Chapter 775: Alliance of Interests

In the past, Duke had heard of The King's Speech but had never actually seen it. Now that he had finally watched it, calling it an excellent, mass-produced essay tailored specifically for the Oscars was no exaggeration.

Frankly, the storytelling couldn't compare to Black Swan, let alone Inception.

As everyone knew, the Oscars generally didn't choose the best story. The concept of "good" simply didn't apply when the gap in quality wasn't overwhelmingly large, so they usually selected the "right" story.

A typical Oscar film couldn't be too commercial; if it was, the Academy would slap a "technical" label right on it. Furthermore, on an artistic level, it couldn't be too creative. Something too innovative might just be a fleeting surprise, heavily criticized as garbage by industry insiders not long after. The Oscars never wanted to be avant-garde pioneers; they preferred to find the most refined execution within established standards.

After a few probing remarks, Harvey Weinstein and Duke gradually determined each other's Oscar targets.

"Let me put it this way, Duke." Harvey Weinstein gave up beating around the bush entirely and began speaking bluntly. It was just the two of them here, so there was no need for reservations. "The only weighty female role in The King's Speech is George VI's wife. We plan to submit her for Best Supporting Actress."

Duke smiled at that. "Both of my films, Inception and Gravity, are in the sci-fi genre. Harvey, you should know very well that I've always been a very realistic person."

These were not The Lord of the Rings trilogy, which had massive influence in North America. For an unadapted genre with almost no connection to reality to win Best Picture, Duke would have to drop dead and let it become his posthumous work.

But how could that ever happen?

Harvey Weinstein understood this perfectly. "In that case, we aren't competitors."

Duke tapped the sofa's armrest. "When it comes to Best Picture, I have high hopes for The King's Speech."

He laid out his bargaining chips, but Harvey Weinstein frowned. He hesitated for a few seconds before answering, "I haven't seen Gravity yet, but I know Miss Jensen's acting. Her skill level won't be an issue. However, Duke, it will be very difficult for you to win Best Actress."

"I know," Duke coughed lightly. "People have lobbied me too. Natalie Portman truly is the most outstanding representative of the new generation of actresses of Jewish descent."

Harvey Weinstein nodded silently. In reality, he, like the vast majority of people in Hollywood, didn't know the history between Duke and Natalie Portman.

Duke looked at the fat Jewish man beside him. "Don't forget, Harvey. Our Jewish Club just wants to establish a role model of Jewish descent. Natalie Portman is of Jewish descent, but so is Scarlett!"

Duke left one thing unsaid: although Scarlett had grown up around her mother, she didn't identify much with her Jewish heritage. She would never constantly use her ethnicity to make a fuss the way Natalie Portman did.

After nearly half a minute of silence to carefully weigh the pros and cons, Harvey Weinstein finally spoke. "Even if you win our votes, Duke, your chances of victory aren't very high."

Harvey Weinstein was an absolute expert at Oscar public relations, and he saw right through this. "Have you noticed? Natalie Portman is already pregnant, and she's showing quite clearly!"

It was a factor impossible to ignore, but Duke didn't seem to care much. "Harvey, we will support your run for Best Picture, and you will support my side for Best Actress. As for the rest, I'll solve it myself."

Yes, a pregnant woman could definitely rack up sympathy votes, but was it really that hard for women mixing around in Hollywood to spread their legs?

It was a naked transaction. Neither side had any intention of hiding it.

Last month, Harvey Weinstein had met with Natalie Portman's mother and promised her that he would support Natalie Portman for Oscar Best Actress.

Without a doubt, Natalie Portman had a powerful driving force behind her. But no matter how big that force was, could it surpass Duke Rosenberg?

Harvey Weinstein knew very well that Duke was not a director favored by the Academy, nor was his influence over them particularly strong. However, looking at all of Hollywood, he was absolutely a member of the top tier. To say he could influence the direction of the entire industry was no exaggeration.

Furthermore, he had Warner Brothers and the entire Time Warner Group backing him...

Choosing between Duke Rosenberg and Natalie Portman wasn't a difficult question at all.

Most importantly, Harvey Weinstein could see the obvious benefits, the most direct being Oscar votes. After all, everyone knew that Duke Rosenberg didn't just represent himself; he represented the voice of a massive group.

In the face of sufficient profit, promises meant absolutely nothing to Harvey Weinstein.

He turned around and extended his right hand. "I believe this will be a pleasant cooperation."

Duke shook his hand. "Pleasant cooperation, Harvey."

Afterward, Duke and Harvey Weinstein left the lounge and entered the banquet hall where the film breakdown session party was being held. Duke quickly found Scarlett. Almost everyone invited by Harvey Weinstein was an Academy member, or at the very least held Oscar voting rights. She was a smart person too, socializing skillfully among the crowd; although she wouldn't say anything explicitly, she was quietly scoring points for herself.

To be exact, campaigning for the Oscars was a comprehensive marketing process.

Marketing for an Oscar Golden Statuette was very different from marketing for box office numbers. It wasn't like commercial marketing where you had to show off all your moves in the open; much of the work was done where the public couldn't see it.

The biggest controversy ever generated by the Oscars was actually the result of that very marketing unseen by the public. At the 71st Oscar Awards Ceremony, Shakespeare in Love defeated Saving Private Ryan to win Best Picture. Gwyneth Paltrow beat out Cate Blanchett for Best Actress. The destination of these two awards triggered a stormy controversy.

Everyone knew it was the result of Harvey Weinstein and Miramax Pictures doing their utmost in public relations, but very few people were clear on what exactly they had done.

The previous Duke had merely watched from the sidelines and wasn't entirely clear on the details. However, the current Duke had witnessed Miramax Pictures win once again at the end of the last century. Although Saving Private Ryan wasn't involved this time—making the controversy somewhat smaller—Gwyneth Paltrow was still considered one of the weakest Best Actress winners in Oscar history, and perhaps the most unmerited one of the past thirty years.

Duke had some understanding of Harvey Weinstein's methods. The fat Jewish man's extensive network within the Academy certainly played an important role, but money was the true key.

The battle for the Oscars had long since turned into a game of money.

While PR funds for other films sat at $500,000, Harvey Weinstein's expenses in this area had already reached $3 million. When others' investments reached the million mark, his expenses had already hit the five to ten million level.

Today's Oscars operated on a rule perhaps best described by the laws of European professional football leagues: those who invested heavily might not necessarily win, but those who didn't invest heavily certainly wouldn't!

Of course, this applied to the few most prestigious awards.

Duke also took a lap around the party. This sort of socializing was a routine event every awards season, though compared to the Weinstein Brothers, he was practically a stranger to it.

Not staying too late, Duke left the hotel with Scarlett Johansson and got into the car to return to Malibu.

In the car on the way back, Duke asked Scarlett, "Darling, how many people's support have you managed to win over?"

"Who knows?" Scarlett shrugged. "The oldest ones have the most influence, but they're all old foxes. They won't give up their opinions easily."

Duke nodded. "Most people won't easily make a choice without seeing enough benefits."

Not all Academy members lived a glamorous life. Countless older actors and professionals from other departments ended up bankrupt and destitute after retirement. Every year, the awards season was practically harvest season for these people...

However, Hollywood would never advertise this to the public. From the outside, it always looked as bright and beautiful as ever.

For this Oscar Best Actress bid, outside of Warner Brothers' promotional marketing, Duke had also prepared $15 million in PR expenses. To him, this money was nothing at all. But if converted into seemingly inconspicuous little gifts, it could move a lot of people.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences had all sorts of rules regarding Oscar PR. However, insiders knew very well that most of the time, these rules were just that—rules.

Of course, the PR side couldn't go overboard; they had to master the limits of propriety.

Duke's PR manager, Penny Kalis, was an old hand at this. Moreover, as she had grown older in recent years, she exclusively served Duke. The compensation she received from him was more than enough. For this Oscar campaign, she was primarily in charge of coordinating everything on Duke's side.

More than just that, after learning that Scarlett was aiming for Oscar Best Actress, Mrs. Leah also rushed to Los Angeles over Christmas to meet with two old friends: George Lucas and Steven Spielberg.

All the preparations were in place. However, Gravity first had to secure the basic qualification to compete in the Oscars—it had to be released before the New Year.

After Christmas, Gravity kicked off its limited release tour across North America in 50 theaters.