Land of the Dead
Writers: George A. Romero
Genres: Action, Horror, Thriller
LAND OF THE DEAD
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
BY
GEORGE A. ROMERO
AUGUST 24, 2004
ATMOSPHERE ENTERTAINMENT
ROMERO-GRUNWALD PRODUCTIONS
Copyright 2004 All Rights Reserved
BLACK. THE SOUND OF CHANNELS BEING TURNED ON A TV. TITLE UP:
"SOME TIME AGO".
NEWSCASTER (O.S.)
It's hard for us here to believe
what we're reporting to you, but it
does seem to be a fact.
CLICK! In a corner of the BLACK SCREEN, A SMALL TV APPEARS.
On it, in BLACK & WHITE, A NEWSCASTER sits at an anchor desk.
NEWSCASTER (O.S.)
Bodies of the recently dead are
returning to life and attacking the
living.
CLICK! With each CLICK, the TV disappears, then reappears in
a new position ON SCREEN. CREDITS ROLL in the surrounding
BLACK.
NEWSCASTER (O.S.)
Murder victims have shown signs of
having been partially devoured by
their murderers.
CLICK! ANOTHER NEWSCASTER is on the TV now, sitting in a more
modern studio. The broadcast remains in BLACK & WHITE.
SECOND NEWSCASTER
Because of the obvious threat to
untold numbers of citizens, due
to the crisis that is now
developing this radio station will
remain on the air day and night.
CLICK! The second newscaster looks more and more dishevelled.
SECOND NEWSCASTER (O.S.)
It has been established that persons
who have recently died have been
returning to life and eating the
flesh of the living.
CLICK!
SECOND NEWSCASTER (O.S.)
We must not be lulled by the
concept that these are our family
members or our friends. They are not.
They must be destroyed on sight.
CLICK! A THIRD NEWSCASTER, more haggard than the others, sits
at an ANCHOR DESK on a barren set, still in BLACK & WHITE.
2.
THIRD NEWSCASTER (O.S.)
Every dead body that is not
exterminated becomes one of them.
It gets up and kills. The people it
kills get up and kill. They kill
for one reason. They kill for food.
CLICK!
THIRD NEWSCASTER (O.S.)
If this situation is allowed to
continue, there will be nothing
left. Nothing.
CLICK!
THIRD NEWSCASTER (CONT'D)
It's over. Finished. Finished. It's
their world now.
CLICK! IN ABSOLUTE BLACK, A SINGLE WORD FADES UP: "TODAY". A
SOUND FADES IN TOO. TCHICK! KA-TCHICK-TCHICKY-TCHICK! Soft.
Metallic. It makes us nervous.
EXT. UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
1 1
IN COLOR: A FULL MOON shines over a picture-perfect American
town. PEOPLE, seen in SILHOUETTE, stroll past quaint shops
whose signs promise RELIABLE APPLIANCES, WELL-MADE CLOTHES,
SOLID VALUES. A DINER has a neon sign that offers the "BEST
EATS IN TOWN". But something is wrong. The neon isn't lit.
Nothing in town is lit. Street lamps, windows, are all dark.
TCHICK! KA-TCHICK-TCHICK. That DISTURBING SOUND continues.
Some of the PEDESTRIANS drift into "UNIONTOWN PARK", milling
around a GAZEBO, where THREE "MUSICIANS" are struggling with
a trombone, a saxophone, and a tambourine. They can't seem to
make the instruments work, except for the tambourine player,
who is rattling out a few very unrhythmic beats. That's where
that sound is coming from. TCHICK! KA-TCHICK-TCHICKY-TCHICK.
A CLOSER INSPECTION REVEALS: The "MUSICIANS" are DEAD. So are
the "PEDESTRIANS". Flesh is rotting off their bones. The town
itself, which at first looked so perfect, is ROTTING TOO.
MIKE (O.S.)
They're trying to be us.
RILEY (O.S.)
They used to be us.
A
N
3.
EXT. HILLTOP ABOVE UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
2 2
RILEY
(Worried) They're learning how to be
us again.
RILEY DENBO watches the town through binoculars. 32, made
rugged by realities, he has a heart beneath his tough
exterior. MIKE CONVERSE, 21, young and unseasoned, has the
eagerness and passion of someone young and unseasoned.
MIKE
o way. Some germ or some devil got
them things up and walkin'. But
there's a big difference between
them and us. They're dead!
3 3
EXT. "UNIONTOWN TEXACO" - NIGHT
DEAD TEENAGE COUPLE walks hand-in-hand near the gas pumps
of a defunct TEXACO STATION. The boy steps on the little hose
that BINGS when a car pulls in. Out of the building comes...
...AN ATTENDANT. It was once tall and handsome. Now his face
is a wrinkled map of death. He has lost its left arm. Dried
blood darkens the shoulder of its jump-suit, where the arm
was torn away. A "TEXACO" PATCH tells us the Thing used to
work here. Embroidery tells us his nickname was once "BIG
DADDY". He goes to the pump and removes the nozzle. Turns, as
if searching for a car to fill with gas. There is none.
MIKE (O.S.)
It's like they're pretending to be
alive.
EXT. HILLTOP ABOVE UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
4 4
RILEY
Isn't that what we're doing, son?
Pretending to be alive?
EXT. DUMP - NIGHT
5 5
THE SOUND OF GROANING WOOD as THREE heavily-armed GUERILLAS
push a large CRATE over a PRECIPICE into a deep GARBAGE PIT
below. FIVE SIMILAR CRATES lie amid the rubble.
Insects BUZZ. RATS crawl. HUMAN SKELETONS, most HEADLESS, lie
everywhere, no flesh left on their bones. Those with heads
show various wounds to their skulls. Except for one, which...
...suddenly, startlingly MOVES! Its bony arm reaches up from
the bottom of the pit toward...
(
4.
...CHOLO DeMORA, a Latino in his 20s, handsome, roguish, and
confident...a bit too confident. He reaches over his shoulder
and unstraps a CROSSBOW.
CHOLO
Poor bastard.
WFFFFT! Cholo shoots the skeleton. His arrow goes completely
through the WHITE SKULL.
EXT. MOVING VAN - NIGHT
6 6
The doors of a beat-up WHITE MOVING VAN open. Cholo reaches
in, throwing back an oilcloth that covers ANOTHER CRATE.
GUERILLA
Whole lotta trash this week.
CHOLO
That's life, brother. A whole
lotta trash.
As the men tip the crate onto a dolly, MAGGOTS are revealed
in the darkness beneath, squirming in a POOL OF BLOOD.
(What's in that crate?)
7 7
EXT. HILLTOP ABOVE UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
RILEY and MIKE watch THREE DEAD THINGS lumber toward them
R
from the town below.
ILEY
They know we're here. They can
smell life. Smell blood.
EXT. "UNIONTOWN TEXACO" - NIGHT
8 8
THROUGH THE BINOCULARS: BIG DADDY replaces the nozzle in the
gas pump. Sensing something, it looks around. Up. His dead
eyes lock on Riley's. Big Daddy grunts. Responding to him...
EXT. HILLTOP ABOVE UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
9 9
...the THREE DEAD THINGS move up the hillside with more
determination.
RILEY
Glancing at Mike's guns) You any
good with those?
MIKE
Dunno. It's my first trip. Never
had to use `em before.
M
R
5.
RILEY
Great. I'm out here with a guy who
can't shoot. Let's go.
Mike stands, turns, and...
...is GRABBED from behind by a ZOMBIE! It's not one of the
three they've been watching. This one wears the remains of a
CLOWN SUIT. Half its bulbous red nose has been eaten away.
Painted eyelashes make its stare alarming. Its ORANGE HAIR is
crawling with SPIDERS. It wrestles Mike to the ground. Opens
its lipsticked mouth. Is about to bite Mike's neck when...
...Riley FIRES his .45. BLAM! A bullet SHATTERS the Clown's
SHOULDER CAP. The dead thing is pitched backward, but seems
to feel no pain. It hunkers over Mike again.
iley FIRES four more times. THREE BULLETS RIP into the
Clown's CHEST, NECK, CHEEK. Finally, the FOURTH PUNCHES A
HOLE above the thing's left eyebrow. The Clown DROPS.
ike looks at Riley.
M
IKE
Jesus. You can't shoot, neither!
10 10
INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT
RILEY and MIKE step into a tight, uncomfortable space.
Generators whir. Gears turn. The two men open a storage
locker and strap on ammo belts as...
...SOMETHING TERRIBLE LOOMS out of the shadows! It moves
toward Riley and Mike, who can't see it from behind the
locker. The LEFT SIDE OF THE THING'S FACE has been BURNED
AWAY. Only scar-tissue remains, and a single usable eye
bulging from a socket.
Riley turns. Sees the thing. And, surprisingly, he relaxes,
recognizing CHARLIE HOUK, a heavily-armed guerilla whose
intellect is as burned as his face.
CHARLIE
Tcha doin', Riley?
RILEY
Havin' a bad dream.
CHARLIE
I have bad dreams. Hell, yes. Just
look at me, you can tell that I
have terrible dreams.
6.
RILEY
The town is full of walkers.
CHARLIE
Every town is full of walkers.
RILEY
These aren't just walking. They're
like...regular folks.
CHARLIE
But they're dumb, Riley. Hell, dead
folks is near as dumb as me!
RILEY
You learned how to make yourself
useful. That's what they're doing.
WOMAN'S VOICE (O.S.)
They dumped the trash. Cholo's on
his way.
Riley and Mike look across the room in the direction of the
voice. Twenty feet away, a WOMAN sits at the controls of what
looks like a scavenged airplane cockpit that's outfitted with
a mixture of high- and low-tech equipment. She wears a black
leather jacket with "PRETTY BOY" emblazoned across the back.
MIKE
(Surprised) Pretty Boy's a dame?
RILEY
This one is. Last one was a guy.
MIKE
What happened to him?
Pretty Boy turns, poking her finger through a BULLET HOLE
encrusted with year-old BLOOD in the chest of her jacket.
PRETTY BOY
I kept his jacket. For good luck.
MIKE
Luck?
RILEY
Put some flowers in the graveyard.
Pretty Boy reaches out and flips a toggle switch on the
control panel. THOOMB! THOOMB! DEEP CONCUSSIVE SOUNDS can be
felt as much as heard as...
I
y
C
C
7.
EXT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT
11 11
...RILEY, CHARLIE, and MIKE step out of A VEHICLE the size
of a city bus. The words DEAD RECKONING are painted on its
side. This is no bus. It's a war wagon, built of SCAVENGED
PARTS with a RIVETED STEEL SKIN. GATTLING GUNS protrude from
a MEAN-LOOKING SNOUT. A ROOF TURRET supports two FOURTEEN
INCH-CANNONS. Rotating lights SHINE in all directions,
piercing the night.
THOOMB! THOOMB! THOOMB! That sound again. MORTAR TUBES on the
vehicle's roof are launching FIREWORKS that BURST in the sky.
CHARLIE
(Looking up) `Flowers in the
graveyard'. Why do you call `em
that, Riley? I don't get it. These
here flowers ain't the kind you lay
down on the ground. These here are
sky flowers. Way up in Heaven.
R
ILEY
I love ya, Charlie. Know why?
Cuzz you still believe in heaven.
THE WHITE MOVING VAN rolls in and parks beside Dead Reckoning.
CHOLO jumps out with the THREE GUERILLAS from the dump.
HOLO
You guys scope out the town?
RILEY
Looks like nobody's hit it before.
FOUR GUERILLAS get into an old T-BIRD CONVERTIBLE mounted with
machine guns. TWO OTHER ARMED MEN climb onto MOTORCYCLES. The
very night seems to GROWL as everyone starts their engines.
HOLO
Ready?
CHARLIE
Always ready. Just look at me
ou can tell I'm always ready.
CHOLO
I look at you, all I see's an idiot.
CHARLIE
I don't think that's all you see.
bet you see this iron, too.
R
R
8.
Charlie is wearing four holstered sidearms, two shouldered
automatic rifles, a REMINGTON...and a sly smile that makes us
wonder whether he's an idiot or not.
CHOLO
Let's go have some fun.
RILEY
Ain't about fun, Cholo.
VROOOM! The T-Bird and the motorcycles pull out toward town.
ILEY
We go in, do our job, and get out,
all of us alive, okay? I don't want
any fuck-ups on my last day out here.
C
HOLO
(Grinning) My last day, too.
iley looks surprised. Cholo mounts a MOTORCYCLE, REVS the
engine, and heads out.
CHOLO (CONT'D)
YEEEE-HAAAAAAAA!
CHARLIE
What'd he do, hit the lottery or
somethin'?
RILEY
Somethin'. (Wondering) Somethin'.
Riley and Charlie start to get back into Dead Reckoning. Mike
follows, pausing to look up at the "sky flowers".
MIKE
Do those things really work?
RILEY
Yup. (Almost sadly) Stenches can't
take their eyes off `em.
EXT. MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
12 12
DEAD THINGS stand completely frozen in the middle of main
street, like statues, mesmerized by the FIREWORKS.
Only one figure is moving. BIG DADDY. He weaves between his
brothers and sisters, urgently waving his one good hand,
like Frankenstein's monster, as if to say "Bad! Bad!" He has
learned that fireworks bring danger.
R
C
9.
A DEAD TEENAGE CHEERLEADER, holding filthy pom-poms, looks at
Big Daddy, unable to grasp what he's trying to communicate.
A SPEAR is DRIVEN through the Cheerleader's face! The spear
is held like a lance by HARRY, a guerilla who roars past on
his motorcycle hooting like a cowhand on round-up. Other
BIKERS rumble down the street, firing guns.
Big Daddy watches the Cheerleader fall. It throws its head
back and lets out a great HOWL.
INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT
13 13
THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD: RILEY recognizes BIG DADDY from the
gas station. He also recognizes the Thing's anguish as...
EXT. TOP OF MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
14 14
...DEAD RECKONING, mortars still shooting FIREWORKS, stops on
the edge of town. CHOLO pulls up alongside on his bike.
INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT
15 15
THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD: RILEY and MIKE watch the T-BIRD ROAR
down MAIN STREET. The FOUR GUERILLAS inside laugh gleefully
as they use the MACHINE GUNS to MOW DOWN HAPLESS ZOMBIES.
M
IKE
I thought it was gonna be a battle.
This is a fucking massacre.
HOLO
(Through an open hatch) Kid, these
are the toughest guys in the `hood.
You can't keep `em from wantin' to
get some chuckles.
iley gives Cholo an irritated look.
CHOLO (CONT'D)
Hey, not me, Boss. You told me not
to have any fun, I'm not having any
fun at all. (To Mike) Come with me,
kid. I'll show you the ropes.
Mike climbs out and gets on the back of Cholo's motorcycle.
RILEY
Where you goin'?
CHOLO
To get supplies. Essential supplies.
That's job our job, ain't it?
G
R
10.
EXT. UNIONTOWN FOODMART - NIGHT
16 16
THE WHITE MOVING VAN pulls up to a supermarket. THE DEAD
THINGS in the parking lot, gazing at the FIREWORKS, barely
notice the vehicle. MARKSMEN keep the lot covered as
GUERILLAS carry CASES OF CANNED GOODS out of the supermarket
and into the van. The team has this down to a science.
ILEY'S VOICE comes over one Guerilla's hand-held radio.
RILEY (O.S. RADIO FILTER)
How's the food?
GUERILLA #1
(Into his radio) Lousy, but there's
lots of it.
17 17
EXT. UNIONTOWN SIDE STREET - NIGHT
DEAD RECKONING RUMBLES down a side street, its steel skin
reflecting the FLASH of fireworks.
INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT
18 18
PRETTY BOY drives. RILEY stands beside her.
RILEY
(Into radio) Number Two, what's
your location?
GUERILLA #2 (O.S. RADIO FILTER)
D
rug store. Need an aspirin? I got
a million of `em.
RILEY
(Into radio) Antibiotics. We need
antibiotics.
GUERILLA #2 (O.S. RADIO FILTER)
We're set.
RILEY
(Into radio) Number Three?
EXT. UNIONTOWN GUN STORE - NIGHT
19 19
UERILLAS load boxes of ammo into a JEEP.
GUERILLA #3
(Into radio) Guns and ammo, Boss.
H
A
11.
EXT. MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
20 20
HARRY, the biker with the spear, is making another run toward
a WALKER, who stands mesmerized by the fireworks, when...
WHAP! Harry is sent FLYING!
DEAD WOMAN, once pretty, wearing a softball uniform that
bears the NUMBER NINE, has used its bat to hit a home run.
Harry's riderless motorcycle fishtails up the street and hits
the side of a building.
arry tries to get up. TWO DEAD THINGS attack him. Another
motorcycle, driven by ANCHOR, who looks like Popeye, RUMBLES
up in the nick of time.
ANCHOR
Harry, jump on!
Fighting off the Dead Things, Harry gets on and speeds away.
INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT
21 21
PRETTY BOY turns a corner. Out the windshield, RILEY sees...
22 22
EXT. MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
...CHOLO and MIKE, on Cholo's bike, joining up with FOXY, a
red-haired guerilla on his own motorcycle. The three drive
toward the end of town.
RILEY (O.S.)
What the fuck?
EXT. UNIONTOWN STATE STORE - NIGHT
23 23
CHOLO SCREECHES to a stop at a LIQUOR STORE with MIKE and
FOXY. All dismount and start toward the entrance. They stop
as DEAD RECKONING pulls up and RILEY and CHARLIE climb out.
CHARLIE
Nothin' in there but booze. Booze
ain't essential.
FOXY
A jug of good Kentucky goes for
fifteen hundred back in town.
RILEY
(To Cholo) I'm not risking anybody's
ass just so you can pick up some
side money.
R
12.
CHOLO
Not askin' you to.
Cholo and Foxy start into the liquor store. The doors are
wide open. All that can be seen from outside is darkness.
ILEY
Mike! Wait!
But Mike has followed the others inside.
2
INT. UNIONTOWN STATE STORE - NIGHT
4 24
CHOLO unstraps his crossbow and leads the way cautiously
into the dark space. Every subtle SOUND in the SILENCE puts
MIKE more on edge. His hand tenses on his gun as SHADOWS loom
in front of him. Shadows that could be zombies, but are not.
Behind the dusty glass doors of a once-refrigerated wall-
unit, Cholo sees a CASE OF DOM PERIGNON. He goes to the
refrigerator. Re-strapping his crossbow, he opens the door.
Reaches in for the case of champagne. His two hands grab it.
A THIRD HAND GRABS IT!
Cholo looks up. The refrigerator has no back wall. A DEAD
THING with a Manson-like SWASTIKA tattooed in the center of
its forehead has stepped in from the shadows of a loading
area beyond. It GRABS Cholo with a terrifying GROWL.
Cholo falls under the weight of the champagne, and the
weight of the Dead Thing, which drops on top of him. They
roll, struggling. The Thing holds Cholo in a death grip.
At the front of the store, Mike fumbles with his rifle.
Foxy shoots at the Dead Thing and misses.
Cholo PUNCHES the Thing with his free hand. The Dead Thing's
head recoils, but lowers again toward Cholo, the Swastika
looming, drooling teeth baring for a bite. Cholo's eyes
flash. It's the first time we've seen him scared.
BLAM! CHARLIE FIRES one round, right into the center of the
swastika on the Zombie's forehead. The Thing crumples.
MIKE
Nice shootin'.
CHARLIE
Good shootin'. Ain't no such thing
as nice shootin'.
R
o
R
M
13.
A FOOT KICKS the Zombie off Cholo, who looks up to see...
...RILEY extending a hand to help him to his feet.
RILEY
Close one.
CHOLO
I'm still here, ain't I?
Everyone relaxes. Cholo picks up the case of Dom. The others
head toward the front of the store.
TILT DOWN TO THE FLOOR as their feet move past. In the gloom
behind stacks of cartons...
...A DEAD HAND appears. Reaching.
CHOLO
Shit! Look out, kid!
The hand grabs Mike around the ankle! Mike turns, raising his
gun. Too late.
A DEAD UNIFORMED POLICEMAN, the skin on half its face STRIPPED
DOWN TO BONE, RIPS A HOLE IN HIS LEG with its teeth!
ike SCREAMS, staggers into a wall, and drops to a seated
position on the floor. Riley and Charlie spin around at the
sound of his cry. Cholo, closest to Mike, pulls his crossbow
and fires an arrow through the Zombie's head.
C
HOLO
Fuckin' rookies.
Cholo tucks away the crossbow, grabs a box of Cohibas off a
counter, and runs outside with Foxy. Riley goes to Mike.
ILEY
(Kneeling) It's alright, son.
You're gonna be alright.
MIKE
No. I'm dead. You get bit by one
f those things and you become what
they are.
Riley wraps a strong arm around Mike and lifts him. Mike
quickly plants the barrel of his .45 under his chin and...
BLOWS HIS OWN BRAINS OUT!
iley, stunned, lets the corpse slide to the floor. He looks
into the rookie's open eyes, devastated.
B
14.
EXT. MAIN STREET - UNIONTOWN - NIGHT
25 25
THE WHITE MOVING VAN, THE T-BIRD, AND THE JEEP roll out of
town in a convoy. Trailing them, THREE SADISTIC GUERILLAS on
MOTORCYCLES ROAR past, firing...
...a HAIL OF BULLETS at A DEAD FAMILY on the sidewalk. The
MOTHER FALLS. Not shot. It has been GRABBED and SHOVED down
to the ground by...
...BIG DADDY! Who GRABS the little GIRL next, thrusting her
roughly behind the protection of a wrecked car. The FATHER is
last. Big Daddy grabs it from behind, by its hair, just as...
...ROUNDS from an UZI DRILL A DOTTED-LINE across the Father's
neck. Big Daddy is unhurt, but spattered with BLOOD. Not red,
greenish-black. The blood of the dead.
T
here's a RIPPING SOUND as the Father's NECK is PULLED APART
by the weight of its limp body. The body DROPS to the street.
The HEAD remains suspended in Big Daddy's hand. His face
contorts. His mouth opens and closes, trying to utter sounds.
ig Daddy drops the head, looking down at its befuddled eyes
with sympathy. After a moment, the sympathy is joined by
rage. Big Daddy lifts his right foot and brings it STOMPING
DOWN on the disembodied head, CRUSHING ITS SKULL.
The convoy ROARS off, leaving a cloud of exhaust. Big Daddy
sees Harry's downed motorcycle lying in the street. The butt
of an AUTOMATIC RIFLE protrudes from a saddlebag.
Big Daddy goes over. Pulls out the rifle. Tests the weight of
it in his hand. Curls his finger in through the guard and
pulls the trigger.
BLAM! A bullet ricochets off a brick wall. Big Daddy is
startled at first. Then, he relaxes, realizing the rifle's
power. With surprising dexterity, he slings the weapon's
strap over his head and across his chest, patting the strap
as if comforted by it. Turning, he looks toward...
...THE DISTANT GLOW OF A SKYSCRAPER that can be seen ON THE
HORIZON. That's the direction the convoy is headed. That's
where the bad men came from. That's where he wants to go.
REVERSE ANGLE:
With the city in the distance, Big Daddy starts walking.
NUMBER NINE falls into step beside him. Soon there are MORE.
None of them knows where they are going. Or why. All that
seems to matter is that they have a leader.
15.
EXT. DEPOT - PRE-DAWN
26 26
DEAD RECKONING, emitting tendrils of HOT STEAM from twenty
steel nostrils, stands parked in a corner of a fenced-in
outdoor yard. (We don't see how big the yard is. Yet.) A
SEARCHLIGHT sweeps the darkness as GUERILLAS unload the
supplies they took from Uniontown and carry them toward...
...a set of RUSTY STEEL DOORS, above which is a FADED SIGN
that reads "SUBWAY (TO CITY)".
In the bustle of activity, HARRY, the biker who was attacked
in town, perspires as he helps unload. He looks ill.
RILEY walks past, handing out bottles of beer to the men.
RILEY
Harry. Beer?
Harry doesn't answer.
RILEY (CONT'D)
Harry?
Harry SPINS! GROWLS! LUNGES at Riley like a beast!
Riley has no time to reach for his gun. The Harry-Thing is
strangling him. SMASHING the neck of a beer bottle on the
snout of Dead Reckoning, Riley JAMS THE JAGGED GLASS into
the Harry-Thing's forehead. Its body drops to the ground.
PRETTY BOY
Got knocked off his bike in town.
Must have been bit.
Riley looks down at the body with a mixture anger and regret.
INT. SUBWAY TUNNEL - DAWN
27 27
A mile-long subway tunnel extends into BLACKNESS. A wide
PLATFORM runs the length of the tracks, at the head of which
A DERELICT TRAIN is parked.
A CARGO CARRIER pulls out, driving along the platform, its
flatbed piled with supplies, while ANOTHER CARRIER is being
loaded with boxes of food, pharmaceuticals, ammunition, and...
TWO BODY BAGS.
CHARLIE
Shit happens, Riley.
RILEY
(Blaming himself) Only if you let it.
T
16.
The cargo carrier that was first to pull out drives into the
tunnel. CEILING LIGHTS spaced far apart STUTTER on and off.
Two guerillas, ANCHOR and MOUSE, who looks like a mouse, ride
on the open flatbed with the cargo.
The tunnel is filled with looming steel shapes that cast
menacing shadows. Mouse shifts nervously. Suddenly...
...PLINK! SOMETHING WET FALLS ON HIS FACE! He JUMPS.
Recovers. Wipes his cheek with his sleeve.
MOUSE
I hate going under the fuckin' river.
He takes out a joint. Lights up. The match FLARES. SPLAT!
Mouse and the match are soaked by WATER dripping from above.
28 28
EXT. THE CITY - DAY
RIVERS flank a TRIANGLE OF LAND where A CITY glows in the
sunrise. Once proud and prosperous, its buildings now seem
like tombstones. SEVEN BARRICADED BRIDGES span the rivers.
ANNOUNCER (O.S.)
Protected on three sides by mighty
rivers, the city stands as a monument
to man's ingenuity. At the center of
it all is Fiddler's Green.
29 29
INT. SUBWAY TUNNEL - DAWN
A TV MONITOR broadcasts views of A KITCHEN, A PLUSH LIVING
ROOM, A DEN with a VIDEO FIREPLACE.
ANNOUNCER (O.S.)
Luxury living in the grand old style.
Dine at one of three restaurants.
Look for that perfect gift in our
fabulous shopping mall.
he monitor shows a huge ATRIUM with shops and restaurants.
GUERILLA (O.S.)
They make it sound nice.
CHOLO (O.S.)
It is nice.
Holding his case of Dom Perignon and his box of Cohibas,
CHOLO looks with FOXY at a monitor mounted to a white-tiled
subway station wall. Down the tunnel behind them, the other
GUERILLAS unload supplies from CARGO CARRIERS parked on the
platform. A sign reads, "GOLDEN TRIANGLE/FIDDLER'S GREEN".
M
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f
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17.
RILEY
(Approaching) Cholo.
Foxy moves away, leaving Riley and Cholo alone.
RILEY
Two people dead. That kid, Mike. He
should be here with us right now.
C
HOLO
I didn't kill him. He got bit and
he killed himself. Same thing I
woulda done. And you!
iley lunges at Cholo, takes hold of his shirt, and SLAMS
him against the wall.
RILEY
The fuck are you turning into, man?
CHOLO
e take money to do nasty shit.
Shit that nobody else is dumb
enough to do. We go in knowing the
risks. The kid did too. His number
came up, that's all.
RILEY
We take the risk to bring in things
people need. Not to make a few
extra bucks selling liquor. You
used to know that.
CHOLO
Everybody makes their own way.
verybody makes their own
ucking way!
holo shrugs out of Riley's grasp. Behind them, the guerillas
continue to unload cargo.
CHOLO (CONT'D)
y daddy...he picked fruit, penny-
a-piece. He never went for
anything, so he never had anything.
I'm gonna have a place, Riley. My
own place! And now I got enough
money to buy my way in.
A
NNOUNCER (O.S.)
Isn't it time? Isn't it your time?
For Fiddler's Green.
B
R
18.
Cholo looks up at the TV monitor. Riley follows his gaze,
seeing well-dressed PEOPLE sipping cocktails in a club room.
ILEY
You're dreaming, Cholo. They'd
never let me in. They'll never let
you in. We're the wrong kind.
The image on the TV MONITOR changes to an overhead view of
the city and its rivers. Animation draws a RED LINE along the
base of the "golden triangle", a zone known as "THE THROAT".
ANNOUNCER (O.S. CONT'D)
Bask in the security of a city
protected not only by its natural
boundaries, but by hand-picked
members of its own private militia.
EXT. THE CITY - "THE THROAT" - DAWN
30 30
In live action, not on the monitor, WEARY TROOPS, sloppily
uniformed, guard four rows of electrified, barbed-wire FENCING.
DEAD THINGS cluster by the DOZENS outside the barricades.
M
CORPSES hang all along the stretch, suspended on the barbs.
ILITARY WOMAN
Stench! Ten o-clock!
A WALKER lumbers in and touches the fencing. SPARKS FLY! The
Thing's flesh is literally COOKED! BOILS develop, POPPING
OPEN, emitting SMOKE. Still the Thing remains animated.
MILITARY MAN
Take its fuckin' face off.
UDDA-BUDDA-BUDDA! The Military Woman FIRES. The Thing is
decimated. Its body hangs, welded to the SPARKING barbs.
3
INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN CENTRAL MALL - MORNING
1 31
CHOLO approaches a CHECKPOINT manned by TWO SECURITY GUARDS.
Setting down the champagne and Cohibas, he unstraps his
weapons and hands them over.
CHOLO
DeMora. Supply unit
SECURITY GUARD
What's in them boxes?
CHOLO
Essential supplies. For the man
upstairs.
l
R
19.
The Guard takes Cholo's weapons and returns a claim check.
CHOLO collects his boxes and steps onto an escalator that
carries him up into an ENORMOUS ATRIUM. The "mall" we saw on
TV. SUNLIGHT splashes through glass walls onto box-planted
trees. Caged birds CHIRP seemingly in tune with the Chopin
that lilts over a sound system. SHOPPERS, expensively over-
dressed, stroll past stores. OTHER RESIDENTS lunch at
"outdoor" cafes. Cholo pulls out a kerchief and wipes the
smudges off his face, trying to make himself presentable.
3
EXT. "GOLDEN TRIANGLE" - MORNING
2 32
FIDDLER'S GREEN, a heavily protected HIGH-RISE in the center
of the city, dominates the skyline. It's where the Fat Cats
live, protected from urban decay. The building is surrounded
by unoccupied high-rises that define "the golden triangle", a
clean section in the center of the city. No ugliness in view.
RILEY and CHARLIE cross a manicured plaza to a CHECKPOINT
manned by TWO SECURITY GUARDS. Riley hands over his ID.
RILEY
Quittin' time, Deke.
SECURITY GUARD
(Holding up the ID) You're gonna
need this.
RILEY
(Walking on) Nope. When I said
quittin' time, I meant quittin'
time.
EXT. "GHETTO" - MORNING
33 33
RILEY and CHARLIE walk down a street into the city's "ghetto"
zone, which is lined with taverns, gambling clubs, strip
joints, like a boom town from Alaskan gold-rush days. BUYERS
and SELLERS lurk in the shadows, copulating, dealing drugs.
iley is welcomed by nearly everyone he passes, greeting
them in return with a smile and a nod, handing some bills to
a FATHER with a YOUNG SON, patting an OLD MAN on the back.
CHARLIE
Wanna get a drink, Riley? Just
ook at me, you can tell I could
use a drink.
RILEY
Later. Gotta see a man about a car.
(
20.
Charlie follows Riley, who strides into...
...an alley, surprised to find a cadre of rough-looking
REVOLUTIONARIES, led by MULLIGAN, a defiant man who stands
on a soapbox. A small audience is gathered in front of him.
He takes a swig from a bottle of whiskey.
MULLIGAN
Irish accent) How long are you
gonna let him push you around? If
there was enough of us...if you all
would join up with us...we could
pull him down off his throne!
Some of the people in the audience nervously shift their eyes
to the FIDDLER'S GREEN HIGH-RISE ten blocks away.
RILEY
You can't fix a place like this,
Mulligan. You just have to get out
of it.
MULLIGAN
We've got the firepower, Riley. If
you and your friends would come in
with us, we'd be unstoppable.
Mulligan holds out his bottle to Riley, who passes it to
Charlie, who takes a swig.
RILEY
Everyone's stoppable.
We hear the sound of a boy coughing. Mulligan's son BRIAN
stands behind him, looking feverish.
MULLIGAN
You alright, son?
BRIAN
I'm fine, dad.
As Riley starts past, he stops, pulls something from his
pocket, and presses it into Mulligan's palm.
RILEY
Antibiotics. For your boy.
Mulligan looks down with gratitude at a bottle his hand.
When he looks up again, Riley is gone.
H
H
21.
EXT. GARAGE - MORNING
34 34
Turning a corner, RILEY and CHARLIE stop in front of a
rundown GARAGE with a tarp hanging down instead of a door.
Riley pulls it aside and looks in. A HOBO lies asleep on a
grease-stained floor, curled under some old newspapers.
RILEY
Where's the car?
OBO
(Waking) What car?
RILEY
My new car. I paid for it. I was
here yesterday. There were two guys
getting it ready for me.
OBO
There was nobody here this morning.
RILEY
Sonofabitch!
CHARLIE
What happened, Riley. Didja get
fucked?
Riley stands there, grim-faced.
RILEY
(A whisper) Come on.
INT. PENTHOUSE CORRIDOR - FIDDLER'S GREEN - DAY
35 B 35
ING! An elevator door opens. CHOLO, carrying the champagne
and Cohibas, steps out, walks to "PENTHOUSE NUMBER ONE", and
rings the bell. An instant after he pushes the button...
...the door is JERKED OPEN by TYLER KNIPP, 50-something, an
African American man in a white butler's jacket. Frightened,
he's wielding a SCISSORS, poised to strike.
KNIPP
(Lowering the scissors) Oh, Mister
DeMora. Mister Kaufman ain't home
and there's some shit goin' down.
No lie. I heard...
A SCREAM RINGS OUT down the corridor!
KNIPP (CONT'D)
I heard that!
3
22.
ANOTHER SCREAM.
KNIPP (CONT'D)
Oh, man. Mister K. sure gonna be
upset about this.
Cholo drops his boxes and moves down the corridor.
KNIPP (CONT'D)
I called Security. They should be
here...
Cholo reaches the door to PENTHOUSE NUMBER TWO. It's locked.
ANOTHER SCREAM from inside. He FLINGS himself at the door.
The LATCH SPLINTERS out of the frame. The door BURSTS open...
INT. PENTHOUSE NUMBER-TWO - FIDDLER'S GREEN - DAY
6 36
...and CHOLO enters a dark foyer. The only light comes from
another room somewhere inside. A soft, rhythmic SQUEAK, like
a child's swing moving back and forth, ECHOES through the
apartment. It's an eerie, incongruous sound.
On guard, eyes straining, Cholo moves inside. The squeak gets
louder, the light brighter as he turns a corner and sees...
...a MIDDLE-AGED MAN, HANGING DEAD from a HOMEMADE NOOSE
suspended from a light fixture in the kitchen! THE BODY SWAYS
slowly, the harsh glare making the man's face even whiter
than it is. A toppled chair lies on the floor at his feet.
Cholo stands transfixed for an instant. And in that instant...
...HE IS GRABBED FROM BEHIND! He whirls, ready to kill, but
finds only a MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN, 60-something, wearing a
tailored suit and expensive jewelry, her perfectness
blemished only by her hysteria.
WOMAN
My Johnny, he killed himself, he
killed himself. My Johnny! My
Johnny!
Cholo shakes her, hard.
CHOLO
Keep it together, lady.
Behind them, in the kitchen, unseen, a dazed YOUNG MAN, walks
up to the hanging corpse. He rights the toppled chair and
steps on it, lifting a paring to knife cut through the noose.
23.
YOUNG MAN
(Softly, to himself) Dad. Oh, Dad.
WOMAN
(To Cholo) Se-Security. Are you
Security?
CHOLO
No, I...
WOMAN
Then, for God's sake, who ARE YOU?!
She resumes her SCREAMING.
In the kitchen, the Young Man is slicing through the rope
when his DEAD FATHER'S EYES POP OPEN! The Young Man is too
busy with the rope to notice. THE HANGED MAN'S EYES BLINK.
Once. Twice. Three times. Its body TWITCHES. And then...
...the Hanged Man turns, making a move on the Young Man. The
motion increases the strain on the light fixture, which pulls
away, SPARKING, from the ceiling and CRASHES TO THE FLOOR,
along with the Hanged Man and his son.
The entire apartment is PLUNGED INTO DARKNESS. The woman
stops her screaming. Almost as soon as she does, a SNARL can
be heard from the kitchen, followed by another SCREAM, this
one coming from the Young Man.
Cholo rushes to a nearby fireplace and grabs a POKER and a
MATCHLIGHT, which looks like a pistol, but shoots FIRE from
its tip. He approaches the kitchen, using the FLAME to light
his way. In the FLICKERING GLOW, he sees...
...the Young Man lying on the floor. CHUNKS have been bitten
out of his neck and wrist. The body is CONVULSING in the last
moments of life. THE HANGED MAN IS NOWHERE TO BE SEEN.
Cholo stands over the Young Man and stabs him in the head
with the poker, jabbing the point all the way through. The
woman SCREAMS again from the kitchen doorway.
CHOLO
Shut up! I gotta hear. Where'd he
go? Where'd the other guy go?
Silence. Cholo pulls the poker out of the Young Man's head.
SHUFFLING sounds. He follows them to the other end of the
kitchen, probing the darkness with his matchlight.
The sounds are LOUDER here. Cholo lifts the poker, ready to
strike. Just as he does...
24.
...the back door of the apartment BURSTS OPEN and a SECURITY
GUARD lunges into the kitchen, rifle in hand.
SECURITY GUARD
(To Cholo) Drop it!
Cholo drops the poker and holds up his hands.
CHOLO
Hey, no problem.
TWO MORE SECURITY GUARDS come through the apartment's front
door and rush into the kitchen.
CHOLO (CONT'D)
No problem, no problem! But there
is a problem. There's a dead guy
walkin' around in here.
THE HANGED MAN appears without warning, attacking one of the
guards who just entered, BITING OFF half his left CHEEK,
including the EYE.
Before his partner can raise his gun, THE WOMAN GRABS IT FROM
HIM! Aims at the Hanged Man.
WOMAN
YOU SELFISH BASTARD! YOU LEFT ME
ALONE HERE!
She fumbles with the weapon, not knowing how to make it work.
The bitten security guard starts to lose all strength in his
legs. The Dead Thing holds him up, as if waltzing with him,
BITING HIM again and again.
Cholo takes the gun from the woman and shoots the Hanged Man.
BITTEN SECURITY GUARD
I need help. I need help!
Cholo kills the bitten security guard, too.
SURVIVING SECURITY GUARD
You...FUCK!
Cholo turns the gun on the surviving security guard.
CHOLO
You wanna talk about this? I did
what I had to do. I only did what I
had to do!
R
T
R
R
25.
INT. "THE ARENA" - DAY
37 37
RILEY and CHARLIE step into the CELLAR of an old BROWNSTONE.
Dirt floor. Stone walls. The place is filled with smoke and
BUZZING with FLIES. As Riley and Charley turn their guns over
to TWO BIG BRUISERS inside, a TOUT named ROACH sidles over.
TOUT
(Eyeing the weapons) Supply run last
night, uh? Bet you have some money in
your pocket. I can show you how to
turn that money into more money.
RILEY
Roach. Where's Chihuahua?
TOUT
Maybe I can find him for you. Come
on in.
Riley is already in. He has pushed past the Tout and is
striding into a fog where GAMBLERS are rushing to place bets
with heavily-armed BOOKIES. We're reminded of a cock-fighting
joint in a Pancho Villa movie.
RILEY
Lot of action tonight.
TOUT
Gotta new kind of game.
iley strides toward a cluster of BETTORS. A very tall man
stands among them, wearing a Texas Stetson that sticks up
high above all other heads, its peacock feathers poking even
higher out of a snake-skin hat band.
iley grabs him and spins him around.
he man's feet are off the ground. Way off the ground. Far
from tall, he's a little person, who has been standing on a
platform, wearing a purple satin pimp-suit. He's a Latino,
who looks like a Chihuahua. And that's his name. CHIHUAHUA.
C
HIHUAHUA
Put me down! Put me down!
ILEY
What happened to my fucking car?
CHIHUAHUA
What? They're fixing it up.
B
4
26.
RILEY
I went over to the garage. Your
guys aren't there. The car's not
there. My dinero's not there.
CHIHUAHUA
Hey, this is not me. I did not do
this to you. I am your friend. Put
me down. Come on. I find out what
went wrong.
RILEY
Just get me the car, or they'll
carry you out of here inside that
fucking hat.
INT. BACKSTAGE - "THE ARENA" - DAY
38 38
In a dark CATACOMB, DEAD MEN are chained to the walls. WHAM!
A POLE shoots out. A NOOSE on the end encircles the neck of a
captive Dead Man and is cinched tight. TWO MEN hold the pole
while A THIRD sprays RED PAINT on the Thing's face. ANOTHER
DEAD THING is dragged in and sprayed with BLACK PAINT.
INT. BACK OFFICE - "THE ARENA" - DAY
39 39
Cursing in Spanish, CHIHUAHUA pulls a GLOCK out of a filing
cabinet and jams a magazine up its butt.
0 40
INT. CENTER RING - "THE ARENA" - DAY
RILEY and CHARLIE drift into a large room that's packed with
BETTORS hooting and hollering like football fans. They're all
jammed onto tiered wooden viewing stands arranged around an
IRON-MESH STRUCTURE that looks like a lion-tamer's cage.
Gates open. THE PAINTED WALKERS are thrust inside the cage.
Their nooses are released. The gates are locked behind them.
D
EAD RED, alarmed by the color of DEAD BLACK's face, reaches
out and gently touches the paint. Its fingers come away with
blackened tips.
lack follows suit, staining its fingers red. Black licks its
hand, spitting when it identifies not blood, but something
distasteful.
BOOKIES drift among the spectators, taking bets with fists
full of cash.
CHARLIE
What are they betting on, Riley?
S
.
27.
RILEY
Red or Black. Who's gonna win the
fight.
CHARLIE
What fight? Stenches don't fight.
TOUT (O.S.)
They do when there's food.
The TOUT sidles over.
RILEY
What's on the menu today? Cat or
dog?
TOUT
I told you. Today it's something
new.
CLANG! Another gate opens in the cage. A hush falls as
everyone awaits what will come. Including the Dead Men, who
gaze with anticipation at the opening. What comes is...
..A WOMAN! Alive, badly bruised, her dress in tatters.
Despite tarnish, she still looks sexy. Last night she was a
hooker known as SLACK. Now she's meat in a lion cage.
RILEY
Jesus fucking Christ.
The gate SLAMS shut. The Dead Things walk toward the woman.
Riley rushes off. Charlie follows.
S
lack backs up, hits the wall of the cage and, terrified,
starts to circle its iron perimeter. The Dead Men flank her.
Black is the first to touch her. The crowd HOWLS.
lack's terror turns to determination. She punches Black
three times in the face. The Thing recoils as she glides out
of its grasp.
RILEY and CHARLIE reach the BRUISERS who took their weapons.
RILEY
Give us our guns.
BRUISER
(Handing over the weapons) You
leavin'?
Riley cocks his M-16.
T
28.
RILEY
In a little while.
In the ring, BLACK reaches for SLACK again. With one
lightning-fast move, she kicks it in the chest, sending it
flying into Red's arms. Red shoves Black aside.
Black makes another try for the woman. Red grabs its rival.
This time Black hangs on to Red's shirt. The two twirl around
in a staggering lampoon of a wrestling match.
Slack rushes to the side of the cage and starts to climb.
She's agile. Strong. But she almost falls as the cage SHAKES
with the force of...
...Red SLAMMING Black against the mesh.
On their way back through the arena, RILEY and CHARLEY push
through the crowd, trying to reach the center ring. A GOON
steps in front of them.
GOON
No guns in here!
Riley gives him a rifle butt in the face and moves on.
S
lack continues to climb the cage, almost out of reach, but
Black grabs one of her ankles, pulling her down and slamming
her to the ground.
Black hunkers, drooling, over Slack. As it is about to bite,
RAT-A-TAT! A short burst from Riley's M-16 shatters Black's
collarbone. Cheekbone. Skull. The Thing drops.
Red lunges for Slack. Riley kills it with another short BURST.
he crowd PANICS, stampeding toward the exit. Suddenly MORE
BULLETS FLY, this time from a GLOCK, FIRED by...
...CHIHUAHUA, who, in a rage, is pushing through the LEGS of
the fleeing crowd. He makes it to a clear spot and draws a
steady bead on a target...Charlie. Chihuahua pulls his
trigger. Riley beats him by an instant, FIRING the M-16.
Just as Chihuahua's gun GOES OFF...a LINE of BULLET HOLES
PERFORATES the little man's belly. The round from his Glock
misses Charlie completely.
Riley runs to the cage, where Slack stands, trembling, just
on the other side of the bars.
R
ILEY
You okay?
F
C
29.
She nods gratefully.
hihuahua is still on his feet. And now he is really pissed.
Not because of the holes in his gut, but because...
CHIHUAHUA
My suit! You fucked up my new suit!
Riley turns to Chihuahua, but doesn't have time to lift the
M-16 before...BLAM! The little man FIRES at him. Slack
delivers a powerful KICK into the flexible fencing, sending
Riley sprawling to the ground and saving him from...
...Chihuahua's round, which misses Riley...but HITS SLACK!
Spun around by the impact, she falls face down.
Chihuahua continues to FIRE. Riley Marine-crawls as bullets
PUNCH around him, SPARKING off the cage. Chihuahua keeps
coming, keeps FIRING, until...
...A SINGLE SHOT from Charlie's .45 shatters his skull. He
drops like a broken pinata.
Riley looks up, seeing TWO OTHER MEN with guns. Chihuahua's
GOONS. For a moment it seems as if a major shooting match is
going to break out. But before it does...
POLICEMAN (O.S.)
Hold it!
.
..FOUR POLICEMEN burst in. The Goons lower their weapons.
Riley runs back to the cage, BLASTS the lock on the nearest
gate, and rushes inside. Slack's body is lying on the floor.
He suspects she's dead. When her BODY MOVES, he suspects
worse. He plants the barrel of his M-16 against her temple.
SLACK
I'm alright, I'M ALRIGHT!
Slack uses her left arm to push herself up to a sitting
position. Her right arm is BLEEDING, up near the shoulder.
SLACK (CONT'D)
ucker got my right arm. I'm a lefty.
They look into each other's eyes.
RILEY
Seen you around.
SLACK
Seen you around.
Y
I
30.
A POLICEMAN steps over.
POLICEMAN
The hell happened here?
RILEY
Somebody shot the little fat man.
POLICEMAN
Yeah, I see that. You're under
arrest.
INT. BOARD ROOM - FIDDLER'S GREEN - DAY
41 41
A UNIFORMED GUARD leaves CHOLO in a PRISTINE WHITE conference
room with glass walls overlooking the rotting CITY far below.
Cholo sets the case of champagne and the box of Cohibas on a
conference table. A SMAN stands in SILHOUETTE at the windows.
ILHOUETTED MAN
How was Uniontown?
CHOLO
Dead.
SILHOUETTED MAN
Death intrudes on us even in the
Green, I'm afraid. I heard about
what happened with my neighbors.
I'm grateful for your help.
CHOLO
brought you back some presents.
Cholo opens the case of champagne. He pulls a bottle out,
untwists the wire, and uses his strong thumbs to pop the
cork. FOAM runs.
CHOLO (CONT'D)
ou probably want a glass, don't
you? Sure, a high-toned man likes
to drink out of a glass.
Cholo grabs a highball glass from a cupboard, pours champagne
into it, and brings it, overflowing, to the Silhouetted Man.
CHOLO
I got something else, too.
Cholo tears open the box of Cohibas. He picks up two cigars,
bites off the tips, puts one in his mouth, then, walking back
to the Silhouetted Man, puts the other in his mouth, lighting
them both with a wooden match that he strikes on his jeans.
F
31.
SILHOUETTED MAN
Thank you.
CHOLO
No, thank you! Twenty grand. That's
what I got comin' for last night. I
never bothered to pick it up.
S
ILHOUETTED MAN
You didn't?
CHOLO
Nope. I left it in the bank. Your
bank. With all my other dough.
rom all those other nights. I got
enough now to buy me a place.
SILHOUETTED MAN
You mean here? In the Green?
The Silhouetted Man steps away from the window. Expensively
dressed, in his early 60s, he is PAUL KAUFMAN. He sets down
the highball glass Cholo gave him, gets out a proper
champagne flute, and fills it from the bottle, smiling
politely at Cholo.
KAUFMAN
I'm sorry, Mister DeMora, but
there's a very long waiting list.
CHOLO
How long?
KAUFMAN
This is an extremely desirable
location. Space is limited.
CHOLO
You mean restricted.
KAUFMAN
Well, I do have a board of
directors, a membership committee
that has to approve...
A wave of incomparable sadness sweeps over Cholo's face.
C
HOLO
I guess it takes more than money to
become a "member".
(
Y
K
32.
KAUFMAN
Take my advice. Withdraw your funds
from the bank and spend them
somewhere else.
CHOLO
(Quietly) Don't do this to me. Don't
do this to me.
AUFMAN
I'm sorry, but...
CHOLO
No, no, no. Three years! Three
years I been cleaning up after you,
taking out your garbage, and you
tell me I'm not good enough? You're
the one who's no good. You are no
fucking good. And you are gonna let
me in. You know why? Because I know
what goes on around here. How many
of your fucking "members" know
what's in that garbage I take out
for you?
Cholo lunges at Kaufman, grabs him by the collar.
CHOLO (CONT'D)
OU'LL LET ME IN OR I'LL...
Cholo feels the barrel of a .45 against his waist. Kaufman,
who has drawn the pistol from his jacket, is still smiling.
KAUFMAN
Maybe we should talk about this
when you're less excited.
Kaufman presses a button under the table. THREE SECURITY
GUARDS rush in, GRAB Cholo, and drag him away. Kaufman stops
one of the guards at the door.
KAUFMAN (CONT'D)
Softly) I won't be needing this
man any more.
INT. STAIRWELL - FIDDLER'S GREEN - DAY
42 T 42
HE SECURITY GUARDS lead CHOLO down the stairs. Cholo WHIRLS
like a Ninja. He SLUGS one guard, kicks another in the groin,
the third in the face, and escapes through a fire door.
c
I
w
33.
INT/EXT. JAIL - AFTERNOON
43 43
RILEY RIPS off part of his shirt-sleeve and starts to bandage
the wound on SLACK'S arm. They are in a jail cell that has
brick walls and a small barred window facing a dark alley.
CHARLIE, stripped of all his guns, stares outside longingly.
RILEY
(To Slack) Why you? In that arena.
Why did the little fat man throw
you in with those things?
SLACK
It wasn't the little man. It was the
big man. The man upstairs. He's got
his fingers in everything down here.
If you can drink it, shoot it up,
fuck it, or gamble on it, it belongs
to him. He's just seein' that we get
a few cheap kicks so we don't go
thinkin' too hard about why he's
eating steak and the rest of us are
lucky to get the bones.
RILEY
Same question. Why you?
SLACK
They found out I was working with
Mulligan and his people. Tired of
eatin' off Cbones.
HARLIE
What can you do? Every place is the
same.
RILEY
Places with people. I'm gonna find
me a place where there ain't no
people. North. Canada.
SLACK
Wherever you're going, take me
ith you.
CHARLIE
He won't. Riley likes to be alone.
He might take me. Cuzz havin' me
around is pretty much the same as
bein' alone. (Glancing at Riley)
can make myself useful. And I
an shoot.
C
S
34.
SLACK
I can shoot. And I can be pretty
fucking useful. I had training. I
was gonna join the Army. Up the
Green. Till somebody figured I'd be
a better hooker than a soldier.
RILEY
I don't need to hear your story.
Everybody's got a story, and I'm
tired of hearin' them all!
SLACK
What's your story, Riley?
They look at each other, clearly attracted.
R
ILEY
I said everybody has a story. That
was wrong. I don't have one. Daddy
was a preacher. Mama kept the
house. School. Engineering. Nothing
bad ever happened to me...(turning
away)...till everything changed.
LACK
Everything changed for all of us.
Whether we had a story or not.
A SOUND outside the window. Charlie glances through the bars.
CHARLIE
Hey...
Riley and Slack look out the window. FOUR SECURITY MEN are
chasing MULLIGAN into the alley outside. They drive him like
an animal against a wall, club him, and drag him away.
RILEY
Mulligan.
RILEY instinctively reaches through the window's bars, but
there's nothing he can do. It's a helpless feeling.
HARLIE
What are they gonna do? Kill him?
SLACK
Not right away. First, they'll try
to get what they can out of him.
About people like me.
Riley puts his hand on her back.
g
t
35.
INT. BEDROOM - AFTERNOON
44 44
In a ratty bedroom, FOXY is wakened out of a snore by CHOLO.
CHOLO
We're taking the truck out. Get
he guys.
FOXY
Riley?
CHOLO
No, not him. Just the regular
uys. Know what I mean?
EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT
45 45
CRANE DOWN FROM A FADED SIGN, TONY'S AUTOMANIA, high above
what was once a car dealership, but is now a fenced-in DEPOT
full of VEHICLES. A huge WHITE FACE with black cartoon eyes
POPS into view, attached to a TEN-FOOT-TALL BODY emblazoned
TONY BALONEY. It's one of those vinyl ADVERTISING DUMMIES
that does the hula as air pumps through it. Tony's arms wave
wildly, like a giant zombie, comic yet oddly unnerving as...
BLAM! BLAM! Bullets hit it in the face and neck. GUS, a young
soldier, and his partner BARRETT, are shooting outside the
SALES OFFICE of the car-lot-turned-depot. A sign is printed
on the window. "BEST DEALS IN TOWN AND THAT'S NO BALONEY!"
B
ARRETT
(Handing Gus a five) You win. You
got him in the brain.
INT. SUBWAY TUNNEL - NIGHT
46 46
SCREECH! CHOLO pulls a CARGO CARRIER to a stop along the
platform of the tunnel. FOXY, PRETTY BOY, MOUSE, ANCHOR, and
SCAR, the youngest of the team, leap off the flatbed.
EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT
47 47
The steel doors under the "SUBWAY" sign open and CHOLO strides
out with his TEAM. A DEPOT GUARD steps forward as the doors
close and lock automatically behind them.
DEPOT GUARD
What's up, Cholo?
CHOLO
(Flashing an official-looking
paper) Takin' the truck out.
36.
DEPOT GUARD
You just got back in this morning.
CHOLO
Nobody gets a day off these days.
DEPOT GUARD
(Taking Cholo's paper) Hey, wait a
minute this is from yesterday.
CHOLO
(Keeping his cool) Oh, I must have
given you the wrong one. Here...
Cholo reaches down, but not into his pocket. For his gun.
Just before he draws it...SHOTS ring out.
CHOLO (CONT'D)
What's that?
DEPOT GUARD
Relax. Just target practise.
48 48
EXT. DEPOT - TONY'S AUTOMANIA SALES OFFICE - NIGHT
GUS
Double or nothing?
BARRETT
Sure.
GUS aims his rifle at the jerking head of TONY BALONEY. As he
is about to fire, there's a SOUND at his back.
GUS
Quit scratching around back there.
You're tryin' ta fuck up my aim.
BARRETT
I'm just standin' here. I'm not
doin' nothing.
The SOUND comes again. From the woods that adjoin the lot.
Barrett grabs the handles of a KLIEG LIGHT mounted on a pivot
and swings it so that it ILLUMINATES the tree-line.
T
here's nothing there. Nothing but BRANCHES being slapped by
erratic gusts of wind.
Barrett pivots the Klieg light back to its original position,
jumping out of his skin when the bright white beam reveals...
A DEAD THING within arm's length.
5
37.
Barrett FIRES! The dead thing DROPS OUT OF FRAME, REPLACED BY
ANOTHER. BLAM! Barrett SHOOTS again. This creature collapses.
It is also replaced by another, which is also shot, as...
BLAM! The top of Barrett's head is taken off by a rifle shot.
The rifle was fired by BIG DADDY. The barrel is still smoking.
In the darkness behind him stands NUMBER NINE. Behind Number
Nine are the SHUFFLING SHADOWS of many more dead things.
GUS SCREAMS.
EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT
49 49
CHOLO
What's that? Screaming practice?
GUNNER (O.S.)
Stenches! Jesus! They're all over
the place!
THE DEPOT GUARD turns and runs toward his men. CHOLO'S TEAM
unstraps weapons and gets ready for battle.
CHOLO
(Stopping them) Ain't our fight.
Stenches are making it easy for us.
C
Let's grab the truck.
HOLO and his team sprint across the lot to DEAD RECKONING.
A GUNNER at a machine-gun battery opens fire on the WALKERS.
Many of the rounds SPARK off the wire fencing.
0 50
INT. DEAD RECKONING NIGHT
CHOLO and his TEAM scramble into the vehicle.
FOXY
Should we send up some `sky flowers'?
CHOLO
No. Those things want to get in
here...let `em in.
EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT
51 51
THE WALKING DEAD march through MACHINE GUN FIRE behind their
"leader". BIG DADDY. He is the first to reach the fence
surrounding the lot. Pushing against the wire, he is soon
joined by NUMBER NINE. Then OTHERS. The FENCE COLLAPSES. The
Dead Things SWARM into the depot.
VROOOM! DEAD RECKONING pulls out. Rumbling over the section
of fencing the zombies pushed down, it drives into the night.
K
38.
SOLDIERS abandon their stations and scatter, shooting wildly.
NUMBER NINE knocks one of them cold with its baseball bat.
The soldier falls, losing his M-16. BIG DADDY grabs the bat
and throws it aside. Picking up the soldier's M-16, he
presses the weapon into Number Nine's hands, even arranging
Number Nine's fingers on the trigger.
RATATATAT. With the gun aimed at the ground, Number Nine
fires a BURST that sends her into a spastic dance. The
soldier sits back up. Draws a pistol. Big Daddy grabs the
barrel of the still-firing M-16 and guides it along the
pavement to...
...the soldier's legs. Bullets march up his groin, belly,
chest, and, finally, head. He drops.
ANOTHER SOLDIER attacks. This time, Number Nine aims her
weapon purposefully and scores a direct hit.
OTHER DEAD THINGS SMACK at the steel doors that lead down to
the subway. They can't get through. Losing interest, they
drift slowly away, until their attention is refocused by...
...a GRUNT from Big Daddy, who is gazing toward the GLOW of
the FIDDLER'S GREEN HIGH-RISE across the river, closer now
than before. The city. That's where he wants to be. That's
where he's determined to go.
INT. KAUFMAN PENTHOUSE - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT
52 52
KAUFMAN RIPS a TURKEY LEG off a cooked bird on a platter in
front of him and eats. Across the table sits one of his board
members, HARRISON SUTHERLAND. KNIPP enters.
KNIPP
Phone call, sir.
KAUFMAN
Thank you, Knipp. I'll take it.
Knipp brings a radio-phone to the table. Kaufman picks up the
receiver and lifts it to his ear.
KAUFMAN
Yes?
CHOLO (O.S.)
aufman?
Kaufman tenses, just enough for Sutherland to notice.
KAUFMAN
Ah. The one that got away.
S
39.
CHOLO (O.S.)
You said we should talk when I was
less excited. I'm a lot less
excited now.
KAUFMAN
What do you want, Mister DeMora?
5
INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT
3 53
CHOLO
I can't have a place in the Green,
fine. I'll go find another place.
But you know what I'm gonna need?
Money. I want my money out of your
bank. And I want the rest of the
money out of your bank. And if you
don't give it to me, I'm gonna blow
you out of your fuckin' ivory
tower. I've got Dead Reckoning.
INT. KAUFMAN PENTHOUSE - FIDDLER'S GREEN - NIGHT
54 54
KAUFMAN
That's unfortunate.
CHOLO (O.S.)
Put the money on a boat and send it
across the river to the South Side.
Tenth Street Pier. One man to drive
the boat, no more. You've got till
midnight. Four hours. I won't be
there. Dead Reckoning won't be
there. But I'll know if it happens.
I'll know if it doesn't happen.
CLICK! CHOLO hangs up.
UTHERLAND
Trouble?
KAUFMAN
In a world where the dead are
returning to life, the word
`trouble' loses much of its
meaning. (Beat) He wants money.
SUTHERLAND
Pay him.
KAUFMAN
We don't negotiate with terrorists.
There are other options.
K
40.
INT. JAIL - NIGHT
55 55
CLANG! A FIDDLER'S GREEN SECURITY GUARD opens a cell door.
S
ECURITY GUARD
Which one of you is Denbo?
RILEY, CHARLIE, and SLACK exchange glances. What now?
INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN BOARDROOM - NIGHT
56 56
KAUFMAN sips a Scotch. SUTHERLAND is present, with a middle-
aged board member named CHANDLER STYLES and CLIFF WOODS, who
is young and ambitious. All of them are nervous, pacing. A
door opens and RILEY is ushered into the room.
KAUFMAN
Mister Denbo. Come in. Can I offer
you a drink?
RILEY
I don't drink.
KAUFMAN
Well, then...please sit down.
RILEY
Nobody else is sitting. I think
I'll just stand here, like the
rest of you. While you tell me
why I'm standing here.
AUFMAN
We need you to repossess a vehicle
that belongs to us. The vehicle you
designed, Mister Denbo. Dead
Reckoning has been stolen. By your
second in command. I want him
captured. Or killed. And I want my
two-million-dollar piece of
equipment returned.
R
ILEY
The truck.
KAUFMAN
Which has guns. Big guns. That
could do a great deal of damage if
he were to aim them at this city.
RILEY
Why don't you just send out your
troops?
C
H
41.
KAUFMAN
I don't want to lose them. I could
send five hundred men against that
thing and they'd all come back in
body bags. It's your vehicle. Cholo
was your man. You might be able to
get close enough to...do what has
to be done. (Refilling his scotch)
Do this for me and I'll grant you
something in return. Residence in
the Green.
RILEY
Not me. That's what Cholo wanted,
and you didn't give it to him, did
you? That's why he's out there
waving a cannon at your ass.
Kaufman won't admit that Riley's right, but he looks at him
with a glimmer of respect.
RILEY (CONT'D)
Give me one of those vehicles, over
in the depot, weapons, and enough
ammunition to go north.
KAUFMAN
But...there's nothing up north.
RILEY
That's the idea.
KAUFMAN
Alright. You've named your price.
An easy one to pay.
R
ILEY
One more thing. My friends. They
go with me.
KAUFMAN
Take them.
e looks at Riley, a hint of desperation behind his eyes.
KAUFMAN (CONT'D)
an you find Dead Reckoning?
Quickly?
RILEY
How quickly?
42.
KAUFMAN
By midnight.
RILEY
I have a way.
EXT. INDUSTRIAL STREET - NIGHT
57 57
DEAD RECKONING RUMBLES along a dark street, plowing into a
DERELICT CAR, knocking it aside and rolling it down a small
embankment, pinning THREE DEAD THINGS beneath.
INT. DEAD RECKONING - NIGHT
58 58
CHOLO'S TEAM laughs raucously at the fate of the zombies.
CHOLO
(Tense) Knock it off!
EXT. INDUSTRIAL STREET - NIGHT
59 59
BIG DADDY steps out of the darkness, watching the lights of
DEAD RECKONING recede. He hears desperate SQUEALING coming
from under the toppled car.
He lumbers down the embankment. Pushes on one of the upturned
tires. He can't turn the car by himself. He looks back to the
road. Grunts.
NUMBER NINE and OTHERS OF BIG DADDY'S GATHERING FORCE hurry
to the car. They push. The car rolls over, freeing THE THREE
DEAD THINGS. One of them used to be a BUTCHER. Still wearing
a blood-stained apron, carrying a meat cleaver, he looks at
Big Daddy with something resembling gratitude.
INT. FIDDLER'S GREEN WEAPONS STORAGE - NIGHT
60 60
SOLDIERS pass out monster weapons to RILEY, CHARLIE, and
SLACK. Riley straps on a K-90. Charlie turns one down.
CHARLIE
I like the iron I already got.
SOLDIER
This piece fires fourteen rounds
a second.
Charlie unstraps his own REMINGTON. A la Sergeant York, he
licks his thumb. Wets the sight. And BLASTS a COCKROACH
climbing on a wall twenty feet away.
C
HARLIE
I don't norm'ly need fourteen rounds.
M
K
C
T
43.
SLACK
I'll take that gun.
SOLDIER
Can you handle it?
SLACK
Better'n you. The safety's off.
he Soldier checks the gun. The safety is off. He clicks
it on and embarrassedly hands the weapon to Slack.
RILEY
(To Slack and Charlie) You guys
don't have to come out with me if
you don't want to.
Slack ties her hair back with a bandana. Checks her gun clip.
SLACK
I'd feel like a dick if I didn't.
HARLIE
Me too. Just look at me you can
tell I'd feel like a dick.
SLACK
Some shit, ain't it? Goin' out to
save a place we don't give a fuck
about.
RILEY
It's not the place. It's the people
in it.
AUFMAN (O.S.)
Mister Denbo.
Riley turns. KAUFMAN and SUTHERLAND enter with several OTHERS.
KAUFMAN (CONT'D)
Your friends are going out with
you. I want some of my friends to
go along, as well. (Turning)
anolete.
AN HISPANIC MAN steps forward.
MANOLETE
That's how I am called...Manolete.
After the bullfighter.
6
m
(
P
44.
KAUFMAN
Teahouse.
TEAHOUSE steps forward. A mean-looking Asian right out of
Mortal Kombat. He joins his hands, as if in prayer, and bows.
KAUFMAN (CONT'D)
illsbury.
P
ILLSBURY is a woman, a Sumo-sized Samoan, six hundred pounds
and seven feet tall, swaggering, decked out in a clatter of
fighting gear.
SLACK (CONT'D)
Impressed) Damn.
Pillsbury speaks with a voice as deep as the Mindanao trench.
PILLSBURY
I come here to do sumthin'. Not
stann aroun'. Why we stann aroun'?
Less go do sumthin'.
61 61
EXT. 10TH STREET PIER - NIGHT
A LONG DOCK juts into the RIVER. DEAD RECKONING stops beside
it. MOUSE jumps out. CHOLO stands in an open hatch.
MOUSE
(Looking around nervously) Don't
leave me alone here long.
CHOLO
At midnight. Give me a call. Let
e know if we're rich or not.
Mouse nods, running off to hide in a BOAT SHED.
EXT. DEPOT - NIGHT
2 62
The steel doors to the subway tunnel open. RILEY and his TEAM
step out. The depot has been DEVASTATED. FIRES BURNING.
FENCES DOWN. Only TONY BALONEY moves, still waving spookily.
C
HARLIE
Geez. Cholo made a mess.
RILEY
Cholo didn't do all this.
Clouds of thick black SMOKE from the fires BILLOW across the
depot, restricting visibility. Ever-shifting OPENINGS in the
clouds reveal glimpses of torn BODY PARTS.
45.
RILEY (CONT'D)
Stenches have been at this place.
He leads the way into the depot, his M-16 at the ready.
Behind him, all eyes peer nervously into the smoke. Everyone
speaks in HUSHED tones.