The Adam Project’s director, Shawn Levy sat down for a chat with Indian filmmaker, Karan Johar. The Adam Project is his second movie with actor, Ryan Reynolds, having worked with him previously in Free Guy. Shawn spilled several secrets from the set while in conversation with Johar. 

He wanted the audience to connect with the characters

Shawn confessed to Johar that he didn’t want to convey grand ideas and concepts to films. He, however, wanted to create a movie that would evoke feelings. 

The particular bar scene in the film is one of the most poignant moments in the film. Interestingly, Johar reveals that it was his favorite scene. 

“This (bar scene) is such a beautifully crafted scene as a director, but also beautifully written and performed and it’s just like, so simple.”

Ryan rewrote the bar scene in The Adam Project 

Reynolds took it upon himself to rewrite the entire scene. It was a love letter to his mother. 

“Ryan wrote the scene as a love letter to his mother who was the one constant in his childhood with a very unpredictable and imperfect father,” he revealed.

The bar scene takes place between Jennifer Garner and Ryan Reynolds. Jennifer plays mother to Ryan in the movie. A widower and a single mother, she struggled to keep her job while bringing up a grieving son. 

The magical scene wasn’t rehearsed 

The emotional scene in The Adam Project touched many hearts. Shawn wanted Jennifer and Ryan to start filming right away to retain the charm of the scene. He utilized several close-up shots of Jennifer to up the emotional tone. He explained, “I was like, ‘I’m gonna say the bare minimum. I’m gonna roll the cameras, I’m gonna let the cameras move slowly in on each actor as the intimacy of the scene develops.'”

Apparently, Shawn only advised Jennifer to not cry. He wanted her to hold back the tears to show that her strong only on the surface but was utterly broken on the inside. 

The Adam Project hit Netflix on March 11. Produced by Skydance, the movie also stars Zoe Saldana, Mark Ruffalo, and Walker Scobell.

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