Chapter 160: The Smartest Place

The focus of this campaign was the "Cheatinggate" scandal—an incident relentlessly hyped by the media that had once cost Kristen Stewart her entire public image.

In truth, everyone in the industry knew that the private lives of celebrities were an absolute mess. Little K was just unlucky enough to be made an example of, and the whole affair had left her thoroughly disgraced. The media frenzy wasn't an accident, but the result of calculated behind-the-scenes maneuvering.

No matter how you looked at it, Robert Pattinson held the upper hand in his girlfriend's cheating scandal. Kristen Stewart, on the other hand, was not nearly so fortunate. Not only was she drowning in public condemnation, but in the unseen battles behind the curtain, her PR team had suffered a total defeat. Their strategy was an absolute disaster, leaving a storm of negative press to fly unchecked.

The most ruthless move came from Penny Kalis's camp, which continuously leaked claims that Kristen Stewart was in tears all day, texting Robert Pattinson daily to beg for his forgiveness, even if they could only be ordinary friends...

This repeatedly hammered a specific narrative home to the public: the woman's infidelity was an undeniable fact, and the man was the true victim.

It was no exaggeration to call it a brilliant PR strategy. It looked like sympathy for Kristen Stewart, but it was actually driving a knife into her back.

That was simply how this fame-and-fortune slaughterhouse worked. Even former lovers could turn their blades on each other. Any seemingly simple event was usually steeped in conspiracy and shady dealings. If anyone imagined Hollywood as a warm circle of mutual support, it was the funniest joke in the world.

This was exactly why Duke was willing to spend heavily to hire a PR firm. He wasn't an omnipotent genius, and his core focus had to remain on filmmaking. Professional matters naturally needed to be handed over to the professionals.

Although they had reached a verbal agreement, Duke had no intention of signing a contract just yet. Running background checks and conducting outside investigations were absolutely essential. Just like investing in a movie, this wasn't something to decide on a whim.

After returning from France, Duke had set aside five days of downtime for himself, mostly to take care of some personal affairs.

Having locked down his preliminary candidates for an assistant and a PR manager, Duke drove straight to Malibu the next day. He met up with Nancy Josephson and headed out to his estate in the beachfront luxury neighborhood.

Nancy had been overseeing the estate's renovations, which had wrapped up last month. Walking into the villa, Duke stepped across pristine new floors and stood before the newly installed floor-to-ceiling windows to look out at the horizon. The surface of the Pacific Ocean was a brilliant blue, quiet as a sleeping infant; only an occasional roll of the water churned up a smattering of whitecaps.

"When do you plan on moving in?" Nancy Josephson asked, walking over to join him.

"I still need to buy furniture..."

Glancing back at the empty living room, Duke frowned. "And appliances. Oh, God! It feels like there's still a ton of work to do!"

"That's because this place is missing a lady of the house!" Nancy said, clearly teasing him. "Otherwise, you wouldn't have to worry about this at all."

A lady of the house?

Duke shook his head. He had absolutely no intention of doing that right now—it would just be asking for trouble. Even if he found a temporary hostess, it wouldn't be long before they split. Wouldn't all the newly bought furnishings just become trash to throw out then?

Though money was gradually ceasing to be an issue for him, his mother's influence meant that while he could be extravagant, he couldn't be wasteful.

"Doesn't the renovation company have any good recommendations?"

Leaving the living room, Duke headed up the stairs to the second floor, speaking to Nancy as she followed him. "If they have some solid recommendations, we might as well just hand it over to them as a package deal."

Nancy nodded and made a note of it. "I'll have them send over the design concepts as soon as possible."

They took a full tour of the estate. Though Duke requested several detail adjustments, he was highly satisfied with the overall result. Much like his home in Santa Monica, the manor was tucked behind towering evergreen trees, giving it a luxurious, elegant, and deeply private feel.

"Get the furniture and everything sorted as soon as possible."

As they walked toward the outdoor parking area, Duke turned back to Nancy. "And find me a good event planning company. If I'm moving in, I definitely need to throw a housewarming party."

"Leave it to me," Nancy agreed readily.

Duke was her biggest cash cow now. Nancy had never felt so lucky that she had gritted her teeth and signed this demanding, infuriatingly picky young director back in the day.

"Oh, right, and..."

Just as he was about to get into his car, Duke suddenly remembered something else, only to wave a hand at Nancy's questioning look. "Never mind. I'll just ask my mom to help out with that."

An estate this massive couldn't just rely on temporary housekeeping staff; it needed a dedicated property management and service team. And for someone like him, working in the trenches of Hollywood, those people absolutely had to be reliable. It would be better to have his mother recommend some people.

Driving out of the estate, Duke headed straight for the Los Angeles office of PricewaterhouseCoopers to see his accountant, David. He had plenty of financial matters waiting for his signature.

Since the New Year, much of Duke's compensation from Independence Day had been steadily hitting his accounts. Warner Brothers and Twentieth Century Fox clearly wanted to maintain a long-term relationship with him, as they hadn't waited until the final deadline in his contract to begin paying out a portion of his backend cuts.

Twentieth Century Fox, serving as the North American distributor for Independence Day, had officially paid off the entirety of Duke's director's cut last month after the film finished its North American theatrical run.

The film's North American box office had soared to $362.55 million. Under his tiered profit-sharing agreement, Duke was entitled to take twenty percent of that. Subtracting the $30 million Fox had already advanced him, the remaining $42.51 million had been settled in full.

Internationally, the film's overseas box office had already blown past $500 million, automatically triggering the twenty percent profit-sharing clause in his contract. However, some overseas revenues hadn't hit the studio's accounts yet, and some that had wouldn't be paid out immediately. Warner Brothers had calculated against a $200 million portion of the box office receipts, paying out $40 million at the end of last month.

Even by the standards of Hollywood, where top-tier directors and actors could negotiate backend cuts, this was an astronomical payout.

Of course, compared to what Spielberg had made off of Jurassic Park, they still weren't even in the same league.

His remaining compensation would all come from the international box office, which meant Duke would have to wait patiently to see that money. He would consider himself lucky if everything was fully settled by this time next year.

The global box office for Independence Day had shattered the $900 million barrier, sitting high at $901.13 million. Though the film had ended its run in all major theatrical markets, it was still just opening in a few remote overseas territories. Whether it would ultimately dethrone Jurassic Park to claim the number one spot in cinematic history was still anyone's guess.

Finishing up with David, Duke phoned his stockbroker. He planned to take a chunk of his new capital and dump it into the stock market. His targets, naturally, were Apple and Microsoft. Microsoft stock was incredibly hot right now, so he could only buy whatever was available on the market; Apple's share price, on the other hand, was continuing to plunge without the slightest sign of a rebound.

However, Toy Story was already slated for a Thanksgiving and Christmas release, meaning Boss Jobs was on the verge of his triumphant return.

Duke wasn't relying on these for short-term profit anyway; this was purely to preserve and grow his wealth. Ignoring his broker's vehement protests, he issued a hard order for the man to convert his cash into those specific shares over the coming period.

At the same time, he wasn't going to trust anyone blindly. Every necessary oversight measure would be strictly put in place.

It wasn't until dusk that Duke finally wrapped things up at the PricewaterhouseCoopers office. As he walked out of David's office and stepped into the elevator lobby, he bumped into someone entirely unexpected.

"Sophie..." Duke raised an eyebrow and walked over. "What are you doing here?"

Sophie Marceau, dressed in a sharp business suit, turned around. Seeing it was Duke, she offered a radiant but entirely formulaic smile. "I'm here to see my accountant about a few things."

"I meant, when did you get into Los Angeles?" Duke could feel the polite distance she was keeping. "The world's beloved Sophie Marceau has arrived in Los Angeles. How could a local like me not treat you to some hospitality?"

"My new movie is coming out soon." Sophie Marceau seemed to be dropping a deliberate reminder. "I had to fly in to help the production team with the promotional campaign."

Duke seemed entirely unfazed, immediately throwing out an invitation. "Would I have the honor of treating you to dinner?"

"Tonight?"

After a moment's hesitation, Sophie Marceau slowly but firmly shook her head. "I'm sorry, Duke, I have plans this evening."

The elevator doors chimed open, and the two stepped inside one after the other. Duke glanced at the mature, devastatingly attractive French woman beside him and pressed on. "What about tomorrow? Let me show you around Los Angeles."

The harder something was to get, the more it tended to pique a man's interest. Duke was just an ordinary man, so naturally, he was no exception.

"I'm sorry, Duke." Sophie Marceau met his gaze, her tone deadly serious. "I am already married!"

"It was just a friendly invitation." Duke chuckled dismissively. Since she wasn't interested, he wasn't going to hound her. "We'll talk next time you're free, then."

The elevator doors opened. Duke gave Sophie Marceau a polite nod and strode out without a backward glance, heading straight for his car.

Watching Duke's retreating back, Sophie Marceau didn't hesitate to turn and walk in the opposite direction. As she set a brisk pace, a contemplative light flickered in her dreamlike eyes.

Sophie Marceau understood the sheer value of befriending a major Hollywood director better than anyone. Even if something did happen between them, as he clearly intended, it wouldn't have been a big deal to her. Yet, she had still made the conscious choice to keep her distance from the young director.

The reason was simple: she was on the verge of signing with CAA, and Martin Bob would serve as her primary agent. Even without a full foothold in Hollywood yet, Sophie Marceau was well aware that Duke Rosenberg's relationship with CAA—and more specifically, with Martin Bob and his faction—was notoriously toxic.

She knew exactly how hard it was for a foreign actor from a non-English-speaking country to establish a firm foothold in Hollywood. Compared to a director like Duke Rosenberg, whose films were heavily skewed toward male leads, the backing of a powerhouse like CAA was far stronger and far better suited for her future career trajectory.

Sophie Marceau had carefully calculated exactly which choice best served her needs. Right now, her greatest asset in Hollywood was her impending contract with CAA!