Chapter 617: What Happened

Bright sunlight illuminated every inch of the hotel plaza, but as Michael Eisner stepped outside, the world seemed to darken. He stood in front of his car with his brows knitted, completely oblivious as his assistant opened the door.

The assistant waited a moment before speaking up. "Chairman..."

Eisner snapped back to reality and ducked inside. "Call Dick Cook," he told the assistant in the passenger seat. "Tell him to come see me."

He slowly closed his eyes. The calm vanished from his face, replaced by a heavy solemnity.

His grim mood stemmed from the resolutions passed at the Walt Disney shareholders' meeting that had just concluded.

Stirred up by Roy Disney at the meeting, the shareholders had demanded accountability for the failed Disneyland project and the Customs and Border Protection investigation, pointing the finger squarely at Eisner's camp.

Shareholders cared about profits above all else. The theme park fiasco and the federal investigation had severely damaged the Walt Disney Group, most visibly on the stock market. The steadily sliding stock price grated heavily on their nerves.

As the group's chairman and CEO, Eisner was expected to answer to the shareholders, no matter how he looked at it.

And he had to do so; otherwise, the voting majority would undoubtedly oust him.

To quell their anger and secure his own position, Eisner had no choice but to sacrifice his right-hand man. Dick Cook, only a year into his tenure as president of Walt Disney, became the sacrificial lamb.

Robert Iger successfully maneuvered into the role of group president instead.

It was an outcome Eisner never wanted, but his hand was forced. Someone had to take the fall for those two massive disasters, and they needed enough weight to satisfy the board. Dick Cook was virtually the only option.

After all, he certainly wasn't going to resign as chairman and CEO himself.

Besides, even as the new president of Walt Disney, Iger wouldn't wield much substantial power. Eisner had managed Disney for years, long since dismantling the checks and balances between the president, CEO, and chairman. Most of the real authority rested squarely in his own hands.

Still, Eisner saw the looming crisis. The backing behind Robert Iger clearly extended far beyond Roy Disney and the rest of the Disney family.

To secure his position, he needed to sever the hand supporting Iger—and he knew exactly whose hand that was.

His car pulled directly into a private club. Inside one of its exclusive reception rooms, Eisner met with Dick Cook.

The former Walt Disney president looked incredibly gloomy, though he was trying hard to keep his composure. He greeted Eisner and sank back into his seat.

Eisner took a chair nearby. "Take a break for a while," he said slowly. "This isn't over yet."

"I'd like to spend some time with my family anyway," Cook said, the words coming out with difficulty. Plummeting from such a high position was a jarring loss of balance that no one could easily accept, but he understood Eisner's methods. "Laura has been planning a round-the-world trip for a while. Now we can actually go."

"Don't lose heart," Eisner said, brimming with confidence. "Once we sever the hand behind Robert Iger, the landscape at Disney won't change at all."

"He..." Cook knew exactly who Eisner meant. He sighed. "He isn't easy to deal with. And with the precedent of Iron Man, we can't use the same tactics again."

"We certainly can't use those tactics a second time." A ruthless glint flashed in Eisner's eyes. "Duke Rosenberg is level-headed and iron-willed, but that doesn't mean everyone around him is."

Cook raised an eyebrow. "Michael, do you mean..."

"Certain people have been by his side for years, yet they remain stuck in limbo. They must have some ambitions of their own."

Eisner stood up and paced across the room before snapping, "Ron Meyer betrayed CAA and Michael Ovitz for a high-level job at a media company. Duke Rosenberg's people might just make the exact same choice."

He walked back over and patted Cook lightly on the shoulder. "Take a break for now. I'll need your support from the sidelines on this."

Just as he always did, Cook answered without hesitation, "I understand."

Eisner was the first to leave the club. Cook stared at his departing back, lingering by the door for a long time as the bitter resentment slowly bled into his eyes. His so-called patron had turned him into a sacrificial pawn to secure his own position, and without a moment's hesitation!

No one liked being betrayed, and Dick Cook was no exception. But if he ever wanted to regain power in Hollywood, who else could he rely on but Michael Eisner?

Cook left the club and got into his car. Just as he was about to start the engine, his cell phone rang.

He glanced at the number and answered. A familiar voice came through the line.

"I'm sorry, Cook. I just heard the news from the Disney shareholders' meeting. It's completely unfair to you..."

Fair? It certainly wasn't fair. Michael Eisner had picked a fight with Duke Rosenberg and Time Warner and lost, yet Cook was the one paying the price.

"What's your next move, Cook? I don't think you need to rely entirely on Michael Eisner. An old friend of mine would like to have a chat with you..."

The caller spoke at length. In the past, Cook would have ignored any talk that undermined Disney or Michael Eisner, but things were different now.

"If you're interested," the voice finally concluded, "you can come to Burbank to meet with him."

Cook hung up and sat in hesitant silence for a few minutes. Then, he started the car and drove onto the road toward Burbank.

Over at Warner Studios in Burbank, after more than a month of busy work, Duke's fine cut was essentially finished, with some of the visual effects already spliced in. Leaving the editing room, he headed to the sound room next door. Hans Zimmer had just sent over a few sample tracks for the main score.

The delivered tracks were divided into three main themes, focusing on the Joker, Harvey Dent, and Bruce Wayne.

After calling in Charles Roven and Anna Printz, Duke had the sound engineer play the initial tracks.

The Joker's main theme played first. Just as Zimmer had told Duke, it utilized heavy, oppressive electronic tones to highlight the Joker's pure malice.

Though technically a layman when it came to music, Duke had produced enough films to have a solid understanding of scoring.

A suffocating sense of oppression was the theme's defining feature. It employed a seemingly discordant single-note variation paired with specialized synthesizer effects, delivering a sharp, visceral assault on the ears.

Zimmer clearly leaned heavily on cold tones to cultivate a gloomy atmosphere. He wove together dissonant chords, near-manic and bizarre melodies, and exceptionally rich electronic elements—even incorporating a simulated stopwatch countdown and explosive sound effects. This chaotic blend of sounds kept the electronic theme from feeling acoustically thin, making the emotion far more full and authentic.

Next came Batman's background score. Inheriting the tone of Batman Begins, it was richer and more magnificent. The violins drove forward with a relentless sixteenth-note spiccato—strong and muscular—which, layered over the urgent pounding of the percussion, showcased a palpable sense of instability and unrest.

When the long, sweeping notes of the string section joined in, it felt like a pure release of raw passion. Combined with the accelerated, heavily rhythmic core Batman theme, the track was incredibly dynamic.

Fusing the effects of electronic music and orchestral instrumentation, the track carried a distinct commercial flavor and a completely modern feel.

Having worked with Zimmer multiple times, Duke knew this approach frequently appeared in Zimmer's works. The score utilized rapid shifts between heavy electronic synths and orchestral instruments—shifts so swift and imperceptible that they allowed the music to flow flawlessly.

Finally, they played Harvey Dent's background score. Utilizing extensive, beautiful piano solos and numerous variations of the Batman theme, the track was distinctly divided into two halves—just like Dent's own life.

Yet, even in the light-filled first half, the piano melody utilized a string of cold notes. The tune felt quite scattered, as if it were already narrating a poignant story.

As silence returned to the room, Duke turned to Charles Roven and Anna Printz. "How does it feel?"

"I think they're good," Anna Printz nodded. "His usual high standard."

Seeing Charles Roven nod in agreement, Duke turned to an assistant. "Notify Hans Zimmer that I'm very happy with the scores. Tell him to finish them as soon as possible—no later than early April."

As the assistant hurried off to make the call, Duke and the other two stepped out of the sound room, preparing to head over to Industrial Light and Magic's visual effects studio. Suddenly, the rapid clatter of high heels echoed from the stairs, and Tina Fey emerged from the stairwell.

She was walking incredibly fast, entirely unhindered by her sky-high stilettos, and her expression was strange, as if she had encountered something unbelievable.

Before she even reached the three of them, her cell phone rang again. She glanced down at it and quickly answered.

Duke could hear Tina Fey's words from his side.

"It's confirmed? There's no mistake? Understood. I'll tell Duke right away."

What happened? Duke frowned slightly.