Made In Hollywood

"You cannot deny that most of what has been passed down and is still regarded as a classic is tragedy."

In the hotel's western-style restaurant, Kate Beckinsale had long put down her knife and fork, sipping a glass of water. "For example, Shakespeare's four great tragedies and the 'Diary of Anne Frank,' which you mentioned."

"Tragedies indeed evoke resonance more easily."

How does one communicate with a beautiful woman who once majored in literature at Oxford University and find common ground? For someone like Duke, who possesses enough directorial and artistic literacy, it wasn't difficult. He asked just the right question, "Why is it that only tragedies can become classics?"

"Tragedies have a long tradition and deeply systematic inheritance," Kate Beckinsale put down her glass and said with great interest, "Tragedy is the focus of aesthetic studies. Tragedy is profound. Aristotle considered tragedy the art of arts. Schopenhauer also believed that tragedy is the pinnacle of art. Tragedy has always been a difficult point in aesthetic research. Since the ancient Greek myths, tragedy has already been created and imbued with philosophical color. For example, in 'Oedipus Rex,' the tragedy of trying to escape one's fate but ultimately failing to do so."

"Let's talk about Hollywood," she continued, "If 'Titanic' didn't have the tragedy of Jack and Rose, it would not have achieved such glorious classic status."

"I agree with that."

Putting down his knife and fork, Duke picked up a napkin to wipe his mouth and said, "An imperfect ending is always more memorable than a happy one. What is unattainable or lost becomes a regret but also unforgettable."

"Exactly."

It seemed like she hadn't encountered such an engaging conversation partner in a long time. Kate Beckinsale said enthusiastically, "Imperfection is a special kind of beauty. It makes people think and reminisce."

She suddenly smiled and asked Duke, "As a great director, how do you view tragedy and comedy?"

Duke frowned slightly and thought for a moment before saying, "Tragedy is about destroying what is valuable in life for others to see, while comedy destroys what is worthless in life for others to see."

"That's a very targeted perspective..." Kate Beckinsale asked curiously, "Is this your own viewpoint?"

"Of course not," Duke shook his head.

Kate Beckinsale seemed intrigued. "Who expressed this opinion? I've never come across it."

"An Eastern literary scholar," Duke mentioned a country and name. Seeing her look puzzled, he said, "You probably haven't heard of him."

"If I have the time, I'll look for his works," Kate Beckinsale said.

"Do you read often?" Duke asked.

She nodded, "It's my biggest hobby."

"Reading can make people smarter," Duke pointed to his forehead. "Unfortunately, I've been so busy with work in recent years that I rarely have time to read."

"In fact, there haven't been particularly outstanding literary works in recent years," Kate said.

She finished the water in her glass and pointed to a Harry Potter poster on the restaurant wall. "Nowadays, commercial literature is flourishing, and the survival space for true literary works is shrinking."

Before Duke could respond, she glanced at her watch and said, "Thank you for the dinner. It was very pleasant talking to you, but it's getting late. I should be leaving now."

"So early?" Duke invited, "How about we go to the bar next door for a drink?"

"Another time," Kate Beckinsale declined politely. "I still have to go back and study the script and the character..."

She smiled and joked, "I don't want you to regret choosing me for this role when filming starts."

"You won't disappoint me, will you?"

As they spoke, Duke stood up and went behind her, taking the coat hanging on the booth's rack. "I'll walk you to your room."

After escorting Kate Beckinsale back to her room, Duke returned to his own not long after and received a call from North America. The caller was Tina Fey, who had returned to North America some time ago to handle some investment matters on Duke's behalf.

Not long ago, when Duke's investment agent, David, attended Yahoo's shareholders' meeting on his behalf, he heard about two Stanford students seeking investment for something related to internet search. After learning about it, Duke immediately had Tina Fey return to North America to meet those two students with lawyers and David.

He wasn't sure if the search engine in the hands of those two students was the Google he remembered. He only vaguely recalled the company's founders were named something like Page or Sergey. Without certainty, he decided to have his people make contact first.

"One is named Larry Page, and the other Sergey Brin," Tina Fey detailed the two individuals' profiles over the phone. "They are looking for investment to establish a private company to design and manage an internet search engine."

"Tina, stay in North America and negotiate with David and them," Duke instructed.

The initial funding wouldn't require much money. Though Duke couldn't be certain, he decided to take a risk. "Find an investment plan acceptable to all three parties."

Apple, Microsoft, and Google—these were the three companies Duke remembered most clearly. After all, during the internet age, there weren't many people online who didn't know about these three companies. These common memories were among his limited investment opportunities.

Microsoft didn't need much explanation. Duke merely held some scattered shares, which mainly served as an asset-preservation tool.

Apple was his largest investment target. In previous years, Apple was mired in difficulties, and many people wanted to offload their shares. A significant portion of Duke's earnings from his earlier films had been invested in Apple. When Steve Jobs returned to Apple, he raised funds externally and took $25 million from Duke.

Jobs, ever the shrewd businessman, clearly didn't want anyone besides himself to hold significant power in Apple.

Yahoo's situation was similar to Microsoft's. By the time Duke got involved, Yahoo had already gone public, and its stock showed a clear upward trend. Apart from buying scattered shares on the market, Duke only got a small portion left over from major investment institutions.

As for Google, it was essential to reach a mutually agreeable plan among the involved parties. Otherwise, even if he knew it was Google, what good would it do?

In Hollywood, plenty of people invested in IT industries. Not all Hollywood celebrities were as financially clueless as Nicolas Cage. Many celebrities and directors had wealth far beyond what media-released income rankings would suggest.

In this era, with things still somewhat distant, some of Duke's less vivid memories had faded. However, he knew that during the later internet age, Leonardo DiCaprio and Ashton Kutcher were major winners in IT investments. The latter, in particular, made ten times more money from investing in websites than from his acting income.

Having spent so many years in North America, even if Duke wasn't highly skilled in business, he could see that traditional industries, such as General Electric, oil, insurance, media, and finance, had long been divided up. Investing in these fields offered very limited opportunities.

Did more experience change society's rules? Did anyone truly think the whole world revolved around one individual?

In contrast, emerging industries that hadn't been adequately valued, like internet products, still offered opportunities. Particularly the internet industry, which had a freedom far beyond any other sector.

While Duke wasn't particularly knowledgeable or proficient in internet matters, he understood that it was an industry poised to transform the world. Even the most conservative traditional groups had to adapt to it, either voluntarily or forcibly. Failing to do so meant eventual extinction.

Duke didn't harbor unrealistic aspirations to control an internet conglomerate. He simply wanted to grab a small slice of the pie during this booming period and use his relatively substantial wealth to achieve asset appreciation.

From the day he set his goals, Duke knew his strengths lay elsewhere. The film industry was not only his greatest passion but also his future.

As September 1998 came to a close, the maritime epic Titanic, which broke both North American and global box office records, officially exited theaters, concluding its North American run with a final gross of $675.22 million. Duke's involvement made the film's promotional efforts even stronger, resulting in higher North American box office revenue than before, though it didn't surpass the numbers later achieved by the 3D re-release.

Nevertheless, the film could still be converted to 3D and re-released in the future for more earnings. As long as the film continued generating revenue, Duke's studio could enjoy a quarter of its proceeds.

A little earlier, another film Duke had invested in also exited the North American market. Starring Tom Cruise, Mission: Impossible grossed $181.59 million domestically, second only to Duke's The Matrix ($327.58 million) and Michael Bay's Armageddon ($189.22 million), ranking third in the North American yearly box office chart.

Though the film's production budget was a hefty $80 million, its domestic earnings alone weren't enough for investors to recover costs. However, its international box office revenue had already reached $232.5 million and was expected to make a profit through box office returns, along with substantial earnings from ancillary licensing deals.

More importantly, Duke firmly held part of the rights. The Mission: Impossible series, one of the most successful franchises, had become a long-term financial ticket for him.

Moreover, if Tom Cruise wanted to produce a sequel, he needed Duke's consent.

At the start of October, Tom Cruise called Duke. The success of Mission: Impossible made him eager to produce a sequel. After a phone call, to secure Duke's full support, Cruise and Nicole Kidman even chose to vacation in New Zealand.

After the confrontations during The Rock, the mutual defamation of Interview with the Vampire, the direct competition of Independence Day, the collaborative effort to outdo Mel Gibson, the reconciliation during Chicago, and the close partnership in Mission: Impossible, even Tom Cruise, with all his arrogance, realized the immense value Duke could bring and seemed intent on taking their relationship to a new level.