Chapter 560: Female Lead Candidate

Inside the screening room at Warner Studios, Anna Printz left her seat, walked over to the projector, and cut the power. The small screen went dark. Sitting near the door, John Schwartzman hit a switch; the curtains automatically rose, and light flooded back into the room.

Recalling the footage from the second round of auditions, Duke spoke slowly, "Everyone, share your thoughts. We need to finalize our female lead from these last few candidates."

Because of his scouting trip to Edwards Air Force Base, Duke had missed the second round of auditions for the female lead. Anna Printz had hosted them, which left him perfectly at ease. With the video recordings available, it wasn't too late to make a decision now.

"I don't think Rosamund Pike is a good fit." As the man overseeing the crew's affairs, Charles Roven also had a say in casting the lead actors. He immediately offered his reasoning: "She's British."

Under normal circumstances, a British actress playing a quintessential American character wouldn't be an issue. However, this was the inaugural film for Marvel's grand cinematic plan. Charles Roven tended to be slightly conservative in his thinking; from a holistic perspective, his desire to eliminate any unnecessary risk was completely understandable.

No one in the room was British, nor did anyone harbor a so-called English Rose complex, so his assessment went unchallenged.

"If there are no objections..." Duke looked around at the core members of his team and said, "We'll cross Rosamund Pike off the list."

Next, Amanda Seyfried, recommended by merchandise distributor Peter Coe, was also vetoed. The reason was simple: she was too young and didn't fit the requirements for a mature female assistant.

Anna Printz flipped through the resumes in her hands and said, "I don't think Amy Adams is suitable, either."

She paused for a moment before explaining, "Amy Adams is too short, and her baby face doesn't look mature or steady enough. I don't think she's a good fit for playing a businesswoman."

"Actually, Gwyneth Paltrow is pretty good," John Schwartzman chimed in. "Her aura and acting skills are fine; it's just her attitude on set that's practically unbearable."

No one voiced any disagreement with these comments either. Duke gradually realized that he had clearly missed something by skipping the second round of auditions. Anna Printz, Charles Roven, and John Schwartzman seemed to have already zeroed in on the same target.

"Out with it." Duke looked directly at Anna Printz. "Who is your pick?"

"Rachel McAdams." After naming her, Anna Printz offered her rationale. "Whether it's her acting, appearance, or personal aura, she perfectly matches the concept for Pepper Potts. Her hair color is the only issue, but she agreed to dye it honey-blonde."

The others nodded in agreement one after another.

Taking a sip of his coffee, Duke thought back to Rachel McAdams's audition footage. Even though the actress wasn't from America, she was North American. The ties between the United States and Canada were incredibly close, both officially and among the public. Often, the two were simply grouped together as North America, especially in the film industry. There had never been a separate Canadian film market in the world—only the North American film market.

After weighing all the factors, Duke finally spoke, "Let's go with her. Charles, start negotiations with her as soon as possible."

With the final major role decided, the film breakdown session came to a close. As Duke and the others walked out, John Schwartzman fell into step beside him. The director of photography had recently resolved to lose weight, and he did look a bit slimmer.

The two of them discussed cinematography issues as they walked.

"John, according to my concept, there will be a few scenes where Tony Stark films himself."

Noticing Anna Printz lean in from the other side, Duke raised his voice slightly and said, "We'll use a first-person perspective to show Tony Stark's process of building and testing the Iron Battle Suit."

"Don't worry," John Schwartzman replied, brimming with confidence. "That's a minor issue for me."

For one of Hollywood's top cinematographers, it truly posed no difficulty. Duke had chosen this approach specifically to heighten the audience's sense of immersion.

Immersion was absolutely crucial for a superhero movie.

The audience needed to experience more than just the story and visual effects; they needed to follow the characters on screen and save the world right alongside them.

"We'll need to make some adjustments to the cinematography style as well," Duke continued as they walked. "Whenever the Iron Battle Suit is on screen, I want the shots to have a metallic texture to them."

"I'll figure out a way to handle it," John Schwartzman said with a nod. "Give me a week at most, Duke, and you'll see the results."

Having worked with John Schwartzman for over a decade, Duke always had faith in him. Once they stepped out of the soundstage, their conversation naturally drifted away from work.

Outside the soundstage, John Schwartzman glanced up at the blazing sun. The July heat baked the California air, turning it into an absolute steamer.

Tugging at his loose T-shirt, he suddenly said to Duke, "Actually, during the second round of auditions, I thought of an actress who would be an even better fit for Pepper Potts than Rachel McAdams."

Turning his head, Duke gave John Schwartzman a puzzled look.

Walking on Duke's other side, Anna Pritz asked curiously, "Who is it, John? Why didn't you bring her up earlier?"

"It's not that I didn't want to bring her up, but rather that we could never afford her." John Schwartzman flashed a mischievous smile, intentionally keeping them in suspense before finally saying, "Anna, what do you think of Tina?"

Anna Printz rolled her eyes. She really was an incredibly fitting choice—she would only need to play herself. But what could they possibly offer to cast Tina Fey? If she had wanted to be an actress, she would have become a Hollywood star long ago.

Duke simply pointed a finger at John Schwartzman, not even bothering to reply. He hopped straight into the driver's seat of an electric cart. Once Anna Printz and Charles Roven got in the back, he started the vehicle and drove out of Warner Studios. In the parking lot, they transferred to a commercial van and headed toward the Hollywood District. They had a meeting with representatives from the Hollywood Business Association, as upcoming portions of the film would be shot on location in Hollywood.

The original movie had restricted its final battle to the area around Stark's factory, but Duke had relocated the film's setting away from New York to the Greater Los Angeles area on the West Coast. Naturally, they had to destroy some famous West Coast landmarks.

The Golden Gate Bridge was a bit too far away, and Las Vegas wasn't close either. The Walk of Fame was undoubtedly an excellent choice.

Of course, the physical shoot would only involve capturing the location; all the actual destruction sequences would be composited using CGI by Industrial Light and Magic.

The film's visual effects were split into two parts. Industrial Light and Magic was responsible for all prop-related and standard computer effects, while Duke handed Tony Stark's live-action Motion Capture over to Weta Studio, which specialized in that area.

Meeting up with the people from the Hollywood Business Association, they took a meticulous tour around the Walk of Fame. Over the past few years, Duke's work and life had been extremely hectic, and it had been a long time since he'd strolled through the Hollywood District so thoroughly. The group specifically drove around the Highland Commercial Center and the Hollywood Chinese Theater to take a closer look. Barring any accidents, this area would be caught in the crossfire of the battle between Tony Stark and Obadiah Stane.

However, these locations were only secondary battlefields. The ultimate showdown between the heroes and villains would still return to the Arc Reactor.

"Director Rosenberg..."

Upon returning to the Hollywood Business Association's offices, Duke and his team were just getting ready to leave when one of the association's executives specifically sought him out.

"Are you interested in the Walk of Fame?"

The man was referring to the stars on the Walk of Fame, which Duke naturally understood.

He smiled and said, "Mr. Ball, I wonder how many stars you're planning to award me?"

While the executive stood there slightly stunned, Duke bid his farewells and departed the Hollywood Business Association.

Twenty, or even a dozen years ago, leaving one's name on the Walk of Fame held massive appeal for anyone struggling to make it in Hollywood. Back then, the sheer brilliance of the stars applying to the Hollywood Business Association was enough to dazzle the eyes.

But beginning in the late nineties, the enthusiasm among Hollywood's A-list actors, directors, screenwriters, and producers for applying for a star steadily declined. Even the top-tier celebrities lost interest. Whenever news broke about a famous star receiving a spot on the Walk of Fame, it almost always coincided with a major promotional push for their upcoming film or album. Earning a star on the Walk of Fame was no longer a symbol of honor; instead, it had become merely another part of a commercial marketing campaign.

In truth, no one else was to blame—this was entirely the Hollywood Business Association reaping what they had sown. At some unknown point, it had become possible to simply pay the association a sum of money to secure a star on the Walk of Fame. The location certainly wouldn't be prime real estate, but it was entirely different from the routine maintenance fees that stars usually paid. This thoroughly commercialized practice completely ruined the prestige the Walk of Fame was supposed to represent.

For someone in Duke's position, leaving his name on the Walk of Fame was utterly dispensable. Let alone applying for it on his own initiative, even if the Hollywood Business Association actively invited him, he would turn them down without hesitation if the location wasn't good enough.

Actually, a fair number of people had done exactly that in recent years. Many major stars and directors had rejected the Hollywood Business Association's invitations.

Of course, if the business association was willing to grant him separate stars for his roles as a screenwriter, director, editor, and producer, Duke might still give it some thought.

Leaving the Hollywood District, Duke and Charles Roven headed over to the Hughes Aircraft Plant. Over the past few years, the hangars here had essentially been converted into ultra-large soundstages.

Following the set construction and filming of Batman Begins on this site, Duke also chose to build some of the Iron Man sets inside the hangars. The most important among them was the cave where the terrorists held Tony Stark captive.

Duke led an incredibly mature team, and the entire pre-production phase was proceeding smoothly and methodically.