"High Alert" An Original Screenplay by Michael Barrie & Jim Mulholland

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"HIGH ALERT" FADE IN: The majestic New York skyline on a hazy summer day. The sun glints off the polished silver surfaces of The Empire State and Chrysler buildings.

WIDEN as we hear a radio quickly tuning from station to station.

WWRL TRAFFIC REPORT It's getaway day! But according to Captain Felipe' in Chopper Copter One, traffic is surprisingly light...

TRAFFIC Total gridlock heading out of the city. Various shots of bridges, tunnels and major arteries at a standstill.

WINS NEWSMAN ...As the July 4th holiday gets underway, a chilling new terrortape surfaces threatening a spectacular attack-WOR ANCHORWOMAN --Homeland Security now raising the threat level from yellow to-EXT. MANHATTAN SKYLINE - DAY A sleek private helicopter roars into FRAME. On its side is a big gold "P" logo.

INT. SPELLMAN PRENTISS' HELICOPTER - DAY BILLIONAIRE DEVELOPER SPELLMAN PRENTISS, looks at the traffic snarl a thousand feet below and smiles. Accompanying him in back is his girlfriend, SUPERMODEL SVETLANA PUCHENEVSKOV, 22.

PRENTISS It must be tough being everyone else...

SVETLANA Thank God you're not, darling.

PRENTISS (to pilot) Gun it -- I hate looking at traffic.

2.

EXT. BOGGS ISLAND FERRY - MONTAUK, LONG ISLAND - AFTERNOON A sign posts the ferry schedule. New Yorkers in summer attire wait impatiently in the hot sun to escape the city. A SECURITY GUARD searches bags prior to boarding. A bottle of expensive perfume is confiscated from a bejeweled TYPE-A PERSONALITY NEW YORKER in her 50's(JOY BURKHART), who carries a small Chihuahua in her shoulder bag.

JOY I just bought that! It's Coco Chanel! It was ninety bucks!

GUARD Sorry, over three ounces.

JOY (to others on line) It's a scam! They divvy it all up later...

GUARD (to crowd) You must be holding a boarding ticket for Boggs Island.

EXT. SKY The helicopter approaches the T-Bone steak-shaped Boggs Island, 12 miles off the eastern tip of Long Island.

INT. SPELLMAN PRENTISS' HELICOPTER - DAY PRENTISS Check it out, baby. Some of the last undeveloped real estate in the New York area.

From their POV we see the island, a mix of natural beauty and luxury homes.

EXT. DUNE ROAD - BOGGS ISLAND - DAY ELDON SPOOLE, a bearded, older eccentric, peddles a rickety bike through the bucolic island wetlands while singing to himself. He passes wildflowers in bloom, rugged stone walls & thickets of huckleberries.

SPOOLE (singing) Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer ... those days of soda... something else, and beer...

The tranquil scene is shattered by the thunderous sound of the Prentiss chopper coming in low. Spoole looks up and shakes his fist angrily, then continues on his way.

3.

EXT. BOGGS ISLAND - FERRY LANDING - DAY The ferry is unloading the upscale weekenders.

Eldon Spoole walks by with his bicycle. A rich jerk on a Segway transporter nearly knocks him down.

A SHARE-HOUSE SINGLE GUY struts down the street talking loudly on his wireless blue-tooth earpiece.

SHARE-HOUSE SINGLE GUY Dude, we'll party & relax! Yeah?

How's the bod? I don't have a problem with fake. Wait... You're breaking up. Hello?

He starts to dart around erratically to get better reception.

Eldon LOOKS at him in disgust, walks on.

EXT. IF YOU KNEW SUSHI - BOGGS ISLAND MARINA - DAY PATIO DINERS eye the passing parade of leggy babes, buff boys and clueless tourists. TWO GAY MEN sit at an outdoor table sipping $15 espresso martinis. They are the fading singersongwriter SIR HUGO VANCE, and his lyricist IAN LIVELY, former lovers, now merely bitchy collaborators.

HUGO ...I'll never get back on the charts, Eenie. They're dominated by angst-ridden pop-tart "girl" singers.

IAN Chin up, darling. Our style of music will come back.

HUGO Hopefully while I'm still alive.

Hugo's designer cell phone trills, "Rule Britannia" and he checks the Caller ID. Cringing, he puts phone aside on table.

HUGO (CONT'D) Eww, It's Chad ... that waiter from Ubu. Was I really that drunk!

IAN Let's go, Hugo. We came here to work without interruptions.

HUGO You're a bore, Ian. ever see in you?

What did I

4.

IAN A talent for overlooking your character flaws. Now drink up and stop being a diva.

As Sir Hugo & Ian down their drinks; Spoole walks by, stares angrily at them.

HUGO Our fan-base.

A TEN-YEAR OLD with a disposable Kodak rushes up to Sir Hugo and snaps a flash in his eyes, temporarily blinding him. The child runs back to his mother.

HUGO (CONT'D) (in pain) Ahh! My corneas have been panseared! Little bastard.

They start to go.

HUGO(CONT'D) Eenie, have you seen my cell phone?

EXT. SEAPORT SHOPPING PROMENADE - AFTERNOON The new Shopping Promenade, replacing the old fish market.

Parked here is a van with bold lettering on its side: "Global Network News: There When It Counts."

Doing a Barbara Walters-style "stroll & chat," is FAYE SUMMERFIELD, a once-rising network news star, now banished to GNN's weekly cable magazine show "24/7." Faye is interviewing THE FISHER TWINS, KAYLEE & KERA, the tabloid "heir-heads" of a fish stick fortune. Videotaping the proceedings is veteran cameraman BERNIE LOMAX. FAYE ...So, Kaylee, you're summering on Boggs to recover from your break-up with shipping heir Stavros Pagakopolos. How are you coping?

BERNIE'S POV: VIEWFINDER VIDEO. KAYLEE At first I was like so bummed...

Faye nods, feigning empathy and casts a quick "How low have I sunk?" look at Bernie.

5.

KAYLEE (CONT'D) ...But then I was talking with my nutritionist, Kenny -- he's like major-ly deep -- he totally cured my depression with these like herbal remedies --and he said, "Kaylee, fill the void with something you love." So I've thrown myself into very serious shopping...

KERA Kaylee, look at that cute blouse!

KAYLEE I saw it first!

They run into a pricey boutique.

FAYE (into camera, forces chuckle) ...and they're off... Kera & Kaylee Fisher, acting like any other pair of 19-year olds who just happen to have five hundred million dollars each. When I first met the twins-Just then, Eldon Spoole leans into the shot.

SPOOLE (into camera) Wise up, before it's too late.

BERNIE (stops taping) Sir, do you mind-FAYE (testily, to local cops) Andy, Barney... can one of you take this gentleman out of here?

Trying to hold the curious public at bay is POLICE CHIEF RUPERT "RUPE" MAJESKI. Rupe is a laid-back, lifelong resident of the island. By his side, is OFFICER CORDIE OAKES. Cordie, once tried to make it as a professional football player, but peaked with his name.

RUPE I'm on it, News Lady.

Spoole...

C'mon, Mr.

SPOOLE Afraid to hear the truth?

6.

RUPE (to Spoole) They're taping a segment for that news show: "24/7." That's Faye Summerfield.

SPOOLE (squints) Never heard of her.

FAYE Really? My Katrina coverage was up for a Peabody.

RUPE Let's find your bike... (to Faye) Spoole's harmless. Used to teach high school here.

FAYE (smiles) Fascinating.

She crosses to Bernie outside pricey boutique.

FAYE (CONT'D) It's official. I've hit rock bottom.

BERNIE As rock bottoms go, this isn't so bad, Faye.

FAYE I should be covering Iraq, Darfur-not the airhead heiresses.

BERNIE Kaylee tells me she has an IQ of 140.

FAYE That's her blood-alcohol level.

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - AFTERNOON Like the rest of town, Harbor Square is decorated with patriotic flags and bunting for the annual Fourth of July celebration. A huge banner overhead reads, "Spellman Prentiss presents: The 32nd Annual Boggsapalooza."

Coordinating the preparations is 24-year old Prentiss apprentice KIEFER UPSHAW.

7.

KIEFER (into headset) Yes, powdered wigs for all the waiters... (calls off) Stacy, call me as soon as Kenny G checks in.

ACTOR DAVID CARUSO, star of "CSI: Miami," clutching a typed page, bounds on-stage.

CARUSO You want cuts in the Gettysburg Address? It's already a masterpiece of brevity.

KIEFER Not cuts, Mr. Caruso, trims.

Here's a fer-instance: (grabs speech, reads) Four score, blah, blah, blah... The world will little note nor long remember what we say here... Then why say it?

CARUSO You're an idiot.

Caruso walks off...

KIEFER (to stage hand) He has a reputation for being difficult.

Kiefer's cell phone trills.

KIEFER (CONT'D) (into his headset) Kiefer Upshaw ...what do you mean, Cirque De Flambe fell out? Not acceptable, Tishman, they're my opening act!

INT. TISHMAN TALENT AGENCY - QUEENS, NY - DAY JULES TISHMAN, sole employee of TTA. TISHMAN It's this High Alert business...

Lufthansa wouldn't let the fireeater on the plane.

Tishman is already going through 3 files labeled: Hot, Not So Hot, Feh. So far everyone's yellow sticky labeled, "booked."

INTERCUT:

8.

KIEFER This is a Spellman Prentiss event.

Money is no object.

TISHMAN (heavenward) Thank you!

Tishman opens the "Feh" file and takes out an 8x10 glossy of MAJEEQ: five young Middle Eastern men in black tights & headbands forming an elaborate human pyramid. They're available.

KIEFER Somebody just as good?

Majeeq? Who's Majeeq!

Who?

EXT. MONTAUK POINT - BOGGS ISLAND FERRY LANDING - DUSK A beat-up van screeches into the lot next to the pier. On its side is the large painted logo for "Majeeq." The doors open and FIVE MOROCCANS pile out.

THE FERRY is just pulling away as the Moroccans reach the dock.

A ruddy-faced Irish FERRY MASTER chains up the gangplank.

THE MOROCCANS yelling in Arabic for the Ferry to wait ... but it continues out toward the island. The leader of the group, HAZI, rushes over to the FERRY MASTER. HAZI Please, Mr. Ferryman! Is most highly necessary that we get to the Boggs Island. We have big gig.

The others nod, parroting Hazi: "Big gig! Big gig!" shushes them.

FERRY MASTER Yeah, well it's most highly necessary I get home for supper.

ALI Uncle, show him review!

HAZI (takes a folded news clipping from wallet) We get boffo write-up from big showbiz paper. (reads) (MORE)

Hazi

9.

HAZI (CONT'D) "...young & old alike were enthralled by the tumbling skills of this merry Moroccan troupe..."

Is us!

They assume a merry pose.

FERRY MASTER Next ferry tomorrow, seven a.m.! (walks off) SHOT OF MISSED FERRY DISAPPEARING ON THE HORIZON REVERSE on MAJEEQ.

They consist of:

Hazi, their protective leader & road manger; ALI, Hazi's 19year old nephew who loves anything American; FARUQ, bearded, bespectacled & devout; JAKEEM, a reformed pickpocket with nicotine-stained teeth; BASSAM, a massive bear of a man who speaks no English. He carries a large black trunk with decorative Arabic symbols on it. In Arabic, with English subtitles: FARUQ Now we sleep in the gutter like dogs? This is a big humiliation!

HAZI Everything with you is a big humiliation. Chill out.

ALI Hazi ... you promised we would be on the island tonight, meeting blonde ladies.

JAKEEM Yes, we want to go to hot island night holes...

HAZI Stop, I can't listen to myself think! Hazi Hasood always has backup plan.

EXT. FRED'S BOAT RENTALS - MONTAUK POINT, LONG ISLAND - DUSK The SURFER DUDE BOAT RENTAL GUY is exasperated as Hazi bargains with him.

HAZI Seventy-five dollar, and is bottom of my offer.

BOAT RENTAL GUY You can bargain all you want, man, it's still a hundred bucks.

10.

The Moroccans huddle, chatter furiously in Arabic. emerges from the huddle, smiles.

Hazi

HAZI You driving me to a strong bargain, which I respect. So my associates and we are willing to pay eightyone dollar.

BOAT RENTAL GUY You're a piece of work, man...

HAZI Thank you very much. (to others, proudly) I am piece of work.

EXT. FRED'S BOAT RENTALS - MOMENTS LATER The acrobats are in a small boat with a ten horsepower outboard motor. The prop trunk takes up most of the space.

Hazi speaks to the American in English.

BOAT RENTAL GUY Dude, you've handled one of these before?

HAZI Oh, yes, dude, I am sea-fearing man from longtime hence.

FARUQ (in Arabic, English subtitle) He's lived his whole life in the desert.

HAZI I know everything about boats is to know. This is starboard, and this is, uh, backward.

BOAT RENTAL GUY (points to island) See those lights, dudes? That's the Landing. Follow the lights ... but look out for the shoals -they're way hairy.

The Boat Rental Guy unties the boat and Hazi pulls cord to start motor. Nothing. Pulls it again. Nothing.

HAZI (embarrassed) Excuse, please. Different from boat in my country.

11.

Pulls cord again, it catches and the boat lurches forward.

Hazi falls back on the seat, hard.

As the Moroccans wave happily...

HAZI (CONT'D) (to others, proudly) Ninety seven dollar! He never knew what hitting him.

EXT. TOWN HALL - BOGGS LANDING - DUSK This proud Victorian Hall is one of the few remaining landmarks of the old Boggs Island. A handful of locals are picketing with signs that read: "NO to Prentiss Grand Royal Estates," "Stop Prentiss," etc.

INT. TOWN HALL - DUSK Locals & moneyed newcomers watch a slick CGI video presentation for a proposed large-scale gated community.

On stage is real-estate tycoon & self-promoting loudmouth Spellman Prentiss; Boggs Landing's pro-development Mayor, ROMAN HEATHERLY; & the MEMBERS OF THE TOWN COUNCIL. Master of multi-tasking, Kiefer Upshaw, narrates the film into a mike.

KIEFER ...Pamper yourself at our worldclass day spa and fitness center ... unwind on the 18-hole Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course.

Prentiss Grand Royal Estates will be an extremely secure and prestigious lifestyle that only a Spellman Prentiss could create.

And all starting in the low four millions. Available soon, on the new, "B.I." The traditional Boggs Island nautical logo animates into, the hipper initials; "The B.I." The lights come up. Boos from the anti-development faction; cheers from Prentiss loyalists.

Mayor Heatherly steps up to the mike.

HEATHERLY Wow. Was that a presentation? The virtual tour of the sauna was so realistic, I lost three pounds!

No response.

12.

HEATHERLY (CONT'D) Now we've called this public hearing to consider a few little zone variances requested by Prentiss Development-JESSAMINE FLEMING, 28, jumps to her feet.

We object!

JESSIE

A lifelong islander, the beautiful Jessie heads the Boggs Island Conservancy. Sitting with her is a handful of hardline preservationists who cheer her on.

HEATHERLY (wearily) The chair recognizes Jessie Fleming.

JESSIE We object to the scheduling of this hearing on a holiday weekend to limit turnout.

HEATHERLY That's a cheap shot, Jess.

JESSIE It's the only cheap thing left on this island, thanks to you!

PRENTISS She's very quick. And a looker.

HEATHERLY People ... development is good.

Development is our friend. What were we before? A sleepy little fishing village without the Gap. What kind of way is that to live?

Now New York Magazine calls us "the next Hamptons." ("boos" from crowd) All thanks to Spellman Prentiss ... only he's just too modest to tell you.

PRENTISS He's wrong about that!

The Town Council members chuckle. them.

Prentiss rises, addresses

PRENTISS (CONT'D) And don't forget, I put up the coin for the new ferry.

(MORE)

13.

PRENTISS (CONT'D) And you couldn't even use a damn cell phone on this crummy island till I built the tower.

JESSIE You mean the one that electrocutes migrating birds?

PRENTISS There's plenty of birds, they're all over the place.

JESSIE That development is going to destroy the wetlands -- the last sanctuary for the Boggs Frog -- a federally protected amphibian.

Holds up a 8x10 glossy photo of a cute, colorful frog.

PRENTISS Oh, the "Boggs Frog?" Show me one.

C'mon, it's like the tooth fairy.

JESSIE It's real, and we'll find it. bye-bye Prentiss Estates.

Then

Angry locals cheer.

PRENTISS Take your best shot, honey.

HEATHERLY Okay, then if there's no further objection, the request for variance will pass-He gavels as locals boo & jeer.

EXT. POINT GRIMM - BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - SUNSET The Point Grimm lighthouse (c. 1891), on a hilltop, decommissioned and converted to an upscale modern residence in 2006. We hear an upbeat female newscaster on a TV. NEWSCASTER(O.S.) ...Your fabric softener may be killing you ... and our own Dr. Sachit Katka shows you what to do in the event of a radiological attack!

14.

INT. JOY'S BEDROOM - BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - DUSK We're at the very top of the lighthouse. Joy Burkhart, (who we first met at the ferry) holds her CHIHUAHUA in one hand, a cordless phone in the other. She anxiously paces around her chic circular bedroom.

JOY (into cordless) Morty, I'm alone on this godforsaken island during a high alert!

ON TV SCREEN - GNN NEWS Weekend anchor-babe KIM FROST, 25, is interviewing North East Director of Homeland Security, CHARLES A. DYER, a balding nondescript bureaucrat with a calm and reassuring demeanor.

SUPER: Charles A. Dyer, North East Director of Homeland Security.

DYER (matter-of-factly) ...Kim, as we all know we're in an ongoing war with a faceless, remorseless network of evil that can perpetrate a deadly strike anywhere, any time.

JOY (into phone) The morning ferry? You mean I'm stuck in this tower again like Rapunzel?

Clicks off, tosses phone on the bed. She then pours a tall glass of cabernet to steady her nerves.

JOY (CONT'D) (to dog) It's you and me again, Chu-Chu. wish you drank.

I

KIM FROST (swivels into camera) When we come back: Is that glass of red wine a day giving you cancer?

She drops her wine glass in horror on white rug.

EXT. LONG ISLAND SOUND - NIGHT The outboard has stalled on the small boat. Hazi keeps pulling the cord but it won't start; they continue to drift.

They speak in Arabic, subtitled in English.

15.

FARUQ We're lost at sea!

Stay calm. are.

Where?

HAZI I know exactly where we JAKEEM

HAZI Here in the fog!

FARUQ That infidel rented us a bad boat on purpose.

HAZI Bassam, row... that way.

Bassam starts to row with small emergency oar.

INT. UBU - BAR - NIGHT The can't-get-a-reservation-unless-you're-famous creation of Egon Ubu. We WEAVE through the bar crush.

A TABLE IN BAR AREA Faye & Bernie sit drinking martinis while they watch Kera & Kaylee writhe suggestively on the dance floor.

FAYE Let's murder them both -- at least that would be news... (she drains her martini) BERNIE This is the new news: sex and money. (she knocks back drink) Go easy, Faye, you're up early tomorrow and on camera...

FAYE I was the first woman to report from Kabul... and in a burqa!

Waiter, two more martinis! (to Bernie) What are you having?

EXT. POINT GRIMM - NIGHT Hopelessly adrift in Boggs Fog near the rocky, remote east end of the island. They speak in Arabic with English subtitles.

16.

FARUQ I need to pray, which way is Mecca?

The others point in four different directions.

ALI (squints through fog) I think I see a light!

HAZI That's Jakeem's cigarette.

EXT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - SUNRISE The fog is lifting.

INT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS Joy, sleeping fitfully, wears blinders. The TV is still on GNN from the night before. Christie Brinkley & Chuck Norris hawk their Total Gym Workout.

EXT. POINT GRIMM - DAWN The Moroccans are in the boat, drifting, asleep. jolted awake by a loud thud.

They are

HAZI (in Arabic) Land! Land! (looks down) No, water! Water!

The acrobats are shouting as the boat quickly sinks.

INT. BURKHART'S LIGHTHOUSE - DAWN The Chihuahua barks, jumps off the bed. Joy, stirs, goes back to sleep. A "raise Alpacas at home" infomercial now plays in the b.g.

EXT. POINT GRIMM - BEACH - DAWN The exhausted acrobats wade ashore on the beach below the lighthouse, still speaking in Arabic, with subtitles.

FARUQ Good navigating, Captain.

HAZI Enough, Faruq. We made it to the island, didn't we?

FARUQ But what island is it?

Sardinia.

It could be

17.

JAKEEM Where is the town? The lights?

The boats? The blonde ladies?

HAZI Where is the trunk?

We see the trunk bobbing in the water.

HAZI (CONT'D) Quick, Bassam!

Bassam runs into the surf after it.

CLOSE ON THEIR DECORATIVE TRUNK Bassam opens it and checks its contents: props, black spandex costumes, Indian clubs, colorful juggling balls, a boom box etc.

HAZI (CONT'D) Props are dry, show goes on!

JAKEEM (pointing up) Hazi, what is this structure?

They look up at the lighthouse towering over them.

HAZI It is grain silo! will help. Come!

Maybe farmer

HILLSIDE - DAWN The acrobats climb the steep hillside toward the lighthouse.

INT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - DAWN Chu-Chu is yapping furiously. Joy finally gets up and waddles over to the window wiping sleep from her eyes.

JOY Why do those gardeners have to come so early?

On TV, we see the tail-end of a terrorist video with a ranting al-Qaeda mullah threatening the U.S. on the Fourth.

INT. GNN STUDIO - CONTINUOUS A RETIRED GENERAL is being interviewed by Kim Frost.

18.

KIM FROST How worried should we be, General, about this latest video from alQaeda?

RETIRED GENERAL (gravely to camera) ...Very worried. The terrorists would love nothing more than to strike at us on our nation's birthday...

Joy looks out the window, then grabs binoculars. door on to circular observation balcony.

She opens

EXT. LIGHTHOUSE BALCONY - CONTINUOUS With her nightgown flowing in the wind she looks like the ghost of the haunted lighthouse. She focuses the binoculars.

JOY'S POV - THROUGH THE BINOCULARS Now in focus are five Arabs, coming up over the ridge, single file. One is carrying a large trunk.

JOY Oh ... my ... God. INT. BURKHART'S LIGHTHOUSE - DAWN She runs back in, shuts the balcony door closed and locks it.

JOY They're here.

SPIRAL STAIRCASE - OVERHEAD SHOT Joy, frightened, clutching her dog, tears ass down the spiral staircase in her feathered mules.

BOTTOM OF STAIRCASE Reeling from dizziness, she staggers to the front door, sets the dog down and looks through the peephole.

JOY'S POV as she sees the Arabs heading right towards her.

She quickly bolts the door and hits the floor.

EXT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS The acrobats walk up to the front door. Bassam carefully sets down the prop trunk. The Chihuahua barks & scratches.

19.

BASSAM (smiles, in Arabic) Doggie.

INT. BURHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - MORNING Joy cowering behind the door, tries to muzzle the dog with her hand. She looks, sees cell phone on a coffee table.

She starts to crawl toward it.

EXT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS Hazi walks around, peeks in the window.

INT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS We see Hazi peek in, doesn't see Joy cowering right below.

She backs off.

EXT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - FRONT DOOR - CONTINUOUS HAZI (in English) From now on, we speak English only - to be melting in. Agreed?

They all respond affirmatively, in Arabic.

HAZI (CONT'D) I will do talking. I speak the most fluidly.

Hazi raps on the door with the huge brass door-knocker in the shape of an anchor.

HAZI (CONT'D) Hello, please, good morning? Yes? We are lost-ed and in need of emergency insistence.

No response.

ALI Let me try, Uncle.

Pulls out soggy phrase book.

ALI (CONT'D) (reads loudly) Can you direct me to nearest disco? (to Hazi) Nobody home.

HAZI (points to Ali's head) Up here nobody home!

20.

INT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS It's quiet for a moment. Joy peeks out through the window, sees the acrobats huddled, talking. She ducks down again as she hears a cell phone's Arabic-sounding ring tone outside.

This prompts her to reach for her own cell phone on the nearby coffee table. As she flips it open...

EXT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS Hazi digs his ringing cell phone out of a zippered pocket in his wet parka.

INSERT: Phone's Caller ID: Tishman Talent - 718-555-4711 HAZI (excited, shouts to men) Is agent! (into phone) Hello, please.

INT. TISHMAN'S BEDROOM - MORNING Tishman in his underwear.

Hello? going?

TISHMAN Can you hear me?

How's it

INTERCUT: HAZI (loudly, into phone) We arriving on island, everything go very smoothly...

Faruq rolls his eyes.

INT. LIGHTHOUSE - MORNING Joy's fumbling with her cell phone menu. She finds the videocamera icon and presses "select."

TISHMAN'S BEDROOM - MORNING TISHMAN Now remember, check in with a guy named Kiefer Upshaw. Don't blow this, I stuck my neck out for you guys... you gotta kill tonight!

EXT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS We see Joy's trembling hand through the window holding her cell phone camera.

21.

HAZI Oh, for sure, we will kill the people!

Bassam parrots Hazi: "Kill the people .... Kill the people..."

INT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS Joy, video-ing while listening, is wide-eyed with terror.

EXT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS HAZI (into phone) We will slay them good! Yes, nine o'clock tonight, Boggs Landing.

Will be spectacular! They will not soon forget us.

TISHMAN Listen, Hazi, a lot of big names live on that island ... producers, network honchos... they like you, you could end up shooting a pilot...

HAZI (very excited) We LOVE to shoot a pilot! (winks and gives thumbs up to boys) INT. LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS Joy's face contorts in horror. goes dead with a loud "beep."

Then her cell phone battery

INT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS Joy whimpers. She looks toward land-line phone and crawls rapidly toward it on her hands and knees.

EXT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS HAZI Hokay! To Boggs Landing -- and success!

They all awkwardly high five.

The acrobats head down the gravel walk as Jakeem juggles some colorful sponge balls.

INT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - MORNING Joy grabs phone, punches in 911.

She gets a recorded voice:

22.

RECORDED VOICE This is the Boggs Island Emergency Line...

JOY Help! Call the army, call the President-RECORDED VOICE Please listen carefully, because the options have changed. If we missed your regular garbage pickup, press one...

EXT. BOGGS ISLAND P.D. - MORNING A small, laid-back storefront police station.

CORDIE (O.S.) It's the big holiday weekend, guys..

INT. BOGGS ISLAND P.D. - CONTINUOUS Cordie, spins a football in his hands while he gives the morning briefing to TWO PART-TIME COPS: ZANICKI & BAILEY. CORDIE ...so you gotta look out for what I call The Unholy Three: alcohol, fireworks, and public urination.

DALE BELDON, a 17-year old townie delivery boy enters holding muffins & coffee.

MARLA DAVIS, the dispatcher, smiles at him.

MARLA Hi, Dale, one second-(answers call on headset) Boggs Island Emergency.

Even we can hear Joy on Marla's headset.

MARLA (CONT'D) I can't understand you, calm down, Mrs. Burkhart.

DALE Twelve-ninety five, Marla.

Marla holds up her hand to silence Dale.

MARLA Did you say terrorists?

Dale's eyes widen.

23.

INT. VICKIE'S DINER - MORNING Bernie is sitting at the counter with a high cholesterol breakfast in front of him. He's flirting with a semiattractive COUNTERWOMAN. BERNIE I love a roadhouse breakfast -- I spent 9 years on the road with Charlie Kurault.

She stares at him blankly, chewing gum.

BERNIE (CONT'D) (off her blank stare) Charlie Kurault? How soon they forget.

Dale runs in out of breath.

DALE Terrorists! They landed out at the point -- and they gotta a suitcase nuke!

Various customers rush him; Bernie pushes through crowd through showing his press ID card.

BERNIE (to Dale) GNN news, kid, settle down. happened?

What

DALE Boy, you people are fast.

EXT. DUNE ROAD - MORNING Bassam lags behind carrying the prop trunk as Majeeq marches along this two-lane blacktop road, no one in sight for miles.

HAZI & JAKEEM HAZI Look for natives to ask direction.

American people love to help foreigners.

JAKEEM Maybe tonight at show I will be discovered for movie-pictures... (bad Nicholson impression) You can't handle de troot! (then, as Pacino) No, you out of order!!

24.

HAZI (impressed) You good!

ALI & BASSAM Ali holds his English phrase book.

ALI (in Arabic) Repeat after me, Bassam: (in English) "How about those Mets?"

BASSAM How abood doze medz?

Mets.

ALI

BASSAM (nods) Medz. What is medz?

Bezbol.

Oh!

ALI

BASSAM Bezbol! What is "bezbol?"

EXT. A RUSTIC CABIN - MORNING A Harley and a Prius are parked out front.

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S CABIN - KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS Homey, built from chestnut beams, at the edge of the wetlands. Rupe, wearing plaid Bermuda shorts, flip-flops and a loud Hawaiian shirt is tying a lure to the end of a fishing line. He calls into the other room.

RUPE I'll be back by noon with a halibut, so fire up the grill!

Jessie, pads in from the bedroom, still wearing panties & a tight T-shirt.

JESSIE Good idea, the polar ice caps aren't melting fast enough.

She kisses Rupe on top of the head and heads into the small kitchen area to pour herself some coffee.

25.

JESSIE (CONT'D) Anyway, you just use fishing as an excuse to drink.

RUPE That's what gets you through the fishing part.

Just as Rupe notices her cute outfit, his cell phone rings and vibrates across the table. He reaches for it.

JESSIE You're answering that?

RUPE No, I just want to see who I'm not going to talk to. (reads Caller ID) The office.

Off her cold stare.

RUPE (CONT'D) ...Which is why I'm not getting it.

See? It's off. (embraces her) How about taking something else off?

They kiss as he starts to maneuver her back toward the bedroom.

EXT. RUPE & JESSIE'S HOUSE - MORNING A big Mercedes SUV pulls up and a nervous Mayor Heatherly jumps out. He pounds on Jessie's front door. Waits a few seconds then pounds again. Jessie opens the door, now in a robe, her hair disheveled.

JESSIE Why if it isn't the Mayor. What are you doing out of the pocket of Spellman Prentiss?

HEATHERLY Cute, Jess, but no time for repartee -- gotta talk to the Rupemeister.

Rupe appears behind her, buttoning his shirt.

RUPE I told you never to put 'meister' at the end of things. What is it, Roman?

26.

HEATHERLY It's nothing, somebody's idea of a sick joke. But let's run out to the lighthouse and put this thing to rest...

RUPE The lighthouse? off.

It's my damn day

JESSIE (to Heatherly) Don't worry, he's going.

Pissed, Jessie heads back into the house.

RUPE Back in an hour, honey.

I promise.

EXT. WILLOW COVE INN - DAY A Victorian house converted to a B&B. The rail is trimmed with patriotic bunting. Bernie runs in.

INT. WILLOW COVE INN - FAYE'S ROOM - MORNING A typically precious B&B room. Faye is in a deep sleep, more like a coma. Bernie bursts in.

BERNIE Faye, wake up -- we've struck news!

The old kind of news that's based on news!

Faye doesn't budge.

He sees empty bottle of Valium.

BERNIE (CONT'D) Valium! I can handle this, I worked with Jessica Savitch.

He lifts Faye, struggles with her toward the bathroom.

BERNIE (CONT'D) Whoa! The camera must add more than ten pounds.

Bernie lugs Faye into the bathroom.

BERNIE (CONT'D) C'mon, Faye -- your career just came back to life -- let's work on you.

He drags her toward the toilet, off camera. vomit.

We HEAR Faye

27.

EXT. DUNE'S ROAD - MORNING The acrobats continue their journey. Jakeem carries their boom-box which plays Arabic music. Ali is still reading from his phrase book to Bassam.

ALI Say you walking down street and see guy you know. You say: "What's up, dude?"

BASSAM Wuz hup doot? Wuz hup doot?

JAKEEM Automobile-car!

HAZI Everybody hike-hitch!

The acrobats attempt to thumb a ride. worst hitchhikers.

They are the world's

HAZI (CONT'D) Bassam -- wrong finger!

It's THREE LOCAL TEENAGE GIRLS in bikinis drive by in an old convertible with a surf board in the backseat. One of them lifts her top and flashes the guys. Ali & Jakeem whistle & hoot.

JAKEEM Sexy American ladies, come back!

ALI We in the show business!

FARUQ I am disgusted by their nudeyness.

HAZI I noticed you look.

FARUQ I must look to see what disgusts me.

Hazi!

JAKEEM

Jakeem points to grungy beach market off the main road.

EXT. BEACH MARKET - DUNE ROAD - MORNING A large banner hangs in the remote store's front window: "Going Out of Business - All Prices Reduced." The acrobats rush in.

28.

INT. BEACH MARKET - CONTINUOUS XU LING, the second-generation Korean-American behind the counter looks up in surprise at the sight of the five wet foreigners. Bassam is having a hard time getting their trunk through the door.

Hazi approaches the counter, the others wander around, fascinated with the wealth of merchandise.

HAZI So, fellow immigrant... How it hanging?

XU LING I'm about to hang myself if business doesn't pick up. (calls to others) Those shell necklaces are fifty percent off!

Clueless, they smile and wave and go back to picking up snacks, postcards, etc.

JAKEEM shows girlie-magazine centerfold to Ali. JAKEEM (in Arabic, English subtitle) In America, when you're famous you get one of these.

HAZI & XU LING HAZI (a bit frantic) Please, would be so troubling as to tell us how we get to the Boggs Landing?

XU LING Boggs Landing? You're way the hell off, pal.

Takes cutesy tourist map from stack, unfolds it.

XU LING (CONT'D) This is the east end of the island.

Town's on the west. See? Seven miles. Half off on the map.

HAZI Forgive me, I am not hearing English so good... Did you say we on wrong end of island?

29.

XU LING You heard me right. map or not?

You want the

HAZI This is bad-bad news. Is place to rent automobile-car, yes?

XU LING You gotta be kidding, it's no-man'sland!

Bus?

HAZI Taxicab?

XU LING Nada. Zip. You gotta walk. it's gonna hit 101 today!

And

Frustrated, Hazi slams his fist down on counter.

HAZI (in Arabic) For Allah's sake!

XU LING You're gonna need Gatorade ... and sun block. Lucky for you, we got a special.

INT. GNN BOOTH - MORNING On the monitors we see Kim Frost and an Indian-American in glasses & a bad suit. He's finishing a "stuff you already know" holiday report.

SUPER: HEALTH & SCIENCE EDITOR DR. SACHIT KATKA DR. KATKA ...Don't become distracted when children are in the pool.... Set up that barbecue grill AWAY from the house... and never let the kids handle fireworks.

KIM FROST Wise advice, Doctor...

Watching this inane report is GNN's intense Managing News Director ANDY SCHUMACHER, recently hired to bolster GNN's sagging ratings.

ANDY He forgot, "Don't light a Roman candle and put it down your pants."

What's he a doctor of anyway?

30.

The phone lights, and Andy picks up: ANDY (CONT'D) (into phone) Booth. (grimaces) Oh, hello, Faye. Look, it was a budget thing. I fought to renew you, but-- oh, they didn't tell you?

INT. FAYE'S ROOM - MORNING Faye, in a robe, sips black coffee, holds the phone.

FAYE Andy, cut the crap--I've got a breaking story here like you wouldn't believe!

INTERCUT: ANDY Terrorists? With all those celebrities? And you're the only news crew on the island? (containing his excitement) I mean it's terrible. Who else knows?

No one.

FAYE

ANDY Faye, if this story is credible, if it even smacks of credible-(thinks) What about an uplink?

FAYE (smiles) Bernie's already on it!

EXT. WILLOW COVE INN - MORNING Bernie's on the roof, surreptitiously removing the B&B's Direct-TV satellite dish.

INT. GNN BOOTH - MORNING Andy fires off instructions to booth personnel as a secretary takes notes on pad.

ANDY (to crew) Full battle stations!

(MORE)

31.

ANDY (CONT'D) Get Mead Roberts off the golf course, round up the usual experts.

Call Nick Melito, we need a musical theme -- scary, yet patriotic.

Alert graphics: I want a new logo, fast, in red, white & blue: "Terror in Paradise!"

INT. GNN VAN (MOVING) - DUNE ROAD - DAY It's a whole new Faye: tousled hair, less makeup, serious journalist's eyeglasses, energized. Bernie drives.

FAYE I was put on this island for a reason, Bernie... like Dan Rather in Dallas in '63...

BERNIE I can't wait for my posthumous Emmy...

EXT. DUNE ROAD - MORNING The GNN news van doing sixty past the Beach Market.

EXT. BEACH MARKET - DAY Just as the van passes, the acrobats exit the store munching snacks and drinks. Xu Ling in the doorway, calls after them.

XU LING Remember -- you can cut two miles off by taking Wildlife Trail -- a little rugged, but it's a straight shot into town.

HAZI See, Faruq? Immigrant owns store, lives American dream.

FARUQ Yes, to go bankrupt.

EXT. JESSIE'S CABIN - DAY Jessie, dressed in hiking clothes and carrying camera equipment, climbs into her Prius.

INT. GNN STUDIO At the anchor desk is MEAD Roberts, GNN's veteran news man, who will deny his liberal bias to the death. He's not happy to have been dragged off the golf course; a MAKEUP GIRL pats his nose.

32.

MEAD ROBERTS (to booth) Are you sure you've got all your ducks in a row, Andy? You know, if you try to read the tea leaves before the cup is done you can get yourself burned.

INT. BOOTH - CONTINUOUS ANDY (to himself) Whatever that means, Charlie Chan.

INT. VICKIE'S DINER - MORNING The TV's on, no one's paying attention. We see the GNN logo and hear its godlike voice: "GNN. There When It Counts." We move in on TV...

ANNOUNCER'S VOICE A GNN Special Report. From New York, Mead Roberts...

Behind him, we see a map of Boggs Island.

MEAD ROBERTS Good morning, Happy Fourth. There is breaking news from Boggs Island, New York. So, let's get right to it.

The whole diner, filled with locals, falls silent.

MEAD ROBERTS (CONT'D) Reporting live from the scene is GNN's Faye Summerfield... Faye, what is the situation there?

Faye is in front of Joy's lighthouse, in a battlefield-type, shaky, digital-image transmission. The SUPER-laden screen reads: "Live Via Satellite Uplink" and "A GNN Exclusive."

There is a three-second delay before Faye can hear Mead.

FAYE (pause, pause, pause) Mead, as you know, the nation is on high alert ... With that in mind, five Middle Eastern men came ashore here stealthily at the break of dawn...

INT. BOOTH - DAY Andy watching intently on monitor.

33.

ON MONITOR MEAD ROBERTS Faye, I understand there is an eyewitness.

Bernie widens to a two-shot. Standing next to Faye, is Joy, who clutches Chu-Chu -- both their faces are pixilated.

FAYE (pause, pause, pause) Yes, and she has asked that her identity be kept secret, as she is in fear for her life...

EXT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - CONTINUOUS The interview continues in person. In the background we see the small jury-rigged satellite dish atop the van.

FAYE We'll call her "Jill." Jill, tell us what you saw this morning at approximately six-thirty a.m....

Joy, frightened and nervous, nevertheless enjoys the attention.

JOY A sight I'll never forget: a landing party of Arabs-FAYE Uh, Middle Eastern men. And they were threatening looking?

JOY Very threatening. cold, dead eyes.

The leader had

FAYE They were carrying something ominous you said?

JOY A big black trunk. And they were very careful with it...

FAYE As if it were volatile. (into camera, dramatically) Possibly carrying a portable nuclear device.

34.

MEAD ROBERTS Faye, I think you'll agree that we can't overemphasize the word POSSIBLY...

ANDY (into Mead's earpiece) Oh, for Christ's sake, Mead. This is why Fox is kicking our ass!

INT. VICKIE'S DINER - DAY The locals ignore their food and watch Faye's TV report. One of them is 80 year old LOBSTER FISHERMAN, WALTER BURBAGE. WALTER BURBAGE I make it to eighty, now I'm smack in the middle of a jihad.

INT. GNN STUDIO - DAY MEAD ROBERTS Maybe we should just stop and take a breath here. In today's highly competitive 24-hour news cycle, there's constant pressure to break a story. So we always have to ask ourselves, have we done our homework? Are we being accurate?

INT. GNN BOOTH - CONTINUOUS Andy Schumacher, exasperated by Mead's hand-wringing, flips a switch and yells into Mead's earpiece: ANDY Just go with it, Mead -- while we still have the exclusive!

MEAD ROBERTS I believe you have some video...

FAYE Yes, Jill had the presence of mind to record the leader with her cell phone camera. Let's run that.

INT. VICKIE'S DINER - CONTINUOUS Everyone at the counter watches the overhead TV. The blurry image filmed with a shaky hand depicts an indistinct Hazi talking into his cell phone. The network uses captions to elucidate the barely intelligible audio.

HAZI (ON TAPE) We will kill the people!

35.

Bassam parrots Hazi: "Kill the people .... Kill the people..."

HAZI (CONT'D) (into phone) We will slay them good! Yes, nine o'clock tonight, Boggs Landing.

Will be spectacular! They will not soon forget us.

The diner patrons throw down money and rush out.

INT. GNN BOOTH - TV MONITOR - CONTINUOUS Andy, pleased, watches on his monitor.

FAYE (dramatically) Chilling words. But whatever happens, I'm here, following this breaking story wherever it may lead. Faye Summerfield, GNN News.

MEAD ROBERTS God's speed, Faye. (fights back tears) I apologize ... but it's a very personal thing when a colleague is in harm's way... assuming she is in harm's way... and we don't know that yet...

ANDY (into mike) You pussy -- nobody cries on Fox! INT. GNN STUDIOS - CONTINUOUS Mead reacts to the verbal lashing in his earpiece, pulls himself together.

MEAD ROBERTS Coverage of this crisis -- and I hope we're not overreaching by calling it a crisis -- continues with our Entertainment Editor, Felicity Pitts. Felicity, I understand there are some notables on the island...

FELICITY & MEAD - TWO-SHOT FELICITY PITTS, a hot-looking black chick with beaded corn rows. SUPER: GNN Arts & Entertainment Editor, Felicity Pitts. File footage of celebs.

36.

FELICITY ...Mead, the distressing news has begun to filter in that many Alisters are on the island this weekend. They include such boldfaced names as "CSI: Miami"'s David Caruso, hefty hip-hopper Chubb E. Boyd, best-selling technothriller scribe Joe Ennis, flamboyant pop star SIR Hugo Vance, and those gorgeous, spoiled-rotten glamorpusses: the Fisher twins. To discuss how the loss of the Fishers would impact the New York club scene we go to Dish-dot-com's Tony Zinella-INT. FISHER TWINS' BEACH HOUSE - BOGGS ISLAND - DAY Modernist with lots of glass. The TV is still on from the night before, but no one is conscious to hear.

We PAN over to Fisher twins' bed.

FISHER TWINS BEDROOM - DAY Kaylee & Kera Fisher are asleep au naturel; sleeping between them, is CHAD, the waiter from Ubu. Hearing her name, Kaylee stirs. She seems surprised to see the waiter, then remembers something.

KAYLEE Oh, God, my morning-after pill?

She finds pill on the nightstand, swallows it with lastnight's glass of wine, then flops back in bed.

INT. HUGO VANCE'S BEACH HOUSE - WILLOW COVE - DAY Fabulous, fifty grand a month. Sir Hugo is playing the piano and his writing partner, IAN LIVELY, is pacing. On the bigscreen TV in the b.g., is GNN's crisis coverage, but the sound is muted.

HUGO (sings) Never too late for love ... Never too late to be there... Never too late for love-IAN (ad-libs) Never too late to show you care.

37.

HUGO (sings) Never too late to show you care! (stops playing) Ian consults some colorful commercial storyboards on an easel.

IAN Lovely. Then the aging boomer runs through a field of sunflowers towards his menopausal wife -HUGO (sings, plays) Side effects include: diarrhea, pyorrhea ... indigestion ... urinary tract infection. So ask your doctor if Staminax is right for you! (takes a big swig of cognac) Ian, do me favor, luv. Fetch my Grammy, will you, and beat me to death with it!

CUT TO: 70" PLASMA TV SCREEN Flanked by huge speakers and serious audio equipment. tuned to GNN.

It's

MEAD ROBERTS Cynthia Easterbrook is a scientist at the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta. Cynthia, thanks for talking to us on a holiday.

INT. CHUBB E. BOYD'S BEACH CRIB - BEDROOM - DAY The 300-pound funkmaster is having breakfast in bed while watching GNN. His fine-looking supermodel girlfriend, XANDRA is painting her toenails next to him.

MEAD ROBERTS What if the WMD, assuming there is WMD, and we don't know that yet... carried by these alleged terrorists...

He flinches at something screamed in his earpiece.

MEAD ROBERTS (CONT'D) Well, I HAVE to say ALLEGED!! ...wasn't radiological but biological?

38.

XANDRA Put back on Animal Planet. depressing.

This is

CHUBB I gotta know what's goin' on in the world, baby -- I'm CEO of Felony Records.

CYNTHIA EASTERBROOK Mead, working with computer models, we guesstimate that a weaponized ebola virus could wipe out 7 million people in the New York area in only days. And it's a horribly excruciating death as you are about to see.

MEAD ROBERTS We warn you that this laboratory footage is graphic...

STOCK FOOTAGE We see a cute little lab mouse.

CHUBB & XANDRA recoil from the horrible lab footage he's watching.

CHUBB Oh, man! What's comin' out that rat's ass??

He pushes away the platter of chicken & waffles.

Toppy!

CHUBB (CONT'D)

The beleaguered TOPPY comes in from the next room.

What now?

TOPPY

CHUBB Pack my shit, we're gettin' off this island!

Chubb hops out of bed wearing only a thong. pulls out his Glock.

CHUBB (CONT'D) Those jihadis better not fuck wit' me.

Slams a clip into gun.

He opens drawer,

39.

EXT. "TABLE OF CONTENTS" BOOKSHOP - BOGGS ISLAND - DAY A quaint little bookstore & coffee shop, soon to make way for a Starbucks. A large card on easel out front reads: "Today Special Reading of 'Dawn's Early Light' by the author." A Ducati Monster SR4 motorcycle is parked out front.

INT. BOOKSHOP JOE ENNIS, bestselling author of techno-thrillers, sports a Marine Corps baseball cap, tinted aviator glasses, bush jacket and a cocksure aura. He reads aloud to a small, rapt crowd.

ENNIS "....Seeing Yvette standing on the rain-soaked tarmac, Powers had to tamp down his raging desire.

'You've got a job to do, Wynn,' she whispered. 'You must stop a dozen Wahabi fanatics from blowing up the treasury building -- and you have exactly 46 hours to do it--'" Walter Burbage runs in.

WALTER BURBAGE (to crowd) Don't you people know what's happening? The island's under siege by terrorists!

The crowd reacts.

Ennis grabs Burbage by the overalls.

ENNIS Calm down, Pops. the beginning--

Now start from

WALTER BURBAGE All right, I woke up at 5 AM, checked my traps-ENNIS Jump to the middle.

INT. MAYOR HEATHERLY'S MERCEDES SUV - DAY Rupe, still in his fishing outfit, looks wistfully at the pristine beaches on this end of the island.

RUPE This is what the whole island looked like before you were elected...

40.

HEATHERLY Depressing, isn't it? This would be a helluva location for a Home Depot.

Heatherly drives car past a row of Port-o-Sans on the roadside above Crescent beach.

EXT. CRESCENT BEACH - DAY On the other side of the Port-O-Sans, four of the acrobats study their map.

HAZI Rest stop is throwing up my whole schedule. (to Port-o-San) Bassam, are you all right?

Bassam moans from inside.

HAZI (CONT'D) (to Ali) What did he eat?

Bifjerki.

JAKEEM Whatever is that.

Finally, Bassam emerges.

Road.

The acrobats head back up to Dune

EXT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - DAY Bernie is loading the equipment back into the van.

FAYE You're a technical genius, Bernie.

I take back everything I ever said about you in a meeting you didn't attend.

The Mayor's SUV roars up; he & Rupe jump out.

RUPE You cover a lot of ground, News Lady.

FAYE (re Rupe's clothes) Let me guess. You're undercover as a guy with bad taste in clothes.

HEATHERLY Miss Summerfield, Roman Heatherly.

Mayor of the B.I. You're not.. (air quotes) (MORE)

41.

HEATHERLY (CONT'D) ...running... with this terror rumor, are you?

FAYE I ran with it. And it's not a rumor, it's news.

HEATHERLY You can't do this to us -- it's high season.

RUPE I'm going to have a full-blown panic on my hands, thanks to you!

BERNIE Faye, we're doing reactions in town...

FAYE Chief, if you find out anything we'll do a sit-down. But try to look a little more official...

Faye climbs into the van, Bernie's behind the wheel.

RUPE I'm warning you -- keep amping this thing up, I'll arrest the both of you for inciting a riot!

They drive off.

INT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE BEDROOM - DAY Rupe watches Joy emptying drawers into her Louis Vuitton luggage. Heatherly squints at video on Joy's phone.

HEATHERLY On the basis of this, you're crucifying my entire island?

JOY (to Rupe) Who's this putz?

RUPE The Mayor. (to Heatherly) Keep quiet, Roman.

JOY Make yourself useful, Mayor-Heatherly holds down suitcase lid while she locks it.

42.

RUPE You know, this used to be a lighthouse for a reason. Now people are always crashing onto the rocks... Coulda been fishermen.

JOY (ignores him) What was I thinking going on national television? By now, they've got a fatwah on me.

EXT. DUNE ROAD - SCENIC TRAILHEAD - DAY A sign reads "Wildlife Trail - No Dogs, No Smoking, No Alcoholic Beverages, No Campfires -- Enjoy Yourself." The dirt trail winds off the main road. As the Moroccans pass it, Faruq stops.

FARUQ (excitedly) Look, is Wildlife Trail. two miles.

Savings

HAZI No, no, I reject alternate route.

FARUQ Every decision you making is wrong.

ALI So, he is due for right decision.

HAZI We stays on main road. ride into town.

FARUQ Is U.S. America.

Maybe catch

We put to vote.

ALI translates this to Bassam, who nods in agreement.

FARUQ (CONT'D) Who in favor of new way forward that savings two miles?

Jakeem, Faruq, & Bassam raise their hand.

FARUQ (CONT'D) Who in favor of failed policy of old leader?

HAZI Never mind!

Hazi angrily follows the others off the main road onto the trail...

43.

INT.

GNN VAN (MOVING) - CONTINUOUS FAYE (looks around) I wonder where are they're hiding.

If we could do a sit-down with them it would be the get of all gets!

BERNIE Just give me a heads up, so I can ditch my mezuzah.

FAYE All my journalistic instincts, dormant for so long, are back. (points) Bernie -- pull in there. I've gotta pee like a racehorse.

Bernie hangs a sharp left, the van squealing to a quick stop in front of the Beach Market.

INT. HEATHERLY'S SUV (MOVING) - DUNE ROAD - DAY Heatherly looking to the left & right.

HEATHERLY I don't see any terrorists, do you?

RUPE Can't say that I do, Roman.

HEATHERLY So what's the big woop? We go into town, tell everyone it's a false alarm ... zippity-doo-dah.

RUPE Shut up, I'm calling Jess. (punches number on cell) EXT. CRANDALL'S POND - DAY Pristine wetlands. We see Jessie in hip boots wading into the water with a camera.

RACK FOCUS as two cute beady little eyes pop up above the waterline. She creeps closer and-- her cell phone trills.

The creature skitters off.

What!?

INTERCUT:

JESSIE

44.

RUPE Honey, I'm running a little late -Roman and I are hunting down Al Qaeda on Dune Road...

What?

JESSIE Are you for real?

RUPE Don't worry, we have nothing to fear but Faye Summerfield herself.

Since I'm gonna be busy I thought you could go to the Korean and pick up some steaks.

JESSIE He's Asian, and I'm a vegan. you never listen...

God,

RUPE Easy, babe. The steaks are for me.

Pick up something non-animal for yourself. Love ya.

Now Heatherly's cell phone trills.

HEATHERLY (into phone) Yello! (face pales) Oh shit... we're on the way.

EXT. PRENTISS ESTATE SITE - WILLOW COVE - DAY A bluff overlooking the ocean. Spellman consults a blueprint as he walks with Svetlana. His limo waits nearby.

PRENTISS Now this ... this is the master bedroom. We'll have sweeping views of the ocean. Those trees over there? Toast.

SVETLANA But Shhpellman ... the beach here is so rocky.

PRENTISS Rocks? Gone. You'll be a Spellman Prentiss wife, you're not gonna walk on rocks. We're barging in white sand from the Canary Islands.

The finest sand in the world!

SVETLANA Oh, Shhpelman, you think of everytink.

45.

PRENTISS How do you think I got two billion dollars?

Just then, Prentiss's limo pull up, Prentiss's BODYGUARD, wearing a headset, jumps out: BODYGUARD Mr. Prentiss -- Code Blue!

PRENTISS What the hell's that?

Kidnappers?

BODYGUARD No, that's Code Green. means Terrorists!

Code Blue

PRENTISS Speak English, I pay you enough.

The bodyguard shoves Prentiss into the back seat, shouts orders to the driver, and the limo peels out. It abruptly stops, reverses. The door opens, the Bodyguard pulls in Svetlana, then they're off again.

PRENTISS (O.S.) (CONT'D) Head for the yacht!

The car swerves in anti-terrorist maneuvers as it speeds away.

INT. GNN BOOTH Andy and others are watching Faye's broadcast.

GNN MONITOR: ANIMATED GRAPHIC: LIVE NEWS EVENT INT. BEACH MARKET - DAY Xu Ling is being interviewed by Faye.

FAYE And you say they bought some suspicious items?

XU LING A compass, a map, Gatorade...

Enough said. (into camera) By the way, I'm fully stocked here at Ling's Beach Market on Old Dune Road. Batteries, duct tape, drinking water--

46.

FAYE (cuts him off) Uh, how desperate were they to get to their objective?

XU LING They seemed desperate to get to town.

FAYE (into camera) The population center of the island. Fortunately, we live in a time when nearly everything we do is captured on camera. (points to security camera) We warn you, the footage you are about to see, is in black & white... (to clerk) Roll tape!

Bernie moves his camera in close to the store's little security monitor. We see murky silent video of the Acrobats as they enter the store: Bassam having difficulty getting the prop trunk through the door.

FAYE (O.C.) (CONT'D) We can now see five men. Freeze it. Is that the suitcase nuke? I saw one in Belarus three years ago and it was frighteningly similar...

INT. GNN STUDIO - CONTINUOUS Mead, off the air, talks into mike.

MEAD ROBERTS Andy, she's connecting dots that aren't even there...

ANDY'S VOICE ON P.A. I love her dots!

INT. BEACH MARKET - CONTINUOUS XU LING (O.C.) The big one never let it out of his sight!

FAYE (O.C.) Interesting markings... possibly significant... Okay, keep playing.

Widen...

47.

Bernie widens his shot on the monitor, refocuses and we see Hazi talking with Xu Ling. We watch as Hazi grows frustrated and just as he slams his hands on the counter-FAYE (O.S.) (CONT'D) Right there... stop!

The shot freezes and zooms in on Hazi's momentarily agitated expression... which, in this context, does look kind of scary.

INT. GNN BOOTH - DAY The snarling face fills every monitor.

ANDY I'm having an orgasm!

BACK TO FAYE FAYE Mead, I've seen this tape six times now, and it's still chilling.

MEAD ROBERTS Faye, if you'll allow me to play devil's advocate for a moment-ANDY No she won't. Go to commercial!

Mead disappears, replaced by a Geico commercial.

QUICK SHOTS OF NEWSCASTS AROUND THE WORLD All show the same freeze-frame video image of Hazi.

BBC ANCHOR ...Preliminary reports would indicate that a nuclear jihadist has surreptitiously slipped into the States...

FRENCH ANCHOR (in French) ...once again, a unilateralist American foreign policy comes home to roost...

RUSSIAN ANCHOR (in Russian) ...It's only a matter of time before the Americans attempt to link the atomic suitcase to renegade Russian scientists...

48.

BLOOMBERG TV ANCHOR ...The big question: If this man detonates a nuclear device tonight, how will it effect Tuesday's market opening?

We end on a TV broadcast of the beach market video aired by Al Jazeera...

AL JAZEERA ANCHOR (in Arabic) ...but it is not yet clear which heroic militant group he belongs to. And now Sami Hassan with sports-INT. PENTAGON SITUATION ROOM - DAY From BEHIND we see to top ranking military officials watching a wall of monitors with all the news coverage.

HIGH RANKING OFFICER #1 What's the potential damage if they do nuke that island?

HIGH RANKING OFFICER #2 We stand to lose the top echelons of publishing, music, film & television.

HIGH RANKING OFFICER #1 And what's the downside?

EXT. BURKHARTS' LIGHTHOUSE - DAY The electric garage door slides open. We hear an engine start, loud -- then a humongous Hummer, loaded with luggage, rolls out, revs a couple of times, and speeds off.

INT. HUMMER - CONTINUOUS Joy is wearing a wide-brimmed UV protective hat to ward off skin cancer. Chu-Chu is in her lap as she drives like a lunatic.

EXT. HIKING TRAIL - DAY. The acrobats are schlepping up the increasingly steep dirt path; Bassam, sweating heavily, carries the prop trunk on his back.

EXT. CRANDALL'S POND - DAY Jessie, wet & irritated, tosses her equipment into the trunk of her Prius, gets in, and drives off.

49.

In a moment, the exhausted acrobats come around the bend, stop when they see the bucolic pond ... and lay down their gear.

HAZI You stopping? Now?

Interesting.

FARUQ I am leading, not you.

Go, lead.

HAZI I no say a word.

FARUQ Thank you! (to others) Half hour, men! Hurry up and relax!

HAZI He calls this leading.

EXT. DUNE ROAD - DAY Jessie's Prius gets to the main road just as Joy's massive Hummer careens past her.

INT. JESSIE'S PRIUS - DAY She yells out the window.

JESSIE Gas-guzzling road hog!

EXT. BOGGS LANDING - FERRY TERMINAL - DAY The first wave of frantic islanders and well-heeled summer people are arriving for a hoped-for exit on the ferry. Just then, the FERRY CAPTAIN hangs a sign at dock entrance: "All Ferries Cancelled." A nervous murmur runs through the crowd.

FERRY CROWD In the center of the nervous group is Joe Ennis. Hanging on his every word is a group of TOWNIE REGULARS: beer-bellied HIGH SCHOOL COACH VINCE PINELLI; Walter Burbage; geeky postal clerk ED NOSEWORTHY; the NESBITT BROTHERS, RUSSELL & THURMAN, two chronically unemployed losers in their twenties.

ENNIS ...These jihadis have obviously torn a page from my novel, "The Last Resort." They're probably watching us right now, having a good laugh.

Everyone looks around nervously.

50.

HEATHERLY'S SUV pulls up, Rupe and the Mayor jump out as the crowd rushes them.

COACH PINELLI Chief, they bombed the ferry!

HEATHERLY Now we don't know that yet.

ED NOSEWORTHY There's five of 'em -- it was on TV! ENNIS This thing's probably been in the pipeline for years...

RUPE Mr. Ennis, please -- save it for your works of fiction.

ENNIS My books aren't fiction ... they're reality that hasn't happened yet.

RUPE All of you go home, it's a holiday.

Let me get to the bottom of this.

RUSSELL NESBITT Deputize us, Chief, we want to fight the War on Terror!

RUPE Yeah, I'm gonna "deputize" two guys on parole.

Rupe storms up the gangplank, followed by Heatherly.

ENNIS (takes out Blackberry) I'll check my sources, see if any terror group has claimed credit.

WALTER BURBAGE Hey, they're opening the bar!

Everyone rushes toward the Pelican's Nest.

THE GNN NEWS VAN races to a halt near the ferry.

Out hops our news team.

51.

INT. FERRY ENGINE ROOM - DAY The FERRY CAPTAIN watches actor David Caruso as he carefully examines the blown-out engine room. Rupe and Heatherly enter via a steep narrow stairwell.

RUPE Roman, if you have to tag along, please keep quiet...

CARUSO ...Captain, you'll want to close this off till forensics gets here... (notices Rupe arriving) Well, well, Chief, you finally show...

RUPE Uh, Mr. Caruso, this is a police matter...

CARUSO There was a leadership void, I stepped in. Gentlemen, take a look...

He leads them to twisted wreckage that was the ship's engine.

Oh my God!

HEATHERLY

CARUSO (bends down) I think our boys used an I.E.D. Improvised explosive device.

RUPE I was in the service, I'm familiar.

CARUSO My, my, we're a little touchy today...

Rupe starts to examine the crime scene.

HEATHERLY We need to put a lid on this, it's high season. Maybe it was a cherry bomb.

CARUSO (dramatically) It would appear, Mayor, that someone ... wants us trapped on this island.

52.

RUPE Are we going to commercial now?

We hear Faye from above.

FAYE (O.S.) This is a good visual, Bernie ...

RUPE Hold it, hold it, this is a crime scene!

Bernie climbs down the ladder, taping the scene as Faye follows.

FAYE (ignoring Rupe) I want viewers to smell the molten metal... (to Caruso) Faye Summerfield, David. Can we do a sit-down on camera? I'd like to get your take.

RUPE His take. That's it, I want all TV personalities out--now!

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY The Prentiss limo speeding toward Boggs Landing.

INT. PRENTISS LIMO - DAY Svetlana is weeping uncontrollably.

PRENTISS Don't worry, in ten minutes we'll be on my yacht, the Irena-She looks at him.

PRENTISS (CONT'D) I'm changing the name! Then we'll fly down to Palm Beach till it's safe to come back. (to driver) Faster! What am I paying you for?

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - ROADSIDE ASCENSION BALLOON RIDE In a field just off the road is a smallish red, white & blue, hot-air balloon ride. RAY, the owner, hears a car coming and tries to flag it down with his hand-held, "Scenic Balloon Ride" arrow sign. The Prentiss limo speeds by, kicking up dust. Ray waves the dust out of his face.

53.

EXT. CELL TOWER - PUTNAM'S PEAK - SOMEONE'S POV - DAY We are climbing the hill as seen by a hand-held camera. We HEAR a lot of huffing and puffing as we approach the tall, steel-latticed tower. GLOVED HANDS duct-tape a package with a cell phone attached to the base of the tower.

INT. BOGGS ISLAND P.D. - DAY A small TV is tuned to GNN news. The cops look nervous, shaken. Marla's fielding 911 calls. Rupe walks in, he's carrying evidence from ferry engine room in a plastic baggy.

Cordie and the other cops rush him.

CORDIE Rupe, what's going on? under attack?

RUPE How the hell do I know? took out the ferry...

Are we

Somebody

He tosses evidence on desk next to a framed photo of Jessie.

ON TV - FAYE & CARUSO CARUSO ...I'm no stranger terrorists, Faye. parter last season radioactive corpse Coral Gables...

to nuclear We did a twoin which a turned up in

RUPE And shut that off!

Marla flicks TV off.

MARLA Want some camomile tea? relax you.

It'll

RUPE Do I look like I'm not relaxed? (to cops) Now we're looking for five men on foot, possibly middle eastern, carrying a large trunk. They shouldn't be too hard to find.

Zanicki, you cover North Beach.

Uh, new guy ...

CORDIE That's Bailey.

54.

RUPE I know he's Bailey! You hit South Beach. Cordie, get on the phone.

I want a list of everyone who's rented a boat in Montauk in the last 24 hours. Let's go!

INT. PELICAN'S NEST BAR - DAY One of the last non-trendy spots for locals. The heavier than usual bar crowd includes the Townie Regulars we saw at the pier.

OVERHEAD TV - GNN NEWS Tight on Joe Ennis on TV. Super: Best Selling Author/Terror Expert: Joe Ennis ENNIS ...My gut tells me they've got a "backpack" nuke in the one to ten kiloton range. When it blows, here's how it'll play out: First, there will be the split second flash of a hundred suns...

Camera pans the slack-jawed faces of the townies. customers quickly pay up and exit.

Several

INT. PELICAN'S NEST - BOOTH - CONTINUOUS Faye sits next to Joe Ennis in a booth, Bernie opposite them with his camera.

FAYE You paint a horrendous scenario, Joe...

ENNIS I serve up the truth piping hot, Faye...

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY Chubb's tricked-out Maybach speeds toward Boggs Landing careening past the balloon ride and poor Ray. INT. PELICAN'S NEST - DAY Townie regulars at bar.

WALTER BURBAGE (off Ennis' comments) Whew. This is one show I didn't want a front row seat to: Armageddon!

55.

THURMAN NESBITT Some scary shit.

COACH PINELLI Why do these guys hate us?

THURMAN NESBITT It’s in their religion.

ED NOSEWORTHY No, it’s a small group using religion to justify their politics.

RUSSELL NESBITT I’ll tell you why they hate us: Cause we got freedom and flat screens and strip clubs ... and they got nothin'!

THURMAN NESBITT (to others) My brother knows what he's talkin' about, he reads the Post.

ED NOSEWORTHY No, it’s because of our foreign policy ... they object to our troops on their sacred land.

THURMAN NESBITT You mean sand. (guffaws) COACH PINELLI Maybe we should drop the big one on them before they do it to us.

ED NOSEWORTHY Don't you see, there's nothing to bomb. The enemy has no land and no assets. That's their genius.

THURMAN NESBITT (to Russell, proudly) Hey, we got no land and no assets -The political discussion is halted by the piercing sound of a GNN News Alert. All eyes are on the TV. OVERHEAD TV - MEAD ROBERTS The "GNN News Alert" graphic flashes.

56.

MEAD ROBERTS Breaking news: GNN has learned that top intelligence officials, using advanced face recognition technology, have determined with high probability that the man pictured here...

The image of Hazi in the market is now side-by-side with a mug shot of a real terrorist. The only real similarity is their facial hair and glasses.

MEAD ROBERTS (CONT'D) ...is Abu Omar Zahid, a.k.a, "The Cobra" ... one of the world's most dangerous terrorists... rumored to have been seeking a nuclear device...

EXT. CRANDALL'S POND - DAY Hazi is lying on his back, reading Weekly Variety.

Jakeem & Faruq practice tumbling.

Ali,

Bassam, at the edge of the pond, is tossing Cheet-ohs to a duck. He hears a strange sound: "...gick, gick, gick, gick..." Looks, bends, picks up a tiny, weird-looking, brightly colored speckled frog from the water. Bassam smiles, says something to it in Arabic. Relaxed in Bassam's huge hand, the frog looks like it's smiling back.

INT. JOY'S HUMMER - PUTNAM ROAD - DAY She speeds down the winding two-lane road while listening to a right-wing talk-radio show: TALK RADIO HOST (O.S.) Mike Fury here on a special edition of American Fury. The big story: east coast media elites trapped on an island with suicidal Islamofascists. Poetic justice!

Joy sobs.

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - ROADSIDE ASCENSION BALLOON RIDE Ray's still standing there with his arrow sign. Joy's Hummer careens by kicking up another cloud of dust, engulfing him.

EXT. BOGGS ISLAND FERRY LANDING - DAY Chubb's Maybach speeds to a stop at the landing, pedestrians scatter. Toppy hops out of the driver's door, runs up to sign on dock reading "All Ferries Cancelled." Runs back to car. Chubb lowers his tinted rear window.

57.

TOPPY We're trapped.

CHUBB Stay cool. I'm texting Diddy, he's got a yacht. (punches buttons on his Blackberry) INT. PELICAN'S NEST BAR - DAY Faye is finishing up an interview with Walter Burbage.

WALTER BURBAGE ...eighty years old, and never been off the island. Though it sounds like I may be tonight. Kaboom!

FAYE Walter Burbage, one of the brave islanders facing this mounting crisis with dignity and humor...

Faye Summerfield, Live from Target One. BERNIE And we're clear.

WALTER BURBAGE Whenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s this gonna be on?

FAYE It just went out.

Live.

WALTER BURBAGE I missed it?

Faye's cell phone chirps; she picks up.

FAYE (into phone) World War Three! ...Andy?

INT. GNN BOOTH

- DAY

ANDY Fay, we've aced everyone on this!

Management is ready to offer you a new deal. If you live.

INT. PELICAN'S NEST - OVERHEAD TV - DAY GNN is replaying Joy's frantic 911 call, along with the transcript. Graphic: "Dramatic 911 Call."

MARLA'S VOICE Bogg's Island Emergency...

58.

JOY'S VOICE Help, please! It's Joy Burkhart out on the point...terrorists... oh, my God...

MARLA'S VOICE I can't understand you, calm down Mrs. Burkhart...

JOY'S VOICE Terrorists... five of them ... planning to kill everybody... I'm here alone with Chu-Chu! The dog barks and it's transcribed on the screen as "(dog barks)." We PAN DOWN to Joe Ennis holding court at one of the tables. Everyone's drinking.

ENNIS Here's what bothers me... To have disabled the ferry so quickly, Zahid needed help...

Help?

COACH PINELLI What kind of help?

ENNIS ...An active cell already in place.

Possibly Americans, posing as your friends, your neighbors, the guy sitting on the bar stool next to you having a beer... speaking of which I gotta go drain the dragon.

As Joe heads to the can, the blue-collar crowd begins to size each other up. All eyes fall upon the mild-mannered postal clerk ED NOSEWORTHY. ED NOSEWORTHY What are you all looking at me for?

COACH PINELLI The softball game Sunday. I noticed you didn't stand for the anthem.

Walter re-joins the group carrying a beer.

WALTER BURBAGE You're right, Coach, I noticed that too. I didn't make much of it at the time...

ED NOSEWORTHY You're nuts. I'm coming off knee surgery.

59.

WALTER BURBAGE That's your story.

ED NOSEWORTHY I'm standing now -- and I'm leaving.

Ed throws money on the bar and limps out with his cane, as they watch him suspiciously.

WALTER BURBAGE He never married.

EXT. CRANDALL'S POND - DAY The boom box is playing the Russian Sabre Dance as Jakeem & Ali are tossing Indian Clubs. Faruq is on his prayer rug, chanting from the Koran. The low-key voice of the moderator interrupts with a bulletin.

FM RADIO ANNOUNCER (O.S.) Pardon the interruption.

Terrorists armed with a nuclear device have landed on Boggs Island, New-In Arabic: Shh.

Shh.

What?

Jihadists!

Where?

HAZI Listen!

ALI HAZI ALI

HAZI Here! (in Arabic) Pack up, quick.

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - DAY Chubb E. is on his Blackberry while Toppy & Xandra chill by the car.

CHUBB Jessie Jackson? Chubb E. Boyd!

You see the news? I'm on that island! You gotta get me outa here before they fry my ass...

60.

SOMEBODY'S POV Peering through bushes at the cell tower from some distance away. Once again, GLOVED HANDS holding a cell phone enter frame and punch in some numbers.

CELL PHONE TOWER - PUTNAM'S PEAK - DAY The cell phone's ringtone plays a few notes of "Rule Britannia." Then a huge explosion sheers the tower off at the base. It begins to topple...

INT. JOY'S HUMMER - PUTNAM ROAD - DAY JOY (tearfully into phone) If I die today, Morty, I want a simple, dignified funeral. Nothing depressing, a celebration of my life.

MORTY'S VOICE (on speakerphone) Joy, I'm trying to putt out!

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY. The blown cell phone tower is sliding downhill, taking everything in its path with it toward the Road.

INT. JOY'S HUMMER - DAY Dirt and rocks rain down hard on her windshield. Joy screams and hits the gas. The falling wreckage just misses the back of her Hummer.

EXT. SCENIC HIKING TRAIL - DAY The Acrobats, who are moving quickly, stop.

HAZI You hear something?

ALI Maybe fireworks?

Maybe not.

HAZI

They look scared, pick up their pace.

INT. PELICAN'S NEST BAR - DAY

61.

FAYE (on cell phone) ...Andy, promise me: If I tonight goes badly, don't give my office to Kim Frost, she's-- Andy? Andy?

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - DAY The anxious crowd has continued to grow. on cell phones getting cut off:

Quick shots of many

HEATHERLY ...GNN, I want to speak to the News Director ... you've got an out-ofcontrol reporter on my island!

Hello? Hello?

Jessie?

CHUBB You there, bro'?

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - BOGGSAPALOOZA BACKSTAGE AREA - DAY KIEFER UPSHAW (into cell phone) ...What do you mean Kenny G canceled? I've already lost Weird Al Yankovic. Hel-lo?

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - DAY Eerily still. Everyone looking at their dead cell phones.

Just then, Joy's Hummer, covered with dirt, tires squealing, careens around the corner and slams into a cart full of fish, sending them flying all over. She leaps out breathlessly...

The Townie Regulars and Joe Ennis pour out of the bar, asking, "What happened?"

JOY They bombed the phone tower!

Gasps from crowd which now includes Chubb, Toppy & Xandra.

COACH PINELLI You hear that? What're we gonna do??

Joy grabs her dog and a suitcase.

WALTER BURBAGE (to Joy) You're the lady that lives in the lighthouse.

Oh, great. rhyme.

JOY Now I'm a nursery

62.

COACH PINELLI She's the only one who's actually seen the terrorists!

JOY Did I miss the noon ferry?

CHUBB Ain't no ferries, lady, or my ass'd be on one!

JOY What are you saying, I'm trapped here? We'll see about that!

Drops her bag and runs off.

ENNIS Right out of Zahid's playbook.

First he cuts off our transportation, now our communications! Brilliant!

CHUBB But why attack this island? got shit here!

Ain't

ENNIS Not so, Fat-T. CHUBB I'm Chubb-E. Fat-T was capped at the Vibe awards.

ENNIS Uh, right. They've targeted us because of our density of highprofile celebrities such as you and me. They hate our popular culture.

CHUBB Lissen up! This muh-fuh knows what he's talkin' 'bout!

WALTER BURBAGE You hear that, people? We're all gonna die because of these damn celebrities.

RUSSELL NESBITT Yeah, it's their fault!

The angry crowd agrees.

Chubb pulls out his Glock.

CHUBB Back off --

63.

ENNIS Stop it, all of you! This is what they want, don't you see? They want to pit neighbor against neighbor. I'll tell you what we have to do: take the fight to the enemy! Who's with me?

Everyone, from rich right-wingers to blue-collars, cheer.

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - THE MARINA - DAY Faye is wrapping up an on-camera report.

FAYE ...The ferry sits dead in the harbor, phones eerily silent, there are unconfirmed reports of power outages ... everything Boggsians take for granted gone in a heartbeat. Yet, these simple people face it with courage and grace under pressure...

EXT. BOGGS LANDING - MARINA - DAY Total panic. Mayor Heatherly stands at the edge of the marina facing a stampede of the WELL-HEELED SUMMER PEOPLE. HEATHERLY No credible threat! Elliot ...

Beth, don't run. Leland, you're on the Town Council, it doesn't look good...

DOCKSIDE A Yuppie family in gas masks, hops onto their cabin cruiser; the young boy lags behind.

YUPPIE DAD (lifts mask) Hurry, Taylor -- do you want to be vaporized?!

CHUBB, XANDRA & TOPPY XANDRA (hysterical) There's no way off this island!

CHUBB We'll make a way! (to Toppy) What you waitin' on, get behind the wheel!

64.

They hop in the Maybach and speed off.

EXT. MARINA - DAY Chaos as boats of every size attempt to leave at the same time.

THE "IRENA" The 120-ft. Spellman Prentiss yacht rams a small sailboat which starts to capsize.

PRENTISS (to drowning man) I had the right of way! You'll hear from my attorney, loser.

INT. BOGGS ISLAND P.D. - DAY Rupe punches in number on his cell phone. He hears, "We are not able to complete your call. Please try again later."

RUPE Marla, can you get Jessie for me?

MARLA All the circuits are overloaded.

Don't you think that's strange?

No!

RUPE

Joy Burkhart bursts into the station.

JOY For godsakes, the world is coming to an end and you're just sitting here?

RUPE Well, the woman who started it all.

I'll take that tea now, Marla...

INT. PELICAN'S NEST - DAY The bartender wipes the counter; only ONE DRUNK remains at the bar. On the overhead TV we see the Boat Rental Guy on the dock in Montauk, talking into camera.

BOAT RENTAL GUY ...Fer sure, Mead, they only wanted to know how to get the boat to the island. They didn't seem to care how to get back.

65.

EXT. SAM'S ARMY-NAVY STORE - MAIN STREET - DAY A big banner reads, "We Lost Our Lease - Everything Must Go." A smaller window card: "Coming Soon: Cold Stone Creamery."

Ennis, and his new posse run out of the store with boltaction rifles.

ENNIS I'm not gonna make any big John Wayne speech-- we all know what we've got to do. Let's take back our island!

The crowd cheers. The Nesbitts are the last to emerge from the Army-Navy store dressed in camouflage fatigues & night vision glasses.

ENNIS (CONT'D) Lock and load!

They do -- those that know how to lock & load.

Ennis mounts his Ducati and roars off. His posse, in an eclectic convoy of up-scale and beat-up vehicles, follows.

The Nesbitt's toss their guns in a battered Ford pick-up.

THURMAN NESBITT I'm pumped!

RUSSELL NESBITT Yeah, baby!

They drive off last.

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY Ennis, on his motorbike, leads his posse toward the cell tower, as he speaks into hand-held two-way radio.

ENNIS This is Polar Bear, Team Panther.

ETA four minutes...

INT. JEEP - CONTINUOUS Coach Pinelli and other guys following Joe. acknowledges on his hand-held.

Pinelli

COACH PINELLI Copy that, Polar Bear.

EXT. PUTNAM'S PEAK - BASE OF CELL TOWER - DAY Rupe is still in shorts & flip-flops, but now wears a police cap and a windbreaker that says "POLICE" on the back. He comes over the crest of the hill for the first time and stops in his tracks at the sight of the smouldering tower base.

66.

He proceeds to gather evidence. He picks up a bent metal plaque that reads, "Spellman Prentiss Cell Tower, Dedicated May 5, 2007."

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY The mangled cell tower blocks the road. Cordie is setting out traffic cones when Ennis' convoy speeds to a stop, knocking them over. The armed militiamen get out, eye the devastation.

ENNIS Is there any doubt now that we're under attack?

They respond: "No!"

Cordie gets on his pocket radio.

EXT. HILLSIDE - DAY ENNIS (huffing & puffing) Try to pick up their trail. got your backs!

I've

Ennis's "special forces" charge up the hill. Ennis is lagging behind, too many dinners at Nick & Tony's. He wheezes, trips.

EXT. PUTNAM'S PEAK - BASE OF CELL TOWER - CONTINUOUS The armed townies pour over the crest to find Rupe standing there, his arms folded.

RUPE Just hold it right there.

They do. Upon seeing the smoking wreckage there are audible reactions from the Townies: "The bastards!"

RUPE (CONT'D) The last thing I need is a bunch of drunks running around with loaded rifles... Drop 'em, Nesbitts -you're violating parole.

COACH PINELLI You can't handle this alone, Rupe!

Joe's got a plan. Joe? They all look around for Joe. We hear the approaching wheezing. Finally, Joe makes it up over the crest with his last breath... but starts to stumble back. Two guys grab him, sit him on a large rock.

COACH PINELLI (CONT'D) Joe, tell Rupe what your plan is...

67.

Ennis, gulping air, holds a finger up: "give me a minute. A YUPPIE SUMMER GUY hands him a bottle of Evian. Joe takes it, notices the label; hands it back.

ENNIS (out of breath) I ... boycott ... French ... water.

RUPE You should boycott French cooking.

Now you and your minute men are either going home or to jail -your choice.

ENNIS We can't let 'em escape like Bin Laden at Tora Bora!

RUPE I'm warning you -- lay down your weapons.

They're about to, when-ENNIS Don't do it. (they stop) We have the right to keep and bear arms. US Constitution, Article Two! The locals cheer.

Rupe gets in Joe's face.

RUPE Ennis, I'm known as kind of a laidback guy. It takes a lot to push me over the line. But you've got me right up to it. (into hand radio) Cordie, bring up the Taser.

COACH PINELLI Careful, Rupe. Joe was Special Ops...

Really?

RUPE I was a marine.

Ennis backs up as Rupe moves closer.

ENNIS Well, I wasn't exactly in special ops... I was, you might say, embedded with Task Force 77... for research... but they treated me like one of their own...

68.

RUPE So you weren't actually in the service...

ENNIS One of my great regrets. Though Tommy Franks gave my last Wynn Powers novel a helluva cover blurb.

RUPE (to townies) You guys are following a paperback general. (to Ennis) Get outa my sight, Ennis.

Ennis looks embarrassed. Faye trudges over the crest of the hill, stops, takes in the devastation.

FAYE Oh, my God. (yells downhill) Bernie, hurry, you've got to get the smoldering!

RUPE Now the party's complete.

FAYE Chief Majeski, can we get your comments on camera?

RUPE No you cannot, News Lady.

Bernie, the video camera on his shoulder, comes slogging over the hill, gasping for air.

A military helicopter zooms overhead with a deafening roar.

Bernie aims his camera at the sky.

Now what?

RUPE (CONT'D)

Ennis looks up, smiles.

ENNIS A Sikorsky Blackhawk S60 armed with Hellfire missiles, that's what! (to his guys) We're still in this, men!

Before Rupe can stop them, they all charge down the hill, leaving Rupe alone & angry.

69.

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY The GNN News Van peels off. his men back down the hill.

Ennis, huffing & puffing, leads

INT. BLACKHAWK HELICOPTER - DAY Dyer, queasy from the turbulence, talks into a satellite phone.

DYER ...Tell the President I have the island buttoned up with a naval blockade and a no-fly zone...

EXT. HIKING TRAIL - DAY The acrobats are rushing back to the main road, when a sudden gust of wind blows the treetops. They look up as the chopper swoops low.

HAZI (points to chopper) USA! We saved!

INT. BLACKHAWK HELICOPTER - CONTINUOUS DYER (into phone) ...There's a lot of places on this island where they can disappear...

It won't be easy finding them...

EXT. HIKING TRAIL - DAY Hazi and his guys in the prop wash waving frantically.

HAZI We here! Right under you! us, please!

Take

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY Ennis's convoy pulls out.

EXT. SOFTBALL FIELD - AFTERNOON The Blackhawk helicopter descends, whipping up dust. Its door opens and the North East Director of Homeland Security, Charles Dyer, steps out, followed by CROWLEY, a State Department flak, and some MILITARY AIDES. DYER Mr. Crowley, I want this island buttoned up -- no one in or out.

Deploy tactical teams for a houseto-house search.

(MORE)

70.

DYER (CONT'D) Set up roadblocks, security checkpoints. I want these hostiles found.

The GNN news van races onto the tarmac and stops.

Bernie emerge.

Faye and

CROWLEY Sir, the PR guys worked up some mission titles for your OK: Operation Resolute Freedom?

Operation Swift Justice? Operation Steady Containment...

DYER Steady Containment?

Pepto Bismol ad.

Faye runs up to Dyer.

Sounds like a

Bernie follows with camera.

FAYE Director Dyer, anything to say to a nervous nation?

DYER I want all Americans to know that we are playing offense! The island has been secured. I am in constant contact with the White House and they agree with my decision to raise the color-coded threat level from orange to red.

Dyer walks off. significantly.

Faye looks into camera, raises her eyebrow

FAYE You heard it here ... this is a GNN Exclusive. The United States is now on Red Alert! Faye Summerfield, live from Target One. Mead?

INT. GNN STUDIOS - DAY Mead, grim.

MEAD ROBERTS Thank you, Faye. (sighs) It's hard to escape the feeling that the ante has been upped...

And now with a brief history of the color-coded alerts: Kim Frost.

71.

KIM FROST Thank you, Mead. The color coded terror alert system was created by Presidential Directive-INT. BEACH MARKET - DAY Customers, like locusts, stripping the shelves of everything.

At the register, Xu Ling, totals a WOMAN CUSTOMER's purchases.

XU LING Three rolls of duct tape, plastic sheeting, Altoids -- two hundred dollars!

Thief!

WOMAN CUSTOMER Profiteer!

The Woman throws the cash down. chaos, grabs the Woman.

Jessie runs in, sees the

JESSIE Sarah, what's going on here?

SARAH Haven't you heard? siege.

Oh, c'mon.

On TV! Stop!

We're under

JESSIE Where?

SARAH

JESSIE Everyone just stop!

They do.

JESSIE (CONT'D) What's the matter with you people?

We're friends, neighbors, we all grew up together. Think about what you're doing.

They nod reflectively, then resume acting like a mob. shrugs, joins in, grabbing supplies.

EXT. SOFTBALL FIELD - DAY DYER (trying to stay calm) So what you're saying is, there's a war on and I don't have a ride to it?

Jessie

72.

CROWLEY (holding walkie-talkie) Well, sir, it seems the Humvees are coming in by boat...

Ennis on his motorbike, followed by the Townies, pulls up.

ENNIS Deputy Dyer? Joe Ennis. We met at George Tenet's book-signing party in D.C. DYER (no recollection) Right, right... can you give me a lift into town, Joe? ENNIS Hop on, I'll brief you. Think of me as your bench coach. I'll toss out a lot of scenarios, you cherrypick-Starts the bike and peels out with Dyer holding on for dear life.

INT. GNN STUDIO Behind Mead we see stock footage of navy ships at sea.

MEAD ROBERTS A naval blockade has been set up around the island. Some us are old enough to remember another island quarantined by U.S. Ships -- Cuba, in 1962-(hears something in his earpiece) Hold on, I'm getting some new information. Oh... (unenthusiastically) I've been informed that Oprah Winfrey, who has a home on Boggs Island, is not there this weekend.

She is at another of her vacation homes. And now to Faye-The lights dim on Mead.

He looks toward Andy in the booth.

MEAD ROBERTS (CONT'D) Oprah is NOT there -- and you call that news??

Yes!

ANDY'S VOICE

73.

EXT. LONG ISLAND SOUND - DAY A small armada of boats are heading out to sea. pack is Prentiss' yacht, the "Irena."

Leading the

REVERSE ANGLE A large Coast Guard cutter idles in front of them and lets out an eardrum-shattering blast from its horn. A Grizzled Coast Guardsman, OFFICER NOONAN, addresses them all on a bullhorn.

NOONAN Turn back -- no one leaves the island!

The fleeing boats come to a dead stop. bridge Prentiss also grabs a bullhorn.

PRENTISS Do I look like a terrorist? capitalist.

On his yacht's fly

I'm a

NOONAN You'll need to go back like everyone else.

PRENTISS I'm not everyone else. I'm Spellman Prentiss. Big difference.

NOONAN Not to the U.S. Coast Guard.

PRENTISS (to yacht captain) Don't listen to him, full speed ahead. What're they gonna do, sink us?

The yacht moves, full steam ahead.

NOONAN nods to gunner. lowers...

The long barrel of the Mark-45 Gun System

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY Cordie directs two-way traffic on the road's one open lane.

Rupe is motioning to a dim-looking HERB DEGGENDORF operating the controls on the Deggendorf & Sons construction crane.

The crane hoists the tower and begins to swing it over toward the side of the road.

74.

RUPE That's good, Herb ... that's good, Herb ... that's good, Herb...

As the tower passes over Rupe's patrol car, the cable snaps and the tower falls, crashing onto the front hood.

RUPE (CONT'D) ...That's not good, Herb.

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - DAY Faye in foreground, as MARINES in the b.g. unpsool razor wire.

FAYE ...Mead, I'm here in the Green Zone...

INT. GNN STUDIO - CONTINUOUS Mead watches monitor. On it is a map of Boggs Island with a clearly demarcated Green Zone (shaded in green).

FAYE (V.O.) ...which was created for citizens cleared through security and awaiting evacuation..

MEAD (listening to earpiece) Faye, I've just received word that the President and Vice President have both moved to separate undisclosed bunkers. I think that makes us all feel a lot better.

EXT. WATER - DAY An exhausted Prentiss, Svetlana float amid the debris of their yacht. A Coast Guard dingy has come to their rescue.

SVETLANA (mimicking Prentiss) What are they going to do, sink us?

Shaddap!

PRENTISS

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD Rupe's banged up patrol SUV passes Chubb's speeding Maybach going the other way.

75.

INT. RUPE'S PATROL SUV - CONTINUOUS CORDIE That was Chubb. Musta been doing sixty. This is a 35.

RUPE I've got bigger concerns right now, okay?

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - DAY Chubb's Maybach speeds past the felled cell tower now by the side of the road.

INT. MAYBACH - CONTINUOUS CHUBB (eyes destruction) These Arabs are packin' some serious heat!

Xandra gets hysterical.

CHUBB (CONT'D) Don't go bitchcakes on me -- I got an exit strategy.

EXT. BEACH - MILLIONAIRES ROW - DAY The long stretch of beach is deserted. Hugo Vance & Ian Lively walk the mile-long strip of McMansions. Hugo holds a colorful umbrella to block the damaging UV rays.

HUGO ...I know it wasn't easy living with me, Eenie. I suck up a lot of oxygen.

IAN Also vodka. Now try to focus, luv... we need a witty internal rhyme. What would Cole Porter do?

HUGO Well, for one he wouldn't be on this dreadful island writing a song about a limp wanger.

A fighter jet roars by deafeningly overhead.

IAN What in bloody hell was that?

HUGO Must be the Travoltas coming in for the weekend.

76.

EXT. PUTNAM ROAD - ASCENSION BALLOON RIDE - AFTERNOON Still no customers. Ray sits, reading a copy of Maxim -when he sees Chubb E's Maybach coming toward him at top speed. He dives into the brush.

INT. CHUBB E'S MAYBACH - DAY CHUBB No way off this island, huh?

XANDRA In that thing? You crazy?

CHUBB Hand me the bank.

Toppy tosses him a gym bag and he rushes out.

EXT. WILDLIFE TRAIL - AFTERNOON Thurman & Russell Nesbitt, half-crocked, head up the dirt trail in their pick-up.

INT. NESBITTS' PICK-UP - CONTINUOUS MIKE FURY (on radio) ...I have been warning you on these airwaves for 8 years that this day was coming, because we have failed to protect our borders...

RUSSELL NESBITT Are you listening to this guy?

Because he tells you what to think.

Russell sees something ahead, slams on his brakes.

INTERCUT About 50 yards down, coming off the hiking trail, the acrobats are power-walking towards them. They're chattering nervously in Arabic.

THURMAN NESBITT We shoulda stayed with the others.

RUSSELL NESBITT Shhhh... I hear Arab...

The Nesbitts slink out of the truck, using the car for cover.

RUSSELL NESBITT (CONT'D) Check it out, man -- the army of Allah.

77.

Russell, holding shotgun, points to Bassam carrying the trunk.

THURMAN NESBITT And the big one has the suitcase nuke...

Jakeem looks up and notices the truck stopped ahead.

Hazi's arm and points.

Hazi!

He pats

JAKEEM Look!

HAZI Automobile-car for ride!

The acrobats start running towards the truck shouting.

Holy shit!

THURMAN NESBITT They're attacking!

Thurman snatches the shotgun from his brother and fires wildly.

HAZI (in Arabic) Terrorists! Run! Terrified, they run off the road into the woods.

RUSSELL NESBITT Nice goin', moron.

THURMAN NESBITT They were coming right at me!

RUSSELL NESBITT Now they took evasive action. They learn that in those camps. Ever seen 'em on those monkey bars?

EXT. CRANDALL'S POND - AFTERNOON Thurman looks at Russell. bright green.

From Thurman's POV everything's

THURMAN NESBITT It's too quiet.

RUSSELL NESBITT They blend in, that's what they do.

Then they jump out and behead you.

Cut wide to see the Nesbitt's are wearing their night vision goggles during the day.

78.

Yeah?

THURMAN NESBITT

Thurman, unnerved, smacks into a tree. spots Faruq's Koran, picks it up.

Russell looks down,

THURMAN NESBITT (CONT'D) What is it?

RUSSELL NESBITT I don't know ... maybe it's the manual to the suitcase nuke.

THURMAN NESBITT Let's get the fuck outa here!

EXT. MAIN STREET - LATE AFTERNOON Concertina wire is stretched across Main Street marking the Green Zone. Armed soldiers with dogs patrol the area.

INT. BOGGS ISLAND P.D. - LATE AFTERNOON The little police station has been transformed into high-tech CentCom with MILITARY TYPES manning laptops.

ENNIS Now I know Zahid's mind... I'm not proud of this, but he's a fan of my work. He once sent me a very flattering note via courier. They blindfolded me and took me to his cave where we broke bread. Well, not bread exactly-- more like your Jewish matz-oh.

DYER Ennis, will you shut up? up!

Just shut

Offended, Ennis crumples his Styrofoam cup and tosses it.

ENNIS Get a hold of yourself, Chuck -everything depends on you keeping it together. By tonight we could have 80,000 dead, minimum.

DYER (to Sentry) Show Mr. Ennis out.

Sentry begins to hustle Ennis out.

ENNIS Don't be a fool, I've been to their training camp in Khost...

(MORE)

79.

ENNIS (CONT'D) I know what they're capable of... (in doorway) Vaya con dios. I'll do my thing in the field.

Ennis heads for the door, takes out a hand-held two way radio from his bush jacket.

ENNIS (CONT'D) (into radio) Zebra One, this is Polar Bear...

COACH PINELLI'S VOICE Zebra's in the can, Joe -- this is Vince.

Ennis exits slamming the door behind him as Dyer studies the marked up map of Boggs Island.

DYER (sotto, to himself) So, it comes down to this ... Dyer and Zahid, mano-a-mano.

EXT. FOREST - LATE AFTERNOON The scared acrobats are running through overgrown foliage.

FARUQ Come to America, he say. grim in Morocco, he say.

Life too

HAZI I be warning you Faruq: If you get out of this alive I be killing you.

EXT. ASCENSION BALLOON RIDE - LATE AFTERNOON Ray is counting a wad of cash. small basket.

Chubb is in the balloon's

RAY Okay, so what you do is dump the sand to go up, and pull on the cord to go down. At a thousand feet, you hit the jet stream, it should take you to the mainland.

CHUBB Get that, Toppy? drivin'.

Cause you

TOPPY Like hell I am. I'll take my chances here.

CHUBB Suit yourself. Get in, Xandra.

80.

XANDRA Uh, no thanks, Chubb. I'm scared a heights -- I'll hang with Tops.

They look at each other, smile.

CHUBB Tops, huh? Well then she's all yours, sucka. Send me a postcard from kingdom come! (to Ray) Hey, white dude -- launch me!

Toppy stops Ray. TOPPY It'll be my pleasure... (flicks open switchblade) I been wanting to cut my ties with you for years.

He cuts the tether.

Whoa!

The balloon takes off, slowly.

CHUBB How you steady this mutha?

Chubb starts dumping sand, the balloon rises more.

RAY Higher -- you're gonna miss the jet stream!

Chubb's balloon is heading toward the water.

RAY (CONT'D) (waving to Chubb frantically) You're going the wrong way!

What?

CHUBB

RAY The other way -- you're heading out to sea!

EXT. BOGGS LANDING - SECURITY CHECK POINT - LATE AFTERNOON A Green Zone security checkpoint at the entrance to the landing. A long line of pedestrians is being searched & wanded.

PEDESTRIAN LINE - CONTINUOUS Kaylee & Kera cut to the front of the long line at the checkpoint. Some of the guys hoot & whistle. They are stopped by the Sentry.

81.

SENTRY Where you think you're going?

KERA The Green Zone.

SENTRY Don't you see the line?

KERA We don't do lines, Gomer. the VIP-list.

SENTRY There is no VIP-list. end!

We're on

Get to the

KAYLEE (frightened) I want my world back!

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - MAIN STREET CHECKPOINT - LATE AFTERNOON Rupe & Cordie, in their sputtering, banged-up patrol car, pull up to yet another checkpoint. They look around in astonishment. Soldiers are scouring the area with bombsniffing dogs and radiation detectors.

A YOUNG MARINE approaches the patrol car. wallet & badge.

Rupe shows him his

YOUNG MARINE You'll need one of these, Chief...

The Marine fastens a brightly colored plastic ID bracelet on Rupe's wrist.

RUPE Does this get me on all the rides?

Rupe drives through.

EXT. FOREST - LATE AFTERNOON Hazi and the others stop, catch their breath. Hazi sees something, points. At the edge of the forest, bathed in the fading rays of the sun, is Rupe & Jessie's cabin.

INT. BOGGS ISLAND P.D. - LATE AFTERNOON Rupe enters, carrying two clear evidence bags.

RUPE Chief Majeski, Boggs Island P.D. (flashes wallet) And you're in my office.

82.

DYER It's a national emergency, Chief -When it ends, we'll go ... depending on the extent of the uh, clean-up.

Dyer turns his back on him.

RUPE What makes you think we're dealing with Islamic terrorists?

DYER It's been confirmed by the CIA. RUPE And they never make mistakes.

Maybe you added up two and two and got five. I'm working on my own theory.

DYER (to Crowley) The beach cop has a theory.

RUPE I'm starting to think it could be a local nut.

DYER There would seem to be no shortage of those.

RUPE Exactly. You know there's a lot of warring factions on the island-DYER What've you got there?

RUPE (holds up bag) I found this in the ferry engine room... (holds up second bag) And this at the base of the cell phone tower.

Crowley holds it up to the light.

DYER Cell phone detonators. (to Crowley) This one's British. Adds up. recruit these bastards in the London mosques. (to aide) (MORE)

They

83.

DYER (CONT'D) Crowley, have these choppered to Langley. (to Rupe) Good work, Chief.

RUPE If you'd just listen-EXT. BOGGS ISLAND P.D. - LATE AFTERNOON Rupe's being hustled out by two sentries. by the police SUV.

Cordie's waiting

CORDIE Didn't go well?

RUPE You picked up on that?

EXT. RUPE & JESSIE'S CABIN - BACK PORCH - LATE AFTERNOON The acrobats, exhausted and sweaty. Hazi looks at his reflection in the window. He brushes twigs from his outfit, slicks down his hair.

HAZI Quiet. Everybody standing up straight with smiling. I shall speak for group...

Hazi knocks on kitchen door.

No answer.

Hazi knocks again.

HAZI (CONT'D) Nobody home.

FARUQ Nobody home on whole island!

Faruq tries the door, it's locked. Jakeem whistles. already going in through the window.

He's

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S BATHROOM - CONTINUOUS Jessie is showering. A portable radio is tuned to a WINS News report of the Boggs Island crisis. Jessie turns off shower, reaches for bath towel.

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS As Bassam squeezes through last. see if they've been followed.

Hazi peeks out window to

HAZI We safe. I find us enchanted cottage at edge of forest.

Jessie enters kitchen wrapped in a towel, drying her hair with another towel.

84.

JESSIE (O.S.) Rupe, it's about time you got-JAKEEM And here is Snow White.

She sees them, screams.

They scream.

HAZI Please, pretty lady, many sorry's for to be intruding-Jessie grabs 8-inch knife from a wood block.

JESSIE Stay back, don't come near me!

They back off, more frightened than she is.

HAZI No, please, no harming...

JESSIE Now I'm sure that in your warped world-view you feel your actions are justified. But there are civilized ways-HAZI You make a big, big misunderstanding!

He starts to approach her.

JESSIE One more step, Osama, and I'll slice you into bait!

She runs out, Hazi follows.

JAKEEM (to Faruq) Smokin' bod!

HALLWAY/BEDROOM DOOR - CONTINUOUS Hazi runs up to bedroom door just as it slams in his face.

JESSIE (O.S.) My boyfriend is on his way home!

He's big!

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S BEDROOM - CONTINUOUS She's frantically trying to get 9-1-1 on her cell, but it's dead. Tosses it in disgust.

85.

HALLWAY/BEDROOM DOOR INTERCUT HAZI ...We was hoping to propose on you to help us escape island...

JESSIE Are you insane?

HAZI No... my parents were cousins but I am quite mentally normal.

INT. JESSIE'S KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS Bassam is fascinated with the icemaker on the refrigerator door. He presses it in, then watches in delight as ice cubes shoot out, all over the kitchen. The others are huddling around her small counter TV. Hazi enters from hallway.

HAZI She thinking we are the terrorists.

Funny, no?

No.

FARUQ

He points to TV. Hazi looks, sees his own image looking back at him. It's a freeze-frame from the beach market video.

FAYE (O.S.) ...It's a frantic race against time as authorities desperately seek to stop one of the world's most wanted terrorists!

Is me!

You Cobra?

HAZI JAKEEM

HAZI Yes, Jakeem, I Cobra. camel's ass.

And you

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S HOUSE - DUSK Hazi, desperate, knocks loudly on the bedroom door.

HAZI ...Please to believe us ... What they say about me most is false. am not America enemies.

(MORE)

I

86.

HAZI (CONT'D) I loving everything you stands for: freedom, high-def TV, Miss Jessica Biel...

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S BEDROOM - DUSK In jeans & leather jacket now, Jessie quietly opens the window and climbs out.

HAZI (O.S.) ...George Foreman Grill, "Rocky" movie one-through-six, Hef, the NASCARS...

EXT. RUPE & JESSIE'S HOUSE - BELOW THE WINDOW - CONTINUOUS She drops silently to the ground, turns. a big smile is Bassam.

Standing there with

HAZI (O.S.) ...high-tops, You Tube...

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - DUSK Faye solemnly speaks into camera.

FAYE Mead, I'm told that in the event of a nuclear detonation, the screen will go white ... and you will hear a high, shrill sound. That will be my microphone melting from the heat of the fireball...

INT. GNN STUDIO Mead is watching Faye skeptically on monitor.

MEAD ROBERTS Didn't Hank Fonda say that in "Fail Safe?"

ANDY (over PA) Nobody remembers!

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - DUSK An anxious Mayor Heatherly interrupts Faye's moment.

HEATHERLY Faye, if I may...

INT. GNN BOOTH - CONTINUOUS ANDY Who's this putz?

87.

ON MONITOR FAYE I'm joined by Boggs Island Mayor Raymond Heatherly...

HEATHERLY That's Roman...and under the circumstances, I think of myself as America's mayor... I want to announce, Faye, that our annual Fourth of July celebration, "Boggsapalooza" will go on!

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - CONTINUOUS Faye cuts him off.

FAYE Thank you, Mayor, for that-INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S LIVING ROOM - DUSK Jessie is bound & gagged in Rupe's La-Z-Boy. Hazi paces, the other acrobats sit cross-legged on the floor.

HAZI ...Apologies for tying you like goat at Feast of Harvest, but we desperate... and driven to brinking point by crazy islanders. You understand?

Jessie nods.

HAZI (CONT'D) (to Jessie) Now we only be putting ourselves on you for a few hours-She looks terrified.

HAZI (CONT'D) No, no, no, I not mean that way! (laughs, embarrassed) When dark come, we escape. You see, we are entertainers here for show. Look! (takes review from wallet) It say, "Majeek"--that be us-"merry Moroccan troupe!"

They strike a merry pose.

JAKEEM Enough reading, we showing.

88.

Excitedly, chattering in Arabic, they move furniture out of the way.

HAZI Yes, we show you now. out your balls...

Jakeem, take

EXT. OLD HARBOR - DUSK Kaylee & Kera are walking along the water's edge near the marina...

KERA I can't die, I'm young, rich and beautiful!

In the shadows, they spot Dale furtively loading his old, beat-up motorboat with gas can and supplies.

KERA (CONT'D) Kaylee, look...

They run towards Dale's boat.

DALE Kaylee & Kera run up.

Hi.

KAYLEE

Dale jumps, startled.

DALE What do you want?

KERA You're gonna run the blockade, aren't you?

So?

DALE

KAYLEE Can you take us with?

DALE Sorry, I'll move faster with less weight.

KAYLEE We don't weigh anything, we have eating disorders.

KERA We'll pay, we're like super-rich.

89.

DALE You summer people think you can buy anything. I'm not into money.

The sisters look at each other, confused. dealing with a nut.

They're obviously

KERA (suggestively) Then maybe we could pay you a different way...

DALE I'm listening...

Kaylee realizes what Kera's getting at.

They huddle.

KAYLEE You like want to do him?

KERA I don't want to, it's war time.

INT. RUPE'S PATROL CAR - DUSK Rupe & Cordie, driving along the beach, looking.

RUPE Think. First the ferry, then the phone tower...

CORDIE They were both built by Spellman Prentiss.... Maybe it's someone who doesn't like Prentiss!

RUPE Thanks, man. That narrows it down to the immediate world.

CORDIE You gotta admit, it's been kinda nice without cell phones.

RUPE Yeah, like it used to be.

CORDIE Did I tell you another one was stolen?

When?

Yesterday. boyfriend.

RUPE CORDIE The singer with the

90.

Sir Hugo?

RUPE

CORDIE Yeah. (pulls out notebook, reads) Zanicki took the report. This is Sir Hugo's description of the perp: "...a deranged old coot in need of periodontal work and a strong antiperspirant."

They look at each other, it dawns; Rupe throws car into reverse, flicks on siren ...

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S CABIN - DUSK Indian pins fly by Jessie's face. WIDEN to see Majeeq standing all around her deftly tossing them to each other.

They finish with a flourish and take a bow.

HAZI (to Jessie) That was sample only. We can do whole act if you are not convincing.

She shakes her head vigorously.

HAZI (CONT'D) You know now that we not bad guys?

She nods.

HAZI (CONT'D) (about to remove gag) I taking this off, no scream, yes?

She shakes her head.

FARUQ She a woman, she will scream.

Hazi slowly takes off her gag.

JESSIE (calmly) I will not scream. (to Faruq) And the middle ages are over, it was in all the papers.

Hazi smiles at Faruq triumphantly. They start to untie her.

She begins to talk, as if to children.

91.

JESSIE (CONT'D) Listen to me carefully, okay? My boyfriend is the chief of police-The acrobats panic: "No police! No police!"

JAKEEM I am not good with torture.

JESSIE He's a beach cop, he rarely tortures. I'll go get him.

She grabs Rupe's motorcycle helmet and keys.

JESSIE (CONT'D) He'll kill me, but the bike's faster.

She's about to open the door when we hear: "...gick, gick, gick, gick..."

JESSIE (CONT'D) What was that?

Bassam tries to explain in Arabic. something back at him in Arabic.

Hazi, angry, shouts

HAZI (to Jessie) Please to forgive. Bassam loves all the animals ... and borrows a souvenir from forest that he will put back... Right, Bassam?

Hazi snarls at Bassam who nods, chastened.

JESSIE (excited) Let me see it!

Hazi signals Bassam, who sheepishly reaches in his pocket, then opens his hand to reveal the tiny chirping frog. She takes it, cups it in her hands, looks at it in disbelief.

HAZI If you might see in your heart not to inform authorities of this infraction, we only on temporary visa-JESSIE My God! Do you know what you found? Leiopelma Diminutis!

HAZI We so stupid -- we think it a frog!

92.

JESSIE You just saved the wetlands!!

They look confused.

Is good?

HAZI

EXT. RUPE & JESSIE'S HOUSE - CONTINUOUS Overwhelmed, Jessie hugs Bassam and kisses him on the cheek; he blushes. She mount's Rupe's hog and tears off.

JAKEEM Nothing for Jakeem?

DISSOLVE TO: Jessie jumps on Rupe's hog and speeds off toward Old Dune Road.

DISSOLVE TO: THE SILHOUETTE OF CHUBB E. BOYD'S BALLOON AS IT PASSES IN FRONT OF A FULL MOON. CHUBB (V.O.) This ain't no place for a brotha!?

EXT. ELDON SPOOLE'S CABIN - NIGHT Rupe's headlights reveal a dilapidated old log cabin. Junk litters the yard. The two cops jump out. Rupe raps on the door. Cordie stands to the side, gun drawn.

RUPE Mr. Spoole? We need to talk.

No response.

CORDIE Want me to kick it in?

RUPE Or ... you could try the doorknob.

Rupe does, it opens.

INT. ELDON SPOOLE'S CABIN - NIGHT Dark, creepy. Cordie tightens the grip on his weapon. Rupe scans the room with his flashlight and they see the pile of stolen cell phones, a cardboard box filled with detonation cords, plastic bags filled with a reddish brown putty-like substance. On the wall is a diagram of the cell tower, and a one-sheet from Al Gore's, "An Inconvenient Truth."

93.

Jesus...

CORDIE

O.S., they hear some tinkering out back. flashlight.

Rupe clicks off his

THEIR POV Through the window they see Spoole in his junk-strewn yard welding an explosive device.

Rupe signals Cordie to sneak around back.

EXT. SPOOLE'S CABIN - MOMENTS LATER Rupe steps outside cautiously, shining his light on Spoole.

RUPE Mr. Spoole?

SPOOLE (spins, startled) Who's there?

RUPE Rupe Majeski.

Who?

SPOOLE

RUPE Majeski. Sat in back of your chemistry class next to Arnie Silverman? You said I would never amount to anything. You were right.

SPOOLE Majeski. You never handed in your paper on cold fusion!

RUPE My grandmother died.

SPOOLE The old standby.

RUPE (looks around) This looks like chemistry lab, sir.

SPOOLE How would you know? You were always cutting class.

Rupe cautiously approaches him.

94.

SPOOLE (CONT'D) Don't get any closer, Majeski!

RUPE Making another one of your explosive devices?

SPOOLE Very good, not as dumb as I thought. An underachiever.

RUPE That's me. You've been blowing up things, Mr. Spoole, scaring a lot of people.

SPOOLE Someone has to stop the conspiracy between the land barons and the multinationals. They're depleting our natural resources!

RUPE You know, you'd really hit it off with my girlfriend...

Out of the corner of his eye Rupe notices Cordie sneaking up behind Spoole.

RUPE (CONT'D) Look, I've got to take you in.

He moves toward Spoole.

SPOOLE Back off, Majeski!

Like the college linebacker of old, Cordie takes Spoole down with a flying tackle. Rupe slaps on cuffs.

RUPE Impressive move there, Cordell.

CORDIE Yeah, that play finally came in handy.

Rupe slaps the cuffs on him.

EXT. HARBOR SQUARE - SECURITY CHECKPOINT - NIGHT Jessie is being subjected to a thorough search. The SENTRY is wanding her while a SECOND MARINE checks out her bike for hidden explosives.

95.

JESSIE Is this really necessary? lived here all my life.

I've

SENTRY Remove your blouse please.

Oh, yeah. happen.

JESSIE Like that's going to

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S HOUSE - KITCHEN - NIGHT Hazi is pacing nervously, thinking. The acrobats watch him anxiously. The small TV is tuned to GNN broadcasting live from the Boggsapalooza in Harbor Square.

HEATHERLY (ON TV) (blows into mike) Let's find seats, people... The show must go on -- otherwise, they win! Off your knees, Dave, pray later.

THE MOROCCANS FARUQ Enough waiting! She have betrayed us.

ALI Faruq could be right, Uncle.

Hazi puts up his hand for silence, paces more.

Stops.

HAZI Men, I has made a decision.

JAKEEM What is it?

HAZI If their show must go on -- our show must go on! We prove we not terrorists by doing what we came for -- big gig.

Ali, Jakeem & Bassam agree enthusiastically in Arabic.

Big gig!

BASSAM Big gig!

EXT. RUPE & JESSIE'S HOUSE - NIGHT - MOMENTS LATER The acrobats creep out of the house, looking ridiculous in Rupe's loud, bad-taste, oversized clothes, caps, etc. The fog has started to roll in.

96.

EXT. JESSIE'S HOUSE - DRIVEWAY Tied to the roof of Jessie's Prius is the prop trunk which has been covered with a colorful Sponge Bob Square Pants beach towel. The five guys squeeze into the small car.

Hazi is behind the wheel, Ali next to him. In the back, the hulking Bassam is in the middle, with Jakeem & Faruq on either side.

They drive off into the thickening the fog.

INT. GNN BOOTH - NIGHT Andy watches Faye, still in Harbor Square, on the monitors.

On screen is a reverse digital doomsday clock ticking off the seconds to zero hour. SUPER: GNN DOOMSDAY CLOCK FAYE There's little more than eleven minutes left, Mead. And, if I may, I'd like to take a minute to thank you, the viewers, who stood by this reporter since she took her first awkward steps in front of a TV camera-ANDY (to monitor) Have your moment, baby. (to others) You're looking at a news woman.

EXT. DUNE ROAD - NIGHT The Prius creeping slowly toward town on an otherwise deserted road. The fog is thicker now.

INT. PRIUS - NIGHT Through the windshield, they see an eerie light glowing in the distance. It's moving toward them.

ALI What is that?

Hazi slows the car. gets closer.

The light, in the middle of the road,

Abruptly, an other-worldly creature emerges from the fog.

Hazi slams on his brakes before hitting the "martian." The Moroccans scream in terror.

HAZI Everyone chilling!

97.

The martian's face moves in close against the driver's window hazmat suit with goggles, helmet, breathing filter.

Trembling, Hazi fumbles with the driver's window, lowering it. The soldier's voice sounds Darth Vader-ish through his breathing equipment.

SOLDIER Corporal J.T. Hopper, First Infantry. Sir, you are in a restricted area.

FARUQ (aside to Jakeem) No Jews?

Jakeem elbows him.

HAZI We support troops!

Thank you. disabled.

HOPPER My vehicle was

Hopper shines his light on Nuclear Reconnaissance Vehicle with radiation-detectors. It's hit a tree in the fog.

HOPPER (CONT'D) Any chance I can get a lift back to HQ? HAZI Sorry, but we have tiny automobilecar-EXT. DUNE ROAD - CONTINUOUS The soldier pauses, then shines the light in Hazi's face, studying him for a beat. Then he shines it on the other Moroccans, one by one.

BASSAM Wuz hup, doot? How abood doze medz?

Eyeing the covered prop trunk on the roof, he lifts the towel, revealing Arabic lettering & symbols. He then backs away from the car.

GI Everybody out of the vehicle!

Now!

They all panic. Hazi guns it. As the Prius speeds off toward town, the GI removes his gloves and grabs his satellite phone.

98.

INT. BOGGS ISLAND P.D. - NIGHT Jessie's toe-to-toe with Dyer; the Nesbitts, in orange jump suits are manacled together in b.g.

JESSIE ...I'm trying to explain to you that there are no terrorists!

DYER Tell that to these sleeper agents.

JESSIE The Nesbitts?

DYER We found them with a cache of guns and a copy of the Koran.

JESSIE They're not terrorists, they're idiots.

THURMAN NESBITT That's what we've been trying to tell him.

Crowley answers satellite phone.

JESSIE Look, I can clear this up if you promise not to hurt anybody-Hurt who?

DYER

Crowley hands phone to Dyer.

DYER (CONT'D) (into phone) Dyer. ...Damn! (to Aide) The cobra is out of the basket. (into phone) Secure the perimeters, alert the sharpshooters, I'm on my way-Slams phone down, and he's out the door.

JESSIE Sharpshooters! No, wait -- this is insane -- they're jugglers!

But he's gone. Jessie, left alone, picks up military satellite phone and punches in number.

99.

JESSIE (CONT'D) Pick up ... pick up ... pick up.

INT. RUPE & JESSIE'S HOUSE - CONTINUOUS The phone rings.

The frog, in a small tank, stares at it.

INT. BOGGS LANDING P.D. - CONTINUOUS Jessie tosses the phone down, runs out.

INT. PRIUS - NIGHT Hazi brakes when he sees Green Zone checkpoint.

ALI Now what, Uncle?

HAZI Ever see the great Steve McQueen?

Hazi hangs a U, tires squealing, floors it. burning rubber, down an alley.

He careens left,

EXT. BACK ALLEY - NIGHT The car halts at a dead end and the acrobats climb out.

EXT. GREEN ZONE - HARBOR SQUARE - NIGHT Jessie, frantic, pushes through the crowd asking everyone if they've seen Rupe. Armed soldiers, some with bomb-sniffing dogs, mix in with Kiefer's period costumed staff.

EXT. BACK ALLEY - NIGHT Majeeq standing on each other's shoulders behind the hardware store. Jakeem climbs up them like a ladder, hops on the roof and throws down tightrope.

EXT. BOGGSAPALOOZA STAGE - NIGHT On stage, the emcee is Mayor Heatherly.

We see the grim faces of frightened crowd that's been herded into the Green Zone. Some standing, some sitting on grass, none in a partying mood.

HEATHERLY Today we send a message that nothing can conquer the American spirit. And to deliver it is our friend, our neighbor, TV's David Caruso...

As the band softly plays "Battle Hymn of the Republic," Caruso bounds up on stage.

100.

CARUSO Good evening. (dramatically) Four score and seven years ago...

David looks down, sees Kiefer calling to him.

KIEFER I had some no-shows.

Stretch!

Makes "stretching" motion with his hands. a look.

Caruso shoots him

EXT. MAIN STREET CHECKPOINT - NIGHT Joy Burkhart, in her stockinged feet, holds her arms out while being "wanded" by a marine.

JOY I'm married to a urologist on Park Avenue and he's wanding me.

They put an I.D. bracelet on Joy and let her through.

Directly overhead, the five acrobats in silhouette scurry along the rooftops; Bassam, as always, carries the trunk.

EXT. STORE ROOFTOP - NIGHT Jakeem taps Hazi, points. They all look and see for the first time the brightly-lit stage, the crowd, the soldiers.

Big gig!

BASSAM

The others shush him.

ON STAGE - CONTINUOUS Caruso walks off to big applause.

HEATHERLY "Shall not perish from this earth."

Amen to that, David. (silence) Okay, moving right along... we had a disappointment ... Kenny G cancelled. Apparently, his grandmother died. Replacing him ... fresh from their appearance at the Rosenstein Bar Mitzvah ... please give it up for... Shallow Grave!

The lights go up on a bad-looking metallic garage band that begins to play deafeningly.

101.

KIEFER (into headset) Didn't we book some acrobats?

EXT. MAIN STREET ALLEYWAY - NIGHT The acrobats are quickly changing into their costumes.

EXT. DUNE ROAD - NIGHT Rupe's patrol car, siren wailing, is speeding toward the Green Zone.

EXT. BACKSTAGE AREA - NIGHT The acrobats enter the tented backstage area left, now fully costumed in black spandex tights & colorful headbands.

HAZI Pardon please ... Mr. Kiefer Upshaw ... Kiefer Upshaw please?

Joy Burkhart enters from the right, her dog's head peeking out of her shoulder bag. She pushes her way through edgy crowd of costumed staff, technicians, etc.

JOY Excuse me ... they told me there was a porto-potty back here.

They ignore her.

CROSSCUT Joy and Majeeq on their inevitable collision course.

JOY (CONT'D) I've had a very trying day... I need a facility desperately!

Kiefer?

HAZI Are you Kiefer?

Sorry.

Joy walks right up to Hazi and they speak simultaneously...

JOY Hey, you -- do you have any idea where-HAZI Excusing please, we are lost-ed and in need-Joy now looks at him. Something's familiar about this guy in tights. Where has she seen him before? A beat, then it dawns. She screams. The Acrobats scream.

102.

EXT. STAGE AREA - CONTINUOUS From backstage, Joy runs into the crowd screaming, followed

by Hazi and the acrobats yelling, "No! No!" It's them!

JOY

The spotlight hits the acrobats in front of the stage. They freeze in their tracks. Bassam, terrified, squints into the blinding light.

BASSAM How abood doze medz? doze medz??

How abood

THE CROWD People jump out of the way as Joe Ennis tears through the crowd on his motorbike, stopping in front of Dyer. He's followed by his posse.

The Cobra! martyrdom!

ENNIS And he's dressed for

Ennis's men lock & load.

DYER Ennis, keep your men out of this! (into cuff mike) Can you get off a clean shot?

EXT. ROOF - SHARPSHOOTER'S P.O.V. - CONTINUOUS He attempts to get a bead on the acrobats but bystanders are blocking them.

ACROBATS in the spotlight as the crowd disperses.

FAYE, BERNIE Faye speaks into camera in hushed tones...

FAYE Mead, this is the moment we have dreaded.

INT. GNN BOOTH - CONTINUOUS Andy's watching this play out live on the monitor.

103.

ANDY Okay, it's going down now. We're all professionals, we've got a job to do.

EXT. STAGE AREA - NIGHT HAZI No, no. Wait, please... Peoples, we are Majeeq ... We are here to amuse you. We humble troupe of merry-makers... (to his troupe) Make merry!

The guys nervously try various merry poses.

ENNIS (to crowd) That's an Islamic suicide ritual!

Cries from the crowd.

SHARPSHOOTER'S P.O.V. Hazi in the scope's crosshairs, but he's moving around too much for the sniper to get a clean shot.

HAZI (to Bassam) Turn on boom box!

BASSAM Boom box ... boom box...

He reaches for the trunk.

More screams from the crowd.

Hazi whirls around to see that they are completely surrounded by armed soldiers & locals, all aiming their weapons directly at the terrified acrobats.

Desperate, he grabs the cell phone from his belt clip, and does his best impersonation of an evildoer.

HAZI You right, peoples. I am the Cobra! And with this phone detonator I can blow up whole island and half New York!

He holds up cell phone for all to see.

DYER (into cuff) Hold your fire!

104.

ALI (in Arabic) What are you doing, Uncle?

HAZI (in Arabic) What does it look like? I'm trying to keep us from being killed!

JAKEEM (mimicking his favorite film) Attica! Attica!

Hazi elbows Jakeem hard to shut him up.

HAZI (in English, to crowd) Not to shoot please! Because if you do with last breath I will press button! We are trained to do this in suicide school!

Hazi's hand is trembling as he holds up cell phone. locals & military nervously aim their guns at him.

Armed

QUICK CUTS of Boggsians as their impending doom sinks in.

For the first time Faye is speechless. Some weeping is heard in the crowd. Just as the tension becomes unbearable ...

Hazi's cell phone trills its Arabic ringtone. Flustered, he checks the caller ID. INSERT: CALLER ID It reads: Tishman Talent 718-555-4711 HAZI (CONT'D) (to crowd) I must take this ... Is evil leader... (into phone) Yes, please?

The crowd murmurs, confused.

INT. TISHMAN TALENT AGENCY - QUEENS, NY - NIGHT TISHMAN I'm watching on TV -- what the hell are you doing! Talk about career suicide. (before Hazi can answer) Dammit, I've got another call.

Hang on...

BACK TO SCENE

105.

We hear loud "hold music" -- Burt Bachrach's, "What the World Needs Now." Hazi, sweating bullets, forces a smile.

HAZI (nervous laughter) Perhaps would be good time to issue list of demands ... One: we want spacious mini-van for to go to airport. Two-DYER (into cuff) Shoot to kill.

SHARPSHOOTER Has Hazi in the crosshairs again. trigger.

He starts to squeeze the

RUPE'S PATROL CAR Lights flashing, siren blaring, drives up through parting crowd. He swerves in front of Arabs, just as the sharpshooter fires. The round shatters the cars windshield -dead center. The crowd holds its breath.

BERNIE'S POV: VIEWFINDER VIDEO. Then, the driver's door slowly opens and a weary Rupe gets out, unhurt.

Jessie runs up to Rupe.

She crying.

JESSIE Thank God you're okay. For a minute, I thought you were.

RUPE Me too, baby.

Cordie emerges unscathed as well and drags the manacled Spoole out of the backseat and into the spotlight. The crowd reacts, surprised.

RUPE (CONT'D) Here's who blew up the tower and the ferry! Not those guys.

SPOOLE And I'd do it again! (into Bernie's camera) Here's the problem, people: the unabated degradation of our natural resources caused by rapacious capitalism. (looks around) You're not taking notes!

106.

INT. GNN BOOTH - CONTINUOUS ANDY Best TV since Saddam's hanging!

BACK TO SCENE Cordie hustles Spoole off to jail. spotlight, next to acrobats.

Rupe walks into

RUPE These guys are acrobats!

HAZI Is true! We no belong to al-Qaeda, we belong to AFTRA. KIEFER You're Majeeq? You're on next!

Dyer and his men hustle over.

RUPE Good work, Dyer. a circus act.

You saved us from

Ennis pushes through.

ENNIS I'd hold them for questioning, Dyer. These Islamic radicals often sneak into the country posing as entertainers!

DYER (to Ennis) Would you please just, fuck off! (quietly to acrobats) Sorry boys... bad intelligence. (shouting to men) Okay, let's pack it up!

Dyer rushes off.

JESSIE (re Dyer) And what's amazing... is none of these guys ever get fired!?

RUPE Calm down, hon...

Faye & Bernie run up to Dyer.

FAYE Director Dyer ... any comment on this military fiasco?

107.

DYER We went with the intelligence we had I'll admit mistakes were made... starting with you, Miss Summerfield... and your totally irresponsible reporting!

He storms off.

FAYE (into camera) Blaming the messenger. We've seen it before... Iran-Contra, Chechnya, Iraq...

EXT. STAGE - CONTINUOUS HEATHERLY (loudly into mike) I'm on record -- there was never a credible threat. Just another media-created crisis, like global warming-From the audience Walter Burbage emerges.

WALTER BURBAGE Can it, Roman -- it's not an election year!

Back on stage.

HAZI (to Heatherly) We are most sorry for trouble we cause. We be leaving now. Come, men-(they start to go) HEATHERLY Oh, no, you don't. You're gonna get up here and do your act-(to crowd) Right, Boggsians?

The shell-shocked crowd just stares.

HEATHERLY (CONT'D) Ladies and gentleman ... give it up for ... Majeeq!

CLOSE ON A SNARE DRUM A dramatic drum roll played by our musician dressed like an injured Revolutionary War soldier.

ON STAGE - CONTINUOUS

108.

Majeeq, as they jump and tumble out on stage.

SIR HUGO & IAN pull up in a golf cart.

IAN So this is where everyone is...

They watch the boys' act and are impressed.

HUGO Eenie, I'm about to do something selfless.

You?

IAN

HUGO I know it's out of character, but I'm moved by the moment.

He heads for the stage.

FAYE ON CAMERA behind her, the acrobats perform their act. Juggling, balancing, fire-breathing etc. The crowd's eating it up.

FAYE ...Well, Mead, it all ended happily with no loss of life. Blame the confusion on fear, paranoia, intelligence lapses, racial profiling ... and yes, maybe we in the media, must also accept some small share of the responsibility.

But, make no mistake ... these are dangerous times ... anything can happen at anytime, anywhere ... and as always, GNN will ... "be there, when it counts."

INT. GNN BOOTH - CONTINUOUS ANDY You gotta love her.

INT. STUDIO - CONTINUOUS A spent Mead Roberts.

MEAD ROBERTS Thirty years in TV journalism, and my credibility shot in one day.

109.

ANDY (over P.A.) Mead, relax. We'll take some hits on this and it'll be forgotten.

Nobody cares about the truth, they tune in for the drama. (to all) People, coming out of commercial, and going into post-crisis analysis!

MEAD ROBERTS Do it without me, Andy. (removes his mike) Goodnight and good luck.

Walks off to applause from floor crew.

He's gone.

ANDY Mr. Integrity has left the building. Get me Faye!

EXT. BOGGSAPALOOZA STAGE - CONTINUOUS Majeeq bows to tumultuous applause.

They're all smiles.

HAZI Look, boys -- we kill the people!

The others smile & nod.

To everyone's surprise Sir Hugo sits at the piano and starts to play. We recognize it as the theme from the Staminax commercial he's been working on, "Never Too Late To Love."

But now the lyrics seem to fit this occasion perfectly -- "We Are the World" meets "Candle in the Wind."

HUGO (inspired) Never too late to love ... never too late to care...

From a barge offshore, a Roman candle shoots into the sky and explodes in an array of colors. Crowd oohs & ahhs.

The song continues over the following scenes: EXT. LONG ISLAND SOUND - NIGHT Fireworks exploding in the night sky. In his boat, a newly confident & relaxed Dale Beldon, lights up a cigarette as the twins get dressed.

KAYLEE Okay, we lived up to our end...

110.

DALE You certainly did, ladies!

KAYLEE So ...take us to Long Island.

Dale is about to get up when his boat is hit with a glaring searchlight from Coast Guard ship. The half-dressed girls scream, shield their eyes.

NOONAN (on bullhorn) Ahoy there! You kids in trouble?

KAYLEE Yes! Please let us through! We don't want to die in a nuclear fireball!

NOONAN That ain't likely, ma'am. The whole damn thing turned out to be a false alarm!

KAYLEE False alarm? You mean we ...

Dale is lying on his back, all smiles, blowing smoke rings.

Kaylee & Kera look at each other.

Ewwwww!

KAYLEE & KERA FADE OUT.

EXT. BOGGS LANDING - NIGHT RUPE & JESSIE RUPE (checks his watch) There's still two hours left of my day off, what do you say we make the most of it...

JESSIE Good plan, but there's a slight hitch...

Now what?

RUPE

JESSIE Don't get mad, Rupe. All the hotels are booked and they need a place to crash...so...

111.

Who?

RUPE

Waiting by the car is Majeeq.

They join Rupe & Jessie.

No, no...

All wave, smiling broadly.

RUPE (CONT'D)

HAZI Not to be proposing on you again, but Faruq has list of dietary concerns: no alcohol, no caffeine, no pork, no sea turtle from Straits of Hormuz...

Rupe and Jessie smile and kiss as fireworks go off behind them and between them.

FADE OUT. FADE IN OVER END CREDITS: Stirring John Williams type theme. An impressive graphics package intros Faye's new prime-time news show.

ANNOUNCER From the GNN News Studios in New York: "Your World Tonight With Faye Summerfield."

FAYE Good evening. I'm Faye Summerfield... (swivels into camera two) Some of the breaking stories we'll be covering tonight: Homeland Security's Charles A. Dyer resigns...

QUICK CLIP: DYER, ON HIS FRONT LAWN, AT CLUSTER OF MIKES. DYER I've decided to uh, spend more time with my family...

He's standing with a family you wouldn't want to spend time with, trust us.

FAYE Billionaire Spellman Prentiss met his match today when his 80 million dollar development was stopped dead by this little guy...

Split screen with Prentiss & Boggs frog.

112.

FAYE (CONT'D) ...Recently the object of a massive manhunt... the merry Moroccan troupe of acrobats known as "Majeeq" debut their spectacular new show at the Prentiss Palace in Atlantic City...

Picture changes to Majeeq posing in colorful new outfits.

FAYE (CONT'D) ...And missing hip-hop artist Chubb E. Boyd, reappears ... stunning fans and foes alike by becoming the first African-American to cross the Atlantic in a balloon...

TIGHT SHOT of a haggard-looking Chubb being helped out of the balloon basket by a MAN IN A KILT. BACK ON FAYE FAYE (CONT'D) And now for world news. Actressmodel Mindy Mason has fled rehab after only 36 hours. Live from the scene, Kim Frost-The screen goes black as CREDITS ROLL