Matthew, Gore Verbinski, and his assistant gathered together, erging from the coconut grove onto a relatively quiet stretch of beach. The film crew was still busy preparing for the shoot.
Without any preamble, Gore Verbinski asked directly, "Matthew, what are your thoughts?"
After "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" had beco a box office super-hit, Matthew had undeniably ascended to the top tier of Hollywood, and stars of that caliber had a certain say on set.
"Doesn't this part of the scene feel a little out of character for Will Turner?" Matthew's tone was polite; if there was a problem, it was best to resolve it as peacefully as possible. "Gore, what do you think?"
This show of respect for his colleague ensured that Gore Verbinski wasn't offended and, instead, took the comnt seriously.
Matthew knew exactly what made Will Turner stand out and where his strengths lay. He added at just the right mont, "Gore, the first film established Will Turner as brave and skilled, soone who doesn't panic or fear any danger he faces. If he gets caught in a simple trap set by natives, like in this version, the character is put in a position that... well."
His character, Will Turner, was undoubtedly a first-rate fighter throughout the entire trilogy, supernatural elents aside. Being captured so easily by natives truly did damage the character's image.
By now, the character of Will Turner was, in a way, tied to him.
Gore Verbinski thought for a few seconds before replying, "Well, that makes sense."
He gave a swift decision. "That was an oversight on my part. We'll adjust the scene on the fly."
He told his assistant, "Get your team over here. We're going to rework the whole thing."
"Right away," the assistant said without another word, rushing off to find the necessary people.
Gore smiled and looked at Matthew. "You've been in a lot of action scenes and you're the one performing this one. How about you help design the action sequence?"
Matthew, of course, didn't refuse such an invitation. He had participated in designing action for films before, especially the kind of theatrical swordplay required here.
Filming was temporarily halted, and the team retreated to the beach for a while. Matthew, Gore Verbinski, and the stunt team gathered to confer. Matthew periodically picked up a sword, demonstrating moves with the director, who held a wooden spear. By lunchti, the design for the three-minute action scene was mostly complete.
After a short lunch, the stunt coordinator called over several stuntn to head into the coconut grove with Matthew to familiarize themselves with the environnt and rehearse the choreography.
After two rehearsals, the crew was ready, and filming was about to begin.
On set, Matthew took off his shirt, revealing his toned muscles. A faint buzzing of mosquitoes could be heard around him, and Bella imdiately stepped in, spraying him with a special insect repellent.
Just then, an assistant director approached and said, "The people you'll be fighting on cara are our stuntn. These Dominican natives will just be in the background."
Matthew nodded, took the sword Bella handed him, and hung it from his belt.
Action scenes required a certain level of skill; at the very least, the perforrs needed so brief training. The crew wouldn't feel comfortable letting the local extras handle the actual fighting.
Once the stuntn, who had finished their makeup, arrived on set and concealed themselves behind the tall grass, the caras started rolling.
Matthew pushed aside the grass and entered the coconut grove. He thought he heard sothing, so he drew the sword from his belt and ventured deeper into the woods, remaining vigilant. After a short distance, he spotted a wine flask hanging from a tree ahead. He cautiously approached and lifted it with his sword.
"Gibson's flask?" Matthew muttered to himself.
He then followed the strap that tied the flask to the tree, taking a step toward the large trunk.
Suddenly, a strange cry erupted from behind the tree. Matthew imdiately stepped back as a rope noose shot up in front of him. He then whipped his head around to see stuntn in body paint charging at him with spears.
Matthew swung his sword, deflecting a spear, and knocked another stuntman to the ground with a punch from his left hand. But more natives erged from the grass in all directions. The nearest few stuntn closed in, while those on the periphery were too far away, slowly advancing for a chance to strike.
Following the predetermined plan, Matthew quickly took down several stuntn. Just as he was about to make a break for it, a stuntman hiding near the cara lens rose to his feet, aid a blowpipe in his direction, and blew.
Matthew clutched his neck and, for a mont, turned to look at the cara before his sword fell to the ground and he collapsed into the grass.
Several natives imdiately rushed over, lifted him, and carried him away, while others retrieved his cutlass.
The action sequence went off without a hitch. Although the outco—Will Turner being captured by natives—remained the sa, the process had changed. It was no longer a simple, foolish stumble into a trap, but a hard-fought battle where he was ultimately taken down by a sneak attack with a dart.
With that, filming for the day concluded. Matthew took the blanket Bella gave him, wrapped it around his shoulders, and headed back to his trailer near the jetty to have his makeup removed, intending to return to the hotel.
The entire beach was densely packed with people working for the production.
The number of people who had co to the Dominican Republic was staggering: 600 crew mbers had flown in from North Arica alone, with another 400 hired locally. This made the "Pirates of the Caribbean" shoot an unprecedented event for an island nation like the Dominican Republic, not to ntion the enormous scale of the catering.
During a typical day of filming, the catering departnt had to prepare three als for 700 to 900 people. Breakfast alone required about 2,000 eggs, 100 to 160 pounds of bacon, 80 loaves of bread, 50 pounds of sausage, over 10 crates of fruit, and much more.
For food safety reasons, all food had to be shipped in from the United States, with the exception of Dominican products like fruits and fresh vegetables.
Of course, as one of the triumvirate of leading actors, Matthew enjoyed special treatnt, and his accommodation and als were handled separately.
Most of the cast and crew were scattered across more than eighty hotels in the Dominican Republic. Only he, Keira, Depp, and Gore Verbinski, along with a few other key crew mbers, were staying in one of the best hotels in Santo Domingo.
Matthew had just returned to the hotel when he got a call from Depp, who was drinking with Keira on the hotel's seaside beach. Since Keira had no scenes to film that day, they asked him to join them.
He took a quick shower, changed into so casual clothes, rode the elevator down, and soon found himself on the beach.
As it was the finest hotel in Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic, it wasn't overly crowded with guests, and the hotel's private beach was relatively empty. Matthew had just stepped out of a side door when he spotted Depp and Keira sitting under a large sun umbrella.
They were chatting about sothing, drinking and laughing, and seed to be in very high spirits.
Keira saw Matthew and imdiately raised her hand in greeting. "Over here, Matthew!"
Matthew walked over, pulled out a chair, and sat down next to Keira. Depp grabbed a glass and poured him so champagne.
"I thought you were filming scenes this afternoon?" Keira asked curiously. "Why did it take so long?"
Matthew raised his glass, took a sip, and replied, "The scene was changed on the fly."
Depp placed the champagne bottle back in the ice bucket and said, "We're thinking of doing so sightseeing. You in?"
"Of course," Matthew nodded in response. "And I'd love to experience the passion of the local won."
Keira snorted. "Is there anything else on your mind besides won?"
Matthew remained silent. He lifted the bottle, poured himself another glass, and drank his wine.
Now, free from the bonds of marriage, he felt a familiar sense of freedom and ease return.
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