After experiencing the intense challenges of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, the preparation for the Batman series felt relatively easier for Duke and his team. The complexity was far less compared to recreating Middle-earth. As October approached its end, the crew's preparatory work was nearing completion. According to the plan, the first scenes to be filmed were the outdoor shots in Iceland. Props like the Batmobile, which were more intricate, could be built while filming proceeded.
Over the past few months, Lamborghini had completed six designs for the Batmobile, incorporating Duke's modifications.
Duke found the type he was looking for among them.
In previous Batman films, the Batmobile aligned with its era and was pushed to the extreme in terms of boldness. Lamborghini succeeded in merging the precision and agility of sports cars with the robust strength of a tank, creating a swift and muscular beast.
In Batman Begins, the Batmobile is essentially a prototype military vehicle named "The Tumbler," developed by Wayne Enterprises for personnel and equipment transport over trenches and open terrain. However, due to its high cost, Wayne Enterprises never mass-produced it. Bruce Wayne discovered it and adapted it into a tool for Batman's pursuit of justice.
In early November, Lamborghini delivered a concept car to Los Angeles. Once Duke approved, additional prop cars could be quickly manufactured.
This Batmobile was equipped with a 5.7-liter, 340-horsepower engine capable of outputting 400 pound-feet of torque. The vehicle measured 9 feet 4 inches wide, 15 feet long, and weighed 2.5 tons. It could accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in just 5 seconds and perform long-distance jumps.
The most unique aspect of the Batmobile was its lack of a front axle, with the wheels supported by the sides of the body.
Lamborghini's engineers enlarged the rear wheels and positioned the engine and transmission nearby. The Batmobile even featured an insect-like waist that twisted when more power was applied.
Additionally, the Batmobile had six truck tires. To achieve specific sliding effects, tires with varying levels of wear could be used, and tire pressure could also be adjusted.
According to the plan, Duke intended to use six to eight Batmobiles in the film. Among them, five were fully equipped, one had an electronic version with a movable top for easy entry and exit, and two were engine-less lightweight models designed for special action scenes involving ejection.
"I never expected them to create a Batmobile that incorporated every idea, but they did. It's a monster. A beast."
This was Duke's evaluation of the Batmobile, and he was highly satisfied with Lamborghini's work.
Of course, the Batmobile's rights were co-owned by two companies. Once the film was released, the Batmobile would be officially marketed as a product, becoming one of the revenue streams from merchandise.
Additionally, Bruce Wayne's sports car in the film would exclusively feature Lamborghini's latest models.
To promote their products, Lamborghini gifted Duke and Christian Bale their newest concept cars.
However, Duke was indifferent to cars and rarely drove sports cars, so he gave the car to Tina Fey.
Negotiations between Tina Fey and Warner Brothers were not going smoothly. Time Warner was hesitant about stock swaps. Duke was already the largest individual shareholder of Warner Brothers. Adding more shares would make it harder for Time Warner to maintain control of Warner Brothers.
The negotiations also involved Steve Jobs' Pixar Studios. If Pixar could not be acquired and Duke's shares increased further after the swap, Time Warner would undoubtedly be at a disadvantage.
But Steve Jobs held the upper hand and was in no hurry, ensuring the negotiations would be a marathon.
Duke's main focus remained on his new film, which was both his passion and the foundation of his career.
There was a minor disagreement between Duke and Warner over the release date for Batman Begins. The reason was simple: the catastrophic failure of Batman & Robin had left Warner Brothers deeply scarred.
"Warner's suggestion is to release the film in late July or early August when competition is relatively moderate."
In Duke's studio, Jamie Johnson, who had been promoted to Warner Brothers' distribution manager, shared Warner's perspective. "Batman cannot afford another failure. Otherwise, the series will be shelved indefinitely."
After a brief consideration, Duke responded, "My preference remains early May."
With the launch of Marvel's first installment later that year, Duke couldn't afford to push Batman Begins too far back, as it would divert too much of his attention.
Besides, Duke vaguely remembered that Batman Begins had been a summer release and had achieved relatively successful market reception.
Moreover, Christopher Nolan's influence back then in the summer market couldn't compare to Duke's current standing.
"May is already packed," Jamie Johnson thought for a moment but didn't insist on his opinion. "Memorial Day isn't suitable—George Lucas's Star Wars: Episode III is scheduled for that date."
Duke nodded, already aware of this, and wouldn't compete with what Lucas referred to as the final Star Wars film.
"Mid-May has Spielberg's War of the Worlds, a sci-fi film."
"What about early May?" Duke asked directly.
"20th Century Fox's major production Kingdom of Heaven is set for the first weekend of the summer."
Hearing this title, Duke's eyes lit up. "Jamie, let's pick the first weekend."
Before Jamie could respond, Duke explained, "Have you noticed that the market has grown tired of epic films? Warner's Troy didn't meet expectations, did it?"
"Yes," Jamie Johnson nodded. "Although it eventually turned a profit through merchandise and home video, it fell far short of our projections."
"King Arthur, released in July, performed terribly, and it's clear the film will lose money," Duke continued. "And last year's Alexander the Great—its commercial performance was disastrous."
Jamie Johnson's eyes suddenly brightened. Duke's grasp of the film market had always impressed him. Even films he didn't produce, such as Titanic, Mission: Impossible, and the Harry Potter series, had proven his insight. Particularly with Alexander the Great, Warner avoided financial loss by heeding Duke's advice and not distributing Oliver Stone's epic.
"Every genre of film in Hollywood, after reaching its peak, will inevitably lead to market fatigue," Duke stated, citing well-established trends in the film industry. "In recent years, Hollywood has been flooded with epic war films, saturating screens inside and out…"
He shook his head at this point. It wasn't just epic war films; superhero movies in the future would follow the same trajectory.
Duke wasn't a magician, but his analysis wasn't difficult to deduce. Jamie Johnson pondered briefly and couldn't help but nod slightly.
The exact release date for Batman Begins still required further research after Jamie returned to his office.
A week later, Warner Brothers agreed to Duke's suggestion. Batman Begins was officially scheduled for release in North America on May 6, kicking off the summer movie season. It would premiere on the same day as Kingdom of Heaven.
Whether or not Kingdom of Heaven would change its release date was not Duke's concern. By mid-November, he reviewed all preparatory work and contacted Hannah Serlina, who had already traveled to Iceland, before preparing for filming.
The first shot would take place at Vatnajökull Glacier in Iceland. While Warner held a press conference announcing the release date for Batman Begins, Duke and his crew boarded a private charter plane, leaving North America and flying directly to Iceland.
Before his departure, Taken, released in June, completed its North American run. After a five-month-long screening, it grossed $235.78 million domestically, a massive success given its production scale.
Taken was still running overseas, with a global box office total of $482.76 million. Breaking the $500 million mark worldwide seemed well within reach.
Although it was one of Duke's more modest box office performers in recent years, Taken easily secured a spot in both the North American and global top 10 for the year.
Moreover, the audience response to Taken remained highly positive until its final day in North American theaters. With an IMDb score of 8.3, its subsequent home video sales were bound to be impressive.
After two days of rest, the crew began shooting in Iceland. The first scene featured Liam Neeson and Christian Bale battling on a frozen lake.
.....
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