"Where have you been this past month?"
In the Duke Studio, Duke looked at Heath Ledger sitting across the desk. "If your agent, Mara Buxbaum, hadn't stayed in contact with the production team, I would've thought you vanished into thin air."
"I… uh, I…" Heath Ledger subconsciously pouted and swallowed. "I locked myself in a hotel room to study the Joker character."
Hearing this, Duke raised an eyebrow. He always appreciated hard-working people.
Looking carefully at the young Australian actor, Duke noticed that compared to their last meeting, Heath Ledger had clearly changed.
He was more silent than before, seemed to have had little rest lately, and looked haggard. A closer look revealed the heavy dark circles under his eyes.
"What exactly did you do?" Duke frowned slightly.
Heath Ledger's dedication was commendable, but Duke didn't want to see his chosen actor burning out before the film even began shooting.
"I… I read every Joker comic I could find, then locked myself in the hotel room for a whole month. I wrote journals, experimented with different maniacal laughs, until I finally pushed myself into the mindset of a mental patient..."
Heath Ledger showed a smile that looked awkward no matter how you saw it. "Since last week, I've only been sleeping two hours a night, lost in my thoughts the rest of the time. I'm physically exhausted."
Seeing Duke frown even more deeply, he immediately added, "Don't worry, Duke. My head is perfectly clear. I know where my limits are."
Sighing softly, Duke got up and walked over to pat Heath Ledger on the shoulder.
"Take a vacation and relax. If you've got a girlfriend, go to the Caribbean or Hawaii. Wait for my notice."
Heath Ledger seemed to want to say more but was stopped by Duke raising his hand.
"That's it. You don't need to rush into the production team."
Since this touched on personal privacy, Duke couldn't say much more and had to use this approach to adjust Heath Ledger's condition.
From a business perspective, if Heath Ledger died, it would only benefit The Dark Knight. Hollywood had proven countless times that a deceased lead actor contributes far more to a film than a living one.
But after all, people aren't commercial machines. Even someone as cold-hearted as Duke couldn't help but feel a bit of sympathy seeing someone this dedicated possibly about to disappear forever.
However, for someone already addicted to medication, the right to choose their fate was in their own hands.
After Heath Ledger left, Duke also departed the Duke Studio and headed to Warner Bros. Studios to check on another actor. Christian Bale was training in the studio gym.
Although this was Christian Bale's second time wearing the Batman suit, he still had to undergo specific training for the role. In this installment, "Batman" had many new characteristics—some overpowered abilities were toned down, while others were proportionally enhanced.
It wasn't just the new elements that required special training; even the original skills needed reinforcement. Jimmy Carter was extremely familiar with Christian Bale. The two had seamless cooperation. Moreover, the production team was still using the same two stunt doubles from the previous film. They were so accustomed to Bale that they could even perfectly mimic how his arms swung when walking...
It was precisely due to this close cooperation that everything was progressing smoothly.
After training ended, Christian Bale took the initiative to approach.
"I've never felt more certain that taking on the role of a superhero was the right decision."
He stood beside Duke, seemingly very moved. "If Batman Begins amazed me, then the script of The Dark Knight outright shocked me."
Christian Bale looked over curiously.
"Duke, how did you come up with such a setup?"
"Just restoring the essence of the comics," Duke replied flatly. "Most of it comes from the comics' creativity."
Shaking his head, Christian Bale clearly didn't quite believe Duke and added,
"I might be the first superhero who loses to the villain."
Batman won the personal duel with Joker but lost the spiritual war for Gotham.
Duke prepared to leave the gym and go to a nearby soundstage. Before leaving, he said,
"I just saw Heath Ledger. His state… hmm, how should I put it? It's terrifying. You need to give it your all—otherwise, with the script and character design, you'll be overshadowed."
Christian Bale nodded solemnly.
"I will."
Due to the script's inherent advantages, even if Heath Ledger gave 100% of his effort, Christian Bale would need to give 120% just to keep the two roles balanced.
This wasn't about acting skills between the two actors—but about the difference in their roles.
Entering a soundstage that was divided into many smaller workspaces, Duke first headed to the office of the pyrotechnics team. Joss Williams was already waiting there.
During filming, there would be a lot of gunfight and explosion scenes. To match the film's style, all explosions had to be done on location, and unlike Duke's early style, they couldn't be overly exaggerated.
"I think we should give up using explosives."
The two began discussing the film's most important explosion scene—the one that directly leads to the birth of Two-Face. Duke said to Joss Williams,
"Just like the script says, try using a few bullets and some gasoline to create the explosion."
Joss Williams crossed his arms and held his chin.
"If we shoot it with models, gasoline explosions have a certain level of unpredictability."
"We'll definitely shoot it with models," Duke said as concisely as possible. "Green screen shooting. The explosion will be added in post."
"Give me some time. Let the props team build a few more models."
Joss Williams frowned slightly, then relaxed.
"I need to do more testing. I'll definitely figure it out."
"Then I'll wait for your good news."
Duke had always been confident in his pyrotechnics team.
Likewise, he had always trusted his cinematography team, but he still took a trip to the outdoor set, where John Schwartzman was leading a few camera assistants, getting familiar with the equipment and testing a few shots under the guidance of IMAX's technical engineers.
Two IMAX cameras were set up on the outdoor set. They were several times larger and heavier than the cameras typically used in Hollywood. The increase in weight and size also meant that operating them would be more cumbersome and inconvenient.
Standing beside one of the IMAX cameras, Duke tried operating it for a bit. After standing back up, he said to John Schwartzman, "The scenes I plan to shoot with IMAX are the ones with real impact."
Walking a circle around the IMAX camera, Duke continued, "For example, the scene where Batman rides the Batpod in a chase."
"We usually strap the camera to the front of the vehicle for that."
As soon as John Schwartzman finished his sentence, Duke patted the IMAX camera and said, "John, is it feasible to strap this big guy onto the Batmobile or the Batpod for filming?"
Staring at the camera for a while, John Schwartzman thought seriously for a few seconds and said, "The current Batmobile and Batpod won't do. They'll need specialized modifications."
Duke made a decision immediately. "Then contact Lamborghini and have them do the modifications."
"Wait a second, John, Duke, hold on."
The IMAX team had been paying close attention to the two of them. Duke and John Schwartzman hadn't spoken quietly, so their conversation reached Richard Gelfond's ears. As the IMAX team leader on set, he quickly walked over and said, "I think your idea is too risky. It could seriously damage the equipment."
Duke couldn't help but furrow his brows slightly. "Richard, if we want to showcase the strengths of IMAX technology, we need to construct truly exceptional scenes."
The other party seemed like he wanted to say more, but Duke didn't give him a chance and directly said, "If the equipment is damaged, the crew will pay for it at full price."
Richard Gelfond opened his mouth, then shut it again.
Though IMAX cameras were expensive, they weren't so costly that a production with a $150 million budget couldn't afford to replace them.
While IMAX provided the cameras free of charge, Duke wasn't going to be overly courteous about using them. IMAX had always adhered to a policy of renting, not selling, but in recent years, their participation in Hollywood productions had basically involved free provision.
Afterward, Duke and John Schwartzman left the outdoor set and went to find the representative from Lamborghini on the production team to discuss the Batmobile modification plans.
There were always many such problems discovered during pre-production. This was, after all, the phase for solving problems. The more issues that arose now, the fewer troubles there would be during shooting.
From equipment to props, actors to costumes, shooting plans to storyboards—Duke was involved in and reviewed every part of the pre-production work and was well aware of the overall progress.
Warner Bros. also gave him the greatest degree of support. Aside from essential financial matters, they had essentially given full authority to Duke and Charles Roven.
Time gradually slipped into September. Preparations for The Dark Knight continued, and there was still a long road ahead before filming began. Aside from being busy with pre-production, Duke would occasionally visit Marvel Studios. Marvel's grand plan included two new films—The Incredible Hulk and Captain America—which were also entering pre-production.
Unlike Duke's side, which was still in the prep stage, at Washington Square in New York, David Ellison's new project had already entered its final stage of shooting. This young billionaire, full of ambition and capital, hadn't given up on his Hollywood journey easily. After Flyboys failed, he had once again raised massive funds to start a new project.
Standing in the center of Washington Square, watching the black actor with a pair of distinct protruding ears walking a dog in front of the camera, he believed with conviction that this time, he would succeed.