Chapter 102: Potential Competitors

The white complex sat beneath the open sky, comprising a main building and its east and west wings. Its distinct neoclassical style, paired with the Stars and Stripes fluttering above the main building, gave it a dignified, elegant, and majestic air.

Rumor had it that the ghost of John Adams's wife, Abigail Adams, washed clothes in the East Room; Dolley Madison's spirit haunted the Rose Garden; Lincoln's bedroom was a frequent haunt for "Honest Abe"; and Marilyn Monroe once slipped through a secret passageway to rendezvous with the master of the house.

This was America's political center, the self-proclaimed most hospitable presidential residence in the world—the famous White House!

And today, surrounded by nearly ten cameras and under the watchful eyes of dozens of people, this very building was going to be utterly obliterated by Duke.

"Everyone, step back! Step back!"

Standing on a stable shooting platform, Duke raised his megaphone and shouted, "Stop stepping on the lawn in front of the White House! Mr. Ben Watts, if you crush the grass or trees one more time, I'll tie you to the White House and blow you up with it!"

The target of Duke's loud warning was a camera assistant introduced by Naomi Watts. He had joined the crew only after passing a personal evaluation by John Schwartzman and Duke; he was also the Australian actress's older brother.

"White House ready!"

"Oval Square ready!"

"Kennedy Garden set!"

"Lafayette Square set!"

A chorus of "OK"s rang out from the set, visual effects, and miniature teams. Then, Joss William's pyrotechnics crew stepped in, wiring the explosives they had previously placed beneath the White House.

Of course, this wasn't the real White House, but a scaled-down model built specifically by the crew. Not only was the model over seventy feet long, but the miniature team had also faithfully recreated every structure and landscape detail in the front yard to match its present-day layout.

"Has there ever been a shot directly blowing up the White House in a Hollywood movie before?"

Sitting on the platform, Duke asked Robin Grande, who was standing beside him, "Or anything similar?"

"There should be."

The production manager nodded, then shook his head. "But very few left a lasting impression."

"Robin," Duke said, resting his chin in one hand, "what do you think about using the shot of the White House blowing up as our first promotional poster?"

"Charles and I had the same thought." Robin Grande clearly approved.

"Maybe once we cut a preview reel..."

Having already navigated the marketing campaigns of two films, Duke had given it plenty of thought. "We could send it to the White House first for Bill Clinton's family to watch. No matter what he thinks of it, we can use it as a selling point, right?"

"Good idea." Robin Grande jotted it down in his notebook.

As the set preparations neared completion, Duke stepped off the platform and circled the White House twice. Confirming there were no issues, he returned to his spot behind the monitors to wait for Joss William's team to finish their final tasks.

"Pyrotechnics, ready!"

Hearing the shout, Duke called out to the camera crew, "John, lower the crane! Camera One, shoot according to plan."

Wide-angle shots combined with medium tracking and upward-angled close-ups were Duke's specialty when filming explosive action sequences. He and John Schwartzman had locked in the exact camera placements and shooting methods back when set construction first began.

Adjusting the monitors, Duke carefully observed the effect from each camera position. After making a few minor tweaks, he grabbed the megaphone and shouted toward the White House, "Clear the set! Last time, clear the set!"

Even though they were shooting a model on a soundstage, they were still using military-grade explosives. Duke didn't want anyone wandering in like an idiot and causing an accident that would bring down the unions and other messy headaches.

"Set is clear!"

An assistant director shouted.

"Joss..." Duke aimed the megaphone at the pyrotechnics team. "Twenty-second countdown to detonation!"

The area around the White House emptied out entirely, looking as if aliens had truly invaded. Shrouded in darkness, the scene felt eerily quiet and grim, as though this weren't the presidential residence, but a hell filled with executioners.

"10, 9, 8..."

The pyrotechnics team's countdown echoed loudly, warning everyone that a massive explosion was imminent.

"3, 2, 1, detonate!"

A brilliant fireball instantly erupted. Not only was the White House blasted to smithereens, but the lawn in front of it fractured and flew into the air. The flames spread rapidly, swallowing the gardens and trees in the front and back. The administrative heart of America had been utterly annihilated by Duke!

"Great!" Duke stood up from behind the monitors and shouted in satisfaction. "Well done! The first shot is a print!"

Thunderous applause broke out across the set as dozens of people celebrated their successful destruction of the White House.

"Moving on!"

Once the firefighters extinguished the residual flames, Duke shouted again, "Next target, the Capitol Building!"

A director was the supreme commander and soul of a production, and his traits inevitably influenced the entire crew. Without a doubt, having fought in the trenches together, Duke's team could now pull off explosive, visually striking sequences with relative ease and excellence.

In just half a day, Duke led the crew through a continuous shooting schedule, obliterating both the White House and the Capitol Building. After a one-hour break, they gathered in front of the Empire State Building.

This time, however, the Empire State Building wasn't an isolated structure; it was integrated into the entirety of Manhattan. What the crew was about to destroy was the economic lifeblood of America and the financial hub of the world.

"Duke, we have a problem."

While the rest of the crew continued setting up, Joss William approached him. "According to our plan, the explosion is supposed to originate from the Empire State Building and spread outward. But the flames from the blast will mostly shoot straight up. It'll be difficult to make them spread outward."

"Why don't we just blow up Manhattan all at once?" he asked tentatively.

"No, no..."

Duke shook his head. According to the design, the flames were supposed to spread out from a single point to cover the area. Moreover, the visual effects team at Industrial Light and Magic had already started working on the CGI for the laser weapons. If they changed the explosion style now, they'd have to scrap a ton of pre-production work and start over.

No matter how thorough the pre-production was, shooting always brought its own set of challenges.

Walking over to the Manhattan miniature, Duke stared at the model fixed to its baseboard. Joss William followed him, and the two frowned, both clearly trying to brainstorm a solution.

After circling the baseboard, Duke called over the heads of the relevant departments.

"Let's do it this way. Lock the cameras directly onto the model's baseboard," Duke instructed, gesturing with his hands. "Then use the cranes to lift Manhattan and suspend it vertically. We'll still use the Empire State Building as the detonation point. When it blows, the flames should shoot upward. We'll only film the top half of Manhattan spreading out from the Empire State Building..."

Duke walked right up to the miniature and pointed at the Empire State Building, dragging his finger backward. "Once it's suspended, block the light on the lower half below the Empire State Building. The lens will highlight the explosion and fire across the upper half."

"That could work." To ensure the shoot went smoothly, Joss William added, "I'll take some guys and run a test on some scrap models first."

Even though it was just a scale miniature, to cut costs, they had only built a single Manhattan.

About half an hour later, Joss William reported back that the test was viable. The departments mobilized once more. Three smaller cameras were locked onto the Manhattan baseboard at different angles. After Joss William personally wired the explosives, the cranes slowly hoisted the entire miniature vertically into the air.

They went through the routine set clearance. After Duke yelled action, a deafening blast shattered the Empire State Building into ruins, plunging half of Manhattan into a raging inferno.

Sitting in front of the monitors, Duke replayed the footage a couple of times. While it wasn't a perfect match for his original vision, it would do.

"That's it for today," he announced, issuing the order to wrap. "Clean up and you can head home!"

Crew members trickled out one by one, but Duke remained at the monitors to review the day's dailies. Just as the Manhattan explosion played back again, a voice with a flat, nasal twang spoke up from behind him.

"An alien laser beam detonates, but the fire spreads outward instead of shooting straight up. That makes zero logical sense. How are you going to explain it?"

"Why do I need to explain it?" Duke turned around to look at Sofia Coppola. "This is alien technology. Their weapons are hundreds of years more advanced than Earth's. We don't need to explain a thing!"

If directors actually had to justify every little detail, no action or sci-fi movie would ever get made. Never mind the rest—by all logic, the famous silver-screen hero Rambo should have died countless times over by now.

"When did you get back?" Duke asked.

"This afternoon." Sofia dragged a chair over and sat next to Duke. "I got off the flight from London to Los Angeles and came straight here."

"Thanks for the hard work." Duke grabbed the coffee pot, found a fresh mug, and poured her a cup. "Did it go smoothly?"

"You already know about New York," Sofia said, taking a sip of coffee first. "We locked it down. Since Broadway was gearing up to revive the play, it took some maneuvering, and the final price came in a bit higher than expected—two million dollars."

They had discussed all of this over the phone, so Duke just nodded. "And London?"

"Not as smoothly." Sofia sighed. "Your Duke Studio is basically an empty shell with zero industry clout. Snagging the rights to a masterpiece like that is going to be incredibly difficult."

"I see..." Duke fell deep into thought. After a long pause, he finally spoke. "Keep negotiating with them and maintain contact. Things might change once Independence Day hits theaters."

If Independence Day achieved its projected box office numbers, he would instantly become a top-tier commercial director in Hollywood—maybe even stepping into the highest echelons of the blockbuster industry. By then, his name alone would carry far more weight.