Los Angeles has never lacked good hotels, especially in the Beverly Hills area where Hollywood stars gather. Yet, the Peninsula Beverly Hills Hotel remains renowned. Its unique Renaissance-style private mansion design exudes the atmosphere of a private residence. For those who value elegance and taste, it’s the best choice. It’s also deeply trusted by both entertainnt industry stars and business elites.
The party hosted by Rupert Murdoch, the head of News Corporation, was held in the rooftop garden restaurant of the Peninsula Hotel.
A black Rolls-Royce stopped in front of the Renaissance-style entrance of the Peninsula Hotel. A valet hurried over to open the car door. Dressed in a black tuxedo, Duke stepped out unhurriedly. Before he could take a step forward, countless flashes lit up, illuminating the dusk as if it were noon.
"Mr. Rosenberg..."
A staff mber ca over, gesturing toward the red carpet at the entrance. "This way, please."
"Thank you."
Duke nodded to him, ignoring the frenzied photographers and paparazzi, and walked straight into the hotel. He took the dedicated elevator and headed to the rooftop garden.
This was a party hosted by dia tycoon Rupert Murdoch. Though he was often criticized by the public and his reputation was not great, given his status and influence, everyone he invited was undoubtedly a person of prominence.
"Hey, Duke."
Just as he exited the elevator and stepped into the rooftop garden where the party was being held, Duke heard a warm greeting. Then, an elderly man with graying hair and a black-haired woman approached together.
The three of them had t at many events. Though not close, they weren’t strangers either. Duke quickened his pace and extended his hand to shake Rupert Murdoch’s, greeting him warmly, "Long ti no see, Rupert. You haven’t changed a bit."
"But you have," Murdoch gave Duke’s hand a firm shake. "You’re more famous than ever."
Duke smiled faintly and turned slightly toward the woman beside Murdoch. "Hello, Ms. Deng."
The woman, known worldwide for her status as Mrs. Murdoch, returned a warm smile.
Although he didn’t ignore anyone, Duke only greeted her briefly before shifting his focus back to Rupert Murdoch. After all, what kind of person the woman was had nothing to do with him.
After exchanging a few polite words with Murdoch, Duke began to mingle on his own. As the hosts of the party, the Murdochs had dozens of guests to attend to and couldn’t possibly spend too much ti with any one individual.
He asked a waiter for a glass of soda water, and while exchanging greetings with familiar faces, Duke walked toward the open-air dining area of the garden. Many familiar faces were seated there, making it a true gathering of Hollywood elites.
The rooftop garden must be over 8,000 square feet. Not only did it include a restaurant and pool, but there were also tall palm trees and even a gently flowing stream. Looking around, one could clearly see Beverly Hills and the Century City shopping center.
Wouldn’t it be nice to get a penthouse apartnt with a similar setup in such a scenic location?
As he walked through the garden, Duke found the formulaic socializing rather dull, and such a thought unexpectedly popped into his mind.
"Hey, Leo, why are you leaving just as I got here?"
Just as he approached the dining area, Duke saw Leonardo DiCaprio walking out, holding the hand of a strikingly tall blonde woman. "Where are you headed?"
Leonardo winked as he approached, then said softly, "I’ve got sothing to do and need to leave early. I’ll catch up with you in Malibu later."
Duke gave him a light nod and didn’t pay further attention to Leonardo DiCaprio. He walked straight into the open-air restaurant and suddenly saw a chubby man sitting alone under a tall palm tree, sipping wine with frustration written all over his face.
It was an old acquaintance—soone he had worked with long ago. Duke walked over and sat down across from him without ceremony.
"If soone can piss off the famous Jon Landau, it must be sothing serious."
The chubby man across from him was the producer of Titanic. Duke raised his soda water in a mock toast and said before taking a sip, "Why are you sitting here alone?"
"Because I’ve just about pissed off everyone." Jon Landau took a sip of champagne, shook his head, and said, "So people are driving to the point of selling my ass!"
Seeing that Jon Landau didn’t mind speaking candidly, Duke asked with curiosity, "What happened, Jon? Who could push you to this point?"
Though a bit behind the likes of Kathleen Kennedy, Charles Roven, and Jerry Bruckheir in the producing world, Jon Landau was still a powerful figure. The number of people who could make things difficult for him could be counted on one hand in all of Hollywood.
"Who else could it be!" Jon Landau looked toward his left. "He nearly drove insane once. This ti, he definitely will!"
Duke followed his gaze. About thirty feet away in a corner, a bearded man sat alone, silently staring into the distance as if contemplating sothing important.
That man had been out of Hollywood’s spotlight for a long ti so long that many had forgotten about him or didn’t even know whether he was still in the film industry.
But Duke hadn’t forgotten. He knew that this man’s temporary retreat was just to build up strength for future madness and to lay the technical groundwork.
That’s right the man who had once nearly driven Jon Landau crazy was Jas Caron.
"I haven’t heard that Jas is preparing a comrcial blockbuster lately," Duke feigned a confused expression. "Don’t tell he’s chasing you for money again?"
"He is asking for money an unrealistic amount."
Muttering to himself in a voice only he could hear, Jon Landau withdrew his gaze from Jas Caron and looked back at Duke. mories from the Titanic days surged into his mind, and his eyes suddenly lit up.
Though he was complaining, Jon Landau had a close working relationship with Jas Caron and was currently helping the King of the World look for funding for his next project. It was an extraordinarily massive amount so massive that even with the success of Titanic backing him, 20th Century Fox didn’t hesitate to outright reject his full investnt proposal.
The man across from him was different from Jas Caron. He wasn’t just a director, but also an investor and a businessman. Ten years ago, when Jas Caron had faced a crisis of trust from Paramount Pictures and 20th Century Fox, it was this man who signed off on a massive investnt and saved the Titanic project.
Thinking of this, Jon Landau couldn’t help but ask tentatively, "Duke, you had a pleasant collaboration with Jas during Titanic, didn’t you?"
Seeing Duke nod slightly, he continued, "Jas is planning a new project are you interested?"
"A new project?" Duke’s eyes lit up slightly, though his expression quickly returned to calm. He shook his head and smiled. "Jon, don’t tell Jas wants to do another underwater expedition and shoot a docuntary. If that’s the case, I’m not interested."
As everyone knew, ever since Titanic, Jas Caron had practically beco a part-ti deep-sea explorer.
Of course, Duke was well aware that the King of the World wasn’t exploring just for fun he was experinting and preparing for a new project.
"No, no, no..."
Jon Landau on the other side shook his head repeatedly. "It’s not an underwater docuntary. It’s a science fiction film—the genre you and Jas are both best at."
"Oh..." Duke imdiately showed an interested expression. "So, Jas is planning to return to Hollywood?"
He deliberately paused, then asked, "How much is Jas expecting to invest?"
"Uh..."
Even with Jon Landau’s thick skin, he revealed a slightly awkward expression when he heard Duke’s question. This wasn’t sothing that could be faked Jas Caron’s extravagant investnt style was well-known. After a mont’s hesitation, he still said, "The preliminary estimate is around two hundred million dollars."
"Then it’ll be at least four hundred million." Duke imdiately doubled the number he’d been given.
Jon Landau didn’t refute it—he simply spread his hands in helplessness. Jas Caron’s notorious reputation truly preceded him. It was no wonder 20th Century Fox had turned him down.
Duke lightly tapped the armrest of the chair with his fingers, not in a hurry. Judging from the current situation, this project was still in its early fundraising stage. And such a huge investnt wasn’t sothing any single person or company could swallow. Even with the prestige Jas Caron had built from Titanic, anyone would be cautious when facing a project of this scale.
Let alone Jas Caron, who hadn’t shot a comrcial film in nearly a decade even Duke himself would have to go through necessary reviews and preliminary assessnts by Warner Bros.’ audit committee when launching a new project.
"I want to talk to Jas."
After saying this, Duke, accompanied by Jon Landau, walked over to Jas Caron. Jas Caron had also noticed the two of them. Though he was notoriously proud, he still took the initiative to stand up and shake hands with Duke.
Although this had once been the idol he admired the most, Duke had enough professional composure to treat it purely as a business discussion. He didn’t beat around the bush and got straight to the point about Jas’s new project.
Jas Caron was currently short on funds, while Duke held a large amount of liquid capital. The two had a solid foundation for cooperation.
And after Jas Caron gave a brief introduction, Duke also confird it was that film. However, he was well aware that even if Caron lacked funding at the mont, a project like this wasn’t sothing he could take on by himself.
Duke’s goal was very simple just like with Titanic, carving out a slice of the pie would be enough.
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