Hollywood What If Chapter 510
A week later, with Kazir's fast and consistent filming, the production of The Dark Knight was on its last day.
The sky was dark that night, and the cold breeze was all around. The crew members felt the chill, but they remained quiet.
The set came to a halt, and everyone kept their mouths shut. Kazir was sitting behind the scene, staring at the monitor that displayed the scene from six angles.
They were filming in an old building in Los Angeles that had been rented by the crew. The building was scheduled for demolition in a few months, and its desolate atmosphere was the perfect vibe to depict Batman's decision to throw away his mantle as Gotham's vigilante.
"Batman, Batman—!"
James Gordon's son shouted at Batman, the hero who had saved their lives. However, Batman didn't respond and continued running away.
"Why is he running, Dad?" the young boy asked.
"Because we have to chase him."
"He didn't do anything wrong." The child was confused, remembering how Batman had jumped in to save him.
"Because he's the hero that Gotham deserves, but not the one it needs right now. So we'll hunt him. Because he can take it. Because he's our hero. He's a silent guardian, a watchful protector. The Dark Knight."
The whole place was quiet.
Everyone looked at Kazir. He was the boss. They had already filmed this scene four times and were just waiting for Kazir's approval to know if the scene met his criteria.
One of his bodyguards stood next to Kazir, tall and strong like a pillar. The other two bodyguards were dozens of meters away, checking the perimeter as if they were in a war zone, expecting possible attacks...
Honestly, the tension on set was still present, even three weeks after Kazir had almost died. The crew members were still not used to people monitoring their every movement like they were some kind of criminals.
In fact, one of the bodyguards also had to taste-test the food and beverages given to Kazir whenever the director was hungry or thirsty.
Fortunately, this would be the last time working with Kazir this year, since the director only filmed one movie per year... One movie per year was amazing, by the way. It was even more impressive that Kazir had filmed two movies the previous year, and both had grossed $1 billion. Kazir was the abnormal one here.
Kazir frowned while rewinding the tape...
The people around him waited for the verdict. Even the cast, such as Christian Bale and Gary Oldman, were waiting. Christian Bale was still in his Batman suit and sweating quite a lot.
A few seconds later, Kazir clapped his hands.
"Okay, that's it. The filming of The Dark Knight is done."
The crew members screamed in joy and cheered.
"We prepared a small party back at the studio tonight. I hope everyone will attend. Let's all have fun."
Enrico Pusi, the producer of The Dark Knight, stepped in and announced the party, prompting another loud cheer. They would eat and drink till they couldn't anymore.
Kazir also smiled… He had promised that once filming was done, he would apply for a month's vacation before starting the post-production of The Dark Knight, which was the editing stage.
He had already spoken with Warner Brothers, and the studio understood why he asked for the break. He really needed it after the incident. Two weeks hadn't been enough to calm his nerves. He still experienced mild PTSD whenever he stepped into a car.
Scarlett said she was interested in visiting Europe, especially Italy and France.
......
...
...
May had been a rough month for Kazir. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End was released and became a massive success, but that wasn't the reason May was rough for him. A week after the premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean, Kazir was almost killed by an extra.
The motive behind the crime was that Aquino was angry about not being included in the final cut. Also, Aquino had been subtly brainwashed to kill Kazir.
After that, June served as a rest month for Kazir, since he only worked for a week during that time. He spent most of his time recovering at home from the injuries he had sustained.
However, while Kazir was recuperating, blockbuster films such as Knocked Up, Ocean's Thirteen, Surf's Up, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer, 1408, Evan Almighty, Live Free or Die Hard, and Ratatouille were released in June.
Fantastic Four was a property 20th Century Fox had acquired a decade before Marvel Comics became part of the Disney family. Hence, 20th Century Fox had already approved the project and filmed it a year before the MCU was created. It would have been a waste of money not to release the movie, instead of trying to include it in the MCU.
Surprisingly, Fantastic Four was a success, so 20th Century Fox and Marvel Studios decided to make a sequel, which was Rise of the Silver Surfer. The movie grossed $353 million at the box office.
As for Evan Almighty, it was the sequel to Bruce Almighty, a film Kazir had written. When Jim Carrey announced he wouldn't reprise his role as Bruce Almighty, Kazir knew the franchise's future was bleak. Therefore, he barely participated in the scriptwriting. Because of this, he wasn't included as the screenwriter for the movie, which was fine with him. Regardless, Evan Almighty grossed $214 million at the box office, not bad.
"... Something is strange. I feel like I forgot something."
Kazir said to himself while reading a newspaper in a pastry shop in Italy.
"Perhaps you're talking about tipping. I'm not sure if Italy has a tipping culture or if that's just a U.S. thing," Scarlett replied while enjoying her croissant and latte.
"I'm not sure. I feel like another big movie should be released this month..."