Chapter 71: The Shadow Behind the Premiere

Bathed in the glow of the setting sun, a cool sea breeze swept across Alcatraz Island, scattering the lingering afternoon heat. The usual endless streams of tourists were nowhere to be seen. In their place stood countless men and women dressed in formal attire, alongside the inevitable reporters clutching their cameras.

It was Thursday, May 6, 1993, and night was about to fall. Although The Rock would not officially open across North America until the next day, its premiere had already raised the curtain on Alcatraz Island.

"Kevin Costner, Mel Gibson, Demi Moore..."

The cameraman snapped photos as he spoke to the female reporter beside him. "I just got off the phone with Colstenson. Almost all of CAA's top-tier stars showed up for Interview with the Vampire! Why were we sent to Alcatraz Island instead of the other premiere?"

"Movies always have to speak through their box office."

Although only twenty-five, Sarah had been in the industry for years and was a highly capable reporter for the Los Angeles Times entertainment section. She tied her long auburn hair into a neat ponytail and said, "No matter how star-studded the red carpet lineup is, if the movie isn't good enough, the audience still won't buy it."

"Do you really think Duke Rosenberg's new work can truly compete with Interview with the Vampire?"

Hearing the cameraman, the corners of Sarah's mouth curled up slightly. "I've interviewed Duke. He's a confident and incredibly talented young director. Even if the box office for The Rock doesn't beat Interview with the Vampire, it won't trail far behind."

Cheers suddenly erupted from the spectator stands opposite the press area. Christopher Lee, heavily hyped by the media recently, stepped onto the red carpet. The veteran actor and his legendary background had clearly won a solid level of recognition from the fans. Sarah could even faintly hear several people shouting that he was the most handsome and coolest old man around.

After Christopher Lee passed by, the red carpet quieted down significantly. The fans clearly weren't very familiar with the next figure to appear.

"Sarah, your pick for the most handsome director in Hollywood is heading this way."

Prompted by the cameraman, Sarah grabbed her small voice recorder and skirted into the interview area.

Dressed in a crisp formal suit, Duke walked down the red carpet at near top speed. Even when someone in the press area called out to him, he only turned his head to look, showing not the slightest intention of stopping for photos. Had the Warner staff not been specifically waiting for him at the entrance to the interview area, he would have bypassed it entirely to head straight into Alcatraz Island's open-air entertainment plaza.

The moment he entered the interview area, Nancy Josephson moved to his side even faster than the reporters could, ready to prompt her potentially biggest future cash cow at a moment's notice.

There was nothing special about this kind of interview. Duke merely recited the boilerplate answers Nancy and the Warner public relations team had prepared in advance. The media outlets allowed here had certainly been vetted by Warner and wouldn't ask any overly invasive questions.

"Duke..."

Just as he was about to leave, a somewhat familiar, crisp female voice called out. Duke only needed a single glance to recognize her as the reporter who had interviewed him before, though he had forgotten her exact name.

"Between The Rock and Interview with the Vampire, which do you think will take the box office crown this week?"

"The Rock!"

Dropping that single sentence, Duke turned and walked out of the interview area.

Alcatraz Island's entertainment plaza had long since transformed. Following coordinated efforts between Warner Brothers and the island's management, a massive open-air theater had been temporarily erected. Although the viewing experience and acoustic effects of the premiere would inevitably be somewhat compromised, it served as an outstanding promotional gimmick.

Even lacking a heavy lineup of A-list stars to hold the fort, the sheer notoriety of Alcatraz Island had allowed the premiere to draw over a hundred media outlets.

"Why are you over here?"

As they walked toward the entertainment plaza, Duke asked Nancy, who had followed him, "Where is my mother? Aren't you keeping her company?"

"Don't worry." Nancy Josephson quickened her pace to walk shoulder to shoulder with Duke. "Sofia is keeping her company."

Although the premiere was held in an open-air venue without specific VIP lounges, Duke still greeted many industry insiders, escorted by Nancy. Right now, he didn't yet possess the immense capital to bulldoze through Hollywood like a certain truck driver would in the future; tedious social interactions and networking still required careful cultivation.

Making these rounds took nearly half an hour. Duke finally managed to extricate himself from the crowd and found his mother sitting in a quiet spot.

The seating area in Alcatraz Island's entertainment plaza wasn't arranged in a traditional theater layout. Instead, it adopted a banquet style featuring nearly a hundred round tables. Whether they were invited guests and media, or ordinary fans lucky enough to buy tickets to the island, everyone could enjoy fine food while watching the movie.

Walking over to a table on the far left, Duke pulled out the chair next to Sofia and sat down. "Mom..."

"Finished with your busywork?"

Mrs. Leah, who had been speaking to a little girl beside her, looked up.

"Dealing with them..." Duke said in a slightly exaggerated tone, "is honestly more exhausting than shooting a movie."

As he spoke, his gaze drifted to the little girl. She looked about ten years old, with beautiful long blonde hair and a pink polka-dot dress. A large bow was tied in her hair. Above her slightly chubby cheeks sat a pair of lively, large eyes. Their colors were quite rare—one a deep azure blue, the other a bright emerald green.

Duke remembered this little girl. She was a child actress from the crew, and the only scene she appeared in during the film was set on Alcatraz Island.

"Godmother..." The little girl hopped off her chair, her demeanor exceptionally well-behaved. "I'm going back to my mom now."

'Godmother?'

After the little girl left, Duke looked at his mother in confusion.

"That is my goddaughter, whom I took under my wing when I went to New York a while ago," Mrs. Leah explained. "She's also of Jewish descent."

Hearing his mother's words, Duke nodded. It was widely known that people of Jewish descent were famously tight-knit. His mother taking on a Jewish girl as her goddaughter was perfectly normal.

"She's an actress."

The girl had clearly won his mother's affection. "Her mother once worked as the screenwriter and producer for several of Saintphia's commercials. Just last month, she starred in a Saintphia ad. Duke, within your capacity, look after her a bit more."

"Alright, Mom."

Just as he was about to ask for the girl's name, Nancy walked over with a few people, plunging Duke back into the throes of socializing.

High above Alcatraz Island, a meteor tore through the sky, streaking from north to south. It trailed a long line of light all the way to the City of Angels, flashing past the Shrine Grand Theater.

However, the usually awe-inspiring meteor went entirely unnoticed. Below, the relentless flashing of camera lenses practically turned the evening into broad daylight. The bustling crowds jammed the street in front of the theater to the point of being utterly impassable.

Pulling Nicole Kidman along, Tom Cruise broke through the reporters' encirclement and finally entered the Shrine Grand Theater. Instead of following the staff's arrangements into the VIP lounge, he turned toward a side staircase, headed straight up to the second floor, and pushed open the door to a private box.

"Pat!"

Looking at the middle-aged woman in the room, Tom Cruise waited for Nicole Kidman to shut the door before directly asking the female agent, "How did it go?"

"I contacted Roger Ebert's agent." Pat Kingsley gestured for the two to take a seat. "His agent intended to accept the five hundred thousand dollars, but he personally refused it."

"Since when did Roger Ebert become so noble?" Tom Cruise asked, his tone dripping with heavy sarcasm.

"Don't forget, Tom," Kingsley reminded him. "Those vampires are greedy, yes, but they still follow certain rules. Roger Ebert has already accepted Warner Brothers' PR money. There is no way he would shamelessly accept our demand to smear The Rock!"

Doing a job once you take the money was the most fundamental rule of this circle. Tom Cruise understood this well. He then asked, "What about the box office progress?"

"Three million dollars have already been dispersed across major cities throughout the US." Pat Kingsley adjusted her glasses. "Our people have purchased one million dollars' worth of tickets for tomorrow's showing of Interview with the Vampire. The remaining two million will be gradually injected into the box office over the next two days."

"No, Pat! I've changed my mind," Tom Cruise said in an unquestionable tone. "Send out the notice immediately. Throw all three million dollars into tomorrow's box office. On Saturday and Sunday, depending on the situation, we will inject another five hundred thousand to a million dollars. I am locking down this weekend's box office crown!"

Although she internally disagreed, Pat Kingsley knew her client's arrogant temperament all too well. She had no choice but to nod before leaving the box.

From beginning to end, Nicole Kidman stood silently beside Tom Cruise, never uttering a single word. She knew she had no say in the matter. She was already entirely used to this kind of out-of-pocket box office buying anyway. This wasn't the first time Tom Cruise had done it, and it certainly wouldn't be the last.

To be precise, major Hollywood stars footing the bill out of their own pockets to artificially inflate their opening week box office figures was incredibly common in Hollywood. Theater chains and distribution companies tacitly approved of the practice—after all, whose money they earned didn't matter, as long as they earned it.

Meanwhile, in a villa in Chicago, a man looking like an agent was passionately pitching to Roger Ebert.

"Roger, they've changed their demands. They're no longer asking you to smear The Rock. They only want you to give Interview with the Vampire a positive review! You've seen the movie. It's more than worthy of high praise, so this won't impact your reputation at all."

Lightly tapping his right index finger against the armrest of his chair, Roger Ebert was clearly mulling it over.

The agent continued, "This won't touch Warner's bottom line, nor does it violate the unspoken rules of Hollywood and the film critic circle. This is half a million dollars!"

That final number seemed to hold a magical allure. Roger Ebert's right hand stopped its tapping, and he slowly nodded.

This was the true opening night of the 1993 summer season. Two massive productions, each costing fifty million dollars to make, were battling it out from afar. Beneath the glamour of their grand premieres, the box office numbers and media reviews were far less authentic than they appeared.