Louise nodded slowly.
She could understand Laila's reasoning, but she still didn't quite get why it had to be this high-profile. To her, breaking Avatar's record seemed almost impossible. Hadn't directors around the world spent more than a decade trying and failing to surpass even the 1.8 billion of Titanic?
But the look on Laila's face told her she hadn't grasped the core idea yet.
Laila smiled and asked, "If the whole world knew I was making a film to challenge Cameron, what do you think people's reaction would be?"
Louise's eyes widened in shock as realization dawned.
"You mean…?"
"That's right." Laila nodded with a smirk. "Exactly that."
"You're something else," Louise could only sigh in awe.
Anyone else who dared to publicly announce a challenge to Avatar's box office record would be laughed off as a joke. They'd either be dismissed outright or ridiculed mercilessly.
But Laila? She was different.
Setting aside the recent scandals, her last ten years were filled with record-breaking successes that had already proven she had the strength to at least make a run for the top.
And so, when her film premiered, how many people would flock to theaters out of curiosity alone, just to see what kind of movie dared to challenge the top spot?
As long as Laila maintained her usual stellar reputation, with strong storytelling and top-notch visuals, those moviegoers would become her best promoters, spreading the word for free.
Simply put:
Laila was getting the entire global media to promote her movie, without spending a dime.
From the moment she decided to launch The Avengers, she knew now was the best time—possibly the only time—when the world's attention was focused enough that she could make her announcement heard in every corner.
Director Cameron may have spent hundreds of millions on marketing, but he'd never stirred up a global press frenzy with just one announcement.
As long as the media attending the press conference published their stories, it would be as if Laila had earned herself hundreds of millions in marketing value, for free.
And with that money saved, she could pour it into even more critical aspects of production, boosting the film's overall quality and appeal. So, why worry about box office returns?
Louise finally understood.
This was Laila's chance to launch their long-prepared mega-project—and cash in big time. And even if they didn't hit #1, so what? They'd still make a fortune. Who would care about the record if the profits were there?
In the face of billions in revenue, what did a few jeers matter? That would just confirm that Laila was still the top-tier Hollywood director who could rake in money like nobody else—someone who couldn't be brought down by a few nasty headlines.
Laila, meanwhile, thought Louise had truly understood her burning desire to break the record, and seeing her finally smile made Laila grin, too.
That's more like it.
A person's life needs at least one moment of passion. Otherwise, what's the difference between them and a salted fish with no dreams?
Besides, she wasn't throwing herself into this blindly. She had calculated her odds. The numbers made sense. She had a real chance.
While Louise got to work organizing the press conference, Laila contacted Anthony and gave him a list of specific directives to follow.
Unlike Louise, Anthony immediately saw the media storm this would unleash.
He didn't care whether Laila's film would break records. All he knew was that if they got ahead of the news cycle, they could grab a massive chunk of public attention and make a killing in print and broadcast revenues.
Sure, making money off the family heir's crisis felt a bit scummy—but looking at her, it was clear she wasn't the least bit bothered by it.
Besides, profits for Moran Media ultimately went to the Moran family. As the heir, wasn't it his job to step up when the time came? So honestly, he didn't feel even a sliver of guilt.
Still, as a formality, he passed Laila's message along to Old Man Moran. The elder simply listened in silence, then ended the call with one line:
"Do as she says."
And just like that, Anthony knew—even the old man was backing her.
So what were they waiting for? Time to go all in!
—
At the same time, word got out that Louise was inviting major media outlets to a press conference. Just as Laila had predicted, no outlet wanted to miss the hottest topic in the industry.
When they heard Laila herself would be present and answering questions, nearly every invited outlet rolled up their sleeves and got ready for a major scoop.
Those who didn't receive invitations—and even some foreign media—started calling the company directly. Following Laila's instructions, Louise granted them access, too.
Truth be told, even if they hadn't called, the company was already planning to invite every outlet they could find. The only reason some hadn't gotten word yet was simply that their contact info was harder to track down.
The press conference was scheduled for three days later, giving international media enough time to arrive.
As the list of attending media outlets grew longer, Louise's smile grew more bitter.
Her earlier rush of adrenaline had lasted only half a day. Now, she was starting to cool off.
She didn't even know why Laila could stir her blood so easily with just a few words. But one thing was certain—this would be the biggest challenge of her life.
Over 100 invited outlets were already confirmed. Another several hundred were requesting to attend on their initiative.
Following Laila's instructions, she let them all in—even the ones that had previously made a sport out of smearing her.
According to Laila, good hype needs controversy, and nobody was better at stirring it than the media outlets that had been slinging mud at her for years.
What could Louise say? She had a point. A very good point. So much so that she didn't even feel like arguing.
—
During the three-day prep period, more and more media outlets continued to request attendance, many from overseas, especially from Asia.
After all, Laila's situation was just too high-profile. She was holding a press conference, and on this kind of scale? It had to be explosive.
Some even speculated she might be announcing something monumental—like her withdrawal from Hollywood.
And honestly, that wasn't a fringe theory. Multiple outlets published articles based on that guess.
This caused a stir among Laila's fans and many film enthusiasts.
Anyone else could quit Hollywood—but not her!