Chapter 273: A Long-Lost Explosion - A Terrifying Crew

"Listen to me, Rose. You're going to get out of here. You're going to go on and you're going to make lots of babies, and you're going to watch them grow. You're going to die an old, old lady warm in your bed, not here tonight, not in this freezing water."

Sobs echoed continuously from the regular audience in the back rows of the theater. With the film at this point and Jack saying those words, it was painfully obvious: the male lead was not going to survive this disaster.

A brilliant romance that had just bloomed was about to wither away...

"Winning that ticket for Titanic was the best and luckiest thing that ever happened to me. Thank God it brought me to you! Rose, you have to do me a favor. Promise me that no matter what happens next, no matter how hopeless it gets, you won't give up! Promise me, Rose! Never let go of your promise to me!"

"I promise you, Jack!"

"Never let go, Rose..."

"I won't give up, Jack. I'll never give up!"

Their hands clasped tightly together.

If anyone still harbored illusions of a miraculous survival, those hopes vanished the moment the rescue boat appeared.

Rose pried away the hand tightly clutching hers.

"I'll never give up! I promise you! I will never give up!"

Following Jack's request, she struggled toward the hope of survival. The vocal chant rose once more, ethereal yet laden with sorrow. A frozen Jack slowly sank, descending to the bottom of the sea in a close-up shot until he completely disappeared.

Visuals always carry more impact than words. The romance built up over two hours felt as though it existed solely for this agonizing parting. The poor boy and the rich girl—an eternally unfading theme of the silver screen—was pushed to its absolute pinnacle by James Cameron through the sinking of a massive ship.

The weeping in the theater grew louder. It was a highly clichéd scene, yet it carried a power that pierced straight to the soul.

The prelude of the Irish tin whistle began to play, followed by Celine Dion's vocals. It was the incredibly familiar My Heart Will Go On, a song destined to sweep the world alongside the great ship.

The singing ceased, and the credits finished rolling. The theater lights came back on, met by a tidal wave of applause. Everyone stood up, clapping vigorously to thank the cast and crew down in front for delivering such a spectacular film.

Seeing the enthusiastic reaction from the regular audience, Duke finally set his mind at ease regarding the film. All that remained was to wait—wait for the movie to cleave through the wind and waves at the box office, and wait for his share of the profits under the strict supervision of his accounting team!

It was a magnificent piece of work, and it would bring equally magnificent returns!

Although the premiere had drawn to a close, the night's festivities were just beginning. Paramount Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, and the newly expanded Duke Studio were hosting a celebration party at the Highland Hotel, having invited a slew of stars and socialites.

This was also necessary for promotional momentum.

Right after stepping into the hotel, Duke received a call from New Zealand. He spent some time discussing matters with Charles Roven, making him a little late to the banquet hall. He headed straight to James Cameron, had a drink with the set tyrant, and offered a few polite words of congratulation.

But that was as far as it went.

Everyone in Hollywood knew that James Cameron had a terrible temper in both work and life and was notoriously difficult to get along with. Even though Duke had invested 50 million dollars at a critical juncture, their relationship was strictly professional.

Locating Leonardo DiCaprio, Duke lightly patted him on the shoulder.

"Hey, Leo. Ready to become the idol of teenage girls worldwide?"

The two had kept in touch, so Leonardo didn't bother being formal.

"Duke, you're making fun of me again."

"Girls all over the world are going to go crazy for you."

Tossing out the casual reply, Duke turned to the person standing on Leonardo's other side.

"Aren't you going to introduce us, Leo?"

It was a tall woman with curly blonde hair, wearing a fitted white double-strap evening gown and a sparkling diamond necklace. Standing still, she looked the spitting image of an old-fashioned English lady. Furthermore, her figure was exceptional—nowhere near as plump as she appeared on the silver screen.

Before Leonardo could introduce them, she reached out her hand to Duke.

"Hello, Director Rosenberg. I'm Kate Winslet. Just call me Kate."

"Hello, Kate." Duke gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "You can call me Duke."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Duke."

"The pleasure is mine."

Once they finished their greetings, Leonardo DiCaprio grabbed some champagne from a passing waiter, and the three of them shared a toast. Leonardo was smart enough to make up a random excuse and slip away to another part of the hall.

"I've heard Leo mention you."

Nodding at a passerby who greeted him, Duke quickly zeroed in on a shared topic. "I hear you went through a lot of suffering during the shoot?"

At the mention of this, a hint of complaint crossed Kate Winslet's face.

"Oh yes, a lot! I've been shooting films since ninety-three, and I've never been part of such a terrifying crew."

"Terrifying?" Duke intentionally put on a confused expression.

Kate Winslet took the initiative to walk toward the lounge area, speaking to Duke as they strolled side by side. "Yes, incredibly terrifying. At one point, I actually wondered if I was going to have a nervous breakdown."

Winslet sat down at a table while Duke fetched more champagne from a waiter. The two continued their conversation over drinks.

"I'm sure you've heard about James Cameron's bad reputation."

This was common knowledge in Hollywood. Cameron himself never cared, and Kate Winslet spoke without any reservations.

"Calling him a 'set tyrant' doesn't even begin to describe his explosive temper. Plus, accidents were constantly happening during the shoot. But the most terrifying part was..."

When faced with a chatty woman, playing the role of a good listener was always the best choice. Therefore, Duke maintained an expression of earnest attention.

"There was an accident during filming where I almost drowned in the artificial lake!" Kate Winslet shook her head. "Then I caught pneumonia and spent an entire week in bed. I never want to work with James Cameron ever again."

"Kate," Duke said, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "Hearing you say that, it really couldn't have been easy to stick it out. You must be a very strong girl."

"Thank you." Kate Winslet raised her glass to him. After taking a sip, she winked and playfully added, "Since I wasn't the only one having a streak of bad luck, I always managed to find some psychological balance."

Duke laughed. "Consoling yourself."

Kate Winslet shrugged. "You definitely need to console yourself. Especially when I saw James Cameron get unlucky too—my psychological balance was thoroughly restored."

"He got unlucky?" Duke asked cooperatively, genuinely a bit curious. "Did something happen?"

"You didn't know? And you're an investor?"

Seeing Duke shake his head, Kate Winslet leaned in slightly and spoke in a hushed, mysterious tone. "While we were shooting out at sea, James Cameron severely reprimanded a camera assistant. That camera assistant had probably suffered enough of his violent temper, so that very night, he poisoned the crew's catering. A ton of people got poisoned, Cameron included. Luckily, the camera assistant laced the food with a stimulant-type drug, so they only ended up spending a few days in the hospital."

"It's truly a miracle this movie made it to release," Duke sighed, "with so many accidents happening."

"A total miracle!" Kate Winslet fully agreed with him. "By the time filming wrapped up, everybody was on the verge of a breakdown."

She managed a smile. "In reality, we all knew Director Cameron was under immense pressure from the massive budget, but it wasn't easy on the rest of us either."

"Yeah." Duke nodded.

Kate Winslet continued, "The film's budget was so huge. If it failed... sorry, I don't mean anything by that..."

"It's fine." Duke gestured for her to continue.

"It would have heavily impacted us too," Kate Winslet added. "Especially me and Leo. Our acting careers definitely would have suffered a massive setback."

Duke completely agreed with her. For a production of this scale to flop and not impact the careers of its two leads—was that even possible?

"So..." Kate Winslet sighed. "I've been under a lot of pressure this whole time."

"Pressure needs to be vented, otherwise it just builds up and breaks you," Duke said thoughtfully. "I happen to have a bottle of red wine from the fifties in my collection that makes you forget all your troubles. Interested in a taste?"

Having started cohabiting with a partner at sixteen, there was no way Kate Winslet would miss the subtext. Still, she deliberately asked, "It's not heroin, is it?"

"I don't touch anything addictive."

"And that's my own choice." Duke had already taken hold of Kate Winslet's hand. Seeing that she showed no signs of pulling away, he continued, "Though I'd be more than happy to get addicted to you."

Fifteen minutes later, Duke and Kate Winslet had stepped into a hotel suite. As for the red wine, the two had long since tossed that excuse to the back of their minds.

"Darling, you are God's gift to the world."

Caressing Winslet's fingers, Duke gazed at her. "Do you know how stirred I felt when I saw that drawing scene?"

"Do you want to draw?" she asked, tilting her head.

"Of course!"

Duke's interest was piqued. He quickly phoned for a drawing board and pencils, then dragged a lounge chair right to the center of the suite's living room, seating himself opposite it.

Already prepared, Kate Winslet stood in front of Duke, unabashedly unzipping the back of her dress and letting the evening gown fall away.

"My Rose," Duke said, looking at her with an appreciative gaze. "I'm going to begin."

The pencil in his hand met the drawing board, producing a soft rustling sound. In just a few short seconds, Duke had sketched out the basic contours of the human form. If one only looked at that, his drawing skills seemed genuinely impressive. But the moment he started on the details, his incredibly average true skill level was instantly exposed.

Duke's drawing skills were terribly average.

Kate Winslet lay on the lounge chair, striking the exact same pose as in the film. Unfortunately, the man opposite her was no professional artist. After barely a few strokes, Duke tossed the terrible sketch onto the floor and walked over to her.