After Google went public, its stock price continued to climb. This could be said to be the greatest source of Duke's wealth. In the latest issue of the Forbes Global Billionaires List, he entered the top thirty globally for the first time with a net worth of $9.2 billion.
More importantly, Duke was not like some seemingly glamorous but secretly struggling billionaires. He had no debts or bad assets—his $9.2 billion net worth was almost entirely net assets.
Of course, since Google did not pay dividends and imposed restrictions on major shareholders' transactions, the vast majority of Duke's shares could not be liquidated.
But Duke's investment had always been for the purpose of preserving value. He also knew just how massive Google would become in the future, so there was no way he would sell his hard-earned shares.
And when Google once again took the initiative to approach him, what he proposed again was an equity swap.
Larry Page and Sergey Brin both came to see Duke, and the three had a face-to-face meeting that lasted the entire morning. In the end, no conclusion was reached. The two Google founders had their sights set on Instant Share, the company founded by Duke and Ivanka Trump.
Instant Share was now the number one social networking site in the United States and the most-visited video site. It was only natural for Google to be interested. Whether the company was going public or being acquired, Duke, who held 45% of the shares and corresponding voting rights, was a figure that could not be bypassed.
Although he did not have a strong desire to sell his shares, this was basic business activity. If Google's price was high enough, Duke wasn't unwilling to consider it. Moreover, he proposed a condition—that the equity swap be done for A-shares.
The two Google founders were certainly not going to agree easily. Why had they reallocated Google's shares before the IPO if not to increase control of the company? Larry Page and Sergey Brin said they needed to think about it. Duke was in no rush, because even if they agreed, Google would still need to persuade Ivanka Trump in order to acquire Instant Share.
From last March until now, more than half a year later, Ivanka and Duke had been in a cold war—especially after Duke made up his mind to no longer compromise with Donald Trump. His agents had clashed with Ivanka multiple times over the company's equity financing, and they still firmly blocked the Trump Group's capital from entering the company. If no one was willing to bow and compromise, it would be hard for the two sides to reconcile.
Despite his strong personality, Duke also felt uncomfortable when thinking about the relationship he had once taken seriously. After all, people have feelings, and in his interactions with Ivanka, he hadn't been someone who only took without giving.
But he always had a clear vision of his goals and future. Whether it was women or any kind of difficulty, nothing would slow his pace.
Just like every man and woman in America, breakups and reconciliations in relationships were perfectly normal. Whether it was the man or the woman, they might feel sadness over a lost love, but few people would react like characters in movies or novels, as if it were life or death. Moreover, no one would tolerate indefinitely—there were always limits to patience.
A man like Duke would never wallow in springtime sorrow over such matters. He still had work to do, and massive film plans for the future awaiting implementation.
In Warner's outdoor filming area, a pile of ashes was still smoldering. Anne Hathaway carefully moved through the set and found the busy Christian Bale. This pair of childhood sweethearts, doomed to tragedy, looked at each other with deep emotion, their eyes full of complexity.
Duke stood behind the monitor, watching the two perform. This was the final scene of Batman: The War Begins, a long take. Perhaps it was the relief of wrapping up that made Anne Hathaway and Christian Bale slightly relaxed. They had already had multiple takes previously, but this time they clearly adjusted their states.
Unlike James Cameron's style, Duke wasn't the type to lose his temper on set.
"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you," Christian Bale delivered his line with underlying meaning. After all, this was a realistic-style film, and Batman, in his pursuit of justice, was destined to live in solitude.
"You don't need to apologize, Bruce... I've always been thinking about you, and about us…"
Anne Hathaway walked closer and closer. The two finally kissed. It seemed to be a typical Hollywood happy ending, but she took the initiative to pull away.
"You're Batman, the nemesis of evil. Bruce has been left in some corner of the world, and perhaps only when Gotham is truly at peace will he return…"
The two held hands and walked toward the set background. Then Duke shouted, "Cut!"
He looked around the set and announced loudly, "Filming is officially over!"
There weren't many people on set. After Duke spoke, only a scattered round of applause followed.
Pressing the playback button on the monitor, Duke reviewed the just-filmed shot. After confirming there were no problems, he had his assistant notify the crew to wrap.
This wasn't a traditional Hollywood ending. Compared to the next installment, The Dark Knight, it wasn't too heavy. After all, Duke had to consider audience reception. The investment in the Batman series alone determined that this couldn't be an indulgently artistic cut—it had to be a mainstream commercial film cloaked in a dark, realistic tone.
As for lovers who can't end up together, that meant little to Batman fans.
In countless past comics and films, Bruce Wayne had always been a bottomless emotional pit for female characters. Any woman who got involved with him rarely had a happy ending. Many even shared the belief that unless you had the demi-god physique and abilities of Wonder Woman, Diana Prince, it was best not to fall in love with Batman.
Only a woman as powerful as Wonder Woman could sleep with both Superman and Batman and still walk away unscathed.
With filming concluded, the crew held a wrap party that evening at a hotel near the Warner Studios. Many chose to bring a date. Compared to the wild and indulgent parties of the '90s, today's wrap parties were much more formal. In an age where information spread at lightning speed, the production and distribution teams wouldn't miss any chance for publicity and hype.
Warner Bros.' publicity and PR department rolled out a red carpet in front of the hotel hosting the party and had already notified a large number of media reporters. This is a Duke film—never short of attention.
Not just media reporters Warner Bros also rallied hundreds of fans through Instant Share fan circles. At first glance, the party looked more like a mini awards ceremony.
Unlike others who showed up as couples, Duke walked the red carpet alone. With the filming complete, the all-important promotional phase had begun. He no longer avoided the press and stood at the interview area in front of the hotel, accepting questions from reporters.
"The difficult part is always the actual shooting. Filming is always exhausting…"
These kinds of interviews are always the same—talk about filming challenges and interesting anecdotes, then reveal a few so-called "secrets" for the media to hype up. After so many years, Duke is a seasoned veteran and handles it all with ease.
However, entertainment reporters care about more than just the movie.
After a few movie-related questions, a reporter quickly asked, "Director Rosenberg, are you currently single again?"
"Sorry…" Duke remained as calm as ever. "I don't answer questions unrelated to the film."
With that, he gave a signal to the side, and several security personnel immediately stepped in to clear a path. Without looking back, Duke walked straight into the hotel.
Compared to the drug- and pill-filled wrap parties of the last century, this party was much more formal—more like a networking business event. As soon as Duke entered the banquet hall, he inevitably became the focus of many people's attention.
Among them were celebrities, probing the possibility of future collaborations; agents, eagerly pitching their actors; sponsors, hoping to get product placement deals in his commercial films…
After making a round at the party, Duke didn't stay long. He left the hotel intending to return to Malibu. Over two months of filming had drained much of his energy, and with age, he now placed greater importance on keeping a regular routine—unless work demanded otherwise. Even though he was still physically fit, he was just a regular person and had to take care of his health.
In Hollywood, premature aging among both men and women is extremely common. The most typical example is Angelina Jolie. Duke had seen what she looked like without makeup absolutely ghastly. She was clearly paying the price for an unrestrained youth.
Duke's private life had also been rather chaotic in the past, but by Hollywood standards, he was definitely one of the more disciplined ones.
On his way out, Duke again ran into Anne Hathaway and her boyfriend. The wide-mouthed actress was beaming brightly, constantly flaunting her happiness and affection at the party.
Duke didn't pay it any mind. Any woman who landed such a high-status boyfriend would likely act just like Anne Hathaway.
And Anne Hathaway certainly had reason to be happy. She had fought her way through fierce competition to win the female lead in Duke's new film, signaling a career revival; and with a boyfriend who handled Vatican commercial affairs, her expenses would be well covered for a long time…
From any angle, she seemed to be on the path to becoming a winner in life.
In fact, Anne Hathaway had already set her sights on another actress of the same generation a representative figure among Hollywood actresses born in the '80s. Perhaps, with the help of Duke's major film, she could catch up to Natalie Portman or even surpass her?
Just like when people mention actresses born in the '60s or '70s, the first name that comes to mind is Julia Roberts, Anne Hathaway also wanted to become the face of the '80s generation!
However, achieving all that wouldn't be easy. In ways she couldn't see, the fierce competition between films often dragged actors down with it
.....
Hi For access to additional chapters of
Director in Hollywood (20 chpaters)
Made In Hollywood (50 Chapters)
Pokemon:Bounty Hunter(30 Chapters)
Douluo Dalu: Reincarnated as Yan(30 Chapters)
Hollywood:From Razzie to Legend(30 Chapters)
Join pateron.com/Translaterappu