Chapter 114 Lin Yuan, the Rescuer Who Was Loved
Chapter 114
While Lin Yuan was still struggling to maintain his image as a kind and positive character, information about the role played by Ni Heng had already been sent to Feng Zeng's email.
Objectively speaking, although Ni Heng has become a figure involved in legal cases, his acting skills are still quite good. He has a good reputation among male actors over 30 and was previously heavily promoted by his agency.
But now, it's impossible for him to return to acting.
According to Feng Zeng, Ni Heng had only been imprisoned for a short time, and it was still unknown when he would be released.
For celebrities like Ni Heng, people in the industry are extremely indifferent to his future plans. Only die-hard fans are still clinging to him. To those in the industry, his only significance is that they can still share in the resources he once possessed.
"His role is indeed not very big," Feng told Lin Yuan after analyzing the situation.
The movie Li Mobei is filming is called "Killing". Just by hearing the name, you can probably tell what kind of movie it is.
Although Ni Heng's character, Su Kai, doesn't appear much, he is the highlight of the film.
In the movie, Su Kai was never suspected.
He wasn't a pervert like Gu Yilou; he just had different beliefs than the protagonist, and their paths diverged along the way.
The character is quite well-developed.
Moreover, since there was already a twist in the early part of "Killing", Su Kai's version is a twist within a twist, which has created an even more amazing effect.
Everyone has multiple identities, and Su Kai was the last one to have his identity revealed.
After Ni Heng went in, his resources had been almost completely divided up, and replacements for the dramas and movies that hadn't been filmed had been found.
The crew of "Killing" deeply hated him.
Firstly, Ni Heng happened to be on the set of "Killing" when the incident occurred. The dirty deeds he did had nothing to do with the crew, and no one on the crew knew anything about them. However, now when others mention Ni Heng, they always associate him with the "Killing" crew.
Secondly, the role of Su Kai is very important, and finding an actor who fits the role in terms of acting skills and image has become extremely difficult.
Which actor with even a little bit of fame in the industry isn't booked until next year or later? Where is the production crew going to find someone so quickly?
The production team can't find a suitable actor for Su Kai, so they can only wait. The other actors have basically finished their scenes, and there's only a short segment left before the finale. Waiting means burning money, and every extra day of filming means burning more money.
Even if Ni Heng's agency is asked to compensate for the losses, it won't be enough to cover the production team's deficit.
The entire crew of "Killing" hated Ni Heng so much that they gritted their teeth.
Then one day... Li Mobei saw Lin Yuan across the street.
He went out to buy oranges.
Li Mobei knew that Lin Yuan had taken on a revenge drama, but Lin Yuan didn't mention anything else. He was so engrossed in filming that he was oblivious to everything else. If he hadn't seen Lin Yuan, he probably wouldn't have realized it.
Suddenly, a brilliant idea flashed through his mind, and he immediately explained the situation to the producer and director.
With Lin Yuan's abilities, he could finish filming Su Kai's scenes in two days at most.
Besides, Lin Yuan is right next door, so it shouldn't be a problem for him to come over and film one or two scenes temporarily.
Otherwise, the production team would have to keep asking about the schedules of other actors and adjusting their schedules... Moreover, there aren't many male actors in the entertainment industry whose acting skills meet the requirements of the role of Su Kai.
Lin Yuan is a very fitting candidate.
Li Mobei had no idea that Lin Yuan would slam down the phone after hearing that he was going to play a villain.
"What's going on?" Li Mobei muttered to himself as he sent the character information to Lin Yuan's studio.
"Are you sure you don't want to give it a try?" Feng asked Lin Yuan. "This role is one you can play."
Although both are villains, this character gives people a completely different feeling from Gu Yilou.
Just reading the script, Feng Zeng could feel the shock caused by Su Kai's reversal and the charm of the character himself.
Whether it brings fear or intense hatred, as long as it leaves a deep impression on the audience, the character is successful.
This has nothing to do with playing time.
Some characters, even if they have a lot of screen time from beginning to end, only bring noise to the audience and make them disgusted.
Su Kai is clearly not that type of character.
He's the kind of role that Lin Yuan could totally try.
To be honest, the moment Feng saw the script, the image that came to mind was that of a cannibal who only appeared for 16 minutes in a classic movie.
Although he only appeared on screen for 16 minutes, he left an indelible mark on the audience, and the actor himself swept the Best Actor awards for this role.
From this perspective, the amount of screen time is not that important.
"How did you get bought off so quickly?" Lin Yuan glanced at his agent. "Who told me to diversify my role types?"
"Wake up."
Feng Zeng: "...I am very clear-headed, don't doubt your agent's intelligence."
The reason the two were still able to discuss "Killing" here was because Lin Yuan himself didn't dislike the script.
If he had made up his mind not to act, the script would never have been mentioned.
Feng Zeng knew Lin Yuan too well.
It was precisely because Lin Yuan was not bound by any particular type of role that Li Mobei invited him.
Generally speaking, once Lin Yuan reaches his current level of fame, his TV series has become a hit, he has representative works, and his popularity is rising rapidly. He is in the stage of consolidating his position by playing well-liked characters, and villainous roles are not within Lin Yuan's consideration.
The key to attracting and retaining fans lies in having a handsome and sophisticated character.
Lin Yuan, however, was completely unrestrained.
Being villains and avengers doesn't mean that every character has the same personality.
On the contrary, in the scripts Lin Yuan received, the villains were more diverse than the protagonists.
Su Kai in "Killing" is also very interesting.
"You really won't answer?" Feng Zeng asked him again.
"Let me think about it," Lin Yuan said.
Upon seeing the name Li Mobei, Lin Yuan knew that "Killing" wouldn't be of too bad quality.
To allay his concerns, the production team even sent him the complete script.
Ni Heng didn't actually have Su Kai's complete storyline. He did get Su Kai's script, but the plot twist in Su Kai's character was filmed without the actor's awareness.
The past was covered up with words like "dream" and "fantasy," since this part of the plot was originally in the script anyway.
Lin Yuan has the most complete script at hand.
The production team genuinely hoped he would take the role and paid Lin Yuan a very substantial salary.
"So much for them? And how many days will it take to film?" Lin Yuan was already asking around.
"Wow, he's really rich." Lin Yuan exclaimed with envy. "No wonder Li Mobei can afford to buy oranges by the basketful."
Feng Zeng: "? Is that the point?"
"This is very important," Lin Yuan insisted. "Extremely important."
Lin Yuan hesitated for a while.
He suspected that his own agent had given Li Mobei a suggestion, asking Li Mobei to show his sincerity again, since he hadn't agreed at first, and it would seem too eager for him to agree later.
When Li Mobei invited him again, it was clear that Lin Yuan couldn't refuse the repeated invitations and finally accepted the script.
Li Mobei: "...Just answer it already, stop wasting time."
Lin Yuan: "Where is your sincerity? Where is the sincerity you showed just now?"
"You've changed quite a bit in a while," Li Mobei remarked. "I'll send a message to Director Qin right now."
"Stop, don't send anymore, I'll just answer it."
If Li Mobei were to tattle on Qin Dao, he would definitely be ridiculed.
Lin Yuan and Qin Panyun did not lose contact, but they were both busy and their contact was not as frequent.
Whenever Lin Yuan achieved even the smallest success in his career, Qin Panyun would send him a congratulatory message.
Qin Panyun has been paying close attention to his growth.
To some extent, Lin Yuan was brought into the film and television industry by Qin Panyun. As Lin Yuan made progress step by step, Qin Panyun was genuinely happy for him.
Qin Panyun didn't care about Lin Yuan just because of a compliment like "good taste." Even if it wasn't Lin Yuan, but any other actor she had worked with, Qin Panyun would still care about him sincerely.
Although Qin Panyun has directed many films, "Thousand Mountains" is still a very special one for him.
...
In short, Lin Yuan has been confirmed to join the cast of "Killing".
The role was very short, so director Zhong Xinghai agreed, as long as Lin Yuan didn't delay the filming of "Mandala".
Ni Heng's situation is the kind of situation that directors fear most, so Zhong Xinghai was willing to understand the "Killing" crew.
They wouldn't borrow Lin Yuan unless it was absolutely necessary.
There's nothing we can do; the actor himself is in jail, but filming still has to continue.
Now that things have come to this, how can we possibly give up?
Moreover, the "Killing" crew includes a big name like Li Mobei, making it a project that the actors are clearly looking forward to. This kind of movie is unlikely to be easily abandoned.
“If our crew encountered this situation, I probably wouldn’t be as mentally prepared as Director Ge.” Zhong Xinghai patted his chest and complained to screenwriter Liu Ge, “I really considered working with Ni Heng before, but now that I think about it, I’m glad I didn’t, otherwise I don’t know how that drama would have ended.”
"The neighbors next door are really miserable."
Zhong Xinghai even gave Lin Yuan two extra days off so that he could carefully study the script and not get his roles mixed up because he had too many characters to play.
Filming for "Mandala" had been going on for a while, and he hadn't worried about Lin Yuan at all.
Lin Yuan is very reliable. Even if he were given ten more days off, let alone two more days, he would still be able to put his best effort into the performance.
Lin Yuan went to work as a temporary worker at the neighboring film studio "Killing".
In return for director Zhong Xinghai's generosity, the production team of "Killing" also borrowed several actors to make cameo appearances for the "Mandala" crew.
They even helped the "Mandala" production team solve a few minor problems.
Recently, Zhong Xinghai has been all smiles, constantly saying things like "Lin Yuan did a great job inviting him, Lin Yuan did a great job inviting him." If it weren't for the fact that Lin Yuan himself was willing to take the role, he would really have the illusion that he had been sold out.
“How can you sell things about the film crew?” Zhong Xinghai said. “That sounds so awful.”
Lin Yuan: "..."
The director's expression looked even more suspicious.
In addition, given that Zhong Xinghai has also directed films and is a master of the dark style, he took some time one day to visit the set of "Killing" and had a lively conversation with director Ge Peng.
After Lin Yuan finished filming a scene, he noticed that both directors were staring intently at him.
Lin Yuan: "..."
Oh no, the feeling of being sold is getting stronger.
In his daily life, Su Kai is quite ordinary, the kind of person you wouldn't notice in a crowd. When the ending takes a dramatic turn, some people might think that his usual demeanor was an act.
However, this is not the case.
Su Kai is the kind of person who lives like a normal person on a daily basis, but his way of thinking is different from that of ordinary people.
He is more stubborn; once he has something he believes in, he will go down a path to the bitter end, regardless of the cost.
He wears black-rimmed glasses, which conceal his ordinariness and commonplace nature. But once he reveals his true thoughts, his extremism and complete immersion in them are frightening.
Gu Yilou is indeed crazy, but Gu Yilou will not appear in the daily lives of ordinary people.
Su Kai, however, was different.
When his gaze fixed directly on the protagonist, the light in his eyes... made it impossible to meet his gaze.
Apart from Li Mobei, none of the other members of the "Killing" crew had ever worked with Lin Yuan.
In other words, after Lin Yuan entered performance mode, only Li Mobei reacted immediately and gave a quick response.
No one else realized that the moment the director yelled "Action," Lin Yuan's image was shattered.
He was a stubborn person whose aura was in no way inferior to Li Mobei's.
He doesn't have a special identity to fight against the protagonist, nor is he particularly strong in combat, but his belief... ranks first among the characters.
His conviction made him the sole disruptor.
He doesn't have any brilliance, so he's easily overlooked.
Many people died in "Killing," including many guys who were far more remarkable than Su Kai.
Some people die under mysterious circumstances.
But no one ever doubted Su Kai.
Because he is weak, he is a pathetic wretch, and he got to where he is today entirely by strange positioning and outrageously good luck.
Nobody thought he would make it to the end.
Therefore, no one guessed that it was he, the weak one, who silently led those who were stronger than him into a deadly predicament.
Su Kai has two main scenes with Li Mobei. One is at the end, where the protagonist, played by Li Mobei, expresses his disappointment and tries to lecture him, but all his efforts are in vain.
Su Kai didn't yell or scream, nor did he panic or feel lost. Instead, he became even more steadfast in his beliefs.
All those stronger than him are dead, and he has come this far through his beliefs. Doesn't that prove that his beliefs are absolutely correct?
He will only become more determined.
To everyone on set, Lin Yuan's performance at that moment only made them feel a chilling aura.
Li Mobei's acting skills are well-known, but Lin Yuan, standing opposite Li Mobei, is in no way inferior.
He even had a faint smile on his lips, an image of someone terminally ill and trapped in his own beliefs.
It remains a comparison between strong and weak.
However... judging from the shadows reflected on the wall, it's hard to tell which is stronger or weaker.
Su Kai didn't think he had lost, so he looked at the protagonist opposite him and said, "The fact that I've stayed this long means that you're the one who lost."
The director focused the camera on Su Kai's gaze hidden behind his black-rimmed glasses. Su Kai's pupils were clearly visible. The character Lin Yuan was not wearing makeup, so his wrinkles were also visible—through the wrinkles, the audience could discern the emotions expressed in his eyes.
That was definitely not the look of an ordinary person content with their daily life.
It was a deeper, more aggressive gaze that made people hesitant to meet its eyes.
In terms of appearance, Lin Yuan himself is actually very approachable.
But perhaps it is precisely because of his appearance that he can seamlessly switch between different characters.
One second he's a gentleman, the next he's devouring flesh and blood—the contrast is striking.
This is a scene between Lin Yuan and Li Mobei.
Whether it's "Thousand Mountains" or "Killing", the endings are the type where the protagonist seems to win, but in reality, he doesn't.
In today's movies, as long as you add modifiers like "human nature reflection" or "tragedy," the protagonist can forget about winning easily.
Pure action movies are actually better. Usually, the villains don't have much of a chance to express themselves, and getting beaten to a pulp is the only outcome.
After filming the scene, Li Mobei raised his fist and bumped it with Lin Yuan's: "Thanks."
"I only came because of the money."
"Even so, I appreciate your kindness," Li Mobei said. "If you need any help next time, just give me a call."
During a break in filming, while the director wasn't looking in their direction, Li Mobei whispered to Lin Yuan, "See you at the Golden Wing Awards next year."
Lin Yuan: "...So confident?"
"You think this film is no good?" Li Mobei asked him in return.
"It's possible, but I'm not mentally prepared yet."
"Stop pretending." Li Mobei patted him. "You didn't need to prepare yourself mentally for what you just did."
In Li Mobei's view, Lin Yuan is the kind of actor who can win big awards anytime, anywhere; he can get into character as soon as he starts acting.
Absolutely gifted.
Of course, Lin Yuan himself did not waste his talent. He was hardworking, thoughtful about his roles, and did not get bogged down in endless, boring roles of the same type.
There's a type of actor who's quite good at acting, but when faced with a highlight moment in a role, they tend to overact, as if they're holding back all their energy to announce to the world, "I'm going all out!"
Lin Yuan's acting is subtle and understated, with a consistently high overall level. He can easily push his boundaries when needed, and his acting never stays on the same level throughout; there are always ups and downs.
Another major scene featuring the character Su Kai is his flashback.
In "Killing," the character whose fighting ability is second only to the protagonist is killed.
Everyone assumed that he had encountered a formidable opponent after being separated from his own forces, and that he had been unable to win, which led to his tragic end.
He did encounter a formidable opponent, but he was not outmatched.
He fought hard, but was seriously injured.
At this time, he met Su Kai.
Although he usually looked down on Su Kai, at this moment, Su Kai was undoubtedly his salvation. Whether it was moving him to a safe place or calling for help, he was able to survive safely.
Then, the next second, his hopeful eyes dimmed.
Su Kai was very calm, a calmness that was frightening.
Facing the pleading gaze, the same person who routinely ridiculed and looked down on him, Su Kai showed no smugness, only calmness.
Then, he raised the knife and, without hesitation, aimed it at his heart, just once.
Not many.
Because he wasn't a bloodthirsty madman.
He paused briefly, then stood up, calmly turned around amidst the other person's astonished gaze, and left the scene.
Su Kai's terrifying quality lies in his calmness.
He did it very quietly, without anyone noticing, and he himself was not afraid of being discovered; his hand was frighteningly steady.
Ge Peng: "..."
In the director's mind, this scene shouldn't have been performed this way.
But after Lin Yuan's performance, the director suddenly realized that Lin Yuan's acting style seemed to be better than he had expected.
To some extent, the character of Su Kai in the script is incongruous. Who can be both ordinary and quiet, and also obsessive and terrifying?
Unless the actor is exceptionally talented, possessing both a thorough understanding of the character and a keen ability to distinguish its nuances, it is almost impossible to master such a role.
Ge Peng now believes that Lin Yuan is the kind of actor who can turn the impossible into the possible; what is very difficult for others may be easy for him.
Ge Peng gave Li Mobei a look, and Li Mobei walked over. The director then said, "Do you have Lin Yuan's WeChat? Send it to me."
Li Mobei: "..."
really.
Every director who has worked with Lin Yuan eventually ends up with the same fate—falling in love with Lin Yuan.
If you want Lin Yuan's WeChat, just ask for it yourself. Why are you looking for him?
Despite his inner complaints, Li Mobei still recommended Lin Yuan to Ge Peng.
"If a suitable role comes along next time, I would like to work with him again."
Ge Peng sighed, "Why didn't I find Lin Yuan sooner?"
Although he is a film director, Ge Peng is the type of person who doesn't look at other works at all during the film preparation period, because he is worried that it will affect his performance.
Especially works with similar themes and character designs.
"Thousand Mountains" is also included in this list, so Ge Peng has not read it yet.
"It's fortunate that Lin Yuan saved the day this time."
Otherwise, the director wouldn't know what to do at all.
The production team of "Killing" put a lot of effort into the character of Su Kai. When Ni Heng got into trouble, the director was furious. If the production team hadn't been rushing to meet the deadline, the director would have definitely gone to visit Ni Heng and given him a good scolding.
What terrible luck he had to run into such a despicable person.
Ge Peng racked his brains to find a successor for Ni Heng.
From this perspective, Lin Yuan's joining means that there is always a way out.
Otherwise, out of so many film crews, why was the "Mandala" crew next to the "Killing" crew?
Lin Yuan didn't even need to take a plane to get here; he could have come in just a few steps.
Fate, this is absolutely incredible fate.
Lin Yuan's acting skills are definitely superior to Ni Heng's; the director doesn't even need to check carefully—anyone with eyes can see that.
Therefore, the fact that Lin Yuan replaced Ni Heng was actually a benefit for the "Killing" production team.
Do you really think it's so easy to win the Golden Wing Award for Best Supporting Actor?
"Killing" was absolutely lucky.
If Ni Heng hadn't had that accident, the production team might not have been able to invite Lin Yuan.
Ge Peng now feels that it would be best if Ni Heng stayed there for a long time, and ideally never appeared again.
If nothing unexpected happens, the other party should not show up again.
Lin Yuan's portrayal of Su Kai also inspired the director's creative passion. Although Lin Yuan's performance was not yet finished, the director had already conceived how his scenes would be presented and edited.
Before the actors were finalized, the director also lacked creative enthusiasm and was preoccupied with finding the right people.
The casting director recommended other people, including himself, the screenwriter... everyone was offering advice.
However, the actors either had scheduling conflicts or Ge Peng didn't approve of them, which delayed the filming schedule and made the director extremely anxious.
From this perspective, Lin Yuan is a savior, a godsend.
There will definitely be opportunities to cooperate in the future.
...
For Lin Yuan, saving the day with "Killing" had a huge effect—after that, Ge Peng would praise Lin Yuan to the extreme no matter where he appeared.
First, he was one of the judges for the Golden Wing Awards, and when interviewed by the media, he quickly steered the conversation towards Lin Yuan.
"The quality of actors, such as Lin Yuan, whom I've worked with..."
Secondly, when multiple directors were present, Ge Peng didn't hesitate to praise Lin Yuan: "None of you have ever worked with Lin Yuan? What a pity!"
Finally, when Ge Peng was serving as a judge at an overseas film festival—a fairly well-known one at that—he suddenly remarked, "This actor's performance gave me a sense of familiarity, just like in our domestic film festival..."
Lin Yuan: "..."
Numbness, sluggishness, fainting.
After hearing it so many times, he didn't even think that Ge Peng appreciated him. He just felt that... others probably thought that he had given Ge Peng a lot of money and given him a task list, which was why Ge Peng kept mentioning Lin Yuan in such a big setting.
"Did you feel the director's love?" Li Mobei couldn't help but tease him.
"Are you jealous?" Lin Yuan retorted. "I'll talk to the director and ask him to mention you more."
"That won't be necessary."
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Author's Note: It's here!!! [shy]
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