The Warner Bros. soundstage was enveloped in darkness as Matthew stood with his back to the main camera, appearing to be busy with something. Emma Roberts slowly entered the set, her figure just within the camera's frame. Curious, she looked at Matthew's back and gradually approached him.
"Cobb, what are you doing?" she asked, breaking the silence. "Are you planning to enter the dream alone?"
As if caught in the act, Matthew quickly turned around and denied it, "No, no..." He shook his head, saying, "I was just conducting some experiments. I didn't expect anyone to be here, so..."
He glanced at Emma Roberts' petite figure, her bright eyes blinking a few times in the dim light. "Why are you here?"
Christopher Nolan watched the scene on the monitor and noticed a problem. The lighting on Matthew's face was too harsh, causing his eyes to reflexively blink multiple times. Despite this, Nolan didn't call for a stop and allowed the actors to continue.
"Oh, sorry," Emma Roberts apologized before looking down at the small object in her hand. She then held it up for Matthew to see, "Actually, I was just working on my dream totem."
The light in front of Matthew brightened once more, and the glare caused him to blink again. Nevertheless, he walked over to Emma Roberts, reaching into his pocket. "What is it, Ariadne? Let me take a look."
Emma Roberts quickly hid the object in her pocket, reminding him, "You said no one else should know."
Matthew stopped and smiled, "You're learning fast."
Standing opposite Matthew, Emma Roberts seemed even more delicate and petite next to his tall frame.
"This method of distinguishing between dreams and reality is quite elegant," she remarked, mimicking Matthew's gesture by placing her hands in her pockets. "Was this your idea?"
Matthew's expression darkened slightly, his voice lowering as he replied, "It was Mal's idea."
He then pulled a spinning top from his pocket, holding it in his palm and raising it for Emma Roberts to see. "This top, once it starts spinning in a dream, won't topple."
Emma Roberts stared at the top with curiosity, reaching out to touch it but hesitated and withdrew her hand.
Matthew didn't mind. He walked over to a nearby table and gently spun the top. "In a dream, the top just keeps spinning."
Emma Roberts nodded before asking, "I heard from Arthur that Mal passed away?"
Not wanting to dwell on the topic, Matthew changed the subject, "How's the maze design coming along?"
Just then, the lights brightened again, and after several flashes, Matthew's eyes felt increasingly strained. However, as a dedicated actor, he kept pushing through, knowing that as long as the director hadn't called "cut," he had to keep going.
He was just about to deliver his next line when Christopher Nolan's voice cut through, "Stop! Everyone, stop!"
With the director's command, the crew immediately halted the filming.
Nolan addressed Matthew and Emma Roberts, "It's not your fault." Then, turning to another part of the set, he called out, "Southgate, come over here! How did you adjust the lighting on Matthew's face? It's too bright!"
Filmmaking is often described as a "photochemical dream," where lighting plays a crucial and complex role. While much of the lighting can be adjusted in post-production, the lighting on set is still of utmost importance.
A makeup artist approached to dab the sweat from Matthew's face. He pointed to his eyes and asked, "Can you gently wipe them?"
The repeated exposure to bright lights had caused some discomfort, but after the makeup artist used a special wet wipe to clean his eyes, Matthew felt a bit better.
Emma Roberts walked over, concerned. "Are you okay?"
Matthew blinked a few times, smiling as he replied, "Just a minor issue. I'm fine now."
"I thought the director called 'cut' because we messed up our performance," Emma Roberts said, standing beside Matthew, barely reaching his shoulder. "This role is so much harder than those teen drama roles."
Matthew didn't respond, only nodding slightly.
Emma Roberts, still curious, asked, "The script is so complex, with layers upon layers. It's confusing. I still haven't figured it all out."
"Honestly, neither have I," Matthew admitted with a shrug. "It's pretty bewildering."
If he hadn't seen the movie before, he would have been just as lost by the script. Visual storytelling often conveys things more directly than words—excluding, of course, those directors who love to make incomprehensible films.
"But you seem very confident," Emma Roberts pressed on. "Do you have a secret?"
Matthew slowly shook his head. "It's not really a secret." After a moment's thought, he added, "I just focus on what Cobb needs to express in each scene, without worrying about the entire story."
Christopher Nolan had paired him and Anne Hathaway to portray a married couple both on and off set, but with all the work Matthew had to handle outside of filming, they rarely interacted outside of their scenes together.
On Oscar night, he had planned to take things to the next level with Hathaway, but Harvey Weinstein's interference caused her to flee like a scared rabbit.
Matthew wasn't surprised. Hathaway had done similar things twice before—when her first conman boyfriend and then her art thief boyfriend got into trouble, she quickly distanced herself from them.
"Is it really that simple?" Emma Roberts asked again.
Matthew, snapping out of his thoughts, explained, "This all hinges on the strong emotional connection I've established with Dom Cobb."
Seeing Emma Roberts' eagerness to learn, and with Nolan still working on the lighting adjustments, Matthew decided to elaborate a bit more. It wouldn't hurt to leave a good impression on her.
"I need to grasp the emotions and motivations driving Dom Cobb. Why did he plan this whole operation?" Matthew spread his hands and said in a low voice, "It's not just about financial gain."
Emma Roberts nodded lightly. "My character's motivation isn't money either."
Matthew smiled. "Look at characters like the Joker, or any successful character whose legacy endures. Their motivations are never about money."
"Really?" Emma Roberts thought for a moment before slowly agreeing, "It does seem that way."
Matthew continued, "The power of emotions and their impact on movie characters will always outweigh the allure of money. I may not be a father, but I understand the importance of family and children to most people around the world. This is a universal value. Cobb's greatest motivation is to return home, to correct his life and be with his family."
Emma Roberts lightly pinched her small chin. "That sounds a bit cliché."
"Indeed, it does," Matthew agreed, then added, "But it's also the most profound human emotion."
Not only did Matthew need to master his character, but just as Christopher Nolan had designed action scenes specifically for Dom Cobb, the crew had also tailored Cobb's lines and actions to align with Matthew's habits and traits, integrating these into the film.
This was to ensure that Dom Cobb felt more authentic and relatable to the audience.
Of course, not everyone enjoyed this level of attention. Among the entire cast, only Matthew had such privileges.
To be honest, the script was more complex than the movie he had previously watched. It wasn't just Emma Roberts and the other actors who found it confusing; even Christopher Nolan was a bit lost.
Matthew had enough discussions with Nolan to understand his process. When planning the shoot, Nolan, perhaps influenced by the plot's complexity, ended up making the shooting schedule overly complicated, to the point where even he was getting confused.
He had filled his storyboard with elaborate charts and timelines, trying to pinpoint where the transitions in the film occurred. For several weeks, Nolan felt like he was banging his head against the storyboard, trying to make sense of it all.
Once Nolan finished making adjustments, filming resumed. However, it seemed like a day full of bad luck, as the shoot continued to be plagued by issues. By the time the morning was over, they had only managed to shoot two scenes.
In the afternoon, James McAvoy and Anne Hathaway joined the filming.
The scenes shot in Los Angeles, aside from a scene involving a train crashing through a street, would mostly be completed at Warner Bros. Studios, before the crew headed to Paris, Canada, London, Monaco, and Tokyo for the remaining scenes.
Six countries and six different cities made this the most geographically diverse film Matthew had ever starred in.
Additionally, perhaps due to confidence in Matthew and Christopher Nolan, Warner Bros. had increased the film's budget by an additional $40 million as production began, bringing the total budget from $160 million to $200 million.
With a more substantial budget, the project was in a better position to succeed.
The shoot at the Los Angeles soundstage only lasted about ten days. Besides the scenes with Emma Roberts, Matthew also filmed the opening scenes of the script, which involved Cobb searching for Saito.
The crew designed a water tank with air cannons to perfectly create the dream sequence where a massive wave crashes through the dreamscape.
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