Chapter 48: The Production Halts

"The situation isn't looking good."

Inside the soundstage office, Charles Roven rested his chin on one hand. "A fractured right radius. He's definitely off the crew."

Accidents were inevitable when shooting action scenes. Duke understood this, but his concerns lay elsewhere. "Will this affect our upcoming shooting schedule?"

"Don't worry, Duke."

The two production managers had worked on numerous sets and clearly had a wealth of experience in handling such matters. Robin Grande spoke up. "We've already contacted his agent and will provide appropriate financial compensation. Actors generally don't file complaints with the union, as it doesn't benefit either side."

"Yes, it's just a matter of compensation." Charles Roven was equally optimistic. "Duke, leave this to Robin and me. You just focus on filming."

This aligned perfectly with Duke's thoughts, giving him no reason to refuse. He had no desire to let the incident distract him. If he found the time, he would just have Sofia visit the injured stuntman on his behalf; the two production managers representing the investors were the most suitable candidates to handle the actual fallout.

Stepping out of the office, Duke headed straight for the outdoor set. The crew was still waiting for him to resume shooting.

"Joss, I need the flames from the explosion to surge straight through the corridor."

Upon arriving on set, Duke immediately sought out Joss William, the pyrotechnician, and pulled him onto the constructed set. "The flame effect needs to be bright enough, but keep the actual force down. The cameras will be shooting close-ups..."

"I understand."

They had discussed this very issue yesterday. Joss William looked entirely confident. "Leave it to me."

Having an actor severely injured still affected Duke to some degree; nobody wanted to see an accident on set.

Pacing back and forth across the set, Duke inspected the laid tracks, the camera positions, the fixtures arranged by the gaffer, and the scenery set up by the art director. If he found even the slightest deviation from his vision, he called the person in charge over to fix it.

While not an absolute perfectionist, Duke was exceptionally strict about the details. Achieving the very best within practical limits was the standard he demanded.

An hour later, a deafening explosion roared, and orange-red flames shot into the sky above Warner Studios, dyeing half the outdoor set red.

A gust of wind swept down from the north, carrying away the lingering smoke. By the time it traveled southeast to reach Universal Studios south of Burbank, the scent of pyrotechnics had long since vanished.

Standing at the entrance of a soundstage, Martin Bob watched the ongoing scene from afar. The ten-year-old girl displayed acting skills entirely disproportionate to her age.

Thanks to the combined backing of CAA and Twentieth Century Fox, and following intense preparations, Interview with the Vampire had been shooting at Universal Studios for nearly ten days. The progress had been smoother than they imagined. Even Tom Cruise, whom Anne Wright had heavily doubted, had earned the author's approval after filming began.

The film was fully on track for next year's summer season. Though its genre posed a slight challenge, the powerful push from CAA and Twentieth Century Fox, the addition of two massive stars in Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt, and the influence of the original novel made Martin Bob confident they would deliver a box office smash.

Perhaps... Kirsten Dunst could also become a key part of the promotional campaign?

Just as Martin Bob was pondering this, an electric cart stopped a short distance away. Lovett jumped off and hurried over.

"Mr. Bob, good news." He seemed to be in high spirits. "There was just a safety accident on the set of The Rock. A stuntman was severely injured and rushed to the hospital."

"Are you sure?" Martin Bob turned to look at him.

"Positive!" Lovett gave an emphatic nod. "Over at the Screen Actors Guild..."

After turning it over in his head for a few minutes, Martin Bob said slowly, "You handle it. You can draw on company resources as needed. I'll have a word with Twentieth Century Fox; their dissatisfaction with Duke Rosenberg deserves a proper outlet."

The next day, several local Los Angeles newspapers simultaneously published news of the accident on the set of The Rock and the actor's severe injuries. The story was swiftly reprinted by numerous tabloids.

"The Rock's filming location is plagued with safety hazards; actors are continuously getting hurt..."

"According to insiders, due to safety issues, one actor has already quit voluntarily and three stuntmen have been hospitalized with fractures since The Rock began filming."

The California Independent, a paper with considerable influence across the entire West Coast, also disclosed information leaked by a crew member.

"You can't imagine our working environment; it's a chaotic 'doomsday.' Dozens, even over a hundred people are working together every day. Things are exploding everywhere. If we want to communicate, we have to raise our voices, even shout, just to hear each other! I strongly urge the Screen Actors Guild to step in and investigate!"

In just a few short days, the safety issues on the set of The Rock became a hot topic of public attention.

Wholly absorbed in filming, Duke hadn't caught wind of the situation in time. By the time Sofia alerted him and he finally looked into it, representatives from the Screen Actors Guild had already arrived at Warner Studios.

In North America, unions could sometimes be quite endearing, and at other times incredibly obnoxious. Take the Screen Actors Guild, for instance: once an actor qualified to pay dues and join, the Guild would step forward to protect their rights whenever needed. If a production was reported for conditions endangering its actors' personal safety, they would intervene and investigate.

Although the Screen Actors Guild would often turn a blind eye to major productions—injuries on set were commonplace, after all, and as long as the crew and the actor reached a compensation agreement, the union stayed away—once they actually set their sights on you, it was never a good thing.

"Duke, this is Mr. Huntington, and this is Mr. Ruffet."

The moment he walked into the set's office, Robin Grande introduced Duke to the two middle-aged men. They were investigators sent by the Screen Actors Guild to conduct an on-site inquiry into the cast's treatment, set safety measures, and various other matters.

"There is no danger during my crew's shoots."

Facing their routine questioning, Duke naturally didn't believe there were any issues with filming or set safety. "All the actors are dedicated to their work. The entire location is safe, and the production takes responsibility for every single actor."

"But someone was still injured," the bald middle-aged man pointed out.

"It was merely an accident." Duke couldn't find a much better excuse. "I have always maintained strict standards, and I demand that my crew goes to every length to plan for and ensure the safety of our actors."

What action movie ever wrapped without a few injuries? Yet how many times did the Screen Actors Guild actually intervene? Since they had come knocking, Duke knew there had to be more complex reasons at play.

Today's shooting schedule was ruined because of this.

The two production managers accompanied the Screen Actors Guild representatives to the set. After having Sofia announce a pause in filming, Duke returned straight to his office. If even Warner Brothers couldn't handle the union, tagging along behind them would be pointless.

It wasn't long before Sofia brought even worse news.

"The Guild is advising the production to temporarily halt filming," Sofia said, tossing her folder onto the desk and sitting down across from Duke in a huff, "to wait for the results of their investigation."

Hearing her words, Duke's brows furrowed.

True, the Screen Actors Guild didn't have the authority to forcibly shut down a production; they could only make recommendations. However, they could instruct their actors to temporarily leave the set. The vast majority of the cast—including the three leads like Ed Harris and Nicholas Cage—were members. And members of Hollywood's major guilds were famously united in advancing and retreating alongside their unions.

The logic was simple: the union was the very structure that safeguarded their rights. It was precisely because of the unions that actors, directors, and writers were able to stand against capitalist organizations like the Producers Alliance.

If Duke joined the Directors Association, he would stand right alongside them when the union called for a strike.

Leaving the lot that afternoon, Duke had barely stepped out of Warner Studios' front gate when he was suddenly swarmed by a mob of media reporters.

"Director Rosenberg, rumor has it that multiple safety accidents have occurred on the set of The Rock. Is this true?"

"Sources revealed that you illegally used military explosives in pursuit of better explosion effects."

"We've heard an actress only got onto the crew through your personal connections?"

"Will The Rock be shut down due to these safety issues?"

Only with the help of studio security did Duke manage to carve a path through the throng of reporters. Without saying a word, he got straight into the car Sofia had driven over.

"Thanks." His complexion was grim.

"Don't mention it."

Sofia turned the steering wheel, steering her BMW onto the road leading toward North Hollywood.

Things played out exactly as some of the reporters had suggested. Because of the Screen Actors Guild's call, and left without enough available actors, the production had no choice but to temporarily halt operations pending the outcome of the Guild's investigation.

At the same time, Duke learned from Warner Brothers that the Guild had stepped in after receiving an internal report from within the crew, which had been further pushed by certain outside forces. Of course, as a labor organization, their investigation had to follow procedure; it was impossible for them to completely dismantle the production or drag things out for too long.

After a bit of analysis, Duke could easily guess the opposing party's goal.

They simply wanted to stir up trouble for The Rock's production and disrupt their shooting rhythm. After all, every day of delay increased the financial burn. Who knew, it might even fluster an inexperienced director like him enough to cause entirely avoidable mistakes on the film.

As for who the culprit was, that wasn't hard to guess either. There were only so many studios in Hollywood capable of competing against Warner Brothers, and the list of people who harbored a grudge against him and The Rock was even shorter.

"Robin..."

After mulling it over, Duke dialed the Warner production manager's number. "If I remember correctly, one of the leading actors in Interview with the Vampire is a minor!"

The production's shutdown had already left Duke nursing a belly full of fire.