Although Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith had already held its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, a grand North American premiere was still organized. Duke, among many other celebrities, accepted the invitation and attended the premiere in person.
Quickly walking down the red carpet, Duke saw many renowned figures in the industry waiting outside the theater. All four great directors Martin Scorsese, Francis Coppola, and Steven Spielberg were present. Harrison Ford, Liam Neeson, Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise, and others made the premiere glitter with stardom.
Standing in front of the theater and looking toward the red carpet, guests were still continuously arriving. Duke knew very well this was the power of the Star Wars franchise.
After all the guests had stepped onto the red carpet, two squads of Imperial Stormtroopers charged in and took positions on either side of the carpet, causing fans in the vicinity to erupt in cheers. Then, a heavy breathing sound came through the loudspeakers on site it was the most iconic sound of Darth Vader. The crowd along the red carpet immediately quieted down, seemingly focused on listening to that sound. Their beloved Darth Vader was back!
Duke could even see some fans wiping their eyes, as if they were brushing away tears.
He once liked the series as well, but more so for the bald-headed girl who once stood beside George Lucas. After coming to this country, he truly experienced the unique charm of Star Wars. Some might say the series has nothing but special effects, but as long as it's called Star Wars, that's enough.
As long as the film is a part of the Star Wars franchise and not horribly made, it's practically guaranteed to be a box office success!
Then again, no matter how bad it gets, can it ever be worse than Attack of the Clones?
Without a doubt, playing Darth Vader's voice at the premiere was for sentimentality to evoke the emotional appeal of the Star Wars fandom. Sentiment in cinema is intangible, but it can be converted into real, tangible profit.
Take Duke's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, for instance.
After this year's Oscars, Warner Bros. released a new edition of the Lord of the Rings trilogy DVD. This wasn't the extended edition personally edited by Duke, just a repackaged set of the original DVDs, with an added hour of footage and behind-the-scenes extras.
Even so, countless people still paid for it. In its first week on the market, it sold over $130 million worldwide, and by now total sales had surpassed $200 million.
These buyers were clearly driven by their feelings toward The Lord of the Rings.
Even without a survey, Duke could easily guess that at least 70% of the buyers had already purchased the previous DVD sets of the trilogy, and at least 90% had watched the series multiple times through various channels.
Yet they still paid for The Lord of the Rings. More precisely, they were paying for their emotional attachment to it.
"What are you thinking about?"
A nasal voice suddenly spoke from beside him. Duke didn't need to look to know who had come over. Without turning his head, he replied, "Thinking about how long it's been since we last saw each other."
"Not long. Just a few months."
Clicking her sharp and thin heels, Sofia Coppola walked up beside Duke and deliberately changed to a curious tone. "Why'd you come alone?"
Duke shrugged slightly. "Aren't I alone now?"
"That's not right. I heard…" Sofia leaned in slightly, teasing, "I heard Scarlett's been getting pretty close to you lately."
"It's about time." Duke ignored her, checked his watch, and started walking into the theater. "Let's go in."
"Still not over your last relationship?"
Trailing behind, Sofia continued mumbling. Among Duke's few friends, only Sofia dared to say these kinds of things without restraint. "No way. A guy who changes women like clothes can't possibly be heartbroken, right?"
As if he didn't hear a word, Duke didn't respond to her and directly entered the VIP lounge.
Once inside, Sofia Coppola immediately stopped her joking monologue. After all, there were many people in the lounge, and some came over to greet her and Duke.
"Long time no see, Duke."
It was Steven Spielberg. Duke took a step forward and shook his hand. "Indeed, long time no see, Steven."
"Hello, Uncle Steven."
Sofia was smart enough to see Spielberg had come specifically to find Duke. After a quick greeting, she stood silently by Duke's side.
Spielberg didn't beat around the bush and said directly, "Duke, is the movie license for Hasbro's Transformers toy line in your hands?"
"That's right." Duke didn't deny it and nodded. "I acquired it a few years ago."
Hearing that, Spielberg looked slightly disappointed but still asked tentatively, "Can we collaborate with DreamWorks?"
"Sorry, Steven." Duke politely declined. "I have no plans to produce that series in the short term."
There were no personal grudges between him and Spielberg, but undermining DreamWorks was a matter of principle. Even if Duke were ready to shoot a live-action Transformers movie now, he wouldn't accept DreamWorks' investment.
Today's DreamWorks was struggling. The once-called "Seventh Major Hollywood Studio" was now on the edge of a cliff and might fall into the abyss this summer.
As for the reason though Scarlett didn't star in it The Island would still be released this summer. Michael Bay, who hadn't had much success in recent years, would likely be unable to change the film's fate.
Even if the film turned out better than the original, with six hungry wolves surrounding DreamWorks, success wouldn't come easily.
Spielberg wasn't foolish. Seeing Duke's attitude, he didn't push further and instead changed the topic.
"I heard Iron Man is officially entering production. Are you searching for an actress to play Pepper Potts?"
Duke nodded slightly. "That's right. I'm planning to hold a large-scale audition for the role."
"Duke, I have a goddaughter."
As expected, since Spielberg brought up the role, he definitely had an agenda. "You should know her Gwyneth Paltrow."
"I'll have someone send her an audition invitation," Duke said tactfully.
After all, it was just an audition. This kind of favor had to be given to Spielberg. Everyone in the industry knew the Jewish old man treated his godchildren well.
"Thank you."
Spielberg gave a word of thanks, then left.
Watching his departing figure, Sofia Coppola suddenly sighed, "You don't intend to use Gwyneth Paltrow, do you?"
"You can tell?" Duke turned his head and looked at her.
Sofia shrugged. "Darling, don't forget—I was your personal assistant for years."
"I really don't plan to use Gwyneth Paltrow," Duke admitted. "But I couldn't just reject Steven to his face over something so minor, could I?"
"Why not?" Sofia didn't follow up on Duke's words but instead asked, "I've read some Iron Man comics. Gwyneth's personal image does resemble Pepper Potts a bit."
"What's her working style like?" Duke reminded her. "I'm not talking about relationships or private life, but her behavior on set."
Sofia understood what Duke meant. "Hollywood's most notorious diva."
"If she were half as smart as you, she wouldn't be in her current situation."
Duke was stating the truth. Gwyneth was famously difficult to work with in Hollywood, frequently causing strange troubles on set and falling out with many directors, including top ones. Ever since she won the Oscar for Best Actress, her career had been on a downward spiral. If not for Spielberg as her godfather and the status she maintained through fashion and high culture, she would never have been able to hold her current position.
Duke also knew very well that hiring Gwyneth Paltrow wouldn't bring many benefits. Her diva tendencies would only worsen.
Just like Australians hated Nicole Kidman, and the British never liked Hollywood's English rose, in a few years Americans would be sick of Gwyneth Paltrow. Pepper Potts was a recurring character in many Marvel movies. Though just a decorative supporting role, if other options were available, why choose a troublesome actress?
From beginning to end, Duke had never considered using Gwyneth Paltrow.
A staff member entered the VIP lounge and led the guests toward the screening room. Duke and Sofia walked in together, changed seats again, and sat side by side, preparing to watch the movie.
The waiting time was always dull. Sofia looked at the bald woman standing next to George Lucas in the front row and suddenly said, "I heard you had a thing with her too?"
"That was a long time ago." Duke didn't shy away and looked at the woman who now had a buzz cut. "A very smart and calculating woman."
Sofia asked, "Smarter than me?"
Duke glanced at her and replied bluntly, "In terms of scheming, planning, and patience, even two of you wouldn't compare to her."
"Oh…" Sofia didn't mind. She batted her eyes playfully and deliberately said, "Seems she left quite an impression on you."
The big screen lit up, and Duke reminded, "The movie's about to start."
This was the darkest Star Wars installment, though the film had a glaring flaw Anakin Skywalker's transformation was too abrupt and unconvincing. But that didn't matter. After all, it was Star Wars, and George Lucas himself had called it the final Star Wars film.
There was no surprise. As the new week began, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith not only knocked Batman Begins off the top spot and became the box office champion, but also set a new North American weekend box office record with $150.04 million.
Despite being squeezed out by Revenge of the Sith, Batman Begins still earned $12.15 million. Combined with the previous four weekdays, it had accumulated a North American box office total of $202.79 million.
As the film's hottest release phase ended, Duke gradually shifted his focus to preparing his next project.
.....
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