Chapter 68: Expiration Date
"Sean Connery's history of domestic violence?"
Seeing the eye-catching headline in the newspaper, Duke couldn't help but smile slightly. Sean Connery's son and wife had surprisingly called a press conference on Monday, exposing Connery's scandal. This was simply a source of great satisfaction. The media was almost overwhelmingly reporting related news, going so far as to describe Connery as the embodiment of Satan on earth.
"Last night…"
Next to Duke, Sofia Coppola shifted in her chair, grabbed a newspaper, and said while flipping through it, "A talk show on Fox invited Connery's ex-wife, Diane Cilento, to reveal all of his dark past. They even set up a live broadcast van in front of Connery's mansion."
"This is good news."
Although the theater's lounge did not allow a view of the outside sky, Duke still couldn't help but admire the weather today.
"What did you do?" Putting down the newspaper, Sofia tilted her head to look at him. Duke shrugged and unhesitatingly denied, "This really has nothing to do with me. Do you think I have the power to do such things right now?"
"Warner?"
Even though she said this, Sofia kept her gaze on Duke. She knew this had to be Warner's doing, but it definitely had something to do with the guy next to her.
Gently shaking her head, Sofia temporarily discarded that thought. After spending so much time together, they were not only work partners but also friends. She understood what Hollywood was like; good people would only be trampled by countless big feet, and only those who could exploit every condition would succeed.
Clearly, the Duke beside her was such a person.
It was no exaggeration to say that Sean Connery had become a drowning dog. Perhaps a few voices sympathized with him, but in the cutthroat world of Hollywood, he would only receive more blows. Even with CAA doing extensive PR work, it would not fundamentally change this trend.
Even the media under CAA's partners, like 20th Century Fox and Walt Disney, were fully engaged in the hype, let alone other media outlets.
This situation was entirely within Duke's expectations. CAA's strategies, like packaging services and taking a commission on films, led to a natural opposition with major Hollywood companies. The foundation of their cooperation was profit, but when opportunities arose, the latter would inevitably suppress the relatively strong CAA. After all, no production or distribution company wanted to see a giant management company.
"By the way, Duke."
Leaning in, Sofia lowered her voice, "Do you have any evidence about Sean Connery?"
"No…" Duke shook his head. "This kind of thing doesn't require evidence."
If the other party was mistakenly harmed by him and Warner, they could only blame their bad luck. Someone had to bear the brunt of Warner's anger.
"CAA took ten years to make him the most famous gentleman in Hollywood." Sofia sighed, seeming a bit sympathetic, "Yet the media destroyed it all in less than a week…"
"Connery's most valuable asset is this gentleman image." She paused, continuing, "In the past few years, his standout roles were all based on this. Without this image, it will be hard for him to maintain his leading status."
"Leading?" Duke sneered, "Without the gentleman image, and with domestic violence and drug scandals, he's not known for his acting talent, and there's no room for growth. He's destined to be forgotten by Hollywood."
"He could play a villain!" Sofia replied instinctively.
Duke shrugged, too lazy to say anything more. Not to mention, Sean Connery's position in CAA would inevitably decline sharply. Even if he was one of their oldest clients, the vampires' eyes would always be on the most delicious blood.
Furthermore, a divorce lawsuit was bound to happen, and the ensuing property battle would surely be quite spectacular. Perhaps he could help that poor mother and son by introducing them to some excellent lawyers to prolong the lawsuit, thus securing them a better deal.
Looking at his watch, Duke stood up. "It's about time. Let's head to the theater."
This afternoon, Warner Bros. was hosting a screening for "The Rock." In addition to fans, critics, and media reporters, there were also many representatives from theater chains, such as those from Emperor Entertainment Group and AMG Theaters.
The quality of the film and its potential for box office success were directly related to the interests of the theater chains. A commercial blockbuster's ability to secure a large number of theaters depended not only on the efforts of the distribution company but also on the attitude of the theaters. If the film looked like it would flop, no matter how much the distributor talked it up, the theaters wouldn't allocate many resources.
The theaters were an important part of distribution. The quality of the films shown directly impacted the profits of theater owners. No film could simply secure thousands of theaters; just like film production, there were complex procedures involved, and theaters conducted strict reviews.
"The Rock" had a completely different release strategy than "Speed." The latter had shown enormous potential in its screenings, making its wide release a natural outcome, while the former was bound to have a massive opening in North America. The theater chains would certainly conduct the most basic assessments to ensure it wasn't a bad film.
In highly professional Hollywood, it was a fantasy for a small company to release a film and easily secure thousands of theaters, especially when theaters didn't even consider screenings and previews.
"Hello, Director Rosenberg."
As Duke entered, he encountered a selection expert from Emperor Entertainment Group. Shaking hands lightly, he greeted, "Hello, Josman."
The edited preview had already been shown at an internal screening at Warner Bros., and the studio was very confident in the film. The lineup for the screening showed that "The Rock" was enjoying treatment befitting an A-list commercial blockbuster.
The representatives from the largest theater chains in America went without saying; the media and critics were also a strong lineup.
As he entered the theater, Duke glanced around. Among the critics he recognized were Kenneth Turan from the *Los Angeles Times* and Todd McCarthy from *The Hollywood Reporter*, among others…
Moreover, he had heard from Robin Grand that Warner Bros. had allocated a six-figure PR budget and flown in the renowned Roger Ebert from Chicago!
Although he didn't see Ebert's figure, Duke knew he would be in the theater. Perhaps he would see this top-tier professional film critic, revered by countless, at the event following the film.
Ebert, having requested Warner to provide a Malibu beach villa as temporary accommodation, arrived slightly late at the Burbank theater. However, others could only complain privately; he would greet everyone with a smile, as everyone knew the power of his thumb and reviews.
As a super authority in film criticism, Roger Ebert was indeed worthy of any film company's attention.
"Hi, Turan."
Approaching his seat, Roger Ebert casually waved at Kenneth Turan sitting next to him. "Long time no see."
"Yeah, I didn't expect to see you here." Kenneth Turan responded politely.
"That kid's movie isn't bad." Roger Ebert pointed at Duke, who was chatting with others. "Although it's just a popcorn movie, the bomb perspective in the trailer surprised me. I have reason to be optimistic about this film."
Of course, you have reason! Kenneth Turan thought inwardly; otherwise, wouldn't Warner Bros. be wasting tens of thousands of dollars on PR?
Just in front of them, the selection expert Josman from Emperor Entertainment had just taken his seat. He glanced at the person two seats away, who was the representative from AMG. The two were the biggest competitors in the North American theater market. If he remembered correctly, this person should be Lynch, the chief selection expert for AMG's West Coast branch.
AMG had sent a team led by him, clearly as optimistic about "The Rock" as Imperial Entertainment.
"Warner's people are among the ordinary fans."
Sitting in the front row, Sofia leaned closer to Duke and whispered, "Surveys have been distributed, and the opinions of critics and audience reviews will be fed back in real time."
During the internal screenings, company observers mingled among the fans; this was almost a Hollywood standard practice.
"Have confidence in our film, Sofia."
Hearing her slightly hurried breath, Duke patted her hand. "We will succeed; give yourself some confidence!"
"I have confidence in myself," Sofia stubbornly said. "I just don't have confidence in you; there will come a day when the audience gets tired of your explosion scenes."
"Not now!" Duke appeared full of confidence.
Yes, any director who maintains a single style for too long will eventually be abandoned by the audience. The pure sensory and commercial spectacle of explosions and collisions has a shorter shelf life, just like that previous explosion fanatic. After a series of high-intensity explosions, the audience would inevitably experience aesthetic fatigue.
However, he had just embarked on this explosive path; the shelf life could still last quite a long time.
The big screen slowly lit up, the lights suddenly went out, and the previously noisy theater immediately fell silent because there were no opening credits or buffering—just the curtain opened directly!
"This is…" Roger Ebert furrowed his brow slightly. "This is high-speed slow motion!"
This opening slow-motion segment, utilizing montage transitions and high-speed slow-motion techniques, instinctively created a sense of oppression and heaviness, much like the fast-paced opening of "Speed," which immediately presented enough suspense to entice viewers to keep watching.
"Duke Rosenberg has improved quite a bit."
Roger Ebert muttered to himself, "The camera work in the opening scene is simply exquisite. The visuals are stunning.
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