America Tycoon: The Wolf of Showbiz

Disney Studio, inside the makeup trailer.

Martin sat in front of the makeup mirror, allowing two female makeup artists to shape his eyebrows and apply his eye makeup, then he put on a wig.

A red miniskirt costume hung beside him.

When the makeup was finished, Martin first slipped on the red dress, then put on black stockings, and finally stepped into high-heeled boots, emerging as a freshly baked, statuesque queen of cross-dressing.

Bruce, with his arms crossed, watched Martin stand up and said, "Do you need me to hold you? You're not going to fall, are you?"

"What a joke." Martin walked with a catwalk stride in his high-heeled boots.

"Split" officially began filming today. David Fincher, to stimulate Martin into quickly getting into character, chose to shoot the cross-dressing personality first.

A role with particularly stark contrast.

In Los Angeles, there are many cross-dressers.

Martin had met more than a dozen, but those could only be described as ghouls, starkly different from the female persona of the male lead he was to play.

Last month, he took time to visit New York specifically to catch up with Carolina Kurkova and the wily Angela Lindvall, receiving professional guidance from both.

Martin's professional dedication as an actor was beyond question.

From the moment he stepped out of the makeup trailer, he began to carry himself like a woman.

Martin was a pragmatist, not a method actor, without intentions of morphing himself into a woman both on and off camera.

Upon entering the set, David Fincher looked Martin over and said, "Not bad, just a bit too burly."

Martin pulled up the artificial breasts and said, "Do I really have to wear these things? They're very uncomfortable."

David Fincher whispered, "You understand the current big picture in Hollywood better than I do; this female personality will be key to the Oscar campaign."

Martin understood and said, "Let's get started."

David Fincher asked the assistant director to notify all departments to get ready.

Martin entered the set, which was decorated as a basement dungeon, and the three female actors had already arrived.

Anya Taylor Joy, wearing a gray bodysuit, sat on the long sofa to the left.

On the bed to the right, Ana De Armas and Sophia Stallone sat shoulder to shoulder.

All three turned their gaze to Martin, and Sophia, who was most familiar with Martin, exclaimed, "Wow, Martin, you look so pretty."

Martin revealed a modest smile, "Ladies, are we ready?"

Anya spoke up first, "I've been ready for a while, Martin. Don't you remember? We rehearsed this scene."

Sophia glanced at the peculiar-looking peer across from her and cursed under her breath.

Ana De Armas's eyes flickered, lost in thought.

Compared to Anya and Sophia, this actress, who had struggled through Cuba and Spain before ultimately arriving in Hollywood without success over a period of ten years, had a more complicated mindset.

She didn't speak, simply focusing on her preparations before filming.

The crew was ready, and with the slating of the clapboard, the first scene of "Split" officially began shooting.

Martin opened the door to the basement dungeon and entered. The cameraman began shooting from his side.

With his tall stature, long legs, and the addition of a wig and artificial breasts, Martin appeared to have a great figure on camera.

David Fincher, however, called a halt to the shooting and said, "Adjust the camera position and lens, lower the camera angle, and shoot the protagonist entering the door from a low angle."

Cinematography director Jeff Cronenweth promptly instructed his team to make the adjustments.

Martin stepped out of the dungeon and waited by the door.

Shooting quickly resumed.

After the clapboard was clapped, Martin opened the door and strutted into the dungeon.

The main camera first captured a low-angle shot, then slid along the track to Martin's front, tilting up from the bottom, ending with a close-up of Martin's face.

Martin wore feminine makeup, but he was notably different from the ghouls of the LGBTQ crowd. With his hands folded in front, eyes exceptionally gentle, and deliberately drooping his shoulders, he looked rather relaxed.

This shot went smoothly, mainly featuring the exterior of the male lead's female personality, with Anya, Ana, and Sophia serving only as a backdrop.

"Cut, that's a wrap!" David Fincher announced loudly. "Good job, Martin, keep up the good work."

Martin gave a thumbs-up to the director at the monitor and then changed positions for the next take.

The shooting recommenced, this time with dialogue, and the three actresses joined into the frame, no longer merely as background props.

After a few takes, the disparity in acting skills was clear, with Sophia undoubtedly the weakest of the three.

Of course, she had the basic skills to handle a purely decorative role with ease.

In the following shots, the female personality's quirks were to be shown, and David Fincher added a touch of obsessive-compulsiveness to her.

Beyond that, groundwork had to be laid for the murderous personality revealed at the end.

Each personality split from the male lead would be like this.

This was also the key to organically linking all the personalities together.

By the end of the morning, quite a bit of the female personality's part was filmed. Thanks to thorough preparation, Martin didn't have much of an issue with the performance aspect but found his feet suffering.

The high heels were truly uncomfortable to wear.

Changing into more comfortable shoes, Martin went to lunch. Just as he was about to enter the trailer after eating, Ana De Armas approached him.

This Latin actress, who had changed countries three times and spent nearly ten years without making a significant breakthrough, greeted Martin with a smile. Glancing at his changed footwear, she said, "It looked like you struggled with the high heels during shooting."

Martin responded, "I've never worn them before; I overlooked the issue with the shoes."