02x09 - DC

Episode transcripts for the TV show "Succession". Aired: June 2018 to present.*
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Follows the saga of a dysfunctional American Media Family.
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02x09 - DC

Post by bunniefuu »

There's a small matter we wanted to make you aware of.

Uh-huh. Former cruise employee, James Wiesel in accounting, seems to have gotten spooked. And... seems like he might be about to talk.

I thought we had this all sewn up.

I said I'd hoped. Don't... Interrupt me.

Have you talked to your dad about a major injection or even taking us private?

It's a conversation we can have.

To Bill, the best boss that ever lived.

So I'm gonna create a word document for you, and then I'm gonna print it because I don't want anything with my handwriting on it.

I think Rhea is dangerous, and I think we need to stop her.

We need to put feelings aside and call a family truce.

So we made the second thr*at-slash-offer to Mr. Wiesel, and he said, "No."

The new face is gonna get ripped to shreds."

I really am wondering about Rhea. Have I got her right?

She's the one.

I shall be appointing Rhea Jarrell as my Chief Executive Officer.

This empire of sh*t, time to pay up.

Good evening. I'm Susan Vardy, and in focus tonight, an exclusive interview with Waystar Royco whistleblower James Weissel.

Sexual exploitation, v*olence, theft, plus, a host of other crimes, all of it hidden by cover-ups and corruption to avoid damaging headlines... Cha-ching.

Book deal, book deal! That's what my guest alleges went on for decades inside Brightstar, America's second-largest cruise line operator.

So, James, you witnessed some terrible things at Brightstar.

What disturbed you the most?

Well, Susan...

"Well, Susan, I'm a piece of sh*t.

"I'm a weasel, and I'm scared." Brightstar Cruises was, for decades, a cesspool of mismanagement... and millions and millions of dollars paid out over decades to cover up sexual exploitation and harassment by Brightstar employees, and a lot of it actually committed by the man in charge, Lester McClintock.

Uncle Mo. Mo McClintock.

Who could forget our Mo? Then you have even more serious incidents occurring outside of U.S. jurisdiction.

Guests overboard, injury, and, uh, unexplained deaths.

And what are you saying about these incidents, including passengers overboard?

I don't know everything. Oh!

He doesn't know everything now.

But I know what the stories were, and I do know that there was no appetite...

Yeah, where's the proof, Ruth?

Whatsoever from the senior management for uncovering the truth. Oh, yeah.

Yeah, who's backing you, weasel? Hm?

You're saying there were cover-ups? Absolutely.

And people, people off the ship, the company HQ, did they know this sort of cover-up was going on?

Well, there was there a certain amount of oversight, um...

Gerri Kellman...

Gerri! Gerri Kellman, the Waystar general counsel.

Gerri alert! Saying no bad PR was the priority. Yeah, Gerri!

That, um, senior management was to be protected.

And that went on until Bill Lockheart changed things up.

Wow! Old Bill! Bill Lockheart was the then-head of parks and cruises. f*ck Bill.

Yeah, there was a clean up under Bill and he reported to Kendall Roy. I liked Bill when we met him.

Ken! You know, they tried to clean things up.

And, uh, recently, Tom Wambsgans...

Wambsgans!

I believe he tied off a lot of loose ends.

Hey, bangin' on the Tom-Tom! But getting into the details a bit.

Woo, Tom! Nope.

Your mom and dad should be so proud. You mentioned this...

Yeah. Phrase that occurred many times in the shadow logs.

Ooh, "shadow logs"! Incident: NRPI.

Uh... Yeah, that's, uh...

Incident: No Real Person Involved.

Uh-huh, and what does that mean?

That means it's a sex worker or a migrant worker at a foreign port, not involving a guest or a permanent member of staff.

No real person involved.

And these shadow logs... Oh, I can't watch any more of this f*cking bullshit. With the full record of these crimes.

Here you are, Connor. Do you know where they are?

No. No, I...

Dad, you okay?

It's bullshit! Clearly, Sandy's backing him. Clearly.

With his buddy and his six f*cking shell companies.

Sick bastards who'd f*cking do and say anything.

Don't you think we should watch, though, so we can have a response?

I've got 50 f*cking people paid to watch this sh*t.

It's senior management's duty to be in control...

I don't need to see this nonsense. We'll watch it later.

Of the people it employed.

Either they did know, which is terrible, or they didn't know, which is an unconscionable... lack of control. Uh-huh.

Waystar representatives declined to appear...

Uh-huh. But they did issue a statement saying, "We are disappointed..." Okay, thanks for letting me know.

Yeah. "... you have given airtime to these recycled and debunked claims..."

f*ck!

So... bad. Bad. But, uh...

Yeah, but not too bad?

Bad, I think. Very bad.

I would agree. Bad.

Yeah, obviously, it's f*cking bad, Frank, we're talking here about how bad.

Well, just from a PR perspective I wouldn't want anyone to underplay how bad it was.

These are the talking points that we're hitting.

He's embittered.

He's the bad guy covering his tracks.

No proof, no victim voices, and nothing that new.

Want to hear what I think?

I think we say the truth.

That the senior cadre here, and the family, knew nothing of this. Mm-hm.

So we throw Mo overboard. Mo, bad apple.

Jim Weasel, bad apple.

Spies a book deal. Sotto voce, backed by Sandy and Stewy, all corporate fuckery, no real concern.

And in terms of historic sh*t? I'm afraid we give up Bill.

Because he should have let us know what he discovered, rather than clean up without telling us the details.

Uh-huh.

I don't think there's gonna be paper that shows anything beyond Bill.

Yeah.

I mean, everyone likes Bill, but...

I like Bill. I mean, Bill tried to clean up.

I like Bill.

It seems like Bill is where the buck stops, though, right?

Do we k*ll Bill?

Yeah.

So...

I think I just, uh, turned down a quarter of a billion dollars.

Uh-huh.

Yeah, I'm gonna... I'm gonna make a drink.

Uh... I think... I think I'm gonna...

I... I can drink these drinks, right?

These are drinks for people?

Looks like there might be a slight uptick in ticket sales.

'Cause Logan... promised he'll look after me, so...

A quarter of a billion? Mm-hm?

Instead, you're trusting Dad? What?

No, I mean, my grandpa changes his mind a lot, so it's not final.

And plus, um, he's so sturdy.

Like, who knows how long I might have to wait.

I'm good, anyway, 'cause, uh...

My... So, I was just talking to my mom, and she said, apparently, he'll leave me five million anyway, so I'm golden, baby.

You can't do anything with five, Greg.

Five's a nightmare.

Mm... Is it?

Oh, yeah. Can't retire, not worth it to work.

Oh, yes. Five will drive you un poco loco my fine feathered friend.

Poorest rich person in America.

The world's tallest dwarf.

The weakest strongman at the circus.

Mm-hm.

Okay, Tom? Hey. We're done, we have a strategy, come on.

Oh, okay.

Hey, Tom. You're famous. Hey.

So, this isn't that different from the magazine piece.

The strategy is, we're letting Bill take it.

It went as far as Bill. k*ll Bill.

It'll blow over in 48 hours.

Uh... Well, no.

I'm just off the phone, and it's definite.

Either Gil or Gilliard are going to call for hearings.

Oh, f*ck. What? Wait a minute. What?

Yeah, Senate Commerce. Probably House, too.

The staff are huddled on how to choreograph, but after the interview, they'll want to fast track and roll it into the tourism regulatory hearings they're cooking up, so... Yup, buckle up, folks.

We're going to get an invite to the great national latrine.

See who wants to take a public dump.

Yeah, Mr. f*ck is going to Washington.

No! I can't have this now!

He's right. Who, um... Who will they want to testify?

Uh... Well, they'll... they'll want Dad.

Okay, now... But we won't accept that.

Protect the egg chamber!

Karolina. Make some calls.

Our various friends. Uh... The Florida g*ng.

See who can jam this the f*ck up.

Right.

I mean, to actually get to the bottom of this... we could argue it would be better to have people who operationally...

We suggest... Gerri and Tom?

What? Uh-huh.

You want to explain your thinking, Hugo?

Look, I... I'm just positing here, okay?

Sure, yeah, but you're positing in my direction, so...

Yeah, it's just that General Counsel is very compelling, and you know where the buck stops.

Right. And why Tom?

Tom can speak operationally. And he got quite heavy play in that interview. Tom would be good.

Well, I... I... I see where you're coming from, Hugo, obviously, and I'd be happy to help.

We might be able to slow it down but the Dems, they are gonna push fast, and they're gonna push Logan. Do we just say "f*ck 'em"?

f*ck... Congress, Roman?

Yes, Shiv. f*ck Congress. Have I shocked you?

Uh... Shareholder meeting in two-and-a-half weeks.

I mean, we are unusually subject to the vicissitudes of public opinion.

Uh... I can translate. That's Frank for "We're f*cked."

I want your help.

Oh, yeah?

Someone needs to run to the store for smokes?

This'll go on all night... but it might not be okay.

It might not be okay?

Congress will spook shareholders.

I'm on a Kn*fe's edge.

Ten bad minutes on camera in D.C., that could be it.

The end.

The end? Come on.

I need you to chase down the sovereign wealth money.

Okay. Right. Uh... I mean, that's... It's, uh...

It's a cool idea, but it's kind of a stretch, you know?

That Central Asian money, that's no strings, fuckable dry powder.

Time out from the responsibilities of being a public company.

That's a f*cking lifeline. Can you do it?

Can I do it? Uh-huh.

Um...

f*ck. Dad, I... I want to say yes, but I'll be honest, if it's, like, really important, I mean, I can say I can do it, like, you know, a fireman in a movie, but honestly, I... You act the fucknuckle, but you know, people like you.

It's a really big f*cking deal to set up.

Nah, anyone can do a deal.

It's getting the right number from the right suit.

Getting your d*ck in there is easy.

Getting them into bed, that's hard.

For some.

You can do it.

Then, uh... yeah.

Sure, Dad, I got it.

Keep me close. Okay.

Take Laird and Karl... for the details.

Great, I'm on it. Oh, um, also... just to... I don't know, check, uh, Marcia? Is she... upstairs, or...

Is that okay? Are you okay?

Do you have someone that you can speak to about... sh*t?

You want me to speak to a shrink?

You know, you may want to screw your mother, but I am okay in that department, thank you.

Great, well, it's just nice that we can talk about these things.

I'm gonna go.

Mm-ah.

Oh. Hey.

Hello. Hey, you okay?

Oh, yeah. Great, yeah. Off to Asia to get ten billion.

Don't wait up, bye! Hey, how you doing?

Yeah. Worried I've agreed to be CEO of a dumpster fire pirate death ship. You?

Yeah. Not worried. Sit. Sit.

Right.

The magazine was one thing but, uh, this?

I didn't know he was gonna pipe up.

Yeah, I feel like I'm your prophylactic.

A rubber you've slipped on so I can protect you.

Rhea, that was not the idea.

I can see I fulfil a useful role at this point:

A more respectable flavor... secure votes from shaky shareholders.

You're good. A new broom. You're golden.

It's fun to be the new bride.

Rearranging the bachelor's apartment.

Putting flowers out.

It's just not nice to think you might find a corpse in the freezer, you know, Bluebeard?

Rhea, they kept this from me.

It's a rogue sicko. Trust me. Uh-huh.

Yeah. Uh-huh. Well...

By accident or design, you have left me very little room to maneuver.

Shall I... show my face?

Oh, that would be very much appreciated.

Rhea. Shiv.

Wow. Tough night.

Great to have you coming in. Well, thank you.

Couldn't think of anyone better to see us through.

Hey! What you guys all doing here?

Is there a game on?

Hey, Rhea. Seriously... that was a mountain out of a molehill.

Everyone's saying it. Hearings happen every day.

C-SPAN filler. So, as I understand it, we have nothing to be guilty about... and nothing to worry about.

So, yeah. I look forward to, uh, getting more involved.

Toodle-pip!

Thank you. They look scared.

They're good.

Rhea, I've got it.

It's nothing. Look after yourself, okay?

It's good to see you, man.

And you know how much I love the Hibs.

The f*cking Hearts. Hearts.

Hearts. Yeah.

But f*ck it, I'm just gonna come right out and say it.

Okay.

Think there's any chance you guys have the muscle to take us private?

Is that something that's interesting to you and your dad?

Yes. Really?

Well, that's...

Yes, we're interested in helping you go private.

Huh. Yeah.

We like it as part of the portfolio, and we like the news expertise you can share.

Great. Okay.

Well, great.

Uh... You want...

Uh... Shall I call, uh, Logan? Uh... Shall I get...

Can you do it, Rome?

Uh... Could you and your, uh... your bum-boys here come to Turkey, like, tomorrow?

Okay... And pitch to me and my dad?

Absolutely. I think we can absolutely do that.

Ain't that right, bum-boys? Uh-huh.

Azeri investment conference in Bursa.

Everyone will be there, we can get into it.

Well, let's f*cking get into it. I can pitch.

I'll pitch the f*ck out of it. Mm.

Nice, Paddy! Nice!

Good session, guys. I've got the lads here.

The owners are gonna want to say a few words. All right?

Great session, guys. And listen, for Saturday... you have the ability, you have the mentality.

Watch that press doesn't leave you exposed on the turnover, and you f*cking got this. Rome?

Uh... Thank you. Yeah. Uh... Hey.

Really proud to be associated with you guys.

Uh... Well, what the f*ck can I tell you that you don't already know?

You... You got all this, guys. Don't worry about it.

'Cause you guys are a team, and, uh, when a team... is a team... it can't actually physically be beaten.

It's impossible.

So, go hard, go fast, go, you lovely bastards.

"Go, you lovely bastards"? I don't f*cking know.

What the f*ck am I supposed to say?

I have no idea.

Do you want 20 of my best minutes on Turko-Azerbaijani relations?

Uh... What, the oil pipeline cooperation, the m*llitary and diplomatic links, or the deeper cultural sympathies?

Ah.

Hey, what's up?

Hey, how's Dad? Is... Is he okay? Is he... Is he doing it?

Uh, yeah, we got them to agree to Gerri and Tom up first, on operational, and then him with Ken.

How's selling the family cow for magic beans?

Oh, yeah, yeah, that's right, yeah, just a dipshit, a sex pest and a Grand Old Duke of Dork on a Central Asian vacation.

No, nothin' to see here, thanks.

Oh, f*ck. Bill! What's Bill doing here?

Oh, no! Gerri, if we're gonna k*ll Bill, I don't want to see Bill.

Bill! Hey! Wow.

Hey! Hey!

Bill! Gerri!

Tom! Bill, Bill, Bill! Look at you!

What the f*ck? Are you appearing?

No! God, no. Okay.

No, no. Hey, Magic Johnson's still a Laker even if he's not on the team, right?

Yeah, right, okay.

Ah, I live in Maryland. Just thought I'd come in, support the old g*ng.

Well, that's such a nice gesture, Bill.

Yeah. Yeah.

Great to see you. Yeah.

I'm rootin' for ya out there!

Go get 'em, my friends.

Yeah. Tom.

Bill. Gerri. Thanks.

Good luck! Wow.

Wow. That's nice.

That is nice. I mean, that is just... nice.

Still. Adios, Bill.

Yeah, rest in peace, Billy boy.

Okay, folks. All right. Here we go.

"Are you now, or have you ever been, a member of the Cruise Dirty Sex f*ck Cover-up Party?"

How's the link?

We can hear you, Rhea, thank you.

Great.

Good, good, good. Oh, my God.

Hey, Gerri, do you wanna... Can I do one more?

Do you wanna do... one more round? Just one?

Tom, you've done the prep.

You are m*rder-boarded to death, okay?

I know, I know. I know. Can you stop angsting? You're angsting me.

Okay. Okay. Just remember, it is not a courthouse.

It is a stage. Okay? Anything goes. Filibuster.

Every minute you're speaking, you're stealing from them and their horseshit.

Eat, eat, eat those dangerous f*cking minutes. Okay?

Okay. Okay?

You bet. Okay. Got it.

You guys got this. It's a cinch.

Okay? Yeah.

Just let the training kick in.

And maybe just try to enjoy it?

Yeah. Thanks, Greg. Thanks.

Oh, we're on, guys. Let's go. All right, here we go. Yes. This is it?

Right. Sure. It's time.

You're gonna do great. Okay. Okay.

Ready? Okay. Come here.

Good luck, everybody. You're good.

I know. Good, yeah? Let's go.

Let's do this. All right.

Go team.

The Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation will come to order.

We welcome everyone to today's hearing on corporate abuses in the Brightstar cruise lines.

Just look at the cash flow. We are undervalued.

I think tech just had everybody sh1tting their pants about legacy media, but really, the wheel turns.

And most tech is overvalued.

We're profitable. We're real money.

This is a tremendous opportunity.

This is once-in-a-lifetime.

You get to buy into the U.S. media landscape at the very top. The very top.

Well, it's a lot of debt, right?

Are you sure you can bring it together?

Absolutely sure.

Jaime here is the f*cking master of leverage.

He has structured some of the biggest LBOs in history.

Right? Guilty as charged.

Yeah, besides, we'd, um, have a decent amount of equity in this and not something of any... concern. Hello? Um... Are they with you?

We...

The, uh, the guy in the black vest has a g*n just here.

Dave? We're good, right?

It's good? Yeah. Hey, look, we're good, we're good.

Okay. But, uh... we're all gonna go with these gentlemen now, okay?

We're all gonna... go?

Uh... Yes.

Uh... No. I don't think... Is this...

These gentlemen are... are who, exactly?

We'll go with them, it's fine. Dave?

Okay, uh... Dave? Uh... Dave... just walked out.

Dave just walked out. Yes. We'll go with them now.

Okay. Can I just ask what this is in regards to?

Is this about the meeting? Is it... It's a business thing?

Uh-huh. Okay, and my security guy, Dave, he just walked out. Can I ask where Dave went?

Dave... Dave's not coming.

Oh, Dave's not coming. Yeah. Uh...

Um... I... I... I would actually really like for Dave to come.

Dave's downstairs, we'll go without him.

Please, gentlemen... Uh... Dave!

Uh... There's a concern about Dave.

It's a security risk here, so we're better with these guys.

Okay? It's, uh, all good. Everything is under control.

There could be a situation, but luckily, we're being looked after.

Oh, we're being looked after. That's nice.

Laird, let's get... let's get Dave.

Uh... We need to go. Yeah. Oh... Oh!

Protocol, he took my phone. Hey!

And I can't contact my security. Yep, yep, yep, yep.

It's... It's fine. Don't worry about it.

Senator Eavis, you have five minutes for questions.

Mr. Wambsgans, I hope I'm saying that correctly.

Just some background. Mr. Lester McClintock.

You accept he offered jobs to young women who would sleep with him?

Uh... That does seem to be the case.

Um... But the... the company, uh, wasn't aware, and obviously, that was some time before my time, um...

However, Bill... uh, Lockheart, my predecessor... Uh-huh.

But within the upper echelons of the firm and the family, Lester was commonly known as Mo. Is that correct?

I... I don't... I don't... I... I'm a relative newcomer.

This email, you call Lester McClintock "Mo." Why?

I... I guess I think it was just a nickname.

Mm-hm. You call him "Mo" over 30 times in emails to family and colleagues, but you never use it in the items of correspondence sent to him privately, for instance, during his illness. Why not?

Senator, I don't know. You don't know?

He was called Mo, but always behind his back.

Um... Uh... I'd... I'd have to look at the emails, uh, I never thought about it.

Lester's nickname was Mo. Mo Lester. Molester.

That never came up?

Senator, I think, uh...

I guess maybe he was, uh, a little creepy-seeming perhaps.

Well, you were right there.

But just because we... he was called, um, Mo Lester, doesn't... didn't mean...

It was just a... It's just an off-color joke.

You know?

That was 100 percent based on truth.

But of all the many, many people who called this molester...

"Mo Lester", not one of them had the slightest idea that he actually was a molester.

I mean, you could see how that stretches our credulity.

Yes, senator, I can see that.

I think he just seemed a bit like one, maybe.

But we didn't know anything.

Well, if he seemed a little bit like one, don't you think it behooved the people in charge to find out if he was one... Oh, my... before you sent him out on ships full of young women and vulnerable old and young guests?

Oh, f*ck! Oh, f*ck, f*ck, f*ck!

This isn't business, is it?

No, it is not very businessy.

Oh, sh*t!

Hey. Don't worry, this is all normal.

Yeah, great, 'cause this feels super f*cking normal, man.

Is this... Are these t*rrorists?

And where's my f*cking security guy? Where's Dave?

It... It's just an... an administrative action function.

Yeah, good, great. And what exactly...

Hey, look at that.

Guy not being allowed to leave the hotel at gunpoint.

That's... Oh, Christ.

An administrative action function. Yeah.

This is gr... What... What... What is that?

There's just like, uh... um... a gathering here now, of us and some... some other investors and so on, and...

And men with g*ns, yeah? Yep, yep.

Their guys are some kind of, um... anti-corruption kind of guys, and they're like...

It's like their conference... Really?

Or, uh, party, and... we're all invited.

Okay, well, that's nice, uh... but what if we, you know, what if we... if we don't wanna go, is that cool?

Okay.

It's... It's the kind of party where you have to go.

Oh. I see. It would be... rude.

Okay. Well, I mean, I guess I don't mind being, like... Ah.

A little, tiny bit rude.

Let me direct your attention to document 16 of the blue-tabbed packet.

Document 16... of the blue?

It suggests that there were over... Document 16.

Forty thousand electronic records and paper documents from the period which we're interested in, that were not available to us.

Uh... Yes, unfortunately, it seems that there are a great many of these documents that were destroyed in the, uh, course of normal data management and corporate housekeeping.

So, there was not a targeted cover-up?

The hard drives that were wiped?

Uh... It's a normal practice, as I understand it.

Um... I'm not an IT expert.

But on Thanksgiving last year, it seems that a number of boxes were targeted specifically.

I'm not aware of that.

Well, if you'll look at item 34, it suggests boxes 2918 to boxes 3125... are now empty.

Uh... They were full back in August, but when they were subpoenaed, they were apparently unavailable and in the interim, they were signed out and if you look at the ledger, packet 15B, by a Gregory Hirsch.

Is that someone known to you, Mr. Wambsgans?

Uh... No, no, sorry.

"No"? "No"? "No", Tom?

Hm?

Oh, yes, yes, sorry. Yes. Known... Known... Known to me.

Yes. In that sense, yes. In what sense?

Uh... In the sense that, uh... that, uh... what I understood that you meant...

What did you think I meant?

That... Um... I knew of him, but no, no, I know... I know him. And his face.

Mm-hm. Do you know what is special about the hours between 3:00 a.m. and 5:00 a.m. on the night of March 12th? Uh... No, sir.

That was the only two-hour period in which you did not send an email to Mr. Hirsch with the title...

"You Can't Make a Tomlette Without Breaking Some Greggs."

You sent the same email to him 67 times in one evening.

I guess it was a joke.

Right. I wonder, do the phrases "human furniture" or "footstooling" mean anything to you?

Not that I'm conscious of, no.

Have you ever used another human being as a footstool, Mr. Wambsgans?

Uh... I... Senator, I use a variety of, um, target-orientated, um, incentives to enhance optimal performance.

I yield back the balance of my time.

What is it like to be married to a man with two assholes?

Reconvene shortly.

If I was to give Tom a letter grade, I'd give him a B-plus for "bad plus terrible".

That was all... That was all f*cking me.

They hit me from every f*cking side!

It's okay. Tom, you did good.

Oh, I didn't get enough resources spent on me.

Okay, what the f*ck is going on?

I'm getting... I was f*cked from every direction!

Are you f*cking me, Shiv? Tom!

Huh? I'm the patsy, I'm the meat in the sandwich. Sit down.

Gerri is the bulletproof monk. Kendall and Logan in reserve.

I'm the meat in the f*cking sandwich.

Hey, calm down.

Oh, f*ck. f*ck. Oh, f*ck. Oh, f*ck. Oh, f*ck.

Okay. Oh, f*ck.

Guys, everything is fine. Nothing bad is happening here.

Oh, man. Oh, my God. Ah.

f*ck, man, I just turned down a quarter of a billion, and now I'm going to jail forever, 'cause of this f*cking guy, man!

This f*cking...

You. Outside.

He... Out-f*cking-side, now!

Unbelievable.

Shiv, is there any way we can find out what's coming down the pipe at us?

Because much more of that, and we're f*cking toast.

All of a sudden, Sandy and Stewy are... looking pretty good to the shareholders.

He's right. Maybe it's time to drop some of our research.

I'll see what I can do.

Jess, will you keep an eye on...

You? Okay. Sorry.

What a sh*t show. What a f*cking sh*t show.

So... Yeah. Just wondered if I could say hi.

Anyone see you come in?

You're pretty regular on ATN these days, I notice. How are you liking that?

It's got its advantages, its disadvantages.

Uh-huh. They love the ratings.

Yeah, right.

So, I feel like after everything we did together, there's some residual good will?

Okay, look, meeting over.

We're not gonna soft-peddle, Shiv. Great to see you.

I'm not asking, I'm giving.

What? Just a favor.

We've been digging, and I'd like to help.

I still think that Gil is a great candidate, and I would hate for you to make fools of yourselves.

Says the person whose husband was just called, "A smirking block of domestic feta", by the Atlantic. Weissel, the weasel.

You want the dirt?

No, Shiv, we don't need your sh*t-talking background briefing but thank you.

He's dodgy as f*ck.

Lost joint custody of his kids, substance abuse issues, done for soliciting prostitutes.

He's not exactly your Snow White, he's your Blow White. Uh-huh. Not interested.

This meeting never happened.

Okay. On Mo and James Weissel, you can go to town.

And if you're looking for a scalp, we're willing to give up Bill.

So, if you want the easy win, go for Bill, and we'll fold.

Okay? And then we can keep the invites to ATN flowing and the sn*pers trained on your primary rivals.

I'm sorry. Tell your dad it's not personal.

We've just got something really, really good now... much better than Weissel.

Bullshit. How much better?

I'll give you a clue. It actually rhymes very precisely with "You're f*cked".

What is it? Let's go through it again. No direct knowledge.

No direct knowledge. Full cooperation.

Okay, hey. Hey. Guys, listen up.

Hey. We have a problem.

They have someone else for later in the week who could probably k*ll us.

Who? Wait a minute.

A victim. Used to work under Lester, ex-entertainment manager, Kira someone?

Also knows a bunch of victims personally, and details.

Feels personally responsible. They're prepping her.

Oh, f*ck! f*ck! Yeah.

If she comes out, and the NDAs domino, I don't think... I think that's it.

Hey, just wanted to say, "Good luck".

Uh... We got an incoming bogey.

Where is she now? I... I... That's all I know.

Oh, uh, they got her through Senator Gilliard, who you know, right, Rhea? A little.

But what is this?

This, uh... This supposed victim.

Do you think... Is it possible? Could we see...

You know, could we meet up with her, you know?

Talk? You know, find out what she wants?

Apologize? What?

Oh, come on.

We... We... We gotta try.

Whether it's true or not, it... it changes the narrative.

One of you. Both of you. Please.

Guys, it's almost time. They're heading back in.

So, we gotta get this show on the road.

One last time, just in case they're super-direct, did you, Logan Roy, witness any assaults on your ships or take part in them?

I'm not gonna answer a f*cking question like that.

I, uh, I thought that's just a "No". Yeah.

I'm not dignifying that f*cking question with an answer.

You can both f*ck off.

Okay. Is he okay?

Low blood sugar.

Could you, uh, give him a chocolate suppository?

Just, uh, slip a Snickers bar up there?

Don Grundham. Oh.

Institute for a Competitive America.

Oh, hello. Keep fighting the good fight.

You got a lot of Con-heads out here pullin' for ya.

Con-heads? Yes.

That's fantastic. May I use that?

Sure. All right, God bless you, sir.

Thank you.

"Con-heads"...

I spy with my little eye something that begins with H.

Hostages. You are smart, aren't you? Well, that game didn't take us too far.

That was like 30 seconds. Marry, f*ck, k*ll?

Marry, f*ck, k*ll... the executive floor.

Executive floor. Mm-hm.

Hmm. Uh... I'd k*ll Ray.

Of course. f*ck Elsa.

Hmm. Marry Gerri.

Gerri? Yeah.

Marry Gerri? Well, it's a small pool.

You'd marry Gerri?

You sick f*ck. Gerri? Yeah.

You like Gerri?

Oh, that's hilarious. You're f*cking disgusting.

Gerri?

Ugh! Hot. Ugh! Karl, what about you?

Look, full disclosure? Yeah?

I am, um, currently having a panic att*ck.

Could I sit there? Do you mind, Laird?

Oh, sure. Really?

Mm-hm. God... You seem... kind of the same.

You okay, man? Yeah.

Up you go. On the floor. Oh. Okay. Oh, Jesus.

Guys?

Where do you think they're taking them?

It doesn't look like they're going for a tour of the spa. Oh, f*ck!

Let me tell you... tell you something.

My advice... Yeah?

Just don't look at anything.

'Cause if you don't look, then you're not a witness.

And if you're not a witness, you know. Yeah. Just take it easy, man.

Just take it easy. You don't have... It's okay.

God.

Hey. Oh, my God.

Hey. Hey.

How we, uh...

How we doin'? Good. Good, man.

Good. All good.

So, uh, my president's daughter's husband has asked him to take closer control of some key assets.

It's anti-corruption, but a bit of a power grab.

Some Turkish acquiescence, but it's all in play.

And can I ask, not to make this all about us, but are they going to sh**t us at any point?

I'm also intrigued on that point.

No one is getting sh*t.


Look, it's complicated, but with Zeynal here...

Uh-huh. There is some interest in the deal.

The deal. Um... Okay, the deal. Yeah. Great.

So, one query they wanted some clarity on was how could we... how could they be sure their investment wouldn't be blocked by your government?

Well, okay, uh, it wouldn't. My father has a lot of sway.

I mean, he can't lock his opponents up in a hotel, uh, but, well, he kinda could.

Okay, and, uh... you're the target of another bid? Yes.

Isn't that a problem?

That is not a problem at all. If the price is right, we are fully confident that we can reach a settlement before the shareholder meeting.

Okay. Okay, well, that went great.

Yeah. That's... great. Really hope so.

Yeah. I mean, should we see if any of the other hostages want to cut a deal?

This could be a bumper time for us.

Well, this doesn't feel great.

No. No, soft skills, lady-duty sh*t-work.

Not great at all.

Senators, when I read of the abuses of power alleged in my cruise division... well... that was the worst day of my life.

To think bad things might have gone on without my knowledge.

And frankly...

I don't know if I'll ever forgive myself.

But we will investigate, and we will make sure every victim is compensated, and every act of wrongdoing... punished to the full extent of the law.

I just hope, so help me God, you believe me when I say that.

Thank you very much.

f*ck, yeah.

Senator Eavis? Time is yours.

Thank you, Madam Chairwoman.

Emerson said, "Every institution is the shadow of a single man."

At Waystar, that man is Logan Roy, isn't he?

Well, I'm...

I'm certainly not gonna argue with Mr. Emerson.

Your cruises run for profit, your news runs for profit.

Is that any way to keep the life blood of a democracy going, by using news as your own personal ATM?

Uh... If... If I may.

Um... I think you might be under a misapprehension, Senator.

In this country, all news, from the Times to the supermarket tabloid, is for profit, sir.

We don't have a state media. As I'm sure you know, you'd have to go to China or Russia for that.

Ooh, snap! Snap on Gil! We don't have a state media yet...

Have we got that, Karolina?

Let's get the surrogates prepped with that line.

They call Gil "Meth-Head Santa" because he so rarely delivers.

What I'm getting at, is it any surprise that, uh, exploitation and cover-up runs rife at your cruise division?

I mean, exploitation is at the heart of your business model.

Well, I... I would, of course, disagree, but, uh... but in terms of the historic... historical... historic charges of practice... malpractice, um...

Mr. Logan Roy, what did you personally know about the operation of a system of obfuscation of wrongdoing in your cruise division... by the means of the keeping of shadow logs?

At that point, I believe my son was across that operation, right? At which point?

At the point he was across entertainment operations.

You can talk to him.

Mr. Kendall Roy, then.

Tell us about the shadow logs. Okay, you know what, I'm sorry, Madam Chairwoman, can... can I speak for a moment?

Because you know, I... I'm here in good faith today, I'm very willing to talk you, Senator, and this committee through our operations, but, uh, let's cut the BS, shall we? Because it seems to me that this investigation, uh, is not about proper oversight of the cruise industry codes and standards, or some highly regrettable but isolated incidents from nearly two decades ago.

What this feels to me it's about is your personal dislike of my father, and your ideological hatred of his newspapers and his news channels, and in particular, of the, uh, success story which is ATN, on which you've appeared, I think, 14 times in the last four months, Senator.

Good, good, good.

Senator Eavis, it seems to me that since you don't agree with us ideologically, that nothing we can say will be enough, no groveling will be low enough, and as much as you like to accuse us of bias, uh, today, you're the one with the bias.

So, I say go ahead. Hit us as hard as you can.

We can take it. We have nothing to hide.

So, she's expecting us, yeah?

Look, I'm not going in.

Seriously? You're... You're leaving it to me?

Siobhan, you don't have to do this.

If she speaks and she's compelling... then that's it for my family's company.

So... yeah. I do have to.

Thanks, Rhea.

Thank you so much for your time.

Ah, Mr. Roberts. We can now slip into something a little bit more comfortable.

A warm bath. I already feel better.

And I want to say right off, for the record, gentlemen...

I like you.

I'd like to have a drink with both of you.

And I have taken one of your cruises with my wife and it was, frankly, delightful.

Well, thank you, Senator, that's very kind.

No, no. Careful!

Hi. Hi, Shiv Roy. Thank you for seeing me.

I just wanted the opportunity to say hello.

And I want to say I realize this is an incredibly difficult situation, so I... I want you to know I deeply appreciate you taking the time. Right. Um...

I'm not sure I should... I... I thought this was gonna be a very unofficial thing with Rhea?

Uh-huh. Yeah.

Uh... This feels very different.

No, she's busy. Uh... But she will join later on.

I... Right. I j... I...

I just don't know if I feel comfortable.

Oh, but I'm not here to stop you testifying.

Sure. Yeah. And I'm not here to offer you anything.

I'm here to listen, and to try to understand.

Just trying to understand what we did wrong and how I can fix it.

Well, it's a very convenient time to show up... wanting to understand. Oh...

I think you're brave. Well, thank you.

Honey, no. No, get down. Don't go too high.

Come here! Come here!

What? Oh, my God! Ah!

There we go!

Oh, wow. These just k*ll me.

I know. Come on...

You know, look, um...

My... My dad... My dad, a couple months ago, you know, he screwed me over.

He made me an offer that wasn't real.

And he's a serial liar.

And I'm gonna be very frank with you, put my cards on the table, I don't trust him. Okay?

Your firm has been very tough.

Yeah, too f*cking right.

Harassment? Yeah.

Visits at night, turning up at work.

Weird email stuff. I mean, I... I... don't want to accuse you...

No, it's perfectly possible.

Yeah, I mean, it's out-sourced security, so who... Who knows what could be happening?

It's probably worse than you think.

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

But hey, you should be safe from all that now.

You've got the whip hand. Now, they're scared.

I don't think that stuff will happen to you anymore.

You don't think?

Being honest, I don't know.

But... it would look bad.

You've broken ranks, you're in a new category.

Uh-huh.

But, look... I wanna clean up.

I need it all out there.

Sure. Yeah, no, I do.

I wanna fire these bastards. And I want you to help me.

Sure.

Well, I guess, you know, the only question I would have for you is just... is this... this, you know, the... the right forum?

Okay, here it comes.

Nope, honestly? A better question.

What do you actually want to happen?

I want people to hear what Lester was like.

How he treated me and other women.

I want the Hewson story to come out.

How she went overboard... and there was no rescue attempt, because they thought it was a stowaway.

"No real person involved."

Right.

Hey, you want to sit down?

I mean, the good thing is, you're gonna have a lot of people on your side.

Who will... Who will sing your name, and back you up, and...

Yeah.

But the other people? You know, the other side?

Normal people, they will doubt you.

They'll say... terrible things.

They'll call you a slut... and a whore, and a money-grubber.

Your life is gonna get ripped apart.

Your home, you'll want to move out.

For two or three days, you're gonna be kind of famous, but then the caravan moves on.

I just think it's what I have to do.

Yeah, true. No, I get it. That's good.

But from tomorrow, that's... all you'll ever be.

To your grandkids, to the people you meet on vacation.

When they Google you, yeah?

Pages and pages of filth and lies.

First line of your obituary. Last line.

Uh-huh.

So, what is it that you are trying to get?

Because money? Money you can have.

That's easy. Book deal. Interview appearances.

We will give you millions of dollars... and I will destroy the men who ran that dirty operation.

I will k*ll them for what they've done.

And I want you to help me.

We will be the best, cleanest operation in the world because of you, if you help me do this.

Would you help me?

Well, it... it sounds...

Can I trust you?

No. No, actually, no.

Kira, you're in a shitstorm of conflicting interests here.

You can't trust anyone. You just have to be smart.

So, listen to everyone and make an assessment.

'Cause frankly, I want what's best for me.

But the other people?

The folks who want you to get up there tomorrow, and get pulled apart? They want what's best for them.

You need to think about what's best for you, huh?

Mm. Hey. Hey!

Mm-hm? Hey, Roman.

What? Wake up.

Hey!

Good, man, good? All good. All good.

Hello. Hi. I'm so sorry.

Foreign nationals, please identify yourselves. Oh, my God.

Oh, f*ck. What do you think?

Uh... I don't know. I feel like, traditionally, Americans don't usually fare well at this point.

I don't know, what do you think, Karl?

Oh, f*ck. Just do what he says.

Yeah, okay. Um...

Roman Roy? Yup.

Follow me, please.

Good luck. Yeah. Uh...

Good luck to you, too.

Go, Hi... Hearts. Go, Hearts.

Anyway, thank you for your support.

You got it. All the time.

Yes? Great job.

Thank you. I salute you.

Thank you, Senator. Excellent job.

Thank you. Excellent.

Here, here. Cheers, Bill.

Well done.

Lovely to reconnect with the g*ng.

I appreciate your support, Bill.

Are you kidding? So many memories, huh?

I should write a book. I could. I've got the diaries.

But no time. No time!

You okay?

You... did great. Thank you.

It must've been tough, but you did it, she dropped out.

"Personal reasons". Yeah, you did good.

Thank you.

So, are you okay, kiddo?

Yeah. Yeah, good.

You, uh... You feeling... feeling okay?

I'm, uh... I'm sorry if it was rough.

No, it was... it was fine. We're good. It's all good.

Hey, Logan? Rhea's here, but she... she wants a word.

Okay.

You remember Naomi Pierce?

Yeah, yeah. Hi. She came down to to support us.

Hey.

Oh!

So, as you know, I didn't go in.

Yeah, yeah. No, it's fine. Shiv's tough.

Look. Will you tell me what happened?

You can ask me anything.

No. I don't know what to ask. You tell me.

Well, it's all... You know.

It goes a long way back.

Did you... Did you ever have an editor who put a hand up a sweater?

Well, things were done differently in those days.

I can't fly blind.

Was Lester McClintock a friend of yours?

No, I wouldn't say he was a friend, no.

You once told me he was a close friend.

You told me that. Well...

Friend, close friend, colleague, I don't know.

It's kind of a... a superpower, isn't it?

If you can lie to someone like that, to their face.

I mean, I know you're lying, but I still find you very plausible and appealing.

I misspoke.

Uh-huh.

Forgive me.

But there are some things that went on from time to time, and I just wanted to protect you.

I don't need your protection. Well, you know, as the next CEO, it might be wise to keep clean of certain areas.

I've been thinking about that.

I'm not sure it works any longer.

So, what do you want?

I'm not sure I want to work for you.

Fine, you've got me over a barrel.

You know it, I know it, so tell me what you want and let's get into it. You don't understand.

I'm out. I don't want to be part of this.

Oh, come on. f*ck off!

Little Miss Prim.

You knew.

You know who I am.

I think it's changed. In the details.

You don't walk over details.

I can't see the bottom of the pool.

I... I... I don't know if you care about anything.

And that scares me. Oh, yeah.

f*cking words. f*cking words. Come on. Stay!

I could always find someone else.

You know you're fungible.

I am not fungible. Oh, yes, you are.

You're as fungible as f*ck.

Fine.

Then funge me. Go ahead. Try.

Rhea.

Kendall Roy served self-satisfied hypocrites on the senate commerce committee a healthy portion of reality pie today when he delivered them a takedown for the ages.

Democrats on the committee had worked themselves... Hmm.

So... into a fit of phony outrage over historic corporate... Rhea's gone?

But they made a fatal miscalculation. Yep.

She can't hack the hate.

Well, she can f*ck off and enjoy her lily-white, chicken-flesh conscience working for a f*cking phone company.

Yeah. Yeah, well, maybe.

Yeah, but do you think that's it?

If Kira holds, and we k*ll Bill, do you think we're through?

Honestly?

No. Not with the shareholders.

I'm afraid this Kendall stuff won't play.

They're a little more... f*cking vegetarian.

No? No.

Yes. Yes.

He came out like a fighter, but I'm hurt.

We're hurt.

And Bill's on maneuvers. He won't go quietly.

No, no, no. Bill's not the answer.

We need something big.

Yeah...

Time for a blood sacrifice.

Tell it like it is, Kendall Roy. I see...

I need one meaningful skull to wave.

If the shareholders meeting were tomorrow, we lose.

You know what you're looking at if you don't go private.

SEC, DOJ, Foreign and Corrupt Practices.

It's terminal.

It might be humiliating.

There's gonna be a head on a spike.

Let's get the party started.

Everybody thinks you're a joke.

The tension, it's getting to people.

If we fail, then we die.

Here's the thing, I want to vote your ticket on the fundamentals, but this thing feels so toxic... we feel that it should be you.

The magazine was one thing, but, uh... this.

You're good. A new broom.

It's fun to be the new bride, rearranging the bachelor's apartment, putting flowers out.

It's just not nice to think you might find a corpse in the freezer, you know, Bluebeard?

We have a lot of scandals.

You never quite know when you're in the middle of the rainstorm and when it's the first drops and when you've reached the end of it.

No! I can't have this now.

We wanted to try and give that slightly sickening sense of, "Was that the worst moment of it" and also the worst thing that we're gonna hear happened?"

We have a problem.

They have someone else for later in the week who could probably k*ll us.

Who? A victim.

If she comes out and the NDAs domino... I think that's it.

There's concentric circles of levels of knowledge and you can be pretty compelling when you persuade yourself you did or didn't know something.

This supposed victim?

Could you meet up with her? You know, talk?

You know, find out what she wants? Apologize?

Oh, come on.

One of you. Both of you.

Please.

It's one of those moments where your sense of yourself and your own moral parameters are tested a bit, and what's painful for them both is that they know they've been asked to go and do that particular job because they are women.

Why Shiv is able to do something which other people might find undoable is 'cause she already feels like they've had all those arguments.

We're in the car. Now, let's just go and do it.

The good thing is you're gonna have a lot of people on your side. But the other people, normal people, they will doubt you.

Your life is gonna get ripped apart.

From tomorrow, that's all you'll ever be.

We were just thinking about people's personal responsibilities to take on political, cultural change, which is gonna be damaging to them, and the people who choose to do that are very brave, but however, if it was your best friend, or your mother or sister, could you, hand on heart, tell them to do it?

It's an interesting dilemma.
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