To be part of history—how wonderful it is when you make a film that isn't simple.
Privacy was different when people settled into a place; everyone seemed to know each other in some way, and of course, Billy was completely happy. Happy to breathe in the living sets that seemed to shine with life, to speak with the great luminaries of acting—Christopher Walken, Richard Griffiths, Ian McDiarmid, Michael Gambon, and Christopher Lee.
Many of them were a significant part of the finest elder actors in the industry. It was a complete joy to watch how each person would draw closer for deeper conversations, speaking about what they thought about acting itself. About whether they wished to take part in some of the new projects that were underway. The first step had been to invite Richard Griffiths to be part of Harry Potter, and Michael Gambon to take part in The Lord of the Rings, portraying Tom Bombadil, one of the most eccentric figures in The Lord of the Rings. Much to Billy's quiet satisfaction, each of them accepted for a fee that was almost laughably small—but Billy paid them a higher salary nonetheless.
-—It's the first time I've ever been paid more. What a strange producer you are, dear Billy. —Michael Gambon replied.
--I'm just saying a million was far too little for you. You'll be making a short film of about forty-five minutes; it could easily be seen as an episode we'll include in the extended edition, and there will be a bit of promotion involved. —Billy answered, shrugging his shoulders. It was what he had expected. These men were the future pillars of Harry Potter, Pirates of the Caribbean, and The Lord of the Rings, all of which were already in Billy's hands, because he held the rights to the three series behind each of them. Series that would become enormous intellectual properties and perfect seasonal spectacles for the coming years, capable of elevating his release slate to an entirely new level—and that was precisely how Billy wanted it.
--Well, I won't complain. Perhaps my agent would have fought for a larger slice of the meat, but they say you have many projects being whispered about all over Hollywood, with your own methods of production that are yielding remarkable results. —said Michael Gambon.
--More than good, I would say. They are the very cream of novelty. They're not the kind of drama we usually expect, but they give substance to any series. —Richard Griffiths replied, whispering at the same time with Christopher Lee about some other arrangement. In truth, they were quite good friends, thanks to their long years of working together.
--We also have a few positions open for Star Wars. It's good material. I've got a product about a rather unpleasant politician who uses de facto methods whenever he doesn't win. —Billy commented, to which Richard nodded. He then handed out three scripts that had once again been requested from Jim Gianopulos and quietly sent to Lucas's tables, so that the Lucasfilm series would remain under the table. With Billy's progress, at the very same time as Lucas, he was already producing four series, three films, two animated series, and the Rogue One project ahead of schedule—four years earlier—so that it would open alongside the series and the thematic groundwork of Andor and the Rebellion, leaving space for around 2013 or 2014 for the next trilogy, which would be a continuation of Luke's original story and a dark Jedi who was his lover.
Billy hoped that by 2010, when the animated project began, the modeling technology would already exist and the animators would be available to create a series that would be graphically better than any film seen in years. He continued encouraging the arrival of new animators, collaborating with universities, schools, and colleges, reducing the barriers for novice animators and offering friendly salaries while assembling an empire of intellectual property that expanded endlessly—thousands of books, children's stories, films, video games, and charming television series.
Now, with Marvel in his possession, it was the culmination of a project that would surpass anyone who left even the faintest trace behind.
-I think no one could refuse you, boy. —Christopher Lee replied.
-They say you're one of the best producers when it comes to talent. —Richard Griffiths answered simply, almost intimately.
-I try to be. In fact, if people give me a chance and a fair deal, I offer as much freedom as possible within a story, as long as what we've agreed upon is respected—organization, budget, and delivery deadlines. —Billy commented, and for some time now, he had been nurturing a rather unusual idea.
…
Scene 12, Take 2.
INT. VAN TASSEL HOUSE, PARLOR — NIGHT
BALTUS
And so it has been for twenty years. But now the Hessian wakes: he is enraged, cutting off heads wherever he finds them.
Ichabod leans back, shaking off the dreamlike spell of the tale. He takes a sip
from his glass.
ICHABOD
Are you... saying...? Is that what you believe?
HADENBROOK
Seeing is believing!
Baltus places a calming hand on the shoulder of the senile Hardenbrook.
DOCTOR LANCASTER
No one knows why the Hessian has chosen this moment to return from the grave.
STEENWYCK
Satan has summoned one of his own.
Steenwyck rises and,d from a side tab hele takes the heavy family Bible of Baltus.
STEENWYCK (CONT'D)
I'm told you've brought books and instruments of scientific inquiry; this is the only book I would recommend that you study.
He drops the Bible onto the table before Ichabod, startling him. Ichabod carefully lifts the cover, revealing a page written in ink, one that he will remember later, and then he frees himself from all those "nonsense notions."
ICHABOD
Reverend Steenwyck... gentlemen...
Murder does not require a ghost to rise from the grave. Which of you has seen this Headless Horseman?
HARDENBROOK
Others have. Many others.
Ichabod allows himself a skeptical smile.
BALTUS
You will see him as well if he returns. The men of the town are posted to keep watch for him.
ICHABOD
In New Y,ork there are murders without the help of demons or goblins.
BALTUS
You are very far from New York, sir.
ICHABOD
At least a century. The murderer is a man of flesh and blood, and I will uncover him.
STEENWYCK
And how do you intend to do that?
ICHABOD
By discovering his reason. What we call "the motive." This mystery will not withstand the investigation of a Rational Man.
Ichabod's natural clumsiness, however, causes him to sweep his empty glass off the table, ruining the effect of the Rational Man who supposedly commands the situation.
-cut.-
What a pleasant surprise it was when the recording ended. Billy approached and took a deep breath; he had been inside the role for quite some time, and Burton's pace was slow, far slower than most directors. He liked a different kind of rhythm—doing everything with patience, taking as long as necessary. That was the way Billy did things, and for quite some time, now he had been working that way.
-I'm afraid we'll have to shoot it again. I didn't like the moment when Steenwyck pointed at you—well, actually, I did like it; it's just that I made a mistake in the take and ended up doing it wrong. —Burton said with amusement. Filming was, in quotation marks, an event of time—one that took quite a while to resolve. Because of the process and because of the curiosity behind it, Billy watched how Burton's lens gave life to everything, and he liked it in his own particular way.
...