Chapter 155: Who Is Responsible

"Why aren't you with the crew?" Mrs. Leah asked, looking at Duke as he caught up to her after they walked the red carpet and entered a relatively quiet area. "Didn't you plan a promotional campaign?"

"Having Tom is enough. He attracts the media much more than I do."

Duke looked back. Tom Hanks had just stepped onto the red carpet, and the crowd and reporters' reactions could only be described as frantic. When it came to media and public appeal, an A-list director couldn't catch an A-list actor even on a train—especially since Tom Hanks was attending with Rita Wilson.

Getting Tom Hanks to appear at the Victoria's Secret annual fashion show wasn't easy. Although he was obligated to cooperate with the film's promotions, this was a last-minute addition to his itinerary. The studio had to negotiate with his agent, Eno Martin, several times to make the trip happen.

However, Duke wasn't about to have it easy either. After posing for a photo with his mother in front of the backdrop, he was pulled into the press area by the Warner Brothers public relations staff.

A reporter immediately came over and asked, "Director Rosenberg, is your new film, Saving Private Ryan, finished?"

"You'll be able to see it in the summer season," Duke replied.

"I heard that Victoria's Secret formed a professional team of angel models based on your suggestion?" someone else asked.

"I just mentioned it in passing." Duke didn't miss the chance to casually promote his own advertising company. "It was Saintphia that turned my very immature ideas into reality."

"As everyone knows, your movies never lack beautiful women. Will the angels have a chance to appear in your films?"

"Of course, as long as there is a suitable role."

The promotional campaign for Saving Private Ryan had already begun. As long as it generated buzz and attention, Duke welcomed all questions from the reporters.

"Congratulations, Director Rosenberg! The global box office for Independence Day has crossed 900 million dollars!"

A reporter pushed hard through the crowd, wearing what looked like a very sincere smile. Duke gave him a slight nod. "Thank you."

His next question wasn't nearly as polite. "But your film has been criticized by countless industry professionals, and its professional rating has dropped to 2.92. What are your thoughts on this?"

"There's a kind of person in this world who, when they can't reach the grapes, will tell everyone that the grapes are sour, bitter, and the worst-tasting things on earth."

Hearing Duke's analogy, the surrounding reporters were stunned for a moment before they were blocked by several men in suits. Duke nodded to the event's head of security, turned to leave the press area, and entered the venue.

Scanning the room briefly, Duke spotted where his mother was seated and walked straight over.

Just like the promotional strategy for any movie, the focus for Saving Private Ryan wouldn't be on the director. Tom Hanks was the centerpiece of this cross-promotional event with Victoria's Secret. Even Leonardo DiCaprio and the other actors would arrive at the venue later, led by Robin Grande, to make their appearance before the media.

The only thing Duke found slightly regrettable was that Leonardo DiCaprio and his agent had rejected the crew's suggestion to stage a fake romance with one of the Victoria's Secret models. Unlike Keanu Reeves, Xiao Li had started out as a child star and enjoyed a relatively smooth career; he probably didn't want to turn his private life into a media spectacle.

"Duke, come here."

His mother waved him over. Once Duke approached, she introduced the people around her one by one. "This is Lori Grile, president of the Victoria's Secret store. This is Vice President Rebecca Fein, and this is Director of Operations Bill May..."

Everyone introduced was a Victoria's Secret executive. Duke politely exchanged pleasantries with them.

Mrs. Leah stood to the side, a proud smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. Duke had indeed become her greatest source of pride, just as he had promised, and he had done even better than her wildest imaginations!

Looking across all of Hollywood, across the entire United States, and even across the whole world, how many film directors could achieve what Duke had? Was there a single director who could create such success at his age?

Setting aside the fact that the combined box office of his last three films exceeded 1.5 billion dollars, just looking at Independence Day alone—a single movie reaching over 360 million dollars in North America and exceeding 900 million dollars worldwide—what kind of glory was that? It would be far too hypocritical of her not to be proud.

As a businesswoman, and a relatively successful one at that, Mrs. Leah knew very well that in this highly commercialized society, commercial success wasn't everything, but it was the foundation for earning respect and recognition. Besides, Duke had entered the incredibly realistic world of Hollywood, a circle that spoke exclusively through commercial data.

After chatting for a few moments, the Victoria's Secret executives headed backstage. Duke sat with his mother in the front row near the catwalk, observing the venue while dealing with the people who came over to say hello.

Unlike the star-studded fashion shows of the future, Victoria's Secret currently had a noticeable lack of drawing power. While there was no shortage of familiar faces, there weren't many truly massive stars. In particular, aside from Tom Hanks and the other members of the Saving Private Ryan cast and crew, there were actually very few Hollywood celebrities present.

The few who did show up were mostly there because of Duke's invitations, such as Christopher Lee, Uma Thurman, and the actors signed under Nancy Josephson.

Among them was Rachel—Jennifer Aniston—who had become extremely popular last year thanks to a sitcom.

Although this actress played the typical American ditsy blonde role on screen, she was no fool in reality. The moment she entered, she immediately came over to greet Duke. She chatted enthusiastically with Mrs. Leah for a few moments, even addressing her affectionately as 'Auntie'...

Very few people who achieved fame were idiots. Jennifer Aniston clearly understood the predicament of actors who relied on television dramas for their success. Without a suitable role to transition with, they would be limited to TV for their entire lives, and the most ideal and suitable transition for a TV actor was the big screen.

"When we get back to Los Angeles, do you have time to grab a meal together?"

As she was leaving, she softly extended the invitation. Naturally, Duke had no reason to refuse. "Sure, I'll wait for your call."

Jennifer Aniston gradually walked away. Seeing his mother turn her eyes toward him, Duke composed his expression and settled securely back into his chair, temporarily tossing the exchange to the back of his mind.

The fashion show wasn't just a fashion show. As the promoter, Saintphia had signed broadcast contracts with ABC and Sky Television to broadcast it to North America and Europe, respectively. As long as the results met expectations, this kind of fashion show would become a regular occurrence in the coming years.

They didn't have to wait long before the curtain rose on the show. Although it was different from the videos he had seen in the past, in Duke's eyes, the models walking the catwalk and the overall operation seemed to possess a prototype of the future.

Victoria's Secret's operating strategy wasn't to build itself into a high-end luxury brand, but rather into the world's most famous and popular sexy lingerie brand. Therefore, the models on the catwalk didn't have the cold, aloof elegance typical of haute couture shows. Instead, they frequently blew kisses, laughed, winked, waved, and even flashed victory signs, interacting with the surrounding audience and camera lenses.

The makeup artists had also put significant effort into the models' looks. The angels' long hair was naturally wavy, as if they had just woken up and hadn't yet washed, or had just experienced perfect sex. Their faces carried a natural charm, with rosy cheeks and misty eyes that perfectly complemented lips that looked as if they had just been kissed.

What surprised Duke the most was that this fashion show had actually invited Madonna Ciccone as a musical guest. Wearing sexy lingerie, the big sister of the pop music scene sang her classic number-one hit, La Isla Bonita, as she walked onto the catwalk. When she high-fived the models passing by her, it sparked the first climax of the event.

"Saintphia invited her?" Duke pointed at Madonna on the stage and asked his mother in a low voice.

Mrs. Leah nodded. "It was the suggestion of a deputy creative director at Saintphia. I thought it was a very good idea."

Although he knew the Victoria's Secret fashion show had a tradition of inviting guest performers, Duke remembered clearly that he hadn't mentioned this point. The reason was simple: he had forgotten at the time. Now that someone else had brought it up, it actually wasn't all that strange. For many things, as long as you pointed out the key elements, certain supplementary details would naturally fall into place.

Duke would never underestimate the elites of this era. The idea that having a bit more experience meant all creativity would solely originate from him, or that success was a matter of course, was simply impossible. His brain contained neither a hard drive nor Google, so how could he remember everything? Even for the things he did remember, remembering them was one thing, but turning them into successful realities was an entirely different matter.

Shortly after, the fashion show reached another climax—something else Duke knew about but had forgotten to bring up!

Claudia Schiffer, one of the top five supermodels, stepped onto the catwalk wearing an astronomically expensive bra encrusted with diamonds. Under the bright stage lights and modeled by the world-class supermodel, this piece of lingerie, supposedly worth 2 million dollars, dazzled many eyes. Some men in the back rows were especially excited, already whistling loudly.

"Whose idea was this?" Duke asked his mother quietly again. The corners of Mrs. Leah's mouth curled up slightly. "Mine. It looks like the effect isn't bad."

Expensive diamonds, beautiful angels, and sexy lingerie—put together, they could instantly captivate almost anyone. Naturally, the effect wouldn't be bad.

Duke deeply admired his mother. Unlike a cheater like him, his mother had relied mostly on her own hard work to achieve success after her marriage failed, aside from the limited social network left behind by the Rosenberg Family.

The first annual Victoria's Secret fashion show was nearing its end. The sky-high-priced lingerie worn by Claudia Schiffer became the focal point of a bidding war for many, drawing even more attention than Madonna. Before the event had even dispersed, a wealthy man from Southern Europe coughed up 3 million dollars to bag the bra.

The fashion show came to a perfect conclusion. It could absolutely be called a success, and after such a successful event, the organizers naturally wouldn't skip hosting a thank-you banquet.