Originally, Duke planned to rent a luxury yacht to go on a vacation with his mother and others, but his mother had been flying back and forth for more than half a year and just wanted a quiet rest, not wanting to go out anymore. The vacation plan had to be canceled.
However, Duke didn't worry too much. Although Malibu is full of wealthy people, there are many other high-profile targets across the U.S., and even if those people were to lose their minds, they wouldn't choose Malibu.
Although he knew that the country might face significant changes, Duke continued his usual work and life, commuting between Burbank and Malibu. He also took a casual trip around when Ivanka Trump found a location for her company.
She also planned to select a location in the Greater Los Angeles area for her future company.
Duke didn't object and vaguely understood Ivanka's thoughts, considering his own rather rich experiences in the past.
Although September 11 was approaching, Duke had no intention of giving up on his current work.
Post-production for The Two Towers was still ongoing, and The Fellowship of the Ring's North American and global box office journeys weren't over.
From August, the North American box office for The Fellowship of the Ring quickly dropped, and only $16.2 million was generated in August, although the cumulative North American box office reached $456.25 million. However, it was nearly impossible to break the $500 million mark.
Overseas, the film had been pulled from some markets, though the overseas screening was far from over. Compared to Titanic, The Fellowship of the Ring had a much smaller proportion of overseas box office, far from the 1:2 ratio between North America and overseas for the Titanic.
Even so, The Fellowship of the Ring had earned over $636 million from overseas markets, making the global box office crossing $1.1 billion a certainty.
Corresponding to the box office success were the continuously strong sales of merchandise.
After the decline in the theatrical market, the merchandise market kept a strong sales pace. Especially after the release of the soundtrack album in July, global sales had already exceeded 4.8 million copies, with the share that the Lord of the Rings studio could receive reaching $35 million!
The major DVD, video tape, and television broadcast rights negotiations hadn't even begun yet, but the merchandise sales had already surpassed $600 million!
According to Warner Brothers and Wall Street's estimates, before The Two Towers was released, the merchandise sales of the Lord of the Rings series would exceed $1 billion.
Although the profits from the merchandise had to be shared with manufacturers, distributors, and marketers, it was still a huge windfall for the Lord of the Rings studio.
Of course, according to the agreements signed earlier, 7.5% of all the profits belonged to Tolkien's descendants and the copyright trustees.
These were terms agreed upon when the copyright was initially acquired. The Lord of the Rings trilogy wasn't one of those unknown literary works; even though it was considered one of the hardest novels to adapt into a film, acquiring it without paying a hefty price wasn't possible.
After three and a half months of screenings, The Fellowship of the Ring's theatrical journey was nearing its end. But Duke knew that the film would have little impact on the theatrical market anymore. If an event like this happened, all industries in the U.S. would suffer a massive shock.
As for giving early notice or hints? He wasn't dumb enough to mess with something like that and understood what was appropriate and what wasn't.
"Hey, darling, it's time to get up."
Duke was sleeping soundly. He felt a familiar sensation on his nose and knew without opening his eyes that Ivanka was tapping it with her finger. He reached out to pull her into his arms, rolling over to pin her underneath him. One hand wandered to her tight jeans, but all he felt was the firm fabric, so he opened his eyes.
"What time is it?" Duke let go of Ivanka, stretched lazily, and looked out the window. "So early?"
"It's almost six," Ivanka said, tugging on his arm. "Don't you remember? We have to go to Venice to check out an office building at 8."
"Is it today?" Duke jumped out of bed and walked to the bathroom. "I thought it was Tuesday."
"Today is Tuesday," Ivanka replied, following him in. She saw him shaving and squeezed toothpaste onto his toothbrush, grumbling, "I reminded you last week."
"Sorry, I've been so busy lately…" Duke gave an apologetic look.
In addition to his regular work, he'd recently gone to the Los Angeles County Police Department for a routine inquiry, and the previous evening he attended a party hosted by Frank Pearson, collecting a lot of favors, getting back home only around midnight.
After washing up, Duke returned to the bedroom, where Ivanka had already prepared a business suit for him.
"Darling, if this goes on, I'll become lazy." Duke kissed her on the forehead and suddenly remembered that today was Tuesday, September 11th. However, seeing that the clock had just hit 6 a.m., he didn't pay much attention, vaguely recalling that the event happened around midday, so it was still early.
Taking his time to get dressed, Duke looked at Ivanka packing her bag and reminded her, "Let's go downstairs."
No sooner had he finished speaking than there was a loud knock on the door, as if something major had happened.
"Duke!"
It was Scarlett Johansson's voice from outside. Ivanka frowned. She could sense that the girl disliked her and often tried to show off her importance and presence.
Of course, Scarlett was always gentle in front of Duke but was complicated with others.
"Why is she knocking so early?" Ivanka remarked.
"Maybe something urgent," Duke replied, pretending not to catch the tone in Ivanka's words. He went over to open the door. Scarlett Johansson was looking frantic. As soon as she saw him, she grabbed him and pulled him along, speaking quickly. "Hurry, Duke, something big happened in New York. The Godmother sent me to get you!"
"What could possibly be happening?" Ivanka followed behind.
But as soon as Duke heard "New York," he quickened his pace. What could happen in New York today?
Scarlett walked fast, nearly running. Duke furrowed his brow. He had just checked the time, and it was barely 6 a.m.
Then it hit him. He cursed himself for being so busy lately. This was West Coast time, and New York was on East Coast time!
"The World Trade Center is on fire."
As they turned up the stairs, Scarlett continued, "The Godmother said a plane crashed into the Twin Towers!"
"What?" Ivanka exclaimed in disbelief. "How is that possible?"
But the impossible had happened.
When they reached the downstairs living room, neither Duke nor Ivanka asked for details. Another plane flew across the screen and slammed into the south tower of the Twin Towers. Flames and thick smoke immediately rose from the impact point. The television screen showed everything from the host to the street crowds to rescue personnel in a state of panic.
"What is going on?" It wasn't just Scarlett Johansson who asked; Ivanka Trump did too.
"Maybe…" Leah still remained calm. "It could be a terrorist attack."
After saying that, she picked up her phone, walked aside, and started dialing. Scarlett and Ivanka seemed to get the hint and pulled out their phones, calling their friends and family in New York.
Duke dialed a few numbers too. Zack Snyder was in Sydney filming the concluding shots of The Matrix sequels, Sofia Coppola was in Tokyo scouting locations, Eileen Landay was in Paris preparing for Fashion Week, and Leonardo DiCaprio was in the Mediterranean with a woman…
Most of the friends he knew weren't in New York, and none were anywhere near the World Trade Center.
"My dad's fine," Ivanka said as she returned, letting out a sigh of relief.
Then everything that was supposed to happen, happened. The Pentagon was hit, the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center collapsed one after the other, the U.S. government grounded all civilian flights, and President Bush gave a speech confirming that it was a terrorist attack…
Undoubtedly, this was the most devastating blow the U.S. had ever faced on its own soil. The illusion of peace in the world, where America stood apart, was shattered, and another societal revolution was about to begin.
That evening, Tina Fey, Nancy Josephson, and Panny Kallis came over to join the group on the yacht trip.
The event had happened, and as a public figure, Duke would surely have to make some statements. But those statements couldn't be made carelessly.
"My suggestion is to do nothing for now."
Panny Kallis, with her PR experience, advised, "Let's observe first. Until the situation is clearer, making any public statements would be foolish."
"I agree with Panny," Nancy Josephson echoed.
Duke had already made up his mind, "For now, we do nothing. Our main goal is to follow the mainstream voice and support the federal government."
No matter how much Washington was criticized in films, the power of the White House was undeniable. In times like this, it would be foolish to go against the mainstream.
Yes, Fahrenheit 9/11 had been popular and sparked a lot of debates, but it never became the mainstream voice. What had happened to that director, where he ended up, only God knew.
Even if the entire Manhattan had been blown up, Duke would only feel sorry for his investment in Marvel Comics.
Duke was very clear about his position—he was just a director and businessman. The truth behind 9/11 had nothing to do with him.
Like most people in Hollywood, Duke was just waiting—for the right moment and setting to make the appropriate remarks.
...
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