Chapter 107: Joker, Your Arrival

United States, Los Angeles.

City of Angels, Entertainment Capital, Sunshine City.

There is an old saying that every day in LA is sunny.

Chen Nuo and Qi Yuntian, in this sunny Los Angeles, took the work certificate from Wong Kar-wai's crew and successfully registered at the Hollywood actors' union (SAG-AFTRA). From then on, Chen Nuo became an official member of SAG-AFTRA.

Theoretically, from today on, he was a proper actor who could take roles normally in Hollywood. Afterward, he could also participate in the casting of any movie and be protected by the union in terms of performance duration, rights, and working conditions. And this was the first step for any actor who wanted to succeed in Hollywood.

The next day, they set off at 8:00 AM, facing the morning sun, to meet the Nolan brothers and audition for a role that went against the sunshine of Los Angeles.

Chen Nuo had never had such ambition for a role.

When he decided to compete with Heath Ledger, he especially wanted to win this role.

It wasn't just because Heath Ledger would die, nor was it just because this role eventually won an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, and it wasn't even because of Nolan.

It was because he liked this role.

But that was also nonsense; as long as male audiences who had seriously watched the movie "The Dark Knight" were concerned, there was probably no one who wouldn't be captivated by Heath Ledger's god-level performance.

He was just one of them. Otherwise, how could someone have filmed a brilliant biography for the Joker more than ten years later, and the male lead even won an Oscar for Best Actor?

It could only be said that for anyone in the acting business, if the opportunity was placed in front of them, who wouldn't want to try this role?

What's more, Chen Nuo felt that filming "My Blueberry Nights" and then immediately auditioning for "The Dark Knight" was simply an arrangement by heaven.

He was clear about his current state.

He hadn't come out of character yet. He was like a dejected person who had walked out of the dark literary film "My Blueberry Nights."

He was poor, he was lonely, he had witnessed countless joys and sorrows, and he had seen through the prosperity and desolation.

He had no one to love, and no one to love him.

He was like a worm crawling at the bottom of a big city, either to be eaten or to become some kind of deformed monster.

Jeremy before meeting Elizabeth was simply the prequel to the Joker.

The difference between the two seemed to be only age, the wound on the mouth, the white mud on the face, and the opportunity to transform into a monster.

That was all.

At this time, Christopher Nolan was still slightly green. Although "Batman Begins" had brought him into Hollywood's mainstream film circle, "The Dark Knight," which would thoroughly establish his status, was still in the casting stage.

In fact, only one role remained uncast.

Christopher Nolan didn't know what was going on with Jonathan at first, why after a trip to Hong Kong, he inexplicably proposed whether they could reconsider the candidate for the Joker role.

Even the candidate he proposed was even more ridiculous—it was actually a 19-year-old Chinese boy.

Let him replace Heath Ledger, who had contributed a brilliant performance in "Brokeback Mountain"?

This was simply unbelievable.

But later, his attitude gradually softened.

It wasn't because of Jonathan's recommendation, nor was it because of the boy's award-winning work.

After all, that was just a rough art film. He had watched it, but couldn't see anything, only knowing that this boy was indeed an actor who could act and acted well.

Of course, this was also the most basic and indispensable condition.

Without this foundation, there was no need to talk about anything else.

The main reason Christopher Nolan changed his mind was that after several phone calls and one meeting, he discovered that Jonathan was absolutely right.

The filming of "Brokeback Mountain" had caused Heath Ledger's internal consumption to be too severe. When he met him, he could see the look of impending madness in the young man's eyes.

If he played the Joker, Nolan believed it was indeed very likely to cause the balance within him to completely lose control. At that time, it might lead to a situation that couldn't be cleaned up.

Although Nolan felt that film was above everything, if there was no choice, he had no way. But now, it seemed a choice that wasn't a choice had appeared, right?

Then let's meet. Since he chose to meet, with Christopher Nolan's rigorous and serious personality, it definitely wouldn't be like Wong Kar-wai, drinking tea and chatting in private.

This was a commercial blockbuster with an investment of over 100 million US dollars, not some test-the-water literary film by a well-known Asian director.

So, Nolan not only invited the film's producer Charles Roven, invited the co-producer and his wife Emma Thomas, but also invited the Warner Vice President and long-time producer of the Batman series, Michael Uslan, and even summoned all relevant staff to prepare to meet this young actor from China in a dedicated audition room inside Warner Bros.

Michael Uslan was satisfied that Nolan contacted him in the first place. Michael Uslan was also satisfied that he placed the audition location inside Warner.

However, he was very dissatisfied with the actor being auditioned.

On the phone, after Nolan told him the name of the actor being auditioned, 10 minutes later, Chen Nuo's entire film resume was on his desk.

After reading it, Michael Uslan just wanted to say one thing: WTF?

Berlin Best Actor? So what?

That was a self-entertainment of a group of loser filmmakers.

Besides that, what else was there?

Oh, a Hong Kong musical and a Chinese martial arts series.

After reading these materials, Michael Uslan couldn't help but laugh; he thought Nolan was joking with him.

However, after communicating with Nolan again, Michael Uslan understood that Nolan just wanted to meet him first, and hadn't decided to replace him yet.

Since that was the case, then like Nolan, let's meet.

At 9:00 AM, Chen Nuo and Qi Yuntian arrived at Warner on time.

Qi Yuntian stayed in the outer room to wait. According to Hollywood convention, Chen Nuo would go to the audition alone.

Although he had some expectations for the production specifications of "The Dark Knight," Chen Nuo didn't expect that in such a large audition room, with so many seats, it would be packed full.

A sea of white, all white foreigners, with a few blacks scattered in. Most were men, and only a few women sat in the back row.

It had to be said, this was very Hollywood.

Seeing the old white men in the front row, all in suits and ties, full of momentum, Chen Nuo, who was brought into the room by the front desk secretary, was momentarily stunned.

Since so many people came, it was impossible to introduce everyone one by one. So, recommender Jonathan Nolan introduced the actor to everyone present and also introduced the few important figures at the scene to Chen Nuo.

Immediately following, Christopher Nolan, whose hairline hadn't receded too much yet, invited Chen Nuo to sit in the seat directly in front to prepare to officially start the audition.

Chen Nuo sat on a lonely chair opposite everyone. One person facing 30 people.

Just like a scene in a Bruce Lee movie.

1 yellow skin vs 30 white skins.

Swords drawn and bows bent.

The first of the 30 to speak was Charles Roven.

He was a newly promoted producer in Hollywood. Although his resume was still shallow at the moment, in the future, he would cooperate with Warner to produce many big-selling works, such as "Wonder Woman" and "Justice League."

And the beginning of his successful career was this "Batman 2: The Dark Knight."

Charles Roven was a tall and thin middle-aged white man around 40 at this time. He wore a pair of tortoiseshell glasses, and his blue eyes cast a cold gaze from behind the lenses, patrolling Chen Nuo's body.

He said in a distant and serious tone, "Chen, before the audition starts, I hope you can first give us a reason to watch your audition. After all, from every aspect, you are a certain distance from the Joker we imagine. Please tell us, why shouldn't we think that meeting you here is just a waste of our time?"

No bullshit polite talk, Charles Roven's question was straightforward and merciless.

This was Hollywood.

An actor, no matter how many halos he had won outside Hollywood, no matter what kind of superstar he was in his own country, as long as you hadn't proven yourself in this La La Land, no one would take you seriously.

What politeness?

You are 100 million dollars in box office away from politeness.

Especially since you come from backward China, especially since you are only 19, especially since you are yellow-skinned, especially since you are not a martial arts star, and not even a sexy beauty.

Then are you qualified to talk about politeness with Warner's producers?

Moreover, it was clear that more than just Charles Roven thought it was a waste of time.

Because Chen Nuo noticed that almost everyone in the conference room was looking at him with a scrutinizing gaze, waiting for his answer.

(End of Chapter) ===== CHAPTER 108 =====