#what would mike farrell do? (not this)

[bardengarde]

One day I'm going to start drawing Dr. Jim Wills (of bonanza fame) and expand on my interpretation of him and that is the day you can all put me down

[devilsandwings]

Quiet Scenes- A Paul mescal fic

Synopsis: This will be an ongoing story. About Paul Mescal and a singer/actress with Sabrina Carpenters discography. That’s all I’ll reveal for now, read to find out. Love yall 💕

1k words ~ CW: none

This indicates a flashback ✨

March 12, 2023

I’m sitting at the Academy Awards, sipping on my champagne and gossiping with my best friend, Florence Pugh. She’s presenting an award with Andrew Garfield later tonight, you’re her guest. “…so anyway after all of that they ended up getting back together.” Florence finished her story about one of her friends.

“Wow yea that is ridiculous why would she take him back after that.” I responded in bewilderment of her story. She just shrugs her shoulders and the lights dim. Jimmy Kimmel comes back out onto the stage.

~

The night has been going great, you and Florence are having an amazing time. She killed it presenting, the host is funny, you’re running into friends and icons. You’re having a wonderful time at the Oscars. The announcers voice booms over the audience, “Please welcome academy award winners Jessica Chastain and Halle berry”

The two women walk onto the stage in their beautiful gowns. They smile at the assuring crowd as they walk to the microphone. “When an actor or actress first approaches a role we use every tool at our disposal to help us create the world of the character” Jessica says, reading the teleprompter. They continue about how actors create their characters.

“Here are the nominees for best performance from an actor in a leading role” Halle says

“Austin Butler, Elvis.” The announcer exclaims. The screen above the stage changes to a camera of Austin at his seat, he smiles and looks at his costar. The crowd erupts with applause. The announcer continues to read off names and the crowd cheers.

“Would now be a bad time to tell you I’ve never seen Elvis?” Florence whispers to you

I turn my head and gasp at her, “YOU WHAT” I whisper yell at her, but it doesn’t really matter nobody else can hear us over the cheering for Colin Farrell. “Ma’am you have to see it, I’m showing it to you next time you come over, I own it.” She laughs at my demand and nods her head, she cheers for Brendan Fraser.

I turn my head back to the screen as the announcer says, “Paul Mescal, Aftersun.” My brain screeched to a hault at the mention of his name. Then he was on the screen, wearing a white suit. He looked good, really good. “Bill Nighy…” the announcer continues. Just like that he was gone again. Florence cheered and smiled at me with an exaggerated smile, yay see you worked with him and his next role got an Oscar nomination, she’s probably saying in her head.

She doesn’t know what happened, I didn’t tell her. How could I have told her? She loved Mike, she would have been so mad at me. I’ve never seen her mad before, upset and frustrated sure, but mad? No, and I do not want to see it.

“Do you mind if I sit with ya? My trailers a Sauna.” Paul asks, sticking his head into my trailer. “Well we’re in Australia, so it’s hot in my trailer too but sure.” I retorted. “You’re probably just looking to escape your own mess.” He closes the trailer door and puts his hand over his chest, “You wound me, I thought we were friends.” He “stumbles” down onto a chair. I roll my eyes at him and throw a pretzel out of my bowl at him, “friends don’t steal from each other.” “Don’t bake delicious biscuits and expect me not to eat some” he says to you smiling, looking at you with those blue eyes. You look back into them, you could look into them forever. Your eyes meet, and the moment hangs there, magical, electric. Then breaking the spell he clears his throat and looks away from me.

The announcer finished the names and all the nominees are shown on the screen but you can’t help but look at Paul. “And the Oscar goes to,..” Jessica begins, “The Whale”. You audibly groan and Flo gives you a strange look and laughs.

“God I know you worked with him but I didn’t know you wanted him to win that much.” She chuckled as she claps. “Did you even see his movie?”

“Of course I did” I reply, “it was amazing. He was very good.” I drastically lowered my volume halfway through because Brendan began his speech. His face, you can’t get it out of your mind. It was only a slight falter when The Whale was called but it was noticeable.

~

You’re standing at the bar of the Vanity Fair Oscars Afterparty, waiting for Florence to come back. You grab your drink off the bar and turn around to look at the crowd, you scan the room hoping to find a familiar face when you see Paul. Standing halfway across the room laughing with a couple people. Then as if sensing her gaze, he looks up. Their eyes meet.

He excuses himself from the group and walks over to you. There’s a beat of silence as you take each other in. He looks a little rougher, more grown, but his eyes are just as sharp. His blue eyes that I wanted to swim in.

“You look…” he breaks the silence, “incredible”.

“Thank you” she blushes, “you don’t look too bad yourself. White looks good on you.”

He chuckles at her compliment, “thanks.”

There’s an awkward silence. He takes a sip of his drink. “Congratulations on your nomination” I say to him, holding up my drink, “I was hoping you’d win. I saw your movie it was amazing Paul.”

“Thank you. That really means a lot, coming from you.” He says, “It’s good to see you. Really good”

I take a sip of my champagne, studying him. I’m about to say something to him when Pedro Pascal walks over to us.

“Paul hey, could I talk to you for a minute?” Pedro asks, then he turns to me “I’m so sorry could I steal him for just a moment?”

I laugh, “Go right ahead.” I pause for a moment and look at Paul, “It was nice talking to you, I’ll see you later.”

Paul nods, “See you later” His gaze lingers on you until Pedro grabs his shoulder and they turn away. You sit alone at the bar, finishing your drink.

Authors note: Hey this is my first time writing in like a long time so be nice. Lmk what yall think & if you want a part 2. Also feel free to request anything! ~rose

[gaysails]

mike farrell and alan alda the ball is in your court. do it for the bit it's what hawkbeej would want

[mashbrainrot]

"Did BJ and Hawkeye ever get together when they went home?"

MASHCAST podcast - Rob Kelly (@robkellycreative) & Mike Farrell || Full || Airdate: Sept 29 2021

----(Transcript under the cut)----

Rob: Alright, I'm apologising for asking you this question—

Mike: —no, go ahead—

Rob: —because it's so nerdy, but I— what other opportunity am I gonna have to do this?! And maybe you don't think like this, maybe actors don't think like this, but— in your mind— have you ever extrapolated— did BJ and Hawkeye ever get together when they went home? In your mind?

Mike: Oh, for me— for me, it was an absolute. An absolute. Sure, of course they did. You know... BJ would walk across the country to spend— spend time in Hawkeye's company. And it probably... wouldn't have been as wonderful as he— as he'd hoped it was because, you know, lives had gone in—

Rob: —right! Sure—

Mike: —different directions, but. Yeah, no, I don't think there's— for me, there is no question but that they saw each other again—

Rob: —right—

Mike: —made a point. Made a point of seeing each other again.

Rob: That makes me feel good.

[mrs-stans]

Sebastian Stan describes the 'big reactions' from New Yorkers over his A Different Man transformation: 'I was terrified'

The actor and makeup artist extraordinaire Mike Marino unpack Stan's dramatic prosthetics turn.

By Nick Romano

Sebastian Stan was so determined to work with Oscar-nominated makeup artist Mike Marino on his film A Different Man that the actor was willing to undergo a social and professional experiment.

As Edward, the 42-year-old Marvel star would play an aspiring actor with neurofibromatosis, or NF1 for short, who undergoes an experimental procedure that radically changes his face, only to then emotionally spiral out of control when he loses the part he was born to play to Oswald (Adam Pearson), someone with NF1 who lives a much fuller life than Edward ever led, pre- or post-procedure. Stan needed the man who made Colin Farrell unrecognizable as Oz Cobb for The Batman and HBO’s The Penguin to pull off such a feat.

Since Marino was already busy on Amazon’s The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Stan walked the few blocks from his apartment in New York City’s SoHo district to Marino’s home every morning around 4 or 5 a.m. “Then you just wait till they're ready for you on set,” Marino remembers saying to him. On some of those days, Stan would kill time by wandering Manhattan in full makeup until his call time. “I walked up and down Broadway, basically,” Stan, sitting in the New York offices of studio A24, tells Entertainment Weekly. “It was a busy street. I was terrified, but I would just go get a coffee or sit.”

Sebastian Stan is unrecognizable as an actor with facial deformity in trailer for A Different Man

Stan doesn’t consider himself to be a physical actor, and yet his body of work might suggest differently. Even when the costume shoulders the bulk of the transformation, such as playing Tommy Lee in Hulu’s Pam & Tommy, his body language molds to match the look. That skill is especially prominent in A Different Man (playing now in limited release). “Even alone, being able to only look out of one eye and then having one ear more covered immediately changes a lot,” he says of Marino's makeup effects. “It changes how you stand. It changes how far away you are from people, how you look at people. I felt oddly on my back foot more. It's a defensive reaction because you want to be prepared in case something's coming, that you have enough time to react.”

“What we get is such an incredibly passionate, skilled actor that can hide within a true character,” Marino tells EW in a separate conversation on Zoom from his SoHo apartment, part of which serves as the mini studio where Stan’s makeup application occurred. “He would actually now have a chance to live with people's reactions and how they were treating him.”

Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more.

That experience informed Stan’s entire performance, and it became important for him to do so, even outside of the mornings' wait time. He would often stroll away from set on the Upper West Side in between breaks or setups. “New York is pretty evolved in a lot of ways, but I still got some big reactions from people,” he recalls. “Like, ‘Oh s---!’ ‘Oh f---!’ ‘Look at that!’ It was scary to experience. It was hard to experience. I felt powerless in those situations in some way. And, I guess, a lot of that is how Edward feels in the film.”

Sebastian Stan transforms in the discomforting drama A Different Man

Other reactions were less intense, but equally informative. While standing at a stoplight, for instance, Stan noticed the difference between those pedestrians avoiding eye contact completely, compared to those trying to discreetly steal a look or offer him a forced smile — all bystander reactions that director Aaron Schimberg incorporates into the movie. "I don't think it always comes from a bad place," he says. "Sometimes people just want to connect or feel okay. It's actually about their own experience. It's not even about you. It's like they're in that moment feeling something that's funny to them and they're trying to deal with it. They don't know how."

Marino wanted to be involved with A Different Man thanks to his love of the 1980 film The Elephant Man, loosely based on the life of Joseph Merrick, who lived with a facial disfigurement. As a 5-year-old, the movie scared Marino. But as he fell in love with the art of makeup transformations on screen, he came to see it for what it was: "a beautiful" and "touching story," he describes. "That really made an indelible mark on my life."

He would need that motivation for the obstacles that Stan's look on A Different Man prompted. "There were many technical challenges," he recalls. "It is very difficult to do makeup that thick where they have very thick areas. So I had to really balance what was too big, what was too small. I still need the movement of Sebastian to come through. I still need his own face to drive the makeup and not have it look purely like a mask. I studied Adam's photos. I really analyzed him and tried to balance how I can make it work for Sebastian."

Sebastian Stan calls out journalist who refers to his new character with disfigurement as a 'beast'

Stan has another transformative part coming out soon, the buzzed-about and already-controversial performance of young Donald Trump in The Apprentice. Because he's now promoting both that film and A Different Man simultaneously, it's been interesting for him to think about the ways in which he approached both jobs.

"I've been finding strange parallels that I never really thought about," he remarks. "There's some similar themes being explored in terms of truth, self abandonment, denial of reality to some extent. I think these last couple of roles have required a different degree of physicality. One, obviously, is specific, a real person. But I think about that, of course. You have to, because everyone walks differently and everyone carries things in their body differently. Sometimes you gain access in a different way to things by simply changing a physical aspect of yourself."

The greatest compliment he received for that kind of work on A Different Man, even more than the glowing praise he's seen from the critics, came from Pearson's mother. "After she saw the film, she was like, 'All I ever wanted was for someone to walk in his shoes for one day, to know what it's like, and you were able to do that,'" Stan remembers of their exchange. "I came close to that, I guess, in a way, to feel that kind of invasiveness that he probably felt at some point in his life, walking around."

[marley-manson]

So upon rewatching Preventative Medicine I'm even more disappointed with it because they established a legitimate way to make Hawkeye's choice actually morally grey and ultimately pointless, and then completely ignored it during his argument with BJ and the final scene in the Swamp.

BJ assumes they're giving Lacey fake gastritis to keep him in bed for a couple days, presumably so he can't try taking the hill "tomorrow." Unbeknownst to them, Potter has also requested that Lacey be taken off the front lines. Based on the show's usual depiction of the army I think that request is unlikely to be honoured, BUT based on the narrative of this episode one assumes the point of showing us Potter making that call is that it will have an effect.

So what they could've had was an argument about, or at least mentioning, Hawkeye's escalation. BJ arguing that it's enough to buy a day or two of time to figure out a way to dissuade him from trying to take the hill, Hawkeye arguing that it's not enough, he'll go back and kill more boys either way and he has to be stopped for good.

Then for the 'woe it was all pointless ending' Potter could yk, come in all "good news I requested that Lacey be transferred off the front lines and they're taking it seriously. hey btw where is he?"

That would at least like, be a reasonable argument against Hawkeye. But unfortunately, BJ's argument in the scrub room is nonsensical in the actual episode and Hawkeye's angst afterwards is also nonsensical, so imo the episode really dropped the ball here. Hawkeye feeling bad about taking out his appendix would make sense if he knew he was going to lose his command anyway, but he doesn't know that (and neither do we, because it's never brought up again.) He just feels bad arbitrarily, because... he didn't stop the war? I guess? Even though that was clearly not his goal lol?

All that said, I probably still wouldn't like it, just because I don't really like the idea of an episode designed to make Hawkeye seem ~too extreme~ in his attempt to save lives, yk, in terms of evaluating the politics of the show. I'd still side with Hawkeye lol.

And to be fair, maybe the reason they dropped the salient points is that it would've made Hawkeye look worse and much less defensible, whereas this is an ending you can have a debate with your friends about, even if the narrative awkwardly sides with BJ.

But then why bring up Potter trying to get Lacey transferred at all if we're not gonna follow up on that in any way?

And there are still ways to make it more even, like consider: Potter's request to transfer Lacey is refused, but a delay of 2 days so Lacey could recover from fake gastritis would've finished off his attempts at getting the hill. His superior sends him to another area of the front to keep him away from it, maybe, after that phone call where Lacey practically begs to be allowed to throw more men at it lol. So then you have the moral quandary of: BJ's idea would've saved the boys in the short term, but Lacey would still be their leader.

Or maybe BJ gets his way, Hawk doesn't perform the appendectomy bc BJ threatens to tell on him or something, and Lacey misses out on the hlil but remains in charge and Hawkeye is torn between being glad that the boys aren't in immediate danger but knowing Lacey will probably sacrifice them for something else stupid soon enough.

Idk, I think the bottom line is it's sloppy writing, probably due to late-stage rewrites at Mike Farrell's request lol. Maybe they just ran out of time to make sure it was polished and all their ts were crossed.

But like, it's a shame. Could've been a lot more interesting a moral dilemma imo.

[fancoloredglasses]

Comfort and Joy (Even superheroes deserve the holidays off)

[All images are owned by DC Comics and Warner Bros-Discovery. I hope I’m too small-fry to sue…]

Nearly all of Justice League’s stories were told in multiple parts (usually 2, though there’s at least one that was told in 3) This is the only story told in a single episode, and is the warmest, fuzziest episode in the entire series.

If you would like to watch it, it’s available on Max or behind your favorite paywall.

We open on an alien planet. For some reason, the Justice League has been summoned (So are they the Justice League of America of the Justice League of the Universe?)

(Thanks to The World's Finest)

That doesn’t sound ominous at all…

Cue the opening credits!

After the Javelin takes off to return to Earth, we find John and Hawkgirl…

…having fun in the snow. Well, John is anyway. Hawkgirl doesn’t get it. So John shows her by building a snowman and making snow angels. However, Hawkgirl still isn’t impressed.

So he starts a snowball fight

…with super powers!

Back on Earth, at Central City Orphanage, the kids are eagerly anticipating the jolly guy in the red suit.

What? You were expecting someone else?

As is tradition, the Flash promises to get the kids one thing they all want (I’m guessing so it doesn’t suck so much to be an orphan) and they show him.

An animatronic doll of their favorite TV character, DJ Rubba Duckie (that raps and farts. I can see why the kids like it so much)

[QUICK NOTE: I know the captions say "RUBBER Duckie", but what the characters say sounds more like "RUBBA Duckie", so I'm going with that]

Just one issue: it’s the hottest, must-have-est toy of the season. As such…

Flash doesn’t want to disappoint the kids, so he begins his quest. If you’ve seen Jingle All the Way (how have I not reviewed that yet?), you can guess how this quest will go.

Meanwhile, Superman has talked J’onn into spending Christmas with him and his adopted parents, the Kents. And so, in Smallville…

Clark then introduces his parents (Jonathan and Martha) to J’onn, who apologizes for imposing (despite Superman’s insistence)

[FUN FACT: Jonathan “Pa” Kent is voiced by Mike Farrell, who was BJ Hunnicut on M*A*S*H]

[Personal note: I appreciate the fact that the Kents survived beyond Clark's teen years post-Crisis. It makes them more than what their role was before then: "These two people raised Superman, but they're not important now"]

It turns out Clark’s cousin Kara (AKA Supergirl) is spending the holidays with friends, so Clark offers J’onn her room. Clark is sure he’ll find it cozy.

Clark explains he enjoys returning to Smallville so he can turn off “Superman” and be himself for a while. Then Clark rushes off to turn on the tree before Jonathan can do it. As J’onn processes this side of his teammate, the family cat enters. J’onn tries to make friends, but…

…before running off. That’s cats for ya.

Back on the ice planet, the snowball fight is in full swing!

I think John officially wins this one.

Once the truce is called, Hawkgirl offers to take John to a planet that reminds her a bit of her planet of Thanagar.

Given Thanagarians are warriors, I’m not sure I see this ending well.

Back in Central City, Flash is trying to find a DJ Rubba Duckie doll. No problem, right?

WRONG!

Flash tries 5 other stores and they’re all sold out. Suddenly he gets an inspiration.

He’s not seriously going to the North Pole?!

Actually, he runs to Japan (he can do that. It’s documented he runs fast enough to skim across bodies of water)

Well, that’s one way to beat the crowds, I guess. I wonder if he paid retail or wholesale, given he went to the manufacturer.

Back in Smallville, J’onn and the Kents are sitting around the table socializing after dinner.

Martha then offers a gift to J’onn despite his protesting.

Martha insists that his company is gift enough. J’onn unwraps it, revealing a sweater (her women’s club knits a bunch for gift giving) Unfortunately, the size is…a bit off. Fortunately, J’onn is a shapeshifter.

Wait, did J’onn just crack a joke? I think he might be warming to the whole “holiday” thing!

In outer space, Hawkgirl takes John to the planet she mentioned then heads straight to the nearest bar, where everyone seems to know her.

Hawkgirl drags John inside and bellies up to the bar, downing a tankard of whatever passes for alcohol. Then she livens up the place by sucker punching the brute next to her…

…and pinning the blame on John! The brute attacks John, which sets off a full-on bar brawl!

Hawkgirl has a weird sense of fun.

Back on Earth, Flash races back to Central City with his Rubba Duckie doll when…

Oh, it wouldn’t be a Justice League episode without SOME villainy afoot! Flash goes to investigate to find…

…the Ultra Humanite.

[FUN FACT: Ultra Humanite debuted in Action Comics #13 in 1939 as a mad scientist of great intellect but a failing body. Eventually, he began transplanting his brain into other bodies until finally winding up in the body of an albino gorilla]

(Thanks to rifandy cahyo)

Dare I ask what sorts of “improvements” Ultra Humanite has planned for Rubba Duckie?

As you saw at the end of that clip, we’re back in Smallville, where J’onn is still trying to understand Christmas.

Therefore, he turns invisible and intangible, kind of like a “Ghost of What Is Christmas?” He then floats through the house and finds Clark still acting like…well, a kid on Christmas morning.

…and Jonathan hasn’t forgotten his son has X-ray Vision.

J’onn then floats into Smallville and shapeshifts into a human guise and walks the streets, observing until he sees a young girl staying up way past her bedtime on Christmas Eve.

So he brings a bit of “Christmas magic”...

…by floating onto the roof and walking around

…and helping himself to some milk and cookies.

[FUN FACT: Starting in the 80s during the comedy period of the Justice League comic, J’onn develops an addiction to Oreos]

He then comes upon a church holding midnight mass.

(Thanks again to The World’s Finest)

Hope you enjoyed the warm feels. Happy Holidays, everyone!

[majorbaby]

some early and candid thoughts on MASH: The Comedy that Changed Television

I thought Gary Burghoff had the most illuminating commentary to offer. he was specific, technical and detailed when recounting how the show was constructed, a style of media commentary that caters to my preferences. he has one comment that really stuck with me as a strong descriptor of the Radar character (paraphrase from memory): they needed a character who was experiencing the concept of war for the first time, for whom you could see the

after Burghoff, I thought Jamie Farr had some interesting things to say re: Margaret - 'she contains multitudes' being one of them, and a recurring theme when everyone was speaking about the character

i have to talk about mike farrell's comment on anti-war vs. anti-military: i've talked about how I feel that the post-reynolds/gelbart years have heavily watered-down messaging re: war before, and i've pointed to several episodes where i feel this is obvious, but mike farrell saying (quite strongly) that he felt the show was anti-war but never anti-military is pretty damning evidence.

i mean, i think this is good characterization for BJ, to take a more, let's call it 'broadly', anti-war stance, rather than be opposed specifically to military, particularly to the US military. it fits with his aspirations to live a quiet, middle-class life, with his insistence that he's always done 'the right thing' and imo, a good motivation for him to butt heads with the more radical Hawkeye, who opposes authority figures in general (per Alan Alda himself in this same special) - which actually goes beyond the military...

so i love it for BJ but i hate it for a show that never framed him as being wrong about that idea specifically. i can't say for sure whether BJ always held Farrell's beliefs of course, or vice versa, but if BJ ever did oppose the military as a system, Farrell doesn't know it. this knowledge makes episodes like Preventative Medicine and Back Pay land even worse with me.

'some of us were IN the military' he added, as a justification for his point that the show could not have been anti-establishment which i would speak on even more candidly if i was going to make this unrebloggable lol. but truly it's not that serious except in terms of how i think about the themes of this show - he seems like a perfectly lovely person who really loved making MASH and i think his fans will enjoy watching him speak about that.

Mclean Stevenson makes a point about how what Radar anticipates about a character tells us something about that character beyond what we would receive if we just heard the character say it themselves (which they usually do, at the same time as Radar) - I need to think about this some more when re-watching those scenes...

dlfkjaljfk I've never heard David Ogden Stiers' natural voice I thought someone was giving commentary over footage of him and then i realized he was actually giving the commentary - I feel like everyone knows this, but he was immensely talented, a master of voice and speech

1 hour and 10 minutes (including ads, or 'commercial breaks' as we used to call them back in my day) spent on seasons 1-3. tbf there's character-specific commentary in the first half that is for characters that were with us for the whole run, but, there's also a lot of time devoted to talking about how the show was initially constructed, the pilot being good (correct), and something that made me smirk - Larry Gelbart's commentary on how people were incensed and outraged at Henry's death and felt they had been misled, lied to, about their funny haha, wholesome weeknight comedy (set in the Korean War???) is almost indistinguishable from how people talk about plots they don't like in media nowadays

it was good! i had fun!

[ezrasimp]

thank you @amrv-5 for tagging me!! this is actually so much fun because this year was the first year where i actually tracked each of the films i watched (because @cannibalismpdf informed me i actually had to log each film lmaoo) this year i watched 107 films, 71 of which were new to me. seeing 71 surprised me so much considering how many times i rewatch films paha, but here's my top nine!! (explanations for the top 9, and the runners-up under the cut!)

Alien (1979) dir. Ridley Scott Bullet Train (2022) dir. David Leitch But I'm a Cheerleader (1999) dir. Jamie Babbit Chicago (2002) dir. Rob Marshall Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022) dir. Daniels (Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert) The Four Seasons (1981) dir. Alan Alda Paddington 2 (2017) dir. Paul King The Telephone Box (originally: La cabina) (1972) dir. Antonio Mercero The Wild Robot (2024) dir. Chris Sanders

gonna try and keep these explanations around 100 words each because i do tend to ramble i apologise.

Alien - i truly can't believe it took me so long to watch this amazing ass film. i was on the edge of my seat the whole time and i understand why it's a classic

Bullet Train - got scared this was so overhyped by all the tiktoks edits i'd seen of it, but holy fuck i really don't think it is. it's so much fun and aaron taylor-johnson and brian tyree henry are a delightful highlight

But I'm a Cheerleader - how did this film come out in 1999????? like how???????? it's so beautiful while also being sad and hopeful at the same time, and watching this film made me realise why natasha lyonne is a queer icon <33

Chicago - once again surprised it took me this long to watch this film considering how much i love musicals and movie musicals but now that i finally have. oo booy!! love all the songs and the choreo is so good

Everything Everywhere All at Once - i will always regret not watching this film at the cinema because i would give anything to watch this on the big screen. someone i know is writing their diss on this film, on how its entire thing is just "nothing matters but positive" and yeah. yeah man. awoke something in me.

The Four Seasons - AHHH!!! i neeeeed to rewatch this holy shit, this is such a fun film and my favourite of alan alda's films i've watched (so far) by far!! the vibes are great but it's the friends as family trope that really gets to me

Paddington 2 - technically cheating with this because i love the entire trilogy (all of which i watched for the first time this year), but out of all of them paddington 2 was my favourite because i think it was the funniest and most charming of them all <3

The Telephone Box - omfg watch this. watch this right now. here on youtube, it's a short film, only about half an hour. and as a matter of fact i'm not gonna say anything about it. just watch it please. it has subtitles in many languages <33

The Wild Robot - the moment i saw the trailer for this film, i knew i'd adore it. and i was so right. i want to give chris sanders a hug. this film was so warm and beautiful and i cried through 3/4ths of it.

and now for the runners-up!!:

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022) dir. Joel Crawford (still feel bad about being skeptical about this film. it proved me so wrong) The Questor Tapes (1974) dir. Richard A. Colla  (mike farrell falls in love with robert foxworth android. what's not to love????) Spirited Away (2001) (orginally: 千と千尋の神隠し) dir. Hayao Miyazaki (i was finally spurred to watch this because i found out david ogden stiers played kamaji in the english dub. ofc he was great but so was this movie, will have to rewatch in japanese one day coz i normally watch stuff in their original lang but DOS <33) Goodbye, Farewell and Amen (1983) dir. Alan Alda (i don't think i'll ever be emotionally prepared enough to rewatch this) Isle of Dogs (2018) dir. Wes Anderson (once again, never got the chance to watch this in cinemas. once again, a massive mistake on my part) Aliens (1986) dir. James Cameron (love this one a lot for its action, but i just preferred the psycological horror aspect of the first one more) Billy Elliot (2000) dir. Stephen Daldry (julie walters slayed in this film. also GOOD TRANS REP???? such a pleasant surprise) Room (2015) dir.  Lenny Abrahamson (fuck man this film was heartbreaking) Hidden Figures (2016) dir. Theodore Melfi (a film has literally never gone quicker for me in my whole life. it got to the end and i was like huh????? where's the rest of the film???? even though 2 hours had gone by lmaoo) The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) dir. Brian Henson (so happy to have finally watched this. this was very cosy, plus i love the muppets so much so it was easy for me to like this film)

i think parker tagged basically everyone i would have ahah so i'll just add @cannibalismpdf, @bjxhunnicutt, @80smen-fanclub, @bardengarde, @cuddleswinchester, @remyfire, @onekisstotakewithme but as parker said as well, feel free to do this even if i have missed anyone!! <33

[pomegranate]

15, 20, 23. i’m late so if you’ve answered these just post a bonus. which is the hottest picture of mike farrell you can find. a treat for all of us

WHOA SHAN you picked some INTENSE ONES. I will end this with a Mike pic because I think we'll all need it. 15) What’s a bad habit you picked up this year?

I don't know if I picked it up since I've always been bad about this, but I definitely have been worse this year about isolating myself when I'm not doing well. My brain makes very compelling arguments for why I'm more of a nuisance than a positive presence, despite friends being very patient and kind with me. I'm hoping a change in medication will help mitigate this.

20) What’s something you learned this year? Nothing is forever. Make connections while you can because the job market is brutal and no one will advocate for you unless you advocate for yourself first. Reach out to people who have demonstrated that they care. 23) If you could send a message to yourself back on the first day of the year, what would it be?

DON'T GO DOWN WITH A SINKING SHIP Hottest picture of Mike Impossible question to answer because every photo of him is hotter than the last. I'm going with this one though because I remember losing my mind when you first shared it.

[my-chaos-radio]

Release: September 8, 2003

Lyrics:

I'm tired of being what you want me to be

Feeling so faithless, lost under the surface

I don't know what you're expecting of me

Put under the pressure of walking in your shoes

Every step that I take is another mistake to you

(Caught in the undertow, just caught in the undertow)

I've become so numb, I can't feel you there

Become so tired, so much more aware

I'm becoming this, all I want to do

Is be more like me and be less like you

Can't you see that you're smothering me?

Holding too tightly, afraid to lose control

'Cause everything that you thought I would be

Has fallen apart right in front of you

Every step that I take is another mistake to you

(Caught in the undertow, just caught in the undertow)

And every second I waste is more than I can take

I've become so numb, I can't feel you there

Become so tired, so much more aware

I'm becoming this, all I want to do

Is be more like me and be less like you

And I know

I may end up failing too

But I know

You were just like me, with someone disappointed in you

I've become so numb, I can't feel you there

Become so tired, so much more aware

I'm becoming this, all I want to do

Is be more like me and be less like you

Songwriter:

I've become so numb, I can't feel you there

I'm tired of being what you want me to be

I've become so numb, I can't feel you there

I'm tired of being what you want me to be

Joseph Hahn / Brad Delson / Mike Shinoda / Robert G. Bourdon / Chester Charles Bennington / David Farrell

SongFacts:

👉📖

Homepage:

Linkin Park

[bardengarde]

If I were to steal Dr. Jim Wills from the Bonanza universe..... who would stop me

[boonesfarmsangria]

Mike Farrell Reflects on Captain B.J. Hunnicutt’s Ahead of ‘M*A*S*H’ TV Special

Scott Fishman, TV Insider Dec 21, 2023 Updated Dec 22, 2023 0

Mike Farrell knew he had a lot to live up to when he joined the 4077th Medical Corps and cast of M*A*S*H as Captain B.J. Hunnicutt. The well-versed actor already had an impressive career including a stint on Days of Our Lives. However, this was a completely different kind of pressure coming into season 4 of a highly successful series after the exit of Wayne Rogers, who played Captain “Trapper” John McIntyre.

He was up to the challenge with viewers connecting with the devoted family man and what would be a long-time bond with Alan Alda’s Captain Benjamin Franklin “Hawkeye” Pierce. Viewers will ever forget the shot during the historic series finale where B.J. yells out that he left a note for Hawkeye. As he flies away in the helicopter, he soon notices that his good friend spelled out the word “Goodbye” with rocks on the ground.

It’s these types of iconic moments and characters that are celebrated during FOX’s upcoming M*A*S*H: The Comedy That Changed Television. Executive-produced by John Scheinfeld and Andy Kaplan, this two-special delves into the Emmy-winning run over 11 seasons through the perspective of the cast and visionaries behind the scenes.

Joining Farrell and Alda on the doc is Gary Burghoff (Cpl. Walter “Radar” O’Reilly), and Loretta Swit (Maj. Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan) to name a few, as well as series executive producers Gene Reynolds and Burt Metcalfe. Those who have since passed, including show creator Larry Gelbart, Rogers, Larry Linville (Maj. Frank Burns), Harry Morgan (Col. Sherman T. Potter), and McLean Stevenson (Lt. Col. Henry Blake) are spotlighted through archival photos and footage.

Here Farrell opens up about his emotional reaction to the special. The 84-year-old also describes what it’s like to see the beloved sitcom still resonate more than 40 years after it ended.

Michael Farrell

How often do you go back and watch the episodes back?

Mike Farrell: The popularity of the show continues to astonish me and thrill me, frankly. I get constant emails, and mail, calls to keep it fresh in my mind, and its extraordinary impact. I don’t make a point of looking for it on television, but sometimes it’s there. And when it’s there, I can’t stop looking at it and watching those people I love so much and care about. To see and remember who they were and what we did together. It’s something that will stay with me for the rest of my life. I’m so thrilled to be a part of it that it’s hard to put into words.

I remember seeing Alan Alda share a photo of you two toasting to the 50th anniversary of the show’s premiere. How is it for you to still have these close connections after all these years?

For us, it’s a family situation. We enjoyed working together and having this kind of bond that continues to this day. We talk about how much we love each other and stay in touch regularly. It has been something that brings an ongoing extraordinary rush of gratitude and appreciation for all of us here…Then you see David Ogden Stiers, Harry Morgan, Larry Linville, and others on the special. There is that sense of longing for somebody who you knew, loved, and enjoyed working with. It’s piercing at the heart when you see that sometimes. For me, I’m overwhelmed with the warmth that comes back from seeing Harry, remembering the relationship we had not only during the show but afterward. Watching Alan and his incredible wit and hijinks. Some of those things stay with me today. When I tell stories, I can’t help but get misty about those memories. It’s an everlasting love affair for me.

It’s fun to think about what would have happened if social media had been around during M*A*S*H’s original run. For example, B.J.’s mustache would be a hot topic of conversation.

People often ask me, “What do you think of the mustache?” I will say my mother hated the mustache. The mustache was a fun thing. Alan called me at the beginning of one season and said, “They think we are too much alike. What do you think about growing a mustache?” I thought it was a great idea. We made a lot out of it, which was fun to do. I wore what started as a red long shirt. Through many washes, it came out pink. I thought it was hilarious to be wearing a pink shirt in the middle of all that. I get many comments from people in the gay community who tell me they loved my pink shirt and ask if that was a signal. I tell them no, but that I’m glad they noticed it.

One of the topics that gets tackled in the special is B.J.’s character and moment of infidelity with a nurse divorcee. After all this time, I even saw a Reddit thread asking if B.J. cheated on his wife Peg.

I remember when I first met with the guys and they were talking about the possibility of Wayne leaving. I told them the one thing I didn’t want to do as an actor was come in and step in the boots of “Trapper.” They understood. They had in mind a fellow who was married, not a womanizer like “Hawkeye” or “Trapper,” who had a child at home. And he is going to be true to his wife and family. You’re talking about modeling fidelity on television, I didn’t mind that at all. We laughed. It stayed that way. One year we did a show where Blythe Danner played the guest star. She and “Hawkeye had been having a love affair in medical school, and she was temporarily assigned to our station. She was married, but the affair popped up again.

There is a scene where “Hawkeye” asks B.J. if he has ever been unfaithful. I said never. He said, “You ever tempted?” I said, “Tempted is a different question.” He said, “So, you have been tempted?” I said, “No, it was a different question.” It was a good gag. Larry Gelbart, who wrote the scene was ont eh stage when we finished that shot. I said, “Larry, that was wonderful, but let me suggest the idea. The fact B.J. is a faithful husband is great by me, but to suggest a man was not tempted goes too far. I don’t think we need to paint in that pristine manner.” He said that was a good thought. A year later Gene remembers that conversation with Larry. He asked, “What do you feel about B.J. falling off the fidelity wagon?” I said, “It depends on how you resolve it.”

How do you feel it came out?

I loved the whole process that they cared enough to hear me out, and decided it was worth dealing with that question. I thought they resolved it in a classy way. B.J. was upset about what he had done. It was brief and a misstep. He was miserable about it. “Hawkeye” gave him hell because he was going to write home and tell Peg. He said, “Don’t do that to her. If you must confess for whatever the transgression, wait until you get home where you can be with her and talk to her. I thought it was great that they were willing to explore the kind of experience people are put through in these circumstances.

It was almost like it didn’t matter how far they went, but didn’t matter. He would feel the same way.

Exactly. But the idea of them spending the night together in a bed, under those circumstances, and didn’t go far sounds a little stretch to me.

When was the moment you felt how big a show M*A*S*H was?

I was in Southeast Asia during one of our breaks. After my second or third year there on the show when I went around, I was astonished at the no matter what part of the world, the show meant something to the.m. This one man said, “Your show constantly underscores for me the meaning of peace and the need for peace in this world.” I came back to set and Alan and I were sitting together during the first day of the season back. I said, “Are you hearing what I’m hearing out there?” He said, “Yeah, we need to be aware of the way the show is affecting people.

We decided on a regular meeting as a cast and talked through the issues of the day. Alan and I both made it a point that this show is having an impact that is beyond just being a popular television show. We need to be seriously committed to making sure we do the best work we can do. Everyone got it and agreed and rededicated ourselves to commit to doing meaningful work because of the audience’s respect and appreciation for the show.

What are your overall thoughts on the FOX special while screening it? 

I watched it with tears streaming down my face while laughter burst from my mouth. It was an extraordinary tribute. Not only to the show and people involved but the people involved behind the scenes. I’m glad they included the clip of Gene, Larry, and in particular Burt Metcalfe, the casting genius who brought many of the characters to the show; me included. He was a powerful force in maintaining the integrity of the show. It was deeply touching and I think the audience will love it. It shows the significance and the work of the characters and the way the show was built and what it became. I was thrilled when I saw it. 

How do you think the show would do in today’s TV landscape? 

I think it would remain a touchstone for people I can’t tell you how many veterans have contacted me. Even children of veterans. They would say. “My dad would never talk about his experience in the war until he saw your show. Then he would say, ‘That’s the way it was.”…That it has stayed relevant and meaningful to people for generations speaks volumes about the show. 

M*A*S*H: The Comedy That Changed Television premiere, January 1, 8/7c, FOX

@stroyent 🤝

[2o3dinge]

The pandemic brought us Farrelleto back (kinda): 2021, the year of The Batman and House of Gucci and faked Italian accents

2021/22 was a Farrell/Leto year first and foremost due to the stellar make-up work by Mike Marino (@ prorenfx on Instagram) and his frequent collaborator Göran Lundström (@ effexstudios_goran) who created the stunning masks for Colin's Penguin and Jared's Paolo. The Batman shoot ended about the time that House of Gucci's started, so for Lundström these were back to back jobs. Because of their unrecognizable appearances in their roles, Colin and Jared were constantly mentioned together on social media for the most part of 2021/22. That was fun while it lasted.

By now, I think that it's not quite a coincidence. If you listen to Jared and Colin, you might get a feeling that they, too, talked about it — with each other…

Jared Leto about “the idea of a mask” I’ve heard about actors who didn’t have the character until they put on the shoes. In this case, I was sent the script for another part; when I read the script, I really connected with this character and I saw a lot of opportunity for heart and humor. Once I started doing the research, I [knew] this was going to be a pretty intense transformation. And I love immersive work. I love the idea of a mask. In the earliest theater, actors would wear masks. It’s not only a disguise — a mask also reveals. My job is to create a life behind the mask, and Göran’s job is to find humanity in the mask. It’s not just about how well he puts together some chemicals or chooses the right colors. It’s really about creating an individual. THR, December 7, 2021

Jared Leto about taking the chance to channel his own grandfather in House of Gucci The Dallas Buyers Club Oscar winner — who is speaking to Screen International prior to the death of that film’s director Jean-Marc Vallée — was originally considering a different part in House Of Gucci, but after reading the script fell in love with Paolo, the black sheep of the Gucci family who ends up turning on his relatives after his dreams of becoming a designer are thwarted. “I could relate to Paolo’s desire to be taken seriously as an artist, his desire to be heard, his desire to create something special and share it with the world,” says Leto. “He reminded me a lot of my grandfather, who had a kind of mischievous charm to him and was gregarious and full of life and laughter. In my life I can be quite reserved and quiet unless I’m on stage [with his band 30 Seconds To Mars], so I love that Paolo was virtually singing and dancing all the time.” Screendaily, January 2022

Jared Leto about having permission to “go completely fucking crazy” on set Leto let Scott know that he wanted to work with him years back at the 2003 Morocco Film Festival. They’d run into each other. And Scott was on the set of “Blade Runner 2049.” After asking to play Paolo instead, Leto spoke to Scott on the phone. “I basically told him I was going to go completely fucking crazy if we were going to this,” he said. “He was going to have to take the cuffs off and let the lunatic run around the asylum, in a way.” IndieWire 2021/2022

Colin Farrell talking about all the things Jared Leto talked about — the idea of masks, shadows and having the permission to let loose without judgment Look I only had as I said five or six scenes or seven scenes, and I wasn't quite I was at the early stages of looking at what I felt, I could do or bring to it, I was at a bit of a loss and then when I saw what Mike did, the whole character made sense to me, I swear to God, I saw what he did, and I just went okay, okay, and I got really excited about this all that to say that most of — if anyone ever thinks what I do in Batman is a decent performance, I'll gladly take 49% of the credit, I — honest to God, I'm not—I’m not joking you, cause there's — you know mask work? And like Jung used mask work and certain eastern philosophies have used mask work, it’s a very powerful way to allow the shadow to have permission; the shadow that exists in all of us to have permission because you're aware that you're not gonna be judged, that you feel protected from, you know, the awful rule of judgment that man inflicts upon each other. Well, that's gone and so the sense of I—you know, conventional logic would say, maybe with a full face covering you, that it would be limiting that it would, you would feel constricted… it was 100% the opposite! It was so f—damn liberating, it was so liberating, and I felt so free, and I felt like, and I may be proven wrong, I felt like it was impossible to be too big — cut to: Farrell is too big— but like I had such, Mike gave me such permission to just explore you know behaviors by the brilliance of the work that he did, Mike Marino… Happy sad confused Podcast, July 2021

It’s not only that, but Colin and Jared approached their characters, Oz and Paolo, similarly - the kind of similar I perceive as essentially the same ...

Colin said Oz is a variation of Fredo from the ‘Godfather’. Fredo served as “emotional reference”.

Jared conceived his Paolo as a mixture of his own “cheeky” grandfather - which he admits - and the real Gucci imbued with Fredo-like motivation.

It makes a lot of sense, for both!

Also on a personal level in regard to Colin’s and Jared’s struggles to be taken seriously as artists, one of the great themes of both of their careers, I figure.

It’s kind of amusing to think about Al Pacino playing Jared’s father in HoG, so the ‘Godfather’ inspiration went full circle ;)

[mashbrainrot]

Ok so not because I actually want or believe it to be true, but I think there should be some Alan Alda and Mike Farrell rpf, because I’m a Pervert and I’m intrigued. I had to anonymously get this off my chest thank you for your time

Cannot begin to tell you how absolutely delighted I was to get this message. Genuinely made my evening.

Right from the very beginning of my time in this fandom, I (joined by the lovely @pomegranate) asked one key question: Where the FUCK is all the RPF?!

There should be SEVERAL stories out there somewhere, right? Have you guys SEEN the chemistry Alan Alda had with his two male costars? It was off the fucking chain, and for WHAT? For people to IGNORE it?

If there was any justice in this cold, dark world, there would be ship wars about this. Are you #TeamWaylan or #TeamFarralda? Personally, I'm a strong believer and follower of both. (In the past I have come out as more of a Waylan believer despite being a Beejhawker, but I don't think I stand by that anymore.)

It is, quite frankly, a disgrace that this is not more of a thing, and I have – alongside other brave warriors – been doing my part in spreading the Good Word as much as I can.... and it's out there you know! As far as I was aware, we were alone in this, and then ages ago there was a random twitter poll about RPS that had Farralda as an option and no one EVER came forward about who nominated it, so... clearly it is(?) kind of(?) a thing(?)...

Anyway, we have a saying where I'm from... Farralda real. You'd be surprised how often that phrase can naturally come up in polite conversation. Join us. Pspspspspspsp.

[mrs-stans]

Meet the makeup wizard who transformed Sebastian Stan into ‘A Different Man’

By Josh Rottenberg

At the tender age of 5, Mike Marino saw “The Elephant Man” for the first time and his life was forever changed. When David Lynch’s haunting and heartbreaking story of the disfigured John Merrick would air on HBO in the early 1980s, Marino found himself horrified but unable to look away, sparking a fascination with prosthetics that would eventually lead him to becoming one of Hollywood’s top makeup artists.

“I was so afraid of it, but little did I know how beautiful that story was and how much of an imprint it would leave on my brain and soul,” says Marino, 47, who earned consecutive Oscar nominations in 2022 and 2023 for his makeup work on “Coming 2 America” and “The Batman,” the latter starring a totally transformed Colin Farrell. “If it wasn’t for that film, I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing.”

But for actor, TV presenter and disability rights advocate Adam Pearson, Lynch’s film took on a more painful role in his life. Growing up in England with neurofibromatosis type 1, a rare genetic disorder that causes tumors to grow on his face, Pearson was often taunted by classmates who cruelly called him “Elephant Man” and other names. As he got older, he saw how movies routinely depicted people with disfigurements as freaks, villains or victims, stripping away their humanity. “There’s an element of laziness to it,” says Pearson, 39. “How do we show this character is evil? Let’s slap a scar on them.”

Now, through a twist of fate, the lives of Marino and Pearson have intersected on a very different project: the darkly funny, mind-bending psychological thriller “A Different Man.” Directed by Aaron Schimberg, the A24 film stars Sebastian Stan as Edward, a shy, disfigured actor working in New York City who undergoes an experimental procedure to transform his appearance, only to find himself losing the role he was born to play — himself — to a cheerful, outgoing man named Oswald with his same facial deformity, played by Pearson. Renate Reinsve (“The Worst Person in the World”) co-stars as a playwright whose latest work brings Edward’s identity crisis to a head.

“A Different Man,” which The Times called “a self-deconstructing meta-pretzel of a dark comedy” following its debut at this year’s Sundance Film Festival, tackles complex themes of identity, beauty and disability with a blend of Charlie Kaufman-esque surrealism and David Cronenbergian body horror. Along with Stan’s performance, Marino’s meticulously crafted prosthetics are key to bringing Edward and his inner agonies to life, reflecting the deeper emotional anguish of a man trying to escape his own skin.

“The movie portrays how the shell of who we are should not dictate our spirit and our personality,” Marino says. “I think it’s a very important film, much like ‘The Elephant Man’ was.”

When Schimberg first wrote the script, inspired by his own struggles with a cleft palate and his experience working with Pearson on his 2019 satire “Chained for Life,” he initially had no idea how he would actually pull off the film’s demanding prosthetics work. “I was sort of blissfully ignorant,” says Schimberg. “After Sebastian came aboard, we started cobbling the film together very quickly. It was only about a month before shooting that I realized this film was going to completely fall apart if we didn’t get this right. It was very down to the wire.”

Signing on as an executive producer for the film, Stan asked around about makeup artists in the New York area who could handle such a difficult job under that kind of time pressure. One answer consistently came back: “Literally everyone, hands down, was like, ‘You’ve got to get Marino,’ ” the actor recalls.

Though he was already busy with a job on “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” Marino, who has done his share of more fantastical creatures, leapt at the challenge of re-creating a real-life disfigurement like Pearson’s. “I’m fascinated with people that have something going on with their skin because it’s just the most interesting, artistic, natural thing,” Marino says. “For me, there’s an amazing beauty to how Adam looks. This was not about a scary face or a monstrous person. I don’t like to do things like that with no soul or purpose.”

Marino’s passion for makeup and prosthetics took root early in life, inspired by industry legends like Dick Smith (“The Exorcist”) and Rick Baker (“An American Werewolf in London”). Growing up in New York, Marino started honing his skills as a preteen by practicing on his friends with latex, foam and various chemicals, destroying his bedroom rug in the process, to the chagrin of his parents. While still in high school, he mailed his portfolio to Smith and received encouragement and advice by phone from the makeup legend, who won an Oscar in 1985 for “Amadeus” and earned an honorary Academy Award for his life’s work in 2012. “Once he acknowledged me, it was like, OK, this is serious. There was no stopping me.”

After cutting his teeth on “Saturday Night Live” and “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” Marino broke into film with the 2007 psychological thriller “Anamorph” and quickly became known for his versatility, seamlessly switching between fantasy creatures and more subtle, realistic applications. His work on Darren Aronofsky’s “Black Swan” amplified the film’s psychological horror, while on Martin Scorsese’s “The Irishman,” he enhanced the film’s digital de-aging of Robert De Niro and Al Pacino with carefully crafted prosthetics.

Outside of film, Marino created the Weeknd’s plastic-surgery-gone-wrong look for the singer’s “Save Your Tears” video. “It’s all problems to solve,” Marino says. “There is no playbook.”

Diving into “A Different Man,” Marino used photographs and 3D scans of Pearson’s face, which has undergone some 40 surgeries over the years, as the basis for a multi-piece silicone prosthetic that would work with Stan’s features. “There was no way I could completely replicate Adam’s exact proportions,” he says. “I had to make some aesthetic choices.”

While the makeup work in “The Elephant Man” benefited from that film’s grainy black-and-white cinematography, the prosthetics in “A Different Man” had to withstand more unforgiving scrutiny. To put his Edward face to the test, Stan would walk from Marino’s makeup chair to the set through the streets of New York and crowds of strangers, giving him tremendous insight into how people treat those who look different.

“I went to my old coffee shop and the same barista who’d served me for years couldn’t identify me,” Stan recalls. “I got to really feel people’s reactions in real time. There were people who couldn’t even look at me, other people were staring and sometimes you’d get a bigger reaction, like, ‘Oh s—, it’s the Elephant Man!’ As Adam puts it, you feel like public property.”

Pearson, who shares his character’s sunny gregariousness, encouraged Stan to think about it like he does with his own experience as a movie star. “I was like, ‘You don’t know the level of invasion I get with people pointing, staring and taking photos, but you do understand a very similar thing from this angle, so lean into that heavily,’ ” he says. “ ‘And if it makes you uncomfortable, lean into it further.’ ”

While wearing the prosthetics, Stan could only see out of one eye and had limited hearing in one ear, challenges that helped further inform his performance as a man who has learned to shy away from potential threats and insults. “Edward is a character that has had to endure a lot of emotional abuse and probably some physical abuse, so he is probably always on his left foot a little bit in case something happens,” Stan says.

As Edward’s face changes following his radical treatment, Marino made additional prosthetics showing the transition, including an “extremely soft, mushy version” that, in a particularly Cronenbergian scene, Stan could pull off in chunks.

Colin Farrell as Oswald Cobblepot in “The Batman,” work for which Marino was Oscar-nominated. (Warner Bros. Pictures)

Marino’s talent for transforming stars is on full display in Farrell’s hulking, thuggish look as the Penguin in 2022’s “The Batman” and the new HBO spinoff series. “When Colin saw the sculpture I made, ideas started exploding,” Marino says. “Once we did a makeup test, it was magical — he knew how to speak, how to walk and he was already the guy.”

Marino, who is preparing to make his directorial debut based on a script he wrote set in the 1980s (“It’s deliberately not effects-heavy,” he hints), has lost none of his passion for the transformative power of latex and silicone since the days he was obsessively poring through issues of Cinefex magazine as a teenager. “If you think of Michelangelo showing beauty 500 years ago in painting and sculpture, I’m still showing that same beauty but in this new hyper-realistic way, in silicone,” says Marino, who named his makeup effects studio Prosthetic Renaissance. “It’s a very unique art. It’s like moving sculptures and paintings all at once.”

As for Pearson, if he were offered an experimental treatment to change his face, like in “A Different Man,” he says he wouldn’t take it. Despite the challenges it has brought him, Pearson believes his face has shaped the life he leads today.

“I joke with my friends that my disability does a lot of heavy lifting for my appalling personality,” he says with a laugh. “Everyone thinks it’s hard to go from non-disabled to disabled but I think the other way around would be even harder. The path we walk and the struggles we go through make us who we are and they’re inseparable from one another.”