Chapter 609: Speechless

Shortly after returning to Los Angeles, Duke and Warner Brothers held a joint press conference to officially announce the release date for The Dark Knight: May 4, 2007, the first weekend of next year's Summer Season.

Many in the industry had likely guessed this highly anticipated Batman sequel would claim that slot, and several Hollywood studios proactively cleared out of early May—Sony Columbia Pictures among them.

Despite being acquired by the Sony Group nearly two decades ago, Sony Columbia Pictures had never managed to shake its position at the bottom of the Big Six Companies. At one point, it had almost been overtaken by DreamWorks. If the Big Six hadn't colluded to strangle DreamWorks and the Big Three, Sony Columbia Pictures' box office performance would have long since cost them their elite status.

Sony Entertainment had extended its reach into Hollywood for years, yet it still faced an awkward reality: its only true flagship property was Spider-Man. Even after it acquired the 007 Series, the most recent installments had shown a disturbing tendency to flop.

Facing this situation, Sony Entertainment was unwilling to risk any mishaps with Spider-Man. Not only did they pour a massive marketing budget into Spider-Man 3, they also deliberately steered clear of early May, slating its premiere for the month's third weekend.

This placed a one-weekend buffer between their film and Duke's new release, shielding it from the brunt of The Dark Knight's impact.

This left an empty weekend between two $150 million behemoths, yet none of Hollywood's traditional studios dared slot a film into that gap. No one wanted to be crushed between two guaranteed blockbuster sequels.

That the old guard held back did not mean Hollywood's emerging forces would do the same. Just three days after Duke and Warner Brothers held their press conference, David Ellison's Sky Film Studio made its own announcement: I Am Legend, a $150 million production starring Will Smith, would officially premiere in North America on May 11.

The release date for this famous novel adaptation fell exactly between The Dark Knight and Spider-Man.

"David Ellison's ambition is plain to see."

During a break on set, Scarlett, who had come to visit, stood behind Duke and discussed the news with Tina Fey. "I heard he also prepared a $120 million marketing budget for the film, and he didn't need Walt Disney to advance a single dollar."

"There's nothing to be done about it. He has a very rich dad." Tina Fey's eyes drifted to Duke in the director's chair. "And his dad dislikes our boss just as much as he does."

"Actually, it's not a bad thing." Scarlett propped her chin on one hand.

Tina Fey didn't quite understand what she meant and asked, "Why do you say that?"

Scarlett suddenly laughed. "Because now I'll have another excuse to mock those two siblings."

Although it was unknown how I Am Legend might change in David Ellison's hands, as long as the production maintained its previous standard, it would undoubtedly be a formidable rival when paired with such a massive marketing budget.

However, Duke didn't distract himself too much. Crafting The Dark Knight well was the true foundation for winning the competition.

Ignoring the two women chatting in the rest area, Duke focused entirely on the shoot.

A green screen had been erected in the center of the set, ready to be replaced with a large monitor during post-production. The two leads for this scene, Laurence Fishburne and Christian Bale, were already in position.

Before filming began, Duke walked over to give them a few instructions.

"Laurence, Lucius Fox has always been a steadfast supporter of Batman, but even he would be worried seeing a scene like this," Duke told the black actor. "You need to convey that in your tone and expression."

Laurence Fishburne gave a slight nod and said, "I understand. Bruce Wayne has crossed the line here. By using equipment that monitors the entire city, he's reached the edge of breaking his own bottom line."

"I will destroy it," Christian Bale said, pointing at the green screen. "Don't worry, I am a man of high moral standards."

Bale's rare joke eased the atmosphere on set. Duke nodded to them both and returned to his seat.

Perhaps because he didn't have to face that psychopath Joker, Christian Bale was under far less pressure and appeared very relaxed.

Being relaxed was sometimes a good thing, but sometimes a bad one. Bale had clearly relaxed a bit too much. Filming had barely started when Duke called cut due to a mistake, followed by several consecutive blown takes.

"Mr. Bale!"

After calling cut yet again, Duke issued a heavy warning. "Tighten up!"

He pointed at the dozens of busy people in the studio handling lighting, props, makeup, and camera work. "Do you want us to relax with you all day?"

"I am very sorry." Christian Bale didn't have the best temper, but he was relatively docile in front of Duke. After apologizing, he asked, "Could you give me ten minutes?"

"Take a fifteen-minute break!"

Under these circumstances, Duke certainly had to give Christian Bale time to adjust himself.

After a brief adjustment, Bale's condition had clearly improved. Following a single rehearsal, his scene with Laurence Fishburne smoothly began its official shoot.

Standing in front of the green screen, Christian Bale said to Laurence Fishburne, "Beautiful, isn't it?"

Lucius Fox, played by Fishburne, was somewhat astonished, as if this were something extraordinary. He said with a hint of anger, "Beautiful, but unethical, and dangerous. You've turned every cellphone in Gotham into a microphone!"

Christian Bale said in his Batman tone, "It operates through a high-frequency transmitter and receiver."

Laurence Fishburne's expression was stern. "You took my sonar concept and applied it to every cellphone in this city. As long as half the cellphones become sources for your sonar, you can monitor all of Gotham."

His voice was somewhat low. "But doing this is wrong."

"Lucius." Christian Bale slowly clenched his hands in their Batman gloves. "I have to find that man, find the Joker."

"But at what cost?" Laurence Fishburne asked with concern.

Christian Bale fell silent and did not answer him. The current Batman had no time to discuss these questions of morality and democracy.

After a moment, he finally spoke. "This database is encrypted. Only one person can access it."

Laurence Fishburne still had his brow furrowed. "This power is simply too great for one person."

Not far away, Tina Fey and Scarlett had been keeping their eyes on the filming set in front of the cameras, both of them nodding. They clearly agreed with Laurence Fishburne's lines; if there really was someone in the real world who could monitor their everything through a device, it would simply be bloodcurdling.

Sitting behind the director's monitor, Duke thought of something else. This country was far from as democratic as it claimed, and the degree to which it was monitored...

He shook his head, his focus returning to the film set.

Christian Bale stared at Laurence Fishburne. "That is why I am giving this power to you. Only you can use it."

Laurence Fishburne revealed a surprised expression. "Monitoring thirty million people, this isn't part of my job description."

Christian Bale did not answer him, instead saying, "This is an audio sample of the Joker. If he speaks within range of any cellphone signal in this city, you can use it to confirm and locate him."

After thinking for a few seconds, Laurence Fishburne said, "I can help you this one time, but please take my next words as my resignation—as long as this machine is at Wayne Enterprises, I will not stay here."

Christian Bale turned and walked toward the exit. "When you are finished, type in your name."

"Cut!" Duke called, then said, "That's a print. Touch up Bale's makeup, and we'll shoot the next one."

Dialogue scenes shot together actually shared a common trait: the intent the actors and the camera needed to convey was very similar, which relatively reduced the difficulty of the performance and filming.

The crew moved to another studio. By the time Tina Fey and Scarlett had grabbed a cup of coffee and found the new set, Duke had already directed the crew through the prep work, and a new scene was about to begin filming.

Several fake Batmen and the Scarecrow from the previous film were tied up in a studio dressed to look like a parking garage.

This scene was very simple, just a few lines of dialogue.

But in the eyes of Tina Fey and Scarlett Johansson, this simple scene was expressing a theme that was far from simple.

The fake Batman's line was a direct question to Batman—what gives you the right, and what makes you think you are any different from us?

Batman's answer was—I'm not wearing hockey pads.

Then, he turned and walked away in silence.

"Why didn't he answer?"

After the scene ended, Scarlett suddenly asked, "And instead gave an answer like that?"

Although Batman had used dark humor to deflect the question, he hadn't actually answered it directly. Tina Fey saw it a bit more clearly.

"Because to that question, Batman is speechless," she said.

"Speechless?" Scarlett looked at her strangely. "Why do you say that?"

"It's simple. What gives Batman the right to break the law?" Tina Fey's eyes turned toward Duke. "I think this is a layer of meaning Duke is trying to express."

Scarlett furrowed her brows. "Because Batman is a superhero. Didn't he appear specifically to save this city? Isn't he the embodiment of justice? Gotham's vigilante?"

"Darling, who gave a vigilante the right to enforce the law?" Tina Fey said earnestly. "Should superheroes really stand above the law?"