Gratitude

J.C Chandor completed all of the filming he planned to do in the One Penn Plaza building. Now, he had to shoot the car scene with Ryan and Paul. Both actors sat in the car while it was towed by a process trailer, wearing lav mics to pick up the audio, and trying their best in each take due to time restraints. 

The car was going through Queensboro Bridge, the sunrise casting a soft glow on the blue Mercedes. The camera was on the hood of the car and J.C gave a thumbs on to start the scene. 

"Alright Will, am I getting fired?" Seth kept looking side to side making Will (Paul) uncomfortable. 

Will takes a pause and then finally says, "Probably…yes…definetly." He lights a cigarette and smokes it. 

In the original movie, Penn Badgley played Seth with a kind of subdued sadness but Ryan, in this scene, interprets the role as a person who should be on the verge of breaking from bottled-up anger. 

"Are you?" Seth looks straight at Will's eyes creating tension between the two characters. 

"No". 

Paul wants to build on this tension so he says, "For what it's worth I'm sorry this is happening to you". Seth knows this fake pity because Will has fired plenty of people before. 

"But you're not. Fuck. What am l going to do? All the executives are safe as usual with their private schools, tennis lessons, and trips to the Hamptons. How about me, waited tables when l was 14. Went to a shitty public school. Huh? How about normal people? What happens to them?" Ryan's improv performance reached its crescendo as the bottled up anger was released. But there was also concern for the everyday American that made the viewer sympathize with him. 

Any actor can get angry. But Ryan made you feel why—he gave that anger a soul. Beneath that shouting was fear, disappointment, and a deep sense of betrayal. 

Paul senses that the scene is closing and delivers a powerful monologue in that subdued British accent. "Yeah it's not fair. But the only reason that they continue to live like kings is because we've got our fingers on the scale in their favor. And if l were to take my finger off… then the world gets really fucking fair, really fucking quickly." Paul delivered the rest of the monologue with a tour de force that moved Ryan. 

Both actors reflected on the scene. The soft hum of the engine filled the silence. 

Pau inhaled slowly and the smoke curled around his fingers. 

'Man. I thought that Seth was supposed to be more forgiving or less angry. But Ryan played it so real. Yes, he should be mad at Wall Street but also feel betrayed by Will. He should also be worried about the everyday American because he is one. Suddenly, the audience isn't just watching him…they're with him" 

Ryan looked at the trailer ahead and was calming himself down after the unscripted meltdown. 

'Did l do too much? I was relating my own personal experience as Seth but l felt it worked. But that monologue. That was something else'.

Both actors looked up at the New York sun that hit them in short bursts like paparazzi flashing their cameras. 

***

Since this was an indie film, production was only three weeks and the rest of the days of shooting went smoothly. J.C was satisfied with all the performances but was particularly fond of Ryan's. The moment he said, "That was a wrap. Congrats, everybody" he wanted to go straight to the editing booth to edit Ryan's scenes. 

The day after, the wrap party was at a converted loft space in Tribeca filled with exposed red brick, low-hanging Edison lights, and cocktails everywhere. 

Zachrary Quinto laughed with one of the lighting guys over in a dark corner, his usual intensity softened now that the cameras were gone. Kevin Spacey, composed but slightly tipsy, was telling a story about a play he did. 

"So we did a performance of The Iceman Cometh for the Democratic party on Broadway and President Bill Clinton came. A couple weeks before, a person from the white house said, 'Umm. Listen, it's very unusual for someone to get the President for six and half hours so he should just see the first act.' l convinced them that he must come or we would cancel. They agreed. l know why they said that because the play was about someone who is a philander and cheats on their wife. The play ends with the man taking his own life because his wife forgave him too much and couldn't live with it." 

Kevin looked around the crew smiling and took a brief sip of champagne. "So now imagine this, there's 2,000 people watching Bill Clinton watching this play. At the end of the night, we take our curtain call, they bring out the presidential podium. And he says (in a perfect impression), "Well, we should all thank heaven and this extraordinary company of actors giving us all WAY too much to think about". 

The people around him chuckled at the impersonation and Clinton's response. 

J.C Chandor, stood near the bar, drank a neat bourbon and thanked the crew members one by one. He approached Ryan with a smile on his face

"I just want to let you know, that whatever happens to you in this industry, you're good. I don't say that lightly." 

Ryan hugged JC and thanked him for this incredible opportunity. The wrap party ended and Ryan took a train to his hotel room. 

Tomorrow he would call Mark to ask if any scripts were sent to him. But tonight, he would savor this feeling: the immense pleasure of doing good work. That's all he wanted to do. 

'Success is just a byproduct of that. I have been too focused on fame and the awards and comparisons. Just put my head down'