In the studio, the main actors gathered around Justin Lin, who was gesturing as he spoke. "Pay attention," he said. "This scene focuses on Matthew and Paul. You all need to listen carefully to them, but also express your own characters' personalities."
Matthew stood by the repair table, listening intently to Justin Lin's direction.
They had already filmed several split scenes, and now everyone had come together again.
Most of the cast, including Matthew, was quite satisfied with Justin Lin's scene designs. To be precise, the success of Fast & Furious 4 had proven Justin Lin's vision and abilities.
For a director, following the path of success is crucial.
Fast & Furious 5 continued the style of the previous film, with the only difference being that the world was expanded further, and the action scenes were designed to be even grander.
Simply put, they would turn Rio de Janeiro upside down in the film.
Once Justin Lin finished explaining the scene, the filming began quickly.
Everyone gathered around the repair table, with two cameras positioned at different angles to capture both groups without interference.
From their positioning, it was clear which characters had more weight in the film. Matthew and Paul Walker stood together, with the others forming a half-circle in front of them.
"Everyone knows each other by now, right?" Matthew scanned their faces one by one. "Next, we're going to form a team."
Even superheroes were teaming up nowadays, so the racing family couldn't fall behind.
Gal Gadot suddenly stepped forward and approached Matthew. "When you called me to Rio, I thought it would be for something more exciting," she said, spreading her arms and hugging Matthew tightly.
Matthew patted her back. "It's good to see you."
Then Gal Gadot hooked her arm around Matthew's, standing next to him, just like Jordana Brewster and Paul Walker.
The group's positions shifted, forming a circle.
"Sean, what have you dragged us halfway around the world for?" Daniel Wu asked.
Matthew spoke slowly, "We've got a big job."
Paul Walker followed up, "Our target is Hernan Reyes." He walked over to the repair table, opened a folder, and spread out the documents in front of everyone. "He's never failed, because he never leaves a trace, no written evidence."
Gal Gadot flipped through the file. "So, that means his money isn't in a bank, but stored in cash vaults?"
"Exactly," Paul Walker said, flipping to a map. "There are ten vaults, spread throughout the city!"
Nini asked, "How much money?"
Matthew replied, "Three hundred million dollars!"
"We're gonna be rich!" Tyrese Gibson whistled.
Matthew slammed his fist on the repair table. "We're taking all the money!"
"All of it?" Jordana Brewster asked.
Matthew nodded. "All of it!"
"That's insane," Gal Gadot interjected, looking at Matthew. "I thought you were in danger!"
She frowned. "There's no way we can rob all ten at once…"
Matthew laughed. "Exactly. That's why we need a plan."
"Cut!" Justin Lin shouted. "That's a wrap for this take."
He checked the time. "Half-hour break, then we move to the next location."
Justin Lin stood up from behind the director's monitor, stretched, and then sat back down to plan the next scene.
For him as a director, shooting according to plan wasn't the only important job—balancing screen time among the actors was equally crucial. He needed to highlight Matthew and Paul Walker as the absolute leads while ensuring the rest of the racing family didn't fade into the background.
If they became mere extras, there would be no point in having those characters.
It wasn't an easy task.
Matthew and Paul Walker were easy to handle—no one would question their status as the leads. Gal Gadot, being one of the most popular characters from the last film, naturally had an increased role as well.
As for the rest of the cast, their screen time needed careful balance.
In a film like this, where multiple characters appear simultaneously, both the camera work and dialogue were carefully designed by Justin Lin after much thought.
In the actors' rest area, Matthew sat in a chair, took a sip of water, and asked Gal Gadot, who was sitting nearby, "Didn't you say you were planning to move to Los Angeles?"
Gal Gadot smoothed her hair. "With transportation so convenient these days, it doesn't really matter where I live."
Matthew nodded, then said, "When I got back from across the Pacific last time, I was waiting for your party, but then you went back to Israel, and I lost contact."
"My parents had an emergency," Gal Gadot replied, clearly frustrated. "They kept calling me."
At that moment, Paul Walker walked over, pulled up a chair, and sat on the other side of Matthew. "Matthew, you should treat us to a meal!"
"Sure," Matthew said without hesitation. "Paul, Gal, you're always welcome at my place."
Paul Walker grinned. "I want a feast, a top-tier feast!" he said, feigning pain. "Only that can heal the emotional damage I've suffered!"
Gal Gadot glanced at both Paul Walker and Matthew curiously. "What happened between you two?"
Matthew understood what she was implying and quickly responded, "Nothing, absolutely nothing!"
"What are you thinking, Gal?" Paul Walker shook his head. "I'm talking about the supplementary clause in our contracts."
He turned to Gal Gadot. "You love motorcycles so much, but can't race with anyone. Doesn't it drive you crazy?"
Gal Gadot understood what Paul Walker was referring to. After thinking for a moment, she replied, "It's not that bad."
Paul Walker then turned to Matthew. "I haven't been able to race for two years, man. Just watching others race is killing me."
Matthew smiled and said, "Paul, we're not professional drivers."
He knew how passionate Paul Walker was about racing. The supplementary clause in their contract wasn't really a strict restriction, but more of a reminder. The main point was to make sure Paul Walker and the others understood that since the studio was paying them high salaries, they couldn't afford to get injured and delay the production.
"Ah…" Paul Walker sighed heavily. "Matthew, you don't get it."
Matthew nodded slightly. "I get it."
If it were anyone else, even a co-star, he wouldn't bother with such concerns. After all, he wasn't looking to play the savior, and he wasn't interested in a saintly persona. In fact, a dead co-lead, like Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight, could even bring massive benefits.
Additionally, this series could transition from a dual-lead format to one with him as the sole lead.
From a business perspective, Paul Walker following the same tragic path would have been in his best interest.
But Paul Walker had always been a friend.
Back when Matthew was still struggling and being bullied by Vin Diesel on the set of The Fast and the Furious, Paul Walker had consistently supported him.
That alone made the contract's supplementary clause worthwhile.
Years later, Fast & Furious 7 had used Paul Walker's death as a major narrative point, and even someone like Matthew, who didn't usually pay much attention to behind-the-scenes movie details, knew that Paul Walker had died in a high-speed car crash.
So, they had specifically added that clause to their contracts. To avoid appearing biased, the same clause was included in the contracts of all the main actors.
Paul Walker had helped and supported him, so Matthew hoped this clause would serve as a constant reminder to Paul, since he couldn't watch over him every day. Hopefully, it would change the unfortunate future that Paul Walker might face.
So far, it seemed to be working. Most Hollywood actors still had a strong sense of contractual obligation.
After the half-hour break, filming resumed. For the past few days, director Justin Lin had been shooting all the scenes set in the workshop.
During lunch, Matthew ate with Justin Lin and Jack, who had brought good news.
After a month of negotiations, the production team had reached an agreement with Victoria's Secret. The brand would appear as a sponsor in Fast & Furious 5, but the sponsorship fee was just a symbolic one dollar.
In return, Victoria's Secret would send all its signed Angels to participate in the crew's filming in Rio de Janeiro. Justin Lin had already prepared for this, changing a beach party scene into a high-end beach fashion show, with the theme being Victoria's Secret swimwear.
The production wouldn't have to pay the Angels any extra fees, but they would cover their regular expenses during filming.
Additionally, in the movie, the swimsuit-clad Angels could only be looked at, not touched.
Neither Matthew nor Justin Lin had any issues with that. Their main goal in bringing in the Angels was to generate hype and publicity. The Angels would get limited screen time, and there wouldn't be any risqué scenes.
This was a PG-13 commercial action film, not an art-house movie where nudity was common.
In short, the final cut would feature sexy swimsuit models, but it would be all for show, sticking strictly to the PG-13 rating.
By now, the Fast & Furious franchise had become the most successful racing film series in cinematic history. Fast & Furious had a wide appeal to young audiences, especially with the series now at its fifth installment, bringing together a globally diverse cast.
From an innovation standpoint, this sequel was very conservative.
But in terms of action, it would be wildly bold. In addition to the usual stylish, energetic visuals of hot guys and beautiful girls, Justin Lin would incorporate more police and action elements, with explosive gunfights
and dramatic chases.
As Justin Lin put it, this film would live up to its title of Fast & Furious, with the climax pushing the car chase scenes to a whole new level.
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