Made In Hollywood

In North America, there are always many peculiar yet highly influential organizations. Once you provoke them, they become incredibly troublesome to deal with. Among these are the environmental organizations and various animal protection associations that cause Hollywood directors and producers endless headaches, as well as the National Parent-Teacher Association (PTA), which is dedicated to protecting the rights of minors.

This is an unofficial organization, but its influence in the United States is absolutely terrifying, even holding the power to amend and uphold child labor laws. Its prominence today is not only due to its long history and persistent efforts but also to mainstream society's intolerant attitude toward the abuse of minors.

Indeed, in unseen corners of this country, some minors' lives may not be as good as one would hope, but these stories rarely come to light in the public and media eye. Those that do, especially when involving public figures, are met with almost zero tolerance.

Morgan Freeman's step-granddaughter is only sixteen years old, a female student and unquestionably a minor.

Thus, the PTA reacted with extreme severity. With the media fanning the flames, they held a press conference to announce a targeted investigation into the matter. If the allegations proved true, they would call on parents and minors nationwide to boycott any film starring Morgan Freeman and reserve the right to pursue legal action.

From the moment the scandal broke, both Morgan Freeman and DreamWorks engaged in crisis management, but the existing evidence was already unfavorable. The immense power of the six major film companies and their media conglomerates was far beyond what DreamWorks could contend with.

As Duke had said, nobody cared about Morgan Freeman's fate. A second-tier Black actor wasn't worth the six major companies and DreamWorks fighting over. He was merely collateral damage in the grander scheme. Since the day DreamWorks revealed its ambitions, the six majors had been waiting for an opportunity to suppress them.

The media's role in shaping public opinion was immense, especially in an era where the "Big Four" television networks held terrifying influence. ABC was under Walt Disney, CBS belonged to Paramount's parent company Viacom, Fox was a part of 20th Century Fox, and NBC, while owned by General Electric, had close ties to Time Warner.

When the Big Four concentrated on covering this scandal, what could DreamWorks and Morgan Freeman possibly do to resist?

As the release date for Deep Impact approached, the media's reports and investigations grew more intense. Even some members of Freeman's family succumbed to media temptations, stepping forward to expose sensational details related to the case. While there was no direct evidence proving a relationship between Morgan Freeman and his step-granddaughter, just as with Michael Jackson in the past, did evidence even matter at this point?

Some overly enthusiastic members of the public, spurred by the media and instigators, began protesting in front of DreamWorks' Hollywood headquarters. Even more passionate advocacy groups bombarded the North American Theater Owners Association, demanding a boycott of Deep Impact.

The conservative state of Utah reacted most strongly, outright banning Deep Impact from being shown in the state.

A complete theater boycott of Deep Impact was unlikely, but the voices of social protest could not be ignored entirely. More importantly, a significant portion of the audience might genuinely choose to boycott the film.

"In the past three days, we've received 22 protest calls from advocacy organizations."

In AMG's headquarters conference room, Lynch addressed the high-ranking executives present. "And the six major distributors have been consistently pressuring us in unison."

Although the theaters were independent, their relationships with the six major Hollywood studios were far closer than anything DreamWorks could muster.

"If the film has enough potential, we can ignore these protests."

The head of the film selection department added, "Based on our sampling survey of potential audiences, nearly one-fifth of them have already canceled plans to watch Deep Impact."

The room fell silent briefly before Lynch broke it, "My suggestion is for AMG to reduce the opening theaters for Deep Impact. If the film's opening box office performs exceptionally, we can always reallocate screens."

Everyone present understood the situation. Deep Impact was inevitably going to suffer due to the scandal. Reports from Regal Cinemas also indicated they had decided to cut down on screens for Deep Impact.

"Disney's The Parent Trap is releasing the same weekend," Lynch looked at CEO Paul. "This PG-rated film has tested exceptionally well with student audiences. We can allocate the freed-up screens to this all-ages film."

After thinking for a few minutes, CEO Paul made the final decision. "Proceed with your suggestion."

As with the earlier films from DreamWorks, the ambitions of its three founders were continually thwarted by traditional powers. A week before Deep Impact's release, major North American theater chains reduced the number of opening theaters citing various excuses. Due to flexible contracts between theaters and distributors, combined with the scandal's impact, DreamWorks could do little besides intensifying their PR efforts.

Deep Impact's planned 2,850 opening theaters were cut down to 2,410. Before the film even premiered, DreamWorks had already taken a heavy blow.

"North American commercial theaters have intricate ties to the six major studios."

At Steven Spielberg's mansion, Martin Bob looked at DreamWorks' three founders. "Continuing to pressure the theaters now is pointless. If Deep Impact has an outstanding opening weekend, the theaters won't continue to heed the six majors' pressures."

Everyone present understood this. David Geffen asked Spielberg, "Can Morgan Freeman's scenes be cut?"

"He's an important supporting character," Spielberg emphasized. "With less than a week to release, reshooting is impossible. Cutting his scenes would severely disrupt the plot."

David Geffen thought for a moment. "Then our priority now should be minimizing the impact of Morgan Freeman's scandal."

"How do we minimize it?" Jeffrey Katzenberg frowned deeply. "This situation has..."

He shook his head. As Disney Animation's former head, he clearly understood the truth behind the scenes.

"News has a shelf life. Both the media and the public are always chasing something fresh," Martin Bob suddenly stood, pacing nearby. "The best way to suppress a scandal is to do what Warner Bros. did—create a new one."

Spielberg looked up at Martin Bob. "Minor actors won't suffice. The most recognizable names from The Matrix are Keanu Reeves and Duke Rosenberg. We've already used Reeves for hype, so his appeal is waning. As for Duke..."

He sighed. "Duke's romantic escapades are well-known and no secret to us, but he's never been involved with minors. Those ordinary affairs simply lack any impact."

"Indeed, my people investigated him," Martin Bob showed a trace of disappointment. "For a notorious playboy, he has remarkable self-control..."

At this point, Martin Bob shifted the topic. "Instead of targeting The Matrix, we could redirect to another competing film. There are methods we wouldn't use on English-speaking actors, but those from continental Europe are another story."

Every May, news about blockbuster films emerges endlessly. Some are promotional, some critical, and others involve outright smear campaigns by competitors.

This year was no exception. Though The Matrix and Deep Impact hadn't explicitly declared war, the ensuing scandals and rumors had captivated public attention. Just four days after Morgan Freeman's scandal broke, a fresh piece of dirt hit the headlines.

One of the stars of Godzilla, French actor Jean Reno, was accused of soliciting an underage prostitute.

This time, it wasn't just tabloid gossip. A 15-year-old prostitute from New York stepped forward, alleging that Jean Reno had paid her a hefty sum for sexual relations while filming Godzilla in New York.

Soon after, the girl filed a police report. The NYPD quickly announced plans to summon Jean Reno for questioning.

With the release of this news, media coverage of Morgan Freeman's scandal rapidly diminished. Public attention shifted towards Jean Reno and Godzilla.

"Does it really matter whether this is true or not?"

Ino Martin looked at Pat Kingsley and Tom Cruise. "Frankly, it doesn't. For DreamWorks and Martin Bob, finding an underage prostitute is no challenge. Even if it fails in the end, it won't implicate them. Meanwhile, it effectively diverts media and public attention."

"Should we do something about this?" Pat Kingsley asked.

Ino Martin didn't hesitate. "For now, we do nothing. We watch and wait for them to exhaust each other..."

DreamWorks wasn't just creating scandals to divert attention. Warner Bros. and its parent company, Time Warner, undoubtedly exerted the most pressure. After all, Deep Impact and The Matrix were direct competitors. But Martin Bob understood that Godzilla was also a rival to The Matrix. Warner Bros. and Duke Studios wouldn't miss the chance to attack Godzilla.

"Why would we pass up such an opportunity?"

This was what Duke told Tina Fey. "Deep Impact is our competitor, and so is Godzilla."

Doug Walter, who was dining with them, fully agreed. "Warner's media outlets are already exploiting the Jean Reno scandal, and the company's ties with the NYPD have always been strong."

The summer of 1998 had yet to officially kick off, but the fierce competition typical of every commercial circle was already in full swing before the major blockbusters even hit theaters.

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