Chapter 260: Don't Treat Superstars as Playthings

Monster movies had always had a steady market in North America, and King Kong had been remade countless times. For Naomi Watts to choose this kind of film after her rise to fame in Chicago, Universal Pictures must have paid a hefty price. Getting a currently popular star to play opposite a monster was no easy feat, and A-list actresses rarely took on such roles.

Duke could guess that Nancy Josephson's persuasion and behind-the-scenes push were definitely factors. She had invested heavily in Naomi Watts and naturally wanted to cash in while the actress was hot. Hollywood actresses had a notoriously short shelf life; once they hit forty, or even thirty-five, most inevitably found their careers sliding downhill, no matter how fiercely they fought it.

No one would ever admit it aloud, but chasing young, beautiful women was a very common mindset—not only in Hollywood, but across this entire male-dominated society.

The way older actresses would later resort to frantic cosmetic injections—willingly turning their faces into zombie-like masks just to cling to their youthful looks—was perhaps the best reflection of an actress's career trajectory.

Duke didn't point this out, and Naomi Watts undoubtedly understood it too. Few actresses would act so high and mighty as to reject commercial films; without enough box office draw, winning a pile of awards would at best leave them in the same awkward, middling position as Meryl Streep.

Having reached this level, who wouldn't want to join the ranks of the absolute top-tier actresses?

To become a top actress in the industry, one could follow the path of Tom Cruise and the current Julia Roberts—lacking validation from School Faction awards, but backed by outstanding box office draw.

Leaving the lounge, Duke showed Naomi Watts around the soundstage. The crew was busy building sets, so there wasn't actually much to see. After a quick look around, the pair headed over to the special effects studio where the prop team and the Industrial Light and Magic crew were stationed.

"Are these squids?" Standing in front of a batch of finished special effects props, Naomi Watts asked curiously. "Futuristic sci-fi creatures?"

Behind the glass window, the squid emanated a metallic luster. Several long tentacles dangled like coiled springs, bristling with gleaming spikes and jagged saw blades. A dense cluster of red eyes dotted its ferocious metallic face, making it look all the more hideous.

"These are Mechanical Squids." Duke waved to Collins and stepped up behind Naomi Watts. "Minions for the villains in the film."

Naomi Watts pointed at the Mechanical Squid's face. "It's so ugly."

"Darling, I'm not shooting Beauty and the Beast." Duke shrugged. "Villains need to look like villains, otherwise would it still be a Hollywood commercial film?"

After more than a decade of development in the American film industry, not only had Hollywood formed an assembly-line commercial production model, but mainstream audiences across North America and the entire Western world had also formed entrenched cinematic conventions. Most of the time, it wasn't that directors didn't want to innovate; it was that innovation often faced immense risk, and most of the time, risk meant failure.

A commercial film's success was often the cumulative result of multiple elements, whereas failure only required one aspect that the audience disliked.

Aside from the Mechanical Squid models, the special effects team had also built models of the hovercraft and sections of the fields. The densely packed field models mounted on their base plates, especially with the "massive machinery" towering among them, looked exceptionally lifelike even at a reduced scale.

"What are these for?" Naomi Watts asked curiously, looking at the fields.

"For growing things." Duke pointed at the mechanical models, which stood over a foot tall. "Once the crops mature, they handle the harvesting."

"What exactly are they growing?"

"Human babies." Duke shrugged. "The humans in the film are no longer born naturally, but grown using devices like these. To be more precise, they're mass-produced."

"That sounds like an incredible concept." Naomi Watts's eyes shifted playfully. "I'm starting to regret it."

Duke turned to look at her, and she smiled. "Regretting that I didn't continue working with you."

Despite saying so, Naomi Watts knew perfectly well that she could never have accepted the rock-bottom salary the production offered for the female lead.

Leaving the special effects studio, the pair walked out of the soundstage. Duke checked the time. "It's almost noon. If you don't mind the basic cafeteria at the Fox Lot, I'll treat you to lunch."

"Sure." She looped her arm through Duke's. "We haven't had lunch together in a long time."

Late July was the coldest time of year in Sydney. The weather today wasn't great either, with the sun completely hidden behind dark clouds. Fortunately, although it was winter here, they didn't have to worry about snow. Duke pulled his woolen overcoat tighter, and he and Naomi Watts quickened their pace, soon walking into a restaurant at Fox Studios that was only open internally.

Like most studios in Hollywood, Fox Studios in Sydney was divided into two sections: Fox Studios and the production area; the former was entirely a tourist facility, while the latter housed the soundstages.

Normally, the latter was completely closed to the public; otherwise, let alone filming normally, the crews would probably have trouble even finding a place to eat.

"Hi, Duke."

Someone greeted him as soon as he walked into the restaurant. Passing by, Duke exchanged a pleasantry, "You're early today, Liam."

"My scenes wrapped up quickly," Liam Neeson said with a smile. "I got out a little early."

Duke looked around the restaurant. "Where's George? Still busy?"

Liam Neeson knew he meant Lucas. "The leading lady rushed over from New York. George seems to be talking to her."

After introducing him to Naomi Watts, Duke went to wash his hands. He took a tray, picked out a few suitable dishes with Naomi Watts, and found a round table by the window to sit down and enjoy their meal in peace.

Just as Sofia Coppola had said, George Lucas's Star Wars Prequel: The Phantom Menace had chosen Fox Studios as its production base. They had moved in even earlier than The Matrix crew and were already in the filming stage.

"When does The Matrix start filming?" Naomi Watts asked.

Swallowing his food and taking a sip of juice, Duke said, "September at the earliest. It might be even later."

Naomi seemed a little emotional. "You're so cautious every time, just like when I first met you. Confident, but never arrogant."

"Only ample preparation can minimize the chance of failure." Duke took it as a given. "Pre-production doesn't become easier just because I have a few successful movies. Any oversight could cause the film to fail."

Just as in the beginning, Duke never believed he could succeed easily. Even though he was cheating, without his decades of study and accumulation in the past and present, the idea of succeeding merely by borrowing would be nothing but a delusion.

Success in this world was never easy; it required constant effort and struggle to accumulate. Failure was just the opposite. When you relaxed and thought you should succeed at whatever you did, you were infinitely close to failure.

The two chatted as they ate, occasionally bringing up amusing incidents from their past time together. Naomi Watts was a woman raised in a Western environment, and Duke had also been steeped in Western culture for over twenty years; neither of them took their past affair to heart. Moreover, their statuses were completely different now, naturally fading any such intentions.

Duke wasn't foolish enough to use scripts and roles to seduce an A-list actress, nor was he stupid enough to delude himself into controlling a woman's life. Meanwhile, Naomi Watts had firmly cemented her position as an A-list star after blockbuster films like Independence Day and Chicago. Although naturally at a disadvantage when facing top directors, she didn't need to deliberately curry favor with anyone.

More accurately, they had a stronger foundation for equal dialogue than ever before.

"You know, Duke." After setting down her knife and fork, Naomi Watts brought up the past again. "After the fire on set, especially your comfort and care in the hotel, I was crazily infatuated with you. I even wanted to be your girlfriend at any cost."

They had already cleared the air about the past after filming Chicago, so Duke didn't mind, simply asking out of curiosity, "And then?"

"And then I realized you wouldn't focus your heart on any single woman." Naomi Watts chuckled and shook her head. "At least not in the short term. No one will maintain a relationship where they give but get nothing in return."

"I think my mother said something similar."

Duke muttered. When he looked up, he saw George Lucas walking toward him with a tray, followed by a petite and delicate girl.

"Don't mind me sitting here, do you?" George Lucas asked, then sat on the side of the round table closer to Duke.

Duke laughed. "Have a seat."

Then he greeted the other person. "Have a seat, Miss Portman."

The girl looked a little taller than the last time he saw her, though she was still very thin. She set her tray down, first said thank you, then pulled out a chair and said, "It's a pleasure to see you again, Director Rosenberg."

"Just call me Duke."

"Then... it's a pleasure to see you, Duke."

She extended a hand, and Duke gently shook it. "It's a pleasure to see you too, Natalie."

"You can call me Nat." Natalie Portman appeared very polite. "My friends all call me that."

Duke nodded. He looked at George Lucas, who was busy eating his own food, and said to Natalie, "Has your run on Broadway finished?"

"Yes, it's finished," she replied.

"I'm sorry I couldn't go see your performance."

Hearing Duke's words, Natalie gave a faint smile. "That's okay, your work must be very busy. Besides, I met Mrs. Leah at the after-party."