Although Duke and Ivanka had some conflicts, and Ivanka's late-night departure in a car was captured by paparazzi outside Duke's estate, the following day, the focus of media and public attention across the United States remained on the Oscars. As the biggest winner of this year's Academy Awards, Duke and The Return of the King were undoubtedly the main topics of interest.
"The biggest surprise of this year's Oscars is that there were no surprises!"
This was the headline of the entertainment section in The Washington Post.
"The 76th Academy Awards' biggest surprise is the lack of surprises. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King swept Sunday night's Oscar ceremony, winning 12 golden statuettes, including Best Director and Best Picture."
"Duke Rosenberg's The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King has grossed nearly $1.6 billion globally. The film won all 12 of its nominations, surpassing the records held by Titanic in 1997 and Ben-Hur in 1959. It was truly a night that belonged to the Lord of the Rings team and Duke Rosenberg!"
Not just The Washington Post, but the entertainment sections of all three major American newspapers were entirely focused on the Oscars.
"On the evening of February 29th, the 76th Academy Awards were held at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. The results were unsurprising, as all major awards were won by the favorites predicted by the public. Most notably, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King won all 12 of its nominations, breaking the record of 11 Oscars held by Titanic and Ben-Hur, and creating a perfect sweep!"
"When Tom Cruise handed the 11th Oscar statuette to Best Director winner, 'Explosive Madman' Duke Rosenberg, the entire world held its breath. Although this young director narrowly missed becoming the youngest-ever Best Director, no one could deny his greatness. Hollywood has now officially entered the era of Duke Rosenberg!"
– The Los Angeles Times
"The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King swept the Oscars, which was expected. For director Duke Rosenberg, the evening was undoubtedly 'an unbelievable night of ecstasy.' This was a great personal victory for Duke Rosenberg, as well as a triumph for commercial cinema!"
– The New York Times
Almost all mainstream media described Duke and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King at the Oscars as legendary and great.
Not only North American and Western media but even the movie channel of a certain television station across the Pacific also covered the awards ceremony, even broadcasting it on a delayed basis.
At the climax of the awards ceremony, the program commented:
"Steven Spielberg announced the winner of Best Picture: The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King! The Kodak Theatre erupted in cheers. Beloved by our audiences, renowned director Duke Rosenberg achieved a monumental victory, solidifying his place among the world's greatest filmmakers!"
"With this win, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King secured 12 Oscars, breaking the record of 11 held by Ben-Hur and Titanic. Its perfect 12-for-12 sweep set a new record for Oscar accuracy. Including the 13 nominations and 3 wins for The Fellowship of the Ring and the 6 nominations and 2 wins for The Two Towers, the Lord of the Rings trilogy garnered a total of 31 nominations and 17 Oscars. This shattered the previous record held by The Godfather trilogy of 28 nominations and 9 Oscars!"
The well-known Movie Watching magazine also published a feature on Duke and the Lord of the Rings trilogy.
"On the afternoon of February 29th, Pacific Time, this year's Oscars kicked off without suspense. As the director of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, Duke Rosenberg was undoubtedly the most celebrated individual on the planet that day."
"This director, the highest-paid in the world, raised the Oscar statuette three times in one evening—for Best Director, Best Picture, and Best Adapted Screenplay—making him the undisputed winner!"
"As the champion of this year's Oscars, The Return of the King embodies Duke Rosenberg's mastery of cinematic visual effects. Due to the collaborative nature of technical awards, The Return of the King brought home over 20 Oscars in one night."
"I can't fully grasp the economic implications of the trilogy's over $4 billion global box office. But I know that this great fantasy trilogy has grossed over 250 million RMB in China's domestic box office during its releases!"
"I still vividly remember the awe-inspiring experience of watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy in theaters. The breathtaking spectacle displayed on the big screen was unlike anything I had ever seen before—this is the charm of Hollywood, the allure of American blockbusters."
"Without a doubt, Duke Rosenberg is becoming a master of cinema, a true maestro. His cinematic language and techniques are consistently brilliant and groundbreaking."
"This director, known in Chinese as Duke Rosenberg, may be an American, but he is perhaps the American director we are most familiar with. Did you know that including the Lord of the Rings trilogy, his career box office total has surpassed $7.5 billion? He has overtaken James Cameron, George Lucas, and Steven Spielberg to become the highest-grossing filmmaker in history!"
"What's even more astonishing is that he achieved this in just 12 years with 10 films!"
"If Duke Rosenberg had any regret before this year, it was undoubtedly the lack of recognition from major awards. But at this year's Oscars, the King has finally returned, and Duke Rosenberg reigns supreme!"
"Fortunately, in June of this year, this newly crowned Oscar-winning director will bring his latest work, Taken, to the Shanghai International Film Festival. This typical Duke Rosenberg action film will have a simultaneous U.S. and Chinese release, with Chinese audiences getting to see it before its American debut due to the time difference!"
"We eagerly await Duke Rosenberg and his new film!"
The Oscars' influence, both in North America and worldwide, is undeniable. Winning an unprecedented 12 Oscars not only brings immense honor but also translates directly into financial gains.
Talking about money in the context of the Oscars might seem vulgar, but consider the major Hollywood companies, especially Miramax and the Weinstein brothers—why do they compete for Oscars? Is it just for art and glory?
Any rational person can easily deduce the answer.
The Oscar effect on The Return of the King is most evident in its numbers.
Even though the film hadn't fully left North American theaters, Warner Bros. made significant efforts to keep it alive. The number of theaters showing the film had dwindled to less than 300, but the day after the Oscars, The Return of the King expanded to 1,500 theaters!
More importantly, numerous moviegoers, influenced by the 12 Oscars, returned to theaters to rewatch the film. This boosted its daily gross from under $10,000 to over $500,000. After 12 days, its long-stagnant North American box office of $590 million finally crossed the $600 million mark!
Although this resurgence was short-lived, The Return of the King became the second film in history to surpass $600 million in North America and $1.6 billion globally.
By mid-March, The Return of the King had concluded its global theatrical run, ending the glorious journey of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. It became the most successful film series in history.
The Fellowship of the Ring: $473.15 million in North America, $1.13214 billion worldwide.
The Two Towers: $521.32 million in North America, $1.31288 billion worldwide.
The Return of the King: $600.45 million in North America, $1.61015 billion worldwide.
The trilogy grossed a total of $4.05517 billion!
This was only part of the revenue. Despite many merchandise lines still in production, by March 2004, merchandise sales for the Lord of the Rings trilogy had already exceeded $3 billion!
In late March, the DVD for The Return of the King was officially released worldwide, available in both the $19.90 standard edition and the $39.90 deluxe edition. In its first week, the North American DVD sales reached $165.77 million, with global sales totaling $312.88 million!
This was far from the end for DVD sales. Duke and Warner Bros. planned to release a box set in 2-3 years with 120 minutes of bonus content and a total runtime of nearly 12 hours to continue the revenue stream.
Even on newly launched video-on-demand platforms, the Lord of the Rings trilogy was available for paid viewing. However, due to current internet limitations, the quality was subpar.
Although Duke and Ivanka's relationship hadn't worsened, it hadn't improved either. However, both were rational enough to separate personal conflicts from work.
As time passed, the Oscar buzz gradually subsided. The golden statuettes were casually placed in a display cabinet at Duke's studio. For Duke, the glory belonged to the past, not the future. He still had a long journey ahead and never intended to stop here.
DC, Marvel, Transformers, and more—plans were already laid out on his desk.
An old era has ended, and a new era is about to begin!
....
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