The Best Movie Actor In Hollywood!

Chapter 92: Preparing for the Premiere

"Did you just hit my car?" Diesel demanded, his face contorting into an angry scowl.

Matthew, caught off guard by the sudden appearance of the very man the entire crew was waiting for, froze for a moment before replying, "Sorry, I didn't mean to."

Diesel’s scowl deepened as he slammed a fist against the car—thankfully, not hard enough to leave a mark.

Diesel glared at Matthew. "Did you do that on purpose?" he asked, his voice cold.

It had been an accident, and Matthew had no desire for a confrontation with Vin Diesel. He apologized again, "I'm really sorry. I didn't realize you were in there."

"'Didn't realize?'" Diesel snapped. He jabbed a finger toward the trailer, his voice growing harsh. "You didn't know this was my trailer? How dare you come here and wake me up!"

He jabbed a finger at Matthew. "You came here to wake me up on purpose, didn't you? So I'd have to go to the set! My time is valuable, and my sleep is even more so!"

Matthew could tell that despite sharing the set yesterday, Diesel didn't recognize him and had mistaken him for a crew member. He felt compelled to interrupt. "Look, I'm sorry," he said, cutting him off. "I didn't come here to wake you. I was just walking past while on the phone and accidentally brushed against your trailer."

Normally, even the most ill-tempered person would have let the matter drop after a sincere apology.

But to his surprise, Vin Diesel wasn't about to let it go. "Is your apology going to give me back my sleep? You..."As Vin Diesel continued his tirade, Matthew was momentarily speechless. He suddenly realized Michelle Rodriguez had been right—the man was genuinely difficult to deal with.

Diesel was still fuming, his rant ongoing, when Matthew cut him off. "Anyway, I'm sorry. I have to go."

He turned and walked away, not sparing Diesel another glance.

...

Back on set, Matthew was visibly in a dark mood. Paul noticed right away. "Trouble with your girlfriend?" he asked.

"Worse. I ran into Diesel," Matthew replied, giving him a quick rundown of what had just happened.

Paul shook his head. "Thankfully, this shoot won't last much longer. We won't have to put up with him for too long."

Just then, Diesel strode onto the set. Matthew caught his eye and saw a look as sharp as a blade directed his way from beneath that famously bald head.

"Be careful," Paul Walker warned, having clearly noticed the glare as well. "Looks like he's got it in for you."

Matthew nodded, his brow furrowing. It was such a trivial matter. Was Diesel really still hung up on it?

He hadn't expected, however, that Paul would be the one to run into trouble before he did.

Once filming resumed, Diesel became difficult during his scenes with Paul Walker, who had the more dominant role. He used every pretext he could to expand his own part, and with director Rob Cohen backing him, Paul Walker was unable to push back and was ultimately forced to compromise.

Paul Walker's character was originally the sole lead of The Fast and the Furious, but Matthew suspected that, at this rate, the film would end up with two leads.

It was a shame. Paul was a good guy, but there was nothing Matthew could do to help.

Because of all the disruptions, the morning was spent filming only scenes with Paul Walker and Vin Diesel, pushing the action sequence between Matthew and Diesel to the afternoon.

After lunch, they returned to the set for makeup touch-ups, and filming commenced once more.

This time, unlike the previous day, Diesel didn't keep everyone waiting. He arrived on set promptly, seemingly full of enthusiasm for the scene.

Once his makeup was done, Diesel strode onto the set, his eyes fixed on Matthew like a hawk. Matthew, standing in the center of the set, pretended not to notice him.

He had already apologized for the minor incident. If Vin Diesel was still holding a grudge, there was nothing more to be said.

Diesel kept staring at Matthew in silence, his sharp eyes darting about as he was clearly scheming.

Just then, the director came over. "Alright, let's get you two warmed up. Loosen up your joints," he instructed.

Matthew followed the director's instructions, rotating his ankles and wrists. He didn't have a stunt double for the upcoming scene and needed to avoid injury at all costs.

Diesel stood motionless.

Rob reminded them of the choreography. "It's a short fight scene. Matthew, you put up a bit of a struggle, then he takes you down."

The director then went over to Diesel to give him some pointers, as he hadn't attended the earlier training sessions and hadn't rehearsed with Matthew at all.

"No." Diesel's voice was loud and sharp, easily heard not only by Matthew but by Paul Walker and others watching from the sidelines. "I don't like the scene this way," he told Rob Cohen.

Diesel gestured at the set. "This auto repair bay is too open. The choreography is too staged. It doesn't showcase Dominic Toretto's power!"

He glanced at Matthew. "The character he's playing is one of Dominic's crew, so he should have some fight in him. Since he's turned traitor, when Dominic comes to deal with him, he's obviously going to fight back with everything he's got."

Rob, who had long since become one of Vin Diesel's yes-men, nodded in agreement. "Good point."

Seeing the director agree, the stunt coordinator naturally had no objections. "We can look at redesigning the fight," he offered.

As for Matthew's opinion, no one bothered to ask.

Matthew didn't know what Vin Diesel was planning, but he was instantly on his guard.

From what he'd observed over the past year, Hollywood sets were notoriously volatile places, rife with conflict and backstabbing in the pursuit of fame and fortune. Too many people on their way up took a bad step, fell, and never got a second chance.

He had no intention of becoming another casualty.

"What's the bald guy up to now?" Jordana Brewster asked Paul from the sidelines.

Paul crossed his arms, frowning. "I'm not sure yet."

Diesel's voice carried across the set. He had secured more than half the funding for the film, and though he wasn't a credited producer, he wielded considerable power.

"I think we should scrap the choreography," Diesel announced. "Just let us have a real, spectacular brawl. It'll only make the movie better."

Vin glanced down at his powerful physique. "And the fight scene needs to be longer."

Rob Cohen considered it for a moment. It wasn't unusual in Hollywood to shoot action scenes with more improvisation. He nodded quickly. "Okay. Too much obvious choreography can detract from the action."

Only then did he turn to Matthew. "The basic idea of the scene is the same. You betrayed Dominic, and you've got a guilty conscience, so don't fight back right away."

Matthew remained composed. Diesel's words sparked a bad feeling, but he didn't object.

That was, after all, the premise in the original script.

Frankly, with his grandstanding, it was hard to like the man.

Matthew didn't see himself as some paragon of virtue—he could be difficult himself at times—but he wouldn't fly off the handle like a rabid dog over something so trivial.

But Diesel wasn't finished. He turned to Rob. "I'll be using my fists, so tell the camera operator to keep the focus tight on me."

At this point, the stunt coordinator stepped between Matthew and Diesel. "Do you two need to walk through your movements for the shot?" he asked.

Diesel looked ready to go. With a crude gesture, he told Matthew, "You betray me, I beat the hell out of you. You fight back, I beat you even harder."

Matthew didn't bother to reply, simply giving him a curt nod.

At the edge of the set, it suddenly dawned on Paul what Diesel was up to. He remembered what Matthew had told him that morning about their confrontation.

"This isn't good," he muttered. "Matthew could get the short end of the stick here."

Jordana countered, "Vin hasn't been training for this. I doubt he could actually hurt Matthew."

The mention of training reminded Paul of something Matthew had said. "Matthew's been taking boxing lessons. He told me he could hold his own against a professional for at least a little while."

While they were talking, the crew finished prepping the set for the shot.

Matthew and Diesel stood facing each other in the auto repair bay, only about a yard apart.

As soon as the director called "Action!", both men slipped into character.

Diesel's usually cold expression was now burning with fury. "I can't believe..."

He didn't even finish the line. He lunged straight for Matthew, one hand clamping around his neck. "How dare you betray me!"