Chapter 20: Preview Screening Begins -

April inevitably arrived in Duke's life. It had been almost a year since he began working on "Speed," and yet the film had not been released. Even with his accumulated experience from two lifetimes, he couldn't escape the basic rules of the film industry.

The preview screening date set by 20th Century Fox was fast approaching, and Duke finally saw news and advertisements for *Speed* in the media.

For three consecutive nights, the Fox Television Network's family channel aired a 15-second clip of the film. In the entertainment sections of second and third-tier newspapers in the Los Angeles area, there were interviews with Keanu Reeves and Uma Thurman. Some film critics' columns featured both praise and criticism of the film, striving to grab attention. Tabloid newspapers owned by News Corporation started spreading gossip about the two leads, confidently claiming they were in a relationship. The trailer was also played on big screens in certain theaters, although the poster for *Speed* in some obscure corners wasn't particularly eye-catching.

A million dollars might seem like a vast amount for an individual, but for marketing a commercial film, it was hardly enough.

Fortunately, the film would only be previewed in twenty theaters across ten major cities, including New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Seattle, Boston, and Nashville. The publicity was primarily focused on these cities, making the promotional scale adequate for a limited release.

Although the test screening had received excellent word-of-mouth, 20th Century Fox's approach remained cautious. They had only printed 50 copies of the film.

Moreover, the studio's primary focus wasn't even on *Speed*. With the summer season approaching in May, David Fincher's *Alien 3* was their major project, receiving massive marketing investments, and advertisements for the film were virtually everywhere.

Because CAA (Creative Artists Agency) had provided packaging services for *Alien 3*, from production to direction and acting, they had also invested a significant amount of resources into the film. Their countless past successes gave them immense confidence.

"Lovett."

In an office in Century City, Rick Solomon sat across from his agent, his lips moving continuously. "Shouldn't we be putting pressure on 20th Century Fox? They should focus their efforts on promoting *Alien 3* instead of wasting resources on a trash film like *Speed*!"

"Calm down, Rick."

Lovett felt a tinge of impatience rise within him as he looked at the man across from him. This guy was so simple-minded that he didn't seem Jewish at all. He couldn't even be compared to Duke Rosenberg, whom he had dumped. Most people in Hollywood were smarter than him. If it weren't for needing Rick's father, Robert Solomon, to help conquer Warner Bros., he would never have signed this fool or used his connections to get him into the *Alien 3* production.

"Watch your image!" Lovett reminded him and continued, "Speed is only getting a preview screening. Positive feedback from test audiences doesn't necessarily translate to high box office returns. It's very possible this film will only last one week in theaters."

"That would be ideal!" Rick Solomon punched the air with force.

Though he said that, he didn't actually want *Speed* to last just a week. The reason was simple—if *Speed* stayed in theaters until early May, his film *Alien 3* would directly compete with it. The idea of crushing Duke Rosenberg underfoot was quite appealing to him!

"Speed? What's that compared to the *Alien* franchise?"

Later, Lovett called 20th Century Fox's marketing department, reminding them to concentrate their resources on *Alien 3*.

For the powerful CAA, this was a trivial matter. It didn't require big names like Martin Bob or Michael Ovitz to get involved.

"Will he succeed?"

As Lovett hung up the phone, the thought emerged in his mind and refused to go away. He began to ponder the situation. If Duke Rosenberg did succeed by some stroke of luck, Lovett figured he could always re-sign him. A good agent couldn't afford to care about pride. As for whether Duke Rosenberg would agree, Lovett didn't consider it at all. How could Duke dare refuse CAA?

April was traditionally a slow month for movies, with the big commercial releases saved for the summer season starting in May. 20th Century Fox wouldn't prioritize *Speed*.

On April 14, an ordinary Tuesday, Duke faced the most critical test of his life: the limited release of *Speed* in twenty theaters across the North American market.

There was no premiere, no media event, and no large-scale promotion—just some survey forms distributed by 20th Century Fox to the theaters.

As a survey observer for Fox, Harry Dunn was responsible for the Los Angeles area. He arrived early at a theater near City Hall and sat by the ticket booth, watching how audiences made their choices.

From the theater lobby, *Speed*'s poster, featuring a bus bursting through flames, was easy to spot. On the big screen, several trailers were playing, including one for *Speed*, packed with explosions and car chases, offering plenty of excitement.

However, after sitting for over half an hour, Dunn noticed that not many people were choosing *Speed*. This was likely due to the lack of big stars and widespread publicity, not to mention it being a weekday.

Checking his watch, Dunn saw that showtime was near. He got up and headed toward the screening room, receiving a survey form along with his ticket. Just as he was about to enter, a surprised voice called out behind him.

"Hey, is that you?"

Turning around, Dunn saw a blonde man with a few others. After a moment of thought, he recognized him—after all, this was the guy who had backed into the restroom during the test screening so as not to miss any of the movie.

"Didn't expect to see you watching this again," the man said. "What a coincidence."

"Yeah, a real coincidence."

Was it really? Not at all—there were only two theaters showing *Speed* in all of Los Angeles.

Waving the group inside, Dunn gestured for them to take their seats. The theater wasn't crowded, and they sat close to the center. Once seated, Dunn asked, "Haven't you already seen this film?"

"A film as exciting as *Speed* is worth seeing more than once," said the man, Jones, before turning to his companions. "I told you guys that this movie was thrilling, but you didn't believe me. See? This gentleman was at the test screening too and came to watch it again!"

"Yeah, Jones, we saw the trailer. It looks pretty intense," one of Jones's friends said. "But don't forget, lots of movies have great trailers but turn out awful. Especially with this director—none of us have heard of him."

"I haven't heard of him either," Jones sighed. "I went looking for his previous work in video stores, but there was nothing."

"By the way, have you ever heard of Duke Rosenberg?" he asked Dunn.

"I know a bit," Dunn casually replied, "Speed is probably his first official feature film."

"Wow... his first time!" Jones sounded like he had made some grand discovery. "And it's already this good?"

"Okay, Jones, just drink your soda," one of the girls teased, handing him a large cup.

Jones shook his head. "I advise you not to drink too much. This film won't give you time for a bathroom break."

"Is it really that serious?"

From the front row, a man in his thirties turned around, and Jones replied solemnly, "I promise!"

Watching the exchange, Dunn remained silent. After the test screening, *Speed* had clearly begun to gain traction with audiences, though the number of people who had attended the test screening was too small. If the limited release proved as successful, word-of-mouth could quickly spread among moviegoers. After all, nothing promotes a film better than positive word-of-mouth.

"Alright, settle down," Jones said, like a child eager to share his favorite toy with friends. "The movie's about to start!"

The screen lit up with the 20th Century Fox logo.

Dunn quickly scanned the theater. As expected, the audience was sparse, with fewer than twenty people scattered around the room—not an ideal turnout.

Kunitz, one of Jones's friends, was more focused on his popcorn, expecting a long opening sequence with production credits and not much else to catch his attention.

"What?"

Suddenly, his eyes widened. There were no long opening credits, no slow build-up. The movie plunged straight into the action, with a disabled elevator technician swiftly stabbing a security guard to the ground.

The plot immediately kicked off. Kunitz noticed some small text in the corner of the screen, listing the director as Duke Rosenberg and the actors as Keanu Reeves and Uma Thurman.

Though he wasn't paying much attention to the other details, he was impressed by the fast-paced start, which made him want to keep watching instead of dozing off during a long credits sequence.

"Smart move!"

This was Dunn's professional assessment. The Directors Guild had strict rules about opening credits, and years ago, George Lucas had quit the guild in frustration over this issue after *Star Wars*. He still hadn't joined the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which supports the Directors Guild.

Inserting the credits into the action at the start of the film was a clever compromise.

Dunn could already predict that if *Speed* succeeded, this technique would soon become more widespread.