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Chapter - 116
🕑 Added 2025-04-29 15:52:48 +0000 UTC[Title : Filming [The Hangover]]
….
Today, Samantha was on set - not the official shoot, but more of a controlled test run.
While not unheard of, it was definitely a rare sight. Her schedule was usually packed wall to wall, so her presence could only mean one thing - this was the one sliver of time she could afford to step away from her desk.
Well, used to be.
Back when Regal was filming, that used to be the only window where she could actually breathe a little - when he was the one drowning in work for a change.
But this time was different.
Regal was juggling multiple fonts at once, and even that brief moment of quiet had turned into something else entirely.
And today? Today had a very specific reason behind her visit.
It was the shoot involving the non-human actors - animals, props, and most importantly, the baby.
Samantha was there to personally make sure nothing went sideways.
Right now, she was mid-conversation with Cassandra Vale, the animal casting director, going over the checklist one last time.
Shooting would begin in just a few more minutes.
….
Samantha continued scanning the checklist. Nearby, animal handlers were adjusting the tiny safety harness on the chicken, while a second team gently rocked a stroller where the baby actor - or more accurately, one of the twins hired to play the baby, was sucking on a pacifier without a care in the world.
“Where’s the backup baby?” Samantha asked.
“Nap trailer.” Said Cassandra. “On standby. He’s a screamer, though. This one’s the calm one.”
“Let’s hope he stays that way.” Samantha finally allowed herself a breath, then turned to glance at the main set. It had been staged to look like a trashed Vegas hotel room - fake vomit by the bedside, a toy tiger half-stuffed into the closet, and carefully planted ‘evidence’ of last night’s chaos strewn around. The lighting crew was finishing their setup, and Regal stood near the monitor.
Samantha checked the time. “We’re under ten minutes. Are you good?”
“Ready as we will ever be.” Cassandra replied, giving a mock salute.
Just then, one of the assistant directors jogged up, holding a walkie. “We’re about to lock in! Quiet on set in five!”
….
As the countdown began, Samantha’s eyes landed on Keanu Reeves - seated calmly near the edge of the set, running lines with the quiet precision of someone who didn’t need to.
While there were the other three actors beside him.
But for now her focus remains on him.
Keanu was the last of the four core cast members to officially join the project.
To most people on the outside, it probably looked like Regal settled on him - like a last-minute save.
But Samantha knew better.
She had always known.
Because of all the characters in [The Hangover], Phil was the one Regal seemed least concerned about. Not dismissive - just oddly relaxed.
Where Alan had sent him into an obsessive spiral of rewrites and casting indecision, and Doug and Stu required weeks of auditions and chemistry reads, Phil had been… untouched. Delayed. Unassigned.
That had bothered her.
Back when she, Simon, and Andrew were moving like clockwork under Regal’s direction, scrambling to cast Stu, Alan, Doug, and even Chow - Phil remained this odd void.
It nagged her. But she didn’t push. By that point, she had figured Regal already had someone in mind.
And he did.
The moment the character of Phil had fully taken shape in his mind, Regal knew exactly who he wanted.
Keanu Reeves.
At first, Samantha had been resistant - not because she doubted Keanu’s talent, but because she knew what came with casting him. The schedule. The commitments.
The compromises Regal have to make to lock him in.
But to Regal, it was never really a debate.
In his mind, Keanu had the perfect balance of effortless cool, deadpan sincerity, and just enough offbeat timing to elevate Phil from a stock ‘charming rogue’ into something deeper - someone who unraveled under pressure, who panicked in silence, but still came across as the guy everyone instinctively followed.
And Keanu? He hadn’t hesitated.
He didn’t ask for a script.
Didn’t ask who else was cast.
He just smiled when Regal called and said. “Count me in.”
Samantha had been quietly stunned by how easily it all fell into place. In an industry where everything was a negotiation, Regal and Keanu moved like two old friends just picking up a thread.
Still, Keanu wasn’t blind. He eventually noticed her hesitations too.
And when he did, he walked up to Regal on day one of prep and said: “I think Samantha was right Regal… I got a little too hyped and promised something I might not be able to pull off.”
Regal raised a brow. “What happened? Second thoughts?”
“Hell no, man. Not with you.” Keanu said, shaking his head. “It’s just… My schedule is kind of a mess right now. I have got three projects overlapping the next few months.”
Indeed, despite not getting any male lead roles as he prefers, Keanu was indeed busy with some major roles in a couple of medium budget films and an Indie film. He only has a set of disorder days in between days of each week - which is not very likely days to sign in for another film.
He paused, visibly torn. “I know how tight your sets are. I don’t want to be the guy who slows it down.”
What Keanu didn’t realize was - Regal already knew the risks. Every one of them.
“I checked your schedule with Chris.” Regal said casually.
He hadn’t. Not yet.
But that didn’t matter. Because Regal had already made up his mind.
“I will make it work.” He said, no hesitation.
Keanu blinked, studying him. “You sure?”
“I am sure.”
“…Cool. Then I have got no more questions.”
And that was that.
From that point on, the logistics became Samantha’s problem.
She was the one who would have to reshuffle scenes, juggle timelines, and smooth things over with the crew to make sure it all fit around Keanu’s availability. A quiet scramble behind the scenes - managed with her usual precision.
But when all was said and done, Keanu Reeves was officially in.
And for the second time in his career, he was teaming up with Regal.
As for why Regal was so chill about rearranging the schedule?
Simple.
Unlike his last two intense, precision-timed productions, Regal wanted [The Hangover] to feel like a vacation. No rigid constraints. No pressure.
He knew once he stepped into the next massive machine - [Harry Potter], or anything Marvel or DC-related - he wouldn’t get a chance to breathe like this again.
And [The Hangover]? It was the perfect sandbox.
Sure, he had informed a close circle of people that he was already working on the [Harry Potter] film. But the truth was, real pre-production wouldn’t even kick off until [The Hangover] wrapped.
As for Marvel or DC?
That was another minefield entirely.
Ever since learning there were strings tied to Gwendolyn - strings he didn’t fully understand yet - he had decided to keep his distance. No pushing, no overstepping.
If Gwendolyn wanted to open that door, she would. Until then, it stayed shut.
For now, all that mattered was one thing:
Keanu was in.
Phil was locked.
And Regal had his chaos crew ready…
…..
Still Regal plans to attend this year's Comic-con are still the same.
So what was he planning to show at the event?
Well, it was Comic-Con - comics were the theme, after all.
Regal’s plan was simple: a short comic art teaser of Harry Potter, paired with a few CGI concept shots to showcase the worldbuilding - how magic looked, how Hogwarts breathed, how cinematic the whole thing could feel.
It wasn’t a production preview. It was a vision pitch.
What he wanted was clear: to put his vision out there and draw the right eyes. Studio heads. Investors. Collaborators.
Because truth be told, Regal had no intention of producing the entire Harry Potter series himself - not like his other films. He didn’t need to, and more importantly, he didn’t want to.
He wasn’t going to spend the next decade tied to a single franchise.
He would direct the first film, set the tone, then hand it off to someone he trusted. Let the world expand without him needing to hold the wheel every step of the way.
As for funding? He wasn’t chasing that either.
He already held the adaptation rights in his hands, which meant the studios would come to him. The writing gig alone - penning every script - would pay him more than enough.
And that was the goal.
Use the Harry Potter deal to fund everything else. The Marvel slate. The original ideas. The dreams that didn’t come with built-in fanbases.
In the end all these things won't begin until he announces officially.
And once he did it - there will be no pause.
So until then he simply wants to relax.
.....
Once [The Hangover] completed its pre-production, things started to move - slowly at first, then all at once.
With the core cast locked in and the script polished to a gleaming, absurd brilliance, Regal and his crew eased into filming.
Nothing too complex in the beginning - just montage shots. The kind of scenes that didn’t need dialogue, just movement, mood, and a camera that knew where to look.
And then came that day.
The kind that started before the sun even had a chance to think about rising -
By 6:45 AM, the crew had rolled up to Caesars Palace.
The real one.
Its massive columns still cast sleepy shadows over the drive-up as the team quietly unloaded gear, yawning into coffee cups and checking call sheets under flickering lobby lights.
Caesars Palace was majestic - gaudy in all the right ways, a perfect mix of opulence and over-the-top Vegas charm.
The scouting team had eyed it weeks before, circling it on the map like a treasure.
But once contact was made with the hotel’s officials, reality hit fast.
The hotel wasn’t messing around.
The management had provided them strict filming limitations, expressing zero tolerance for disrupting guests. Any noise or visual chaos that could taint their brand - the deal if off the table.
And Regal got it. He really did. For hotels in this league, brand and reputation are the utmost cornering and sensitive issue over any revenue. Even he wouldn’t risk ticking off high-rolling regulars for a few movie bucks.
Still, the crew needed this shot.
The Emperor Suite - the Emperor Suite - wasn’t just a backdrop. It was a character in the film.
Still after a few tense negotiations, the production team had managed to strike a deal with Caesars Palace: between 7:00 AM and 11:00 AM, access was granted to the actual Emperor Suite at a cost of $5,000 per hour, non-negotiable.
And that is how they are here now.
Regal, with DOP Mathew Hord, and the Production designer Maher Ahmad, arrived at the location promptly at 6:45 AM, leading an army of 45 crew members who pushed carts through a back entrance.
Hotel staff watched as lighting rigs were wheeled in, followed by two steady-cam operators, a tiger safety team, hotel liaison officers, and a pair of wranglers for the wandering chicken.
Similarly, Caesars Palace also imposed strict limitations on set dressing - no walls could be repainted, and every overturned chair, shattered lamp, and scorched mattress had to be simulated and reversible.
So the art team came prepared with over 300 foam props, heat-reactive LED ‘burn’ lights, and temporary wallpaper appliqués designed to look like tiger claw marks.
As the clock hit 7:00 AM, the actors arrived on set.
Assistant directors immediately took charge, leading the cast - Keanu Reeves, Zach Galifianakis, and Keanu Reeves- to makeup artists while allowing them to rehearse their lines.
While that was happening, the blocking, or the mapping of actor movement, was meticulously planned to sell disarray in a way that felt real.
The camera had to move with the actors, discovering the mayhem as they did.
Paul was given the path through the trashed minibar, Keanu was tasked with noticing the chicken, and Zach Galifianakis - the wildcard - was encouraged to ad-lib as he approached the closet.
Finally, the infant actor was replaced with a lifelike prop during all but the tightest shots.
….
As the cameras were placed, and lighting was arranged, Regal had no choice but to say that the art team did an excellent job creating the mythologized Room 2452.
They detailed the layout and aimed to make the audience feel like they were walking into that suite with the characters - smelling the disaster, blinking into the light, and feeling just as lost.
Regal could really see the vivid images in his mind match the location.
.....
At 10:48 AM, the crew prepared themselves for the bathroom reveal scene - where the tiger growls behind the cracked door.
Unlike the ones planned today - this scene is slightly complex.
It was planned to be filmed in two stages.
First Unit filmed actor reactions.
Here, the tiger won't be present. Just a trainer banged a padded pole behind the door and played a tiger growl on cue.
Second Unit - more like the tiger shots will be filmed later in the afternoon in a studio set.
The reason for dividing the into two units once again lay in something to do with Caesars hotel guidelines. During the contract permits, the management only granted access to one of its upper-level mini-villas for exterior and limited hallway use.
Their main objection was - Live big cats were banned inside occupied guest floors.
So Regal had no option but to film the actual interior filming and tiger shots in a replicated set in Stage 9 at Red Studio, built to exact Caesar suite specs.
….
At 12:00 PM, as the clock struck the end of the time window, the crew disassembled the sets and loaded the props into a truck labeled [Stage 9 – Red Studios].
Just in time, a steel-reinforced animal transport truck pulled into the Red Studios loading bay.
Trainer Lisa Mendez hopped out, clipboard in hand, eyes focused - as the tiger was brought in.
Reaching the studio set and unloading equipment Regal could see the production designer team once again really within a single day made him appreciate the effort.
Production designer Maher Ahmad and his team worked off actual floor plans, building a 2,400 square foot set over 13 days.
Every wall was modular, allowing the camera crew to break away panels for tracking shots.
Even the lighting system mirrored the hotel’s mood-lit dimmers, so that DOP Mathew Hord could capture the eerie stillness of morning light with absolute realism.
….
Soon after, there in the set - the infamous tiger bathroom awaited.
For safety, a 12-foot plexiglass wall separated the tiger from the crew, with a breakaway segment added digitally in post.
Only three crew members were allowed in the room - two camera operators in safety cages and one trainer.
Obviously, the actors had already called the day off, and no one was present.
Overall, the scene is being fully shot professionally under tight supervision.
The tiger, Misha, was trained to enter the bathroom and lie on a temperature-controlled marble slab, designed to be cooler and more comfortable than the rest of the set.
To simulate a spontaneous reveal, the camera operator wore a shoulder rig and opened the bathroom door himself, uncut.
Later in the post production, the shot where the tiger was revealed will be followed by the shot to which Keanue Reeves' character's reaction was captured in the morning making it a single scene.
The seamless blend of fear, confusion, and stillness gave the audience a moment to breathe before the panic set in.
…..
At 4:45 PM, the tiger shots were also completed.
It took over 90 minutes to finish a total of three successful shots, none longer than 12 seconds each.
Between takes, he was given beef-scented enrichment toys and lay under a misting fan.
Regal called the trainer, and informed the wrap.
Once done, the team reviewed the principal footage of Scene 32.
Regal sitting in his director chair watched the dailies and simply said. “That’s the one. That’s our movie in one scene.”
The footage was later color-timed to emphasize the daylight exposure, pale skin tones, and morning-after fatigue.
No heavy grading was used - just a slight desaturation to avoid warm hues. The goal was to make the audience feel hungover too.
….
.
[To be continued…]
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Comments
LightningDan
Assistant directors immediately took charge, leading the cast - Keanu Reeves, Zach Galifianakis, and Keanu Reeves- to makeup artists while allowing them to rehearse their lines. You mentioned Keanu twice in the sentence,
Josh Morris
So is the stalker guy here to start the drama for Regal and Gwendolyn?.
