03x09 - Update Your Priors

[bunniefuu]

["NEMESIS" PLAYING]

[MUSIC ENDS]

[LAUGHING]

[BRADLEY] Oh, my God.

[LAURA, BRADLEY CHUCKLING]

[GASPS]

[SIGHS]

[PAUL] What's going on
there, Levy? [EXHALES]

I'm just thinking about
the wildfires in California.

[PAUL] Hmm, okay. As one does.

[SIGHS] We covered it
a couple of years ago.

And there was this woman. Oh,
God, I remember her so clearly.

She had this little backpack
on, like a little kid's backpack,

and she clearly just lost her
home and her car and everything.

She was just wandering back
and forth behind our cameras,

and you could just see
she didn't know what to do,

and she had no idea where to go.

Alex, we're not burning
anybody's house down.

Really? I mean, we kind of are.

We're k*lling a company that
has existed for years.

And I'm, like, standing there
holding a match, you know? [SIGHS]

Yeah. I could see if I was in your
position, I might feel that way.

Yeah, but see, you're not.

This company gave me my career.

Wait a m... No. No, this
company gave you a job.

Mmm.

You... You made that
into something else.

[SIGHS]

Okay. It's just moving...

- It's just moving really, really fast.
- Yeah, I know.

And I wish we could slow it down,
but we do not have that luxury.

[SIGHS] Mmm.

And I know the secrecy
of it is not ideal.

I just feel like I've failed,
you know? 'Cause otherwise this...

- None of this would be happening.
- [PAUL] Okay. Okay, sure. Yeah,

you can look at it that way.
Sure. You can tell yourself that,

or you could look at
this as an opportunity

to create something that
will survive into the future.

Mm-hmm.

[PAUL] You wanna run your own studio?

Run your own studio.

Bring Mia, bring Bradley,
bring Chris. Bring 'em all.

[STAMMERS] This is a chance to create
something new, something better.

But you have to really, really want it.

Mm-hmm.

- [ALEX SIGHS]
- Do you?

[BRADLEY] Wow, you've been with
Hyperion since the beginning.

You were really part of
making that company happen.

I'm also wondering, you know, working
for a visionary like Paul Marks,

it must have been a really
difficult decision to leave.

[ENGINEER] Yeah, well,
it was time to move on.

You know, over a third of the
engineers that worked on Hyperion Two...

- [WHISPERING]
- ...have left since March.

That's a lot of people.

I was just wondering if there were
any problems, um, safety concerns,

problems with management. Just
w-why do you think the mass exodus?

[ENGINEER] I'm sorry. I have to go.

Uh, I know you signed an NDA, and I'm...

[SIGHS] I'm not gonna get you sued.

- I won't use your name. I just need a...
- [CALL ENDS]

- [BRADLEY SIGHS]
- f*ck.

[BRADLEY] That was the
last name on my list.

All the names we found, and nothing?

All manner of f*cked-up sh*t
could be happening there,

and no one's gonna know.
Paul's got everybody spooked.

Any word from Kate?

She does not want to be found.

We need to find someone
who will go on the record.

What about Paul's
lower-level employees?

You know, somebody who's
not "NDAed" to death, right?

- Yeah. You think they would talk?
- Uh, %. Definitely.

I mean, as a recently
fired employee of...

how do I put this...
a, uh, challenging boss,

- I speak from experience.
- [STELLA] Hmm.

- Painful, f*cking bitter experience.
- Stella, we're gonna get it done.

By Friday?

Because once Paul owns UBA,

anything we find will just make us
feel shittier that he's our boss.

Oh, this is fantastic.

Send them ten pounds
of Black Ivory Coffee.

- Black Ivory?
- [CORY] Mm-hmm.

[STAMMERS] They only
made pounds last year.

- Mm-hmm.
- [KYLE] Total i-in the world.

Yeah, I know.

- Got a minute?
- Oh, Earl. Yeah. Come in.

All right, so put out
word on the socials,

make new friends on the dark web,

volunteer at the zoo
and freestyle a batch.

Just get me those beans, Kyle.

On it.

[CHUCKLES]

You seen UBA's trading activity today?

Not yet.

Who's getting slaughtered, beside
the big tech companies out there?

Oh. Whoa. That's, um...

[LAUGHS] That's steeper than El Cap.

Someone needs to free solo that sh*t.

Started at the bell,
volume hasn't let up since.

Figured it was arb traders, so I
reached out to the usual suspects.

It's not them, and they
don't know who it is.

Oh. [STAMMERS] Come on, Earl.

Traders are worse than
middle schoolers with a crush.

They can't keep a secret
to save their lives.

These buyers are keeping it very quiet.

We may not know anything
till they file with the SEC.

Hmm. Did you have fun at
my surprise party last year?

Don't think I was invited.

Yeah, 'cause there wasn't
one. I hate surprises.

I especially hate them when they're four

days before I close a $ billion deal.

Find out who is buying.

I don't want any assholes popping out of

closets this week and f*cking things up.

Yes, sir.

[SIGHS]

[LINE RINGING]

[VOICE MAIL] We're
sorry. You have reached

a number that has been disconnected

or is no longer in service. Please...

[KNOCKING]

- Hey.
- [STELLA] Hi.

You got a minute? I'm getting bounced

between lawyers and bean counters here.

Yeah, sure. What's up?

[SIGHS] You've never been through
one of these before, have you?

An acquisition?

Well, UBA bought my start-up,
but not for billion.

[CHUCKLES]

Yeah, well, there's always fallout

when one company takes another one over.

No one likes to be shown the door.

You think Cory's gonna lose his sh*t.

Maybe we could send a shrink along

with his $ million severance package.

Yeah, don't touch that.

Yeah, about that.

[STAMMERS] I've done my
due diligence on Cory.

I was just curious if
you had anything to add.

You ever see him cross a line?

Like self-dealing, corporate
espionage type stuff? No.

Never. He's way too careful
for anything like that.

Yeah, what about his personal
life? What's that look like?

As far as I know,
he's not dating anyone.

I heard he plays poker
with some other execs,

but, uh, he basically
lives at the office.

Come on, Stella. The guy's not a monk.

Honestly, he kind of is.

I heard he was hanging around Bradley
too much when she first got here.

But, you know, obviously
that went nowhere.

Well, okay then.

I almost feel bad for the guy.
He has no idea what's coming.

Yeah.

[INHALES DEEPLY, SIGHS]

- [KNOCKING]
- Oh, come in.

- [ELENA] Hey.
- Thank you for making the time.

[ELENA] Okay. Please tell me
that you're not going back to UBA.

No, Elena. I'm not leaving NBN.

[ELENA] Oh, good. I mean, when you said

you wanted an off-the-books meeting,

I was gearing up to fight
f*cking Paul Marks. Jesus Christ.

- It's not about that.
- Okay.

[LAURA] Okay.

[INHALES DEEPLY, EXHALES HEAVILY]

So recently... [CLEARS THROAT]
...I discovered something.

It's big. I don't know if
it's real, but if I chase it...

But?

It could implicate
someone close to you. Okay.

And if I don't look into it, and
people find out that I knew...

- [ELENA] Yeah.
- ...it would ruin my career.

You know, back before
I went all corporate,

I covered the Clinton impeachment.

And my college roommate was one
of Ken Starr's top prosecutors.

And she said something to me
one night over drinks, offhand.

And...

And you...

I ran it down and reported it.

Afterwards she accused me of
betraying her, which, well, I had.

Because that's what
we do as journalists.

We shatter one moral
code to uphold the other.

I just...

I'm not sure I can do that.

Look, if you're too close,

if you wanna pass it off to someone who

does not have a personal connection...

No, no. Thank you.

- I'll handle it.
- All right.

Well, let's find out
if it's even real, okay?

And then we will go from there.

Okay.

- Yeah, you got this.
- Thank you.

f*ck.

[CORY] All right.

[PHONE RINGING]

- Earl, hit me.
- [EARL] No names yet.

Insider trading laws are a bitch.
Wish I could get in the mix.

Come Friday, these mystery buyers,

they're gonna ra...
rake it in. [CHUCKLES]

[EARL] Buyer. My guy at Goldman told
me that one LLC is behind it all.

A s-single player, huh?

Well, someone is getting
very, very greedy.

[EARL] I'll keep chasing the name.

Yeah, you do that.

Kyle, is, uh, Paul
still in the building?

Uh, he's in back-to-backs
with BA and Legal.

Want me to try to get him?

No, I'll find him.

- I look forward to hearing about that.
- Great.

Thank you very much.

[PAUL SIGHS]

Hey, there he is.

Cory.

Paul. Hey, you, um,

see the proofs for the,
uh, thing the other day?

- They just sent them over.
- I did not.

What do you think? How do we look?

Oh, yeah. Like the, uh,
titans of industry that we are.

[BOTH CHUCKLE]

Well, about the other day.

Uh, whatever I said, I
apologize. Just one of those days.

Hey, it's the private
playing poor, you know?

They think they're doing you a favor.
Hey, real quick, while I got you.

There's been some sizable
UBA stock purchases today.

And, uh, I heard through the grapevine,

that there's one LLC behind them all.

You don't have a buddy trying to get in

while the getting's good, do you?

- No, nobody I know of.
- [CORY] Right.

I mean, doesn't really matter,
right? It's a formality at this point.

- We already have the votes.
- [CORY] Exactly.

T-minus four days. [CHUCKLES]

- [KNOCKING]
- [MARCUS] Knock, knock.

It's : in the
morning. You stalking me?

- It's not our anniversary, is it? sh*t.
- Oh, no, no. [CHUCKLES]

- That's next week. You're good. Mmm.
- Ah.

- Baby. [GROANS]
- [MARCUS CHUCKLES]

- My husband...
- [MARCUS] Mm-hmm.

- ... dropping by spontaneously with flowers.
- Mm-hmm.

- What Naima do?
- [LAUGHS]

- I'm not buying another hamster.
- [MARCUS] There's nothing wrong.

- Don't play with me.
- Noth... Nothing's wrong. [CHUCKLES]

Okay.

I got a call from your
favorite sports network.

They wanna set a meeting. And
they got it bad for you too.

Frankly, I'm a little jealous.

- Have they seen my social media?
- Of course.

They love your voice, your passion.

Or they wanna hire someone like me

so they can appear to be making a change

without actually doing anything.

[STAMMERS] Look, if you want to chase
hard news, we can negotiate that.

Mmm. Sports again?

I mentioned that you want to
do the Brittney Griner special.

They're all in. So what do you think?

[SIGHS] You wanna mix sh*t up?

[BOTH CHUCKLE]

[SCOFFS] You don't need Paul Marks.

[EMPLOYEES CHATTERING]

[MAGGIE] Am I interrupting?

- Maggie.
- Long time.

What... What brings you here?

Oh, I was just talking to
Leonard about the acquisition.

I'm doing a piece for The Times.

Right.

Right. Okay. Well, I sadly... I
don't have anything to add to that.

I promise my tape recorder
is off. Can I come in?

Wow.

You've done well for yourself.

I mean, first, a...
a best-selling book,

then a hit show beloved by America.

You're thriving.

Well, you know, it's been a...
it's been a busy few years.

[LAUGHS] That is an
understatement. Can I?

- Of course.
- [MAGGIE SIGHS] I won't stay long.

- Okay.
- I just wanted to say hi.

All right.

I know we didn't leave
things on the best of terms,

but I'm out of the shame business.

I just wanted to say that
the things you've done,

the changes you've made
an... and undergone,

have been impressive to watch.

I'm sorry. I just... That's
not what I was expecting.

I get it. I do. And I'll be the first

to admit that if this was a year ago,

I probably would be standing here
asking you about your relationship

with the aerospace billionaire
about to buy this company.

But I'm more interested
in the deal itself

and... and what it portends for
the future of broadcast television.

Well, I, uh... I appreciate
the olive branch. I really do.

Hmm...

Can I just ask... and this
is obviously off the record...

- Okay.
- What's your plan?

I mean, after this deal goes through,

do you keep working here under Cory?

Yeah, well, I guess I'm still
f... you know, figuring that out.

I'm sure. And I'm sure everyone here is

relieved to be able
to fight another day.

Yeah. About that, um, can I ask
you a question off the record?

- Of course.
- With so much changing in the industry...

I mean, once this deal goes through,

what do you think UBA's chances
of survival are, long-term?

What are the chances of any of these
legacy media companies surviving?

- I don't know how much you've heard, but...
- [SIGHS]

... NBN is already facing cuts.

Ten percent of the staff.
That's not a drop in the bucket.

So, to answer your question,

Paul Marks buying out UBA...

[STAMMERS] ... may keep the doors
open for three, maybe five years,

but my guess is eventually
the big three, UBA, NBN, CBA,

they cannibalize each other and die off.

Regardless, I think you will do
great things here while you can.

And I... I mean that.

When the storm comes for us all,

- let's hope we're both on high ground.
- [BREATHES DEEPLY]

And by the way, how's Bradley?

Sh... She's great, you
know? Fighting the fight.

I just have to say that in all my years,

I have never seen an anchor have a

colleague's back the way she had yours.

That was really something.

[INHALES DEEPLY]

[SIGHS]

Hey, what do you got for me?

[AMANDA] You were right. The
bankers lowballed the assets.

Fred said that, uh, it's
closer to bil for sports,

for the studio and library.

Easiest billion you'll ever make.

Oh, that gets Hyperion back on track.

Speaking of, I got a call from Texas.

Bradley Jackson's looking for
dirt. You don't think Alex...

No, but... [STAMMERS] ... keep
an eye on Bradley, will you?

- Anything with Cory yet?
- I'm still digging.

- Hey, you.
- Hey.

- You're here late.
- [ALEX] I know.

I just like wandering around when
no one's here staring or whispering.

Oh, God, people suck.

I know. They do. Can I
talk to you for a second?

Sure.

- [ALEX] Could we go in your office? Okay.
- Yeah.

- What's going on?
- [ALEX] Okay.

Can we keep this... [STAMMERS]
... between us, please?

Always. Yes.

Um, so I've been thinking
a lot about... [SIGHS]

... what's gonna happen
once the deal goes through.

What do you mean? What's gonna happen?

Well, I, um...

I think I wanna start my own
thing. Something completely new.

Oh. [SCOFFS]

I... So you mean leaving UBA?

It would mean leaving.

Oh. Does this have anything
to do with you and Paul,

- or you guys being together?
- [SIGHS] No. No, no, no, no, no. No.

Okay. 'Cause we talked
about making change here.

That was...

That was kinda the whole point.

Yes, it was. And it is,
and it's still the point.

And that's why... that's why I'm here.

I just think, as long as we're at UBA,

we will always be working
underneath someone.

We're at the height of our careers,

and my show can get recut
by Cory whenever he wants?

And you're on the evening news,

and... and you can't report on abortion?

- Mm-hmm.
- Really? What the f*ck?

And not to mention all the bullshit
that came out in light of the hack?

So that's why I'm here. I...

Bradley, I think you should come

with me, and I think we should do this.

And we should start
it from the ground up,

you and I, and just
finish what we started.

- Wow.
- [ALEX SNIFFLES]

That is... [CHUCKLES, CLEARS THROAT]

... not what I thought
you were gonna say.

Well, I mean, it... it sounds great,

but I have a lot of
work here to do at UBA

and... and a lot of
commitments I've made.

- Well...
- And if I'm gonna be completely candid,

I think the wrong guy
is buying this place.

The wrong guy is buying it?
What are you talking about?

Listen, Alex, something's
going on at Hyperion.

People are pissed, and it's about Paul.

Okay.

They're saying they don't like
how he operates his business.

- Okay. Can you get a little more specific?
- How well do you know this guy?

I mean, it feels like
you guys started dating,

and all of a sudden, it went...
[IMITATES ROCKET LAUNCHING]

Are you sure you really know who he is?

What does that mean?

- [BRADLEY] How well do you know him?
- I know him well...

How well do you know him? Do you
even know what you're talking about?

This guy is... is... This
is a $ billion deal.

Do you know how much is at stake here?

Of course, every Joe Schmo is
gonna come out of the woodwork

and try to take him down...

- Mm-hmm.
- ... talk sh*t about him.

- I think it's a little more than that.
- Are you f... serious? Don't be so naive.

And honestly, do you...
you have anything specific?

Do you have actual evidence
on what you're saying here?

[SIGHS] Look, Alex, I think... [SIGHS]

[ALEX] No?

I think it's hard for you
to be objective about this.

Oh, my God. Wow, people really do suck.

- I can't believe that, coming from you.
- [BRADLEY SIGHS]

Honestly.

- Alex, come on.
- [ALEX CLEARS THROAT]

I'm saying this because
I care about you.

I'm actually worried about you.

Okay, well, I'm really
glad you said something

because I wouldn't have known otherwise.

[SIGHS] g*dd*mn it.

Jesus Christ. [SIGHS]

- [LINE RINGING]
- [CLEARS THROAT]

[HAL] Hello?

Hi. It's Laura.

Oh. Hey, Laura. Uh,
is... is Bradley okay?

Yes, she's fine. Uh, did
I catch you at a bad time?

Oh, no, uh... No, no,
no. I'm jus... Um...

Well, I'm headed in my... my home
group. But, uh, I... I got a minute.

What... What's up?

I was thinking, um, that we could all

get together for Fourth of July weekend.

You, me, Bradley, Cheryl.

[INHALES SHARPLY] Uh, yeah,
th... yeah, that'd be good.

Uh, well, you won't believe,
uh, how big Taylor's getting.

She's... She's already walking.

Um, yeah. So, I have to
cover the parade in DC.

Um, why don't you meet us there?

[STAMMERS] Great. That s...
That sounds... That sounds fun.

Have you ever been?

To DC?

Uh, not since high school.

Uh... [CHUCKLES] ... yeah,
I've... I've been meaning to.

I've... [STAMMERS] I've
just never got around to it.

You'll love it. The
fireworks are incredible.

[HAL] Great. That sounds amazing.

All right. We'll see you then.

[SIGHS]

[ALEX] Hi, baby.

Hey, sweet boy. Hey, sweet baby.

[SIGHS]

[KEYS CLANK]

[WHIMPERS, INHALES DEEPLY, SIGHS]

[PAUL MUTTERING]

[ALEX] Hey.

Hey. Perfect timing.
The food just got here.

- Mmm.
- [KISSES]

- [ALEX SIGHS]
- What's up?

I'm ready.

- You're ready?
- Oh, yeah.

- You sure?
- I'm sure.

Great.

- [BREATHES DEEPLY]
- [PAUL GROANS]

- [ALEX] Mmm.
- Mmm.

He's behind schedule and out of money.

Chip just talked to a
foreman that works down there.

He and his crew have been working
on Hyperion through the night

and not being paid for it.

[CORY] Building rockets, guys.
Come on. It's f*cking hard.

Uh, of course he's
behind schedule. Come on.

My friend worked for Paul a dozen
years. She's an aerospace engineer.

Last week, he fired her
for raising safety concerns.

She came to me to blow the whistle, and

then something or someone silenced her.

And that's what we're hearing from

every engineer we talk to at Hyperion.

Paul is hiding something, Cory.

And i-it's bad enough that nobody wants

to talk about it. They're all scared.

The guy has invented all
kinds of proprietary tech.

I would imagine that he
is anxious to protect it.

I'm guessing you haven't read the

after-action report on the cyberattack?

I was waiting for the CliffNotes.

Victor says the transmission failure

during the launch was on Hyperion's end,

not ours.

Something went wrong, and
instead of reporting it,

- Paul blamed it on our cyberattack.
- We were on that rocket.

- And... [CHUCKLES] ... we were fine.
- [BRADLEY] Were we?

Or was her friend trying to warn us?

Or maybe that's what all the
engineers are scared about,

because something bad
could have happened, Cory.

We have to delay the
vote. We need more time.

Only the board can delay the vote,

and I can guarantee you they're not
gonna do it for a bunch of maybes.

[CELL PHONE BUZZING]

All right. Well, I-I'm
gonna keep chasing this.

I expect nothing less.

[SIGHS]

I should have taken
a harder stand against

him from the beginning of all of this.

I didn't trust myself. That's on me.

Stella, come on.
Y-You're gonna be fine.

[STAMMERS] Once the deal goes through,

y-you're gonna be more than fine.

You're gonna have more resources
than you know what to do with.

Mm-hmm.

You make people feel
anything is possible.

It's really effective. It's
probably why I took this job.

Paul does the same thing,
that anything-is-possible act.

But it isn't real, Cory.
It's all smoke and mirrors.

And I thought that was a difference

between you two, but
now I'm not so sure.

I know we have to find a
way to keep the doors open,

but he's infected you. He does that.

He's like a... a virus, and I
have already survived the plague.

So, yeah...

I'm gonna be fine.

Because after the deal goes
through, I won't be here.

I just want you to know that.

Cory crossed a line. Seriously,

this is some f*cking
McCarthy-era bullshit.

Turns out, the night manager at

the Archer Gray doesn't delete anything.

- He has quite the treasure trove.
- Nice work. And Bradley?

She will get someone to talk.
If that someone is Kate...

Well, let's make sure that it isn't.

They think she took some
things when she left.

Records, logs. It could follow us.

Find out... [SIGHS] ... and k*ll it.

Hey. [SIGHS]

I brought you some cookies.

I thought they might
cheer you up a little bit.

Are you okay? Do you
need to see a doctor?

I don't care if you're contagious.

- I'm giving you a hug. What? What?
- No, no, no, no, no.

Stay away.

What happened?

You should have f*cked him.

- What?
- Cory. You should have just f*cked him.

At least I could wrap
my head around that.

I don't understand. You're... [SCOFFS]

- You're kinda scaring me, Laura.
- Hal's a t*rror1st, but I'm scaring you?

I didn't wanna believe it.

- Um... [SIGHS]
- I tried so, so hard not to believe it.

Bradley to the rescue. You cleaned
up his mess like you always do.

Look, I... I wanted to
[SOFTLY] tell you so many times.

So it's true. It's really true.

- [NORMAL] Just let me...
- Don't, don't!

- I will lose my sh*t. Back the f*ck off.
- Okay. All right. Okay. Okay.

That f*cking pin.

- What?
- f*cking Geraldine Ferraro.

- I thought you and Cory were...
- No. Laura, no. Never ever.

He lied to the FBI. For you.

That's love.

I'm dreaming about
being with you in Montana

while you're sharing
this thing with him.

Look, let me... let
me just explain. I...

I just... I... I want to explain to you.

I know I made a huge mistake. I know it.

But what you don't understand
is I had to make a choice.

- I couldn't let Hal ruin his life.
- So you ruined ours?

- No, he didn't mean to hurt that cop.
- Oh, my God. Bradley,

he att*cked a police officer?
Jesus. What is wrong with you?

- I know, I know.
- My God. That's why you d...

Oh, no, no, no. What am I think...
No, you wanted Evening News.

- Oh, my God. I almost forgot that part.
- That is not fair.

Oh, f*ck fair.

You f*cking broke every rule.

How do you sit in
that chair every night?

It is obscene.

Trust me, I... I know, but I'm
gonna make it right. I promise you.

Oh, that's such a lie.

Everything about you is a lie.

I'm sorry.

[BREATHES SHAKILY]

- I'm sorry.
- You need to leave. Get out of here.

- N...
- I'm not calling the FBI.

- I'm not reporting any of this.
- No...

I want nothing to do with it,
and I want nothing to do with you.

- No. I'll do anything, Laura.
- I am done with you.

- I'll do anything to make it better.
- Oh...

- Just tell me what I can do.
- Bradley, you'll be fine.

You're a survivor.

You'll do anything,
right? That's what you do.

Now get out before I change my mind.

[SOBBING]

Please, Laura. Plea...

I thought we would get old together.

I really did.

[LAURA SIGHS]

[SNIFFLES]

[EMPLOYEES CHATTERING]

- [CYBIL] Hello, Kyle.
- Uh, is he expecting you?

- Not at all.
- Wow, Cybil, what a surprise.

Oh. Uh, don't tell me. Let me guess.

- You forgot your white hood, right?
- [CYBIL CHUCKLES]

I'll have Kyle check
the lost and found, okay?

Do you know, when you became
CEO, my expectations were low.

It turns out, I overestimated you.

[CHUCKLES] You missed me.

Whatever Paul Marks is paying
for the possession of your soul,

I will double it.

Name your price.

You want... You want a chunk
of my new shares? They're yours.

Aah, well... [CHUCKLES]
... mystery solved.

I had my money on Miss Scarlet,

and it turns out it was Mrs. White
in the conservatory with an LLC.

Did you really think
that I would sit back

while a bunch of thugs
destroy my family's company?

You don't have the
votes to stop the sale.

Yet,

I will keep fighting till
the bitter end. Believe me.

Cybil, by this time Friday,

- UBA will be the biggest network...
- [SIGHS]

... in the country, with the widest
reach and the deepest pockets.

You need to embrace the inevitable.

This is a win.

Oh, my God.

You don't know.

- You really don't know.
- No, what don't I know?

Okay. [SCOFFS] Okay.

I ran into Genevieve Micklen
the other day at the salon.

And normally, I avoid her.

I mean, who cares about her horses
and her ridiculous blond highlights?

But she had words for me,

and she was all too happy
to rub it in my face.

Okay. What are you talking about?

Paul Marks is stripping
the network for parts,

and Fred is helping him price the sale.

Sports division, content
library, the studio, the news.

They're dismantling the entire company,

including your precious streamer.

Do I have your attention now?

Have a nice day, Cybil.

[BREATHING HEAVILY]

[SIGHS]

- [PAUL] I'm not around.
- [GRUNTING]

[PANTING, GRUNTING]

f*ck!

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]

[ELEVATOR BELL DINGS]

Hey, Isabella.

[ISABELLA] Hi, Cory.

We don't knock anymore?

- Are you part of this?
- A part of what?

Oh, f-f*ck.

- Are you bleeding?
- Ah, yeah, you are. Of course you are.

Hey, when Paul stood up in
front of the news division

and he said that he would keep his hands

to himself, you were all fired up.

You wanted to protect democracy,
preserve the fourth estate.

Did you know the plan then?

Or did you hash it out while
you were lying together in bed?

[CORY] g*dd*mn it, Alex. Oh, f*ck me!

Couldn't you have just slashed my tires?

Any g*dd*mn thing except k*lling
the entire f*cking company.

Wow. Wow. And I'm so dumb.

Here I thought the never-ending f*cking

pandemic was our biggest thr*at.

[CHUCKLES] But no, it...
it... that... it was in fa...

It's you and... and your boyfriend.

How is it, everything
that held us together... it...

just gone? f*ck me.

Okay, well, yeah. No, you
are actually right about this.

It is time to smash and shatter.

Let's burn it all down,
'cause who gives a f*ck?

Let's peddle conspiracy
theories and, um...

and, uh, scream at flight attendants,

and sh**t up grocery
stores and subway cars.

Someone out there has got
to pay for our suffering!

[PANTING]

Oh, my God.

Oh, my God.

Do you know how many of
these I've had to sit through?

[SIGHS] Whew, I'm so sick of your
self-righteous monologues, Cory.

I didn't k*ll anything.

I've never had the
power to k*ll anything.

I asked for a seat at that table.

You didn't give me a seat at that table.

And let me remind you, back in
Texas, when you so kindly educated me

that half of the streaming services were

gonna be bought up
or gone in five years,

you said, "This ship is sinking.
Get on board with Paul Marks."

So, I got on board with Paul Marks.

You said, "You've got to
be nice to Paul Marks."

Not that f*cking nice, Alex.

- My God. There are , employees here.
- Oh, don't you f*cking dare...

pretend like you give
a sh*t about anybody

else in this building but yourself.

I've seen the books.
There's nothing left to save.

You were right. Nothing to save.

Can you take responsibility

for one f*cking thing that
goes on in this building?

Well, if you'll excuse me,
I have a company to build.

Oh, and those employees that
you say you give a sh*t about

that you definitely
don't give a sh*t about?

They're coming with me, and I will
be paying them what they deserve.

[DOOR CLOSES]

Yes, Leonard! The whole f*cking
company, lock, stock and barrel.

She'll sell the furniture in the

boardroom by the time this is all over.

Hey, get me some f*cking ice!

Leonard. Leonard.

Leonard, take a breath, please.
You're stammering like an idiot.

Well, I just had a low-stress,
respectful, life-affirming conversation

with Cory Ellison. He knows, Paul.

Yeah. Sorry you had to deal with that.

Um, it's bad. This is really bad.

- You know he's gonna hit back.
- [PAUL] Yeah, well, he can... [SIGHS]... try.

[SIGHS] This is exactly what
we didn't want to have happen.

Okay. Look, it's no surprise
that he's pissed off.

There's gonna be a lot of that
going around in the next few weeks.

I know. I know. I wanna go home.

All right. I'll see you
there as soon as I can.

Okay. Bye.

[SIGHING]

[SIGHS] Take me to UBA.

Call a board meeting
tonight. Get everyone here.

They need to know what's
about to happen on their watch.

We need to shut this down right now.

Thank you, Kyle. I'll
keep the ice. Thank you.

[SIGHS]

[SIGHS]

[SIGHS]

[COUGHS, SIGHS]

- [KNOCKING]
- Gayle, I just need a minute. [SIGHS]

Hey.

Hey.

- What are you doing here?
- Oh, I just...

I had the chance to talk to
quite a few of your colleagues.

Haven't really had a
chance to talk to you.

Not since Texas anyway.

Okay, um, well, I... I
don't have time to talk.

- I have to get back out there.
- This won't take long.

All right. Well, I have seconds.

Okay. Well, then... [SNIFFS]

I know you're investigating Hyperion

and talking to some of my engineers
and asking people to violate NDAs.

Your company's in serious trouble.

You're out of money.

And what you're doing is not safe.
You're trying to silence people.

Yeah. And if you had anything to back

that up, you would have already run it.

Someone's gonna talk.
It's just a matter of time.

- [CLICKS TONGUE] How's your brother?
- What?

- [KNOCKING]
- [GAYLE] Bradley, now.

No, I... I just need one minute.

Cue the pretape.
Something's off with Bradley.

Your brother, Hal. How's he doing?

Does his wife know what you
did for him at the Capitol?

I mean, conspiracy, sedition,

lying to the FBI, these are
all really serious charges.

You and Cory really
went all in, didn't you?

And then there's Laura's
exposure to this too.

Geez... [SIGHS] ... she knew
about it, and she didn't report it.

That's the kind of thing that
really ruins somebody's credibility.

- Don't bring Laura into this.
- See, I think you already did.

But you can protect
her. And your brother.

You can make it all go away.

Food for thought.

Have a good show.

[DOOR OPENS, CLOSES]

[INHALES DEEPLY, EXHALES HEAVILY]

[GAYLE SIGHS]

[NEWS INTRO THEME SONG PLAYING]

[ANNOUNCER] In five, four, three...

Russian President Vladimir Putin
marked Victory Day on Monday,

the anniversary of the Soviet
Union's defeat of n*zi Germany,

with a speech in Red Square defending
the current invasion of Ukraine.

Putin maintained that what he
calls "a special m*llitary operation"

is essential to rebuke
Western aggression.

President Biden made a final push to...

finals... [SIGHS]

I'm sorry. [STAMMERS]

I'm just...

- Bradley, get back to the prompter.
- [BRADLEY] Um...

The prompter, Bradley.

[SIGHS] Um...

I just... I wanted to
make a difference. Somehow.

I wanna help those
people who feel small.

And forgotten.

Bradley, what are you doing?

And during these last three years,

there are so many people
here at this network

who have supported me in that mission.

And I wanna thank a few
of them. Uh, Mia Jordan.

Please stop talking.

Charles Black, Gayle Burns,
Stella Bak and Alex Levy.

What?

And, um, I wanna thank you, our
viewers, for allowing me the honor

of being in your living room every
night and sharing the news with you.

It has been my privilege.

It has been a dream come true.

Effective immediately, I'm resigning
from UBA for personal reasons.

This will be my final broadcast.

Thank you for watching.
Stay safe, and good night.

[CREW MEMBER] Jump out of
this. Cut to commercial.

- Get the f*ck out of my way.
- [CREW MEMBER ] Hey.

[STELLA] Bradley! What's going on?

- [GAYLE] Bradley?
- Stop! Hey, talk to me.

I can't. I can't. I gotta go.

Hey, I need to know what's
happening. Bradley! Bradley!

You got anything? She's
not picking up her cell.

Tried her office. She's not picking up.

[CORY] Where the f*ck is she?

Uh, uh, Times called, NBN called,
Bloomberg. What do I tell them?

Tell 'em I don't know what the
f*ck is going on with Bradley,

that I'm having a series of
moderate to severe panic att*cks,

and that Alex Levy and the
billionaire that she's boning

are about to sell our company for parts

before our own very f*cking eyes.

- So tell them...
- Nothing. Tell them nothing.

Can you at least find out if
Bradley is still in the building?

- Did you see it?
- Yes, uh-huh, I did see it.

Did you talk to her or
did... What did she say?

No, not that. This.

- [CORY] What is this?
- The Vault. It just dropped.

They're saying that you
were grooming Bradley.

That you put her in the same
hotel that you were staying at,

managing her rise at UBA. [STAMMERS]

When she rejected you, you retaliated
by outing Bradley and Laura.

Paul f*cking Marks.

Cory, is it true?

- Now what?
- Security's on their way up.

They've been told to escort
you out of the building.