After Gilbert left, Emma Watson excitedly posted a social media update.
"From childhood, this has been a dream I've always wanted to achieve, and now it's finally real. I'm so happy."
She even attached a selfie of herself.
Fans had no idea what Emma Watson meant, leaving comments wishing her dreams come true and complimenting her beauty.
No one could have imagined that their beloved Hermione Granger, after a night of her private "games," had completely become someone else's treasured possession.
Back at Melon Studios, Gilbert returned to work. Cameron Diaz came over carrying a pile of files and immediately noticed the scent of perfume on Gilbert.
"Strange, it's neither Naomi, nor Sally, and certainly not Scarlett."
Cameron Diaz pressed Gilbert, "Tell me, which woman did you sleep with last night?"
"No way?" Gilbert was shocked. "You could even smell that?"
"Of course," Cameron Diaz said proudly. "My nose is very sensitive. You took down Emma Watson, didn't you?"
"How did you know?" Gilbert asked, even more surprised.
Cameron Diaz grinned wider. "You think I wouldn't know? I suppressed the video of you and Emma dancing hotly in the bar yesterday. Otherwise, this morning it would have been all over the gossip headlines."
"Alright!" Gilbert thanked Cameron Diaz. "Thank you for Emma, Michelle. Otherwise, a sudden scandal could have hurt her popularity a lot."
"You men, always hypocritical, forever favoring your little wives."
Returning to the "Inception" project: after Ellen Page and Kate Winslet were confirmed to star, the film continued announcing other cast members.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt would play Arthur, British actor Tom Hardy would play Eames, and Simon Pegg, recommended by Tom Cruise, would play pharmacist Yusuf.
Michael Caine, after playing Alfred in "The Dark Knight," would continue working with Gilbert as Leonardo DiCaprio's father-in-law.
Gilbert's father, Old Gilbert, would play Peter Browning, the target character's uncle.
As for the target character Fischer, Gilbert didn't follow the British connections from his previous life with Christopher Nolan. Since Robert Downey Jr. expressed interest, Gilbert assigned the role to him.
Robert Downey Jr. was thrilled to receive the role and couldn't wait to announce on social media that he would be working with Gilbert on a film.
With the addition of Hong Kong actor Tony Leung Ka-fai, an incredibly massive star-studded lineup had been assembled.
When this cast was announced, The Hollywood Reporter remarked:
"In Hollywood, only Gilbert has the magic to gather so many stars into one film. And it's an original sci-fi movie, yet so many top names are willing to join him on this adventure. This is Gilbert's unique charm—there's no second person like him."
Indeed, under normal pay standards, Disney's $185 million investment wouldn't have been enough; at least $250 million would have been needed.
However, many big stars, especially Kate Winslet and Robert Downey Jr., accepted reduced fees to appear.
The former had just won the Oscar for Best Actress this year, and the latter's "Iron Man 2" was a global hit, cementing his A-list status.
This cast alone didn't just shock Hollywood; it was enough to keep fans eagerly anticipating the film.
"I'm so excited. I can't wait to see the sparks fly between these actors on screen."
"Oh my God, Jack and Rose, I see them together again!"
"Oh my gosh, is this real? Robert Downey Jr. is in this film too?"
"I'm really curious—what story is this even telling?"
Of course, it wasn't just excitement; skepticism also existed.
It was well known that the concept of dreams was usually obscure and hard to understand. Previous Hollywood works about dreams rarely achieved major market success.
For example, David Lynch's 2001 "Mulholland Dream" didn't make much impact.
So it wasn't surprising that some media and viewers remained doubtful. If Gilbert hadn't known the previous life success of "Inception," he might have doubted it too.
However, given Gilbert's reputation over the years, such doubts were minimal. His previous achievements were so brilliant that people assumed he wouldn't fail.
Another question was the choice of Mr. Huang, a tycoon from Hong Kong.
Initially, Gilbert didn't want to make changes, keeping a tycoon from the island. Ken Watanabe was also a familiar face in Hollywood, recognizable and widely accepted by audiences.
But later, Gilbert thought, the cast had changed significantly. With Robert Downey Jr. and Kate Winslet participating, why not make a few more adjustments?
So when Jackie Chan came to attend Gilbert's birthday party, Gilbert asked for his opinion. Jackie Chan recommended Zun Long(John Lone).
Gilbert thought this choice was good as well. Zun Long had a decent Hollywood presence and was fairly well-known. North American audiences would recognize him, making him a solid choice.
However, when the crew invited Zun Long, he declined. He had gradually stepped away from the film industry and didn't want to take on any more projects.
Everyone has their own aspirations. Gilbert could only say it was a pity and then extended an invitation to another Hong Kong actor, Tony Leung Ka-fai.
Although Tony Leung hadn't worked in Hollywood before, Gilbert highly respected his skills and professionalism.
Tony Leung hesitated at first, but after receiving the script and learning that the director was Gilbert—not some minor Hollywood director—he accepted the role.
It's worth noting that Jackie Chan also brought the casino king's daughter, He Chaoyi. Gilbert satisfied her fans' wishes with autographs and photos without skipping a beat.
Since the tycoon's background had changed, the set design needed to be adjusted. The original Japanese-style architecture was replaced with Chinese-style buildings, and exterior scenes moved from Tokyo to Shanghai.
As for the bullet train scenes, there was no need to worry. The world may only know about Japan's Shinkansen, but China already had several high-speed rail lines, making filming feasible.
Once the cast was assembled, actors who needed action scenes began training with stunt coordinator Luca Farias.
Among them, Joseph Gordon-Levitt was the most troublesome. The rotating hotel scenes were extremely difficult to film, requiring extensive practice.
Gilbert suggested that he use a stunt double, but Joseph refused, saying it would defeat the purpose.
That said, for someone with little experience in action scenes, the process was inevitably painful and grueling.
If anyone was the most excited about participating in this film, it wasn't the lead actors—it was a newcomer, Margot Robbie.
...
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