Hollywood: The Greatest Showman

Chapter 76: Small Demonstration

Renly repeatedly read these two pages of the script three times, then set the script aside and slowly pieced together the entire blueprint in his mind.

This is an excerpt from the middle of a movie. Paul has already contacted the FBI through his phone and is waiting for rescue. The kidnappers call, demanding Paul to record a video according to the note they left in the coffin, asking the U.S. government for a million-dollar ransom, and then send it to the kidnappers. However, the FBI staff advise Paul not to record the video because it will only make things worse. In the end, Paul does not record the video.

The excerpt is from the following paragraph. The kidnappers have not received the video for a long time, so they send a video instead. In the video, one of Paul's female colleagues, who has also been kidnapped, is shown in a warehouse-like room. The kidnappers threaten to kill this female colleague. Under the urgency, Paul is forced to agree to record the video.

Renly couldn't help but think seriously. He couldn't know how it felt to be trapped in a coffin, but he knew that Paul's emotions at this moment were very complex. On the one hand, he was waiting for rescue from the FBI; on the other hand, he was worried that he couldn't escape. So he called his mother who lived in a nursing home. The kidnapper's video was sent at this emotional moment.

Originally, Paul still had a glimmer of hope that he could survive, but then the crisis struck again. Not only was his life hanging by a thread, but also the life of his colleague was in danger. What's more infuriating was that he was trapped in a tiny coffin, unable to resist even if he wanted to, only passively enduring the beating, unable to vent his frustration.

Looking around, they were sitting in the lobby of a youth hostel at this time. Due to the clear weather, the crowd gathered dispersed gradually. However, there were still seven or eight people scattered in the lobby chatting, and the atmosphere seemed peaceful and harmonious.

"I'm ready." Renly made an "OK" gesture to Rodrigo, "Can you help me rehearse this scene?"

Rodrigo was momentarily slow to react, hesitated for a moment, then nodded, "No problem." In this scene, Renly needed a counterpart role of a kidnapper, with few lines, but dialogue was needed between the two sides.

The reason for choosing this scene was simple. Paul was at a dramatic moment of being pushed off a cliff after a brief relaxation, which tested the actor's control over emotions. This extreme change was in line with the description of the first part by Renly. Moreover, witnessing his colleague in crisis and having to consider the FBI's advice, Paul's internal changes would be even more special, in line with the description of the second part by Renly.

Of course, Rodrigo also knew that the content assessed within a few minutes was limited, but he was still very curious about how Renly would interpret it. Watching closely, Rodrigo saw Renly lying down... He actually just lay down like that!

Renly adjusted his sitting posture, stretched his legs and lay on the sofa, then closed his eyes, gradually slowing down his breathing rhythm, outlining the feeling of being trapped in a narrow space in his mind. The darkness slowly descended, enveloping him little by little, starting to shrink.

He temporarily did not think about Ryan Reynolds getting this role, nor did he think about the possibility of breaking free from the constraints of age to win the role, nor did he think about being in a noisy public place. He focused his mind entirely on the character, concentrating his spirit.

In the darkness, the noise in his ears began to grow louder, accompanying the shrinking darkness, as if the entire world outside the darkness was experiencing a New Year's Eve party, further compressing the space of darkness, almost enclosing Renly, airtight; after the darkness was compressed to the extreme, it began to rebound, swallowing up all the noisy sounds, as if the darkness was devouring the light, and in a blink of an eye, all the surrounding sounds disappeared.

Rodrigo widened his eyes, carefully observed for a while, but found that Renly didn't move at all, as if he had fallen asleep completely, which puzzled Rodrigo and he didn't know what to do for a moment - should he wake Renly up?

But at this moment, Renly's breathing began to accelerate, his chest rising and falling violently like a bellows, the intense movement almost made Rodrigo think Renly's some illness had recurred, which was quite frightening. Then, Renly's eyes opened.

Those deep eyes were concealed behind a hazy mist, slightly clenched teeth tightened the facial lines, a hint of restrained pain and struggle between the slightly furrowed brows, heavy breathing stirred in the chest, as if each breath was consuming brain energy.

Even without makeup assistance, even though his face still looked young, even without any linguistic preamble, emotions were still conveyed clearly and accurately. Rodrigo almost immediately understood. After talking to his mother, Paul's emotions fluctuated violently. The severed family ties carried a heart-wrenching pain between his teeth.

Paul picked up his phone, closed his eyes fiercely, endured immense pain with all his strength, then put the phone to his ear, but his thumb hesitated to press the call button. With a slight lift of his noble brow, bitterness rippled, breath paused, as if all emotions stopped at that moment, but the rippling spread uncontrollably. He pressed the call button.

There was no sound on the other end of the phone. Paul brought the phone to his eyes and glanced at it. It turned out that someone had sent a video. Paul's held breath suddenly relaxed, his knitted brows unable to suppress the panic within, pupils anxiously flickering, biting his thumb didn't help, his thumb raised again, paused slightly, but trembling fingertips could be seen, then the thumb pressed the confirm button.

"No." The air was quiet, without any other assistance, Rodrigo watched this one-man show, but his heart immediately tangled up. He knew that Paul had seen the video of his colleague - the rapidly flickering pupils showed a hint of confusion and panic. The nightmare of despair began to climb up from his fingertips. "No, no, no, no, no, no!"

The denying voice trembled gently, he stared at the phone screen in disbelief, paralysis spread through the heart transmitted through the eyes, the voice began to collapse, "No, no, no!"

He breathed heavily, the light in his eyes gradually disappeared, and quickly dialed the number. The phone was almost immediately answered. Rodrigo lowered his voice and said, "Did you record it?" God, his own performance was simply garbage, affected, and his lines were ambiguous. He was not cut out to be an actor.

"Please! Don't... don't... hurt her!" Paul's voice was fragmented, and the collision of teeth could even be heard, without any influence from Rodrigo, "Don't hurt her! Let her go!"

The frantic voice revealed the despair of ashes, as if even the darkness became insignificant, Rodrigo's emotions were inevitably driven, and he said viciously, "No video, I'll shoot!"

"No, no, don't shoot! Don't shoot!" Paul's earnest voice lost control, bursting like a bubble - the ferocious sound, but only emptiness, rapidly falling into the abyss.

In an instant, all eyes in the youth hostel lobby were focused. Worries were evident in people's eyes, the noise disappeared completely, muscles tensed, all on guard. Then they heard Paul's urgent plea, "I will, I will! I promise!" The fragility in his voice seemed to disintegrate with a slight breeze, "I promise! Please, she's a mother, she has two children."

"Two children? I have five children, and now only one is left!" Rodrigo couldn't help grinding his teeth fiercely. Even he didn't know why he did this. The cruel voice was like a venomous snake, "You'll make the video now!"

"Wait! Wait!" Paul was retreating step by step, he had no room to resist, let alone fight back, "No, wait!" His desperate plea was in vain, "I don't know what you want me to say..." In the midst of panic, he was still trying to mediate, clinging to the last lifeline like hanging on the edge of a cliff, unwilling to let go, but the other party obviously didn't give him a chance, "I'll give you three seconds, three, two..."

The countdown of death tightly gripped Paul's throat, his muscles tense, but he couldn't move, firmly pressed in place, as if his limbs were fixed, only his voice was free. So, the hoarse roar began to vent the pent-up frustration, anger, helplessness, and despair in his heart, "Okay! Okay!" Pupils began to dilate, and the clear fading of the soul was visible, the numbness of despair invading the brain, "I'll make the video! I'll make the video! I'll make the video!"

Each word was more urgent, more painful than the last. This was his only weapon, but it was in vain, "Please! Please! Please!" The desperate shout exhausted all his energy, he released his hands, slowly fell into the dark abyss, the silence finally settled in his ears, the countdown disappeared, "Can I hang up now and make the video?"

"You have three minutes!" Rodrigo's voice came from hell.

Paul hung up the phone, immediately turned over, then aimed the back camera of his phone at himself. He even forgot to breathe, his pale lips devoid of any color, his soulless eyes staring blankly at the camera, clenched teeth revealing a hint of determination - he knew that making the video was like cutting off his own lifeline, but he had no choice but to do it because he was at the mercy of others.

Taking a deep breath, without any hesitation, he pressed the record button.