Actor in Hollywood

"...What if he's the only flaw in perfection?"

Anson casually dropped a bombshell. The words themselves carried no power, but the emotional impact hidden within them was overwhelming. Heath and Rachel felt ripples of emotion resonate through their eardrums.

A loud hum filled the air.

Then, Heath murmured in a daze, "So he strangled himself with the umbilical cord."

McKee and Eric created four endings for the movie, each representing a different narrative direction and reflecting their varying interpretations of the story.

One of the endings depicts Evan, who, at the end of his endless loops, realizes that he cannot face the tragedies and pain. He comes to the conclusion that perfection doesn't exist at all—

Unable to endure the torment of despair and suffering any longer, he chooses a final, irreversible solution. Or perhaps, he believes that he is the root cause of all the pain. If he ceases to exist, everything else might fall back into place.

So, he returns to his mother's womb and strangles himself with the umbilical cord.

An end to it all.

Even when reading the script, you could deeply feel the helplessness and despair. The shock and emotional turmoil gradually hit you.

Now, after the brainstorming session, it felt like truly experiencing Evan's psychological journey, leading inevitably to that tragic ending. A sense of fatalism and inevitability crashed over Heath and Rachel like a tsunami, leaving them utterly defenseless.

Heath had thought he understood the essence of the story after reading the script multiple times. But now, he finally realized why Anson's performance had sparked such a wave of inspiration in his mind from the very first scene. His gaze toward Anson subtly changed, leaving him momentarily speechless.

"But..."

Heath began, though he didn't know what he intended to say. He fumbled for a transition, only to find himself standing there foolishly, lost in thought.

Anson didn't rush to speak but patiently waited—

Unfortunately... nothing followed.

Heath had nothing more to say, and neither did Rachel.

But Anson wasn't surprised. This was what made *The Butterfly Effect* so brilliant—it used a fatalistic tragedy to vividly display the helplessness and struggles of life before the audience. This was why the movie resonated so strongly among seasoned moviegoers, spreading through word-of-mouth.

Then.

"But," Anson continued, picking up where Heath had left off, "this still isn't the real ending."

Heath: "Huh?"

Rachel: "What?"

Anson didn't keep them in suspense.

"In the movie, the relationship between Evan and his father is the hidden core."

"In fact, the father also had the ability to go back in time. Evan goes back in time to seek happiness and to save everyone around him. But what about his father?"

"The answer lies in our previous conversation."

Rachel's eyes lit up. "Evan."

Anson nodded slightly. "If Evan dies in the womb, his mother will inevitably fall into depression, take up smoking and drinking, and eventually die of cancer. So the father repeatedly goes back to prevent this from happening, ensuring Evan is born and that his wife doesn't suffer."

"But once Evan is born, he goes through everything depicted in the movie, ultimately falling into despair and ending the cycle by dying in the womb."

"There's a detail in the movie: Evan's mother had two miscarriages before he was born. We can interpret this as the father failing twice to prevent Evan's demise. Both father and son are trapped in their own cycles."

"And then."

"The father realizes that the only way to break this endless cycle is for one of them to give up their obsession and stop trying to change the timeline."

"So, in the movie, the father tells Evan, 'You can't play God, son.'"

Ha.

Rachel gasped, covering her mouth in disbelief as she looked at Anson. Just when they thought the brainstorming session had ended, Anson casually dropped another bombshell, once again shattering their expectations.

And it wasn't just Rachel—Heath was equally stunned.

Despite his remarkable talent and maturity beyond his years, Heath was still just a young man. Standing before Anson, he was overwhelmed by the constant waves of shock and awe.

And so, he was swept away by the storm.

"See, that's how life is."

"We're always trying to chase perfection, to find the right answer, doing everything we can to avoid mistakes. If given the chance, we'd all try to correct our errors, believing that only perfection leads to happiness."

"But the truth is, we're not God. No one is perfect. Those mistakes, those pains, and those regrets are what shape us and make us who we are. It's precisely the things we've missed and the flaws in our lives that are the most precious parts of our existence."

"We all hope that life will only bring us joy and happiness, but the problem is that without loss, we wouldn't understand the happiness of having something. Without pain, we wouldn't grasp the purity of joy. Good and bad, light and dark, right and wrong—all these things are relative. Without one side of the equation, the other side would completely collapse."

"When we try to play God, when we try to create perfection, when we deny the dark in pursuit of the light—that's the true beginning of tragedy."

"That's the real core of the movie."

Starting with the butterfly effect, the film attempts to explore an attitude toward life—a way to face pain, setbacks, struggles, and challenges. At the same time, it also presents the right path to happiness.

This, in essence, is why Anson was drawn to the film and agreed to take the role—

He wouldn't live in the past.

To be precise, he would face and accept everything from the past, while seizing the present moment to shape the future, one "now" at a time.

The conversation finally ended there, with Anson choosing not to say more, letting the words' lingering impact spread and reverberate in the air.

Then.

Anson noticed someone looking at him and instinctively glanced over.

It was Heath.

Heath was quietly studying Anson with a probing gaze. Even when Anson noticed and looked back, Heath didn't shy away. He kept observing without any hesitation.

Anson: "Is there a flower on my face?"

Heath actually nodded. "No flower, but it's close enough. Are you sure you're only twenty? You don't look like it at all."

It wasn't just about the acting or the depth of understanding of the character and story. It was also a wisdom about life and fate that Heath found remarkable.

Anson chuckled, realizing what Heath meant.

Anson nodded back, looking calm. "Ah, you caught me. I actually still have a month until I turn twenty, so I guess I really don't look like it, right?"

His deadpan delivery left Heath momentarily stunned.

Pfft.

Rachel couldn't help but laugh, even though she tried hard to control herself. Her shoulders shook with laughter, and she beamed with delight.

Originally, Rachel had worried that Heath might get upset again, letting his pride get the best of him. But to her surprise, Heath also broke into hearty laughter, the kind that rang out across the whole set.

Anson: ???

Looking around at the crew casting curious glances their way, Anson rubbed his hands together with a genuinely curious expression.

"It seems I should take notes. This joke is definitely a hit. I should reuse it in the future."