Vision

What kind of story did "Miscreant" tell?

In fact, the plot was quite simple, revolving around the conspiracy, calculation, and betrayal between the undercover cop, the mafia, and the gangsters.

But the character settings were particularly interesting.

The undercover cop from the police became the mafia boss, killing all the informants, destroying the internal personnel information about his undercover identity within the police force, and completely transforming from white to black.

It could be seen as a fusion of four films: "Infernal Affairs", the American version of it, "The Departed", and both Korean "Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time" and "New World".

The biggest golden finger brought by the rebirth was that, after exploring the previous three films, he finally understood.

It wasn't about an increase in intelligence, charm, or any other special ability—it was vision.

A broader perspective, a more accurate judgment.

He never dared to be arrogant. Even as a reborn individual, without resources or background, he was still played by society.

The setbacks and obstacles he faced when he wanted to distribute his films in the beginning made him realize this truth in a timely manner.

Fortunately, he understood it before it was too late.

Moreover, the successes of "3 Idiots" and "Fury" proved that his vision could truly be turned into a great advantage.

So, when writing the script for this new project, he first thought about the characters, then connected the story by interweaving the characters, and finally injected his own understanding of this aspect and his understanding of filmmaking. He then discussed it carefully with René to ensure that the dramatic conflicts wouldn't be abrupt before completing the final draft.

It was already approaching perfection.

However, clearly, Sherry Lansing didn't think so.

She continued, "But I'm a little confused about the ending of the final plot. If we follow the traditional undercover mafia movie, all the high-ranking mafia members should die or be arrested by the police. So why leave a twist? The informant had turned to the right side, so why wash him black? Wouldn't it be better to change the setting and turn this character into a positive image?"

After Sherry finished speaking, she looked around, seemingly seeking everyone's opinions.

Sure enough, Anthony Joseph, the head of Paramount Pictures' marketing department, agreed, "If it's a positive character, Tom Cruise wouldn't have any objections. He only needs a ten-million-dollar paycheck to join this project. Everyone, it's a great deal."

Was it a great deal? Of course, it was. Changing the script was not an uncommon thing, right? Sometimes, to better fit the actor's image, changes were often needed.

Just a few strokes of the pen could bring in a top-tier star, and a currently popular one at that, at a low salary. No matter how you looked at it, it was a win-win situation.

The gazes of the Paramount Pictures team all focused on Lyman, exerting immense pressure.

On the other hand, the EuropaCorp team showed indifference. Luc Besson adjusted his sitting posture, leaning back, and crossed his hands over his waist as if he were watching a show.

For him, how the script was changed had nothing to do with him. That was something the director and the investors needed to convince each other or come to a consensus on. Anyway, he supported Lyman, and that was enough. But he also wanted to see how Lyman would handle the situation.

What was Paramount Pictures' intention? Did Lyman not know? He knew, were Lyman's demands excessive? Not excessive, but for EuropaCorp, they were indeed excessive.

These were two different ways of thinking from different perspectives, and they were not contradictory. He was a director, he could understand; he was the one in power at EuropaCorp, and he needed to carefully weigh the pros and cons and mediate the differences.

It was a simple truth.

"I hope this story can bring the audience a different feeling, and I also want to explore the coldness, cruelty, and selfishness of human nature one by one. The twist at the end is a product of all these elements, in other words," Lyman's voice was calm and steady, neither humble nor arrogant, and his composed words made people unconsciously concentrate their attention. "This setting is the biggest highlight that sets this story apart from other mafia films. Changing it would make the whole climax of the plot disappear and reduce the dramatic conflict by half. It means there will be no originality left. Is that what you all want to see?"

"And, do any of you know a film from Hong Kong titled "Infernal Affairs"?" Lyman continued, not caring whether anyone knew about this story, but he wanted to make his position and filmmaking philosophy clear to them. "It's a police undercover film that was released last year. I heard it did well, and the North American adaptation rights were bought by Warner Bros."

"It is a film I drew inspiration from regarding the undercover switching identity setting," Lyman continued, "Some people long for the light, and some people long for darkness. Everyone interprets others from their own standpoint, their own perspective, and their own interests. Unfortunately, the undercover in the story is such a tragic character, who was pushed step by step into darkness. In that case, why would he long for the light?"

Regardless of whether they understood or not, at this moment, they were all attentively listening to Lyman's interpretation of the script. "Just like the police executive who asked him to be an undercover, he saw that the undercover had no qualifications, simple social connections, and no close family and friends. So they tore up his police record and sent him to infiltrate the mafia. He was driven by people the whole way, but the police were still cautious about him, not fully trusting him. Do you know why?"

"Because he was a pawn, a pawn that needs to know the thoughts of the player? And it's precisely because he was a pawn, an insignificant soldier, that he went all out after crossing the Rubicon, fully committed to the dark path because he had no way to turn back."

"He killed people, many, many people. The police didn't ask him to kill, but he did it because if he didn't, he would die. It's not easy being a small-time thug; climbing up step by step cultivates his ruthlessness. People change. From that moment on, he was no longer a good person. Do you understand this cause and effect relationship?"

Sherry looked at Lyman, who was speaking eagerly. Somehow, his expression appeared calm, yet he seemed to be smiling playfully, making her feel somewhat uncomfortable, as if Lyman's words were implying something, mocking her behavior today. In truth, she was no different from those chess players, standing only on her own standpoint, considering her own gains and losses, and acting accordingly.

Sherry wasn't quite sure if she had misunderstood. Perhaps it was indeed the character setting he had in mind when writing the script?

On the side, Luc Besson put down his hand, restraining himself from bursting out laughing.

It was becoming more and more interesting. Lyman was an intriguing person. He turned his head and glanced at Lyman, seeing the puzzled expression on his face, which only made him even happier.

"This is the film's intended theme, and it is the core idea of the script. Do you think it's as simple as just changing one ending? If we really do that, I'm afraid we'll have to start over from scratch, and who knows when this project will be established."

With a single sentence, Lyman almost broke down the psychological defense of everyone at Paramount Pictures. Even the top executives of EuropaCorp on the side had something to say, but looking at Luc Besson, who remained silent at the top, they thought it over and held back.

Perhaps they couldn't understand how exchanging Tom Bruce for a minor script change could result in the director not wanting to direct and the project being overturned.

Such an outcome was not what they wanted to see, and Sherry certainly didn't want that either.

To be honest, the reason she had been restraining herself and negotiating carefully was that she believed in the director, Lyman. That's why she decided to collaborate, not for anything else.

Was there a lack of creative ideas in Hollywood? Lack of good scripts? Not at all. Their internal database was filled with content projects submitted by people from all over the world interested in entering the film industry. There was no way to read them all, but what good did that do?

What they lacked were people who could turn those stories into visuals, directors, not content creators.

A good director's impact on a film was evident. Look at "Titanic", for example. If you threw away the shell, it was just a cliche love story. But add that ship, and the people and events on that ship, along with James Cameron, everything changed.

The effect a director had on a film was obvious.

"Okay, then do you have any potential candidates for this role?" Sherry asked. She didn't want to discuss any more about script settings. With the potential profits and her career on the line, could any conflicts not be resolved?

Directors were a group of stubborn beings, and Lyman was no exception. So, what was wrong with accommodating him a little?

"Uh... Not yet," Lyman said somewhat awkwardly. He didn't know many actors personally, and he preferred to work with people he knew. So he designed roles based on the characteristics of Heath Ledger and Nicolas Cage. However, for the main role of the undercover, he didn't have a clear target in mind for the moment.

However, he thought that the way Tom wanted to change the character's setting wouldn't work for him. There was no possibility of negotiating this matter.

The title of the film was "Miscreant". If you had a righteous and virtuous person appear, no matter how you looked at it, it wouldn't fit. Besides, it wasn't his approach to filmmaking either.

"Do you have any specific requirements?" Sherry asked again.

"Age over 30, well-built, with softer facial lines, and a refined temperament," Lyman replied.

It was almost as if he hadn't said anything. With such criteria, Hollywood had thousands of male actors to choose from.

But that was good. The requirements were not too strict, so he could take his time in selecting. It also gave him more room for choices.

"We will select potential actors based on the script's setting. Also, I hope this project can enter the early preparation stage as soon as possible," Sherry said, turning around and glancing at Lyman and Luc before continuing, "I have other matters to attend to, so I'll leave now."