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Wait, MCU actors don't get scripts anymore, just their pages?

M

Messofanego

Banned
While promoting Wind River, Elizabeth Olsen said this in an interview with Stephen Colbert:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UG4SuYLfebY#t=1m48s

Colbert: "Do you have to sign top-secret papers to be in the Marvel MCU?"

Olsen: "I think I signed a lot of things before I joined...This time, they actually decided...not to give us scripts [laughs]. They gave me my pages and they explained other things that are happening."

Colbert: "So when you go see the movie."

Olsen: "I'll be so shocked and surprised. I'll be like 'Oh I see that's what was happening to the world at that time!'"

If this is true for other MCU actors, is it so they don't leak any secrets?

How is not getting the full picture beneficial to the filmmaking?

This sounds like what voice actors have to deal with, not getting the full context.
 
ZeroGravity

ZeroGravity

Member
Yes, it's to prevent spoilers.

Given the extremely consistent quality the MCU movies have, I imagine it's pretty easy for the actors to sign on without a script. They know what they're getting into.
 
S

Solo

Member
ZeroGravity said:
Yes, it's to prevent spoilers.

Given the extremely consistent quality the MCU movies have, I imagine it's pretty easy for the actors to sign on without a script. They know what they're getting into.
Click to expand...

Not to be too cynical, but I'm certain they are signing on for the mammoth exposure they'll get and not for the "quality", which I agree, is pretty consistent.....
 
N

norm9

Member
They just put it all together in post production. Like mashing a banana through a sewer grate with your foot.
 
T

The Kree

Banned
The director has the big picture and you can really only worry about the day's work anyway. There's too many moving parts for any one person to worry about at all times.
 
A

Air

Banned
They probably lean heavily on improv for the humor. Sometimes it's funnier to just say what your gut tells you instead of reading lines from a script. That's probably something they learned from having Robert Downey Jr. On for so long
 
H

HeySeuss

Member
She said "this time" which means to me this is new for Infinity War. Also leads me to believe that since they are taking this kind of a step to protect leaks, that some major shit is gonna go down.

I like it.
 
O

ogbg

Member
ZeroGravity said:
Yes, it's to prevent spoilers.

Given the extremely consistent quality the MCU movies have, I imagine it's pretty easy for the actors to sign on without a script. They know what they're getting into.
Click to expand...


The quality level certainly doesn't change much between films, I'll give you that
 
P

PhantomKnight

Member
If I recall I remember Tom Holland saying he was fighting a guy in mocap for IW, and wasn't allowed to know who or what he was fighting against.
 
S

Scrooge McDuck

Member
Messofanego said:
Did not know this. I guess with a good director, they'll give enough context to your lines and scenes.
Click to expand...

Ideally, they're simply being kept in the dark about things irrelevant to the development of the characters at that time. Like, if Wanda in the movie doesn't actually know that Steve has died, then Elizabeth Olsen wouldn't, either. In general, knowing those kind of things wouldn't actually help anyway.
 
M

Messofanego

Banned
Air said:
They probably lean heavily on improv for the humor. Sometimes it's funnier to just say what your gut tells you instead of reading lines from a script. That's probably something they learned from having Robert Downey Jr. On for so long
Click to expand...
The Apatow Productions of superhero movies, but GotG Vol 2 was so bad at the humor. And Avengers. And Doctor Strange. Maybe sticking to scripted humor is a better idea :p
 
N

Nugg

Member
Messofanego said:
How is not getting the full picture beneficial to the filmmaking?
Click to expand...
Well, an actor only knowing as much as their character does doesn't sound insane to me.

It's very different from the voice actor stuff, where they don't even know what game they're working on. This time they do get context.
 
K

Kill Your Masters

Member
ZeroGravity said:
Yes, it's to prevent spoilers.

Given the extremely consistent quality the MCU movies have, I imagine it's pretty easy for the actors to sign on without a script. They know what they're getting into.
Click to expand...

I imagine when an actor gets approached by Marvel it goes something like this:

"Hey this is Kevin Feig--"

"Where do I sign?"
 
S

Spiritual_Chaos

Banned
Messofanego said:
How is not getting the full picture beneficial to the filmmaking?
Click to expand...

Just knowing as much as you're character would know can be beneficial for the actor/performance (as in Twin Peaks). Doubt that would be relevant in this case though.

There's a swedish thriller titled Apan (The Ape) where the actor got instructions in his ear throughout the actual filming but never read the script or know anything beforehand. It's worth checking out.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1459026/

TheApePoster.jpg
 
C

CloudWolf

Member
Yeah, this is fairly standard practice for big productions. You can always take it further, like the Swedish example above or David Lynch with Inland Empire, where even he didn't know the full script since he was writing the film while they were shooting.
 
O

old manatee

Banned
That's gonna be some next-level wooden acting. It's bad enough that these films are shot entirely in front of a green screen, but now the actors aren't even going to have any context about what's going on. If they really want to plug the leaks they should talk to the marketing department that consistently drips out 90% of the movie before anyone has seen it.
 
A

Afrodium

Banned
The Exploder said:
That's gonna be some next-level wooden acting. It's bad enough that these films are shot entirely in front of a green screen, but now the actors aren't even going to have any context about what's going on. If they really want to plug the leaks they should talk to the marketing department that consistently drips out 90% of the movie before anyone has seen it.
Click to expand...

Not having the script doesn't mean they don't have context. There's a director and a whole crew of people on set that will make sure the actors have the correct motivation and context for the scene they're shooting.
 
M

Messofanego

Banned
Nugg said:
Well, an actor only knowing as much as their character does doesn't sound insane to me.

It's very different from the voice actor stuff, where they don't even know what game they're working on. This time they do get context.
Click to expand...

You're right. This is a bit different. I'm gonna backtrack on making a point about script being the only context. Directors fill that in, most likely.
 
G

Glass Rebel

Member
Why am I not surprised that people who are wholly unfamiliar with acting or the filmmaking process are trying to paint this as a blanket negative?

tumblr_od8ihcwskq1uhh267o3_500.gif
 
M

Messofanego

Banned
Glass Rebel said:
Why am I not surprised that people who are wholly unfamiliar with acting or the filmmaking process are trying to paint this as a blanket negative?
Click to expand...
I thought I was just showing my surprise at this, rather than paint it as a blanket negative. Are you more involved with filmmaking or acting? Good for you.
 
G

Glass Rebel

Member
Messofanego said:
I thought I was just showing my surprise at this, rather than paint it as a blanket negative. Are you more involved with filmmaking or acting? Good for you.
Click to expand...

I wasn't necessarily talking about your posts.

But yeah, I've been involved in amateur theatre on the acting and production side for years and the same applies. Ultimately, it depends on the script and the style of your director (and in theatre potentially stage manager/set designer) to get the best performance out of your actors. When we put on Shakespeare's The Tempest, we basically had three groups that barely interacted with each other and certainly didn't read each other's lines because it wasn't necessary.
 
A

Alienous

Member
Maybe I have the wrong impression, but aren't scripts usually given to actors before they sign on? "Read this and decide if you want to be a part of the movie".

Seems like it would be redundant when these actors are signed on for movies years in advance.
 
P

Pai Pai Master

Banned
The Exploder said:
That's gonna be some next-level wooden acting. It's bad enough that these films are shot entirely in front of a green screen, but now the actors aren't even going to have any context about what's going on. If they really want to plug the leaks they should talk to the marketing department that consistently drips out 90% of the movie before anyone has seen it.
Click to expand...

You do realize this is a common practice right?
 
H

HeySeuss

Member
The Exploder said:
That's gonna be some next-level wooden acting. It's bad enough that these films are shot entirely in front of a green screen, but now the actors aren't even going to have any context about what's going on. If they really want to plug the leaks they should talk to the marketing department that consistently drips out 90% of the movie before anyone has seen it.
Click to expand...

Yeah I could see that. It's almost like they need someone to give them context and direct them as to their motivation in the moment. Too bad they don't have somebody to do that on the set, someone that sees the bigger picture to give them coaching and guidance for the scene. They should create a position for that type of job. They could call it a director or something. Just spitballing here.
 
G

Gordon Shumway

Banned
The Exploder said:
That's gonna be some next-level wooden acting. It's bad enough that these films are shot entirely in front of a green screen, but now the actors aren't even going to have any context about what's going on.
Click to expand...

Except this is completely false, and plenty of shows do the same with scripts. This practice has been done so for ages.
 
Rktk

Rktk

Member
Glass Rebel said:
Why am I not surprised that people who are wholly unfamiliar with acting or the filmmaking process are trying to paint this as a blanket negative?
Click to expand...

Exactly, why would you be surprised? On the face of it one would think knowledge of the whole script would lead to better performances.
 
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