From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

Once, many people were curious as to why Joan Crawford and Bette Davis, two actresses with an irreconcilable feud, would choose to collaborate on "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?".

Was it the idea of the film company or the director?

No.

It was entirely Joan Crawford's idea, and she personally persuaded Bette Davis.

Joan Crawford, a screen goddess of her generation, renowned for her beauty, spent her entire life proving that she was not just a pretty face, but also a talented actress.

Bette Davis, one of the greatest actresses in Hollywood history, possessed talent and gifts that aroused envy, but she was often ostracized, criticized, and ridiculed because her appearance was considered less attractive.

Joan Crawford envied Bette Davis because her performances always received thunderous applause, while her own efforts were never truly recognized.

Bette Davis resented Joan Crawford because, no matter how outstanding and excellent she was, Joan Crawford could effortlessly attract attention.

Joan yearned for recognition of her acting skills, and Bette craved validation of her existence; these were the reasons why the two women collaborated on "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?".

However, reality remained cruel and ironic—

"So, instead of worrying about labels restricting me, I've decided to relax and enjoy the scenery along the way."

Calm and composed.

Anson's words flowed freely, not like profound truths or self-help platitudes, but simply shared thoughts between friends, like a babbling brook, merrily and lightly rushing forward.

Involuntarily, Scarlett turned to look at Anson.

Anson slightly raised his head, allowing the sunlight to gently fall upon his face, and Scarlett couldn't help but trace the contours of his face, outlined by the golden light, with her eyes; time slowed down, and everything quieted down.

Then.

Anson spoke, "What are you looking at?"

Scarlett was taken aback, "You."

Anson, "How?"

Scarlett, "Not bad."

The back-and-forth exchange, a silent confrontation without yielding an inch, subtly allowed both of them to relax; the muscles in Anson's shoulders and arms completely relaxed, fully bathed in the sunlight, "Thank you."

This made the corners of Scarlett's lips involuntarily curve upward slightly.

They seemed to have said a lot, and yet seemed to have said nothing at all, but the restless and chaotic thoughts slowly calmed down; even though the questions in their minds remained unanswered, the scene before them suddenly became clear, and the heavy stone that weighed on their shoulders and chest quietly fell away.

"\n... So, are you sure you're only nineteen? Is there a mistake on your birth certificate?"

"Okay, you caught me. Actually, I'm already forty-nine years old this year."

"Please don't use such a serious tone, I'll actually believe you."

"Please do."

"..."

Anson turned his head and saw the undisguised eye-roll from Scarlett, and immediately burst into cheerful laughter, startling the birds in the sky for a moment.

In the distance, a call came, joining the clamor, and the air became lively again—

"Scarlett. Scarlett!"

Following the sound, they saw Chris Evans, who had volunteered to come, jogging over, his expression relaxed.

"Filming, it's about to start again."

Chris raised both hands and waved vigorously at Anson, like standing on the ocean signaling with signal flags, his exaggerated and obvious movements conveying his cheerfulness from afar.

Scarlett glanced at Anson, her head full of question marks: Is that golden retriever yours?

Anson looked completely innocent.

Scarlett looked back, "Was the transition scene filmed well?"

Chris shook his head, "No. But the director said that regardless of whether it's good or not, he's not going to waste time on the transition scene anymore, we must be ready."

"Ha. Ha." Scarlett chuckled dryly, "It's as if he can keep his promise."

Chris spread his hands, "But we don't seem to have a reason to refuse."

Scarlett didn't struggle anymore, looked left and right, and was thinking about how to get down, when she saw Anson stretch out his long legs and land smoothly.

Then, Anson turned to look at Scarlett, extending his right hand in a gesture: Need help?

Scarlett was covered in black lines.

Looking down at the distance between her legs and the ground, Scarlett silently stood up, returned to the steps, and obediently returned to the ground along the stairs.

Ignoring Anson throughout.

But Scarlett clearly saw Anson and Chris exchange a look: Damn it! These two long legs.

The filming of "Super Perfect Score" resumed.

A short afternoon tea break, although not long, replenished some sugar, enlivened the atmosphere, and the heavy haze that had shrouded them gradually dissipated, and it was obvious that the atmosphere of the crew had relaxed.

Whether it was for this reason or not, the transition scenes of the extras were filmed surprisingly smoothly:

One take.

"Cut. Okay, next scene."

Everything was so simple and smooth that the crew was a little unable to react.

Could it be that... Brian kept his word, no longer obsessed with the details of the transition scenes, and really just filmed casually as he said? Or did Anson's appearance relax the extras, truly getting them into the state that Brian required?

The truth is unknown.

In any case, no one could see what Brian was pursuing or carving in that transition scene, and no one could say whether it was good or bad.

In short, it was a good thing to be able to pass smoothly—

The extras obviously relaxed.

Regardless of what others said, the extras still credited Anson, believing that Anson's appearance had brought a positive impact to the crew; when filming ended, one or two of them gave Anson a thumbs up, completely ignoring Brian's high-spirited posture of directing the country.

Later, from Vancouver to Los Angeles, various rumors spread among the extras, how troublesome and incomprehensible Brian was, and how kind, humorous, and subtly Anson resolved difficulties.

No one had expected that Anson's reputation would actually usher in a wave of increase.

Brian: ? ? ?

If the transition scene was too simple to see the reason, then the scenes filmed by the main actors next could be obviously different.

Whether it was Chris or Scarlett, the actors did find their state back.

Although Brian still shouted "NG" and continued to rant and scold, after a few short adjustments, he still reaped satisfactory filming—

Everything went smoothly.

Brian was very happy about this, as expected, he was still well-trained, he was indeed an excellent director, look, all the actors were under his control.

However, Chris and Scarlett and others cast their gazes towards Anson, with slightly flickering eyes that wrote the tacit understanding that only they understood.

But, is that important?

No, it's not important.

The important thing is that the filming of "Super Perfect Score" has finally entered the right track; as for those credits, those reputations, those rumors are another matter, and everyone in the crew has their own judgment in their hearts.

Fairness, resides in the hearts of the people.