Chapter 874: Who Hired the Hit on Vin Diesel?

Fighting back against Hollywood was a global challenge. Countering the aggressive invasion of Hollywood films was a question the vast majority of countries and regions in the world had to seriously consider when developing their local film industries. The most common approach was a film quota system, legally mandating that cinemas screen domestic films for no less than a specified number of days each year.

The film quota system restricted Hollywood movies within the market's distribution channels to carve out a survival space for domestic films. On the production side, many countries also implemented dedicated support and subsidy policies for domestic film shoots.

While the specific details of these quota or subsidy policies varied by country, most established a functional mechanism through legislation that was generally accepted by local filmmakers, domestic audiences, and Hollywood itself. Compared to the simplistic and heavy-handed Domestic Protection Month, such protective measures did not severely violate the principles of free-market competition, nor did they brutally infringe upon the audience's right to choose what to watch.

The film quota system referred to a government legally mandating that domestic cinemas screen local films for a minimum number of days each year, serving as the standard method for many nations to counter Hollywood.

Britain was the earliest to implement a film quota system, starting in 1927, but the most famous example belonged to South Korea. South Korea's film quota system, also known as the domestic film mandatory screening system, began in 1996 when the government passed a law requiring every single screen in every cinema across the country to show Korean films for at least 146 days a year.

In France, alongside a strict quota system, the government also enacted numerous policies to support domestic film production. From the initial scriptwriting stage all the way through filming and distribution, domestic movies were eligible for corresponding subsidies. These funds primarily came from a percentage cut of cinema revenues, with an additional portion drawn from a specially established national reward fund.

Furthermore, France levied a special tax on Hollywood box office earnings, using the proceeds to cultivate French film talent and support domestic cinematic creation.

To a certain extent, much like the stubborn refusal to implement a film rating system, the Domestic Protection Month was incredibly heavy-handed. It could easily be considered a time- and effort-saving shortcut for the big scissors.

Then came the most crucial point. Whether it was the quota system on the exhibition end or the subsidies on the production end, these specific policies to protect domestic films were explicitly defined by legislation in the vast majority of countries.

As for the big scissors, they simply declared publicly that they had never established a Domestic Protection Month...

Duke was completely powerless regarding the treatment The Dark Knight Rises received in the Chinese market. Besides, compared to China, the ongoing chaos in North America was already draining too much of his energy, leaving him with absolutely no time to focus on the overseas situation.

Rolling into Monday, The Dark Knight Rises faced its first workday. The daily box office plummeted by over fifty percent compared to Sunday, closing at 22.14 million dollars.

After brewing for some time, the shooting incident's impact on The Dark Knight Rises was becoming increasingly obvious.

"If the current situation continues..." Sitting in the reception room of the Eye-Shaped Villa, even a PR expert like Penny Kalis frowned deeply. "The North American box office trend for The Dark Knight Rises is not optimistic."

"Therefore, we have to find a way to divert the attention of the media and the public." Duke rubbed his forehead, nursing a severe headache. "If some sensational event were to break right now, it would take a lot of pressure off us and The Dark Knight Rises."

Penny Kalis looked through the window toward the manor's main gate. "Didn't Tina go to see Lee Pace?"

Duke nodded slightly. "Let's hope Tina brings back some good news."

Like all the ultra-wealthy, Duke maintained excellent relations with the Los Angeles authorities, especially the Los Angeles County Police Department. Tina Fey had gone into downtown Los Angeles first thing this morning to meet with Police Captain Lee Pace. Word was that James Holmes's case had seen some unexpected developments, and Lee Pace was going to discreetly leak some relevant information to Duke's camp prior to the next official press briefing.

This would give Duke and Warner Brothers much more time to prepare.

Around noon, Tina Fey hurried back to Malibu. She had barely stepped into the reception room and hadn't even sat down before she blurted out, "During the police interrogation, James Holmes claimed that Vin Diesel's car crash last year wasn't an accident. It was a meticulously planned murder, and he was the one who carried it out!"

"What?" Penny Kalis looked utterly shocked by the news. "Vin Diesel was murdered?"

Compared to Penny Kalis, Duke appeared much calmer. For Lee Pace to reveal this to Tina Fey, the police captain must have felt a great degree of certainty about it.

He nodded slightly to show he understood, then stood and walked to the window. As he gazed outside, his mind began to race.

Why would James Holmes target Vin Diesel?

The man's mind was clearly warped, evident from his decision to imitate the Joker. From that angle, a murder didn't seem too bizarre.

The problem was that James Holmes sought sensationalism, just like the Joker. So why had the assassination of Vin Diesel been kept completely quiet until now? That blatantly contradicted his actions at the Santa Monica Commercial Square.

Duke shared this thought with Tina Fey and Penny Kalis.

Penny Kalis, who was already seventy years old, had seen far more of the world. After a moment of thought, she said, "There is another possibility. James Holmes was just the trigger man, not the mastermind."

Tina Fey added, "It could also have been a contract killing. If he was hired for a hit, that would explain how James Holmes, an unemployed man, had the massive funds needed to purchase his arsenal of weapons and ammunition."

Sitting back down on his sofa, Duke began to tap lightly on the armrest.

"If it was a hit, who hired him?"

Tina Fey's question plunged all three of them into deep thought.

After a full five minutes had passed, Duke slowly spoke. "Whoever stood to benefit the most is the most likely suspect."

Tina Fey and Penny Kalis exchanged a look, both of them instantly thinking of the same name. But was it really possible?

This was only a guess, and Duke had no intention of voicing it. After a moment of thought, he said, "Notify the people at Warner Brothers about the case's progress and have their media outlets prepare. Wait for the police to officially announce the news. Ideally, the revelation of Vin Diesel's murder will dilute the current media pressure on The Dark Knight Rises."

Tina Fey nodded slightly.

Duke added another instruction. "Keep in touch with Lee Pace. Use every resource at our disposal to pressure the Los Angeles Police, forcing them to continue digging into James Holmes."

The laws in this country were indeed comprehensive, and there was the so-called judicial independence, but true fairness, openness, and justice were as far away as the Earth was from the stars. The Los Angeles County Police Department was vulnerable to entirely too many outside influences.

It wasn't completely impossible that the investigation into Vin Diesel's murder would simply fizzle out into nothing.

Currently, the focus of the entire American media remained locked on the Santa Monica Commercial Square shooting. However, compared to a few days ago, more reflective voices were beginning to emerge in the press. These perspectives were relatively fair, and from Duke's point of view, they weren't entirely unreasonable.

Gunshots beneath the silver screen had once again echoed through a theater in America. This time, there was no Superman to turn the tide, and no superhero descended from the sky.

There was only scattered popcorn, a panic-stricken crowd, and the piercing wail of police sirens.

This baffling and tragic act of violence once again brought the debate of "whether cinema should examine its role in breeding violence" to the forefront. It wasn't the first time people had committed crimes inspired by or directly mimicking movies. Gangs had mimicked The Italian Job to pull off heists; an American youth named John Hinckley had attempted to assassinate Reagan out of an obsession with Jodie Foster; and Natural Born Killers had spawned its own cult of copycats...

By now, these tragedies were no longer simple acts of murder, assault, or bombings. They were designed to challenge the social order by sowing public chaos. This ideological lean toward anti-civilization and anarchy was becoming abundantly clear.

Under Hollywood's ongoing display of spectacle violence, mimicking on-screen brutality had become an escalating norm. If so, were all the elements involved in this narrative—the media, the distribution channels, the audience, and the overall epistemology—equally to blame?

In modern mass media, violence was frequently treated as entertainment, oversaturated, and aestheticized. While there was still no conclusive evidence proving a direct link between on-screen violence and real-world violent tendencies, one thing was certain: if a person was already primed to commit a crime, watching these films could push their homicidal urges past the breaking point, ultimately resulting in an atrocity.

In response to this, many figures within Hollywood stepped forward to express their views.

Harvey Weinstein faced the cameras and solemnly proposed that Hollywood filmmakers needed to sit down and examine the impact of cinematic violence on the public, as well as the role filmmakers played in the phenomenon.

Media outlets led by the New York Post fiercely supported this sentiment—modern films were drenched in blood and violence, and Hollywood needed to foot the bill for the consequences.

On the other hand, Time magazine stood up in staunch defense of Batman, arguing that the innocent film had merely been caught in a coincidental tragedy—do not blame Batman; criminals always arbitrarily latched onto things to justify their own twisted behavior.

Relevant psychiatrists also chimed in, saying, "The claim that a young man watched a violent movie, thought it was cool, and decided to kill people simply doesn't hold up; the motive is insufficient. Something else must have happened in his life to drive him to commit this crime—we just don't know what it is yet."

Should cinema be held responsible for violent crimes? Did movies truly deserve all the blame? Even Harvey Weinstein, who was actively calling for a reduction in visual violence, expressed his own uncertainty. He knew perfectly well that the aesthetics of violence were often inextricably linked to creativity, stylistic flair, and cinematic brilliance. "I've produced a lot of violent films, and sometimes I'll suddenly think, 'I can't do this anymore; please cut these scenes out.' But you know, you have to respect the director's creative vision. It truly is a difficult problem."

This difficult problem, this impossible-to-balance situation, was just like every other paradox in the world—it was unlikely to ever reach a definitive conclusion.

And so, a fierce debate over whether cinematic violence was guilty erupted across the entire United States.