Filming Wrapped

People in the United States had no idea what it felt like for a Black man to marry a white woman in the 1990s; only Black people could truly understand.

At that time, white people's discrimination against Black people was far more severe than it would be in later generations.

That was also why Kevin had chosen this film. Its impact at this point in time was far greater than it would have been in later years.

Kevin led the crew in filming in a small town in Texas, while New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. were not idle either.

Unlike Saw, Kevin had gained a certain degree of fame after Saw's release.

At the very least, he had become somewhat well-known among horror fans.

Because of their fondness and admiration for Jigsaw, those fans also admired Kevin, Jigsaw's creator.

Therefore, Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema had already begun advance promotion for Get Out.

Naturally, there was no need to go all out before its official release. They only needed to make the public aware that such a film existed.

To that end, they began laying the groundwork in print media and releasing information to the public.

[Get Out: A young Black man is brought by his white girlfriend into a terrifying dead end. Will he be devoured like a lamb awaiting slaughter, or will he rise up and kill the white people who see him as food on their plates...]

This promotion focused on the film's content. Of course, it was deliberately ambiguous and revealed only part of the film's essence.

[The latest work from genius horror director Steve Kevin, Get Out, is currently filming. The movie tells of a young Black man entering a small town and encountering a series of bizarre events. Watch as he evades every danger and escapes alive...]

This used Kevin's own fame to build anticipation in advance.

Two months was neither particularly long nor particularly short.

Will Smith's acting gave Kevin a rare and pleasant surprise. Acting was highly subjective, but the most important thing was that it did not pull audiences out of the story.

In films, the genre that usually demanded the strongest acting was literary drama.

As for commercial films and horror films, competent acting—meaning not breaking immersion—was enough, Hannibal excluded.

Will Smith's performance in this regard was nothing like that of someone who had barely acted in films. After chatting briefly with Will Smith,

Kevin could not help but sigh. Money could make anything possible.

He had spent money to hire veteran actors to help him practice, while also renting cameras and buying film stock himself to shoot and review his own footage.

With those conditions, combined with Will Smith's natural talent, he had honed his acting to a level that was at least qualified for commercial films.

The one who caused more problems was Angelina Jolie. As a newcomer, she often made minor mistakes, and Kevin had gotten angry with her more than once during this period.

Fortunately, under Kevin's day-and-night instruction, after half a month, Angelina Jolie finally reached the passing line under his hands-on guidance.

And that was enough.

During that time, everyone on the crew had become aware of the special relationship between Kevin and Angelina Jolie.

But Kevin was not married. He was still a single director, and sleeping with actresses was simply the most normal thing in the world.

A few supporting actresses had even secretly tried to climb into Kevin's bed at night.

But Angelina Jolie guarded against them fiercely.

Everyone else pretended not to notice. No one had any intention of challenging Kevin's authority.

As a crew assembled by CAA, with several of Kevin's own people occupying key positions and taking the lead, and given Kevin's proven success, all of this gave him supreme authority over the crew.

Once Jolie's acting issues had been dealt with, the other problems were no longer problems, and filming proceeded at high speed.

Over two months, everything was completed successfully according to Kevin's filming plan.

Of course, of the three million dollars in expenses, Kevin had not gone a cent over budget, nor had a cent remained.

As usual, he booked a wrap party at a hotel near Hollywood.

There was a considerable amount of remaining funds, a full eighty thousand dollars, and Kevin put every bit of it into the party.

By late February and early March, a hotel near Hollywood hosted the party.

Wanting to build a good relationship with Kevin, Will Smith also attended. While everyone else at the party was celebrating wildly,

Will Smith alone lingered casually at Kevin's side.

"Director Kevin, aren't you joining the party?"

"I don't like parties, but most people do. I don't mind doing a good deed."

Throwing a party could improve Kevin's reputation among some minor actors and crew members. It was a good habit to go along with the situation.

"Smith, what about you? As a famous singer, why did you suddenly decide to cross over into Hollywood?"

Kevin asked curiously.

"The ceiling."

"The status of a singer and a film actor is completely different. I prefer myself as an actor."

Will Smith did not shy away from stating his ambition. This was the difference in personality created by Chinese and American cultures.

Chinese people were accustomed to restraint, while Americans preferred openness.

"Keep it up, Smith. I see the qualities of an excellent film actor in you. I believe you'll become one someday."

"If you find the right film, winning Best Actor at the Oscars isn't impossible either."

Kevin said in a tone that sounded both teasing and sincere.

Will Smith laughed heartily as well.

"I believe in Director Kevin's eye too. That's what I think as well."

"Mm, you really have no shame!"

Kevin joked.

There had also been rumors in his previous life that Will Smith had led a rather wild private life, but in Dao Xuan's view, judging from how Will Smith raised his son, those rumors might not necessarily be true.

Therefore, Kevin had a fairly favorable impression of Will Smith.

"Mm, I think so too."

After that chat, the two grew closer and could now be considered friends.

By this point, Kevin had already met future major stars such as Robert Downey Jr., Nicolas Cage, Will Smith, and Angelina Jolie.

If they could all become major stars along the paths Kevin remembered, then Kevin's Hollywood network would have laid its foundation.

Of course, that was still far from enough.

But Kevin had been in the business for less than a year, and he still had plenty of time to develop.

After the party ended, Kevin spent several intense days with Angelina Jolie in his villa, thoroughly releasing his stress before bringing all the materials to New Line Cinema.