Chapter 538: A Legend is About to be Born

As a diehard The Lord of the Rings fan, Brad Miller was stepping into a theater to watch one of Duke's other films for the very first time. Last year's Taken simply hadn't suited his tastes; after watching the trailer, he hadn't bothered buying a ticket. But Batman Begins was different. From the moment he saw the preview, its realistic style and inky, pitch-black atmosphere had sparked a burning desire to see the film. He had even flown from Los Angeles to Chicago just for the occasion.

Navigating through the crowd of eagerly waiting fans, he approached an empty seat. "Hello, is anyone sitting here?" he politely asked the young man next to it.

"No," the young man replied just as courteously. "Take a seat."

After sitting down, Brad Miller couldn't help but glance at the young man again. He looked somewhat familiar.

"Are you from Los Angeles too?" he asked tentatively.

"Yeah." The young man gave a slight nod.

From the man's accent, Norman Hiller could tell that he was likely also from California.

"I'm Brad Miller," Brad said, taking the initiative to offer his hand despite being the older of the two. "From Valencia City in the Greater Los Angeles area."

Norman Hiller shook it. "I'm Norman Hiller, from Venice in Los Angeles."

"I remember now," Brad Miller said, realization dawning on him. "You're the head of the Duke Rosenberg Los Angeles Fan Association."

"Just one of them," Norman Hiller replied modestly.

Bound by a shared passion, the two strangers instantly hit it off, their conversation revolving tightly around the subject of Duke's films.

"I'm really looking forward to this."

Sitting together in the second row, Scarlett Johansson kept her voice low as she spoke to Aerin Lauder. "This is Duke's first superhero movie."

Aerin Lauder drew her gaze back from the cast and crew in the first row and turned to Scarlett. "Are you worried, darling?"

"Worried?" Scarlett shook her head. "Why would I be worried, Aerin? I've been working with Duke since his second film, The Rock. Not only has he never failed, but he's only grown more successful. Even though Joel Schumacher completely ruined the reputation of the Batman Series, I believe Duke will give it new life."

She turned to look at Aerin. "You and Duke are so close. Don't you have faith in him?"

"I've never doubted that he will continue to succeed."

Aerin Lauder stated this as an absolute matter of fact. Suddenly thinking of something else, she asked, "Scar, I heard you're preparing to star in Duke's next movie?"

"Yeah." Scarlett tilted her chin up slightly. "To be precise, it's an entire Marvel franchise."

Aerin Lauder knew perfectly well how an actor's career could skyrocket after playing a major role in one of Duke's films. Furthermore, Scarlett Johansson's relationship with Duke was anything but ordinary; a superstar's spot was undoubtedly reserved for her in the future.

With that thought in mind, Aerin spoke up again. "Scar, would you be interested in being a spokesperson for Estee Lauder?"

Scarlett Johansson paused for a moment in surprise. After brief consideration, she said, "I agree in principle, but you'll have to talk to my agent."

Friendship was friendship, and business was business. She kept the two very clearly separated.

"The movie is starting."

Someone nearby muttered this, and the entire theater fell quiet.

First came the Warner Brothers logo, followed by the DC Comics logo. Both title cards took on an eerie, dark blue-black hue. To people who understood the film's background, like Aerin Lauder and Scarlett Johansson, this undoubtedly signaled the movie's dark and grim tone.

"It's starting!"

Having already exchanged phone numbers, Norman Hiller and Brad Miller ended their chat and simultaneously turned their eyes to the big screen.

They both knew very well that since Duke was rebooting the Batman Series and trying to pull the franchise out of the mire of failure, this first installment had to rebuild Bruce Wayne's image and establish the film's overall style. The promotional materials had already revealed plenty of information: Batman Begins was the story of how and why Bruce Wayne became Batman.

Batman wasn't born Batman, nor did he willingly choose to become Batman. It was an agonizing, even dark journey—a process that thoroughly cleansed Bruce Wayne's soul.

Fear was undoubtedly the most important theme established at the beginning of the film.

Right from the start, when a young Bruce Wayne fell to the bottom of a well and was attacked by a swarm of bats, fear—that primal human instinct—was ignited, and it permeated the entire film.

To a certain extent, this fear indirectly led to the deaths of his parents.

Hatred toward the killer, inner fury, the depravity of the city, confusion about the future, a deep loathing for crime...

All of these things forced Bruce Wayne, the heir to a billionaire fortune, to change. But how was he to change?

What should one do when faced with anger and hatred?

Watching Bruce Wayne leave Gotham City, Norman Hiller also pondered this question. What would he do if he were in Bruce's shoes?

The best method would be to let that anger and hatred out completely, venting it to the fullest.

However, in the process of venting, would one end up hurting the innocent like the Shadow Warrior Alliance did, or even suffer a backlash from the fear hidden beneath that anger and hatred?

For a person to become strong, they needed more than just a powerful body; they needed an equally resilient mind.

Without a doubt, the Bruce Wayne from before he met Henri Ducard lacked sufficient mental fortitude. Although he had learned formidable fighting skills during his vagabond days of understanding and fighting crime, his heart wasn't strong enough.

But Bruce Wayne was no coward. Because of his past experiences, he despised crime and wanted to fight it. As the favored son of Gotham City, he wanted to save his own city.

What he needed to do most was rediscover himself and face his inner fears head-on.

Why do we fall? So we can learn to pick ourselves up.

Bruce Wayne didn't lack the courage to stand back up, and his father's teachings played a vital role in that.

Atop the snowy mountain peaks, Bruce Wayne underwent Henri Ducard's rigorous training and spiritual guidance. His once-lost mind gradually found the path forward; fear had brought him pain, but fear would also bring him strength—the strength to save Gotham City.

Gotham City was a dark metropolis that bred criminals and harbored filth. Gangs ran rampant, the police were corrupt, cops colluded with criminals, and the common people were left destitute.

After witnessing his parents being brutally murdered by a thug, an indelible shadow was forever branded into his heart.

He hated his own powerlessness. He had to become stronger. Thus, he traveled the world, training everywhere he went, until he met the Shadow Warrior Alliance and crossed paths with Henri Ducard, a figure who became both a mentor and a father to him.

"If you can surpass your own limits and devote yourself completely to a noble ideal, they will not be able to stop you, and you will become something else entirely—a legend."

These were the words Henri Ducard spoke to Bruce Wayne in the prison.

How could he surpass himself? He had to conquer himself. How could he conquer himself? He had to conquer his own instinct—fear.

Having undergone this baptism, Wayne returned to Gotham City, back to the bottom of the well that had once terrified him so.

"Bruce, why do we fall? So we can learn to pick ourselves up."

This was the sentence from his father that Bruce Wayne remembered most clearly. When he stood up amid a swarm of screeching, circling bats, he conquered his fear, and a legend was about to be born.

In that subterranean cavern, Bruce Wayne slowly stood up, surrounded by bats. He had finally been reborn. From fear, he transformed into the very embodiment of fear—Batman!

Undoubtedly, this seemingly profound shot was actually designed to stir emotions. A little boy who had once lost his way had finally found himself again, and was about to become the guardian deity of Gotham City!

The majestic score, paired with Duke's meticulously crafted long take, created a completely unique feeling.

The moment Christian Bale stood up on screen, Norman Hiller and Brad Miller subconsciously began clapping. Thunderous applause erupted throughout the theater, as if everyone deeply resonated with what Bruce Wayne had gone through.

"There are no overly intense action scenes, but he has done just as brilliant a job."

Not far from Scarlett Johansson, George Lucas, who had come specifically to attend the Premiere, nodded gently. "Duke is always improving. He's never stopped."

He knew very well that after the disastrous fallout from Batman and Robin years ago, the new Batman Series would struggle to make an impact if Duke continued with that gothic visual style. Duke clearly understood this as well. He had completely broken out of the mold of the previous four Batman films, crafting Batman Begins with an entirely new vision.

The film had entirely discarded all that flashy, superficial fluff. While maintaining the spectacular action sequences and sharp editing style that Duke excelled at, it dived straight into Bruce Wayne's inner world, moving the audience through emotional resonance.

Judging by the reaction in the theater, Duke's approach had fundamentally achieved its goal.

Throughout the decades of Hollywood's history, there had never been a director who maintained a constant momentum of improvement across every single film they shot. If one had to be singled out, it would undoubtedly be Duke.

As a former guide and a top-tier director who had watched Duke grow step by step, George Lucas was absolutely certain of this.

His father and Henri Ducard were undoubtedly two crucial figures in Bruce Wayne's life. The latter, in particular, imparted formidable combat and ninjutsu skills to Bruce and guided him out of his fear, unlocking the massive power that fear could bring. But in the end, he and Bruce Wayne had a profound ideological divide.