My WATCHMEN script

[The Guard]

I toyed with a WATCHMEN script back when Greengrass was off the project. If any of you have time to check it out, see what you think. I love what Moore did. I never saw reason to re-invent the wheel. So my script was an effort to distill what I felt was the best of WATCHMEN into a movie screenplay.

We are in a soundless, pitch-black void. OVER: Ticking.

SUPER TEXT: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes?

SUPER TEXT: Who watches the watchmen?

EXT. ALLEYWAY -- NIGHT

HOODED JUSTICE, an enormous man in a hangman’s hood and cloak fires two pistols at a fleeing MUGGER.

INSERT: A newspaper spirals into view. The headline reads: HOODED JUSTICE!

INT. WAREHOUSE

A masked man in a skintight brown costume and owl-like hood clobbers a group of THUGS.

INSERT: A newspaper spirals into view. The headline reads: COSTUMED VIGILANTES TAKE BACK THE NIGHT!

INT. VICE DEN

Pandemonium. Hooded Justice clobbers a thug. THE SILK SPECTRE, a striking auburn-haired woman in a skintight costume kicks another. Night Owl punches another. Overhead, MOTHMAN, a man in a garish costume with moth wings, descends, gracefully evading gunfire. THE COMEDIAN, a jubilant teenager in a garish outfit, laughs as he slams two gunmen's heads together, and CAPTAIN METROPOLIS, a blonde man in a red flight suit with a black mask and cape is holding his own amidst two more thugs. MOLOCH, a pointy-eared man in a suit and tie flees the scene.

INSERT: A newspaper spirals into view. The headline reads:
MINUTEMEN VANQUISH MOLOCH!

INT. MINUTEMEN HIDEOUT

The Silk Spectre lies on the floor, bleeding. Above her, Hooded Justice and The Comedian exchange blows.

INSERT: A newspaper spirals into view. The headlines reads: MINUTEMEN DISBAND!

INT. VICE DEN

OZYMANDIAS, a tall, blonde, well-built man in a purple cloak and gold armor uses martial arts to subdue a KNIFEWIELDER.

INT. SEWER

Two cloaked figures on HOVERBIKES speed across the water in pursuit of a gang of fleeing THUGS.

INSERT: A New Frontiersman paper spirals into view, with the headline: UNDERBOSS GOES UNDER!

EXT. NEW YORK STREETS -- NIGHT

COPS dressed in riot gear march down the street. Onlookers cheer them from the sidewalks. Chaos.

INSERT: A New Frontiersman paper spins into view with the headline: KEENE ACT OUTLAWS VIGILANTISM

The ticking comes to a halt, and we find ourselves again in a black void. The void recedes. And we're looking at: A SMILEY FACE BUTTON? The button has a fleck of blood on it, like the hands of a clock poised at twelve to Midnight.

EXT. SIDEWALK -- MORNING

This is not the New York we know. Electric cars and trucks fill the streets. Sleek AIRSHIPS glide through the skies. COPS in riot gear hold back a crowd of curious onlookers. Behind a perimeter, a MAINTENANCE MAN is blasting a strange crimson patch on the sidewalk with a powerful hose. A ragged, redheaded HOMELESS MAN with a sign reading THE END IS NIGH approaches, glances at the scene, and passes by.

Across the street, a fat, balding NEWSVENDOR sees him, shakes his head.

We rise up from the sidewalk, two dozen stories into the air. JOE BOURQUIN, a squat, balding man in an overcoat, leans out a broken window, looking down at the scene below.

BOURQUIN
Hell of a fall.

INT. BLAKE’S APARTMENT

Bourquin turns from the window. He's in a high-end apartment, where several OFFICERS are working a crime scene. Signs of a struggle. Toppled armchair. Blood.

STEVE FINE, a tall, thin blonde-haired man, stands near a desk on the side of the room, smoking and gazing at a framed photo. Bourquin approaches and Fine hands him the photo. Bourquin studies it.

The photo shows a well-built, muscular man in his sixties with a black crew cut and mustache shaking the hand of former President Richard Nixon. EDWARD BLAKE. A telling scar runs up the left side of his face from the edge of his mouth to just below his right eye.

BOURQUIN (CONT’D)
What the hell happened here?

FINE
Hell if I know. Looks like someone broke the door in.

INT. APARTMENT -- FLASHBACK

The door SMASHES OPEN. Blake, watching television in an armchair, whirls. His eyes widen in surprise.

INT. PENTHOUSE APARTMENT

BOURQUIN
I saw the body before they took it. This guy Blake was big enough to protect himself. For a man his age, he was in amazing shape. Odds are he put up some kind of a fight.

INT. APARTMENT -- FLASHBACK

Blake rises, clad in a silken bathrobe with the yellow smiley-face button pinned to it. He RUSHES his intruder, hunting knife materializing in hand, has his attack blocked, and is punched back over his armchair, which topples along with him.

INT. PENTHOUSE APARTMENT

FINE
Yeah, well, looks like he lost. Maybe there was more than one attacker and he was overpowered.

INT. APARTMENT -- FLASHBACK

Blake is beat to a pulp by a single man who moves with the speed of lightning.

INT. PENTHOUSE APARTMENT

BOURQUIN
Data we have suggests he was working for the government. Some kind of overseas diplomatic work. Someone must have really had it in for him, though. I mean, how the hell did he go out the window?

FINE
Tripped?

BOURQUIN
No, that's strong glass. I think you'd have to be thrown.

INT. APARTMENT -- FLASHBACK

The intruder hefts a limp Blake above his head, and HURLS him through the large glass window, a thousand glittering shards of broken glass following him into the New York night.

INT. PENTHOUSE HALLWAY

Fine and Bourquin exit the apartment, walk down the hall past cops in sleek uniforms, and step into the elevator there.

INT. ELEVATOR

Bourquin presses the button for the ground floor.

BOURQUIN
Ground floor, coming up.

EXT. NEW YORK -- FLASHBACK

Blake PLUMMETS through the night amidst a cloud of broken glass. The stories of other buildings rush past him.

INT. ELEVATOR

BOURQUIN
So, is this a straight burglarly, or do we have another motive?

FINE
Could have been a straight B and E gone wrong. Could have
been Knot-tops on a bender. A lot of bad things happen in New York. They don't all need motives.

BOURQUIN
Then how do we handle this?

FINE
Let's not raise too much dust over it. The man's dead. We don't need any vigilantes getting involved.

BOURQUIN
You take this vigilante stuff too seriously. Ever since the Keene Act passed, only the government sponsored ones are active. And they don't interfere.

FINE
To hell with them. What about Rorschach? He never retired. He's still out there somewhere. And if he gets involved, we'll be up to our butts in corpses. No, I think we let this one drop out of sight.

EXT. NEW YORK -- FLASHBACK

Blake hurtles toward the screen, then past it.

EXT. SIDEWALK -- DAY

Exiting, Bourquin and Fine pass the maintenance man and the sign-wielding homeless man. The detectives disappear into the afternoon crowd outside the Gunga Diner. The sun is
shining.

EXT. STREET -- NIGHT

A full moon. The street and sidewalks are deserted. Streetlights cast odd symmetrical shadows on the pavement.

RORSCHACH (V.O.)
(A rasping voice)
Rorschach's journal, October 12th. The streets are extended gutters, and the gutters are full of blood, and when the drains scab over, all the vermin will drown in their own filth.

A lone figure emerges from the darkness. Clad in a black trenchcoat and fedora, he walks down the street, hands in his pockets, slipping in and out of the shadows of streetlights.

RORSCHACH (V.O.) (CONT’D)
They had a choice. All of them. They could have followed in the footsteps of good men, but instead they followed the droppings of communists and lechers, not realizing, or not caring, that the trail led over a precipe until it was too late. Don't tell me they didn't have a choice. Now the world stands on the brink of war, staring into Hell.

The figure stops at the sidewalk outside Blake's apartment building. A glimpse of yellow from the sewer grating. There is something caught in the corner. The figure kneels, picks up the object with a gloved hand: the blood-stained yellow smiley-face button.

The figure studies it, then rises, removing a makeshift GRAPPLING PISTOL from beneath his trenchcoat. He points the gun at an angle, toward the building's upper window, and pulls the trigger. There is an explosion of carbon dioxide and a small grappling hook and wire launches upward. The hook arcs through the broken window, and the figure pulls the line tight, grabs the wire with a gloved hand and starts CLIMBING up the wall.

INT. PENTHOUSE APARTMENT

A gloved hand sweeps the remaining shards of glass from the bottom of the windowsill with the end of a flashlight. Then, the figure pulls himself over the edge, drops to the floor.

Rising, he turns the flashlight on and sweeps the powerful beam around the room. Blood spatters. Crime scene labels.

INT. BEDROOM

The door opens. The figure enters and looks around. His gaze falls on the closet door. He opens it. Inside hangs a row of expensive, tailored suits. The figure pushes them aside and trains the flashlight beam on the back of the closet.

He runs one hand up and down the back wall of the closet, tapping, searching for something. As suspected, it's hollow. The wall pushes in, and SLIDES OPEN on silent gears, revealing a CONCEALED ANTECHAMBER.

INT. HIDDEN CHAMBER

Overhead lights blink on. Inside, a black armored BATTLESUIT bearing an American flag rests on a mannequin, along with a garish grinning leather mask. The rest of the space consists of shelving holding various WEAPONS. There is a framed photo hanging on the wall behind the suit. The figure removes it.

The photo shows an assemblage of costumed men and women: THE SILHOUETTE, MOTHMAN, DOLLAR BILL, NIGHT OWL, CAPTAIN METROPOLIS, HOODED JUSTICE, and THE SILK SPECTRE. And a younger, scarless Edward Blake, clad in a strange costume.

The figure grunts. This is a find. He exits the chamber, pressing a switch inside the door. The door slides closed behind him, leaving us in darkness.

INT. PENTHOUSE APARTMENT

The figure moves toward the window. Lightning strikes, and for the first time we see the figure's face, or what passes for one. It is a freakish mask. A silver-white field filled with shifting black liquid symmetrical ink blots. RORSCHACH moves toward the window, where it is now pouring down rain.

EXT. MASON'S AUTOREPAIR BODYSHOP -- NIGHT

It's raining. A sign on the two-storied building reads: MASON'S AUTO REPAIRS: OBSOLETE MODELS A SPECIALTY

INT. HOLLIS MASON'S APARTMENT

HOLLIS MASON, late sixties, handsome and white-haired, looks across the room as he puffs on a cigarette.

MASON
So there I am at the grocery store, and who do I bump into? The Screaming Skull. Remember him?

DAN (O.S.)
You've mentioned him once or twice.

MASON
I put him in jail at least a dozen times. He's reformed since then. Turned to Jesus. Married, two kids. Traded phone numbers. Nice fella.

Hollis glances at the clock. Five till Midnight. DANIEL
DREIBERG's face is reflected in the glass of a seven foot display case. The mask of an old Night Owl costume can be seen through his reflection. An entire wall of the room is decorated with news clippings, pictures and various awards.

MASON (CONT’D)
Storm's getting worse, Dan. And it's almost Midnight. You'd better get started home.

Dan turns. Middle aged, a handsome face hidden behind thick glasses and a pair of spit curls. He's let himself go.

DAN
Had enough of me?

MASON
You know it ain't like that. Never was. But you must be bored as hell.

DAN
Never. Hollis, these Saturday night beer sessions keep me going. I only wish I had more to contribute.

MASON
You contributed plenty. You were a better Night Owl than I ever was.

Dan pulls on a brown overcoat as Hollis walks him to the door and opens it. He turns to face his old friend.

DAN
We both know that's not true. Thanks for another great evening, Hollis. Take care of yourself.

HOLLIS
You too, Dan. God bless.

EXT. NEW YORK SIDEWALKS -- NIGHT

Dan walks along deserted sidewalks. He passes a group of KNOT TOPS, leather-clad teenagers with knots in their hair.

EXT. DAN’S APARTMENT

Dan approaches his brownstone apartment building and walks up the front stairs. He pulls out his key and stiffens. The lock has been broken, and his door is ajar.

INT. DAN'S APARTMENT

Cautious, Dan pushes the door open with one hand and enters a dark hall. Down the corridor, his kitchen light is on. Hands balled into fists, Dan creeps down the hall, tense and alert.

INT. DAN'S KITCHEN

Dan stops in the kitchen door, staring. Rorschach sits at a table, back to the door, mask pulled up, eating from a can of beans. Sensing Dan's arrival, he pulls his mask back down.

RORSCHACH
Hello, Daniel.

DAN
R-Rorschach?

RORSCHACH
Got hungry waiting. Helped myself to some beans. Hope you don't mind.

DAN
No uh, of course not. So, uh...long time, no see. How have you been keeping?

RORSCHACH
Out of prison. So far.

Rorschach flips the smiley face button over his shoulder. Dan catches it, peers at it, confused. Rorschach rises, moves to the kitchen counter where something has caught his attention: Dan’s sugar bowl. He lifts the lid and peers inside.

DAN
Uh, is that...bean juice?

Rorschach reaches into Dan's sugar bowl and grabbing a handful of Sweet Chariot brand sugar cubes, pockets them.

RORSCHACH
Human bean juice. Badge belonged to The Comedian. Blood too. He's dead.

DAN
Wait...The Comedian is dead? Are you sure? How do you know?

RORSCHACH
Investigated a routine homicide victim named Edward Blake. Found The Comedian's costume in secret room. Seems Blake was The Comedian. Someone threw him out a window.

DAN
Someone threw him out a-look, can we talk about this downstairs? You can use the exit down there...when you leave.

Rorschach nods. He picks up the smiley button and pockets it. Dan pulls his keyring from his pocket, selects one and unlocks a thick wooden door leading off the kitchen.

INT. OWL'S NEST

Dan and Rorschach walk down a dark flight of stairs, stopping on a landing that overlooks a large darkened basement.

DAN
There's a light switch here somewhere...

A bank of lights crackles on, casting an eerie glow on the basement before them. Layers of dust. Puddles. Tools and equipment. What looks like a sportscar covered with a tarp. Dan and Rorschach walk through the basement, passing a large, dark computer screen, then an even larger tarp-covered object resting on steel girders. It is becoming clear that Dan was once a costumed vigilante, and this was his stronghold.

Rorschach runs a hand along the dust-covered side of the larger tarp-covered object. Gleaming brown metal underneath.

RORSCHACH
Haven't been here in long time. Lot of dust.

DAN
There doesn't seem much point since I retired. Listen, about The Comedian. Could it have been a regular break-in that went wrong?

RORSCHACH
Burglar? Kill The Comedian? Ridiculous.

DAN
I guess it doesn't seem very likely. I heard he's been working for the government since the Keene Act, doing Black Ops in the Middle East. Could it have been a political killing?

RORSCHACH
Maybe. Or maybe someone's killing off masks.

DAN
Uh, don't you think that a little paranoid?

RORSCHACH
That’s what people think about me? That I'm paranoid? Comedian active for long time. Made enemies. How's your friend Hollis Mason doing?

DAN
What's he got to do with this?

RORSCHACH
They were both Minutemen. Mason said some bad things about The Comedian in his book, "Under The Hood".

DAN
I don't like the implication. Hollis is an old man. He's got nothing to do with this.

RORSCHACH
Remains to be seen. Anyway, thought I'd let you and the others know. In case someone's gunning for us.

Dan considers this. Rorschach walks toward a dark tunnel at the end of the basement.

RORSCHACH (CONT’D)
Better go. Things to do.

DAN
Yeah, well, the tunnel comes out in a warehouse two blocks North.

RORSCHACH
I remember. Used to come here often. Back when we worked together.

DAN
Yeah. Yeah, those were great times, Rorschach. What happened to them?

Walking along the mid-line of the tunnel, Rorschach disappears into the shadows.

RORSCHACH
You quit.

Dan has no answer. He looks down the dark tunnel, troubled.

 

[The Guard]

EXT. ROOFTOP -- DUSK

The sun is setting. The New York skyline reveals the World Trade Center intact, and a new building we've never seen. Advertising airships drift through the skies, including a mammoth-shaped one advertising the Gunga Diner. Rorschach sits on the roof, writing in a small leather-bound journal.

RORSCHACH (VO)
Rorschach's journal. October 13th. Slept all day. Awoken at 4:37 by landlady complaining about smell. She has five children, by five different fathers. I am sure she is a ****e who cheats on welfare. Soon it will be dark. Beneath me, this awful city, it screams like an abattoir. The dusk reeks of fornication and bad consciences. I believe I will take my exercise.

INT. HARRY'S BAR

The bar is loud, dark and filled with smoke. Men solicit women at the bar. A couple of BIKERS are laughing at a table near the back. All of a sudden, the bar falls silent. Rorschach stands in the front door, hands in his pockets. He walks past the patrons to the bar, where HARRY, a fat, balding bartender, is doing his best not to show fear.

HARRY
R-Rorschach! How are you?

RORSCHACH
Fine, Harry. Yourself?

HARRY
Uh well, fine. And I'm glad you're fine, and uh-oh, God. Please don't kill anyone.

Rorschach turns toward the patrons. Everyone listens.

RORSCHACH
Man went sidewalk diving Friday. Edward Blake. Friend of mine.

Two Knot-Tops are sitting across the room, listening.

STEVE
Hear that? He has friends. Must have taken a bath.

STEVE’S FRIEND
Steve, for Christ's sake, shut up!

Rorschach has heard Steve's comment. He moves toward the table. Steve's friend gets up, knocking over his chair.

STEVE’S FRIEND (CONT’D)
I gotta take a piss!

Steve turns to sees Rorschach standing over him. He sneers.

STEVE
There a problem, freak?

Rorschach's right hand shoots out and grabs Steve's wrist. He grabs Steve's little finger with his left hand...and SNAPS it. Steve howls in pain as Rorschach addresses the patrons.

RORSCHACH
I've just broken this man's little finger. Who killed Edward Blake?

The patrons are silent, watching in horror. Rorschach snaps Steve's index finger. Steve screams again, thrashing in pain.

RORSCHACH (CONT’D)
And his middle finger. Who killed Edward Blake?

Steve sobs as Rorschach grabs his ring finger. A BIKER in the back of the room leaps to his feet.

BIKER
Please! We don't know! Please, man!

Rorschach looks down at Steve, hyperventilating on the floor.

RORSCHACH
Hurmm.

Rorschach drops Steve to the floor and heads for the exit.

RORSCHACH (CONT’D)
Find out. Have business elsewhere, with a better class of person.

EXT. HARRY'S BAR -- NIGHT

It's raining again. Rorschach looks skyward. We follow his gaze to where a gleaming tower is set against the skyline. The word VEIDT reflects from the mirrored glass in gold.

INT. VEIDT TOWER

VEIDT (O.S.)
The Comedian dead? How?

Rorschach stands in a massive office of gleaming marble and gold. Towering columns. Egyptian artifacts. An enormous painting of Alexander The Great on one wall. Sales charts on another. A massive window takes up the exterior wall. A tall blonde man in an expensive plum suit stands in front of it, looking out at a rain-drenched geodome.

RORSCHACH
You're supposed to be world's smartest man, Veidt. You tell me.

ADRIAN VEIDT turns from the window. A gold-framed poster behind his desk shows him clad in a purple cloak and gold armor and reads: OZYMANDIAS: LIVE AT THE GEODOME!

VEIDT
Perhaps it was a political killing?

RORSCHACH
Don't think so. America has Dr. Manhattan. Other countries wouldn't dare antagonize us. Think we've got a mask killer.

VEIDT
That's a bit paranoid, don’t you think? The Comedian had many enemies, political or otherwise. The man was practically a Nazi.

Rorschach approaches Veidt's desk, where a prototype sheet for a line of Ozymandias action figures rests under a small glass pyramid-shaped paperweight. There is also a New York Times. The headline reads (SOMETHING ABOUT NUCLEAR TENSIONS)

RORSCHACH
Stood up for America. Never let anyone retire him. Never cashed in on his reputation. Never set up a corporation selling posters and diet plans and toys and books and videogames based on himself. If that makes him a Nazi, might as well call me one, too.

VEIDT
Rorschach, I know we were never friends, but you're being unfair. No one retired me. I went public with my secret identity two years before the police strikes made the Keene Act necessary.

Rorschach heads for the window. He pushes open a pane of glass and attaches his grappling hook to the sill.

RORSCHACH
Hurmm. Good timing. Came to warn you so you didn't end up dead. But guess there are worse things to end up as.

Rorschach steps out the window and drops into space. Veidt walks to the window and looks down. Rorschach is RAPPELLING down the side of the sheer building, trenchcoat flapping.

VEIDT
Yes there are. Have a nice day.

EXT. ROCKEFELLER MILITARY RESEARCH CENTER -- NIGHT

It's still raining. A sign on a barbed-wire topped perimeter fence reads: ROCKEFELLER MILITARY RESEARCH CENTER.

RORSCHACH (V.O.)
Meeting with Veidt left bad taste in mouth. He is pampered and decadent, betraying even his own shallow, liberal affectations. Possible homosexual? Must remember to investigate further.

Through a hole in the fence, we can see Rorschach walking toward a research building of five stories.

RORSCHACH (V.O.) (CONT’D)
Dreiberg as bad. A soft failure who sits whimpering in his basement. Why are so few of us left active, healthy, and without personality disorders? The first Night Owl runs an autorepair shop. The first Silk Spectre is dying in a Californian nursing home. Captain Metropolis was decapitated in a car crash. Mothman's in an asylum in Maine. The Silhouette retired in disgrace and was murdered. Dollar Bill got shot. Hooded Justice went missing. And The Comedian is dead.

Rorschach sneaks past several rifle-wielding SENTRIES, using the shadows to his advantage.

INT. ROCKEFELLER MILITARY RESEARCH CENTER

Rorschach approaches a door labeled SPECIAL TALENT QUARTERS Tries the knob. It's locked. Rorschach PUNCHES a hole in the glass, reaches inside, unlocks the door and opens it.

RORSCHACH (V.O.)
Only two names remaining on my list. Both share private quarters at the Rockefeller Military Research Center. I shall go to them. I shall tell the indestructible man that someone plans to murder him.

INT. JON’S LABORATORY

A thick, vault-like metal door opens. Rorschach enters a large room filled with massive machines, computer banks and a number of laboratory components. Bright blue light bathes the lab. A booming voice echoes from above.

JON (O.S.)
Good evening, Rorschach.

Rorschach looks up.

RORSCHACH
Good evening, Dr. Manhattan.

Following Rorschach's gaze, we find the source of the voice: JON, a 25-foot tall naked, blue-skinned humanoid with a glowing atom emblazoned on his forehead. His skin pulses with blue light as he stands near a massive machine.

LAURIE JUSPECZYK, an attractive, athletic-looking brunette in her thirties, rounds the corner of Jon’s enormous machine.

LAURIE
Jon, I was thinking we should-Rorschach? What the hell are you doing here?

RORSCHACH
Evening Ms. Juspeczyk. Came to warn you both and bring bad news. The Comedian is dead.

LAURIE
What?

Glowing, Jon starts to shrink until he is six feet tall.

JON
I was informed earlier. The CIA suspects the Russians. Washington's asked me to attend his funeral.

RORSCHACH
Have my own theories on that. Take it you're not too concerned?

JON
A living body and a dead body contain the same number of particles. Structurally, there's no discernible difference. Life and death are unquantifiable abstracts. Should I be concerned?

Jon walks off, bored. Rorschach grunts, pulls a sugar cube from his pocket, and eats it noisily. Laurie is disgusted. Behind them, Jon LIFTS a house-sized machine into the air.

LAURIE
You know what? Good riddance. Blake was an *******. You know he tried to rape my mother when they were with The Minutemen?

RORSCHACH
You support allegations made in Hollis Mason's book?

LAURIE
What Mason said in "Under The Hood" is what happened.

RORSCHACH
Not here to speculate on the moral lapses of men who served America.

LAURIE
Rape is a moral lapse? You know he broke her ribs? Choked her? He-

RORSCHACH
Came to warn you.

LAURIE
Jon, get this creep out of here!

Jon materializes behind Rorschach in a burst of blue light.

JON
You seem to be upsetting Laurie. I think you should leave.

RORSCHACH
Warned Dan Dreiberg and Adrian Veidt. Intend to warn you. Believe someone is targeting masks.

JON
I said...I think you should leave.

RORSCHACH
Spent a lot of time getting in here. Not leaving till I’ve-

EXT. ROCKEFELLER MILITARY RESEARCH CENTER -- NIGHT

It's still raining. Rorschach materializes in blue light outside the compound fence. The hole in the fence is gone, and the fence now crackles with a strange blue electricity.

RORSCHACH
Hurmm.

Rorschach turns and walks off into the rainswept night.

INT. ROCKEFELLER MILITARY RESEARCH CENTER

Jon is using telekinesis to assemble one of the machines. A series of intricate components floats in the air before him. Behind him, Laurie is smoking a small pipette, brooding.

JON
He's gone. Are you still upset?

LAURIE
I can't stand him. He's sick...inside his mind. The sooner the police catch him, the better.

She looks up to see if Jon is listening. He's not. The machine's components begin to assemble themselves.

LAURIE (CONT’D)
Jon?

JON
Yes?

Jon freezes the components. Studies them. Rearranges them.

LAURIE
I feel kind of...cooped up here. I need to get out for a while. Rorschach mentioned Dan Dreiberg. We haven't seen him in years. Maybe I'll call him up, ask him to dinner. If you don't mind.

Jon gazes at the components, his black, pupilless eyes sparkling. The components begin to glow.

JON
Of course not. I'd attend, but I believe I'm close to locating a gluino, which would validate supersymmetrical theory if we could include
it in the Bestiary.

LAURIE
Fascinating. I'm calling Dan.

Laurie exits. Jon smiles as the machine begins to hum with power. Radiant blue light flows through the lab in waves.

INT. ALLEY -- NIGHT

Spraypainted words on a fence reads: WHO WATCHES THE WATCHMEN? Rorschach looks at the message and walks on.

RORSCHACH (V.O.)
No one cares. No one cares but me. Is this futile? Soon there will be war. Millions will die. Why does one death matter? Because there is good, and there is evil, and evil must be punished. Even in the face of Armageddon, I will not compromise in this. But there are so many deserving of retribution, and so little time.

Down the alley, a woman screams. Two Knot-Tops are assaulting her. Rorschach heads toward them, hands clenched in anger.

RORSCHACH (V.O.) (CONT’D)
Although...sometimes the night is generous to me.

 

[The Guard]

INT. ROOFTOP RESTAURANT -- NIGHT

Dan and Laurie are sitting across the table from each other, having finished dinner. The WAITER has brought the check.

DAN
Are you sure you won't let me get this?

LAURIE
Nah. I think the government can afford to spot me a bowl of spaghetti africaine.

Laurie hands her card over and begins to prepare her pipette.

DAN
You sound bitter.

LAURIE
Do I? Maybe I am. I mean, the only reason I'm even kept around is to keep Jon relaxed and happy.

Dan watches her take a long drag off the pipette, concerned.

EXT. ROOFTOP RESTAURANT -- NIGHT

Dan and Laurie walk down the stairs to the rooftop courtyard.

DAN
So, uh, is everything ok with you and Jon?

LAURIE
Things are ok, I guess. But I keep thinking...I'm thirty five, and what have I done with my life? I've spent eight years in retirement, and before that I spent a decade running around in a stupid costume because my mother wanted me to! I mean, do you remember that thing? With the short skirt and that neckline? God, that was awful.

Walking behind her, Dan looks at the skirt she is wearing.

DAN
Uh, yes...awful.

LAURIE
Why did we do it? Why did we dress up like that, and go out and fight crime? The Keene Act was the best thing that ever happened to us.

DAN
Yeah, probably.

LAURIE
Remember Captain Carnage?

DAN
The one who pretended to be a supervillain so we’d beat him up? He was one for the books.

LAURIE
I remember I caught him coming out of a jeweler's. I didn't know what his deal was. I start hitting him and kicking him and he's breathing weird...

DAN
He tried that with me, but I'd heard about him, so I just walked off. He follows me down the street, and I'm just like "Get lost!"

LAURIE
Whatever happened to him?

DAN
He tried it with Rorschach, and Rorschach dropped him down an elevator shaft.

Both of them laugh.

LAURIE
I guess that's not so funny...

But she can't stop giggling.

DAN
No, I guess it's not.

The laughter ebbs. Laurie looks at Dan. He looks uncomfortable. She puts a hand on his arm.

LAURIE
That felt good, though, to be able to laugh. There don't seem to be many laughs to be had, these days.

DAN
Well, what do you expect? The Comedian is dead.

EXT. CEMETARY -- DAY

It's raining. A throng of REPORTERS and PHOTOGRAPHERS lines the sidewalk. A group of PROTESTERS wielding signs about war, nuclear war, etc, lines the opposite sidewalk. The homeless man with his doomsday sign is among them. Cops patrol the area, among them Fine and Bourquin.

A line of limosines drops off umbrella-bearing MOURNERS. Flanked by two GOVERNMENT AGENTS, Jon exits a limo in a black suit. He has no umbrella, but somehow, even though the rain is pounding at him, he remains dry as a bone. Adrian Veidt exits his own limo. His VALET, an Oriental, holds an umbrella for him.

SALLY (V.O.)
So, what brings you to the city of the dead?

INT. SALLY JUPITER'S BEDROOM

Pink and pastel. SALLY JUPITER, still attractive even in her seventies, lies in bed in a pink bathrobe as Laurie enters, a bouquet of roses in hand.

LAURIE
Mom, being lazy isn't a terminal condition.

Laurie hands her mother the roses and looks around the room. Adorning one wall are cheesecake-style pictures of a younger Sally in her skimpy Silk Spectre costume, and various news clippings. Another wall holds family pictures of Sally, Laurie, and a thin, bespectacled man with a mustache. There is a snow globe resting on the dresser, a small palace in a world of snowflakes.

SALLY
They're beautiful. Where's Jon?

LAURIE
He's attending a government funeral I didn't feel like going to, so he teleported me here. I just got done throwing up in the bathroom.

SALLY
A funeral? Anyone I know?

LAURIE
No, just some government thing.

Sally rises from bed and hobbles across the room. She puts the flowers in a vase beside her bedroom mirror.

SALLY
It's Eddie Blake's, isn't it?

LAURIE
Mom...

SALLY
Laurie, I read the papers. I read that he died. I guess he finally found his punchline, huh? Poor Eddie.

LAURIE
Poor Eddie? How can you say that after what he did?

SALLY
Laurie, you're young. Things change. What happened, happened forty years ago...

Sally gazes at her gold bottle of NOSTALGIA brand perfume. She looks in the mirror. The sound of her screaming echoes.

SALLY (V.O.) (CONT’D)
Oh, no...oh no Eddie, don't...oh, God...

LAURIE
I'd never forgive someone who did something like that to me.

SALLY
Well, you get older, you get a different perspective on things. The big stuff looks smaller somehow. In the end, you just wash your hands of it.

LAURIE
Just like that, huh?

SALLY
What do you want me to do, curl up and whimper for the rest of my life? Life goes on, honey. Life goes on.

EXT. CEMETARY -- NIGHT

Drums. MILITARY PALLBEARERS bring Blake's American-flag draped casket to his gravesite.

 

[The Guard]

INT. SALLY JUPITER'S BEDROOM

Sally looks at her own framed photo of The Minutemen. The same photograph Rorschach found in Blake's apartment.

SALLY
Funny, Eddie was the youngest of us Minutemen, always joking about how old we were. Said he would bury us. He was The Comedian. He always thought he'd get the last laugh.

Sally looks out the window. Sunshine and blue skies. Behind her, Laurie looks upset.

EXT. CEMETARY -- DAY

Rain and clouds. Umbrella-bearing mourners are gathered around Blake's coffin. Dan is there, along with Jon and Veidt. A PRIEST recites from a Bible. Veidt watches, his face solemn.

PRIEST
Man that is born of woman hath but a short time to live, and is full of miseries. He cometh up, and is cut down, like a flower. He fleeth as it were a shadow, and never continueth in one stay.

INT. HOTEL MEETING ROOM -- FLASHBACK

The back of a helmeted, cloaked Dan. A younger Veidt, clad in his Ozymandias costume, is sitting in a chair watching Dan speak with the same solemn expression.

DAN
Welcome to the first meeting of The Watchmen.

Others stand in a semi-circle. A costumed Jon stands with a dark-haired woman, JANEY SLATER. To his right, a teenage Laurie sits on a bench, clad in her own Silk Spectre costume. She’s watching Jon and his girlfriend. Rorschach stands on the edge of the group in a new trenchcoat. Blake, clad in armor and smiley button, sits beside Veidt, reading a newspaper.

Before them is a map of the world, where Dan has highlighted "hot spots".

VEIDT
The Watchmen?

DAN
Yes. America hasn't had an organized team of crimefighters since The Minutemen disbanded decades ago. Specialized law enforcement is at a standstill. Crime isn't. New evils emerge every day. I believe that if we combine our efforts, we can-

BLAKE
This is bull****!

DAN
What?

Blake lowers his newspaper and grins around a cigar.

BLAKE
I said, this is bull****. This whole idea is ridiculous. You all just wanna go on pretending to be superheroes.

DAN
No, that's not it at all...

VEIDT
Let's not throw the idea out just yet. Night Owl and Rorschach have made strides in the gang problem via working together.

RORSCHACH
Agreed. Although an organization this large does seem more like a publicity exercise.

VEIDT
That's merely an organizational problem. With the right person leading the group, we could-

BLAKE
Oh, and I wonder who that would be? I mean, you're the smartest man in the world, right?

VEIDT
I have some overenthusiastic PR men, but I think I'm as well-informed as anyone. Given correct handling, none of the world’s problems are insurmountable. All it takes is intelligence.

BLAKE
Which you've got in spades, right? You've got to be kidding me. You people are a joke. You hear that Moloch's back in town and you think: Let's gang up and bust him! Think it matters? Think it solves a damn thing?

RORSCHACH
Of course it matters.

Blake rises and walks over to the world map.

BLAKE
No. It don't. And I'll show you why...

The others watch as Blake holds his cigar to the map of the world. The map catchs fire and starts to crumple into ash.

BLAKE (CONT’D)
Because the way things are going, it ain’t going to be long before the nukes are flying. None of this matters one bit. And then, Ozymandias here is gonna be the smartest man on the cinder.

The others watch in silence as the map of the world burns.

BLAKE (CONT’D)
You know what? To hell with this. I've got better things to do.

Blake heads out of the room. The room is quiet for a moment.

JANEY
Jon, I'd like to go home now...

Rorschach approaches Dan, who can be seen from the back, staring at the burnt map in a dejected manner.

RORSCHACH
This isn't working out...

Dan watches, flustered, as the others start to leave the room. Jon glances at Laurie as he exits. She blushes. Janey notices, but hides her displeasure.

DAN
No! You can't just leave! Someone has to do this!

Veidt rises, walks over to the map and picks off a piece of charred paper: New York. He watches it turn to ash beneath his fingers.

DAN (O.S.) (CONT’D)
Someone has to save the world...

EXT. CEMETARY -- DAY

PRIEST
Thou knowest Lord, the secrets of our hearts. Shut not thy merciful ears to our prayers, but spare us, Lord most holy, Oh God most mighty.

Jon watches, bored, the rain running off some kind of glowing blue forcefield around him. Behind him is a man with roses.

EXT. VIETNAM BAR -- FLASHBACK

Behind Jon, bright red fireworks EXPLODE. Jon watches as a middle-aged Blake, wearing his armor and smiley button, pours himself whiskey.

BLAKE
You'd think this country would have had enough goddam fireworks.

JON
I suppose our victory must mean something to them.

BLAKE
Nah. It means something to us, though. If we'd lost this war, I dunno, I think it might have driven us a little crazy, you know? As a country. But thanks to you, we didn't, right?
Blake tosses a shot back. Pours another.

JON
You sound bitter. You're a strange man, Blake. You have strange attitudes about life and war.

BLAKE
Doc, once you figure out what a joke everything is, being The Comedian's the only thing that makes any damn sense.

VIETNAMESE WOMAN (O.S.)
Mr. Eddie?

BLAKE
Oh, great...

A young VIETNAMESE WOMAN enters.

VIETNAMESE WOMAN
War is over, Eddie. Now we talk.

BLAKE
We got nothing to talk about. I'm leaving.

VIETNAMESE WOMAN
You leave? But I cannot walk away from...this.

The woman indicates her stomach. She is pregnant.

BLAKE
Well, that's unfortunate, because that's just what I'm gonna do. Forget you, forget your ****ty little country. All of it.

VIETNAMESE WOMAN
No. I think you remember. I think you remember us as long as you live...

Rage fills the woman's face. She SMASHES Blake's bottle on a table. Blake whirls. Just in time for the woman to SLASH him across the face with the jagged bottle. Blake crumples to his knees, holding his face.

BLAKE
You *****! You worthless piece of-

Jon watches as Blake fumbles for his pistol. Draws it.

JON
Blake?

Blake brings his pistol up and fires. The woman falls, dead.

BLAKE
Medic. Gotta find a damned medic...

JON
You gunned her down. She was pregnant, and you gunned her down.

BLAKE
Yeah, that's right. And you know what? You watched me do it. You could have melted the gun or changed the bullet to steam or the bottle to snowflakes, but you didn't. You didn't lift a finger! You don't give a damn about people. You're drifting out of touch, Doc. God help us all.

Blake lurches from the bar, clutching his bleeding face. Jon turns to look at the dead woman.

BLAKE (O.S.) (CONT’D)
Medic!

EXT. CEMETERY -- DAY

PRIEST
For as much as it hath pleased Almighty God of his great mercy to take unto himself the soul of our dear brother, here departed, we therefore commit his body to the ground. Earth to Earth...ashes to ashes...dust to dust.

Dan listens, his face a wash of mixed emotions.

EXT. STREET -- FLASHBACK

The street is clogged with RIOTERS and PROTESTORS, obscured in a thick fog bank. Blazing searchlights emerge from the fog, and the whine of an engine reaches us. Blake, masked and armored and wearing a gas mask and his smiley button, stands on some kind of hovercraft, holding an assault rifle. LOOTERS are breaking windows along the sidewalks. Small fires in some of the shops along the street.

DAN
(Intercom)
Please clear the streets! There is no need for panic! The police strike is being negotiated!

MAN
We don't want "superheroes"! We want regular cops!

WOMAN
My son is a cop, you ****!

The sound of breaking glass. A store alarm goes off down the street. A bottle smashes into Blake's armor and shatters.

BLAKE
That's it. The joke's on you, *******s!

Blake rips a grenade from his belt, pulls the pin and hurls it into the midst of the rioters. The gas grenade EXPLODES and Blake laughs as thick clouds of tear gas billows through the streets. The mob panics. Blake leaps off the roof and CLUBS a Knot-Top in the face with his rifle. He KICKS another in the gut. Most of the rioters flee as the gas billows through the streets.

A strange, winged silhouette descends through the fog and lands hard beside Blake. Moving through swirling fog, Dan PUNCHES out a Knot Top and ELBOWS another to the pavement.

DAN
This is a nightmare! How long can this go on?

BLAKE
Washington says it won't be long until the police come around. Till then, we're their only protection.

DAN
Who are we protecting them from?

BLAKE
From themselves. What, don't feel comfortable unless you're up against a freak in a halloween costume? Speaking of
which, where the hell are the others?

DAN
Jon and Laurie are handling the riots in Washington. Rorschach's across town, holding the Lower East side.

BLAKE
Rorschach's nuts. He's been nuts ever since that kidnapping.

Blake moves toward a woman spraypainting something on a wall.

BLAKE (CONT’D)
Drop that can!

The woman drops the can and runs. Blake shoots her in the leg, dropping her, then strides over and butts her in the head with his rifle, knocking her out. Dan walks over to the wall. In large red letters, the woman has written most of: WHO WATCHES THE WATCHMEN?

BLAKE (CONT’D)
See that? They're writing it all over the country! They don't like us and they don't trust us.

Jeering behind them. The gas is dissipating, and the rioters have returned. Blake unloads a round into the nearest man, then steps back alongside Dan as the rioters advance. Blake ***** his rifle. Dan draws a small laser weapon.

JON (O.S.)
Stop!

The rioters look up to see Jon hovering above the street.

JON (CONT’D)
You will all leave the street!

The rioters taunt him. Some of them throw debris at him.

JON (CONT’D)
You misunderstand. It was not a request.

A brilliant blue flash illuminates the night. When it clears, only Jon, Dan, and Blake are left on the deserted street.

EXT. CEMETERY -- NIGHT

Veidt, Dan and Jon stand in a semi-circle, talking. Behind them, one of the mourners, a man in a long coat, his face hidden under a hat, places a bouquet of roses on Blake's gravestone. The man leaves, passing a number of sign-wielding demonstrators on the sidewalk, including the homeless man.

 

[The Guard]

INT. JACOBI'S APARTMENT

The door opens, and the man enters, removing his coat and hat. He is a weathered man in his sixties, with long, pointed ears. WILLIAM JACOBI heads for the kitchen.

He reaches for the handle on his refrigerator, but a gloved hand falls on his shoulder and slams him into the fridge. Then he is pushed to the floor, and Rorschach twists Jacobi's arm, hard.

JACOBI
Oh, God! Please! You have the wrong-

RORSCHACH
No. Edgar William Jacobi. Also known as Moloch. Mob boss. Supervillain.

JACOBI
I don't know what you're talking about! I'm a retired businessman! I-Aghhh!

Rorschach has twisted his arm. He hauls the trembling Jacobi to his feet.

RORSCHACH
Lying. Do it again, broken arm.

JACOBI
Please! I spent the last decade in prison! I'm not Moloch anymore! What do you want from me?

RORSCHACH
Heard you attended funeral today. Why?

JACOBI
I-I just felt I should. I've been thinking about The Comedian since he visited me and-

Rorschach slams Jacobi into the fridge.

RORSCHACH
How did you know Blake was The Comedian?

JACOBI
He-he broke in to see me, a couple of weeks ago. Had his mask of. Drunk! Scared! Crying! He was babbling, not making any sense. He sounded crazy. I thought he was going to kill me!

INT. JACOBI'S BEDROOM -- FLASHBACK

A maskless, armored and smiley-faced Blake is sitting at the foot of Jacobi's bed, a bottle in one hand.

BLAKE
It's a joke. It's all a joke. I mean, I thought I knew how the world was, but then I found out about this. You're part of it, Moloch, know that? If I thought you knew, I saw your name on the list, you and Janey Slater, but if I thought you were in on it, I'd kill you, you understand? I mean, you fought that big blue freak. You know what he's capable of. Who knows what he'll do if someone messes with him. I don't even wanna think about it.

Blake takes a swig from his bottle.

BLAKE (CONT’D)
I mean what gets me...if I just hadn't looked out that airship window, never seen the island, never got involved. I mean, I thought I was the comedian, you know? Oh, God, I can't believe it. I can't believe someone would do this. I can't.

Blake drops his head and starts sobbing and convulsing.

BLAKE (CONT’D)
Christ. Look at me. Crying. You don't know, you don't know what's happening. On that island-writers, artists, scientists, and what they're doing. I mean, I've done a lot of bad things. I did bad things to women. I shot kids. But I never did anything like this. Oh, God. Oh, God forgive me. I mean, what's so funny? I don't get the joke! Someone explain it to me!

Blake grabs Jacobi's collar and shakes him, crazed.

INT. JACOBI'S APARTMENT

Rorschach is holding Jacobi's collar as Blake did.

JACOBI
And then he just...left. I don't know what the hell it was about.

RORSCHACH
Sounds unbelievable. Probably true.

JACOBI
So I'm clean?

Rorschach pulls a pill bottle from his pocket.

RORSCHACH
Searched house before you got home. Found illegal drugs.

JACOBI
Illegal? But I-

RORSCHACH
Laetril. Fake medication. Outlawed three years ago. Illegal.

JACOBI
Look, please...don't take them. I-I have cancer.

RORSCHACH
Cancer? What kind?

JACOBI
You know the kind you eventually get better from?

RORSCHACH
Yes.

JACOBI
Well, that ain't the kind of cancer I got.

RORSCHACH
Hurmm. Copied down name of company. Report them later. You're off hook for now. Be seeing you. Keep out of trouble.

Rorschach turns to leave. Jacobi watches him go, fear fading, gaunt features darkening in anger.

EXT. 42ND STREET SIDEWALK -- NIGHT

It's raining. Rorschach walks along the sidewalk, past peep show houses, hookers and drug dealers.

RORSCHACH (V.O.)
Rorschach's journal. October 16th. 42nd street. Women's breasts draped across billboards. Littering the sidewalk. Was offered Latin love and Chinese love and French love. But not American love. American love like Coke in green glass bottles. They don't make it anymore.

EXT. CEMETARY -- NIGHT

Rorschach picks the lock of the cemetary gate, looking at the rows upon rows of gravestones.

RORSCHACH (V.O.)
Thought about Moloch's story. Could be a lie. Could all be a revenge scheme planned while in prison. But if true, then what? Odd reference to an island. Also to Dr. Manhattan. Might he be at risk? So many questions. So few answers. Nevermind. Nothing is unsolvable. Nothing is hopeless. Not while there's life.

Rorschach approaches the new grave of Edward Blake. A single bouquet of roses obscures his birth and death dates.

RORSCHACH (V.O.) (CONT’D)
Is this what happens to us? A life of conflict with no time for friends, so that when it's done, only our enemies leave roses? We never die in bed. Not allowed. Something in our personalities, perhaps. Some animal urge to fight and struggle, making us what we are. We do what we have to do. Blake understood. He saw the cracks in society, saw the little men and women in masks trying to hold it together. No one else saw the joke. That's why he was so lonely.

Rorschach removes his fedora, almost reverent.

RORSCHACH (V.O.) (CONT’D)
Heard joke once. Man goes to a doctor. Says he's depressed. Says life seems harsh and cruel. Says he feels all alone in a threatening world, where what lies ahead is vague and uncertain. Doctor says "treatment is simple". Great clown Pagliacci is in town tonight. Go and see him. That should pick you up. Man bursts into tears. Says, "but doctor...I am Pagliacci." Good joke. Everybody laugh. Roll on snare drum. Curtains.

INTERCUT FLASHES OF: Blake laughing as he torches things in Vietnam with a napalm gun, crying in Jacobi's apartment, falling to his death with a look of horror and fear on his face. The red wash of his "impact" fills the screen.

Pull back.

It's the blood red from the bouquet of roses Jacobi left. Rorschach puts his fedora back on. He kneels, removes the smiley button from his pocket, now clean and free of blood, and places it on Blake's grave. Then he picks a rose from Jacobi's bouquet and puts it through his trenchcoat lapel. Rising, he walks off. He does not notice the raindrop striking the button, making a familiar smear.

 

[The Guard]

EXT. ROCKEFELLER MILITARY RESEARCH FACILITY

It's raining. There are lights on in one of the upper levels.

LAURIE (O.S.)
Oh, Jon. Oh, Jon, yes...oh, God...

INT. BEDROOM

Laurie is sitting on a bed, eyes closed. Jon's hands caress her face.

LAURIE
How long is it until your interview?

JON
We have all the time in the world.

Laurie sucks on one of his fingers and giggles.

LAURIE
It's like sucking some kind of battery. I can’t wait to get to
your-

A third hand appears and strokes her hair. Laurie opens her eyes. And screams. Identical Jons sit on the bed on either side of her.

LAURIE (CONT’D)
Oh God, Jon, that's horrible!

JON #1
Laurie? Don't be upset.

JON #2
I thought you'd enjoy it.

LAURIE
Just...be one person again!

Laurie leaps from the bed, wrapping herself in her robe.

JON #1
I was trying to please you.

LAURIE
I'm sorry, I overreacted. You just startled me, that's all...

JONS #1 AND #2
I'm sorry. I don't know what stimulates you anymore.

LAURIE
Fine. I just need a cigarette or something. Be right back.

INT. CORRIDOR

Laurie backs into the hall, adjacent to a small lab, where the real Jon has been working on an experiment the entire time. With her back to him, she doesn't see him.

JONS #1 AND #2
I'm sorry, Laurie. Perhaps I'll get ready for my television interview.

LAURIE
Jon, really...I'm fine. It doesn't...matter.

She sees the real Jon out of the corner of her eye and turns.

JON #2
Laurie, are you ok?

LAURIE
How long have you been in here?

Behind her, both of Jon's clones approach.

JON #1 AND #2
Laurie, please...try to understand.

LAURIE
Understand what? That you were in here while we were in bed?

JON
My work was at an important stage. It seemed unneccessary to-

Laurie grabs a beaker and THROWS it at the real Jon. It passes right through him, SHATTERING on the wall behind.

JON (CONT’D)
Laurie...

LAURIE
Shut up! How could you do that? I'm leaving! I'm getting dressed and I'm leaving!

JON #2
Can't we talk about it?

The real Jon looks at the beaker and it reforms, it's shards flowing back together into a cohesive whole. He studies it.

JON #2 (CONT’D)
If you think there's a problem with my attitude, I'm prepared to discuss it...

Laurie storms out of the room. Down the hall, a door slams. An unemotional Jon begins to finish his experiment.

EXT. DAN'S APARTMENT -- EVENING

It's still raining. An electric taxi pulls to the curb and stops. Laurie gets out, ignoring the appreciative stare from the butch female cabdriver, and hurries up the front stairs to the door of Dan’s apartment. She rings the bell. Dan opens the door, looking surprised.

DAN
Laurie?

LAURIE
I left Jon.

DAN
I see. Sure you're not just making too much out of one argument?

LAURIE
You think this is our first argument? Dan, living with him, you don't know what it's like. The way he looks at things, like he can't remember what they are and doesn't particularly care. To him, the world, it's like walking through mist, and all the people are just shadows. I mean, tonight, right? I walked out on him for the first time in twenty years, and you know what he's doing? Either preparing for his big TV interview tonight on Nova, or watching quarks get stuck to gluinos. Probably both.

DAN
Well, you should come in. I was just making coffee.

INT. DAN'S KITCHEN

Laurie follows Dan into the kitchen. He pours her a cup of steaming coffee and reaches for his sugar bowl.

DAN
You take sugar?

LAURIE
Yeah. Two, please.

Dan empties his sugar bowl. A single cube remains. Dan looks at the single sugar cube. At his coffee. At hers. He drops it into Laurie's coffee and stirs it. Behind him, Laurie starts to cry, great, heaving sobs.

DAN
Laurie? Laurie, what's wrong?

LAURIE
Oh, God...I'm...I'm so sorry...

DAN
No, don't be sorry. Here...

Dan hands her his handerchief. She wipes her eyes.

LAURIE
I'm sorry. I just don’t know what to do. I don't know anyone else. I don't know anyone but superheroes!

Laurie looks at Dan's wall calender. There is a picture of a snow owl. She grimaces.

DAN
Well, here. Maybe this will help.

Dan hands her a cup of coffee. Laurie looks into it. Her reflection in the liquid, eyes brimming with tears.

LAURIE
You know, sometimes I look at myself and I don't understand. How did everything get so messed up?

DAN
Happens to the best of us. So, umm...where will you go?

LAURIE
I dunno. A hotel or something. Somewhere normal. I'm not, like, holding you up or anything, am I?

DAN
Oh, no. I was uh, I was just going to visit Hollis Mason.

LAURIE
The first Night Owl?

DAN
Yeah. Would you like to come?

LAURIE
I don't know if I'm dressed for it. And I look like ****.

DAN
Laurie, you look, well, you look great. And Hollis doesn't care how people dress.

INT. JON AND LAURIE'S BEDROOM

An expensive, tailored, suit, shirt, tie, and pair of shoes floats before Jon. He studies them for a moment, and then the clothing dissolves into its constituent particles and reeemerges on him. Jon looks at himself the mirror,
expressionless.

INT. NOVA STUDIOS

Jon phases into existence in front of a receptionist's desk. The RECEPTIONIST stares. A STAGEHAND enters, panicking.

STAGEHAND
And we still need to-Oh, Osterman arrives and no one tells me?

RECEPTIONIST
He...he just...

STAGEHAND
Save it. Dr. Osterman, you're late and we haven't got enough time for your makeup. That blue is far too light for television.
Jon's skin turns a full shade darker.

JON
Will this do?

The stagehand stares.

STAGEHAND
Uh, yeah. Yeah, that's just perfect. That's dark enough for me.

EXT. SIDEWALK -- NIGHT

It's raining. Dan and Laurie cut through a dark alley to avoid the rain. Behind them, several Knot-Tops spot them and follow, drawing knives.

INT. NOVA STUDIOS BACKSTAGE

AGENT FORBES approaches Jon and hands him a list.

AGENT FORBES
Dr. Manhattan, Agent Forbes, Secret Service. Here's a list of no-go areas for tonight. If the nuclear situation comes up, our official position is that we won't resume talks until the Soviets and Pakistanis agree to exclude you from the agenda.

INT. ALLEY -- NIGHT

Dan and Laurie turn to see four Knot Tops approaching. Laurie looks at Dan, who is putting his glasses into his coat. One of the Knot Tops brandishes his knife and barks an order.

Dan and Laurie plow into the gang, tension flowing out of them, rage unchecked. Dan knees one in the gut and elbows him in the neck. Laurie kicks one of them in the crotch. The Knot Tops have never seen anything like it. Dan and Laurie carve through them like tenpins.

The fight is over in seconds, with all four Knot Tops unconscious, and Dan and Laurie leaning against the alley wall, breathing hard, catching their breath. And laughing.

INT. TELEVISION STAGE

A well-groomed television HOST is seated at an interview table.

HOST
Ladies and Gentleman, we have a very special guest for you this evening. He's a war hero, a scientific pioneer, and he's been called America's own Superman. Tonight, in his first ever live question and answer session: Dr. Manhattan himself-Dr. Jonathan Osterman!

Jon materializes on stage. The audience roars. Jon shakes the host's hand and sits down.

HOST (CONT’D)
Dr, Manhattan, welcome.

JON
It's a pleasure to be here.

The audience roars even louder. Jon hardly notices.

EXT. ALLEY -- NIGHT

Dan and Laurie are still catching their breath. Dan puts his glasses back on. Laurie ignites her pipette and inhales.

DAN
You ok?

LAURIE
Yeah. You?

DAN
Never better.

LAURIE
You know, I think I'd better find a hotel or something, after all. I mean, after that, I don't know, I mean, imagine us getting mugged.

Dan is looking at her. She's sweating and her hair is messed up, and she looks beautiful.

DAN
Are you sure? I mean, we could still visit Hollis and-

LAURIE
I think I've had enough superhero stuff for one night. I'm gonna find a hotel, get trashed and think things over.

DAN
Well, if you're sure.

LAURIE
I am. You take care, Dan. And tell Hollis I said "Hi".

DAN
I will. You too, Laurie. Take care, I mean.

Laurie walks off. Dan watches her walk off down the sidewalk, wistful. He turns and walks in the opposite direction.

INT. TELEVISION STAGE

The audience looks bored. A blonde REPORTER in the front row checks his watch. Eleven till Midnight.

JON
In fact, at one point, Albert Einstein said that he'd have become a watchmaker.

HOST
Fascinating. If it's all right with you, Dr Osterman, we'll get right to the audience questions.

The host points to a young man in the audience with his hand raised.

HOST (CONT’D)
You sir. Do you have a question?

AUDIENCE MEMBER
Dr. Manhattan, if the situation in the Middle East worsens, are
you prepared to intervene?

JON
As far as I know, there is no situation currently requiring my attentions.

The host points to the blonde reporter in the first row.

HOST
Sir?

DOUG ROTH stands. He's holding a futuristic recording device which he turns on as he speaks.

ROTH
Dr. Manhattan. Doug Roth, Nova Express. I wonder if you remember Wallace Weaver. Two decades ago, he was seen with you often. He died of cancer not long ago. I believe it
was quite sudden.

JON
I remember Wallace. He was...a good friend.

ROTH
How about Edgar Jacobi, also known as Moloch The Magician? You encountered him several times in the past. Are you aware that he also has terminal cancer?

JON
Moloch? No, I didn't-

ROTH
How about Janice Slater, linked romantically with you in the past? Doctors have given her six months to live. Noticing the connection? Because from here it's starting to look pretty conclusive.

JON
Janey? But I wasn't told...

Agent Forbes sweeps on stage, hand at his earpiece.

FORBES
Kill the cameras. The show's over.

Jon rises, stunned. Forbes and another AGENT usher Jon toward backstage, but they are cut off by a throng of reporters.

ROTH
We have reports that over two dozen of your past associates have been similarly affected!

FEMALE REPORTER
Dr. Manhattan? Tina Price, The Washington Post. Are these allegations true?

DR. MANHATTAN
I...

The reporters swarm around Jon and the agents.

MALE REPORTER
Dr. Osterman, the Enquirer. Do you think you gave Ms. Slater cancer by sleeping with her?

JON
No. Please, if you'll just let me through...

ROTH
How does it feel to know you may have doomed hundreds, maybe thousands of people?

Jon shoves through the crowd.

JON
Please...just leave me alone!

FORBES
I believe it's best not to pursue this line of thinking...

FEMALE REPORTER
Dr. Manhattan, how often have you slept with Laurie-

JON
I said...leave me alone!

A blinding blue shockwave of light sweeps through the room. When the light subsides, Jon is standing in the center of a deserted studio.

 

[The Guard]

EXT. HOLLIS MASON'S APARTMENT -- NIGHT

Dan trudges up the stairs. He knocks on the door and winces, looking down at his bruised hand. Hollis opens the door.

HOLLIS
Dan! Come in! I was starting to think something had happened!

DAN
You and me both. I just had a little skirmish. Knot Tops.

Dan enters the apartment and Hollis closes the door.

HOLLIS
You're not alone. I was watching the Dr. Manhattan interview...

Dan looks at the television. It's muted, but a replay shows Jon shouting, then the screen flashes and turns fuzzy. The next shots are of crowds in the middle of a parking lot.

HOLLIS (CONT’D)
Someone accused him of giving a bunch of people cancer. He looked real shaken. Started shouting to be left alone. The camera went up close, and then the screen went all fuzzy. He'd teleported everyone and everything out of the building. Audience, cameramen, government agents, everyone.

DAN
Poor Laurie...

MASON
Well, she'll know soon enough. It's all over all the networks. Hell, the world will know soon enough.

EXT. SIDEWALK -- DAY

There is a fallout shelter sign on the building behind the newspaper stand. It's raining. The Newsvendor leans against his stand, holding an umbrella, reading an article in the New York Times. A kid leans against a spark hydrant, reading a
comic book titled THE BLACK FREIGHTER.

NEWSPAPER VENDOR
We oughtta just nuke Russia and let God sort it out. I mean, I see the signs, read the headlines. I'm a newspaper vendor, so I'm informed on the situation. We oughtta nuke em till they glow! Course, that's just my opinion. See, everything's connected. And a newspaper vendor, he understands that. He don't retreat from reality.

A delivery truck with a pyramid on the side pulls to a stop. The back doors open, and a DELIVERYMAN drops a stack of NOVA EXPRESS magazines on the ground. He cuts the bindings and hands one to the newspaper vendor. The cover of the magazine shows Jon's screaming face. Behind him is a graphic of an atom bomb detonation. The headline reads
CANCER LINKS PROBED.

DELIVERYMAN
Sorry they're late. The network wanted to wait till the TV show was on the air before these hit the streets.

NEWSPAPER VENDOR
They oughta deport the radioactive freak! Put him in exhile! See, look here. Inside, his ex says he couldn't relate to her sexually. That means he's queer as a three dollar bill! My wife used to fantasize about this creep. Me, I suspected all along!

It starts raining harder. The kid looks up at the skies.

KID
Hey, man, lend me your umbrella. I'm getting wet.

NEWSPAPER VENDOR
No chance. I don't lend things. It's my philosophy. In this world, you shouldn't rely on help from anyone. In the end, a man stands alone. All alone. Inna final analysis.

KID
(Under his breath)
*******.

Slow push in on the fallout shelter sign.

EXT. JON AND LAURIE’S LIVING QUARTERS

Match cut to a radiation sign on a door. A JANITOR is putting the finishing touches on a stencil that reads QUARANTINE

JON (O.S.)
What are you doing?

The janitor starts. He calms down as he recognizes Jon.

JANITOR
Dr. Osterman! You startled me. I was just...orders, Sir.

JON
I see. It seems I'm incapable of cohabiting safely with anyone either emotionally or physically. Please inform your superiors and Miss Juspeczyk that I'm leaving.

JANITOR
Uh, leaving?

JON
Yes. For Arizona first, I think. And then Mars.

JANITOR
Mars? Oh. Oh, that's a good one. I thought-

Jon vanishes in a flash of blue light, leaving behind a
discarded suit of clothes. The janitor just stares at the smoking pile.

EXT. ARIZONA DESERT -- NIGHT

Jon phases into existence. A deserted, dilapidated compound stands before him. Jon walks toward it, leaving footprints in the sand.

INT. THE BESTIARY

The remnants of a bar. Dust. Cobwebs. A sign over the bar reads THE BESTIARY. Behind the bar, an old bulletin board still hangs on the wall. Beneath a broken frame, there are several photographs.

Jon looks at the board. A hole opens up in the dust-covered glass and one of the photos, an old polaroid, floats over to him. He gazes at it. The photo shows a smiling blonde man with a crew cut, his arm around a younger Janey Slater.

Jon looks up at the skies through a hole in the roof. A distant red star. Jon looks around and scowls. Too confining. In a violent explosion of radiant blue light not unlike the detonation of an atom bomb, he is gone, and the bar is a smoking ruin.
Above, Mars twinkles in the night skies.

EXT. SIDEWALK -- MORNING

The kid is still reading his comic book. The vendor shows Aline a newspaper that reads DR. MANHATTAN LEAVES EARTH.

NEWSPAPER VENDOR
You seen this? He's gone! The New Frontiersman says it's the Russians! I mean, what's next?

Behind him, the homeless man marches past with his sign.

NEWSPAPER VENDOR (CONT’D)
I see that the world didn't end yesterday!

The homeless man looks at the stacks of newspapers talking about impending war. At the nude magazines above them.

HOMELESS MAN
Are you sure?

The homeless man wanders off. The newspaper vendor plops himself down on a chair beside the stand.

NEWSPAPER VENDOR
Are you ever going to buy one of those?

KID
Quiet man, I'm trying to read.

NEWSPAPER VENDOR
What is that, pirates? In my day, comics was all superheroes. Superheroes, they were easy to understand.

INT. ROCKEFELLER MILITARY RESEARCH CENTER

Laurie stares in surprise at Agent Forbes. Behind Forbes, men are going through her and Jon's living quarters.

LAURIE
What do you mean he's gone?

FORBES
I mean he's gone. According to sources, he left Earth.

LAURIE
Left Earth?

FORBES
Yes.

LAURIE
Then who are all these people?

FORBES
Miss Juspeczyk, did you place him under any emotional stress last night?

LAURIE
What? Are you trying to blame me for this? When Jon gets back, you are in big trouble.

FORBES
Jesus Christ, I have had enough of this...

Forbes turns on her.

FORBES (CONT’D)
Listen. If our psychologists are right, he is quite possibly never coming back. Your meal ticket has flown the coop, and the lynchpin of America's strategic superiority has gone to Mars. But you're right, I am in big trouble. And you're in big trouble. We all are.

INT. DAN'S BEDROOM

Dan is asleep. A shadow falls over his bed and someone tosses a New York Times onto his chest. Dan wakes with a start. Rorschach is standing at the foot of his bed, eating something.

RORSCHACH
Morning, Daniel. Brought you the paper.

Dan reaches for his glasses, puts them on, looks at the headline: DR. MANHATTAN LEAVES EARTH

RORSCHACH (CONT’D)
The Comedian murdered. Dr. Manhattan exhiled. Two of us gone. Who next? Veidt? Miss Juspeczyk? Me? You? By the way, need a stronger lock. New one broke after one shove.

Rorschach turns to leave, but something catches his eye. A bottle of NOSTALGIA cologne on Dan’s dresser. He pockets it.

DAN
Wait. You broke my lock? Again?

RORSCHACH
Poor choice. Get more expensive one.

Rorschach exits. Dan stares at the headline, fearful.

EXT. NEWSSTAND -- DAY

It's raining. The Pyramid Deliveries truck stops beside the newsstand. The deliveryman drops a bundle of newspapers.

NEWSVENDOR
Awright, lesse what's happenin' in the world this aftern-oh, Jesus...

KID
What?

NEWSVENDOR
You better get home. Get home to your mom.

The kid starts to put the comic book back on the rack.

NEWSVENDOR (CONT’D)
No, you can keep it. And here, take this, too.

He hands the kid the comic book and his umbrella.

KID
Thanks, man. Thanks a lot! I better go. You take care, man.

NEWSVENDOR
Yeah, you too. And don't worry about payin' for that book. I mean, we all gotta look for each other, right? Life's too short not to.

The vendor looks down at the New York Times headline. The headline reads RUSSIANS INVADE AFGHANISTAN

NEWSVENDOR (CONT’D)
Inna final analysis.

 

[Carmine Falcone]

I like the opening scene. Well done

 

[The Guard]

You mean the stuff with the Minutemen? Yeah, I'm hoping that's the kind of intro the film will have. Something to set the mood and tone.

 

[miltonh]

I like the opening scene. Well done

Yeah. You have right!