Standing in front of the mirror in the cloakroom, Duke looked like a plastic mannequin, letting Scarlett Johansson fiddle with him as she pleased. Scarlett, who considered herself quite fashionable, kept holding up different suits in front of Duke, only to shake her head repeatedly. Clearly, she wasn't satisfied with Duke's collection of formal wear.
"All your clothes are either gray or black," Scarlett muttered in clear dissatisfaction. "That makes you look so old."
"My dear, I am old," Duke shrugged indifferently. "You know I've basically been wearing these colors and styles for years."
He wasn't one of those stars who needed to attract attention, so he never cared much about what he wore to premieres.
After helping Duke put on a newly tailored dark suit, Scarlett Johansson studied him carefully for a few seconds. She swept her long blonde hair back, fetched a bow tie to test the look, shook her head, and then pulled out a tie.
Knowing that Duke didn't care about suits, she simply changed the topic. "So it's confirmed that the North Korean government did it?"
"How could anyone confirm that?"
Standing opposite her, Duke watched Scarlett carefully adjust his suit. "But the three hackers' account funds did trace back to North Korea. However, that's supposedly from a civilian organization. My dear, you know…"
The tie didn't look right either. Scarlett lightly patted his chest, walked toward the rack of bow ties, and as Duke admired her graceful back, he continued, "The North Korean government isn't stupid. They definitely wouldn't admit it was an official operation. The excuse of a spontaneous civilian group is more than enough to explain things to the international community."
"But their international reputation…"
While speaking, Scarlett shook her head as she returned. "I forgot, North Korea hasn't had an international image for a long time. They don't care what Western society thinks of them."
She stood in front of Duke and held up the bow tie to his collar for a test fit. "Don't you think we're going a bit too far?"
"Hey, my dear," Duke spread his hands at her. "This is all the American media's spontaneous behavior—it has nothing to do with me."
"All right, all right." Scarlett helped Duke fasten the bow tie, then deliberately pinched his chin. "My boyfriend is such an innocent and kind man…"
Before she could finish the sentence, she couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"I'm just going along with the trend, giving it a little push," Duke said, shaking his head. "This really has nothing to do with me. The real culprit behind North Korea's bad image is the federal government, not us."
"The federal government is America's biggest scapegoat," Scarlett murmured, then glanced at her watch. "Isn't Obama supposed to speak soon? It's about time."
Duke nodded, walked over to the coffee table, picked up the remote, and turned on the LCD TV mounted on the wall. He switched to CNN— the White House press conference was about to begin.
After the CIA and FBI released a series of pieces of evidence linking the hackers' accounts to Iran, an anti–North Korea movement swept across the U.S. In New York, Los Angeles, and Washington, large-scale demonstrations broke out one after another under the banners of "support free speech" and "oppose terrorist threats." The media was relentlessly condemning the North Korean government, further inflaming the public's anti–North Korea sentiment.
"The government continues to support and endorse Warner Bros. for producing films like The Interview,"
On television, Obama personally stated the Washington administration's stance on the Warner Bros. hacking incident. "For these filmmakers and film companies, and for their faith in the freedom of expression, America offers its full support. We believe that this form of artistic expression is worthy of respect. It should not surrender to intimidation and threats merely because it offends certain viewpoints or ideas."
Obama directly elevated the incident into a grave national security issue. "North Korea's attacks on American companies, its intent to cause destructive impact, and its threats against American artists and individuals to restrict their freedom of expression—these are matters the U.S. takes very seriously. We will impose sanctions on individuals and entities associated with the North Korean government."
And, as an ever-explosive powder keg, almost simultaneously the North Korean government released a counterstatement—Obama was "a stupid pig!"
In addition, North Korea declared a state of emergency, massing parts of its army near the 38th parallel, and once again prepared to fire artillery at South Korea.
When faced with international pressure, North Korea had two tried-and-true tactics: first, unleashing verbal barrages—no matter how ridiculous the statements sounded—or issuing absurd declarations that defied comprehension; and second, beating up the South Koreans. No matter who provoked them, it was always the South who ended up taking the blows…
"Looks like this has nothing to do with us anymore."
Turning off the TV, Duke walked back to the table, poured Scarlett a cup of tea, and handed it to her. "We can just sit back and watch the North Korean and federal governments argue. We're saving a ton on publicity costs and still getting far better results than we ever expected."
"North Korea and South Korea…" Scarlett took a sip of tea, looking a little worried. "They won't really start a war, will they?"
Without even thinking, Duke replied, "Of course not."
There was no way war would actually break out. At most, they might exchange a few artillery shells. No matter how fierce North Korea's rhetoric sounded—acting as if it were ready to start World War III—anyone who truly understood the country knew it was a master of empty threats.
"My dear," Duke said with a grin, pinching Scarlett's tall nose lightly, "if a real war does break out, we'll just set up a relief foundation."
After helping Duke with his suit, Scarlett began picking out her own evening gown—she was going to attend the premiere too.
"You're coming as well?" Duke frowned.
To be honest, he was a little worried. Who could tell whether North Korea might do something desperate? He was willing to take that risk himself—but he didn't want Scarlett to.
On October 31, 2013, the entire nation's attention was focused on the Hollywood district of Los Angeles. Tens of thousands of Americans, waving the so-called banner of freedom, spontaneously gathered around the El Capitan Theatre and the surrounding area, showing their support for what they believed to be the sacred and inviolable right to free speech.
Although The Interview was only a small-scale production with an investment of 25 million dollars, although many people declined the invitation to the premiere out of security concerns, and although the North Korean government continued to issue protests, none of that could stop Hollywood and the American public's enthusiasm for this premiere.
Under tight security, the premiere went smoothly without any incidents. Amidst North Korea's outcry, the film not only premiered across North America but would also gradually appear in other English-speaking allied countries.
As for the film itself, it was a typical crude comedy full of toilet humor — it even contained scenes directly depicting the death of Kim Jong-un. It also mocked America's highly controversial bad-boy rapper Eminem and Miley Cyrus; especially the discussion about the latter's "camel toe" was, one might say, spot-on. As for the rest, there was little worth mentioning. One only needed to see North Korea's reaction to understand what kind of movie it was.
The North Korean government condemned it, the North Korean government banned it, the North Korean government threatened retaliation against Hollywood, the North Korean government interfered with America's freedom of speech…
This was exactly the publicity strategy planned by Warner Bros.' marketing department — to drag the North Korean government into the mud and capture worldwide attention.
And as for North Korea's protests, who really cared?
Even though the film caused such a stir, a crude comedy could never reach the box-office heat of a summer blockbuster. Many shouted their support for its release simply to defend their cherished ideal of free speech — not necessarily because they would buy a ticket to watch it.
Killing the so-called greatest dictator in the world, as recognized by Western society, was undoubtedly the film's biggest selling point — and one of the few things that could actually draw North American audiences into theaters.
With more than 2,600 theaters screening it in North America during its opening weekend, The Interview grossed 37.21 million dollars — arguably the upper limit for such a niche comedy. Apart from guaranteeing that Warner Bros. could recoup its costs, the biggest benefit was that its release showed Hollywood another way to make money — by parodying the leaders of hostile nations!
After the film's North American weekend box-office numbers came out, studios like Universal Pictures, Paramount Pictures, and Sony Columbia all put similar projects on their schedules. Sony Columbia, in particular, was highly enthusiastic — actively contacting Warner Bros., James Franco, and Seth Rogen to prepare a sequel to The Interview.
And it wasn't just Hollywood. The San Fernando Valley — always eager to shoot adult versions of popular Hollywood films — also obtained authorization from Warner Bros. to produce an "H-version" of The Interview. Reportedly, they even planned to include Dennis Rodman, who had frequently visited North Korea in recent years, featuring numerous scenes such as "Rodman versus the First Lady"…
When this news reached Duke's ears, he couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time, though he wasn't too surprised. After all, in his vague memories, the original Interview had indeed spawned an adult version.
As for what the North Koreans might think, Hollywood wouldn't care and neither would the San Fernando Valley.
All these sensational reports only helped boost The Interview's publicity. After its release, its reputation skyrocketed at an astonishing speed. Thanks to all the pre-release drama — the hacking incident, the terrorist threats, North Korea's bluster, and Obama's public statements — The Interview had risen from being a mere dark, crude-humor comedy to something of a "divine film." Online, countless movie fans gave it perfect scores, and it even briefly surpassed The Dark Knight on IMDb, holding the No. 1 spot on the Top 250 list with an unprecedented 9.9 rating.
On IMDb, more than twenty thousand viewers gave the film a full score.
Although The Interview couldn't overcome the inherent short lifespan of crude comedies in theaters, by the end of December, its North American box office had exceeded 100 million dollars. Coupled with more than 100 million from overseas markets, this small production, which cost only 25 million to make, achieved a global box-office total of 278.62 million dollars.
Such a return on investment naturally sparked a wave of imitators among other studios.
....
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