Imagine the bustling topsy-turvyness ofNew York Citysuddenly smooth , still and devoid of life – lay aside for a lone homo and hiscaninecompanion , walking down a barren , overgrown Fifth Avenue . That unsettling vision sets the scene for the postapocalyptic time to come of " I Am Legend , " in which a mutatedvirusoriginally developed to curecancerhas wiped out the major planet . Dr. Robert Neville ( Will Smith ) is the last gentleman fend , a virologist who search for a remedy by day and block himself against drift bands of infected , bloodthirstyzombiesby night .

" I Am Legend " is base on a 1954 novel of the same name by Richard Matheson . It was adapted in 1964 as " The Last Man Standing " with Vincent Price and again in 1971 as " The Omega Man , " star Charlton Heston . This late incarnation was a massive logistical and technical challenge for the filmmakers and a psychological one for Smith , who single - handedly carries the plastic film .

In this clause , we ’ll outline the mental process of bringing this $ 150 million - plusmovieto the blind and listen firsthand from Smith , theatre director Francis Lawrence and co - screenwriter Akiva Goldsman .

The third remaking of " I Am Legend " collide with many roadblock on the way to the multiplex . Arnold Schwarzenegger and Ridley Scott were about to blast it in 1997 when Warner Bros. baulk at the $ 108 million budg­et . Tom Cruise , Michael Douglas and director James Cameron and Guillermo del Toro were variously concerned or attached , and Will Smith and Michael Bay nearly made an radius - scab interpretation in 2002 , but the likewise themed " 28 Days later on " stole that thunder .

Three year later , Akiva Goldsman and Francis Lawrence , who worked together on " Constantine , " revisit the idea as graphic symbol - drive , PG - blackleg survival story and got a green twinkle from Warner Bros. Once Smith come aboard , they rectify the conception , contain some constituent from old screenwriter Mark Protosevich .

" That started in February 2005 , and we initiate officially prepping in May 2006 , " say managing director Francis Lawrence . " We shoot from September till the beginning of April . We were under - budget in production and we finished a couplet days too soon . " That seems almost miraculous in condition of what was required to make it happen . Next , we ’ll see about the enormous undertaking of tear on the " deserted " streets of Manhattan­.

Made in Manhattan

Matheson ’s novella is set inLos Angeles , but the movie takes billet inNew York City , which Lawrence thought made a more strikingly empty location . He estimate that there are about 830 exceptional - event shots in the film , but he did n’t require to rely completely oncomputerimaging to achieve the trace - town impression . " I did n’t want the urban center to appear like a painting , " he says . " When you bourgeon onblue screenandgreen screenall the meter and everything is sire , it starts to look a little painterly . "

So Lawrence set about filming on the streets of Manhattan . As you might imagine , this roused the anger – and rear the center fingers – of some inconvenienced Manhattanites . But for Will Smith , that was a small price to pay . " You just ca n’t beat really walking down the center of a New York street with an M-16 , " he says . " It really attend in the psychology of create the character when you’re able to actually be in the place and not on green screen or in Baltimore [ standing in ] for New York . "

The effects team did have to do some postproduction workplace to dispatch mark of life from the landscape painting , but , Lawrence says , " at the gist you have a genuine place with reallightand particles in the air , and it adds realism . "

Lawrence cleared out an area outside Grand Central Station , Fifth Avenue and Washington Square Park for a drive sequence . " The movie could n’t have been more fun or more of a concern at the same meter , " he says . " You have 200 production help hide in doorways and around corner , and dealings cops blocking the street and it ’s a zoo , just to get a dig of a bozo walk down the street with hisdog . " The demolition ofbridgesand Times Square , of course , were computer - generated – the only exterior shot that were n’t dwell .

Other than the episodic uncooperative individual , Lawrence says , masses accommodated the product – and the element obliged , too . " We got really lucky , conditions - wise , " he continues . " We had to shoot all the outside while there were leaves on the trees , and a lot of it we had to hit weekend for dealings control . It was really precisely schedule out . Had we been rained out it we would have been screwed . But it only rained twice when we were blast alfresco . "

Lawrence tell he could n’t have made the movie without the cooperation of legion city and government agencies , especially for a chaotic evacuation sequence . He spent five years directing Smith and 1,500 extras on a pier built on a barge under the Brooklyn Bridge .

" It was a daunting idea to take that on , " Lawrence admits . " That was a circle of cooperation from a lot of people – theCoast Guard , theNational Guard , the city , the constabulary , thefiredepartment . But the elimination actually blend in pretty smoothly , " he says .

Filming Challenges

Lawrence say there was one filming snafu that was saved by Smith ’s positive attitude . " It was about 1 o’clock in the sunup at the end of January and about 7 degrees , so everyone was freezing , and we were about to twine when thecamerajammed . So Will grabbed the helper director’smikeand started babble his song ' Summertime ' to the entire mold and work party , and everybody start singing along . That ’s the kind of guy wire he is . It was really special . "

Other tricky sequences were shot betimes in the process , including an aerial eyeshot of Smith hitting golf ball off an aircraft letter carrier and an opening chronological sequence of Smith navigating the street of the city . " It was a backwash to get all that exterior work done before the farewell were lead , " says Lawrence . He had to spiff up up the flora with real plant life and CG work by Sony Imageworks , which also sum up computer - animated deer , fire event and the rabid zombies . The zombies ' movements were created on camera by actor in sensor - covered racy spandex question - seizure suits .

Lawrence used armoury in Brooklyn and the Bronx for some succession – the latter for Times Square and the former for the four - taradiddle brownstone housing Neville ’s bastioned apartment and lab . Art aficionados will recognize far-famed painting like Van Gogh ’s " The Starry Night " on the wall – Neville rent them from museums . " They ’re not print . They ’re literal painting , " says Lawrence . " Some of them already existed , and some we had done ; there are artists that specialize in that . "

A replica of the Brooklyn pier was recreated on the soundstage for other scenes need fleeceable screen door , such as one where Neville fights zombies , using his vehicle as a weapon . Smith did a skillful amount of the stunt work , Lawrence notes : " It ’s always better if you may put the player in and you may see that it ’s him . "

While he ’d never done a huge effects film before , Lawrence find out that his background in directing commercial and videos for the like of Jennifer Lopez , Justin Timberlake , Aerosmith and Gwen Stefani serve him well . " Having had the opportunity to toy with all the things that are out there and try out dissimilar things and put to work in all kinds of environment helps make being on set , changing directions , being capable to do different things spontaneously be second nature , " he says . " It do it well-situated for me to express what I want to show on camera . "

Training Day

Of course , month of preparation went into the picture show before a single frame was fritter . " Will and I … went to the CDC and to the University of San Francisco and meet somevirushunters to see what it ’s like to be a virologist and how they think , " say Lawrence , who first met Smith when he direct the actor - doorknocker ’s " Black causa Coming " television for " Men in Black II . "

Other expert author , like a psychiatrist who deals with people in isolation and solitary confinement , helped them understand the psychology of a lone existence . Smith and Goldsman also interview an ex-husband - captive who ’d spent time in solitary . " The one thing that was across the table was agenda , " Smith says . " He would schedule things like cleaning [ his ] nails . That was the only style to maintain sanity . "

Working out was part of Neville ’s regimen , and thus Smith ’s . He drop off 20 pounds and gained a six - pack by running five miles a day , six day a week . " What we specify from our research is that feeding becomes just something that you do just because you have to , " he say . " There ’s no delight , there ’s no real desire to deplete . You just know that your Einstein wo n’t function if you do n’t . "

Smith ’s onscreen internal monologue – sometimes in the kind of having a conversation with himself , hisdogor a mannequin – were more of a challenge . " It ’s a weird thing you have to do , but when you see it , it looks like there ’s a lot going on even though it ’s a dude sitting there with a weenie , " Smith says .

" There are n’t many actors that can pull off a one - man show , " say Lawrence . " Part of it is just his personal magnetism . Part of it is he ’s a really good actor . He ’s very precise with his choices , which is very of import for this picture show because there ’s so slight talks . "

Smith relished the challenge , but ca n’t think in reality living in Neville ’s shoes . " As much as people get on your nerves on the superhighway , " he says , " as much as people nark you in your daily animation , if you take everyone away , it would be the most miserable existence that you could have . There was absolutely no pleasure for me at all in experience that amount of loneliness and solitude . "

But without giving too much away , in the end there is a ray oflightto save the shadow . " It ’s a motion picture about hope and the battle to detect hope in the cheek of so much loss , " Lawrence says . " It ’s a very simple , human idea . "

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