THE MENU
Written by
Seth Reiss & Will Tracy
PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT 9/5/21
Yellow Revisions 10/7/21
Green Revisions 10/11/21
Goldenrod Revisions 10/29/21
BLACK
A nautical bell. Foghorns. Waves lapping the shore. Seagulls.
1 EXT. WATERFRONT DOCK - EVENING 1
A young COUPLE stand alone on a dock. They're dressed
elegantly for a big night out.
MARGOT stares off, a little bored. TYLER drums his hand
against his leg. His eyes dart around, a little panicked.
TYLER
What time is it?
Margot looks at her watch nonchalantly.
MARGOT
It is...6:26.
TYLER
Shit.
MARGOT
Tyler, relax.
TYLER
No, sweetie, this is bad.
MARGOT
I'm sure it's fine, babe.
TYLER
Well, where is everybody?
MARGOT
You're positive we're in the right
place?
TYLER
Yes. I followed the directions on
the website exactly.
MARGOT
Okay, well, then reset the mood.
We've still got four minutes.
Tyler nods, but he's unconvinced. Margot lights a cigarette.
Tyler notices and grimaces disapprovingly.
TYLER
Babe, please don't smoke. It'll
kill your palette.
1 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 2.
MARGOT
Then my palette will die happy.
TYLER
Hey.
(insistent)
Margot.
Tyler's tone stops Margot in her tracks. She looks at him.
The mood is suddenly a little tense. He's dead serious.
TYLER (CONT'D)
Tonight is huge, okay? The flavor
profiles - it's all super delicate.
When you smoke, you ruin your
ability to appreciate them.
(beat)
Please.
After an edgy silence, Margot stamps out her cigarette.
MARGOT
Fine. Jesus.
TYLER
Thank you.
A FOGHORN blows close by, startling both of them. A small but
gorgeously appointed BOAT pulls into the harbor.
TYLER (CONT'D)
Thank God.
MARGOT
Is that gonna fit everyone?
TYLER
Easily. 12 customers total.
MARGOT
A night? How do they turn a profit?
TYLER
850 a head, that's how.
Margot nearly does a double-take.
MARGOT
You're fucking joking right?
TYLER
C'mon, let's not ruin this by
talking price, yeah? Just go with
the flow. Let it be magical.
1 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 3.
Margot just chuckles and shrugs.
MARGOT
Hey, it's your dime.
A MERCEDES pulls into the dock and parks. THREE RICH TECH-
NERD BROS in their 30s and 40s-- BRYCE, SOREN, DAVE-- get
out, a little drunk, a little rowdy.
BRYCE
--just such a fuck-you to Accounts.
It's not even a client dinner!
They all laugh. Tyler looks at them with distaste.
TYLER
Great. A power tasting. They'll be
wasted by the amuse.
Margot sees an OLDER COUPLE getting out of a Town Car.
RICHARD (60s) gets the door for his wife ANNE (also 60s). As
he does, he turns and briefly locks eyes with Margot. He
seems to recognize her. Margot's eyes dart away instantly.
MARGOT
(under her breath)
Fuck.
TYLER
What?
MARGOT
Huh? Nothing.
A finely dressed BOATMAN lowers a gangway on the boat.
BOATMAN
All aboard for Hawthorn!
TYLER
I have to log every nuance of this.
To silkscreen it on my brain.
Most guests have now arrived. They file on the boat, showing
tickets on their phones. As Tyler and Margot queue, Tyler
notices someone behind them and averts his eyes.
TYLER (CONT'D)
Ho-ly fucking shit. Don't look.
MARGOT
What?
1 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 4.
Margot looks and sees a MIDDLE AGED WOMAN in a colorful
blouse and hip tortoise shell glasses and A MIDDLE AGED MAN.
TYLER
I said don't look?
MARGOT
What am I supposed to not be
looking at?
TYLER
Lillian Bloom.
MARGOT
Who's Lillian Bloom?
TYLER
Shh, just - food critic for Saveur.
Play it cool.
MARGOT
You're the one freaking out?
TYLER
She's running her Top 100 list this
month. I bet this makes the top
spot. She doesn't usually double up
with San Pellegrino but for Slowik?
MARGOT
No totally. I'm always saying that.
TYLER
Lillian goddamned Bloom. Well it's
official: Tonight will be madness.
2 INT. BOAT - EARLY EVENING 2
Margot and Tyler step inside the main cabin of the boat. It's
like something out of a fairy tale. Brass fixtures. Small
tables with linen tablecloths. Floral arrangements. Ravel's
"Une barque sur l'océan" PLAYS dreamily.
We hear the VOICE of the CAPTAIN on an intercom.
CAPTAIN (O.S.)
Ladies and gentlemen, please make
yourselves comfortable for our 30
minute journey to Hawthorn.
Tyler is in heaven. He turns to Margot.
2 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 5.
TYLER
Not gonna lie, I am diamond hard
right now.
Margot makes a disgusted face. We hear VOICES off screen.
MALE VOICE (O.S.)
We get a private room though right?
FEMALE VOICE (O.S.)
I checked. They don't do that here.
Who should finally enter but none other than a famous middle-
aged MOVIE STAR and his young assistant, FELICITY.
MOVIE STAR
Yeah, no, that's fine. Totally
fine. You definitely checked?
WAITER
Welcome, sir.
Movie Star sees the other passengers. Big smile.
MOVIE STAR
(suddenly "on")
Ahoy! Avast me hearties! Let's hope
she's seaworthy, eh?
The Movie Star is given champagne. He eyes it with desire but
hands it to Felicity, who politely gives it to the waiter.
ON TECH BROS outside of Movie Star's earshot. Soren eyes him.
SOREN
Whoop, famous person. We got an FP,
folks.
BRYCE
FP in the house.
DAVE
Barely F anymore though? Maybe in
like 1998?
BRYCE
Hey, he's a P and he's F, what do
you want?
We SWING back to Margot and Tyler on two plush seats by the
window. Tyler looks anxious. Margot smiles at him.
MARGOT
Look at you.
2 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 6.
TYLER
I know. I have to say: I'm weirdly
nervous.
MARGOT
To eat dinner?
TYLER
Right? It's crazy.
MARGOT
No, it's cute.
(sees movie star)
Oh wow. Check it out. I loved him
when I was a kid.
TYLER
Oh yeah. Apparently he's a big
foodie. Or you know - thinks he is.
MARGOT
He looks kinda like an alien in
person?
A WAITER steps forward holding a tray of food.
WAITER
Chef Slowik would like to welcome
you with a raw local oyster in a
mignonette emulsion, with lemon
caviar and an oyster leaf. Enjoy.
Tyler and Margot take their trays.
TYLER
Beautiful. Thank you.
The waiters leave. Margot stares at her tray.
TYLER (CONT'D)
One of his classics. The lemon
pearls are made with an alginate.
Tyler takes a quick photo with his phone before eating his.
MARGOT
Alginate? As in-?
TYLER
As in algae.
MARGOT
Algae. Like from a pond. No,
lovely.
2 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 7.
Tyler's too busy greedily devouring his tiny bite to respond.
TYLER
Oh my god. It's laughable. It's
actually fucking laughably good.
Margot cautiously tries it and nods her head.
MARGOT
Mmm. It's good. I'd be happy with
just the oyster, though. I love
oysters.
TYLER
No, no, it's the balance of the
products. You need the mouthfeel of
the mignonette.
MARGOT
(smiles)
Please don't say `mouthfeel.'
TYLER
(smiles back)
Too late.
They share a warm beat. The HORN BLOWS as the boat sets sail.
3 EXT. OCEAN - EVENING 3
The boat glides across the water, the ISLAND in the distance.
4 INT. BOAT - EVENING 4
As the great Lillian Bloom holds court, we cut to close-ups
of all the diners listening. We end on Margot, as though we
are seeing them through her eyes.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Slowik has always had trouble
staying put. Cut his teeth with
Bocuse, a spell in Kyoto, stages
with Ferran in Spain just for the
fuck of it. Then he opens his own
place in New York, Tantalus. I
discover him. Then boom, two
Michelin stars.
Tyler softly to Margot.
4 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 8.
TYLER
He didn't get the second star till
year two, she's fucking up the
story, but whatever --
LILLIAN BLOOM
What's that?
TYLER
Nothing. This is great. Go on.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Then at the top of his game, he
closes up shop. Disappears. Falls
off the map. Must have lost a
fortune on the lease.
Tyler can't let it go. Annoyed, he whispers to Margot:
TYLER
Also, she "discovered" him?
Bullshit.
FELICITY
Where did he go?
LILLIAN BLOOM
Some say Lyon. Some say Hanoi of
all places. No interviews, no
photos, zip. I tried like hell to
track him down, but he's a phantom.
Now cut to three years after that.
TED
Final chapter of the Slowik
creation myth. King Maker here is
in... where were you, Lilly?
LILLIAN BLOOM
Ladies and gentlemen, Ted Feldman,
my editor.
TED
Hello, everyone.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Would you like to take the baton?
TED
(put on the spot)
Oh, yes, sure. Well, so, you were
at, the - it was a food expo, or--?
Lillian takes the baton right back from him.
4 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 9.
LILLIAN BLOOM
So I'm in Portland. Umbrellas,
beards, heroin. Big food con.
TYLER
Cascades Food Expo, right?
LILLIAN BLOOM
Yes, well done. Huge arena full of
pop-ups. And I think, if I have to
eat one more deconstructed avant
cassoulet whatever I'm gonna puke.
So I leave and stop at a Korean
taco truck a block away. And... I
flip. It's like the Platonic ideal
of a Korean taco. The Korean taco
of your youth.
Margot blinks. The Korean what?
LILLIAN BLOOM (CONT'D)
I peek into the truck, and guess
who's manning the grill. Julian
fucking Slowik. I almost fall to my
knees and start believing in God.
And I get him to agree to an
interview.
TED
That's the famous piece Lillian
wrote about him. Culinary
hagiography. Calvin Trillin meets
Gregory of Tours.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Stop. Anyway, suddenly every foodie
investor is hounding him. He says
he'll consider it on three
conditions. One, complete privacy.
Two, land to forage and plant.
Three, it has to be by the water so
he can source his own fish. That's
when Doug Verrick swoops in and
offers him a fucking island.
TED
Thanks to your piece. This is all
because of Lillian.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Tasting menus, exhausting. I'm more
of a basic three-course bitch these
days, but this should be fun. I
haven't been since it opened.
(MORE)
4 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 10.
LILLIAN BLOOM (CONT'D)
He texted me personally last week
with the invitation. I didn't even
think he had a phone.
SOREN
We were on a six-month waitlist but
then I got an email a week ago
saying tonight opened up. Lucky.
As conversations splinter off, Tyler turns to Margot.
TYLER
Pretty inspiring shit, yeah?
MARGOT
Yeah I mean? Sorta grim too, right?
TYLER
Grim?
MARGOT
I don't know. Spending your entire
life on a tiny island cooking for
rich strangers? Bit of a nightmare?
Tyler eyes Margot and smiles a bit condescendingly.
TYLER
Well, Margot. Let me ask you. Do
you love what you do?
MARGOT
Sure, I like what I do.
TYLER
But do you love what you do?
Margot stares at Tyler blankly for a moment.
MARGOT
No.
TYLER
Me neither. But this guy does. And
when you love what you do - I mean
really love it - nothing else
matters. Trust me he's got it made.
The waiter appears.
WAITER
May I take your dishes?
4 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 11.
TYLER
Yes, please. Utterly ethereal.
RICHARD looks at his phone while his wife sips champagne.
Tyler puts his arm around Margot lovingly and they gaze out
the window. The water sparkles in the early evening sun.
MARGOT
`Ooh, ahh, lovely view.'
TYLER
(smiles, charmed)
Such a little pestilence.
Behind them, the dot-com guys are posing for a photo with the
movie star. They are saying iconic lines from his movies.
ON TYLER AND MARGOT.
TYLER (CONT'D)
It's already the best night. And
just think: It hasn't even started.
MARGOT
Yeah.
Margot smiles. But it feels a little false.
5 EXT. OCEAN - EARLY EVENING 5
The boat glides smoothly through the water.
6 EXT. HAWTHORN DOCK - EARLY EVENING 6
FRONT OF HOUSE lines the dock, smiling, poised.
We follow Margot and Tyler as they disembark. It's very
ceremonial. Margot's a bit unnerved by all the pomp.
MARGOT
Jesus. This is like prom.
TYLER
Yeah? I didn't go to prom.
MARGOT
Really, why not?
TYLER
None of the cool girls like you
said yes.
6 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 12.
MARGOT
Aw, poor baby. Fuck those bitches.
She smiles at him, the coolest girl ever. Tyler likes it.
The restaurant's captain, a severe woman named ELSA, checks
the guests' names from a list. When Margot and Tyler reach
Elsa in line, she smiles coldly.
ELSA
Welcome to Hawthorn, Mister
Ledford. And Miss-- Westervelt?
Elsa looks puzzled. Margot, equally puzzled, looks at Tyler.
TYLER
Oh, uh-- Right. Sorry. There was
actually a change of plans. This is
not Miss Westervelt, this is--
MARGOT
I'm Margot. Nice to meet you.
Elsa eyes her with a trace of suspicion. She smiles tightly.
ELSA
Margot. Welcome. We'll endeavor to
make your evening as pleasant as
possible. Right this way.
Elsa ushers them ahead. Tyler whispers to Margot:
TYLER
Sorry. That was, uh-- That was a
little awkward.
MARGOT
(smiles)
It's fine.
The boat leaves. Margot, it seems, is the only who notices it
leave. She looks longingly at it as it sails away. And then
she looks at this island. No way out. She snaps out of it.
Nearby, the tech guys continue to chat with the Movie Star,
who seems happy for the attention.
BRYCE
So what are you working on now?
MOVIE STAR
Top secret, bro. Don't worry about
it. But I'm sort of moving into the
presenter phase of my career.
(MORE)
6 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 13.
MOVIE STAR (CONT'D)
You know, be me, do me, authentic
shit. None of this artifice, or
story...
FELICITY
...or lines to memorize.
MOVIE STAR
(laughs, but it stings)
Hey now, wise guy!
SOREN
Ah, okay. Cool.
MOVIE STAR
Plus I'm a huge embarrassing
foodie. Love this stuff. Friends
with the chef in fact.
Tyler overhears this and makes a face: `Like hell you are.'
7 EXT. CLEARING BY THE DOCK - EARLY EVENING 7
The guests are all assembled on a beautiful expansive lawn.
Elsa stands before them. She smiles and addresses the group:
ELSA
Welcome to Hawthorn. You are all
part of an enormously special
evening. First of all, we recognize
it is not easy to secure a
reservation at our restaurant.
(smiles)
That alone makes you pretty
special, doesn't it?
The group laughs nervously.
ELSA (CONT'D)
But tonight is not like other
nights. Tonight's menu will be
different. Unusual. Tonight we will
tell you a story we've never told
before. And one we'll never tell
again. So let me warn you now:
Wonderful surprises await you all.
ANGLE ON the excited FACES of the various guests.
ELSA (CONT'D)
But first. Let us introduce you to
our home. Follow me please.
7 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 14.
All start walking -- except for the Liebrandts.
RICHARD
We'll wait here, if you don't mind.
ANNE
We've seen it. Many times.
ELSA
Yes, you have, haven't you?
(to the group)
The Liebrandts are very loyal
customers.
8 EXT. DRIFTWOOD BEACH - EVENING 8
Elsa leads the rest of the group toward the gardens.
ELSA
Hawthorn Island comprises twelve
acres of forest and pasture. Our
owner purchased the island in 1989,
but we prefer to think of it as
ownerless. As wild. As a natural
outgrowth of the sea and the air
and the sky.
ANGLE ON Margot listening to this pretentious speech.
ELSA (CONT'D)
We have the bounty of the sea
surrounding us. Out there, right
now, we are harvesting scallops.
You'll eat them tonight!
She waves at a GUY IN A ROWBOAT. As if on cue, he waves back.
The guests join in and wave as well.
MOVIE STAR
Harvest harder my dude! We're
starving!
Everyone laughs at what the famous guy said, even though it
wasn't actually that funny. Felicity rolls her eyes.
As they continue on walking, Lillian leans in to Ted --
LILLIAN BLOOM
I do like the sense of it being a
sort of biome of culinary ideas.
TED
Yes, like an - epicurean salon.
8 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 15.
Margot overhears this.
MARGOT
We have reached the base camp of
Mount Bullshit.
TYLER
I love it. Come on, let's catch up.
9 EXT. SMOKEHOUSE - EVENING 9
Elsa removes a SLEEK, STYLIZED KEY RING and opens the door.
10 INT. SMOKEHOUSE - CONTINUOUS 10
All enter a room where MEAT and FISH hang on sharp hooks.
ELSA
Our smokehouse is in the Nordic
style. We use dairy cow meat only,
which we age for an astonishing 152
days to relax the protein strands.
DAVE (TECH BRO 3)
(laughs)
What happens if you serve it on the
153rd day? All hell breaks loose?
Elsa smiles politely but coldly.
ELSA
Well, I suppose the bacteria might
introduce itself to the customer's
bloodstream, spreading into their
spinal membranes, at which point he
or she would become incapacitated
and shortly thereafter expire?
Pause. Dave is silent.
ELSA (CONT'D)
So yes. All hell would break loose.
Elsa laughs. They all laugh.
ELSA (CONT'D)
Good thing we're pros, yes? Come --
11 OMITTED 11
12 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 16.
12 EXT. HAWTHORN GARDENS - EVENING 12
The guests are taken through a beautiful garden.
ELSA
Wild sea beans, salmonberries and
sea lettuce are foraged from our
shores. And our gardens supply us
with no end of seasonal produce.
MOVIE STAR
Sorry, is this the time to mention
I have a severe peanut allergy?
FELICITY
You don't think I told them?
ELSA
Oh, yes, we know, sir. We've
planned for that. And Mrs.
Liebrandt's shellfish allergy. And
Mr. Lorimer's gluten sensitivity,
though technically no such
condition exists.
DAVE looks slightly offended.
ELSA (CONT'D)
We learn all about our guests, and
Chef plans the menu accordingly.
13 EXT. GREAT LAWN. EVENING 13
The group follows Elsa as the tour continues. Tyler squeezes
Margot's hand romantically. She gives him a flirty eye.
We PAN to the front. Lillian Bloom is takes notes.
ELSA
Writing good things, I hope, Ms.
Bloom. Not like what you wrote
about our friends at Mercia.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Mercia? Be fair, I wrote a very
kind review of Mercia.
ELSA
Well not completely, Ms. Bloom.
ELSA smiles and opens a door.
14 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 17.
14 INT. BUNKHOUSE - EVENING 14
The group is led inside what looks exactly like a MILITARY
BARRACKS, complete with bunk beds.
We see also tiny SHOWER SPIGOTS, like at a YMCA, and a ROW OF
TOILETS with no walls or doors, like at a prison.
ELSA
And this is where we live.
BRYCE
Wait, you guys actually live here?
All of you?
ELSA
All of us. Except Chef.
TED
Esprit de corps. Lovely.
ELSA
No, Mr. Feldman. It is more than
that. Here we are family.
Tyler smiles, inspired. But Margot looks less sure.
ELSA (CONT'D)
A common mission unites us, to run
the world's finest restaurant. We
work 80 hours per week if we're
lucky. And we're never lucky. Each
day starts at six with five hours
of prep work. We harvest. We
ferment. We slaughter. We marinate.
We liquify. We spherify. We gel.
MARGOT
You gel?
ELSA
We gel. Dinner is typically four
hours and twenty-five minutes.
MARGOT reacts. That's long.
ELSA (CONT'D)
Each day ends at well past two in
the morning. So yes, it's best that
we all live here.
SOREN
Don't you guys get burned out?
14 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 18.
ELSA
`Burned out?'
The phrase disgusts her. But she composes herself.
ELSA (CONT'D)
Chef holds himself to the highest
standard, and so do we. We never
`burn' anything unless by design,
to make delicious.
(big, too big smile)
Now. Who's hungry?
15 EXT. GREAT LAWN - DUSK 15
Tyler puts an arm around Margot. Dream date with dream girl.
TYLER
Chef will win you over by the end,
just wait. You'll be licking crumbs
from his hand like a Labrador.
MARGOT
Yeah, maybe? If we ever finish our
tour of Food Auschwitz.
TYLER
(chuckles)
Nice one.
She snuggles against him as they walk. They both smile.
As they approach the restaurant, Tyler notices a charming
COTTAGE perched on a hill in a copse of trees.
TYLER (CONT'D)
Excuse me, Elsa. Who lives there?
ELSA
Chef.
TYLER
Are we seeing that?
ELSA
Even we are not allowed inside
Chef's cottage.
Tyler nods, a bit chastened.
15 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 19.
MARGOT
(whispers to Tyler)
We mustn't disturb the Lord High
Emperor of Sustenance.
TYLER
All right. Easy now.
16 EXT. HAWTHORN RESTAURANT - DUSK 16
Elsa shows everyone inside and quietly locks the door.
The room is minimalist and faux rustic. A touch sad even. A
museum mood where one doesn't necessarily "enjoy" eating.
A sad husk of a woman, LINDA (75), drinks wine at a small
table abutting a wall. The diners are mildly confused by her
presence. She nods at a few of them.
LINDA
Hello. Welcome.
Everyone is shown to his/her seat. Elsa turns to Margot.
ELSA
Miss...?
MARGOT
Mills.
ELSA
Miss Mills. You will be sitting in
Miss Westervelt's seat. Enjoy.
Margot makes a face. Was that really necessary?
Richard and Anne sit at a table near Margot and Tyler.
Richard's seat is positioned facing Margot. He notices this
and looks concerned.
RICHARD
Switch seats with me.
ANNE
Why?
RICHARD
Just because. I want to have a
better view of the water.
A weird request. Every seat has a view of the water.
16 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 20.
ANNE
Fine.
THE KITCHEN is open, visible from the dining area, the
bustling staff hard at work. Tyler can't believe his eyes.
ELSA
(deeply pretentious)
Feel free to observe the cooks as
they innovate. But please do not
photograph our dishes. Chef
strongly feels that the beauty of
his creations lies in their
ephemeral nature.
MARGOT
(to Tyler)
And I strongly feel the need to
punch her in the cunt. Like an
uppercut. Right to the cunt.
TYLER
Here, come on. We can't miss this.
Tyler leads Margot by the hand into...
17 INT. KITCHEN. CONTINUOUS 17
...Hawthorn's world-class machine of a kitchen, filled with
COOKS OF ALL RANKS -- more cooks, in fact, than diners. Tyler
watches a SOUS-CHEF (JEREMY) plate a cold, snow-like powder.
TYLER
Do you make that with a Pacojet?
JEREMY
Exactly right, sir.
TYLER
(to Margot)
A Pacojet can produce a powderized
snow-like texture.
MARGOT
Ah. Fascinating.
JEREMY
You really know your stuff, Mr.
Ledford.
TYLER
You know my name?
17 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 21.
JEREMY
We like to know everyone who dines
with us.
TYLER
And Chef is around here somewhere?
I'd love to talk with him, if--
JEREMY
Why don't you take your seat?
Tyler is unsure whether to feel offended until --
JEREMY (CONT'D)
We're about to serve.
TYLER
Yeah, okay. Sure. Thank you.
18 INT. DINING ROOM--CONTINUOUS 18
LINDA still sits alone, idly playing with her empty wine
glass. A cheery SOMMELIER approaches with a bottle.
SOMMELIER
More Lambrusco, madam?
Linda nods silently.
Back at Tyler and Margot's table, they sit down.
TYLER
The attention to detail, it's like -
fuck! He knew my name, babe!
MARGOT
I noticed you didn't ask his name.
TYLER
Shh. There he is.
We get our first glimpse of the man himself: CHEF JULIAN
SLOWIK(40s/50s), brooding, intense. Utterly focused, he
glides swiftly from station to station, tasting.
Elsa approaches Chef Slowik and talks softly to him. We don't
hear what is said, but he looks in Margot's direction.
TYLER (CONT'D)
(looks away, excited)
Fuck me? Is he looking at me?
18 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 22.
But he's looking at Margot. They lock eyes. In that moment
the great chef and his guest share a type of recognition -- a
sadness perhaps? A longing? Chef tersely breaks eye contact
and resumes his tasks. The cooks around him continue to work
with an almost sinister focus.
19 TITLE CARD AGAINST BLACK: 19
AMUSE BOUCHE
SERVERS fan across the dining room in perfect unison.
SERVER #1
Here we have a compressed and
pickled cucumber melon, milk snow,
and charred lace. Enjoy.
LILLIAN BLOOM
This ongoing obsession with `snow.'
TED
It's a plague. No one is immune.
We join the movie star's table. He's enjoying his amuse.
FELICITY
So look, I want to hear your pitch
for the show, but first I just want
to thank you for the opportunity.
The last two years have been--
Movie star raises his glass
MOVIE STAR
...Great, and I look forward to
many more!
He clinks their glasses.
FELICITY
C'mon, stop. It's a goodbye toast.
MOVIE STAR
No it ain't.
FELICITY
My mom got me a job at Sony. You
know this. I gave you my two weeks
two weeks ago.
MOVIE STAR
Yeah, yeah, I know. But... c'mon.
19 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 23.
He smiles like, "Yeah right." Felicity goes into her bag.
FELICITY
Here's my work phone. Here's our
production company's credit card.
Here are the extra keys to your
house in LA. Here are the keys to
your apartment in New York, and
your other apartment in New York
that your wife doesn't know about.
MOVIE STAR
Can we just eat? It's like,
research or whatever. For the show!
AT THE TECH BROS TABLE.
BRYCE
(to Soren)
So how's Amanda?
SOREN
We're doing the talking about our
lives thing now?
BRYCE
Hey I don't want to either. But
shouldn't we?
DAVE
Do we have to?
SOREN
Not good, Bryce. Amanda and I are
not good. How's that?
BRYCE
(to Soren)
Your fault?
Soren makes a face like, `Of course it's my fucking fault.'
BRYCE (CONT'D)
At least we've got work.
DAVE
And money.
BRYCE
To work and money!
They sarcastically cheers.
19 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 24.
DAVE
We're pathetic, aren't we?
BRYCE
Oh yeah!
They laugh.
MARGOT AND TYLER. Tyler holds his amuse just so and furtively
snaps a photo. He will do this with every dish. ELSA notices.
She will always notice. He eats the dish and is in heaven.
TYLER
Jesus Christ. I want to live inside
this thing.
MARGOT
Uh huh. It's pretty good.
TYLER
"Pretty good?" You're --
(laughs, shakes head)
You're funny.
Margot considers, then:
MARGOT
So... this is okay then? That I'm
not as into it?
TYLER
No, no. It's good. It's what I like
about you, the `above it all.' I'm
sitting with the coolest girl here.
MARGOT
Okay, good. Didn't want to ruin
your fun. Too much.
She puts her hand on his leg.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
So what's with this food obsession?
Tyler gathers himself and then...
TYLER
I don't know. It's like - you know
how people idolize athletes and
musicians and, like, painters and
stuff?
MARGOT
Sure.
19 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 25.
TYLER
Yeah, those people are idiots. What
they do doesn't matter. They play
with inflatable balls and ukuleles
and shit. Chefs play with the raw
materials of life itself. And death
itself. Like, I've watched every
fucking episode of Chef's Table two
or three times. I've watched
Slowik's probably twenty times.
I've watched him explain the exact
moment at which a green strawberry
is perfectly unripe. I've watched
him plate a raw scallop during its
last dying contraction of muscle.
It's art on the edge of the abyss.
Which is where God works too.
Margot nods. Does she buy it?
MARGOT
That's beautifully put, Tyler.
TYLER
Oh stop it.
MARGOT
No really. I am starting to get it,
a little.
TYLER
Ah, see? Told ya you'd come around.
Tyler looks pleased with his mansplain triumph. Margot looks
out the WINDOW.
20 TITLE CARD AGAINST BLACK: 20
FIRST COURSE
CLOSE on Chef. He tastes something, closes his eyes and keeps
them closed, deep in contemplation. Then he opens them.
CHEF SLOWIK
Okay.
We follow him into the dining room, where he surveys his
guests, raises his hands and CLAPS. Once. Loud. All
conversations stop. His staff stops. Everything stops.
Chef Slowik stares at his diners, smiling tightly. This whole
solar system revolves around him, the all-powerful sun.
20 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 26.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Welcome to Hawthorn. I am Julian
Slowik, and tonight it will be our
pleasure to feed you.
The diners applaud. Margot scrunches her face and plays
along. Lillian and Ted exchange proud, possessive looks.
LILLIAN BLOOM
The curtain rises.
CHEF SLOWIK
Over the next few hours, you will
ingest fat, salt, sugar, protein,
bacteria, fungi, various plants and
animals -- at times entire eco-
systems. But I have to beg of you
one thing. Just one. Do not eat.
(dramatic pause)
Taste. Savor. Relish. Consider
every morsel you place inside your
mouth. Be mindful. But do not eat.
Our menu is too precious for that.
ON THE PATRONS, who look a little confused, especially the
movie star. Tyler, however, is just lapping this up.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Look around you. Breathe deeply.
Accept it. Accept all of it.
Forgive. And on that note --
(smiles)
Food!
Servers fan out in perfect formation carrying exquisitely
manicured plates.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Our first course is called "The
Island."
One of the plates lands on a table in a gorgeous, slow-motion
CU product shot. Perfectly curated bits of flora and jewels
of scallop meat rest artfully atop a smooth, icy rock.
A SUPERIMPOSED TITLE reads, "THE ISLAND. Foraged plants,
scallop, seawater."
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
On your plate are plants from
around the island, placed on rocks
from the shore covered in barely-
frozen, filtered seawater which
will flavor the dish as it melts.
20 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 27.
Tyler smiles and whispers to Margot a little too loudly:
TYLER
This is what the guy was fishing
for earlier in the--
The room is silent. Chef Slowik stares right at Tyler with a
withering glare. Tyler tenses in his seat, mortified.
TYLER (CONT'D)
Sorry, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
(smiles)
It's perfectly all right. Yes, they
are those very same scallops.
Except, of course, for Mrs.
Liebrandt. She has salmon.
Anne smiles appreciatively.
ANNE
Thank you.
CHEF SLOWIK
(back to the group)
Here is what you must remember
about this dish. We, the people on
this island, are not important. The
island and the nutrients it
provides exist in their most
perfect state without us gathering
them, manipulating them or
digesting them. What happens inside
this room is meaningless compared
to what occurs outside, in nature,
in the soil and the water and the
air. We are but a frightened
nanosecond. Nature is timeless.
(warm smile)
Enjoy!
He returns to the kitchen. Diners exchange glances with their
partners. Margot arches an eyebrow at the pomposity.
MARGOT
Cheery thought.
(noticing)
Um. Hey. Are you - crying?
TYLER
Yeah. Sorry.
(laughs awkwardly)
I know.
(MORE)
20 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 28.
TYLER (CONT'D)
It's just, I find it all very
moving. It's all so...I don't know.
It's just so beautiful.
Tyler holds his phone just so and snaps a shot of his plate.
Elsa clocks it. Simmering rage.
TYLER (CONT'D)
It's almost too beautiful to eat.
Margot looks at her plant-covered rock warily. She's not so
moved. But then she smiles, as if remembering something.
MARGOT
You know, the nicest restaurant in
my hometown was this shitty red
sauce place called Martini's that--
TYLER
(interrupting)
You don't think Chef's mad at me,
right? Because of the scallop
thing?
MARGOT
You don't have to address him as
"Chef," Tyler. And no, I doubt he's
even aware of your existence.
Tyler keeps his eyes fixed on CHEF SLOWIK, who is intensely
directing his staff in the open kitchen.
TYLER
I know. It's just, I kind of want
him to - ya know.
MARGOT
To what? To like you?
TYLER
(laughs)
Yeah. Kinda.
MARGOT
You're a customer. You're paying
him to serve you. It doesn't matter
whether he likes you or not.
Tyler nods, then considers this. He looks mildly offended.
TYLER
Right. Wait. What does that mean?
20 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 29.
MARGOT
(smiles)
Nothing. Relax. You're good.
The sommelier slides up, seemingly out of thin air.
SOMMELIER
And to pair, from our friends at
Isabelle et Denis, a premier cru
Chablis from 2014. Not just single
vineyard but a single row of vines.
THE MOVIE STAR and FELICITY stare at their perfect plates.
Neither lifts a fork.
Movie Star pops a scallop in his mouth. Smiles.
FELICITY
How is it?
MOVIE STAR
Good!
FELICITY
You're going to need to say more
than "good" for the show.
MOVIE STAR
It's not brain surgery, okay? It's
a travel food show thing. I go to
Italy, we shoot me in Capris on a
pastel green Vespa driving to some
Guiseppe's farm with cheese and
there's a close-up of me eating the
cheese and I close my eyes and fake
an orgasm, then I'm off to South
Africa or wherever and I eat goat
and talk about how racism is maybe
not so cool and bingo bongo there's
your show.
Felicity stares at him.
FELICITY
Wait... is that it? That's the big
pitch you're giving to three
streaming services on Monday?
MOVIE STAR
(shrugs)
Pretty much yeah.
FELICITY
Holy fucking Jesus --
20 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 30.
MOVIE STAR
Look. Relax. When it's time to
deliver I deliver. I always do.
We glide over to Lillian Bloom and Ted as they eat the dish
with expressions of pure ecstasy.
TED
Thoughts? I think it's quite --
LILLIAN BLOOM
Half-great. It's there in moments.
TED
It's there in moments.
LILLIAN BLOOM
There's a neediness to the plating.
Tweezered to fuck. But the flavors
are there. Very clean, very...
thalassic.
TED
Thalassic?
LILLIAN BLOOM
Oceanic. Thalassa was the Greek
primeval spirit of the sea. So.
We're eating the ocean.
TED
We're eating the ocean. Yes.
RICHARD AND ANNE sit eating silently like two live corpses.
They could just as well be eating prime rib at a casino.
Finally Anne barely speaks.
ANNE
I saw Perry at DeLaurenti's the
other day.
RICHARD
Mm.
(beat)
How was he?
Anne shrugs.
ANNE
You know...
(then)
Perry.
20 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 31.
And with that, the scintillating Perry chat is over.
THE TECH BROS are in fact purely eating and drinking, not
even looking at their plates as they talk.
DAVE
--and the cloud space is only
getting crazier. Everyone scales
up, and their OPEX budgets are--
BRYCE
Dude enough. You sound so douche-y.
SOREN
(pointing at plate)
You like?
BRYCE
The otter food? Oh, yeah. Solid.
SOREN
The plating's a little schmance
though, right? And I've had
shellfish just as good at Kashiba,
or even with my chef at home. But
whatever. Now we can say we've been
here. As my dad used to say, "We're
buying an experience."
ELSA stands against the wall, eyeing them with contempt.
21 INT. KITCHEN. CONTINUOUS 21
The staff prepares the next course. Chef looks up to stare at
Margot, noting her tense posture and nearly-full plate. Then
he sees Tyler extend his fork toward her food. Chef winces.
CHEF SLOWIK
(irritated)
I want plating in five.
WHOLE TEAM
Yes, Chef!
22 EXT. HAWTHORN ISLAND - TWILIGHT 22
Darkness falls. We see the restaurant from afar, bay windows
aglow with warm light. Out here, amidst the water and trees,
all is quiet save for the lonesome, distant call of a loon.
22 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 32.
AGAINST BLACK, TITLE CARD:
BREAD SERVICE
23 INT. DINING ROOM - EVENING 23
Margot and Tyler wait for the next course. Tyler observes
something about Margot and smiles. Margot notices.
MARGOT
What?
TYLER
Nothing. It's fun watching you in
this place. You're just so Margot
about it all.
MARGOT
Oh yeah? How so?
Tyler examines and catalogues the specimen.
TYLER
This is your whole thing: You hate
these fancy places because you're
working-class and real and just a
true-blue down-home girl, all spiky
and snarky. That's so who you are.
I love it.
Margot smiles and nods. She goes along with it.
MARGOT
Yeah, well? You grow up poor in
Philly like I did and then step
into a place like this? Yeah, sure.
Your fists go up a little.
Tyler looks turned on by the notion of taking a fist in the
face from a tough poor girl. Margot smiles playfully.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
You like that, huh?
TYLER
I like you.
MARGOT
(moment of sweetness)
I like you, too.
Margot smiles at Tyler. Tyler really feels a connection.
23 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 33.
TYLER
Beautiful night.
As Tyler looks out the window, he doesn't see Margot's smile
gradually decreasing to a glare. No connection on her end.
Chef Slowik CLAPS again. Margot jumps a little, startled.
MARGOT
Is he going to keep doing that?
Chef waits in silence a few moments. Too many moments.
CHEF SLOWIK
Bread has existed in some form for
over 12,000 years, especially
amongst the poor. Flour and water.
What could be simpler? Even today,
grain represents 65% of all
agriculture. Fruits and vegetables?
Only 6%. Ancient Greek peasants
dipped their stale, measly bread in
wine for breakfast. And how did
Jesus teach us to pray if not to
beg for "our daily bread?" It is,
and has always been, the food of
the common man. But you, my dear
guests, are not the common man. So
tonight you get no bread.
Margot actually chuckles -- you've got to be kidding.
Servers place SHALE PLATES on the tables, along with a lovely
parchment NOTE. Where there would normally be bread is an
empty space surrounded by condiments -- creams, pickles, etc.
A SUPERIMPOSED TITLE reads, "BREADLESS BREAD PLATE: no bread,
savory accompaniments."
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
In this spirit, please enjoy the
unaccompanied accompaniments.
MOVIE STAR'S TABLE. Felicity reads the parchment note.
FELICITY
"The bread you will not be eating
tonight was made from a heritage
wheat called red fife, crafted with
our partners at the Tehachapi Grain
Project, devoted to preserving
heirloom grains..."
23 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 34.
MOVIE STAR
(eating)
I have to say, the shit around the
table absence of bread is tasty.
LILLIAN BLOOM AND TED.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Now this is a wickedly clever
conceit. Slowik is famous for his
bread. Tartine doesn't hold a
candle. And tonight no bread?
TED
Outrageous.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Fiendish, really. He's always been
keenly aware of food as a history
of class while still preserving a
sense of the delicious.
(poking at a sauce)
Although I will say the emulsion
here does look slightly broken.
TED
I didn't want to mention it, but I
was just thinking the same thing.
LILLIAN BLOOM
And you really --
(whispers)
-- you really shouldn't see that in
a restaurant of this quality. I'm
frankly surprised. Minor quibble.
But there it is.
Chef Slowik sees this exchange.
MARGOT AND TYLER.
TYLER
Next level bad-assery. The way he
weaves in historical allegories.
The game is trying to guess what
the over-arching theme of the
entire meal is going to be. You
won't know till the end.
MARGOT
Wait, you like this? He's basically
insulting us, isn't he?
23 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 35.
TYLER
No no no, you don't get it. It's a
concept.
MARGOT
I know what a concept is, Tyler.
TYLER
No, trust me. He's telling a story.
That's what makes his food so
exciting. He's not just a chef.
He's a storyteller. And he doesn't
give a fuck about the rules.
MARGOT
Yeah, well, call me the girl next
door but maybe some rules you
should give a fuck about.
Tyler takes her hand, kisses it, and smiles mischievously.
TYLER
My dearest, no one would ever call
you the girl next door.
Meanwhile, back at Lillian Bloom's table:
LILLIAN BLOOM
I bake my own bread at home, of
course.
TED
Oh?
LILLIAN BLOOM
Very rustic. Peasant style. Yeasty.
TED
What kind of yeast do you use?
LILLIAN BLOOM
I make my own. From apples.
TED
Of course you make your own yeast
from apples, you wicked thing.
Elsa approaches with another, LARGER CONTAINER of the broken
emulsion Lillian complained about.
ELSA
Ms. Bloom, here is another broken
emulsion. Courtesy of Chef Slowik.
23 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 36.
She points to the kitchen, where Chef Slowik offers a wave
and warm smile. Lillian smiles nervously and waves back.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Oh, I -- thank you.
BRYCE
(calling to Elsa)
Excuse me. Excuse me.
Elsa heads to THE TECH-BRO TABLE.
ELSA
Is everything to your liking, sir?
BRYCE
Well, actually, no. Thanks for
asking. I mean, look, the food's
great and we totally get all the
conceptual stuff. But could we
please get a little bread? You guys
are super-famous for your bread,
and we don't know when we'll ever
get a chance to eat here again.
SOREN
Everybody always talks about your
amazing bread.
ELSA
Yes. And?
BRYCE
Could we please just try some of
your bread? You know, and some
gluten-free for my friend as well?
ELSA
No
BRYCE
No?
ELSA
No.
The men exchange an exasperated look. Elsa stares coldly.
BRYCE
This is all very clever and, I
didn't want to play this card, but
you know who we are, right?
23 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 37.
ELSA
Yes.
SOREN
You do. You know who we are.
ELSA
I know who you are.
SOREN
You know we work with Doug Verrick.
ELSA
No, you work for Mr. Verrick.
Lillian and Ted overhear. Lillian makes a "yikes" face.
DAVE
Exactly. So you know we all play on
the same team. So just slip us a
little bread. Please.
SOREN
We won't tell a soul.
ELSA
No.
BRYCE
Did you say no?
ELSA
I said no. Yes.
BRYCE
Okay. Wow.
Elsa leans in to speak in a menacing whisper.
ELSA
You will eat less than you desire
and more than you deserve.
She spins and walks away.
MARGOT and TYLER. Margot is not eating. Chef stares at her.
TYLER
Well if you're not going to eat,
I'm gonna eat.
Tyler reaches over and picks up her entire plate to exchange
it with his own empty one. He tries to do it carefully but
bumps a wine glass with his elbow. It SHATTERS on the ground.
23 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 38.
Two servers appear to clean up the mess. Tyler is mortified.
Now Tyler spots Chef Slowik marching over to their table.
TYLER (CONT'D)
So, so sorry. Total accident.
Chef focuses solely on Margot.
CHEF SLOWIK
You haven't touched your food.
MARGOT
Yeah, sorry. A lot of food coming,
right? Don't want to fill up.
CHEF SLOWIK
That would not be possible. I've
precisely designed the portions to
account for that. Please eat. The
menu only makes sense if you eat.
MARGOT
But you told us not to eat.
CHEF SLOWIK
This is not what I meant, madam.
And you know it.
MARGOT
Thanks, but I'll eat what I want to
eat. And when.
Chef half-smiles and half-grimaces. No one talks to him like
this. He walks away. Tyler looks sick.
TYLER
Jesus. That was humiliating.
MARGOT
I'm not humiliated. He's a prick.
AT LINDA'S TABLE.
Chef kneels and gently takes her hand. She looks at him with
glazed, wounded eyes. He smiles at her understandingly. She
weakly smiles back. Chef kisses her forehead and heads into --
24 INT. KITCHEN. EVENING 24
-- where he looks at his watch.
CHEF SLOWIK
Plating in three, my friends.
24 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 39.
ENTIRE KITCHEN
Yes, Chef!
25 EXT. HAWTHORN ISLAND - NIGHT 25
Tall, spindly evergreens shiver in the cold darkness.
AGAINST BLACK, TITLE CARD:
SECOND COURSE
26 INT. DINING ROOM - EVENING 26
RICHARD and ANNE silently await more food. No eye contact.
MARGOT AND TYLER. The sommelier arrives.
SOMMELIER
Here's a 2009 Valpolicella Classico
Superiore from Tommaso Bussola,
which we've hyper-decanted with an
immersion blender. Slavonian oak.
Rich cherry and tobacco notes. A
faint sense of longing and regret.
Margot smiles as the sommelier walks away.
MARGOT
Mmm. Longing and regret. My
favorite.
Margot glances over at Richard and Anne's table. She looks at
Anne staring off. Anne feels Margot's eyes on her. Anne then
looks at Margot and Margot looks away.
ANNE
She's staring again.
RICHARD
Uh-huh.
ANNE
Where do we know her from?
RICHARD
We don't.
ANNE
She really does look like Claire.
26 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 40.
RICHARD
Why do you keep saying that? She
doesn't.
ANNE
You don't think so?
RICHARD
She's nothing like our Claire.
There is something sad in Anne's face as she watches Margot.
ANNE
That same faraway face --
RICHARD
Can we not obsess? Please?
A touchy topic. Anne looks away. They sip their wine.
FELICITY and MOVIE STAR
MOVIE STAR
Hypothetically, if you were
leaving, which you're not, what
would you be leaving for?
FELICITY
Associate Development Co-Exec.
MOVIE STAR
What is that?
FELICITY
(not quite sure)
Um, just developing, or helping to -
develop. Things?
MOVIE STAR
Uh huh. And hypothetically, why
would that be better than working
for me?
FELICITY
Um. Well. There's a - future there?
That hits like a hammer. She can tell that hurt.
FELICITY (CONT'D)
No hey. A different future I meant.
It's a gut punch. But then Movie Star turns it back on.
26 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 41.
MOVIE STAR
Right. Well. Thank God that was all
hypothetical!
Beat.
MOVIE STAR (CONT'D)
My wife found out about the
apartment in New York that she
shouldn't know about.
FELICITY
Hypothetically?
MOVIE STAR
Sure.
We hear Chef Slowik's CLAP.
CHEF SLOWIK
The next course is called "Memory."
That's what it's meant to evoke --
a memory. Let me tell you one of
mine. When I was a child growing up
in Waterloo, Iowa, Tuesday was taco
night. Taco Tuesday!
The guests smile, but his enthusiasm feels forced and odd.
Chef Slowik puts his hand on Linda's shoulder.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
This is my mother. As you can see,
she is rather drunk. This is not
unusual. When I was seven years
old, one Tuesday my father came
home quite drunk. Also not unusual.
Mother grew angry and screamed at
him. At which point he proceeded to
wrap a telephone cord around her
neck and pull it tight. I wept and
screamed and begged him to stop.
To make him stop, I finally had to
stab him in the thigh with kitchen
scissors. You remember that,
mother, don't you?
Linda reacts vaguely, continues drinking.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
I suppose I should have stabbed him
in his throat that evening. But we
are not so smart when we are young.
26 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 42.
The diners exchange uneasy glances. Lillian turns to Ted with
a reassuring look -- "Don't worry, all par for the course."
Margot, however, watches Chef intently and with empathy, as
if understanding his pain. Noticing, Chef locks eyes with her
and says the next line directly to her.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Well. It was, as you can imagine, a
very memorable taco night.
Servers appear and set down plates fashioned out of coiled
telephone cords, as well as bowls of tortillas. On the plates
are chicken thighs with TINY SCISSORS sticking out of them.
A SUPERIMPOSED TITLE reads: "MEMORY. Marinated grilled
chicken thigh, tortillas, green salsa cubes, red salsa halo."
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Here you have house-smoked Bresse
chicken thighs al pastor and our
own tortillas made with heirloom
masa--one of Hawthorn's signature
dishes. We change our menu
constantly, but, as Miss Bloom
knows, this has been a staple since
day one.
(turning to her)
It's what you once said --
LILLIAN BLOOM
Put you on the map.
CHEF SLOWIK
Put me on the map. And precisely
what map would that be?
Chef lets this rhetorical question hang in the air.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Anyways, because we are always
innovating-- because we fear
irrelevance...
Movie star reacts.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
...an update to a classic: images
on the tortillas have been made
using a laser engraving machine. We
hope this taco night evokes strong
memories for us all.
(warm smile)
Enjoy.
26 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 43.
LILLIAN BLOOM examines her tortillas: images of buildings.
TED
What are they, Lil?
LILLIAN BLOOM
They're - restaurants.
TED
Restaurants?
LILLIAN BLOOM
That I reviewed That -- that
closed.
She holds one with a sign reading "MERCIA."
TED
Oh. So, it's like a - gag?
LILLIAN BLOOM
(chuckles nervously)
I think so? Odd, isn't it?
RICHARD AND ANNE examine their tortillas. The first reads,
"Happy Anniversary, Mr. and Mrs. Liebrandt." Anne is touched.
The other tortillas show what looks like Richard and Anne
sitting at their table during previous Hawthorn visits.
ANNE
Richard, what are these?
RICHARD
Taco things. For the tacos.
ANNE
I mean the pictures. Look, they're
all of us.
Richard dons his glasses.
ANNE (CONT'D)
Oh, look at this one, Dick. This
one was after you had that melanoma
removed from your forehead.
There's the bandage. Isn't this
nice? They remembered us.
(squinting at another)
Huh. That's you... but who's that
woman?
She picks it up to reveal a tortilla which has been engraved
with a B&W image of a man who looks like Richard sitting at a
restaurant table with a young woman.
26 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 44.
ANNE (CONT'D)
Richard, who is that?
RICHARD
How the hell should I know? It's
faked. Some sort of stupid joke.
He grabs the tortilla from his wife's hands.
RICHARD (CONT'D)
This whole place is a fucking joke.
Anne just stares at him.
THE TECH BROS discover tortillas printed with dense blocks of
FORMATTED TEXT, like business records.
SOREN
What the fuck?
DAVE
Are these --? How did they --?
BRYCE
That's it.
He slams a tortilla on the table and waves Elsa over.
ELSA
Can I help you, sir?
BRYCE
What the hell are these?
ELSA
These are --
(perfect accent)
-- tortillas. Tortillas deliciosas.
BRYCE
I said what are these?
ELSA
These are tortillas which contain
Echobright's tax records and other
documents showing how your company
has hidden transactions with shell
companies and created invoices with
fake charges.
BRYCE
How did you get these?
26 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 45.
ELSA
I'm sorry, but Chef never reveals
his recipes.
SOREN
Do you know how fucked you are?
We'll have you shut down by
morning.
ELSA
Oh, no. That won't be necessary.
The MOVIE STAR and FELICITY examine their tortillas.
FELICITY
Looks like they're all the same.
MOVIE STAR
Indeed. Indeed they are.
Each depicts a MOVIE POSTER -- the same movie poster. For a
middling comedy called Calling Dr. Sunshine.
MOVIE STAR (CONT'D)
Calling Dr. Sunshine.
FELICITY
Huh. Forgot about that one.
MOVIE STAR
Dumb part. Bad script. Fun shoot.
TYLER examines their tortillas, crestfallen.
MARGOT
What's on them?
TYLER
They're all me... from tonight.
Margot looks. Each shows Tyler sneaking photos of the food.
MARGOT
Jesus. What's with this guy? This
means they've been photographing us
the whole night.
Margot looks around. She actually does see a few small
spherical ceiling cameras. But Tyler's too shattered to care.
TYLER
I knew it. He hates me. God damn
it. I didn't think he'd really
mind. Should I apologize?
26 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 46.
MARGOT
What? Why would you apologize? They
have no right to--
A flustered Tyler angrily cuts her off.
TYLER
Just fucking stop talking and let
me think, okay? I have to make this
right somehow. I have to.
MARGOT
I'll tell you how: Send it back.
Margot turns to wave a server over.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
Excuse me. Excuse me!
TYLER
Hey. Hey! Margot!
Tyler snaps his fingers at Margot violently.
MARGOT
Did you just snap at me?
Tyler glares at her with cold, remorseless eyes.
TYLER
Are you out of your mind? Do you
know how long I've been trying to
get a reservation here?
MARGOT
No, and I don't care! This is--
TYLER
You don't send shit back to this
kitchen, you child. You thank them
for even letting you in the door.
Margot reels back, stunned.
MARGOT
What did you just call me?
TYLER
I called you a child because that's
what you're fucking acting like.
MARGOT
Tyler, you need to apologize to me
now. You can't talk to me like--
26 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 47.
TYLER
Well, yeah, actually I can. Because
-- ding dong! -- I'm the one who's
paying. So, maybe, shut up and eat?
He angrily makes a taco, takes a bite. His rage disappears.
TYLER (CONT'D)
Oh my god. Oh my god, this is
incredible. You have to try this.
Margot just stares at him, her eyes burning with contempt.
MARGOT
Don't let me interrupt.
She throws her napkin on her chair and leaves the table.
27 INT. SIDE HALLWAY 27
En route to the ladies' room, Margot stops at a stunning
SILVER DOOR molded in an ornate floral pattern. Curious, she
slowly reaches for the handle.
ELSA
Can I help you, madam?
Margot turns to see a disapproving Elsa.
MARGOT
I'm looking for the ladies room.
ELSA
To your right.
MARGOT
What's behind this door?
ELSA
Something very special.
28 INT. LADIES ROOM - EVENING 28
Margot enters the dim, modernist bathroom and locks the door.
She stops and suddenly sits down on the tiled floor. She's
breathing heavily, almost hyperventilating with rage.
MARGOT
Stop it.
28 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 48.
She gets a cigarette from her purse, cracks a tiny window and
lights up. She notices an artsy framed photo on the wall
showing a marshmallow roasting on a campfire.
She gazes out the window and sees a curious sight: a COOK
carrying a pair of large costume angel wings across the lawn.
Suddenly the LOCK turns on the door. Margot flicks the
cigarette out the window. Chef Slowik enters. He looks upset.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
Hey, what are you - ?
CHEF SLOWIK
I would like to know, specifically,
what it was about the last course
that you did not enjoy?
MARGOT
The - what?
CHEF SLOWIK
You've barely eaten the food. Why?
I need to know. Why don't you eat?
MARGOT
Why do you care?
CHEF SLOWIK
I take my work very seriously, and
you are not eating. That wounds me.
Margot can see he's actually quite hurt about this.
MARGOT
I guess I'm just not very hungry.
He takes a slow, deliberate step toward her. He's harder now.
CHEF SLOWIK
I've told you who I am. I'm Julian
Slowik and I am the chef here. Now--
He takes two slow, deliberate steps forward. Margot steps
back until her BACK is against the wall.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Who are you?
Margot is speechless.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
I'll ask again. Who. Are. You.
28 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 49.
Margot composes herself.
MARGOT
I'm Margot Mills.
CHEF SLOWIK
And where are you from Margot?
MARGOT
Seattle.
CHEF SLOWIK
No. Where are you from?
She stares at him, trying to read him.
MARGOT
I'm from Grand Island, Nebraska.
Okay? You want the address for my
mom's trailer, asshole? Excuse me.
She tries to move past him but he blocks her.
CHEF SLOWIK
No, not who you want me to think
you are. Who are you?
Margot is thrown. Her usual game isn't working.
MARGOT
I'm Margot.
She slips around Chef Slowik and thinks she is about to get
out the door, when Chef Slowik stops the door with his hand.
CHEF SLOWIK
You shouldn't be here tonight.
MARGOT
Get the fuck out of the way.
No one talks to him this way. He's impressed, curious. Margot
exits the bathroom.
29 INT. HAWTHORN DINING AREA AND KITCHEN - EVENING 29
Meanwhile the movie star puzzles some more over his tortilla.
FELICITY
Maybe he's a fan of the movie?
MOVIE STAR
I don't think so.
29 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 50.
FELICITY
Why not?
MOVIE STAR
Because nobody's a fan of that
movie.
FELICITY
I'm sure it's just a joke. You're
friends with him, right?
MOVIE STAR
I mean, `friends'? Do I have
friends? I know him?
(looking dead at Felicity)
Are you my friend?
Margot returns. Before she sits she kisses Tyler, violently.
MARGOT
Watch your mouth, sweetheart. Or
I'll smack the taste right out of
it. Okay?
TYLER
I -- Okay.
(he likes it)
Sorry.
Richard looks at Margot from across the way. She catches his
eye and winks at him. Richard quickly looks away.
As Elsa passes his table, Richard snaps at her a bit.
RICHARD
Tell your boss if he thinks I'm
paying for those tacos he's nuts.
ELSA
(smiles)
I'll be sure to tell him.
THE TECH BROS
BRYCE
I don't like the feel of this. At
all. I want out of here.
SOREN
Dude, chill. It's a fucking taco.
BRYCE
A fucking taco that might hold up
in court?
29 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 51.
DAVE
We all have plausible deniability.
And if they try and turn us in --
SOREN
Right. Then they're turning Verrick
in too. And then they're just as
fucked as we are. We're fine.
(unsure)
Right?
They sit with this thought. Then, shrugging, they make tacos.
30 AGAINST BLACK, TITLE CARD: 30
THIRD COURSE
The patrons silently watch two servers methodically unrolling
a TARP across the middle of the floor and smoothing out all
the wrinkles. Other servers arrive with decorative baskets
and cover the tarp with sea fennel and edible flowers.
TED
Theatrical. But minimalist, like in
the Japanese minimirasuto style.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Mm. They were being playful, yes?
With the tacos?
TED
Stop worrying. It's a dialogue.
LILLIAN BLOOM
No I know. I think the concept just
- missed the mark for me.
Margot watches the team unfold the plastic tarp and then
looks at Chef Slowik, who is staring at her. He continues to
stare, and then a LOUD CLAP. This time, Margot isn't fazed.
CHEF SLOWIK
We are ready for our next course,
which I think you'll find --
SOREN
(rising to his feet)
Excuse me. But what exactly is
going on here?
30 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 52.
CHEF SLOWIK
Yes, if you would let me finish?
(motions for him to sit)
Please.
Elsa calmly re-folds the tech bro's napkin for him. It does
have a certain calming effect. The Tech Bro sits back down.
MARGOT
Tyler, I don't like this. Can we--
TYLER
Shh. It's fine. Relax.
CHEF SLOWIK
Ladies and gentlemen, please meet
sous-chef Jeremy Loucks.
A chef around thirty strides out of the kitchen and stands in
the middle of the tarp. He stares straight ahead, stoic.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Jeremy created the next dish. It's
called "The Mess." Jeremy, may I
explain "The Mess?"
JEREMY
Yes, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Originally from Sparks, Nevada,
Jeremy studied at the Culinary
Institute in Hyde Park. Jeremy's
goal, as he wrote in a heartfelt
letter, was to work for me here at
Hawthorn. Isn't that right, Jeremy?
JEREMY
Yes, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Jeremy is talented. He's good.
He's very good. But he's not great.
He will never be great. He
desperately wants my job, my
prestige. My talent. He aspires to
greatness, but he will never
achieve it. Correct, Jeremy?
JEREMY
Yes, Chef.
30 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 53.
CHEF SLOWIK
Jeremy is like me at his age. He
has forsaken everything to achieve
his goals. He works twenty hours a
day. No time for friends. Or
family. He can't go to the park or
see a movie or stop at the bank.
Jeremy, when's the last time you
called your mother?
JEREMY
I don't remember, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Like mine, his life is pressure.
Pressure to put out the best food
in the world. Pressure to please
his Chef. Pressure to please the
customers. And the critics. And
even when all goes right, and the
food is perfect, and the customers
are happy, and the critics are too,
there is no way to avoid The Mess.
The Mess you make of your life, of
your body, of your sanity, by
giving everything you have to
pleasing people you will never
know. Jeremy, do you like your
life, this life you dreamed about?
JEREMY
No, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Do you want my life?
Sweating, Jeremy looks at Chef. He wasn't expecting this.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
It's okay. You can answer. Do you
want my life? Not my position or my
talent. My life.
JEREMY
(tears in his eyes)
No, Chef.
Chef gently touches Jeremy's head and kisses his cheek.
CHEF SLOWIK
Ladies and gentlemen, your fourth
course. Sous-chef Jeremy's Mess.
30 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 54.
Chef takes a step back. Jeremy removes a pistol from the back
waistband of his apron and BLOWS HIS BRAINS OUT.
Everyone shrieks as blood splatters on the walls and the
floor and on their faces -- including on Linda, who continues
to drink, unfazed. Jeremy falls backwards.
The kitchen staff all look for a second, then return to work.
Chef Slowik takes in the horrible sight, CRYING a little,
mourning. Servers rush over and, with practiced efficiency,
roll up the tarp with Jeremy's body inside.
Panicked and screaming, many diners rise from their seats and
run toward the door. Servers and cooks rush out to block
their way, but more reassuring than threatening.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Please. Please. Sit. Make
yourselves at home. Everything's
fine. All part of the menu. All
just part of the show.
As the shocked diners are corralled back to their tables by
the cooks, servers approach tables with perfectly-folded
moist washcloths so diners can wipe their faces. Still other
servers fan out with PLATES for the tables.
A SUPERIMPOSED TITLE reads, "THE MESS. Pressure cooked
vegetables, roasted filet, potato confit, beef jus, bone
marrow. R.I.P. Jeremy Loucks, 1990-2022."
SOREN
(in shock)
Oh Jesus. What the fuck?
DAVE
Is he dead? Was - is this real?
BRYCE
WHAT IS HAPPENING?
Lillian Bloom looks rattled, but tries to calm the others.
LILLIAN BLOOM
No, no, it's theater. It's just--
stagecraft. It's part of the menu.
SOREN
The fuck are you talking about? He
just shot himself.
TED
It looked very real, Lillian?
30 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 55.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Listen, I'm telling you. Trust me.
This is what he does.
Ted nods numbly. He doesn't want to be a rube here.
TED
Extraordinary.
Chef sees everyone shocked, not eating.
CHEF SLOWIK
EAT.
(returning to the kitchen)
Fourth course, on order!
ENTIRE KITCHEN
Yes, Chef!
MARGOT AND TYLER haven't moved. In fact, Tyler is now eating.
MARGOT
Tyler, what -- what's happening?
The sommelier sashays up, cheery and helpful as ever.
SOMMELIER
This is a biodynamic Cabernet
Franc/Gamay blend from our friends
at Clos de l'Elu in the Loire
Valley. No added sulfites. A bit of
barnyard funk, but a wonderful
match with braised proteins.
RICHARD AND ANNE
RICHARD
We're leaving. Now.
ANNE
My -- my coat.
RICHARD
Forget your coat. Get up!
They rush to the front door, but Elsa runs to stand in their
way. Everyone else watches to see how this goes.
ELSA
Is something wrong?
RICHARD
Get out of our way. We're leaving.
30 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 56.
ELSA
There is no boat to leave on.
RICHARD
Then I'll call a helicopter.
ELSA
That will be difficult without
phone service.
RICHARD
Fucking move!
He tries to push past when two cooks with cleavers appear.
The other diners squirm, some even stand instinctively.
ANNE
Oh, Jesus. Richard, just do what
they say, for God's sake.
RICHARD
Let me handle this. I'll handle
this.
ELSA
With which hand?
RICHARD
What?
ELSA
With which hand will you "handle"
this, Mr. Liebrandt? Left or right?
RICHARD
What the fuck are you saying?
ELSA
Shall we choose?
RICHARD
Choose what?
ELSA
Very well. Left hand. Ring finger.
One cook grabs Richard and forces his left hand onto a table.
The other one tries to aim, but Richard squirms.
ELSA (CONT'D)
Mr. Liebrandt, please hold still.
30 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 57.
He looks at her for a split second and freezes, giving the
cook the opening to chop his finger off. Everyone screams. It
seems pretty clear now that this must be for real. Right?
ELSA (CONT'D)
(to the room)
Please stay seated. Thank you.
A petrified MOVIE STAR and FELICITY watch the chaos.
MOVIE STAR
This is real, isn't it?
FELICITY
I think so.
MOVIE STAR
I can't do this, a whole hostage
thing. I can't--
FELICITY
Could you talk to him - I mean,
because, you know him?
MOVIE STAR
Uh huh? Yeah, I made that up?
She looks at him. Jesus.
RICHARD writhes in pain on the floor. Two servers gently wrap
a linen napkin around his bleeding finger stump and tie it
with decorative ribbon. Elsa picks up his finger from the
table, slides the wedding ring off and offers it to Anne.
ELSA
Your husband's ring, madam.
ANNE
(in a daze)
Thank you --
LILLIAN BLOOM watches. This can't be real, right?
LILLIAN BLOOM
Maybe this is for our benefit?
Just for us? That's why he texted
me. This is incredible.
Ted nods, stunned, and leans over to the movie star.
TED
The actors are astonishing.
Anne overhears this as she walks Richard back to their table.
30 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 58.
ANNE
We're not actors. We're real
people.
MARGOT AND TYLER. Margot watches in stunned silence as a
blood-spattered Tyler quietly eats his food. To Margot's
horror, he seems to be actually enjoying it.
MARGOT
Jesus Christ.
It is becoming clear to Margot that she is facing this alone.
ELSA
Miss Mills, please join Chef Slowik
in the kitchen.
MARGOT
What?
ELSA
Chef would like you to join him in
the kitchen. Right now. Please.
TYLER
Can I come, too?
ELSA
No.
Tyler watches helplessly as Margot follows Elsa toward the
kitchen. COOKS guard the entrance, but Elsa waves them aside.
31 INT. KITCHEN. CONTINUOUS 31
Scared but brave, Margot enters and stands face to face with
Chef. He looks her up and down and shakes his head.
CHEF SLOWIK
No. No, I'm sorry but you're all
wrong.
MARGOT
Why are you doing this?
CHEF SLOWIK
You're just, simply wrong.
MARGOT
What are you talking about?
CHEF SLOWIK
Who are you?
31 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 59.
MARGOT
I'm Margot.
CHEF SLOWIK
I've served many Margots. You are
not a Margot. Who are you?
MARGOT
What the fuck does it matter?
CHEF SLOWIK
It matters because this menu, this
guest list, this entire evening,
has been painstakingly planned. And
you were not a part of that plan
and it's spoiling everything. In
order to proceed, I need to know
where to seat you: With us or with
them? It's really very important.
MARGOT
And then you'll - let me live?
CHEF SLOWIK
No, of course not. That would ruin
the menu. We're all going to die
tonight.
(to the kitchen)
Isn't that right?
ENTIRE KITCHEN
Yes, Chef!
CHEF SLOWIK
So do you want to die with those
who give or with those who take?
MARGOT
But I die either way. It's
arbitrary.
CHEF SLOWIK
It is not arbitrary. Please pick.
MARGOT
You've lost your mind. You're sick.
CHEF SLOWIK
What I've done here over the years
is sick. Yes. But right now, my
mind has never been clearer.
He believes it.
31 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 60.
At that moment, the movie star tentatively tries to enter.
MOVIE STAR
Hi, sorry. Chef I don't know if you
remember, we've met before, and--
CHEF SLOWIK
Leave my kitchen at once.
MOVIE STAR
Got it! Yes, absolutely, sir.
He immediately leaves.
CHEF SLOWIK
I don't want to rush you.
He sets a KITCHEN TIMER.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Our menu is strictly timed. In 15
minutes I'll have a break between
courses. That is how long you have
to decide. Our side or theirs. In
the meantime, please return to your
seat. The next dish is exquisite.
(turning away, clapping)
Plating in five!
ENTIRE KITCHEN
Yes, Chef!
CHEF SLOWIK
I love you all!
ENTIRE KITCHEN
We love you, Chef!
Put yourself in Margot's shoes. Mass psychosis.
32 INT. HAWTHORN DINING ROOM - NIGHT 32
Margot returns to a wide-eyed Tyler.
TYLER
Did you get a kitchen course? You
did, didn't you? God damn it, it's
not fucking fair, why do you get a
kitchen course?
(calming himself)
What was it? Protein or veg?
32 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 61.
Margot just stares at this creature, utterly bewildered. She
slaps him. Hard. He stares at her.
TYLER (CONT'D)
Protein or Veg?
33 AGAINST BLACK, TITLE CARD: 33
Fourth Course
The TECH BROS quietly conspire at their table.
BRYCE
So, so, what's the play here? What
are our options?
DAVE
The door is locked and guarded. The
windows - ?
The movie star overhears and joins in.
MOVIE STAR
We've got forks, though? Knives?
SOREN
Yeah, fucking butter knives.
DAVE
And you think we have better knife
skills than them?
BRYCE
So what, then? We bargain?
Suddenly Soren rises to his feet, picks up his chair and
hurls it at one of the big bay windows. It bounces right off
of the thick reinforced pane.
A few burly SERVERS step forward with knives, ready for Soren
to bolt. There's nowhere for him to go. So he just screams.
SOREN
GAH!!! FUCK!!!
Elsa perfectly places Soren's chair back at his table. The
cheery sommelier arrives at Margot and Tyler's table.
SOMMELIER
Everyone all set with wine?
MARGOT
Fuck yourself.
33 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 62.
Chef enters. CLAP!
CHEF SLOWIK
There's a saying: "Sometimes all
you need is a good cup of tea." I
learned that growing up in
Bratislava.
Some guests exchange glances. Didn't he say Iowa earlier?
Maybe a weird appreciative smirk from Margot.
BRYCE
Please. Just let us go free.
CHEF SLOWIK
(puzzled)
I am.
(beat)
I've found that not only does tea
cleanse the palate, but it offers a
soothing balm when facing some
hard, home truths.
SUPERIMPOSED TITLE reads: `PALATE CLEANSER- wild bergamot and
red clover tea."
Servers fan out with bowls filled with the tea.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
So, before we continue, are there
any questions about me or Hawthorn
or why none of us are getting out
of here alive?
This is the first time everyone is hearing this. It's silent.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
No questions?
People are hesitant to raise their hands. Tyler does.
TYLER
Is this bergamot I'm getting Chef?
Some people glare at Tyler: `That's the question you ask?'
CHEF SLOWIK
Yes it is.
The movie star raises a tentative hand.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Yes?
33 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 63.
MOVIE STAR
I suppose I -- I'd like to know--
SOREN
Why the fuck is this happening?
CHEF SLOWIK
Okay. Well. Think of yourselves as
ingredients in a degustation
concept. Figuratively speaking.
That's the best way to describe it.
The diners are puzzled. What the fuck is he talking about?
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
But none of this should be a
surprise to most of you. Ms. Bloom
-- Lillian, if I may -- my
cherished early advocate, knows the
damage she has done to so many
livelihoods.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Now, hold on, Chef, I've been very--
CHEF SLOWIK
You don't talk. I was happy in my
little taco truck. I was fine. It
was the happiest I've ever been.
Margot clocks that remark. Skeptical.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
(to Ted)
And you, you enable her filth. You
buttress. You coddle.
Ted looks offended. Then a server approaches Lillian Bloom
and sets down a comically LARGE NEW CONTAINER.
SERVER #2
More broken emulsion, madam.
Lillian Bloom stares at it. How is this happening?
CHEF SLOWIK
You loved that I texted you an
invitation for this evening. Me
yearning for your attendance.
Lillian might nod her head. Sure. Fine. He's right.
33 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 64.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
That is to be expected. And you
have fed my ego as well, sadly.
Elsa appears near Margot and gestures to the TIMER in her
hand. The texture of reality grows stranger by the moment.
ELSA
10 minutes, Miss Mills.
Anne speaks up.
ANNE
Please, my husband! He needs to go
to the hospital!
RICHARD
I'm fine. Just let my wife go.
Chef glares at Richard and Anne.
CHEF SLOWIK
My loyal regulars. How many times
have you eaten here in the last
five years?
RICHARD
I, I don't know. Six? Seven?
ANNE
(under her breath)
I think more than that, Dick...
CHEF SLOWIK
Eleven. Eleven times. Most people
consider themselves blessed if they
eat here only once. Mr. Liebrandt,
kindly name one dish you ate the
last time you were here.
(off his silence)
Eleven times you take the boat out
here, where we introduce every
dish, every single time. We tell
you exactly what we are feeding
you. We create elaborate stories.
We make it fun. We even give you a
copy of the menu to take home.
Please tell me one dish you ate the
last time you were here. Or the
time before. One. Please.
Richard looks at Anne for help.
33 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 65.
ANNE
(whispering)
Cod.
RICHARD
What?
ANNE
Cod.
RICHARD
(to Chef)
Cod.
CHEF SLOWIK
It wasn't cod, you donkey. It was
halibut. Rare fucking spotted
halibut.
ANNE
What does it matter?
CHEF SLOWIK
It matters to the halibut, Mrs.
Liebrandt. And to the artist whose
work turns to shit inside your gut.
Margot can't take this any longer. Some type of mask or
willingness to "play the game" seems to be slipping.
MARGOT
I have a question.
CHEF SLOWIK
Yes, Margot from Nebraska.
TYLER
I thought you were from Philly?
MARGOT
Why do you deserve to die?
Chef Slowik takes a deep breath and smiles.
CHEF SLOWIK
Thank you. Key question. I've
allowed my work to reach the price
point where only the class of
people in this room can access it.
And I've been fooled into trying to
please people who can never be
pleased.
(pointing to Linda)
Starting with her.
(MORE)
33 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 66.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
But that's our culture, isn't it?
And my restaurant is part of the
problem. So it's time to die.
BRYCE
It's not your restaurant.
CHEF SLOWIK
Come again?
BRYCE
You said it's your restaurant. But
if we're all just being honest
tonight, like you say, it's not.
CHEF SLOWIK
You're right. He's right. Doug
Verrick is my angel investor. He
owns this island and this
restaurant. And since Hawthorn's my
entire life, Doug Verrick owns me.
All of which is complicated by the
fact that I currently own Doug
Verrick.
Chef looks to Elsa, who flips a SWITCH on the wall. Outside,
spotlights reveal DOUG VERRICK, about 100 feet away,
suspended by a contraption above the water with angel wings
on his back.
BRYCE
Ho-ly shit.
SOREN
Okay, okay, seriously, how do we
stop this?
(to Slowik)
Just tell us how to stop this!
DAVE
We have money! Obviously, we have
money. Just tell us how much and
we'll give it to you!
Margot sees this is the wrong tactic.
MARGOT
Shut up.
Dave makes a sudden rush to the door but he is quickly bumped
to the floor by a large SERVER. He splays out pathetically.
Elsa steps forward.
33 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 67.
ELSA
We appreciate your support. Your
bill will be distributed at the end
of the meal and all major credit
cards will be accepted.
Bryce stands up and YELLS like he owns the place.
BRYCE
He kept you open through COVID, you
prick! He did that!
CHEF SLOWIK
Yes he did. And he questioned my
menu. He would even request
substitutions, despite the fact
that--
(screaming at the window)
THERE ARE NO SUBSTITUTIONS AT
HAWTHORN!!!
Chef gestures to Elsa.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Fallen angel, please.
Outside, the contraption slowly lowers Verrick into the bay.
They can just barely make out his panicked screams.
CAMERA creeps closer to Chef.
BRYCE
You are a fucking maniac.
CHEF SLOWIK
Shh. Just listen.
SOREN
This is --
CHEF SLOWIK
I said listen.
They watch, pained, as Verrek is slowly lowered into the
water, down, down, down, until finally he goes under.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
And...
He waits for total, serene silence.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
(a whisper)
Quiet.
33 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 68.
Eyes closed, Chef listens a few more seconds. Nothing.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Do you hear that silence? Listen.
Can you hear it? That silence
means... I'm free.
Close on MARGOT. She's horrified, but also struck by Chef's
serenity. Tyler breaks the silence and leans into Margot.
TYLER
I'd say about three more savory
courses and then dessert. Maybe a
pre-dessert? What Chef would call a
transitional element.
Margot is too numb to even hear him babbling. And then --
BEEP BEEP! The kitchen timer.
ELSA
Time's up, Miss Mills. Chef will
speak with you now. In his office.
TYLER
May I speak to Chef as well?
ELSA
You may not.
Elsa gestures to the back of the kitchen. Margot begins to
walk in that direction, but Elsa stops her with her HAND.
ELSA (CONT'D)
You will not ruin Chef's menu. Do
you understand me?
Margot stares daggers at Elsa. She then lifts her hand, which
is holding her napkin, and drops the napkin. Elsa of course
scrambles to pick it up.
Margot keeps walking.
She is guided by two cooks toward a door that leads to Chef
Slowik's office. She knocks. We hear Chef's voice.
CHEF SLOWIK (O.S.)
Come in.
34 INT. CHEF SLOWIK'S OFFICE 34
A small, shitty office.
34 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 69.
CHEF SLOWIK
You've made your decision.
MARGOT
I have.
CHEF SLOWIK
And what have you decided?
MARGOT
I - I've decided you're right. I
shouldn't be here tonight. And I
say this with respect because I'm
sure you're quite brilliant but all
of this - it wasn't meant for me.
Chef looks disappointed at her attempt at flattery.
CHEF SLOWIK
You're not sure I'm brilliant, so
don't say it. It's tacky. False.
Margot flinches.
MARGOT
Fine then. I'm not sure you're
brilliant.
CHEF SLOWIK
Sloppy.
MARGOT
Fuck you.
CHEF SLOWIK
Sloppy girl. I was expecting more.
I guess I have to make your
decision for you: You belong here,
with your own breed.
MARGOT
What breed is that?
CHEF SLOWIK
With the shit shovelers. Oh, you
thought I couldn't tell? I know a
fellow service industry worker when
I see one.
Beat.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Mr Liebrandt. How do you know him?
34 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 70.
Margot doesn't answer.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
You've been eyeing him all evening.
MARGOT
Well? I think you know.
Chef Slowik nods.
CHEF SLOWIK
So, he paid for an experience. And
I can tell, from one provider of
experiences to another, that you
don't rattle easily. So how did he
rattle you.
MARGOT
It's not--
CHEF SLOWIK
Margot.
A moment.
MARGOT
He told me to agree with everything
he said, and not break eye contact
while he jerked off.
CHEF SLOWIK
Uh huh. Specific.
MARGOT
Not really. It's pretty unoriginal.
What rattled me was that he told me
to tell him he was a good man, and
that I was his daughter and that I
loved him and then he--
Chef cuts her off.
CHEF SLOWIK
So he's a romantic.
They might share a little smirk. The smallest chuckle.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
I don't need the details. I know
what a bad customer is.
They connect for a moment.
34 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 71.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Do you enjoy providing your
services?
MARGOT
I used to. Do you enjoy providing
yours?
CHEF SLOWIK
I used to. I haven't desired to
cook for someone in ages. And one
does miss that feeling.
Beat. The slightest opening in his chain mail.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Come with me. I would like to show
you something.
AGAINST BLACK, TITLE CARD:
FIFTH COURSE
35 INT. DINING ROOM - NIGHT 35
Chef and Margot enter. Tension and dread hang in the air.
Exhausted diners flinch as Chef walks near, like beaten dogs.
Chef CLAPS, but the diners are too numb to respond.
CHEF SLOWIK
Ladies and gentlemen, for our next
course, let us take the evening
air.
They all sit there. What is he talking about?
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Come, come.
Elsa is standing by the now open door to the outside. The
escape hatch has been opened. But what awaits them outside?
36 EXT. GREAT LAWN - NIGHT 36
The diners are led out to a beautiful al fresco dining setup.
The evening air is indeed beautiful, and a series of torches
lend an almost primeval atmosphere to the proceedings.
Tech Bros whisper as they gather around the dining setup.
36 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 72.
DAVE
There might be a spare boat
somewhere? We could get out of
here?
BRYCE
(resigned)
To what?
DAVE
What?
Bryce seems somehow more reconciled to his fate than the
others. Like he somehow accepts it.
BRYCE
Get out of here to what?
SOREN
What are you talking about?
BRYCE
Forget it.
LILLIAN AND TED. Lillian stares up at the stars.
LILLIAN BLOOM
We're going to die tonight, Ted.
TED
Alrighty.
Silence. Chef Slowik CLAPS and everyone comes to attention.
CHEF SLOWIK
Ladies and gentlemen, our next
course will be presented by sous
chef Katherine Keller.
KATHERINE steps out of the darkness. She smiles amidst the
exquisite silence, her face lit by torchlight.
KATHERINE
Good evening, everyone. I have a
story for you all. Three years ago,
Julian Slowik tried to fuck me.
Chef Slowik nods slightly but remains impassive. Elsa looks
longingly at chef.
KATHERINE (CONT'D)
I refused his advances. A week
later, he tried again. And again, I
refused. But he didn't fire me.
(MORE)
36 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 73.
KATHERINE (CONT'D)
"That would be unethical," he
thought. So he kept me in his
kitchen and refused to look me in
the eye or speak directly to me for
eight months. He can do that.
Because he's the star. He's the
man.
Chef Slowik looks away, a bit pained.
KATHERINE (CONT'D)
Which mean he gets to be the dark
romantic genius who suffers for his
art. A woman chef is a trooper. A
go-getter. She's a mother hen. She
makes grandma's recipes with a sly
modern twist.
(beat)
Isn't that right?
Diners shift uncomfortably. But LILLIAN BLOOM nods.
KATHERINE (CONT'D)
I have been groped, I have been
leered at, I have earned more but
made less, and all of it in the
service of men so enraptured with
themselves that they don't see
their own pointlessness. So let's
help them see.
(sincerely warm)
Our next course is called "Man's
Folly."
Katherine approaches Chef and stands very close, looking him
right in the eyes. She pulls a small PAIR OF SCISSORS from
her apron and stabs him in the thigh. He accepts it with a
wince and a nod.
Katherine and Chef Slowik share a long, meaningful hug.
Theirs is a deep understanding that we'll never know.
CHEF SLOWIK
(a whisper)
I'm sorry.
Katherine smiles at him. He smiles back and pulls the knife
from his thigh. A SERVER is there with a tray with a little
flower on it to take it away. For the rest of the movie, Chef
will have a growing bloodstain on his pants and a limp.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
To our male diners. We now offer
you the chance to escape.
(MORE)
36 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 74.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
You will be given a 45 second head
start, at which point members of my
staff will try and catch you. If
they do catch you...
SOREN immediately makes a break for it and doesn't wait for
the chef to finish his statement.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Okay.
At this point all the other male diners make a break for it
too. Before Richard leaves...
RICHARD
(to Anne)
I'll send for help. First thing.
And Richard's near 70-year old body approximates a run.
Before MOVIE STAR leaves, to Felicity...
MOVIE STAR
Yeah, sorry. Obviously, you know -
I'm awful?
And he also kinda runs out of there.
Tyler doesn't move. He wants to stay.
CHEF SLOWIK
You too.
Tyler reluctantly nods and then walks off, slowly.
Chef turns to the remaining women.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
I'll leave you to it.
Chef exits. The female diners are left alone. Frighteningly
alone. What will be done to them?
KATHERINE
(warm)
Care to join me inside? It's
getting chilly.
The female diners enter and there is one table, small, round
and intimate, with six place settings.
Lillian, Anne, Margot, Felicity, and Linda take their seats.
And then Katherine sits, and smiles warmly at them.
36 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 75.
KATHERINE (CONT'D)
Hi. May I join you?
LILLIAN BLOOM
Um - sure.
37 EXT. GREAT LAWN. EVENING 37
Random shots of the men running wildly for their lives. Dave
runs with Soren.
SOREN
Don't run near me dude. Get the
fuck away from me!
38 INT. HAWTHORN RESTAURANT - DINING ROOM. EVENING 38
On the women. It's tense. They're waiting for the other shoe
to drop. And yet, there is undeniably a warmer energy in the
room now that Chef Slowik and the other men are gone.
Beautiful plates of food are set in front of them.
A TITLE reads: "SEVENTH COURSE: `MAN'S FOLLY' - Dungeness
crab, fermented yogurt whey, dried sea lettuce, umeboshi,
kelp."
Silence. Someone has to say something.
ANNE
So. How's everyone's night?
They lightly laugh. But scared, jittery laughs.
FELICITY
Yeah. Terrific.
Lillian takes a bite. Katherine eyes her as she does so.
Lillian sighs. But a sigh of deep respect. She turns to
Katherine with an almost apologetic look.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Well. I have to say it's fabulous.
The tartness of the umeboshi. Waves
of ferment. Rich yet clean.
KATHERINE
Yes, well... There was a time that
would have meant a lot to me.
Katherine looks away coolly. But it's clear the compliment
from the great Lillian Bloom still does mean something.
38 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 76.
They continue eating. Until suddenly Katherine begins to
softly weep. The women diners look at each other awkwardly.
Are they supposed to... comfort their captor?
Not knowing what else to do, they eat.
39 EXT. THE WOODS. EVENING 39
A SHOT of Ted running. It's a pretty dainty run. One of the
sous chefs appears on the horizon and Ted turns and sees him
giving chase. Ted screams. He looks pathetic.
In a nearby clearing, the movie star is running. He hears a
pop in his hamstring and comes up lame.
MOVIE STAR
AHHH!! I heard a pop.
And then he gets tackled by a sous chef.
40 INT. HAWTHORN RESTAURANT - DINING ROOM. EVENING 40
The women eat. Katherine wipes the last tears from her eyes,
revived.
KATHERINE
Oh, I almost forgot. Bread.
They look at each other surprised.
KATHERINE (CONT'D)
Did you actually think we would not
serve our famous bread, on this the
night of our final menu?
She glances up at the servers and they bring bread.
Margot takes a quick glance at the hallway leading to the
exit. And then she shifts her eyes to see Katherine looking
dead at her. Katherine silently shakes her head as if to say,
"No chance." Margot smiles.
MARGOT
Is there butter?
KATHERINE
Not necessary. Eat.
They all take a bite of bread. As scared as they are, their
faces can't hide just how shockingly good the bread is.
40 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 77.
FELICITY
Jesus fucking Christ...
Some dazed nods from the table. A strange feeling: doomed
captives nevertheless enjoying a moment of deliciousness.
Despite everything, for the first time it almost feels like
real people eating dinner together.
Elsa watches them, with maybe the slightest trace of longing.
We see at one of the windows, Tyler is staring in longingly
as well, wishing he were inside, not even trying to escape.
41 EXT. COASTLINE. EVENING 41
Soren has managed to locate a rowboat stashed on the far side
of the island. He pushes it frantically across the pebble
beach to the water.
42 INT. HAWTHORN RESTAURANT - DINING ROOM. EVENING 42
They eat bread and drink wine. The tension and dread is still
there, but it has oddly settled into a kind of dazed warmth.
Margot can feel Anne's eyes on her. It's a bit uncomfortable.
FELICITY
So, you can tell us... are we
really going to die?
Katherine nods.
FELICITY (CONT'D)
It's just...I'm supposed to start a
new job Monday. At Sony. Associate
Development Co-Exec.
Katherine just stares at Felicity. And then...
KATHERINE
It doesn't work if you live.
ANNE
What doesn't work?
KATHERINE
The menu.
FELICITY
Why not?
42 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 78.
KATHERINE
It needs an ending that ties things
together conceptually. Otherwise it
just... tastes good. And who cares.
ON MARGOT, who clocks this answer.
LILLIAN BLOOM
You should have your own place.
Katherine says nothing. Lillian's wheels turn.
LILLIAN BLOOM (CONT'D)
I could help with that of course?
Katherine looks at her.
KATHERINE
I'm sure you could, Ms. Bloom.
LILLIAN BLOOM
Of course we'd have to see about
the whole - dying thing?
KATHERINE
Oh everyone dying was my pitch
actually. I'm super proud of it.
Katherine smiles. She's as crazy as Chef. Or crazier.
43 EXT. COASTLINE. EVENING 43
Soren pushes the rowboat into the water. He clambers in just
as he sees TWO COOKS running up the beach in the distance.
He only has one oar in the boat. He tries frantically to row,
switching left and right.
The cooks are now in the water, swimming after. They can swim
faster than Soren can row. Within seconds they have caught up
to him. One of the cooks begins to climb aboard. Soren hits
him with the oar a few times, but he can't be stopped. The
cook grabs the oar and pulls Soren into the water.
44 EXT. FARM/GARDENS. EVENING 44
A fenced-in chicken coop next to the greenhouse.
Richard, having been caught, is being dragged by the cooks
back to the restaurant.
45 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 79.
45 INT. CHICKEN COOP. EVENING 45
Bryce has hidden himself inside the darkened chicken coop.
Nesting hens sleep. Not a bad hiding spot, actually.
He sees a HAND enter the coop door holding a plate with an
egg elegantly presented in a cup. A SERVER peeks his head in.
SERVER #2
A special bite for the last guest
to be caught. A little play on the
Passard egg with creme fraiche and
maple.
Bryce sighs. They've truly thought of everything.
46 INT. HAWTHORN RESTAURANT - DINING ROOM. EVENING 46
They eat. Little side conversations around the room. A sense
of warmth in all this madness. Some of the other female staff
have joined. Everyone but Elsa.
Anne continues to stare at Margot, here it comes:
ANNE
So, Margot, you know my husband
then?
It all stops. That cuts through everything. Margot looks at
Anne, whose eyes are on her. Margot considers lying. But why?
MARGOT
Yeah.
Anne smiles sadly and nods.
ANNE
Right.
Maybe the hint of a tear in Anne's eye. She looks away.
After a beat, Lillian jumps in to break the tension:
LILLIAN BLOOM
I miss smoking in restaurants. One
of life's simple pleasures taken
away-but I think tonights
circumstances call for an
exception?
A beat. Katherine nods.
46 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 80.
LILLIAN BLOOM (CONT'D)
Anyone have a cigarette?
A few smiles. Margot hands Lillian a cigarette. Lillian
lights it on her table candle. The mood is restored.
Margot takes a bite of bread. She feels a comfort. She looks
at the women, then:
MARGOT
My name's Erin. I'm from Brockton,
Massachusetts.
At this moment, the male diners are brought back into the
restaurant. Some are bleeding. They look exhausted. Some are
crying. They look just pathetic.
KATHERINE
(to the women)
Party's over.
Bryce, busted nose, notices the basket of bread.
BRYCE
You got bread? This is so fucking
reverse sexist.
Soren, soaking wet, enters and sits down. Utterly defeated.
Tyler sees the food at the table where the women were
sitting. An entire course he didn't get to try. And bread?!?
He rushes to the table and starts shoveling food in his
mouth.
Richard sees Ann and Margot together. It's clear they talked.
RICHARD
Shit.
MOVIE STAR AND FELICITY. He looks haunted. She notices.
FELICITY
How'd ya do out there?
MOVIE STAR
Oh, wonderful. I got away.
Felicity smiles sadly.
MOVIE STAR (CONT'D)
I'm sorry I'm a failure.
46 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 81.
FELICITY
It's all right.
(then, sudden honesty)
I've been stealing money from you.
MOVIE STAR
I know.
FELICITY
I know you know.
Chef enters. He sees Tyler stuffing his face. Sheer contempt.
CHEF SLOWIK
Folks, I'm afraid our menu cannot
continue as planned until we deal
with an unresolved matter.
(To Tyler)
You.
Tyler, mouth full, looks around. His hero is talking to him.
TYLER
M-me?
CHEF SLOWIK
Tell me why you're here.
TYLER
Why I'm--?
CHEF SLOWIK
Here.
TYLER
Because I-- I wanted...
CHEF SLOWIK
Swallow first.
Tyler finishes.
TYLER
To experience your food. Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
And what were you told?
Tyler glances at Margot.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Don't look at her. What were you
told ahead of time?
46 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 82.
Tyler hesitate for a moment.
TYLER
I was told tonight would be the
greatest menu ever created.
CHEF SLOWIK
And?
TYLER
And - that everyone would die.
It dawns on MARGOT what he's saying. He knew. He always knew.
CHEF SLOWIK
You had a date. Not the young woman
here tonight. What happened to her?
TYLER
She broke up with me, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
And so you brought Margot. Why?
Tyler hesitates. But Chef leans down, inches away from Tyler.
TYLER
Be-- Because you don't offer
seatings f-for one.
ANGLE ON Margot. Her eyes are filled with malice.
CHEF SLOWIK
You hired her knowing she'd die.
TYLER
Yes, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
But thinking you wouldn't.
TYLER
Yes, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Are you sorry about this?
TYLER
No, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Would you like to change your mind?
46 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 83.
TYLER
No, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Why not?
TYLER
I want to experience the menu.
Chef Slowik stands up straight again. He towers over Tyler.
CHEF SLOWIK
For the 8 months I've corresponded
with you. I gave you access to our
world. I swore you to secrecy. Why
do you think I would do this? Why
do you think I wanted you here?
TYLER
Because - I know a lot about food?
Chef Slowik places a gentle hand on Tyler's shoulder.
CHEF SLOWIK
You're not like the others, are
you? You knew what a Pacojet is.
The bergamot. You're a cook. And
cooks belong in the kitchen.
Tyler looks to the STAFF assembled behind Chef. They smile
warmly and nod. Elsa approaches with folded CHEF'S WHITES.
TYLER
Chef?
CHEF SLOWIK
Go on. They're for you.
Tyler stands and hesitantly dons the whites and apron. A
server places little tweezers and a meat thermometer in
Tyler's sleeve pocket. The word "Hawthorn" is embroidered on
his breast. Underneath, Chef, in Sharpie, writes "Tyler."
Tyler looks at Chef. He can't help feeling a little proud.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
You look wonderful. Doesn't he look
wonderful, Margot?
LINDA
Mr. Handsome Boy!
Tyler doesn't quite know what to say.
46 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 84.
CHEF SLOWIK
Now cook.
TYLER
What?
CHEF SLOWIK
Cook. You're a cook, so cook.
TYLER
What do you mean, cook here? Me?
CHEF SLOWIK
COOK COOK COOK! GO ON NOW, COOK!
Chef starts shooing him into --
47 INT. THE KITCHEN. CONTINUOUS 47
-- Chef takes Tyler by the shoulders and positions him in
front of the burners as everyone watches. Tyler shakes.
CHEF SLOWIK
What do you need? We have
everything. Just tell me what you
need for your dish.
TYLER
L-leeks?
CHEF SLOWIK
Get the cook some leeks!
SOUS-CHEFS
Yes, Chef!
Someone hands Tyler two leeks. Tyler's hands shake as he
takes a knife and finds a nearby cutting board.
CHEF SLOWIK
What else?
TYLER
Um. Sh-sh-sh-
CHEF SLOWIK
Shit? Would you like some shit?
TYLER
Shallots.
47 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 85.
CHEF SLOWIK
Shallots for the great foodie! The
Phenomenal Mr. Food himself!
Someone hands Tyler shallots. He's so flustered he can only
cut haphazard chunks. Margot watches from the dining room.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Everyone pay close attention. We
must learn from Tyler. This is a
new dicing method of which we have
been woefully ignorant. What next?
TYLER
B-butter?
CHEF SLOWIK
Butter! Leeks and shallots sautéd
in butter! I bear witness to a
revolution in cuisine!
Tyler nervously dumps all the food into a pan. Someone hands
him a piece of lamb, which he numbly adds to the pan. They
hand him a spatula. Completely out of body, he stirs.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Is it done? Or would you like to
jam it into the Pacojet?
(Tyler shakes his head)
Then plate it.
Someone produces a plate, and Tyler basically just dumps the
food onto it. He tries to arrange it in some artful way, but
his hands tremble, and it's just terrible.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Shall I taste it?
Tyler can't even respond. He's crying.
Chef takes a spoonful of Tyler's food and lifts it to his
mouth. Just as he's about to try it --
AGAINST BLACK, TITLE CARD:
SUPPLEMENTAL COURSE
CLOSE on Tyler's hideous plate. A SUPERIMPOSED TITLE reads,
"TYLER'S BULLSHIT. Under-cooked lamb, inedible shallot-leek
butter sauce, utter lack of cohesion."
Chef Slowik takes a bite. He looks surprised. And delighted.
He looks to be savoring it. Tyler watches through tears.
47 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 86.
CHEF SLOWIK
Mmm. Wow. Mmm. I have to say...
it's actually quite bad.
And then he spits his food out onto a napkin.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
You are why the mystery has been
drained from our art. You see that
now, don't you?
TYLER
Yes, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Come here, son.
Chef begins whispering into Tyler's ear. We don't hear it.
But Tyler nods along as he whispers. When chef is done, he
looks at Tyler, warmly smiles, and waits for an answer.
TYLER
Yes, Chef.
Tyler removes his chef whites, hands them to Elsa, and exits
in the direction of Chef's office.
Chef Slowik turns to Margot with a serene look.
CHEF SLOWIK
And now you're free too.
Chef Slowik turns to his diners with a remorseful expression.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
I want to apologize to you all.
What you just saw was not
originally part of tonight's menu.
We were presented with a problem
and were forced to adjust as best
we could. We strive for perfection,
but there is no such thing. That is
a hard truth for me to accept.
(beat)
Please forgive me.
He hangs his head low and walks back toward the kitchen. As
he passes Margot, he mutters to her:
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Follow me.
48 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 87.
48 INT. KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS 48
Chef leads Margot into the pastry area, where the PASTRY
CHEFS, faces dotted with flour, ply their craft.
CHEF SLOWIK
We have only one more savory course
left in our menu. That means we
must prepare for dessert.
Margot has no idea what to do with this information. And
she's still shaky from what just transpired.
MARGOT
Okay?
CHEF SLOWIK
Dessert requires a large--
MARGOT
Chef?
CHEF SLOWIK
Yes?
Pause...she's coming up with something.
MARGOT
I'm sorry you're at the end.
Chef turns and looks at her.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
You've reached the end, right?
(to the staff)
Everyone here reached the end?
You're tired?
(back to chef)
I'm tired too. I'm exhausted.
Everyone exhausts me... But I'm not
at the end. I'm the only one here
who isn't. If anyone can see that,
it's you. Or maybe you can't, I
don't know. Maybe you're so far
gone that you can't even tell
what's real anymore.
Chef is listening.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
But I do not deserve to die
tonight. I know how to be alive. I
like life. And I happen to be
excited for what's next in mine.
48 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 88.
Pause. She looks at Chef and Chef back at her.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
This didn't work did it.
CHEF SLOWIK
No, but a marginally better
attempt. I do appreciate that. May
I continue?
Margot truly looks defeated. She's met her match and lost.
MARGOT
Sure.
CHEF SLOWIK
Dessert requires a large barrel
that is supposed to be there, in
the corner. Do you see a barrel?
MARGOT
(weary of the charade)
No. No, I do not see a barrel.
CHEF SLOWIK
Neither do I. That is because my
negligent employee Elsa forgot to
assign someone to bring it.
Elsa, always somehow nearby, is gutted by her error.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
You will fetch the barrel instead.
MARGOT
Me?
CHEF SLOWIK
You remember the smokehouse?
MARGOT
I - think so?
ELSA
Chef, perhaps one of us should --
CHEF SLOWIK
Margot is now one of us, Elsa.
Right, Margot?
On Margot who looks stone-faced.
MARGOT
Yes.
48 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 89.
CHEF SLOWIK
Yes, what?
MARGOT
Yes, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
Give her the smokehouse key.
ELSA
Yes, Chef.
Elsa slides a KEY off of her key ring and, against her better
judgment, hands it to Margot.
Margot looks at Chef, and leaves. On her way out of the
restaurant, she walks past Chef's office. The door is
slightly ajar, and she can see through the crack in the door
Tyler's LEGS DANGLING OVER CHEF'S DESK. He's hanged himself.
She's initially shocked, but then, a hint of a smile.
49 EXT. HAWTHORN ISLAND - NIGHT 49
A clear, beautiful evening, lit by moonlight. Calls of
insects and night birds. Margot walks across the lawn. She's
actually going through with this. She moves with purpose,
strength, conviction.
Up ahead looms a patch of WOODS.
50 EXT. WOODS - MOMENTS LATER 50
Margot enters the dark forest along a path leading to the
small SMOKEHOUSE lit by a single, dim porch light.
As she walks, she hears a rustling sound in the woods and a
distant SNAP. She stops and turns to listen. Nothing. Then
she looks down at the KEY in her hand.
51 INT. SMOKEHOUSE - NIGHT 51
Margot enters and flips on the overhead light. Sure enough,
there's the BARREL resting beneath hanging trout.
She approaches the barrel as if to retrieve it. But instead
she reaches behind it, where a SCALING KNIFE hangs by a nail.
Taking the knife, she glances out a small window and spots
Chef Slowik's COTTAGE bathed in moonlight.
52 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 90.
52 INT. DINING ROOM - EVENING 52
While Felicity stares off, exhausted, the movie star gazes at
her with a look of deep regret. Then he looks away and nods.
The room is silent. Chef Slowik enters and is about to clap
when, scared but brave, the movie star rises to his feet.
MOVIE STAR
Excuse me, Mr. Slowik. Chef.
Chef turns to him. The famous actor has summoned all of his
talent and experience for this crucial moment. But the way
Chef makes eye contact immediately throws him.
MOVIE STAR (CONT'D)
(stumbling through)
Um, yes, hi. How are you? Or --
well, I just, wanted to say,
because - and I'm not trying to
sound all, whatever here or
anything, but it's just - I just -
I don't think it's really, totally
fair, maybe, what's happening here?
So - ? But, yeah.
(quick, panicked breath)
My point is, we're all people, you
know? And people are people -
obviously - and if the people of,
you know, of the world, I guess,
could all see each other as people,
then maybe - you see what I'm
saying? It's like - divisions.
There are just such, we have so
many divisions, nowadays, I think?
Um, and it's so... But it's like,
fuck, don't kill people, you know?
I know that sounds totally, `Yeah,
no shit' - but also, like? I do
think we should all just - you
know? That's how I feel. At least.
Anyway. Just, please don't kill
Felicity, okay? I mean, that would
be, just - come on, don't do that.
And... yeah.
He quickly sits down.
Chef Slowik takes all of this in and nods subtly.
CHEF SLOWIK
Not quite off-book with that
speech, were you?
52 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 91.
MOVIE STAR
No, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
You really have lost it, haven't
you?
MOVIE STAR
(almost relieved to hear)
Yes. Big time.
Felicity looks at the movie star. She smiles sympathetically.
CHEF SLOWIK
Do you wish to know why you are
being punished?
MOVIE STAR
Sure.
CHEF SLOWIK
I saw the film Calling Dr.
Sunshine, and I did not enjoy it.
MOVIE STAR
Sorry?
CHEF SLOWIK
It was a Sunday. My one day off in
months. The most precious day. The
day where I was allowed to live.
And I saw the film Calling Dr.
Sunshine alone in the cinema.
MOVIE STAR
I didn't, you know, direct the
film. I just acted in it.
CHEF SLOWIK
The memory of your face in that
film -- and seeing you again now --
haunts me, drives me. What becomes
of an artist when he loses his
purpose.
The movie star looks at Chef, who stares at him. It's futile.
MOVIE STAR
Right.
(pointing to Felicity)
And her?
52 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 92.
CHEF SLOWIK
(to Felicity)
What school did you go to?
FELICITY
Um, Brown?
CHEF SLOWIK
Student loans?
FELICITY
No...
CHEF SLOWIK
Sorry. You're dying.
Chef turns and walks back into the kitchen. It's not fair.
But the movie star sits down, resigned to his fate.
52A EXT. CHEF SLOWIK'S COTTAGE 52A
Margot stands outside the front door.
53 INT. CHEF SLOWIK'S COTTAGE - CONTINUOUS 53
Margot enters and looks around. The interior is an exact
REPLICA of the interior of the restaurant.
MARGOT
Motherfucker.
In the middle of the dining room sits a COT. Next to the cot
is a small table with lamp and a Bible. This is apparently
where Chef sleeps.
It's so quiet here, so clean. Pristine.
For reasons she doesn't know, she takes her same seat from
the restaurant, closes her eyes, and breathes in the
tranquility. It is quiet and still.
54 INT. HAWTHORN DINING ROOM--CONTINUOUS 54
HARD CUT back to the real dining room. Not quiet. People
screaming. Felicity is being forced to feed the movie star
nuts, which he is allergic to. It's clear he is having a
massive allergic reaction.
A SUPERIMPOSED TITLE READS: "EIGHTH COURSE: `GONE NUTS' -
peanut dashi, peanut foam, peanut curd, peanut brittle, and
raw peanuts hand-fed"
54 Goldenrod Rev. (10/29/21) 93.
We see as well that Lillian is being waterboarded in a giant
pail of the emulsion.
55 INT. CHEF SLOWIK'S COTTAGE - CONTINUOUS 55
Silence. Margot continues to sit. And then she starts to
breathe heavily, fighting tears. It's as if she is now
processing everything that has brought her to this point.
MARGOT
Stop it.
Then Margot realizes something. She gets up, leaving the
scaling knife on the table.
Sure enough, she finds an exact replica of the SILVER DOOR
she glimpsed earlier. She tries to open it, but it's locked.
She hears the front door open. We see the footfalls of the
person stepping inside the cottage. CAMERA rises to reveal --
ELSA
I told you when you arrived that
nobody enters Chef's home. And you
have disobeyed this rule.
Elsa sees the scaling knife on the table and smiles.
Margot enters the dining room, ready for a confrontation, and
sees Elsa holding the knife.
ELSA (CONT'D)
I worry about the customers so Chef
can worry about the menu. And you
have made my job very difficult.
Elsa takes a step toward Margot, who braces for whatever
attack Elsa might unleash.
MARGOT
Why would you die for him?
Elsa is shaking now. Almost breaking down.
ELSA
You will not replace me. *
Elsa lunges at Margot, swiping with the knife. Margot dodges
backwards. She turns and runs, pursued by Elsa, into...
55 Goldenrod Rev. (10/29/21) 94.
THE KITCHEN
Margot scans the room for a knife, a weapon, anything. But
Elsa's already there, trapping Margot in the kitchen.
Margot starts grabbing whatever she can find -- ladels,
bowls, sheet pans -- and throws them at Elsa, as Elsa pursues
her around the kitchen island. But Elsa keeps coming at her.
Margot finds a blender-sized kitchen appliance and heaves it
as hard as she can at Elsa, who tries to deflect it, but it
slams against the side of her head, hard. Elsa reels.
The appliance crashes to the ground, and we see the label in
CLOSE-UP: "PACOJET."
Margot tackles Elsa and manages to get on top of her. She
wrestles away the knife. Elsa is beat. She knows it. Suddenly *
all of her fight is gone. A strange, sad look of realization: *
ELSA (CONT'D) *
He never told me... *
MARGOT *
What-? *
ELSA *
About a barrel... He thought he *
told me... But he didn't... It *
wasn't me who forgot... *
(acceptance) *
It was him. *
Elsa admits a long denied truth: She's given her life and all *
of her talents to a man whose talents have slipped. *
Elsa suddenly grabs Margot's wrist. With her usual impeccable *
service, she helps Margot guide the knife down into her own *
throat. Elsa dies. *
Margot then takes the key ring from Elsa's pocket and returns
to the silver door.
56 INT. THE SECRET ROOM - CONTINUOUS 56
Margot enters. A lovely room. A private haven. Warmly lit and
beautiful. An actual life. A desk. Leather chair. Stacks of
recipe books.
AND FRAMED PHOTOS all along the wall. We might see glimpses
of a few. They seem to be from different points in his life:
A preppy, affluent YOUNG SLOWIK in a school uniform. A photo
of Slowik, his mom, and a meek looking man.
56 Goldenrod Rev. (10/29/21) 94A.
They look quite normal. What appears to be a family photo of
Slowik with a beautiful woman and a young girl. A vigorous,
focused Slowik opening his first restaurant, Tantalus in New
York. Finally, SLOWIK OPENING HAWTHORN, standing with Doug
Verrick. Slowik looks drained by this point, the humanity
drained from his face. But in NONE OF THE PHOTOS is he
smiling.
But Margot's attention is on one framed photo in particular.
She walks closer and closer to the photo, and then takes it
off the wall and gazes at it for a long beat. We never see
the photo she sees, but it touches a nerve in Margot.
56 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 95.
Then Margot notices a RADIO on a shelf. She dashes towards it
and fiddles with the transceiver.
MARGOT
Hello? Is anyone there? Can anyone
hear this? Hello! Can anyone hear
this? CAN ANYONE FUCKING HEAR ME?
VOICE
(crackly)
Come in?
MARGOT
Hello? Who is this?
VOICE
Coast Guard. Who am I talking to?
MARGOT
Oh, thank Christ. I'm at the
restaurant. The... Hawthorn.
Hawthorn! People are getting
murdered. Send help. Send help!
VOICE
What did you say?
MARGOT
Just get here! Now! PLEASE!
Hawthorn Island! People are dying.
It's an emergency!
VOICE
Okay, just, uh -- don't move!
57 INT. CHEF SLOWIK'S COTTAGE - NIGHT 57
Margot staggers back out into the "dining room" and retakes
her seat. Silence.
A sudden, startling CLAP from an INTERCOM speaker.
CHEF SLOWIK (O.S.)
Do you like my home?
Margot makes a face like, "Of course this isn't over."
CHEF SLOWIK (O.S.) (CONT'D)
People always say you shouldn't
take your work home with you. I
disagree. Go ahead, speak.
57 Yellow Rev. (10/07/21) 96.
MARGOT
Elsa's dead.
We hear a small, resigned sigh from Slowik.
CHEF SLOWIK (O.S.)
It's what she wanted. It's what I
want, too. Death is nothing. I'm a
chef, I work with death every day.
Death is my business. How can I
call myself a chef if I don't
experience death for myself?
Margot thinks about this for a beat.
MARGOT
Your self-pity doesn't track. Why
not go run a soup kitchen? Or a
monastery? Or go back to your
little taco truck? Come to think of
it, why did you park a taco truck
next to a convention you knew was
swarming with food critics?
Beat. No answer.
CHEF SLOWIK (O.S.)
Why do we do the things we do.
What's your excuse?
MARGOT
I like beating men like you.
CHEF SLOWIK (O.S.)
There is no man like me.
MARGOT
That's the dumbest fucking thing
you've said all night.
We hear Chef Slowik LAUGH softly and knowingly.
CHEF SLOWIK (O.S.)
Fetch the barrel. Our customers are
waiting.
58 INT. HAWTHORN DINING AREA AND KITCHEN 58
We PAN ACROSS the dining room. Panic, exhaustion.
Chef Slowik carries a birthday cake loaded with candles over
to Bryce.
58 Yellow Rev. (10/07/21) 96A.
He is singing `Happy Birthday.' The entire kitchen staff
follows him into the dining room, singing along. Some guests
might numbly sing along too.
BRYCE
You told them it was my birthday?
SOREN
(shrugs)
It seemed funny three hours ago.
Chef Slowik sets the cake in front of Bryce and touches his
shoulder meaningfully.
CHEF SLOWIK
Happy Birthday
BRYCE
(weirdly touched)
Thanks.
A sweaty Margot enters the restaurant, rolling the barrel in
front of her. The diners look at her hopefully.
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 97.
CHEF SLOWIK
Leave it there. And take your seat.
Margot sits at her table, which has been cleaned and
perfectly re-set. Chef Slowik walks over.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
I thought about your question.
Here is the answer. I am a monster.
No, was a monster. And a whore.
But tonight everything I'm doing is
pure. Egoless. And at last, the
pain is almost gone.
There's a CANDLE on Margot's table. Chef Slowik extends his
hand directly over it. The flame burns his flesh, but he
doesn't so much as flinch.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Chef's Hands. "Asbestos hands." I
can carry a cast-iron from a hot
oven to your table with no
protection. That's a cook's
training.
He snuffs the candle with his thumb and forefinger.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
I can no longer be hurt, Margot.
As Dr. King said, "We know through
painful experience that freedom is
never voluntarily given by the
oppressor. It must be demanded by
the oppressed."
MOVIE STAR
Did he just quote Martin Luther
King?
Outside the windows, a LIGHT appears on the water. A small
BOAT. Margot sees it out of the corner of her eye.
Chef Slowik spots it, too, for a moment frozen with
indecision, perhaps even fear.
CHEF SLOWIK
So you found our radio.
(to the kitchen)
Clear the dining room. Immediately!
Servers appear from everywhere to get people seated again,
wipe down the floor, their work hyper-fast.
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 98.
One server applies a white bandage to Chef's hand and ties a
new apron around his waist to mask his blood-soaked pants.
The movie star is given a fast-acting anti-allergy syringe.
Margot looks out the window to see a lone COAST GUARD OFFICER
stepping onto the dock. No back-up. Not good.
MARGOT
(quietly)
No no no.
Chef Slowik sees what Margot sees. He smiles just a little.
CHEF SLOWIK
You will be tempted to ask him for
help. To plead, even. This would be
unwise. He cannot help you.
The guests look unconvinced and exchange conspiratorial
glances. How can they let this opportunity pass?
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
I see you don't believe me. You
think this might be your only
chance. But ask yourselves two
questions: One, if you really want
to be responsible for the death of
an innocent man. And two, ask
yourselves -- this entire evening,
why didn't you all try harder to
fight back? To get out of here?
Honestly, you probably could have.
The patrons look around. He's right. Why didn't they?
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Anyway, something to think about.
A knock. Chef Slowik nods at a server to unlock the door.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Good evening. How can we help you?
COAST GUARD OFFICER
(stepping inside)
I got a report of a disturbance.
CHEF SLOWIK
Here? What kind of disturbance.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
A violent one. In fact, I don't
want to alarm you folks, but there
was a report of a possible murder.
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 99.
We cut to the diners' quietly panicked faces. Chef Slowik
laughs, and one by one the whole staff joins in, laughing as
well. The diners play along wearily with forced smiles.
CHEF SLOWIK
No, officer. Nothing of that sort.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Are you the owner?
CHEF SLOWIK
Ownership changed hands recently,
but that's another story. I am the
executive chef. I don't wish to be
rude, but, as you can see, we are
right in the middle of service.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Oh. Are these your only guests?
CHEF SLOWIK
Tonight is a private event. We're
peer-testing a new concept menu.
Not quite understanding what that means, the officer looks
around at the diners. They seem composed enough.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Did anybody here call in a distress
on the short-wave tonight?
All shake their heads, except for Margot.
CHEF SLOWIK
We are not in the habit of serving
our guests short-wave radios with
their meals.
The cooks laugh again. Maybe a little too loud.
The Coast Guard Officer notices the movie star, who looks a
little worse for wear, but better than before. A glimmer of
recognition passes across the officer's face.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Hey, are you --?
MOVIE STAR
Yes.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Oh, wow. I'm a big fan.
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 100.
MOVIE STAR
Thank you.
CHEF SLOWIK
Would you like his autograph?
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Well, I don't want to bother you.
MOVIE STAR
No bother at all.
The officer walks over to the movie star. A server arrives
with a pen and paper on a tray.
MOVIE STAR (CONT'D)
What's your name?
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Dale.
MOVIE STAR
Dale. Hello, Dale.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
You're great. My wife and I loved
that, uh... what's it called? The
one where you're the surgeon?
MOVIE STAR
Calling Dr. Sunshine.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Yeah. Great stuff.
The movie star smiles sadly and hands over the autograph.
MOVIE STAR
Thank you. You're very kind.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Okay. Well, sorry again to bother
you folks. I'll be going now.
CHEF SLOWIK
Thank you for your service.
The officer turns and walks back toward the door. As he does,
he looks down at the AUTOGRAPH. It reads "HELP US."
The officer turns, whips out his gun, and points it at Chef.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Hands above your head! Now!
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 101.
CHEF SLOWIK
Are you joking?
COAST GUARD OFFICER
I am not joking, sir!
A cook behind Chef Slowik steps forward to protect his
master, but Chef holds up a hand.
CHEF SLOWIK
Clearly there's a misunderstanding.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Get down on your knees with your
hands up. Now!
Chef Slowik draws a long breath and complies.
ANNE
Help us! He wants to kill us all!
Others diners chime in as well.
COAST GUARD OFFICER
Nobody move till I say so!
The officer inches forward. When he has almost reached Chef,
he pivots toward Margot's table, gun still pointed, and pulls
the trigger. A SMALL FLAME emits from the barrel, and he
lights the extinguished candle on Margot's table.
MOVIE STAR
Oh, fuck me.
The officer holsters the gun, puts on an apron, and joins his
comrades by the kitchen.
CHEF SLOWIK
Thank you, Dale.
(to Margot)
In a kitchen we all work together
or nothing works at all. You have
betrayed our sacred bond of trust.
And you've shown your craft to be
careless. I was wrong. You're an
eater. A taker. An animal like all
the rest.
We scan the faces of the cooks and servers behind Chef
Slowik. He's right. She has failed the test. She has not
lived up to the rigors and standards of Hawthorn.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Final course plating in five!
58 Green Rev. (10/11/21) 102.
ENTIRE KITCHEN
Yes, Chef!
Two cooks tip the barrel on its side. A VISCOUS LIQUID pours
out across the floor. What is it -- chocolate? Rendered fat?
Resigned to their fate, the diners don't even bother lifting
their feet. By now some even feel as if they deserve it.
Margot's head droops. All is lost. But she doesn't look
scared. Or sad. Instead, a kind of quiet, simmering anger
builds inside her, something that wants to burst out.
MARGOT
(barely audible)
I don't like your food.
Servers have begun draping thick sheets of MARSHMALLOWS
strung together with candy floss over the diners and
themselves.
Margot doesn't move as she's draped in a marshmallow sheet.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
(louder)
I don't like your food.
Again no one hears. The staff continue to hustle, creating
elaborate, Jackson Pollock SPLATTERS AND SWIRLS of melted
CHOCOLATE and GRAHAM CRACKER crumbles atop the tables.
The SOMMELIER pours dessert wine into glasses, onto the
tables, and over some diners' heads.
SOMMELIER
This is Borovicka, a SIovakian
spirit flavored with juniper
berries. I think you'll find it
highly flammable and redolent of a
crisp evening's walk in the shadow
of Mount Bystrá.
Margot rises, tears off her marshmallow coat, hurls it onto
the floor, and CLAPS. Once. Loud.
Everything stops, just like at the beginning of the meal.
Chef Slowik looks over from the kitchen.
MARGOT
I don't like your food!
CHEF SLOWIK
(entering the dining room)
What did you say?
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 103.
MARGOT
I said I don't like your food. And
I would like to send it back.
We see the staff, shocked and ready to kill her. Slowik draws
a deep breath, and something inside him seems to shift.
CHEF SLOWIK
I am sorry to hear that. What about
my food is not to your liking?
Margot draws a deep breath and then lets him have it. We
slowly PULL CLOSE on her face as she calmly, coldly, and
quite sensibly critiques his entire style of cuisine.
MARGOT
You've taken the joy out of eating.
Every dish we've had tonight was
some intellectual exercise rather
than something you just want to sit
and enjoy.
The COOKS can't believe what she's saying, even if deep down
they know there's a kernel of truth to it.
Chef Slowik and Margot face each other squarely in the dining
room, like a sort of final showdown.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
When I eat your food, it tastes
like it was made with no love.
SLOWIK
That is ridiculous. I always cook
with love. Everyone knows love is
the most important ingredient.
MARGOT
You're kidding yourself.
Chef reacts.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
Isn't tonight a night where we face
some hard, home truths? You cook
with obsession, not love.
Chef is silent. This hits.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
Even your hot dishes are cold. And
dead. Like they were made by one
of those fish hanging in your
little smoke shack. You're a chef.
(MORE)
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 104.
MARGOT (CONT'D)
Your one single purpose on this
Earth is to serve people food that
they will like. And you've failed.
You've bored me. And worst of all,
I'm still fucking hungry.
Chef Slowik takes it all in and nods slightly.
CHEF SLOWIK
You're still hungry?
MARGOT
I am.
CHEF SLOWIK
How hungry?
MARGOT
Starved.
CHEF SLOWIK
What are you hungry for?
MARGOT
What do you have?
CHEF SLOWIK
Everything.
MARGOT
You know what I really want?
CHEF SLOWIK
Tell me.
MARGOT
A cheeseburger.
The word gives him a moment of real pause. Chef Slowik thinks
about this. He nods.
CHEF SLOWIK
We can do a cheeseburger.
MARGOT
I mean a real cheeseburger. Not
some fancy deconstructed avant
bullshit.
CHEF SLOWIK
I will make you a very good, very
traditional cheeseburger.
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 105.
MARGOT
I don't think you can.
CHEF SLOWIK
I will make you feel as if you are
eating the first cheeseburger you
ever ate. The cheap one your
parents could barely afford. The
one that tasted better than any
other cheeseburger in the world.
MARGOT
Show me.
CHEF SLOWIK
How do you like it?
MARGOT
Medium. American cheese.
CHEF SLOWIK
American cheese is the best cheese
for a cheeseburger because it melts
without splitting.
MARGOT
And no weird homemade artisanal
ketchup. I want Heinz.
CHEF SLOWIK
I make a special sauce that's equal
parts Heinz, mayo, and hot dog
mustard.
MARGOT
That sounds weird.
CHEF SLOWIK
You want it. It's delicious.
MARGOT
How much will this set me back?
CHEF SLOWIK
$9.95.
MARGOT
That come with fries?
CHEF SLOWIK
(over his shoulder)
Niels!
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 106.
SOUS-CHEF NIELS
Yes, Chef?
CHEF SLOWIK
Is the fryer still on?
SOUS-CHEF NIELS
Yes, Chef.
CHEF SLOWIK
(to Margot)
Crinkle-cut or Julienne?
LATER
The sound of cooking. Slowik is alone in the kitchen. The
entire staff has gathered in the dining room. The tension in
the room has oddly dissipated. Margot waits patiently.
Chef emerges from the kitchen and, sloshing across the liquid
still covering the floor, places a plate in front of her.
It looks, no shit, like the best cheeseburger ever. A
SUPERIMPOSED TITLE reads, "SUPPLEMENTAL COURSE: `A
CHEESEBURGER - just a well-made cheeseburger"
Margot looks at it and nods. Then she picks it up and takes a
bite. She closes her eyes and savors the bite for a long
glorious beat. Then she opens her eyes and looks at Chef.
MARGOT
Now that is a cheeseburger.
CHEF SLOWIK
Yes. That is a cheeseburger.
They smile and share this moment. Margot takes a deep breath.
MARGOT
Unfortunately, my eyes were a
little bigger than my stomach.
CHEF SLOWIK
I understand.
MARGOT
Can I get the rest to go?
DOLLY IN on Slowik as he thinks. He looks around his
restaurant. The ferocious beauty of his food. The havoc he
has caused. The totality of his life. And somehow he knows
this is the perfect ending to his menu. He nods. And smiles.
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 107.
CHEF SLOWIK
One moment, please.
Chef Slowik walks back to the kitchen and we watch as he
delicately wraps Margot's burger and puts it into a Hawthorn
to-go bag. We linger on him for a moment before he walks back
into the dining room. He believes he's doing the right thing.
He gives Margot the burger. Along with a Hawthorn gift bag.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
Thank you for dining at Hawthorn.
Margot reaches into her purse and hands Chef a $10 bill.
MARGOT
Thanks for everything. Goodnight.
Margot take a last look at Chef and Richard and Anne and
walks out of the restaurant. And we sense, perhaps, that she
is also walking away from the life she had. Away from a world
of men she is now finally done with.
Chef Slowik CLAPS.
CHEF SLOWIK
So. Before our final course, there
is the matter of the bill.
Servers place CHECKS on the tables, along with little
Hawthorn gift bags.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
We're on a no-tip system, so
gratuity is included. Please enjoy
your gift bags. A few goodies in
there -- a booklet of our local
suppliers, some house-made granola,
one of Doug Verrek's fingers, and a
copy of tonight's menu.
LILLIAN BLOOM reaches for his wallet until Ted stops her.
TED
No, this is on the magazine.
He notices that Lillian is almost about to cry.
TED (CONT'D)
I know.
LILLIAN BLOOM
No, it's just - I just realized
I'll never get to write about this.
58 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 108.
On CHEF-- devilishly satisfied by this odd form of revenge.
RICHARD reaches for his wallet with his one good hand and
gives it to Anne.
RICHARD
Can you take out my Amex?
He looks at her.
RICHARD (CONT'D)
Anne?
ANNE
I don't want an apology, Richard.
RICHARD
Happy Anniversary.
EACH TECH BRO tosses in a credit card -- they're going Dutch.
The movie star puts down his card.
FELICITY
I am your friend.
The movie star smiles at his only friend.
MOVIE STAR
Told you you weren't leaving.
BACK TO CHEF
CHEF SLOWIK
Again, thank you all for dining
with us tonight. You represent the
ruin of my art, and my life, but
now you get to be a part of it. A
part of what I hope is my
masterpiece. Well done. Give
yourselves a hand.
With Chef's prompting, the guests slowly begin to clap. The
movie star can't help but give it up sincerely for himself
and for a fellow artist. The cooks applaud as well.
Tears well in Chef Slowik's eyes. He pauses, takes a deep
breath. He has somehow found... release.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
And now, our final dessert course
is a playful twist on a comfort
food classic...
59 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 109.
59 EXT. HAWTHORN ISLAND - NIGHT 59
From afar we see Margot board the coast guard boat.
59A INT. HAWTHOWN DINING AREA AND KITCHEN--CONTINUOUS 59A
The staff has now surrounded Chef in a semi-circle.
A sous-chef turns several knobs on the wall so that the
lighting is nearly dark, but almost a spotlight on chef.
Katherine applies a marshmallow jacket to Slowik.
CHEF SLOWIK
(to Katherine)
Thank you, chef.
The slightest nod from Katherine.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
The S'more: the most offensive
assault on the human palate ever
contrived. Unethically sourced
chocolate and gelatinized sugar
water imprisoned by industrial
grade biscuit. It's everything
wrong with us and yet we associate
it with innocence. Childhood. Mom
and Dad.
Chef looks at his mother, who is passed out at her table.
CHEF SLOWIK (CONT'D)
But what transforms this fucking
monstrosity is fire. The purifying
flame. It nourishes us, warms us,
re-invents us, forges and destroys
us.
Tears in the eyes of our diners. They know what's happening.
ANNE
(quietly)
Please --
But is she pleading for him to stop... or to continue?
CHEF SLOWIK
We must embrace the flame. We must
be cleansed. Like martyrs or
heretics we can be subsumed and
made anew.
59A PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 110.
Chef strikes a match and tosses it in the flammable pool. A
watery curtain of blue flame billows across the floor.
A warm, metamorphic glow illuminates the FACES of our diners.
CLOSE ON Chef Slowik's serene, smiling face in the firelight.
60 INT. COAST GUARD BOAT - NIGHT 60
Margot steers the boat with one hand on the wheel, gazing
wearily into the distance, Hawthorn Island at her back.
But then the engine stalls. The PROPELLORS stop spinning. The
boat just drifts there in the water, maybe a half a mile or
more from the island.
Margot tries for a bit to fiddle with the controls and
restart the engine. But it's no use.
Finally, nothing else to do, she goes and quietly sits on the
deck of the boat. It's a beautiful night.
She gazes at faraway Hawthorn Island. BRIGHT FLAMES begin to
rise inside the restaurant. Soon it is a warm, shimmering
inferno casting orange reflective streaks across the water.
Margot sits and gazes silently at the distant fire. She takes
the cheeseburger from the to-go bag and eats it as she
watches Hawthorn and everyone inside it burn, the flames
dancing in her eyes.
Then she takes the MENU from the gift bag and uses it as a
napkin to dab her lips.
AGAINST BLACK, TITLE CARD:
"FINAL COURSE"
61 EXT. ISLAND - MORNING 61
FIREFIGHTERS scavenge through the charred remains of Hawthorn
Restaurant. We STEADICAM through the wreckage, passing the
remains of the dining room and the kitchen. We may pass some
rescue workers trying to force a stubborn charred four
fingered hand into a body bag
A SUPERIMPOSED TITLE reads: "DESSERT: `S'MORE' - marshmallow,
chocolate, graham cracker, customers, staff, restaurant."
We finally reach the locked SILVER DOOR, the portal to the
room inside, which has somehow not burned.
61 PINK PRODUCTION DRAFT (09/05/21) 111.
It's like a jumbo-sized version of an airplane black box.
Officers blow the door with an explosive, and it opens in a
plume of smoke.
We continue in through the door. When the smoke clears, we
see the interior -- a bare room with only a single table in
the center. On top of the table rests a framed photograph.
The same photograph Margot saw in Chef's home.
We hurtle closer still and finally see what Margot saw: A
photograph of a YOUNG CHEF SLOWIK, perhaps at his first
summer job at a fast food stand. He has a big smile on his
face and an apron that reads "Kiss the Chef." He's never been
happier, his face lit by the fire of the grill.
And he's flipping the world's most perfect cheeseburger.
THE END
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