There weren't many people in the audition waiting area. After all, by normal procedure, this was already the second round of interviews, and the actors remaining were all capable of performing the role; it just depended on who could impress the decision-makers.
Landon didn't know how Tracy had used the resources of WMA Company to pry open this door, but the specific operational details were probably more complicated than he imagined.
His gaze swept over the competitors and quickly settled on one of them—the original actor, the British actor Paul Bettany.
Paul, at this moment, looked slightly younger than his age in the film, sitting alone in the corner, silently reading the script in his hand, his expression particularly focused.
When the staff called out the name "Landon Williams," Paul also looked up. His gaze briefly met Landon's. His eyes seemed calm, but a slight frown revealed a trace of almost imperceptible competitive intent.
Landon took a deep breath, suppressed his emotions, gave Tracy a reassuring look, and calmly pushed open the door and entered the Audition Hall.
The Audition Hall was simply furnished. Five people who would decide his fate sat in the center.
The person in the middle, with a kind face but sharp eyes, was the famous Director Ron Howard.
Deputy Director David Sasser sat on his left, and further along was Assistant Director Michael Barnason;
To Ron Howard's right was Casting Director Junie Lowry, a highly experienced casting director with a sharp eye. Next to her was another Casting Director, Ivy Kahn.
Before coming, Landon had already done his homework through Tracy, gaining a basic understanding of the backgrounds and works of the key decision-makers.
He entered the Room with a smile, meeting the gazes of the three directors steadily, and greeted them in a clear and composed tone:
"Director Howard, Director Barnason, Director Lowry, Ms. Junie, Ms. Ivy, good morning.
I am Landon Williams, and I am honored to have this opportunity."
Landon was composed and neither humble nor arrogant, avoiding deliberate flattery. Since he had skipped one round of interviews, in a sense, he was a connected individual, though he didn't know how that connection was made yet. Therefore, he felt it was even more important to demonstrate his professional competence.
This neither humble nor arrogant demeanor clearly surprised the panel. The interviewers exchanged subtle glances, and the initial slight contempt caused by Landon's age and photo on his resume was significantly diminished.
This young man seemed somewhat extraordinary.
After Landon finished his self-introduction, they got down to business.
Ron Howard did not start with high-intensity scenes. The audition content was from the first half of the movie, but it wasn't the scene where Nash first met Charles. Instead, it was the scene where Charles met Nash again, bringing the little girl with him. Ron Howard gave five minutes for preparation.
Landon picked up the script pages given by Director Howard, flipped through them briefly, and knew what to do.
Five minutes passed quickly.
Assistant Director Michael Barnason came over to act opposite Landon; he would be playing Nash.
Landon loosened his tie slightly and stood beside the area, looking relaxed.
Michael walked to the center of the Audition Hall and sat down. Nash (played by Michael) began his lines:
"Who is your uncle?"
"Your prodigal roommate," Charles (played by Landon) walked up to Nash, looked down slightly, and said teasingly, "is back."
Nash stood up, smiling happily.
They walked toward each other and embraced warmly.
"Nash."
"Charles."
Then, the two walked around the hall. Charles, hands in his pockets, spoke slowly:
"My sister died in a car accident." Charles said, while looking toward a spot slightly further away and calling out,
"Marcy, don't run too far." Then, Charles lowered his tone,
"Her drunk husband caused the tragedy by driving under the influence. Now I'm taking care of her."
"She's still so young," Nash said.
"Because she's still a kid. That's how kids are." Charles said, walking and staring at Nash.
"I'm hosting a great writers' seminar at Harvard, featuring erotic writers like Lawrence."
"You really should buy a new book," Nash said, smiling.
Charles joined him in laughter.
The two walked over to a chair and sat down.
"I've been keeping an eye on your progress. How have you been lately?" Charles rested his hands on the chair, relaxed his body, naturally crossed his legs, and looked at Nash as he asked.
"My work was ordinary at first, but now I have new developments. Unfortunately, I can't tell you the details."
"Like Top Secret? Black Bag? Black Ops?" Charles's tone rose slightly.
"Something like that. And..."
"And what?"
"I met a girl."
"No way. A real girl?" Charles asked, surprised and smiling.
"A living, breathing person," Nash said.
"A biped?" Charles teased.
"What's even harder to believe is... she actually likes me." Nash grew more excited as he spoke.
"Really?" Charles happily patted Nash's shoulder. "My God, that's fantastic." His voice held the tone of happiness for a good friend. "Everyone has different tastes."
"Should I propose to her?" Nash asked Charles, crossing his arms over his chest.
"Oh, God. That's a tough one." Charles imitated Nash by crossing his arms, then lowered his head.
"I'm doing well now. Stable job, saved some money. Everything seems ready, but... how can I be sure?"
"There are no guarantees in life; that much I am absolutely sure of," Charles told Nash, slightly serious.
After the performance, there were a few seconds of silence in the Room.
Ron Howard and the two casting directors on either side looked at each other, seeing undisguised surprise and astonishment in each other's eyes.
This young man not only fit the look (after Landon's deliberate styling) but his exploration and presentation of the character's complexity exceeded their expectations.
Next, Assistant Director Michael Barnason continued to play Nash and acted opposite Landon.
The two successively performed three key scenes:
Their initial tentative encounter in the dormitory,
Charles leading Nash to release his wild side in the bar,
and a fierce argument between Nash and Charles.
After a week of intensive training, Landon had performed all the scenes in the script with Marina. His performance was layered and incredibly precise.
He concretely presented Charles's semi-real, semi-illusory nature through precise body language and vocal design.
His performance not only perfectly displayed the character's surface wit, unruliness, and charm but also consistently implied the elusive, non-reality of a hallucination character, firmly grasping Charles's essence.
After the three scenes, the satisfaction on the faces of the three directors was obvious.
At this point, Landon noticed another issue: normally, someone who hadn't passed the interview couldn't obtain such a complete script. Yet, Tracy, seemingly omnipotent, had managed to acquire the full script. Landon temporarily kept this question to himself.
At this point, the atmosphere in the Audition Hall was noticeably more relaxed, and the questions shifted from strict assessment to something more like casual conversation and in-depth understanding.
Ron Howard asked with interest, "Landon, besides what the script provides, do you have any personal understanding of the character Charles?"
Landon knew this was the chance to demonstrate the true depth of his preparation.