From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

The filming of "Catch Me If You Can" went smoothly.

Steven hadn't anticipated the surprises that Anson could bring, and Anson likewise hadn't expected to find creative joy in filmmaking.

Looking back from his previous life, "Catch Me If You Can" emphasized entertainment, like popcorn, and even faced considerable criticism for being too lighthearted, presenting the story in a playful and teasing manner.

Conservative figures argued that Steven shouldn't tell a crime story with such a cheerful approach, as it might set a bad example for teenagers, highlighting the film's entertainment value.

However, the actual filming process was unexpectedly full of passion, with the collision of ideas, character research, and the coordination of acting and directing opening a door to a whole new world.

The real revelation for Anson was that people often think popcorn movies lack substance, but in reality, making a great popcorn movie isn't easy.

This applied to both the director's orchestration and the actors' performances.

Of course, overall, the atmosphere on set was still relaxed and cheerful, with the film's comedic nature ensuring a relaxed mindset during filming.

This was especially true for Anson.

Previously, in "The Princess Diaries" and "Spider-Man," Anson had already filmed love scenes, twice as a pure love warrior, and a naive first love at that.

This time, "Catch Me If You Can" was slightly different.

Although Frank Abagnale Jr. was still a "pure love warrior," desperately seeking his true love and trying to build a family, his lifestyle of constant lies and escapes meant he couldn't settle down in a relationship and had to cover one lie with another.

Thus, Anson had another new filming experience.

The female lead in "Catch Me If You Can" was Amy Adams, who was still relatively unknown at the time.

This excellent actress, who later rose to fame with "Enchanted" and received multiple Oscar nominations, had a bumpy career in her early years, always lacking a role that would allow her to shine.

In this film, Amy partnered with Anson, playing a naive nurse who falls madly in love with Frank.

They even planned to get married, and Frank sincerely prepared to settle down with her, leaving his previous criminal life behind, but ultimately, he was defeated by his past.

Interestingly, Amy and Kirsten Dunst had worked together on "Get Over It" two years prior and remained in contact.

Because Kirsten had just worked with Anson on "Spider-Man," Amy and Anson quickly became familiar with each other, laying a good foundation for filming, and they sparked quite a bit of chemistry.

Of course, that wasn't all.

Allen Pompeo, who hadn't yet become the lead in "Grey's Anatomy," and Jennifer Garner, who had just entered the public eye through the series "Alias," both had scenes with Anson in the movie, with the entire dazzling universe revolving around Anson.

However, the most interesting was Elizabeth Banks.

This classic blonde who frequently appeared in comedy films later directed "Pitch Perfect 2" and became a box-office female director, and as an actress, she also appeared in hit movies such as "The Hunger Games," "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," and "Magic Mike XXL."

And now?

This twenty-seven-year-old actress was still trying to find a place on the big screen.

In "Catch Me If You Can," she played a bank clerk who taught Frank some key details about making checks, undoubtedly a very important role.

The interesting part wasn't just that; it was that Elizabeth had auditioned for the role of Mary Jane in "Spider-Man" but was rejected for being too old.

Despite this, she still got a small role, as the secretary to the editor-in-chief at the newspaper where Peter Parker worked, and she also had scenes with Anson.

In a twist of fate, from "Spider-Man" to "Catch Me If You Can," Anson and Elizabeth collaborated on two consecutive projects, and this time it went even further.

Although Elizabeth still wasn't the female lead, this time her role had more scenes with Anson, and age wasn't an obstacle to their second collaboration.

When Anson saw Elizabeth on set, he was not only surprised but also delighted.

Now Anson finally understood why people always said that Hollywood was a small circle.

Although the Screen Actors Guild had 400,000 members, only the top 10% of actors appeared in mainstream productions, creating a tight-knit community.

Especially as a prophet, Anson could "see" the future, and he clearly knew the future trajectories of these actors.

Combined with their current collaboration, everything became even more interesting.

Later, during a break in filming, Anson learned from Jennifer Garner that her breakthrough role in Hollywood was in a series called "Felicity," and the male lead of the series was Scott Speedman—the handsome guy who lost the role of Peter Parker to Anson.

"Oh, I'm sure he didn't say anything nice," Anson said frankly.

Jennifer nodded, "Yes, he, uh, you wouldn't want to hear those words."

"Haha, I accept it," Anson shrugged.

In fact, Hollywood is just a circle.

It was in this relaxed and cheerful atmosphere that the filming of "Catch Me If You Can" went exceptionally smoothly, much to the satisfaction of the two big shots on set, Steven and Tom.

Originally, Steven had set an eighty-day filming schedule, aiming to complete filming within three months, including unexpected events and contingencies; but later, filming became smoother and more efficient, and "Catch Me If You Can" wrapped up in Montreal in just fifty-four days.

A whole month ahead of schedule!

It was clear that this was a complaint.

Steven remained calm, "Then, should we reshoot some scenes?"

Tom immediately changed his expression, "Rita has already booked a resort. Don't you dare frame me. After two months of hard work, my old bones need a rest."

Jokes aside, Tom was right.

Fifty-four days was already a long enough filming period, and more importantly, the crew was operating at high speed every day.

To ensure work efficiency, every step had to be flawless; and, to ensure that there would be no deviation in each person's work, everyone had their own preparations to make during their free time outside the eight-hour filming day.

Incredibly, Anson lost weight during the nearly two months of filming.

If he hadn't consistently maintained his daily fitness routine during filming, the muscles he had worked so hard to build while filming "Spider-Man" might have started to disappear, but even so, he would still need to work hard in the coming period.

Anyway, finally, before summer arrived, "Catch Me If You Can" wrapped up.