While politely declining James Murdoch and Wendi Deng's invitations, Murphy signaled to Gal Gadot. She found a convenient excuse, and the two of them excused themselves and walked toward the screening room.
"That woman is not simple," Gadot whispered in a warning tone.
"I know," Murphy replied, linking his arm with hers as they entered the screening room. He also lowered his voice, "Don't worry, I won't get involved in this mess."
Murphy understood what Gadot was thinking. Only a fool would want to get involved in the internal power struggle within News Corporation and the Murdoch family.
Murphy wasn't stupid. He could see that both James Murdoch and Wendi Deng viewed him as a significant asset in their power struggle.
Murphy didn't know who would ultimately inherit News Corporation, but he had heard that Wendi Deng, despite her efforts, didn't seem to have a chance.
This woman was undoubtedly formidable. Rising from humble beginnings to her current position, no one would believe she got there just by sleeping with men. It took a lot of skill and intelligence to become Mrs. Murdoch.
As for James Murdoch, one only had to look at the mess in the UK, primarily caused by him, to guess what kind of person he was.
Murphy wasn't a saint either, but it was best to avoid unnecessary trouble.
Moreover, without significant benefits, why would he let himself be used as someone else's pawn?
After a short wait in the screening room, the overhead lights dimmed, and the screen lit up, signaling the official start of "This Is the End."
The film began with James Franco calling Seth Rogen, suggesting they hold the annual Stanton Party bash at his new house in Beverly Hills. Rogen readily agreed, and Franco then notified Murphy, Jonah Hill, and Robert Downey Jr., who were out of town on shoots.
Upon receiving Franco's invitation, Murphy, Hill, and Downey Jr. immediately rushed back to Los Angeles to help Franco prepare for the grand party.
Thus, the annual wild and hedonistic bash commenced, hosted by James Franco, drawing celebrities in droves. The once scruffy members of the Stanton Party were now successful, engaging in various debaucheries like drug use and casual sex...
"This Is the End" wasn't just a star-studded parody; it aimed to stand out among crude comedies by offering something unique. While Murphy wasn't a comedy expert, Rogen, Hill, and Franco were masters of the genre.
From the start, the film highlighted the theme of friendship—the brotherly bond among the Stanton Party members.
Any film without an emotional core, no matter how funny, would feel hollow.
Thus, Downey Jr. and Rogen served as the primary sources of conflict, constantly bickering from the beginning, even clashing at Franco's party.
The celebrity-packed party was a major draw. Murphy's appearance with Gadot wasn't surprising, except for Murphy's somewhat wooden performance and Gadot's stunning beauty.
Murphy's arrival quelled the argument between Downey Jr. and Rogen. Frustrated, Rogen decided to take a break and, accompanied by Hill, went to a nearby store to buy supplies. Suddenly, the world changed—beams of light began lifting people into the sky.
However, Rogen and Hill weren't among those taken.
Shocked, the two rushed back to Franco's mansion, just in time to see Murphy and Gadot's car driving away.
The camera followed Murphy and Gadot's vehicle.
Suddenly, a beam of light descended from the sky, taking Gadot away and leaving Murphy, who was driving, gaping in shock. The distraction caused his SUV to crash into a tree by the roadside.
Rogen and Hill returned to the party, but Franco, Hill, and others were too high to believe their story. Just as Rihanna was about to leave, the ground began to shake, splitting open into a deep chasm with flames licking at the edges.
The sudden catastrophe turned the wild party into a slaughterhouse. Rihanna fell into the chasm, Paul Rudd was crushed by a falling tree, and a flying wire decapitated Taylor Swift...
What unfolded was a scene of brutally creative deaths of Hollywood celebrities, each demise more bizarre than the last.
Meanwhile, Beverly Hills erupted, turning into a hellish landscape.
Fortunately, most of Franco's mansion remained intact. The survivors—Franco, Rogen, Hill, Downey Jr., and Watson—barricaded themselves inside.
Outside was a fiery inferno; inside, they were safe for the moment but lacked sufficient food and water. Faced with this dilemma, the Stanton Party members decided to hunker down, living day by day. In contrast, Watson took a hammer and ventured out to find supplies.
After Watson left, Franco conveniently remembered that he had some food and bottled water in the basement. The group of misfits huddled inside, relying on banter to pass the time.
These banters were carefully crafted jokes by Rogen and Hill.
For instance, Franco and Rogen went to the bathroom together. When Franco came out first, Hill seriously told him he had toothpaste foam on his mouth...
All the jokes had a common feature: they felt like the Stanton Party members were revealing a candid glimpse of their real lives to the audience.
There had been films before that played with the idea of celebrities appearing as themselves, but few succeeded.
"This Is the End" stood out because Rogen and Hill didn't just get a few famous faces for cameo appearances. They treated the entire cast as a collective concept of "celebrity."
Therefore, all the participating stars, including the Stanton Party members, played exaggerated versions of how the general public might imagine celebrities behave, such as doing drugs together, rather than depicting their private lives. This approach spared the stars from personal backlash, as the parody targeted the concept of "celebrity," not their individual selves.
While the "celebrity" persona was a construct, the satire was genuine—Rihanna, often portrayed as a victim of domestic violence by Chris Brown, finally got to fight back on-screen before falling into the abyss. In a male-dominated society, women still had to succumb to patriarchal authority; Watson, however, took charge, finding food and water while the men cowered.
When Downey Jr. vented his frustrations to a DV camera, saying, "Hermione took our water," he blurred the lines between reality and roles, mocking the hypocrisy of celebrities. Channing Tatum's appearance as a submissive figure poked fun at behind-the-scenes scandals. Most amusingly, the gateway to hell was under the iconic "Hollywood" sign, suggesting that those who frequent Hollywood might be the first to experience the apocalypse—was this glamorous dreamland a paradise or a fallen realm?
In short, it was a joyous show where celebrities, including Murphy, were willing to trash their own images.
As Downey Jr. and Rogen would say, Murphy didn't have much of a positive image to ruin anyway.
Watson returned to Franco's sanctuary with some water. After resting upstairs, Murphy suddenly barged in. The frantic Stanton Party members found solace in Murphy, but he quickly turned out to be no hero. He had followed Watson, and after hearing she was resting upstairs, he suggested they overpower her and take her supplies.
The other Stanton Party members hesitated briefly but ultimately agreed with Murphy's plan.
"Why did you agree?" Rogen privately asked Franco. "Watson is our friend, and she brought us water."
Franco earnestly replied, "Don't you know? Murphy is a big director. He can't go without women, especially beautiful ones. If I disagreed, I'd be the one he'd come after!"
This scene was clearly poking fun at the myriad of Hollywood director scandals.
But the plot soon flipped, drawing laughs from the audience.
Watson, far from being overpowered, used her hammer and a handgun she found at Franco's house to turn the tables on the Stanton Party members.
"You bastards!" Watson yelled, wielding her hammer and gun. "Put all your drinkable stuff in my bag."
"Our drinkable stuff?" Rogen widened his eyes, pretending to be serious. "We have five guys here! Are you... are you challenging all five of us?"
"If we had known you were interested..." Hill, even more blunt, began stripping off his shirt. "Why would we try to overpower you? Emma, rest assured, the five of us will give it our all!"
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