Chapter 430: The Man Best at Destroying America

"The Battle of Helm's Deep is over, and the war for Middle-earth is about to begin!"

As Gandalf delivered his bridging line, the credits slowly rolled, and The Two Towers came to an end.

Unsurprisingly, applause instantly erupted. It gathered into a clap of thunder that rolled on endlessly, eventually swelling into a surging ocean wave. Over a thousand audience members stood in the theater with no intention of leaving, simply clapping their hands with all their might.

Brad Miller had long since transformed into a hardcore fan of the cinematic adaptation, throwing all thoughts of protest entirely out the window. Chrissy's eyes were wet, seemingly still caught in the lingering emotions brought on by the film...

But these people, despite their varying reactions, all felt as though they had just experienced an extraordinary journey. If The Fellowship of the Ring had delivered fantasy, then The Two Towers delivered absolute majesty!

"I need to correct something!" Pete spoke up amid the applause. "Duke's ability to craft epic war scenes isn't just first-rate in Hollywood, it's the absolute pinnacle!"

Chrissy and Brad Miller nodded in agreement through the applause.

Inside the Hollywood Chinese Theater, the applause lasted through the entirety of the credits, showing no signs of stopping even after they finished rolling. Duke led the cast and crew in repeated curtain calls, but the audience only responded with more enthusiastic ovations. The journalists with photography access rapidly snapped their camera shutters, faithfully recording every single moment.

"For the last ten minutes or so, everyone was watching on their feet!" Javits sighed. "I've attended at least fifty movie Premieres, and I've never seen a scene like this!"

"I think it's perfectly normal!" Donnie said matter-of-factly. "If you don't give a standing ovation to a film like this, what kind of film do you give it to?"

The two men simultaneously looked toward the director leading the curtain call on stage. His title as the King of the Summer Season definitely hadn't been blown out of proportion by the media. Just looking at the live audience's reaction, it was obvious that The Two Towers would inevitably dominate the box office with sweeping momentum over the coming weeks!

"No wonder the other studios' big productions are all hiding from The Two Towers."

Another journalist nearby leaned in and said, "Those film studio executives aren't stupid at all. What kind of movie could possibly go up against an epic masterpiece like this?"

"Do you think it will be this year's box office champion?" Donnie asked.

The man thought for a moment and said, "It's hard to say. After all, there's still Lucas's Star Wars."

"I don't think Attack of the Clones can stand against The Two Towers," Jarvis chimed in. "Audience word-of-mouth for The Two Towers will definitely explode, whereas the Star Wars Prequel..."

At this, he shook his head.

If it weren't riding on the Star Wars name, The Phantom Menace probably would have bombed completely.

The applause finally died down. Duke led the crew toward the press room; a press conference was still waiting for him.

While Duke went to attend the press conference, Ivanka and Jane Lauder left the Hollywood Chinese Theater first, getting into their car to wait for him.

"Evie, you look really excited," Jane Lauder said, closing the car door and leaning in close to Ivanka. "Was a non-cinephile like you actually moved by the movie too?"

"Did you see those people in the theater?" Ivanka opened the small refrigerator in the RV, took out two bottles of water, and handed one to Jane Lauder. "How many of them could actually stay calm?"

She smiled. "I'm happy for Duke. He's produced another outstanding film."

With a major director for a boyfriend, it was impossible for Ivanka not to pay attention to Hollywood and the film industry. She knew perfectly well what such a passionate audience response at a Premiere meant.

Massive crowds of moviegoers poured out of the theater. Being a bit older, Brad Miller quickly regained his composure, but all he saw and heard along the way were the fanatical reactions of the fans.

A boy of about fifteen walked out the theater doors and shouted, "Forth Eorlingas!"

"Forth Eorlingas!" a chorus of slightly youthful voices echoed in response from the surrounding crowd.

If he were twenty years younger, he believed he would have shouted right alongside them.

"Are you guys heading home?" Chrissy's voice asked from the side. "Aren't you going to watch it again? I was so caught up in the excitement that I missed a lot of details."

"You go ahead." Brad Miller checked his watch. "I have an important video conference early in the morning, so I can't stay. But I booked a ticket for tomorrow, so I'll probably be back tomorrow night."

His companion Pete, however, stopped in his tracks, choosing to be a rebel. "Sorry, Bly, you'll have to head back alone. I'm going to catch the midnight screening with Chrissy."

"No problem."

Brad Miller followed the flow of the crowd forward. As he passed the ticket booth, he noticed that quite a few people who had just walked out of the theater were rejoining the line to buy tickets...

Forcing down the urge to watch it a second time, Brad Miller walked out of the cinema. But before he even reached the parking lot, familiar footsteps sounded behind him. When he turned around, Pete and Chrissy were striding rapidly to catch up with him.

"Why did you guys come out?" Brad Miller asked, a bit surprised.

Chrissy walked over with a helpless expression. "We had no choice. Tickets are sold out."

Pete looked a little dejected and grumbled in dissatisfaction, "The theater opened two halls for the midnight screening, yet there isn't a single ticket left!"

"Then we'll just come back together tomorrow."

Santa Monica Commercial Square was one of the commercial hubs of the Greater Los Angeles area. While it didn't have the high concentration of theater chains found in the San Francisco Bay Region, it was still a densely populated area with heavy foot traffic.

Sitting inside the manager's office, Miranda Kerr gazed through the glass window at the busy scene outside, zoning out slightly.

Miranda Kerr had only arrived in North America last month. More accurately, she had been lured over by Edward Yang. He came from an extraordinary family background, spent money lavishly, and claimed he could help her break into Hollywood or the North American modeling scene. And since arriving, she had indeed seen that he possessed a solid network of connections, seemingly even having some sway over at Duke Studio.

Despite growing up in the modeling industry, Miranda Kerr still understood basic market principles. A new store opening without massive promotional campaigns should naturally have average foot traffic, perhaps even feeling a bit desolate. However, the sight of the store packed with people completely shattered her preconceived notions.

Half an hour ago, massive crowds of people pouring out of the nearby theater had flooded into the store like a tidal wave. Like a swarm of locusts, they frantically cleared out every single item on the shelves. Miranda Kerr had heard Edward Yang mention those products before; they were all merchandise related to The Lord of the Rings!

The buyers were completely devoid of reason, grabbing things as if they were free. She had clearly seen several people max out their credit cards.

This was especially true for the highly expensive Lord of the Rings Jewelry she and Edward Yang had just brought over from The Lord of the Rings Studio. In merely half an hour, ten sets priced at $3,999 each sold out rapidly. It was simply astonishing!

Why was it like this?

As a model living a relatively monotonous life, Miranda Kerr couldn't quite understand their behavior. Not only were those movie-related products exorbitant, but their practical value was also practically zero...

Could a movie actually cause so many people to lose their minds? She was extremely curious just how spectacular this film had to be to make its merchandise sell like crazy.

The door to the manager's office was pushed open from the outside, and Edward Yang walked in. He immediately collapsed onto the sofa, panting heavily, looking as if he were on the verge of collapsing from exhaustion.

This was one aspect of him that Miranda Kerr admired. Although Edward Yang suffered from most of the common flaws of rich heirs, he was a hard worker who actively strove to succeed.

Seeing Miranda Kerr gazing curiously outside, Edward said, "Don't be surprised. Every time a new Duke movie comes out, our store hits a massive sales peak."

"A sales peak?" Miranda Kerr turned back to look at Edward Yang, asking, "Any idea how much merchandise we've sold?"

Before he could answer, she added, "If it's confidential, never mind."

"It's fine." Edward Yang thought for a moment before replying, "When I came in, sales had already surpassed $130,000!"

Miranda Kerr's eyes instantly widened. "You sold $130,000 in under forty minutes, just on products related to a movie?"

"Bingo!"

Edward Yang snapped his fingers. "Some of the hot items are about to run completely out of stock."

"Just what kind of movie is it, Edward?" Miranda Kerr's curiosity grew even stronger. "To make people go so crazy?"

"A Duke Rosenberg movie!" Edward Yang said with absolute certainty. "His movies drive a lot of people crazy!"

Suddenly, Miranda Kerr wanted to watch this movie. She had never felt such a strong desire to see a film before.

She wasn't the only one eager to see it. Because of mandatory overtime at his company, Norman Hiller had missed both the advance screening and the midnight screening of the film. Upon returning home from work, he immediately turned on his computer and went to Duke's personal website to check the reactions first.

"It connects perfectly with the first movie, and the pacing of the whole film is incredibly tight. The editing is fantastic, making it feel completely seamless. The outstanding visual effects and soundtrack showcase an epic, majestic atmosphere. You can't even feel the runtime at all—it felt like it ended right after it began."

"Picturesque scenery, grand war scenes, delicate character emotions, and a powerful, unyielding spirit. This is absolutely the best gift Duke could give to all movie fans!"

"The epic scenes make your blood boil. It left me in tears from start to finish!"

"Arwen and Legolas continue to look earth-shatteringly beautiful. Duke truly captured another world, not just a movie!"

"The Two Towers is the best movie ever to me. It completely surpassed The Fellowship of the Ring, especially the epic war scenes in the second half. They were simply magnificent."

Seeing the rave reviews that had practically flooded the message boards, Norman Hiller decided to go watch the movie first thing tomorrow morning!