The recording studio

The history of the Tonight Show dates back a long way, from 1954 until now. It still holds high ratings across America, making it an absolute ace among all late-night talk shows.

Around 6 o'clock in the evening, the makeup crew applied some concealer to Lyman and the others to ensure they would look their best on camera during the upcoming recording.

The entire process took less than 10 minutes, which was relatively simple for men.

However, Tom Cruise was different.

Lyman stood on the side, observing as his assistant and makeup artist meticulously discussed the combination of his makeup and styling. Meanwhile, Tom held a mirror, checking if there were any gaps or blemishes around his mouth or teeth.

At this moment, Lyman deeply felt the contrast between being an idol star, carefully packaged by CAA, and the pressure Tom had endured over the past two decades to maintain his perfect image in front of any camera. Just like a finely crafted work of art, "idol" was his label, and meticulously maintaining his image from the inside out was his daily routine.

After observing for a long while, once everything was done, Lyman couldn't help but ask, "Aren't you tired doing all this?"

Tom shrugged, looking completely candid. "That's life, isn't it? My life."

It was just work; maybe it seemed a bit hard to understand from an outsider's perspective, but Tom was accustomed to it.

It was akin to the love for crafting personas in the future. Whether someone was a foodie, naive, or an academic genius, just like those young talents groomed for stardom from a young age, the labels they carried had become inescapable shackles. Once these were questioned or shattered, their career would be severed.

"Your idea of transitioning is right. If I were you, I'd do the same," Lyman couldn't help but sigh.

A person can't eat only one type of food their whole life; he believed Tom understood this as well.

Tom chuckled lightly, straightening his tie. "Of course, and it seems like I've had a decent start." After saying this, he glanced at Lyman before continuing, "With "Miscreant", right?"

Each work on the road of transition meant the possibility of a new chapter: success, failure, or even having no effect at all. Maybe their career would reach new heights, or they would return dispiritedly to their old path. All of this was an unknown, making each work like a gamble. Until the moment the cards were revealed, no one knew what the final outcome would be.

"Tom, Nicolas, Lyman, 30-second countdown." A stagehand came briskly to the scene, signaling to the three of them.

"Ten seconds left." With earphones on, the stagehand continued to remind them.

Tom stood tall, his gaze straight ahead, adopting a relaxed posture. The curve of his smile wasn't too much or too little, it was that iconic "Tom Cruise" smile.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let's welcome the creators of "Miscreant" to our show's stage. Tom Cruise, Nicolas Cage, Lyman Lattes, please come forward." The host Jay Leno's voice had just fallen when the live band played a cheerful jazz tune. With a drumbeat, the doors to the recording set slowly opened, and the three of them walked out confidently.

In the audience seats, everyone stood up, cheering loudly and clapping their hands enthusiastically. Some even put their fingers to their lips, whistling sharply.

The opening atmosphere set by the show's team was great, but it was uncertain how many people in the audience were planted there to boost it.

Quite dedicated, aren't they?

The three of them walked up in succession, embracing the host Jay before taking their seats. Lyman sat in the middle, with Tom to his right and Nicolas to his left.

Jay also took a seat behind a dark red table, directly facing Lyman and the others' couch. They were fairly close to each other.

"Could you each talk about your experiences on the set?" After a few opening remarks, Jay quickly shifted the conversation towards the movie.

"This was the most challenging shoot in my acting career," Tom was the first to answer the question.

"So, what was the reason for that?" Jay followed up.

Tom turned to look at Lyman before speaking, "Because during the filming process, I kept having multiple takes due to mistakes, you know, especially on set where everyone around you is acting with you. It's really... embarrassing." He paused for a moment to find the right words, then continued, "A real loss of face."

Jay burst into laughter, then nodded, guiding the rhythm of the conversation. "And you, Lyman, as the director, what was the reason for the continuous retakes?"

"Of course, it's to bring out better performances from the characters."

Although this answer was sincere, it lacked the entertainment value for a variety show. The host quickly moved on, "And what about you, Nicolas? How do you feel on set?"

"It's alright, as long as I'm not acting opposite Tom, I get through things pretty quickly. When I'm with him, it might be a bit troublesome."

Although it was a sharp comment on Tom's acting, coupled with the earlier atmosphere and Nic's serious expression, it had a peculiar sense of dark humor.

As expected, Jay, who wasn't afraid of a little controversy, clapped his hands in approval, making Tom beside him helplessly raise his hands.

"Then again, Tom, I have to admit, when I entered the cinema, it was hard to associate your character with your usual image. There wasn't a hint of discord." Jay shifted the topic again, getting into the main purpose of their appearance today: promotion.

He turned his gaze towards the audience. "I'm being very serious here, don't think I'm joking. If you've gone to see this movie, you might understand what I mean."

The audience responded with enthusiastic cheers and support.

"For a long time, I almost forgot that this role was played by Tom again. It wasn't until the end of the movie that I remembered our handsome Tom had appeared, playing a bad guy."

"The movie title was quite straightforward. Could he even play a good guy?" Nicolas joked.

He had a good sense of variety show humor, having participated in quite a few of these types of interviews before. He had some experience in that regard, whereas Lyman had long drifted into a trance.

It wasn't until the recording was over, and Jay exchanged polite greetings with him, that he snapped back to reality.

The group returned to the hotel to rest, recharging for tomorrow's journey.

"Miscreant" was still consistently raking in box office earnings in the market...