Actor in Hollywood

What?

Kristen and Anson exchanged glances, their eyes full of question marks. The situation had taken an entirely unexpected turn—were they missing a few steps in between?

So, was this a good thing?

A high-difficulty scene had been successfully completed. They should be high-fiving in celebration—if the director said it was fine, then it was fine. The director's word is final. But from another perspective, was it really? Are they sure this was the best it could be?

Looking at Sam, both Kristen and Anson felt completely bewildered.

Kristen didn't hide her surprise, "But, director, didn't you say earlier that this scene wasn't good enough? Doesn't that mean there's room for improvement, right?"

Anson had no objection to calling it a day, but the feeling of immersion in the performance was quite satisfying. For the first time, Anson felt what it meant to truly get lost in a scene. If a retake was necessary, he wouldn't mind.

Moreover, this was the first take of this scene. The chemistry between Anson and Kristen wasn't perfect yet. Some eye contact and timing of lines could definitely be fine-tuned—they could do even better.

So, Anson didn't stop Kristen from speaking up.

Sam corrected, "No, what I meant was that the scene isn't perfect, but sometimes, there's no need for perfection."

Actually, after the shoot ended, Sam himself hadn't fully sorted out his thoughts—

Was he planning to shoot another take or not?

If they were to shoot another take, what needed adjustment? What should remain the same?

Sam's mind was also a jumble, overwhelmed by the unexpected chemistry between Anson and Kristen and the complex emotional power of the scene, leaving his ears ringing and his thoughts scattered.

For a while, Sam was a bit confused.

So, when Anson asked Sam whether they should keep the detail where he accidentally bumped into the chair, Sam's response was somewhat incoherent.

The root of the issue was that he hadn't made up his mind yet.

Until now.

His thoughts finally clear, the scene in his mind became vivid again. Indeed, he needed discussion and feedback to fully process it. Through their exchange, Sam sorted everything out.

"Of course, the scene isn't perfect."

"If we wanted to nitpick, we could easily spend half a day here."

Sam noticed Anson and Kristen's smiles and looked at them in confusion, "Did I say something wrong?"

Anson glanced at Kristen, and Kristen looked back at Anson. Finally, Anson spoke, "If it's really that bad, and we need to spend half a day fixing it, we wouldn't mind shooting a second take."

Sam suddenly realized and couldn't help but let a small smile slip.

"What I mean is, those imperfect moments actually add a unique quality."

"It's like when Peter accidentally bumps into the chair, or when Mary Jane didn't expect to cry—those moments are real."

"You can actually see it—something happened between the two of you. At first, there was a bit of awkwardness and unfamiliarity..."

Anson and Kristen exchanged a look, surprised by Sam's keen observation. They hadn't expected him to notice.

It wasn't that they weren't familiar with each other off-screen or that they lacked chemistry during filming; it was just that last night, even though nothing happened between Jack and Kristen—they didn't even exchange phone numbers—Jack came to visit the set today, and it happened to be during this particular scene, which made the atmosphere a bit delicate.

Of course, neither Anson nor Kristen let it show. Both actors displayed their professionalism and quickly got into character, but they hadn't anticipated that Sam would still pick up on the subtle tension in the air.

"…But that kind of atmosphere is actually right. It perfectly fits the situation between Peter and Mary Jane, as well as the setting of the hospital room."

"Those little slip-ups, those imperfections, unexpectedly created a subtle ambiance—an ambiance that belongs exclusively to Peter Parker and Mary Jane. It ended up becoming the soul of this scene, expressing a different kind of emotion in the spaces left unspoken."

As he spoke, Sam couldn't help but fall into deep thought again, savoring the moment—

The more he thought about it, the more excited he became.

This kind of state had been absent from Sam's life for a long time.

When he first shot "The Evil Dead," Sam was carefree. He wasn't the type to chase after meticulous planning or perfection; he just went with the flow, and before he knew it, "The Evil Dead" had become a legendary classic.

But after that, the burden of trying to surpass "The Evil Dead" weighed on him. Sam began striving for perfection, but in doing so, he lost the impulsive joy and excitement of picking up a camera and turning his wild imagination into a movie.

From any angle, "The Evil Dead 2" was a significant improvement over the original. Yet, when people talk about classics, the first film is what immediately comes to mind.

"The Evil Dead" became a mountain that Sam could never quite conquer.

For a long time, Sam had been thinking, from a creative standpoint, from a technical perspective, from the script, from the production team—trying to find a solution, but he kept going in circles, unable to find what he was looking for.

In this moment, Sam thought, maybe the key wasn't that he hadn't found the solution; maybe the problem was that he had been overthinking it and, in doing so, lost the simple joy of making a movie, missing the true essence of it.

"Spider-Man" was just like "The Evil Dead"—a project Sam genuinely wanted to make and truly loved.

He thought, maybe letting go of the pursuit of perfection and relearning how to enjoy the process of filming was the real key.

"It's not perfect, but I like it."

"Oh, God, I love my job."

Sam couldn't control himself and started muttering to himself.

When he finished, he looked up at Anson and Kristen. Seeing their stunned expressions, he didn't realize his actions had completely exposed his thoughts. Acting as if nothing had happened, he continued.

"Excellent work, Kristen."

"Excellent work, Anson."

Then, Sam turned and was about to leave, leaving Anson and Kristen staring at each other in confusion.

But in the next second, Sam turned back around. The three of them stood there, holding their breath.

"Uh, the camera angle just now was fine. Next, we'll shoot some close-ups and detail shots. I hope you can maintain that same energy, so the audience can appreciate this scene on the big screen—the beautiful imagery."

A pause.

"Yes, just like that."

After saying this, Sam turned and left again.

Indeed, making a movie is hard work. The actors deliver an outstanding performance, but it's never enough. They have to switch positions, angles, cameras, and so on, for a second, third, and fourth take.

Kristen was about to say something, but before she could, that same back turned around again. Sam made a 180-degree turn and walked back, caught once more in the surprised looks of Anson and Kristen. Sam hesitated and stopped.

"Anson, really excellent work."

After a brief pause, Sam looked up, as if searching his memory to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything, then gave Anson a thumbs-up.

Finally, he turned away, and this time, he didn't stop, striding back to the monitors.

Anson and Kristen exchanged another look. They actually had many things they needed to discuss, but as they calmed down, those things didn't seem so important anymore.

With a shared smile, they got back to work. The filming continued.