The fugitive Riddick broke free and escaped, causing panic among the remaining survivors.
Under the leadership of 'Captain' Carolyn and bounty hunter William, the survivors began searching for him, only to encounter monsters.
Richard had few scenes in this part, only a few backshots, and after finishing them, he wandered around the set.
After months of construction, the place had been set up as a large film set.
There were many strange buildings, a large stone forest, and a mass graveyard filled with plaster-made skeletons. The skeletons were three to four meters high, densely packed, resembling a forest of bones.
In the middle of the set was a building made of iron sheets, representing an abandoned alien base, the main shooting location for the crew.
Richard stood on top of a tall spaceship model, looking around at the vast red sandy terrain and the many strange buildings, feeling like he was on another planet.
"Richard, there's an action scene tomorrow. Come down, let's discuss it."
Action director Mr. Graham called from below.
"Alright!"
Richard descended from the spaceship.
In an action sci-fi movie, action scenes are one of the core elements. Well-shot action scenes can significantly enhance the quality of the movie.
After joining the crew, he actively discussed action design with Graham, earning his approval and today's invitation.
The action scene tomorrow involved the protagonist Riddick escaping, with the survivors collectively searching for him. Someone accidentally gets killed by a monster, and the survivor team mistakenly believes Riddick is the killer.
In the end, the bounty hunter fights Riddick and, with another survivor, captures him using a gun.
The initial design by the action team was for Riddick's sunglasses to be knocked off, making it hard for him to see in the sunlight, leading to his capture.
Richard didn't criticize this plan but provided some suggestions for the combat moves.
Riddick is a cunning interstellar criminal, and his opponent William is an interstellar hunter. Their fight shouldn't be too simple; some high-difficulty moves should be added to make it look more impressive.
Based on his ideas, Richard designed a few cool moves.
"Richard, your designs are good, but Cole Hauser isn't an action actor. He can't perform them."
Graham said, looking at his sketches.
"Yes, and there's a time limit for this scene, so it can't be too long," another director reminded.
"Cole's moves aren't difficult; I can help him practice. As for the time limit, we can discuss it, maybe cut a few moves to make the pace more intense. How about that?"
"Alright!"
The three continued discussing.
Graham had more experience working in the crew, but in terms of action design, Richard was more skilled. He was proficient in various martial arts and knew how to achieve the best effect.
He explained while demonstrating, winning the support of the other two with a series of cool moves.
In the evening, after the crew wrapped up, Richard found Cole Hauser to discuss the action scenes.
Cole was from California, a Broadway actor, who had played a supporting role in "School Ties" starring Reece. Richard had seen him filming last year when he visited the crew and thought his acting was good.
The next morning, the two started rehearsing the action scenes, and by the afternoon, they were ready for the official shoot.
"Scene 19, take 6, action!"
In the valley of bones, Richard, wearing sunglasses, hurried forward.
A moment ago, a survivor had been dragged into a cave and killed by a monster. The survivor team saw him at the scene, holding a knife, and thought he was the killer, chasing him with guns.
After running a few steps, a bone club suddenly swept from below, hitting his calf hard.
Bang! The bone club shattered, and Richard stumbled. As he was about to fall, he propped himself up with his hands, kneeling on one knee, and looked back.
Bounty hunter William emerged from the bone structures with a gun and kicked again.
Richard supported himself with his hands and blocked the attack with his foot, flipping up.
Just as he was about to counterattack, his opponent swung the gunstock at him, and Richard spun horizontally twice.
The two exchanged a few swift moves, simple and direct, with each punch landing solidly. During the fight, Richard's sunglasses were knocked off, blurring his vision.
Bang! His cheek was struck by the gunstock, and he fell to the ground, followed by another team member who caught up and hit him several times.
"Cut!"
"Richard, your moves need to be slower, they're too fast to see clearly. Cole, your expression needs to be fiercer, especially when swinging the gunstock."
Director David Twohy called out.
"Got it!"
The two rehearsed again, adjusted two moves on Graham's suggestion, and resumed filming.
This time the shoot went well and looked great on the monitor.
However, Richard wasn't completely satisfied. He discussed with the director and Graham, offered his suggestions, and after gaining their approval, made some adjustments while trying.
After over four hours of shooting, the crew was exhausted. Director David Twohy said it was good enough and couldn't be modified further, so Richard stopped.
After finishing the scene, Richard was also exhausted. Four hours of continuous movement made him sweat profusely, with his lips chapped and a swollen spot on his face from an accidental hit by Cole's gunstock.
"Richard, don't push yourself so hard. Remember, you're a boxer, not an actor."
Mike handed him a thermos cup.
"This is called loving what you do, understand?"
Richard smiled lightly and took a few gulps of warm water.
"But the crew has opinions about you. I just heard someone say you're too overbearing and acting like a big shot."
"This is called acting like a big shot?"
Richard shook his head. During filming, he was very mindful of boundaries. Whenever he asked for a retake, he always consulted Director Twohy. If the director didn't think it was necessary, he wouldn't insist.
Moreover, he only gave suggestions for action scenes, which he was familiar with, and never interfered with other scenes. Does this count as acting like a big shot?
"Richard, do you need to treat your injury?" Naomi pointed at his cheek.
"It's okay, it will be fine in a couple of days."
Richard touched his cheek and smiled.
"It will heal faster if you treat it."
Naomi took out a bottle of medicine and a cotton swab.
"Naomi, thank you!"
"You're welcome."
Naomi squatted in front of him and dabbed the medicine on his wound with the cotton swab.
"Richard, you're too dedicated in your acting. Yesterday you hurt your shoulder, today your face. Where are you planning to get hurt tomorrow?"
"Not tomorrow, I'll be more careful and avoid dangerous stunts."
"That's the best."
Naomi smiled.
"Naomi, I often ask for retakes. Do you find it troublesome?"
Richard asked.
"No, it's normal. Sometimes the director feels it's not good enough and asks for another take, and sometimes actors feel they haven't done their best and request a retake. This is common."
Naomi smiled slightly, "I don't find you troublesome at all. Instead, I admire you. I knew you were a boxing champion, great at fighting, but I didn't expect you to be so serious, professional, and meticulous in acting. Sometimes you're so serious it's a bit scary. Richard, are you this serious about everything you do?"
"No, only about things I like. I like acting, especially action scenes, so I'm very serious and want to do them well."
"I think I understand why you became a boxing champion. It must be because of this seriousness."
Naomi laughed lightly.
"Maybe so!"
But more importantly, my body has a bug and doesn't get hurt easily, so why be afraid to push hard?
"Richard, Naomi, time to get ready!"
The stage manager reminded them.
"Okay!"
It was time to go on set. After a reminder from the makeup artist, Richard washed off the yellow medicine from his face.
In the following days, he continued to work hard on set. In every action scene, he was very meticulous, daring to fight, daring to try, not afraid of getting hurt at all.
Initially, the crew had opinions about his behavior, saying he was too domineering and troublesome. But gradually, they grew to admire him.
A world boxing champion, a multimillionaire, who doesn't even flinch when injured and works with such dedication—others felt they had no right to complain.
The action director, Graham, and the director, David Twohy, both loved and hated him.
They appreciated his meticulousness, seriousness, and professionalism but sometimes found him very annoying, constantly revising and adjusting every action during filming, causing headaches.
But since everyone's goal was to make a good movie, they gradually accepted his working style and gave him more support.
"Cut!"
"That's a wrap for this scene!"
In the afternoon, as the sky darkened, the crew finished two scenes, progressing quickly.
"Richard, you don't have any scenes tomorrow. You can rest for a day."
Director David Twohy said.
"Okay!"
Richard took a big gulp of water. On set, he needed to consume at least 3000g of water daily to avoid dehydration.
"Richard, you don't have scenes tomorrow, right? Remember not to hang around the set."
Action director Graham came over and said.
"Why?"
Richard asked, puzzled.
"I get nervous every time I see you. Can you give me a day off too?"
"Haha, okay. How about I treat you to a drink tomorrow?"
Richard laughed.
"That sounds good. I want the best wine from the Dungeon Bar."
"No problem."
Richard smiled slightly and got into the car back to the hotel.
——
(End of this chapter)