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"...Charlie, check the second set of equipment. The positioning was off during the last shoot. The support might be a bit loose."
"Jack, go and confirm the exact angle with the third camera crew. They mentioned that there was a flaw in the crowd scene inside the train car."
"And someone needs to check the stunt double's gear."
Busy, tight, orderly, with chaos yet in perfect sync.
Harry Percy adjusted his fisherman's hat, pulling it down to cover his face as much as possible. He tried to hide the fact that he was glancing around, avoiding detection at all costs.
After immense effort, he had finally infiltrated the set of Spider-Man 2. The last thing he wanted was to be caught before getting any exclusive scoop—exposing himself before he had the chance to break any news.
The shooting of Spider-Man 2 was running like a well-oiled machine, fast-paced and relentless.
It looked like the security system was loose, but in reality, it was extremely tight, effectively keeping out any prying eyes from the media.
This set up a fierce game of cat and mouse between Harry Percy and the production crew.
Inspired by the film Phone Booth, Harry found a way into a nearby skyscraper, where he could shoot from above using a telephoto lens.
He managed to snap a few photos, but Anson wasn't wearing the Spider-Man suit; he just looked like any ordinary college student.
Harry didn't even bother sending the photos to TMZ because they were far from exclusive.
TMZ may not have been interested, but other outlets were. Harry sold them off quickly and made a small profit.
However, so far, no one had captured a single photo of Anson in the Spider-Man suit—it remained a tightly held secret.
Imagine if TMZ could get an exclusive?
If Harry had his way, he'd rather avoid getting too close to Anson. He had learned his lesson after being burned too many times by the actor. He was wary.
But...
After much contemplation, Harry decided to take the risk.
You can't catch a tiger cub without entering the tiger's den. There's also a saying about growing bolder with every setback. He needed to confront his fears to find freedom.
And, of course, to get that exclusive scoop.
Harry sprang into action.
After gathering intel, he concluded that the Spider-Man 2 crew was wrapping up their first phase of filming in New York and heading to New Jersey. The plan was to shoot a critical scene in a studio there.
According to the information Harry had gathered, Sam Raimi had personally planned the entire scene, from inspiration to detailed shot planning. It was clear this was going to be a pivotal scene in the movie.
The scene wasn't suitable for location shooting, but Raimi also refused to use green screens, insisting on building the set so the actors could perform in real environments, adding CGI effects afterward as needed.
Sony Columbia agreed to this approach.
So, starting last November, the crew began building a studio in New Jersey, meticulously recreating Sam Raimi's vision to scale.
Now the crew was headed to New Jersey to film this crucial scene.
Based on all the information, it was likely this would be the movie's climactic final battle between Spider-Man and the villain.
In other words, the chances of Spider-Man appearing in costume were very, very high.
Harry followed the crew all the way to New Jersey.
This was a closed set, unlike the more open shooting locations in New York. The production crew had the place locked down tight, leaving Harry with almost no opportunity to sneak in.
But instead of feeling discouraged, this only confirmed his hunch—
This was definitely the big scene.
Harry bided his time, observing the area for three days. He felt like Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible, his patience somehow thrilling, as though he were in a spy movie.
Finally, Harry figured out the crew's security layout and found a weak point in the otherwise ironclad setup.
After all, this wasn't a real fortress, and the security system wasn't completely impenetrable. There were multiple gaps, but all carried risks of exposure. After careful consideration, Harry chose his entry point:
The catering truck.
Every day, the crew shared meals together, and the catering truck was the only outside entity allowed into the set. But because of this, security was extra vigilant, ensuring nothing slipped through the cracks.
Harry's plan wasn't to sneak in with the catering truck but to slip in with the team that cleaned up the garbage afterward. After lunch, a crew was responsible for collecting trash and keeping the set clean.
This kind of job was unappealing, even to the catering crew, and the security guards often paid less attention to them, performing only cursory checks.
This was Harry's opportunity.
With a few Benjamins, Harry bribed a catering team apprentice to fake sick just before departure, leaving a gap in the workforce.
In the resulting scramble, the apprentice introduced Harry as a friend willing to fill in. Harry humbly offered to do any job, and the team reluctantly agreed.
As expected, Harry was assigned to garbage duty.
Harry entered the set with the catering team but didn't enter the studio right away. Instead, he waited outside, performing small tasks like fetching drinks and ice, staying completely inconspicuous under the watchful eyes of security.
Once lunch was over, he pushed the trash bin into the studio. As usual, security conducted their routine checks but failed to find the camera Harry had hidden beneath the empty drink bottles.
It was a perfect case of "deceiving everyone."
At least, Harry had taken the first crucial step:
Getting his equipment into the studio.
Inside, the mysterious set unfolded before him like an epic painting.
Everything was exactly as Harry had imagined. It was clear they were shooting a climactic battle scene, and it was a large-scale one:
On the left side of the studio, there was a railway track that spanned the entire width of the set. A real train sat on the tracks, with a green screen at the end for CGI effects.
On either side of the tracks were city buildings that looked incredibly lifelike, resembling Manhattan's dense lower-east-side residential areas. Unlike other sets that merely painted backdrops, these buildings were fully constructed.
The difference? They weren't made of steel and concrete but some special material, probably foam, designed to be destroyed without harming anyone.
So, what exactly were they filming?
Harry felt a surge of excitement.
But in the face of extreme excitement, he grew calm.
Instead of sneaking glances around, Harry focused on cleaning up the garbage.
Conveniently, this gave him access to different corners of the set. No one paid attention to a janitor, so he discreetly listened and used his peripheral vision to gather intel.
Meanwhile, his mind raced, trying to figure out the best moment to snap photos.
If he could pull this off quietly, without raising any alarms, then retreat undetected, when TMZ released the exclusive photos, the Spider-Man 2 crew wouldn't know what hit them. They might even suspect an inside job.
There would be drama, for sure.
And the thought of embarrassing Anson made Harry giddy with anticipation.
But where was Anson now?