Without a doubt, the filming of Spider-Man 2 presented a challenge for the entire crew—props, sets, stunts, CGI, and actors alike.
Sam Raimi had envisioned a grand and thrilling fight scene. Everyone on set believed that, once filmed, it would absolutely shock audiences. The question was, how to film it? How to turn imagination into reality? How to accomplish the impossible on screen?
This is precisely a hallmark of Hollywood's mastery of genre films: they consistently find ways to turn dreams into reality and complete seemingly impossible tasks.
"Anson, are you sure?" Alfred looked at Anson, unable to hide his concern.
Actually, Spider-Man wears a mask throughout the entire movie, so the audience wouldn't even see his face. With the fight scenes enhanced by CGI, it would be hard to tell who's performing. Using a stunt double for these scenes would not be a problem at all.
However, Anson insisted on doing many of the stunts himself, completing them within his capabilities, leaving only the most difficult moves to professionals.
Alfred was genuinely surprised by this decision.
"If I didn't need to show my face all the time, I definitely wouldn't want to be here suffering," Alfred grumbled.
Doctor Octopus also had a stunt double, but the issue was that he didn't wear a mask, so his face was often exposed. That meant Alfred had to do most of the scenes himself.
Fortunately for him, Doctor Octopus is a rather clumsy character, and the real challenge was with his mechanical arms, not Alfred's physical dexterity.
Anson laughed, "I guess that's just the price of being an actor, right? When you're holding a multi-million-dollar paycheck, you can't just sit on the sidelines and let the people earning a fraction of that rush into danger."
Alfred chuckled, a glint of appreciation in his eyes, but he still teased, "Multi-million? It's probably more than that."
Anson shrugged. "So that means I have to be even more dedicated."
"Haha," Alfred laughed. "Not all actors are like that."
"Cough cough Johnny Depp cough cough," A nearby stuntman, preparing for the next scene, fake-coughed, throwing in his own sly jab.
When both Anson and Alfred turned to look, the stuntman put on an innocent face, acting as if nothing had happened.
Anson chuckled, "See? This is exactly what I want to avoid. Besides, the director also prefers that I do my own stunts. Even though my face isn't visible, my body shape, movements, and habits are still different."
"That's why I took professional martial arts training."
"You agree, right, director?" Anson called out toward the monitors.
Sam Raimi, caught off guard, started coughing as he choked on his own saliva.
Whether he wanted to admit it or not, the fact was that Sam had been extremely demanding from the very first movie in the series. It wasn't about being picky or having special requirements—it was simply about achieving the best possible results for the film. He wanted the movie to meet his exacting standards.
This time, with even more pressure bearing down, Sam's expectations had become stricter and more exacting. He had been meticulously planning this key fight scene since they were on the New York set, rehearsing every detail to ensure perfection.
Though Sam hadn't explicitly said it, his attitude was clear—
He wanted Anson to personally perform the main action sequences.
There was something different about the way a trained actor carries themselves—posture, habits, and the overall physicality. Plus, these fight scenes were also a form of acting, conveying Spider-Man's urgency, anxiety, struggle, and pain through body language. Anson naturally possessed an aura unique to him, and Sam needed that to fully immerse him in the role of Peter Parker.
It wasn't just about doing his own stunts—it was about giving it his all.
Now that Anson had pointed this out, Sam couldn't help but look a little embarrassed.
After clearing his throat, Sam said in a low voice, "That paycheck might be even bigger than you think."
The crew burst out laughing.
Anson, the target of their teasing, didn't mind. He raised his hands in surrender and calmly responded, "Looks like today's 100% effort won't cut it. I'll need to give at least 120%, for the sake of that paycheck."
More laughter erupted across the set.
With a steady demeanor, Anson turned to the two stuntmen standing next to Alfred. "To make sure the shoot goes smoothly, should we practice the sequence one more time? Feel free to push me a little harder."
The atmosphere on set remained light and lively.
So, how exactly would the "Spider-Man vs. Doctor Octopus" scene be filmed?
The answer was a combination of practical effects and CGI.
At that moment, Alfred was wearing a harness-like contraption, with suction cups attached to his back, extending into mechanical tentacles with a metallic appearance—purely props.
The material was lightweight; even a child could lift the tentacles. This allowed Alfred to move freely without being encumbered by the equipment, ensuring his performance wasn't hindered.
Meanwhile, the tentacles could retract and extend to simulate real metal limbs. The difference was that two stuntmen, dressed entirely in green suits, controlled them. The green suits would later be edited out during post-production.
The two stuntmen stood on either side of Alfred, each controlling two of the tentacles, creating the illusion that Anson was battling a "three-headed, six-armed" opponent.
The key to pulling this off was perfect coordination between all four people—Anson, Alfred, and the two stunt operators. They had to work together to bring this fight scene to life.
This involved filming wide shots and close-ups.
For close-ups, only one tentacle would be operated at a time, and the camera would focus on capturing the intense details of the face-to-face combat, ensuring every move was framed perfectly.
In other words, the director needed to have a clear vision of the choreography and pacing to capture the right shots.
It wasn't just the actors—props, camera crew, and the CGI team were all on standby to ensure the footage met the high standards expected.
Clearly, this approach was entirely different from that of The Elephant.
Yet the process was strikingly similar. Whether it was The Elephant or the Spider-Man 2 crew, it all required rehearsals, coordination, and the entire team working in sync.
Anson was no stranger to this.
Rehearsing again and again, over and over, the actors had to synchronize with each other, but even more importantly, they had to coordinate with the camera movements.
In real life, sprinting full speed is exactly that—running as fast as possible. But in the world of film, "full speed" has to be carefully controlled, because the actor and the camera need to work in harmony. That's the only way to deliver the perfect shot.
After multiple rehearsals, the crew was finally ready.
Now, it was time to go into battle.
"Action!"