Chapter 346: Hard Work Deserves a Reward

The roar of the helicopter rotors echoed in his ears; even sealed earplugs couldn't block it out. After double-checking that his harness was secure, Duke leaned out the open cabin door and aimed the camera downward. Below him, stretching across New Zealand's practically untouched wilderness, the members of the Fellowship of the Ring formed a long line as they threaded their way through the rugged, jagged hills.

Middle-earth Continent was a wondrous world born from Tolkien's imagination—one that no film had ever truly managed to bring to life.

By taking advantage of the Fellowship of the Ring's travel sequences, using New Zealand's pristine landscapes as a foundation, and layering on appropriate CGI enhancements, this world would appear on film with much greater clarity.

The helicopter circled the area as Duke captured numerous wide shots of the Fellowship of the Ring from the front, left, and rear. Only then did he have the pilot head back and land. Afterward, he hopped into an off-road vehicle and rushed toward the crew's previous filming location.

The moment Duke stepped out of the vehicle back at the location, Tina Fey walked over with Nancy Josephson and another actress.

"Hi, Duke. It's been a while," she said, stepping up to greet him.

"What brings you to New Zealand?" Duke asked.

Nancy Josephson represented plenty of actors besides him, so Duke found her sudden appearance a bit strange.

"I came to keep Cate company."

She stepped aside and introduced the woman to Duke. "This is Cate Blanchett, an actress I signed recently."

"Cate, I don't need to introduce Duke to you, do I?"

Cate Blanchett took off her sunglasses and gloves and held out a hand. "Hello, Director Rosenberg."

"Hello, Miss Blanchett." Duke shook her hand. After exchanging a few casual pleasantries, he turned to his assistant. "Tina, take Miss Blanchett to get familiar with the crew."

Filming for Queen Galadriel's scenes was about to begin, and the actress needed to get into character as quickly as possible.

As Tina Fey led Cate Blanchett away, Nancy walked with him up a small hill. They stood on a massive boulder, looking down over the entire location set.

Gazing at the woods at the far edge of the wasteland, Nancy said, "Looks like the shoot is going smoothly?"

"It's going alright." Duke glanced at the resting members of the Fellowship of the Ring nearby before shifting his gaze to the woods, one of the location sets for Lothlorien. "Some movies are incredibly difficult for me to shoot, while other genres come fairly easily."

The kind of films that relied on a painfully slow pace to dig into a character's inner emotions or showcase multiple personalities were overwhelmingly difficult for Duke. To be precise, he simply wasn't good at directing movies about psychopaths, sadists, or split personalities.

As a result, while his films easily launched actors to stardom, they had never produced an Oscar Best Actor or Oscar Best Actress. Instead, plenty of his leads had earned worst actor or actress nominations from the Golden Raspberry.

But that brought about another phenomenon: compared to the reigning Oscar Best Actor or Oscar Best Actress of the same year, the "worst" leads bred by his films went on to command higher paychecks, enjoy wider fame, and navigate far smoother career paths.

This had been especially obvious in recent years. During this year's awards season, both Keanu Reeves and Charlize Theron comfortably snagged Golden Raspberry nominations for worst acting, yet they had become global sensations, firmly stepping into the ranks of A-List Stars. And what about the Oscar Best Actor and Oscar Best Actress?

Even with a Golden Statuette in hand, there was still a noticeable gap between Roberto Benigni and Gwyneth Paltrow and true A-list status.

The Golden Raspberry wasn't the end of the world, and an Oscar couldn't necessarily guarantee an actor endless glory.

To put it bluntly, did playing psychopaths, sadists, or acting crazy and ugly really hold more artistic merit? It was nothing more than pandering to a specific demographic.

"How did you end up signing Blanchett?" Duke asked, a bit curious. "When the crew was negotiating acting contracts last time, you weren't her agent."

"I only signed her recently." Nancy withdrew her gaze and firmly stamped a foot on the rock beneath them. "You've probably heard about what happened at this year's Oscars, right?"

Seeing Duke nod, she continued, "After Cate lost the Oscar Best Actress, she fired her previous agent."

"She didn't exactly lose unfairly," Duke remarked softly.

"Yeah..." Nancy Josephson completely agreed with Duke's take. "It would have been much stranger if Gwyneth had lost to her."

Although Gwyneth Paltrow winning the Oscar Best Actress was slammed by the media as one of the most undeserved victories in recent years, industry insiders knew the truth. Given the nominee list and the groundwork the actors had laid in advance, Gwyneth Paltrow taking home Best Actress was completely normal. If she had lost to Cate Blanchett, then Hollywood really wouldn't be Hollywood anymore.

Gwyneth Paltrow hailed from an acting family. The elder Paltrow had excellent connections within the industry, and with Spielberg as her godfather and Miramax Pictures handling her PR, how could she possibly lose? As long as there wasn't a massive gap in the quality of their roles, she was never going to drop the award to Cate Blanchett and the publicity-averse Meryl Streep.

In fact, the voting trends at the Oscars had become increasingly transparent in recent years. Roles and acting chops were no longer the deciding factors; more and more off-screen elements were tipping the scales.

It wasn't too severe yet, but in another ten years, the Oscar Awards Ceremony would see its ratings hit record lows. As their film and character choices grew more and more niche, it would subtly mutate into an award for political films, its influence a mere shadow of what it once was.

Down below, the crew wrapped up their break, but Duke had no intention of heading over. To shoot these rapid-march sequences, having John Schwartzman in charge of the big picture was more than enough.

The crew moved to a new section of the land. Just like the previous shoot, they primarily relied on wide shots to showcase the fantastical landscapes of Middle-earth.

Over two days, they filmed more than twenty takes of the Fellowship of the Ring marching across this stretch of wasteland on the South Island. Afterward, the crew transitioned to the woods at the edge of the plains. As mid-October rolled in, temperatures in New Zealand were noticeably rising, making it the perfect window for outdoor filming.

"Go notify Ian and Cate."

Standing at the edge of the woods jokingly dubbed Lothlorien, Duke looked toward the makeup trailers and instructed an assistant, "Tell the makeup artist she has half an hour."

Here, Duke was set to film the opening of the second movie: the meeting between Gandalf and Queen Galadriel.

In the original books, Galadriel was the key figure behind Gandalf's ascension to the White Wizard.

In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings trilogy, Gandalf and Galadriel never met directly, but Galadriel's support for Gandalf was unquestionable. Both were members of the Holy White Council, and the former had even recommended the latter to serve as the council's head, though Gandalf had turned it down.

However, in the later The Hobbit trilogy, Gandalf and Galadriel shared scenes constantly. Perhaps at the deliberate behest of the plump Peter Jackson, the two characters always gave off a highly ambiguous vibe. Watching those scenes, plenty of fans couldn't help but worry that Celeborn was getting cuckolded...

Especially during the Holy White Council's banishment of Sauron in The Hobbit 3—Galadriel princess-carrying Gandalf and planting that kiss on him was absolutely mesmerizing.

Ian McKellen appeared on set not long after. In contrast, the makeup process for Cate Blanchett, who had just joined the crew for her very first scene, was far more intricate and time-consuming.

However, the final result of Cate Blanchett's makeup was genuinely stunning. When she walked onto the set fully dressed as Galadriel, she instantly drew everyone's gaze.

Her skin was flawless and pale, and she wore a flowing white gown embroidered with leaves. As the sunlight cascaded over her, it seemed as if she were radiating a brilliant white light.

Cate Blanchett walked over to Duke first and murmured, "Apologies, I took a bit too long."

"It's fine." Duke checked his watch. "You aren't late."

Tearing his gaze away from Galadriel—ah, no, from Cate Blanchett—Duke announced loudly, "We start shooting in ten minutes!"

Even though the scene wasn't particularly difficult to perform, Duke planned to insert it at the very beginning of the second installment, making it one of the most crucial sequences.

Ten minutes later, every department was in position. Duke checked the positions of Ian McKellen and Galadriel, then called, "Action!"

In the silent Golden Forest, Cate Blanchett walked out barefoot. From a boom arm controlled by the lighting crew, a beam of pure white light cascaded down, enveloping her completely and making Queen Galadriel appear both noble and divine...

Moving on bare feet, her steps were weightless and ethereal as she approached Gandalf, who lay among the golden leaves.

At the same time, she held a white staff in one hand, while a long white robe was draped over her other arm...

Gandalf slowly stirred. Turning his head to look at Galadriel, he breathed, "My Lady..."

Cate Blanchett offered a mysterious, enchanting smile. "Mithrandir returns to Middle-earth Continent to fulfill his task."

As she spoke, she leaned down and draped the white robe over Gandalf's body.

"Cut!" Duke called out. "Ian, Cate, good job. Let's do it one more time."

Queen Galadriel was one of the most powerful elves in Middle-earth, possessing a degree of foresight. In the original story, she foresaw that Gandalf would be reborn and asked Gwaihir, the Windlord of the Great Eagles, to find him. The Great Eagle located Gandalf at the Peak of Silvertine and carried him back to Lothlorien.

Gandalf had indeed perished, only to be sent back to Middle-earth by Eru to complete his mission.

Galadriel draped him in the white robe to match his new identity—Gandalf was replacing the traitorous Saruman as the leader of the wizards.

Cate Blanchett seamlessly slipped into her character. Once she found her rhythm, Duke moved the entire crew to a temporary soundstage constructed nearby. Relying on practical sets and blue screens, they continued shooting the Lothlorien sequences.

The shoot continued into November, at which point Duke gave the crew another four-day break. He and Nancy then prepared to fly to Sydney to meet with the Warner executives who had just arrived to discuss the sequels for The Matrix.

Since Nancy also needed to negotiate some theatrical matters in Sydney for Cate Blanchett, she asked for Duke's permission and invited the actress to travel with them.