Hollywood: titanic director

Titanic grossed $1.88 billion, My Big Fat Greek Wedding brought in $420 million, Wedding Crashers earned $310 million, and Star Wars: Episode I raked in $1.18 billion… 

Before Spider-Man hit theaters, Dunn had already amassed a staggering $3.79 billion in global box office across these four films, surpassing Steven Spielberg to become the highest-grossing director in Hollywood history. 

After its opening week, Spider-Man added another $263 million, pushing Dunn's total box office past the $4 billion mark. This milestone unlocked the Mirror System again, granting him his fifth "Mirror Embodiment" opportunity (the first came from a beginner's gift package). 

Though Dunn was seasoned, his current personal skills weren't quite up to directing a film on his own. His basic stats were: Cinematography 44, Story Design 53, Visual Imagination 49, Directing 61, Camera Work 25… 

Far from passing muster. 

To direct A Beautiful Mind, he'd need to rely on the "Mirror Embodiment" function. 

As for which director's abilities to channel, Dunn hadn't decided yet. 

For a commercial blockbuster, picking Cameron or Spielberg would be a no-brainer. 

But A Beautiful Mind, a deeply emotional character-driven drama, was beyond even Spielberg's wheelhouse, let alone Cameron's. 

Dunn needed time to mull over his options. Luckily, he had plenty of it. 

A Beautiful Mind was slated for release after the 9/11 attacks, giving him over a year—more than enough time for Russell Crowe and Nicole Kidman to dig into their characters. 

Right now, Dunn's focus was split three ways: final approvals for the Mr. & Mrs. Smith project, pushing forward Cameron's new film, and sustaining Spider-Man's marketing momentum. 

Even his plans to take on Disney were being put on the back burner. 

No rush. He'd play the long game. 

With Spider-Man dominating the box office, all Dunn had to do was keep making headlines to fuel its hype. 

Case in point: today, he was at a farm between Los Angeles and Burbank. 

The place was buzzing with VIPs. 

Here, Dunn was kicking off the groundbreaking ceremony for Dunn Films' headquarters—the Dunn Williams Walker Tower! 

The tower's design had taken two months and multiple revisions before earning Dunn's approval. 

Visually, it resembled a "rotated fourth-order Rubik's Cube," exuding a surreal, almost magical vibe. 

The main building was four stories tall, square in structure, with each floor offering 80,000 square feet (about 20,000 square meters), accommodating 800–1,000 workstations. 

Dunn's personal office space took up half of the fourth floor, with the rest dedicated to archives, confidential meeting rooms, the CEO's office, the CFO's office, and other executive areas. 

Dunn Films had a grand future ahead, and a single four-story building might not cut it for the company's growth and staffing needs. 

What to do? 

Dunn had learned from others' mistakes. 

Apple and Amazon, for example, had poured $500 million each into new headquarters after outgrowing poorly planned originals—a jaw-dropping expense. 

Microsoft, by contrast, had been smarter about it. 

Instead of a single towering headquarters like Apple or Amazon, Bill Gates built a sprawling Microsoft campus. 

Beyond the main building, the campus included 11 auxiliary office buildings to meet Microsoft's operational needs. 

If expansion was needed, they could simply carve out more land within the campus and construct additional buildings—no need for Amazon's drastic rebuild. 

This horizontal campus model wasn't as efficient as Apple's vertical approach but offered flexibility and scalability, better suiting a fast-growing company. 

Dunn could foresee his company's rapid expansion. Rebuilding a new headquarters every few years wasn't an option. Microsoft's campus model was the way to go. 

So, Dunn Films' headquarters campus would start with two buildings: the main "Dunn Tower" and a three-story "Marvel Tower" next door. 

Once completed, both Marvel Entertainment and Marvel Studios would relocate to the Marvel Tower. 

The first phase of the campus construction was projected to cost $320 million: $250 million for Dunn Tower, $70 million for Marvel Tower, and $20 million for infrastructure improvements like transportation and green spaces in the area. 

Dunn Films, having invested heavily in movies and TV shows, didn't have the cash for this. Naturally, Dunn Capital footed the bill. 

It didn't matter much. When Dunn Capital injected $100 million into Dunn Films, Dunn had transferred most of his Dunn Films shares to Dunn Capital in a deal. 

This setup would streamline future major acquisitions and asset restructuring for Dunn Capital. 

… 

After spending the morning schmoozing with the mayors of Hollywood and Burbank and other bigwigs, Dunn finally left the empty plot. 

Cameron, right on cue, caught up and hopped into Dunn's car. 

"Bulletproof glass, huh?" Cameron tapped the window, clearly impressed. 

Dunn chuckled. "James, there's a supporting role audition this afternoon, right? I'll skip it. I'll show up for the leads." 

Cameron huffed. "You're the producer, and you're bailing on auditions? This isn't just any supporting role—it's the male second lead!" 

"Second lead?" Dunn paused. "Didn't we agree on Brad Pitt for that?" 

The new film, titled Never Sinking, had Cameron's approval and was registered with the Motion Picture Association. Besides the male lead, rescue team captain Bernie Webber, there was the second lead, Ray Sybert, the oil tanker's interim captain. 

Ray Sybert, an assistant engineer on the tanker, was a quiet, respected figure known for his vast knowledge. 

When a storm hit the tanker, Sybert, as the highest-ranking crew member onboard, stepped up, rallying the crew and leading a series of self-rescue efforts to buy time for the rescue team. 

Though technically the second lead, his screen time rivaled the lead's, requiring a seasoned actor with box-office draw. 

Cameron had initially pitched Brad Pitt, and Dunn had agreed. 

The role of Ray Sybert demanded substantial acting chops. While Pitt's recent films had flopped, his acting was solid enough. 

Cameron grinned. "That was when the budget was tight, and I couldn't afford a bigger name. Now? I've sent an invite to Tom Hanks." 

Dunn frowned. "Tom Hanks? He's tied up in Europe with Band of Brothers. No way he's free." 

"I know. So I also reached out to Johnny Depp, Robert De Niro, Harrison Ford, Sylvester Stallone, Mel Gibson, and Will Smith." 

Dunn gaped at him. "That's a huge age range!" 

Cameron laughed. "Ray Sybert's the second lead, and there's no personal or emotional subplot. Age isn't a big deal." 

Dunn thought for a moment. "Johnny Depp's out." 

"Why?" 

"Because I've got other plans for him. Tell him to skip the audition." Dunn shot Cameron a serious look. "Also, Mel Gibson's already on Mr. & Mrs. Smith. You didn't know?" 

Cameron shrugged. "Of course I did. But Mel called me himself, saying he's eager to work with me." 

"No way!" Dunn blinked, stunned. "He wants to shoot two blockbusters at once? Is he nuts?" 

Cameron smirked. "You know Mel's a workaholic. He's got four films coming out this year alone." 

Dunn fell silent. 

If Mel Gibson wanted in, Dunn couldn't find a reason to say no. In terms of star power, Mel could outshine any competitor, and he and Dunn went way back. 

"I talked to Bill," Cameron said, sensing Dunn's hesitation. "Scheduling conflicts won't be an issue. Mel's done this before. He can handle it. Mr. & Mrs. Smith is an action flick—his comfort zone. For our film, he's a supporting role. About 45 days of shooting should do it." 

Never Sinking and Mr. & Mrs. Smith were both commercial films, requiring minimal prep to nail the characters' personalities. 

This was a far cry from A Beautiful Mind, which demanded a blend of acting techniques, deep immersion, and lived-in performances to convey layered characters. 

Dunn nodded. "If Mel passes the audition, I'm on board. But here's the issue: if Mel plays Ray Sybert, can Matthew McConaughey handle the lead?" 

The lead role was already locked in—Cameron planned to cast Matthew McConaughey, whom he'd passed over for Titanic. 

Mel Gibson was the biggest star in the game. If he played Ray Sybert, the film would lean hard into his charisma for box-office appeal. 

That could easily overshadow the lead. 

"I trust Matthew," Cameron said confidently, clearly having thought this through. "He's worked with directors like Spielberg and Zemeckis, going toe-to-toe with actors like Jodie Foster, Morgan Freeman, and Anthony Hopkins. He can hold his own." 

Dunn shrugged. "You're the director. If it flops, it's your headache." 

Cameron laughed. "My headache? If this project tanks, you're the one sweating over that $200 million budget!" 

Dunn smirked. "$200 million? Pocket change. To me, a filmmaker's reputation and influence matter way more than money." 

"That's because you're filthy rich," Cameron muttered, shaking his head. "Honestly, compared to the male leads, casting the female roles is the real headache—especially the second female lead." 

"Female roles?" Dunn's eyes lit up, a grin spreading across his face. "Leave that to me!"