainstream voice in America, even being marginalized in Hollywood, which likes to criticize the federal government. The extent to which that director was suppressed and fell from grace is perhaps only known to God.

Even if "Fahrenheit 9/11" were true, what did it have to do with him?

Murphy's awareness on these matters was always high. America had left a bad impression on him, far from the heaven described in rumors, but that didn't mean he wanted to be a pioneer in exposing so-called truths.

The world changed dramatically, and Hollywood changed too. The film industry faced direct impacts.

The entire country was engulfed in sorrow, with few venturing into cinemas. Films that could be associated with terrorist attacks or brutal killings were especially unpopular, and the public's psychological tolerance for movies hit a low not seen since Hollywood's inception.

The traditional September horror movie release season was destined to become a Waterloo for many horror films.

The reality of 9/11 was too harsh, leaving few willing to endure the shock and torment of horror films in cinemas. Not just horror films, but nearly all film genres suffered significantly, leading to a rare slump in theaters.

For films like "Saw," the impact was greatest. After the 9/11 attacks, the remaining theaters quickly dropped the film.

However, the final box office numbers were still dazzling.

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