Filming Wrapped

Americans had no idea what it felt like, in the 1990s, for a Black man to marry a white woman. Only Black people could truly understand it.

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

That was also why Kevin had chosen this film. Its impact at this time would be far greater than if it had been released in the future.

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

Unlike Saw, Kevin had already 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 love and admiration for Jigsaw, those fans also felt a degree of admiration for Kevin, Jigsaw's creator.

Therefore, Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema had already begun promoting Get Out in advance.

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

To that end, they began making arrangements 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 as a lamb awaiting slaughter, or rise up and kill the white people who see him as food on their plates...]

This promotion drew from the film's actual content. Naturally, 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 now filming. The movie depicts a young Black man entering a small town and encountering a series of bizarre events. Watch as he avoids every danger and escapes with his life...]

This relied on 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 the audience out of the story.

The films that generally demanded the greatest acting skill were literary dramas.

As for commercial films and horror movies, competent acting was enough—as long as it did not break immersion. Hannibal was an exception.

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

Kevin could not help sighing. Money could make even the gods work.

Smith had spent money hiring veteran actors to help him practice, while also renting cameras and buying film himself to shoot and review his own work.

With those conditions, combined with Will Smith's natural talent, he had managed to hone his acting to at least a competent level 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, after half a month of Kevin's day-and-night instruction, Angelina Jolie finally reached the passing line under his hands-on guidance.

And that was enough.

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

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

Several 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 see anything. 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 holding control, plus Kevin's proven record of success, all of this gave him supreme authority on the set.

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

In two months, everything had been completed successfully according to Kevin's filming schedule.

Naturally, the three-million-dollar budget had not gone a cent over, nor had a cent been left over.

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

There was quite a bit of money left over—eighty thousand dollars in total—and Kevin put all of it into the party.

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

With the intention of getting on Kevin's good side, Will Smith did not miss the party either. While everyone else celebrated wildly,

Will Smith alone lingered leisurely 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 of the minor actors and crew members. Going along with the situation was a good habit.

"Smith, what about you? You're a famous singer. Why did you suddenly decide to cross over into Hollywood?"

Kevin asked curiously.

"The ceiling."

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

Will Smith did not hide his ambition at all. This was the difference in character caused by Chinese and American culture.

Chinese people were accustomed to restraint, while Americans preferred to be expressive.

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

"If you find the right film, becoming an Oscar-winning Best Actor isn't impossible either."

Kevin spoke in a tone that seemed half teasing and half sincere.

Will Smith laughed heartily as well.

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

"Damn, you really have no shame."

Kevin joked.

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

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

"Yeah, that's what I think too."

After that conversation, the two had taken their relationship a step further and become friends.

By this point, the future stars Kevin had met included Robert Downey Jr., Nicolas Cage, Will Smith, Angelina Jolie, and others.

If they all became major stars according to the paths Kevin remembered, Kevin's network in Hollywood would have a solid foundation.

Of course, that was still far from enough.

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

After the party ended, Kevin spent several intense days training with Angelina Jolie in his villa. Only after thoroughly releasing his stress did he take all the materials to New Line Cinema.