Professional Documents
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12-12-06
pRAFT
CHUCK/ "Pilot" TEASER rNT. DATA VAULT, DIRECTORATEOF NATIONA], INTELLIGENCE _ NIGHT
The INTERSECT SUPERCOMPUTER ten tons of circuits is and silicon in an eight foot, stainless Thick steel tower. conduits feed into it, Iights reflect off its metal hull, its artificial hum. Our first brain emj-ts a bass-testing impression is that it's back at us. looking right Opposite the Intersect, the vault's anteroom. A GUARDstands outsi-de, lone doorway leads to his back to the vault.
and
an
We CLOSE IN on a darkened corner inside the vault. A FLOOR TILE shifts and slides over. In the shadows beneath the floor/ TWO DARK EYES scan the vault. A hand rises up. rt holds GUARD'S HEAD. A kill-shot. a GUN. ft targets The eves scruint. the BACK OF THE
The gun shifts to a KEYPADby the door. VHPTI A plastrc SUCKER-DART hits 6 on the pad. BEEP. The guard turns. The GLIN steadies. VHPTT VHPT, VHPT, VHPTI 2...5... 9,.. and 6. An ALAR!{ SOUNDS. GUARD What the... And the VAULT DOORdrops right in his face, locking him out. The darts hit...
The TILE flies up with a punch, an ARM extends, then a FACE rises up. Meet BRYCELARKfN G6). He's a rogue CIA agent in a black jumpsuit with lots of cool pockets. He squirms up through the hole in the floor. On his
npn
feet,
cl
'g4v v l l - " Yt
he takes
oaL and
out
nnr .r or fr r 'l
a handheld
Von
SMARTPHONE. ft's
i f ar n rln i r r qJ -
a next-
m nr lo' 1
:l - r nr r 1-
anything.
He moves to the
Intersect,
and... a
LOCKS it into a hidden port. small keyboard. The front of the WIDESCREEN MONITOR. It activates
Bryce qui-ckly AVERTS HfS EYES. Whatever is on that screen he doesn't want to see it. He then checks the smartphone. Its indicator reports a transfer in progress. BAItt! Something hits the vault The keypad beeps loudly. door. More voices outs.ide.
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2.
Bryce ignores
it.
smartphone --
hurry
upl
A DRILL works on the door. The vault vibrates. Bryce reaches into a pocket and takes out a BLACK cuBE. checks it. Suddenly, the light show j_s done. The monitor closes. cube.
Bryce unlocks the smartphone and replaces it He races to the hole ln the floor and slides KA-CHUNK! The bolts the INT. go on the vault door,
then... rntersect.
consumes the
George Michael's "FREEDOM,' begins. The best/worst action song ever. Bryce Larkin drops through a ceiling panel.
( fnn
GUARD#2 (O.S. )
I
At the other end of the hall, a guard appears. for the elevator. The guard draws his sidearm.
Bryce sprints
Bryce whips out the DART GIIN, VH?T, a dart hits the caII butlon. The doors open, he flies in, kicks the roof button. EXT. ROOF, DNT _ NTGHT
p' r r r n o l"r ' l n r .r c l- 1 "r 1 6 1 1 6 1 a s rrJ- i 1 i fL). rr u urr!
qvv! dg6;. .
The f trg
ri nos I rtryD
_ .
calm)
A HELICOPTERapproaches, the Washj_ngton, DC skyline behind rt. Bryce runs towards it, readyj-ng his smartphone between strides. coDED E-AD DRESSES serorl across its monitor: zuLU SEVEN... TANGOFIVE... CRACK! Bryce stumbles, he,s More addresses scroll past... Stopt been hj_t. But he doesn,t stop. VICTOR NINE... AITPHATWO...
L2-72-05
The smartphone's monitor BLURS. Bryce's thumb rests over the SEND button. He looks up at the helicopter, his legs and... he's not going to make it, slowing, his body failing, HE HITS SEND! CRACK! CRACK! FaIIing, the smartphone flies from his hand.
race to hrm. Brvce sl-ams aqarnst the roof. FIVE GUARDS The checks Bryce's hand. rt's He scans the roof. leider empty. There's the smartphone twenty feet away. CLOSE ON: the CHUCK And then the smartphone EXPLODES. CUT TO: ANOTHER EXPLOSION. SOLDIERS FLY THROUGH THE AIR ALONGWITH SELECT BODY PARTS. GUNFIRE PULVERIZESMOREFLESH. MORGAN (O.S. ) Head-shot! Go for the head! That's your problem, Chuck. We TURN to see CHUCKBARTOWSKI(26 ) and MORGAN PACE (25) sitting in front of a TV and X-Box in Chuck's small bedroom. A PARTY and Georqe l4ichael's "FREEDOM"can be heard outside. Chuck wears a Geek Force jacket.
in: rrr u <nr r r ffr r !J sr evr lci*J r !r r IU ^..^..W aJ Ul . m Lar or e IfIE!u r
recrpj-ent's
name:
he's
of the
geek world.
ar r r r YU J
__
Morgan, a wiry bundle of energy, wears an unhip blue shirt with a BUY-MOREnametag still No matter how hard attached. he tries he can't make this uniform cool.
Yo u l a c k MORGAN the ki l l er CHUCK
T l' r o' l ior zo T irrcf l r i 'l 'l or l r r nr r
i nsti nct.
MORGAN
Pr r f r r nr r r lan t Jf oa'l nnnA r '].:ntr J r r
C h rrr:k !
MORGAN Lose the nametag? Your sister... Or does it give me stature? (23) enters' ELLIE BARTOWSKI The door opens. after her' Morgan lusts cute, a go-getter. He's used to that. ELLIE Wow. You're hiding Chuck. Your own birthdaY PartY? from She's young' She toathes him'
CHUCK And you're playing George Michael but vou don-'t hear me complaining' Hi EIIie. MORGAN sweet party.
ELLIE (ignores him, to Chuck) real live women' I invited C'mon. Morgan - You staY here' For You. MORGAN Good to see You' Great. okaY(as Ellie to Chuck) exits, I think that went weII between us ' No. And it CHUCK never wiII'
AsChuckgoestoexit,heseesaNEWE-MArLonhisdesktop' Wow. CHUCK (CONT',D) Brvce remembered my birthday' of Super-complex' end of it.
MORGAN The Bryce who got you kj-cked, out You should be thrilled' school? Chuck hits OPEN. i"."*pi"f.ensible. What's A MATH EQUATIONappears' at the The cursor blinki (CONT'D) MORGAN that? CHUCK Calculus ' college'
Bryce and I
sweet gift'
L2-12,0 6
CHUCK remembered Yeah, if r still trigonomic substitution. MORGAN (caIls after him) I was beinq sarcastrc... rNT. LIVING ROOM, THE DUPLEX, ECHO PARK _ NIGHT (31) cuts DEVONWOODCOMB It's a good-sized party. Devon is Ellie's and Chuck. the crowd toward Ellie at Cedars-Sinai. and a resident Captain Please Devon's in a too CHUCK Awesome to ELLIE don't call tight the rescue. through boyfriend
UCLA t-shirt.
CAPTAIN AWESOMN some Okay, T've identified candidates for Chuck. And they Awesome. are? F{e orabs Chrrr:k's arm. This is a trao. Chuck }ooks at EIIie. Morgan and X-Box disappear. She closes Chuck's bedroom door. Just follow (CONT'D) CAPTATNAWESOME my lead, Chuckles.
ACROSSTHE ROOM A PACK of young women talk about young woman stuff.
(CONT',D) CAPTAIN AWESOME Ladies, Iet me introduce you to Chuck - Ellie's brother. Chuck stands there. eyes Several sets of very attractive That lack of killer instinct in fuII view. staring at him. Uh... So begins CHUCK I'm veah... Chuck. various women: the
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YOUNGWOMAN #2 Geek Force? That's so cute. But what do you really want to do? YOUNGWOMAN#3 / re: Chrrr-k'q l-randar-red finoers\ Did you hurt your hand?
CHUCK I'm putti-ng together year plan. I'm just to choose a font.
a five tryrngt
CHUCK No - that t s f Of HalO. The XBOx contrOller can chafe after.. several- hours of... nevermind.
CHUCK I did. A while back... in college. Her name was JilI. We met freshman year at Stanford. YOUNGWOMAN #4 ( intrrgued ) You went to Stanford? CHUCK ( oblrvious ) She was great. There was kind of gang of us, Jill, Bryce, and... WeIl, she had this smile... Ellie walks over to
he
Captain
E LLIE d o i nq?
in
on Chuck.
How's
Not Chuck d ro n e s
AWESOME
the
fl oor.
H j -s face
ashen.
CHUCK years of S o r th ere I w as, four my l i fe d o w n the drai n. A nd Ji l I, th e o n e p e r son I thought I coul d count o n , was gtone. I ro ' l a n l rc rrn *- Y. O n ] w E ll i p is l i steni noS he S hakeS her head.
CUT TO: LATER. The party Awesome clean up. is over. Chuck helps EIIie and Captain He can tell EIIie's upset with him.
L2-12-06
T h a n k s fo r layer dlp?
Chuck.
If
i t,s
that
di p...
you years ago. __ It,s time bag. Chuck sees hi-s escape.
up a trash
f,m on it.
EXT. PATrO/ THE DUPLEX _ NrcHT Chuck opens a trash patj-o gate is, . . pail. He stops. Coming through the
y:::l:"
KAYLA HART (2s), one of the worrd,s most beautifur fuckups. she's searching for her keys una-Jo.=r,,t see chuck. she i-sn't weari-ng a single item that cost more than five bucks, but a deslgner wourd spend a fortune for her "iyi". Chuck is frozen. Garbagie bag dangles over the pail. He rnsrde.
ano rreias
pail.
of the
and Morgan have been watching ELLIE But when I said move on, mean Kayla.
12-12-06
MORGAN Which is a shame. Since clearly she's impervious to your charms. (he pulls on his backpack) Thanks for... EIIie, that was fun. You weren't not Chuck, oblivious, INT. ELL]E invited,
MORGAN kickinq me out. Iooks at Kayla's door and sighs once agarn.
Chuck notices Bryce's equation stilI on his computer screen. Behind it, there's a FRAME on the waII. A dusty FRATERNITY PICTURE of thirty handsome young men in suits standj-ng in even rows. . . except for the TWOGOOF-OFFS off the top falling riser. We recognize a younger Chuck and Bryce. Chuck contemplates
t.r il- ] - ' : c ' lr r d- in ' +r
Y!
the
t ur n S
picture
baCk
with
to the
a hint
Screen.
of
regret.
Determined.
Then
he
Closes his eyes. He stares at the equation. Leans back. Mumbles numbers to himself. Spins his chair. And then AHHA! His fingers race across the keyboard. A chain of numbers enter into the equation. Chuck smj-les. This is fun. He hits ENTER and a TORRENTof A virus? CHUCK Hey thanks, II,IAGES invade Bryce. the monitor.
He sees pictures: APPLE PIE. THE OCEANAT DAWN. A DARK ALLEY. YOUNG LOVERS IN A FfELD. Weird. The images pick up speed, Chuck is transfixed. His face goes slack, his hands begi-n to shake. Something's happening. FinaIIy, he blinks, and -ZAP! -- SUNLIGHT fills the room. The clock radio chirps: 7:01 AI,t. Chuck's been standing here back and... for seven hours. Stunned, his eyes roll THUMP.
END OF TEASER
t2-t2-06
ACT ONE INT. C H U C K ' S BE D R O OM _ MOR N TN G u p to fi n d Morgan a n d th e w orl d is MORGAN you okay? CHUCK M o rq a n ? MORGAN W hat happened? H e' s standi ng over hi m. now . very bl urry ri ght sti l l
Chuck wakes o n th e fl o o r
Dude,
a re
Ye a h ,
ma n .
CHUCK I w a s g o n n a ask you the same th i n g ... D i d you spi ke the punch? MORGAN Uh, I haven't seen punch at a party p ro m. since A nd even then i t w as p ro m i n a t een movi e. C h rrr_ k Jsuioi s I
vrruun
rrn _ u!/.
r..i-_r^+ _headed. l l Yr r U l IC q g g V.
at LOOkS AL
IVV^ D
IIID
hi s U VIIIIJU U g , nnmnr:tc1
screen.
lurir [sD. - mae
ft's
r Fr r r i r !ylr r Y nx
bl-ank.
i- n uv rwa^so ^r :lr
Offers
ruf/. rn
no clues.
Chuck blinks
a few
beats
. ^r-m
on Chuck's
back.
Outside,
Morgan blares
RADIO 101 1s clear at Universal City. Watch out for delays near Burbank Airport. Security is checkinq all vehicles. the Chuck turns toward the water and closes his eyes. FZASH. A torrent of images flood through his rnind: APPLE PIE - CfTY MAPS - TBAFT.IC DATA - DEPLOYMENT !.IEMOS. Dozens more f ollow gone. in rapid succession. A second later, they're
C hr r c k ' . q Fwpq f ' l r r anan
- ..2v }r 'v !!.
rrrhr+
+[ g
he1]-
Wa S t h a t ?
He
feelS
the
bump from where he fell last night. Did he have an aneurism? A stroke? He exhales deeply. What is going on? EXT. ECHO PARK STREET, NEAR THE DUPLEX A weirded-out Chuck walks with Morgan to in his Geek Force gear, Morgan trying to More shirt under a grungy jacket. a VW Beetle. hide his blue Chuck Buy-
72-12-06
10.
CHUCK (he tosses over the keys) me. You drive, my head's killing MORGAN ( uncomfortable ) Dude, come on. I can't drive What if someone sees me? The Beetle is actually the white- and "Geek Fclrce" is
it.
black and GEEK FORCEMOBILE. It's nainted On each Side and the rOof.
CHUCK Just stay off the 5. The cops are in a phased deployment. MORGAN How do you know that? Chuck stands INT. there for a second. How does he know that?
The once impressive Intersect Charred. lies in ruin. A blackened skeleton. fts silicon brains now imbedded in the vault walls. GENERALMARY BECKMAN(40s), Helen Mj-rren with star on her shoulder, contemplates the mess. Boiling. GEN. BECKMAN ft was Bryce Larkin, Graham. of your CIA agents. Behlnd her,
r i f' l e s
th ro rro h
prw r-c
50s),
GRAHAM (re e l i n g w i th each photo) H e fe l l o ff the map si x months ago. W e thought N o tra c e s , no markers. h e mi q h t b e dead. GEN. BECKMAN n o w h e i s. (s h e tu rns to face hi m) I' v e c o n fe rr ed w i th the D i rector a n d w e b o th agree - N S A \^ri l l your conduct th e i nvesti gati on, o ffi c e rs a r e to stand dow n. GRAHAM cut us out!
W e Il ,
C fA
You can't
W e' ve...
L2-t2-06
11.
He's JOHN CASEY (mid 30s) enters. The vault door opens. We see two NICOTINE PATCHESon in a worn black suit. dressed He's scary, the guy you want side of his neck. either defending your country - but don't ask too many questions. GEN. BECKMAN Ma3or Casey. Graham turns -shocked by the sight of Casey.
Wh a t
is
!)
L^-ri no lrcoulrIY
rrn uY
fh.i S LrrrD
GRAHAM General. Major Casey j-s a fj-ne NSA You lose a nuke in operative. A Lebanese couP Turkey, caII him. He's perfect. d'6tat by nightfall? I mean, what This is different... was his last domestac assignment? CASEY West Point. GEN. BECKMAN The Director has made his
UADgy
decision.
e o m n u t -uer r 's u
vvl L tyq
^- ^^- -
I Y L-L- L L v ^-
IIry
l -r
G r aham qllolrt/
u!
tLhLe rr
remains.
CASEY I know what Larkin did was it? What did this computer do? GRAHAM Everything.
m L ^+ IIIdL * ^r . ^^ Itta^ED
UeDEJ
^^^ar r
fUu!ltr n rr
arorrnrl
q!vullq.
EXCUSe
me?
GEN. BECKMAN For the past srx months, CIA, FBf, Homeland, and NSA have funneled their live feeds into this
nnm nr r f ar . ITnnrrf ser-rets iirst Of f
the wire and the archives to boot. AI was designed to The Intersect's mine for patterns make connections/ It saw things we in the chatter.
A i r ln , +l v f lr i nnc S ti II tO C Ome .
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11
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GRAHAM That's a nicotine... are you supposed to wear two? CASEY (ignoring the question) out You're saying there's a vj-llain there with every secret we ever good and had... ours and theirs, evil? GEN. BECKMAN Find them and find those CASEY Moscow rules? General Beckman nods. Casev turns in to leave. secrets.
GRAHAM Casey. You can't caII airstrike on this one. Hp stnns in the door, reqards
an
Graham...
CASEY How do you know this is a domestic op? Larkin could have sent those secrets anywhere. You have an agent on the ground? GRAHA.[4 No. CASEY Keep it that way. was working with? bel-onqs to me. fNT. Whoever Bryce The bastard
It's a bright warehouse filled with media, computers, and electronics. Nerd Valhalla. We are at the GEEK FORCEHELP TEAM of tech DESK. Chuck stands in front of his virgin-laden wizards. He checks off jobs on a clipboard. Okay, next CHUCK up - Lester. a blonde afro that weighs
LESTER (25), a computer savant with more than his body, steps up.
12-L2-05
1?
CHUCK (CONT',D) You man the desk with me. ANNA (19), the lone girl and lone
goth,
C H U C K (C ON T' D )
CHUCK (CONT',D) Old lady needs Photoshop on her Mac. What's the rule, Jeff? JEFF No sweet tal-k. CHUCK 'Cause the ladies f j,nd your talk none too sweet. That's it. (then remembers) wait, hold on, one more item: there's a new computer virus out there -- they're calli-ng it the Irene Demova Virus.
JV I L L E
Som e
of
v!
tuhe rlc
csr ^c ek S Y c D
Sm f I eg
Dll|'
v-
EPSU IAI!J . i ID s n e r
a 'i r . .
U E!!
a^A
CHUCK (CONT'D) Yes, it's named after the Serb.ian porn star. This is a nasty one, kids, a computer killer. Doesn't MORGAN (o.S.) mean she's not hotl the WAIL OF really
Chuck turns. Across the room/ Morgan activates FLATSCREEN TVS that lords over the store. It's
i m nr ps s i rzc M or c r an I orzos th i s oart of the iJT b . o
CHUCK Ladies and geeks, just ignore UncIe Morgan and everything... On the biq TV WALL, FOX NEWSappears ANCHORis in mid drone.
. . .w i l l C H U C K (C ON T' D ) be. . .
dirty NE!iS
and a dashlng
12-12-06
L4.
ANCHOR is The Ukrainian prime minister 1n Los Angeles later to arrive today after months of risrng tension back home. CHUCK normal.
set
images overtake him: Chuck blinks and.. . FleSH. Rapid-fire APPLE PIE - AIR TRAFTIC CHARTS- LANDING IJOGS- FL'IGHT 121. fn a They strobe urgently, but with a b1ink, they disappear. daze, Chuck turns around. The geeks stare back at hin, CHUCK (CONT'D) He's already here. They landed Iast niqht. The sguad gives him a collective strange-o look.
ANNA Who's alreadv here? Chuck shakes it off. Blinks a few times.
I don't
CHUCK know. ..
LESTER (quietly to Jeff) And you thi nk I'm the weird EXT. ROOF, DNI - MORNING
^ ^^^"
LADEy :nnrn:choq qy|/!vqurrEo. D LAITUD
one...?
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.
11^1 uYtJ
One
rr
of
hiS
AGENTS
err i 1D9!Lr
AGENT #1 We intercepted a coded message from CIA. Larkin's siqnal was traced off a transponder outside Los Angeles. You were right - Graham has CIA on the sround there. CASEY Get me a jet. We'Il- l-et them make conlact, do the heavy lifting. But we need to shadow that aqent.
12-12-06
]NT.
_ BUY_MORE LATER
An attracti-ve woman i-n a black suit heads for the Geek Force. This is SARAII (28.) Morgan is hanging out by Chuck's desk. Chuck is ringing up a customer when Morgan sees Sarah. MORGAN (re: Sarah, quoting from Prrnce's Batman song) " Stop the presses/ Who,s that/ Vicky VaJ-e." Chuck bags products, doesn't see Sarah. Joins record scratch part of the song. With a little Vicky Vicky Vale. VaIe. HUCK Vicky Vicky Vicky Vicky VaIe. see Sarah, in front of in. Doing the robot dance.
/om}
:rraqqad\
It's
'Cause that
MORGAN He's Chuck. I'm Morgan. Sarah smiles. It's a nj-ce smile, it Even people like Chuck and Morgan. puts people at ease.
SARAH Wow. I didn't think people still named thej-r kids Chuck... or Morgan for that matter.
CHUCK
Tlr ar r Ann r#
vf
mrr
62;pnf
ar F
(re: Carnival
r lr r mnqlor
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1A
CHUCK How can I help you... Sarah. She nlar:e.s a cel'l I'm SARAH here about this. ChUCk takeS it.
CHUCK Ah, the Ftip 180. (he opens the back) There's a screw that comes loose this mode}. Annnnnd... (he pops the back with a mini screwdriver) here we go. No problem. He hands it back. Sarah clicks it on... it
on
works.
SARAH Wow, you geeks are good. MORGAN Chuck rs King of the Geeks. greatest Geek I know. SASAH (gives Chuck a look) High praise. She smiles at him. Chuckl Chuck looks away, embarrassed. Suddenly The
Chuck turns. So do Morgan and Sarah. Morgan steps between Chuck and an approaching Lester. Trying to keep him away. MORGAN ( sotto ) Not now, Lester. But we qot LESTER a code Zebral
CHUCK ReaIIy? Zebra? (to Sarah) I'm sorry. One sec? She nods and Chuck moves to the other end of the desk. He finds a STRESSED-OUT (6) DAD waiting His DAUGHTER for him. stands behind him in her ballet costume. shoes and recital
L2-72-06
I7.
STRESSED-OUT DAD I don't know what I did wrong. (he holds a camcorder) f taped the whole recital, but it won't plav back. Okay, let's Chuck takes the CHUCK take a l-ook. The tape slot
now
camcorder.
pops out.
EMpTy.
CHUCK (CONT'D) no tape in here. STRESSED-OUT DAD diqital. CHUCK takes digital
tapes. me.
his daughter. Her expression is near tears. back over at Sarah, she sm-iles at hj_m.
CHUCK I think we can help. (to Lester) TeII l"lorgan I need the wa1l. Sir, QUfCK CUTS AROUNDTHE STORE: the geeks move out, a CD is chosen, a dj-gital tape is grabbed, buttons are pushed, and switches are flipped. ELECTRONICS DEPT. _ MOMENTS LATER chuck plugs the camcorder j-nto the console that contrors the warr of FLATSCREEN TVs. He nods to the guirty dad now ready to firm. chuck then checks the DAUGHTER, who-waits to danc-e in front of the TV WALL. CHUCK
Roa.l\r ?
She looks
nervous.
can talk.
CHUCK (CONT'D) What,s wronq? f'm usuatly DAUGHTER in the back row.
12-I2-06
1R
CHUCK
CHUCK you a secret? Can I tell Don't te]l the other girls, but... (a whisper) Real ballerinas are taII. She smiles at him. begins to dance. The music starts and the qirl slowlv
Behind her, she's up on each of the screens. steps grow confident. A crowd forms. Sarah watches the dance, but her eyes shift to
He sniles girl as the little pirouettes crowd of CUSTOMERS and EMPLOYEES cheer. MOMENTS LATER. the help desk. Chuck!
As the crowd disperses, Chuck looks over He sees Sarah, starts to move, when... PARSON(O.S. )
Behind him stands PARSONTANG (early 30s). Department supervr-sor. Born to manage a Buy-More store. He's the
rrl J- imato macr a- qtnr o tr annor -di al r hr r n:l - r r r o er r nor d i al e
trarnrng. CHUCK Parson, hey. Don't back up in runninq Chuck wants to head towards worry. in five Sarah, We'1I be minutes. Parson steps
- - - .- t- ''v -
but
in.
PARSON Five minutes? Do you know what five minutes means in real dollars? Do you know how to monetize your time? f didn't word... even know monetize was a
12-12-46
1q
PARSON
r.,'i"ii."fi::fl'"
CHUCK Big Mike didn't tell an opening.
anymore, chuck.
And you wonder why Big Mike wants manager. me for assistant me there was
PARSON Why would he? He knows you won't Ieave the comfort of vour nerd herd. He's Morgan walks got (O.S.) MORGAN a point there. He nods toward the desk where Sarah stood.
up.
She left...
He hands Chuck a BUSfNESS CARD: SARAHKENT. VETERfNARIAN. With a phone number. never call. Chuck sighs, knows he'II As he pockets the card WE HEAR: CAPTATNAWESOME (V.O. ) you what you need, Chuck. I'II teII An adventure. Your life in danger. Looking death right in the eye. Doesn't that sound awesome? ]NT. LIVING ROOM, THE DUPLEX _ EVENING
Dinner with Ellie, Chuck, and Captain Awesome. Conversation is often focused on the Captain's adventures and Chuck's
^..1r ^ !qur uD.
CAPTAIN AWESOME T h e s e a re cl ass 5 w hi te w ater Last ra p i d s / m a n. Y ou gotta come. ti me w e w e nt I thouqht hal f the group drowned CHUCK w h e n you sel l AWESOIVIE
M=rzl.ra IaaJUC trnrr Jvu
We II, CAPTAIN
/- t mnn t rlrr jo ssuve
it
that
w ay. ELL]E
oharr DIIVUIu I rl J-rrr ulJ i rL.t
12-L2-06
20.
CHUCK (CONT',D) the whole Point of becomingt Isn't doctors to Prevent PeoPle from dying? We're CAPTA]N AWESOI4E going again next weekend. CHUCK I'm Picking uP some extra
CHUCK But there's I was. Assistant opening. And You're I'm What's to ELLIE aPPlYing?
CHUCK (CONT'D) There's this guY Parson dunno. I And he reallY wants the job' Tang. So it's ProbablY gonna be tough' ft's And then what if r do get it? Home a lot of resPonsibilitY. and office appliances Products? PIus, That's outta mY wheelhouse. I'm committj-ng to the store f or gotta be years. And there's else I'm suPPosed -uo do something right? with my life, Ellie would like to believe so, the captain not so sure.
do,
- screaming:
12-12-06
27.
Stop!l! Kayla?
EXT. THE DUPLEX - MOMENTS LATER x3vrq is racing up the street. yetli-ng. Chuck blasts the door. Giving chase. Running aftei her. EXT. STREET _ SAME Kayla srows as a BUS disappears around a corner. sees Chuck running up to her, winded: Are you... CHUCK are you alright? she turns, out
KAYLA I missed my bus. CHUCK Oh, I thought someone was tryj_ng to kiII you or something. I wlsh. exciting. A beat. KAYLA At least that into
would be a conversatron.
K A Y LA (C ON T,D ) Thanks, C h u ck. A nd sorry I mi ssed y o u r p a rty . f had to w ork l ate. CHUCK s ure. W here,s
Oh ,
yeah,
your
car?
under
They
+L ^!
re a l 1 y
to
ctari fy
Kayla
smiles,
Chuck, thinking
fast...
Maybe...
L2-12-06
22.
INT.
GEEK FORCEMOB]LE - NIGHT of traffic. It's taking He's nervous, too long... her trying to
what's
A W eS Ome.
CHUCK
Mnrn:n r-rvryqrr anrl arru T nrl I9qMlJtLL I ivlm r'--^+:i uaf/uaflt ^
Awe so m o
itr mn i ncr
ntr f
E rrerrzth
nf nl
i no
anoq
he
ci oes
r_S
CHUCK I mean, he treats EIIie weIL. So he loves to travel and wear a fanny
hr^1. !/qU^ ..'1^^ wIlU ^n dlLL Y I l-^ Lv irrdno? J uqys.
KAYLA Fanny packs? N ot good. - th a t th o u g h f can get CHUCK Y o u have anyw here
fn nn?
Yeah?
\z- r r r ^r :nf
in
mi nd
C o o 1 ...
you
l eave?
- there's
I rr rar
always
YU
]mp o u n d e d .
U r 1U L.T \ ^a,
if af f
-orq
U'
You should
rnonf
be a Double-0
rrl g haV e tO
secret
be a C OId
Qr r r a
fnr
blooded
n:id
assassin,
but
the travel's
12-12-06
to drive kil-I.
T {ar z l a tr r r nq thnr r c htfr r l
annnant
v v ar r r ev
i nc
And
thon
KAYLA (CONT'D) So back at the apartment - you thought I was being attacked and instinct was to save me? vour first That. CHUCK And escape dinner. Double-0, Before Why? Chuck.
he can resDond --
T u rn EXT.
THE SILVERLAKE
The mobile ro l l s Ch u c k c h e c k s th e
Thanks
fo r
me...
UVED
that H e nods- soaki no i n. N o S ooner \JU then d H IP S TE R GUIY w al ks up to her, U 1 IC II Wd I] a N AT.) J- .O!\
KISSES her... I
Chuck realizes:
EXT. PATIO/ THE DUPLEX Morgan sits parJ_o gare. on the stoop.
MORGAN
Ml r r .' nnmnr ll- or i q :nt i na rrn ^n ma
He perks
Irene She's
rlrnnarnrrc
12-12-06
aA
CHUCK What's up? MORGAN I need to make a Wikipedia entry. There's this tool in },ladison who's been editing my Monster Squad page. Zod forbid someone read somethincr so wroncf . Chuck unlocks the door and thev head inside.
INT. CHUCK'S BEDROOM Chuck hits the Iight switch. A BURGLARstands across from him. Mask to toe in b1ack. He holds Chuck's COMPUTER. The window is open behind him. Chuck and Morgan are thrown. Please. The burglar CHUCK Put mv computer down. to back away from them.
continues Chuck!
And then he sees Chuck looks at Morgan: "What did you say?" his trophy shelf. Every Science Fair and Spelling Bee award qrade. since the first He qrabs one and FIRES it at... right The burglar ninja kicks the PLASTIC GOLD BOWLER Chuck's head. He ducks and it pierces the wall. CHUCK Okay.
The ni nia trrrn s l -n o cn:no nhU C k S eeS thi S . Gi V eS C haS e.
at
Chuck? I
-computer SWEEP-
the A nd tosses The ninja tu rn s . S e e s C huck comi ng. The burgl ar i t. H uh? at h i m. C h u c k c a tc h e s V oomp! K I C K S h i m. H e q o e s h ori zontal . T h e r:o m n rrte r f I i o c C h u c k h i ts Smaek! rrn i n fho th e fl oor, ai rhi s The hrrro' l af w i nd knocked
i t.
MOR GA N (C ON T' ,D ) C H U C K! M o rg a n
P U' .L' ' I' .LK
s p ri n g s
UNUCK
i n to
SLOIC
a cti -on.
ITO M
H e l ooks
up on the
G T AD S .LT .
w al l ,
.T r r m nc
sees
f'hr r nl r
PU T T - PU IT .
12-72-06
l 4oR GA N (C ON T' D )
ftrlnrlHH !
And flies at the burgilar, the putter over his head. The burglar raises the computer in defense. Morgan swings. CHUCK Noooooo ! WHAM! The putter SMASHES the r-.omnrrtor rl- falls. rol1s out oi the way just befo;;^"i;"i"orr"*r on the The burglar takes Woah. one step and back frips through Chuck froor.
the window.
EXT. THE DUPLEX - SAME chuck rimps and Morgan dashes from the duprex at top speed.
The burgrlar race: a dark sports car. He bounds up on the jumps, and !9 tr unk, fries through the open sun roof. vRooM! The car and thief are gone in seconds. MORGAN That was cool. ]NT. DARK SPORTS CAR _ SAME SARAHrips off her mask.
12-72-06
ACT TWO INT. GEEK FORCE HELP DESK, BUY-MORE_ MORNING Geek Force stare LESTER totally fried. anvthinq on the CHUCK Lester. at the demolished computer.
Thanks,
ANNA (monotone ) What if you're an unwitting target of a nj-nja vendetta and he returns tonight to strangle you with his nunchuks w hile you sleep the sleep of the dead. CHUCK And here I thought I couldn't get more freaked out. So thank you, Anna. If you,Il man the desk I'm going next door. Get some new 1ocks. . . INT. THE HOME DEPOT - LATER for some CUSTOI4ER
_ q.\ D v.
. .
Chuck searches through the aisles and rows looking he1p. fn a narrow row, he finds an ominous-Iooking
arra i nn + l- \6 D/1 r CUT ! l \ u. "F u v f TrER S . Thgre's Ir r c!c
J
nohodv r l vvvu J
el L srE!D
arorrnd
q !vu tr q ,
CHUCK Excuse me, do you know where... Something stops Chuck. He l-ooks cl_oser at the man. FlaSE. The images invade Chuck's vision: AppLE pfE - AN OLD PICTURE OF THE CUSTOMER DRESSED IN FATIGUES. IDENT DATA - EXPERT: DEUOLITIONS. Abrupt1y, they CUT TO... The customer stares at him. it? . . nevermj_nd. . . Chuck stumbles back.
Chuck, afraid, shakes his head, and marches down the row. Trying to be casual. But then he starts to hear FOOTSTEPS.
72-12-06
21
Chuck stops. The footsteps stop. Chuck starts walking - and sure enough... FOOTSTEPS. Chuck turns slowly. Looks back. The ominous customer is following, holding the BOLT CUTTERS. CHUCK (CONT',D)
t'ar:n
Chuck tries to remain cool. Picking up his pace as he crosses the aisle and into the next row. Where is everybody? The store is seemingly empty. A maze of aisles. And the ominous glow of the fluorescent bulbs. Home Depot is scary. He scans for MUZAK and...
H is f ar - . e is
a way out. O\fER THIS, there's only then FOOTSTEPS. Aqain. He turns.
im na. q. qir r c 'l i k e
the
sound of row.
behind
a
him,
/-ontral
at the
end of the
F 'r r r n n o 2 n
TefminatOf.
cutters
for
a NAIL GUN.
Escape.
But to
get there
he first
THE LAMP ROW. Hundreds of 'em. Chuck keeps moving when -Beep, Beep, Beep. NoJ A FORKLIFT backs out ahead, blocking
his e sr - a n e An A ho r an,r na l ofl nr ri nhi SO he dOeS WhaC
He grabs
a floorlamp.
Just
in
case...
CLACK, CLACK, CLACK. Footsteps. BEEP, BEEP, BEEP. Slowest forklift ever. Trapped, Chuck doesn't look back. Too afraid. Finall-y the forklift clears. Chuck moves fast now.
1'lriq ri ahf 'l afJIrJarrzi nn lrln 'l nnaor l-rrzi na i-n eaom nan't
collides
with
trrr ri u
nc lrrY \/^r r r
i-n om nl
_I
dn sv
eamsaf vr r l
hi L ttY nn
I I
q:\r o
vqve
nr W t ..J
AS S OC IA TE (e y e s C huck' s l amp) W hat ki -nd of quv? U h -h u h . CHUCK Ki n d of a Termi nator S c a ry . C rew cut Sunglasses. AS S OC IA TE l e a th e r i acket?
vi be.
B1 a c k
12-12-06
)R
Chuck nods. How did she know? The Associate gestures to the CASH REGISTERS. The ominous customer is buying his NAfL GUN and BOLT CUTTERS. Smiling pleasantly at his CASHTER. CHUCK Oh. Right. WeIl... I said doing something and he is. Chuck Iaughs at his own bad joke. he was Paying. sheepishly.
Smiles
AT THE CASH REGISTER The OMfNOUSCUSTOMER eyes Chuck with a targeting stare. He searches for his wallet. CLOSEON: HIS JACKET. His hand moves and we see the hidden AUTOMATIC readv in its holster. EXT. PARKING LOT, BUY-MORE Chuck walks back to work. He misses the dark sports parked a few aisles over from the Geek Mobile. rNT. DARK SPORTS CAR - SAME Chuck as she talks on her cell. car
Sarah watches
SARAH - Iike I said, it was completely destroyed... by a putter. GRAHAM(0.S. ) Then you need to get on the plane to DC. You're done. We INTERCUT WITH; rNT. GRAHAM'SOFFTCE/ CrA, LANGLEY/ VA - SAME
EJo annf amnl =f aq th e VieW ffOm hi s fnn-f'l oor uvt/ r Offi C e.
SARAH But what if he has an external drlve? A backup? He works for Geek Force - there has to be GRAHAM I can't risk you in the field. Beckman put Casey on the job. Sarah takes a breath, that name carries
the
weight.
SARAH So? He's a burnout. Didn't he go aII Colonel Kurtz with the Kurds?
12-72-06
a killer,
Sarah.
SARAH He's too old to be scary - I'lI be done before he gets his NSA e-mail workinq. GRAHAM He's the grim reaper in a black suit. You need to listen to me (the real issue) What happened with Bryce - you couldn't have known. Couldn't have stopped it. SARAH But I can fix it. Give me toniqht. get this Chuck to open up to I'lI me. Hand me the back up. If not, I tranq his ass and ship him home. INT. _ BUY_MORE LATER the aisles together.
MORGAN So you were robbed by a ninja. It's not that weird. I mean, this is Los Anqeles. CHUCK Except other weird stuff has been happening. I've got this headache that won't go away. And at the Home Depot I think I recognized someone. Someone I don't know. (a beat) Someone. . . danqerous. MORGAN (half listening) But you know what's
really
weird?
Morgan nods hj-s head to the Geek Force Desk. Chuck looks over to see SARAH. She smiles at them. Waves. MORGAN (CONT'D) I thi-nk that chick likes vou. Crazy.
12-72-06
?n
GEEK FORCE HELP DESK Chuck approaches Hi. Is Sarah. it Morgan on his phone? heels.
SARAH Yeah. I'm not sure I'm able to recelve calls (beat, smiles ) - cause I never got one from you. MORGAN Hoo-hoo. (off
n^+
UUL IL...
Chuck's
Chr r r : k tri
look)
cs
.i +
Aq
M or c r an
s n' l i t s
to
remain
cool.
SARAH
Qnr r r z uv!!f T ' 1 off
u
<^ uv
dr l i
Yq l e r r r J
clrl
rr
r r eqtc r dar r
Oh .
SARAH Thanks. And f don't know anyone. And a few Except for the realtor. clients cats and dogs - but they're I was wonderi-ng if really... And... you might want to show me around. If you're free? Before he can respond Yes! Sarah smiles. He's -from behind the -CAMCORDERS
Chuck has to
EXT. PARKING LOT, BUY_MORE No longer Strides to her car. Sarah exits the Buy-More. As she gets in her car, a BLACK VAN idles nearby. smiling. rNT. BLACK VAN _ SA}48
His TEAM of AGENTS JOHN CASEY rubs the patch on hls neck. boss. wait in the back -- guns held ready/ eyes on their
12-72-06
Who is
AGENT #1 she?
CASEY Sarah something-or-other. CIA. ToP of her class. fvy League. Your future boss. AGENT #1 So you know her? CASEY Just enough to hate her. f ollow. Let's
and Captain
c r c tuo q
Y9
hom errvrrru.
'l n n k
in their
trn as he
scrubs
enters.
when
EL Ii e ,
rlvrYqrr
M .r.r^ n
rrrs h e s
th ro rto h
Chuck's
Wh a t?
Wa y to
F'rl' lid !!! E air zac
YrvsD
go,
f- anfain vqyeqlrr
l-rl.r o L ls
D e ta i l s ... IN T .
C H U C K ' S BE D R O O}4-
So S a ra h ...
Van fvt/.
L2-r2-06
??
Nice?
ELLIE Prettv?
CHUCK WeII, Morgan met her on this website, and... (on E1lie's death look) Kiddinq. She came into the store. ELLIE You know in your action movies always that one hostage who there's freaks out and gets someone killed? That's Morqan for vour Love life. Morgan plays X-Box on Chuck's bed. Ellie grabs a new shirt.
MORGAN I can hear vou. ELLTE was for you too. (surveyrng Chuck's closet) Do you own any good non-sneaker shoes ? ft EXT. DUPLEX _ EVENING Decked-out Chuck and Morgan strj-de to the Geek Mobile.
MORGAN Lrsten to me. Take Sarah to Spaceland. No way. CHUCK Kayla works at Spaceland.
MORGAN Exactly. And Sarah will make Kayla jealous. Nothing turns a girl on Iike jealousy. This CHUCK sounds like a bad idea.
MORGAN But in the best way, right? Besrdes, I already called Kayla told her you were coming. With date. EIIre catches up. Clutching some flowers
12-12-06
E LLIE H e re . T h e se are l eftover p a rty . A n d don' t forget o 1 d g i rl fri e n d rul e. CHUCK N o menti on
from about
the the
Go t
i t.
of
Ji II.
E LLIE (fi x e s C huck' s col l ar) A c e s , C h a rl es. Y ou' re aces. CHUCK q u o te ? I' m
A dad
i mpressed.
have
l i ked
thi s
S A ME
h in l - r r!c u-'l !v v !nr nnf !ur r l y ot\7I'C r F v !D t. Qho tIIc fLIYrnhto- ^ i r ugr r J
the
straps
and it
seems to
almost
fuse
to
her skin.
CUT TO:
Sarah fixes a pair of HOLSTERS to her wrists. The TRANQGUNS go in last. attach to them. Mini dart cartridges CUT TO: perfume on her neck, then adjusts the She spritzes on the BOTTLE -- switchinq Eau de Parfum to lilace. INT. _ DESERTEDWAREHOUSE SAME guns small dial
A real badguy hangout. Casey and his men ready their and. armor as thev check ID PHOTOSof Chuck and Sarah. CASEY Chuck Bartowski is the mark. But I want him with a pulse, no kiIIshots. AGENT #1 Why the artillery, Boss? This Chuck guy looks like a ciwy. CASEY For all you know, Chuck Bartowski is rogue CIA... a GRU hitter... a Mossad technician. This "Chuck
.n r v" v*J r-a)l r I rl ho w rrl l F rrToFS j ! n i crhtmaf g .
AGENT #2 (re: Sarah's photo) The CIA skirt i-s kinda hot.
12-12-06
34.
CASEY Hot, huh? So, should I just shoot you now or Iet her do it? Hot equals dangerous. , , got it? You learn No. AGENT #2 that from spv school?
CASEY Mv ex-wife. (re: Sarah's photo) She makes a move... drop her.
rNT. LOBBY, SARAH'S HOTEL - NrGHT Sarah waj-ts. INT. It's Her smartphone buzzes. We INTERCUTWITH:
GRAHAi{'S OFFTCE, CIA, LANGLEY, VA - NIGHT late, everyone's gone... except Graham.
a date.
GRAHAM Do you remember how to go on a date? I mean, you wore a Burqa for most of last vear. SARAH He's a nice guy. f see why Bryce talked about him so much. GRAHAM Nice guys don't get secrets. HONK! She looks outsj-de. sent government pulls up. Chuck waves.
SARAJI What should I do if GRAHAM KitI him. Chuck is She hangs up. for her. Sarah reallv
holding flowers. Opening her door him. hopes she won't have to kill
12-r2-06
ACT THREE rNT. ALEGRIA RESTAURANT, SILVER LAKE _ NIGHT in the
'i n n
'l a r r nh rsq Yr r +r r Y.
CHUCK how I met Morgan. I so that's in the fourth qrade saved his life it ever and my sister has regretted since. Sarah tries not to choke on her food.
C H U C K (C ON T' ,D )
vntl ^P2\t /
SARAH
\In il-rc trorrz f
CHUCK
IaTo]l Tr m a fr r , r* , rn y g u y .
C l e :rl
:m nnt
rz .
' C el l se
fr r n n rr
CHUCK
t' - ' l oa rl rr
'l.ri
rrl. r# WIIqU
) --
lznnt.
,.,,-.tr |
SARAI]
Ple n fwRcl i crrg 1119.
CHUCK And f was thinking either she's a not funny. cannibal or she's really f was pulling for cannibal 'cause I've never met one. SARAH Not a cannibal. But I did
or r t of a I ono rel ati onshi n-
just
get
.So I
baggage. own
arJTrrl K
T2-12-06
r - r {I T r - K / r . n N T 'n \
(she smiles) Let's discuss. So, is the ex the reason vou moved here from. . . ? SARAH D.C. Yeah. After I realized all my friends were his friends and everything about Washington reminded me of Bruce. I needed a change... a big one. New life. New coast... The light conversation has become a little heavy.
CHUCK Bruce? You gave me crap about Chuck and you went out with a Bruce?
Thaf oet s anol- her
4s s Y1r
lar r c r h
orri-
of
Safah.
And what c l o s e t?
i n your A ny w o:nen?
We l I rrv44
therp
w es
(he smiles) Actually, that's aII over - and her restraining orders are very
cnoci fi a
He does too.
He passed the
test...
W h e re
Yo u
like
your
favori te
not
sure.
C huck
sl aps
hi s
forehead.
12-t2-06
SARAH Not funny. Doesn't listen music. This is your worst ever, rrght? SIRENS BLARE. Chuck hits the brakes.
to date
past.
FLASH. The flags are replaced with; APPLE PIE - LfNES OF CODE - A BLUEPRINT - THE INSIDE OF A HALI, IN A LARGE BUILDING. The code and blueprint superimpose, then everything disappears. Sarah touches Chuck on the shoulder.
SARAH (CONT',D) I was waiting for you to say "no". He shakes his head, disturbed and scared.
CHUCK Sorry, kinda zoned there. (beat, recovers ) But no. I' ve been on far \^/orse dates. In eleventh qrade SARAH Eleventh grade? You have to back to eleventh qrade? ! As thev INT. I arroh - Chuck tries to shake the go Flashes. . .
SAFAH thank you. KAYLA welcome, I'rlr Kayla. SARAH Good to meet vou. He iust st-ares for a moment.
gygy at Chuck.
L2-12-06
?R
CHUCK Kayla, Sarah, Kayla. was late, wasn't it? KAYLA You guys can come in SARAI{ Fancy. Chuck? Chuck gives
qFAq o\Torrrf hi
That
KAYLA Oh yes...
Kayla
na
an appreciative
INT. Chuck
BAR/ and
SARAH
T e II
me a b o ut
K ayl a.
Ri oht -
mv nei ohbor.
Qlra,
\zar\r
nral-f
rr
CHUCK That to o .
SARAH Have you guys. . . No. I'm CHUCK not her type. "The Switches") takes the stage.
SARAH (CONT',D)
VII .
And the music starts. Sarah and Chuck stand near It's loud. up front. the back, safe from all the MOSHINGDANCERS
L2-12-06
men, enter
thei r
- c!
the
u
club.
'
I aff
arms a l l tL o
--^*
+L^
Lf
IE
Uluv
^'1 "!-
CHUCK AND SARAH SARAH (re : th e band) g o od! T h e y ' re CHUCK s he l i kes
them)
DEIIDcD
She surveys
the
ki ck J
i n.
S omethi ng' s
w rong.
Ch o
dranq
U!qYD
h i m
TIIILI
ihIrVn Y lrr o h LI ! u r
the urre
66cl r
r ttve r r 4 r !Y
i n.' /-
e vYvse J
qw cal -v
crow d.
not
CHUCK a dancer. reallv And the next song kicks in. Louder and
oblivious,
And suddenly she's not 3ust an Chuck's eyes are on Sarah. she's venus on the dance floor. veterinariani attractive I thouqht She can't hear him. AGENTSfanning out. They see her CHUCK (CONT'D) like music! vou didn't Plus, for her eyes stay with their badly sidearms. in something approaching to the three
and reach to
gyrate
the TRANQGUNS strapped unseen by anyone, sarah activates out from under her sleeves. They flip her wrists. And the agents move in, through the dancers. Her hair is doing
Chuck can't look away from Sarah. something amazing in the Iight. But her eyes are controlled, skilled.
12-12-06
40.
The
ac c nt s
Ar F
eac h
te n
feet
awaw-I
tuhLe w L Vf
sqr!!vu rrun r r n d D rr r
her. r fs!,
tLhgc r z fr J
begin
to
draw their
sidearms...
and she does an amazing SPIN and I'IRES THREE TRANODARTS. THE THREE AGENTS TA],L. The tranq fIoor. guns RETRACT/ and Sarah pulls Chuck off the dance
CHUCK Where are we qoinq? She drags Chuck to the exit and past a surprised Kayla.
We need to
And fast.
door)
CHUCK Well - f 'm not old fashioned, it's just that the store only wants geeks, I mean, employees driving. Suddenly, a BLACK VAN screeches into the parking lot.
Chuck misses Sarah taking a quick-action skeleton key from her purse. The lock pops and she's j-n the mobj-Ie in seconds. The VAN'S side door slj-des Chuck is confused. open and rnore AGENTS rol-I out. hand,
And he hears the mobile start. He looks down at his the keys are still there. Now he's more confused. Chuck, 9et
T ho l lls nr der v! uc! r syr r ocietar a us! D
SARAH in right
a lu alnA ho rrE
now!
In+a I11t- u . . .
i r rul i^^ m l PD J
L2-72-06
4r.
INT.
GEEK FORCEMOBILE the gas and they fly out of the parking tot.
Sarah hits
BEHTND THEM The agents INT. sprint back into the black van.
GEEK FORCEMOBILE Beetre's engine and heads for What do they downtown.
CHUCK Who are those guys? want? you. SAFAH Buckle up.
she spi-ns the wheer, which frings Chuck against the door. They race into a dark alley. sile eyes th6 g-g.". And there's the VAN behind them.... CLOSING FAST!
rt srams into the back of the GFM. Both sarah and Chuck rock forward. she spins the wheer, ang tJ.uy fry out of the arrey on to a larger deserted street. Chuck is fieaked. SARAH (CONT'D) Thomas Gui_de.
CHUCK W h a t?
SARAH The page for downtown. chuck reaches for his Thomas Gui-de, frips finds the downtown page. Rip it SARAH (CONT'D) and show me. chuck tears out for a second, to the reference,
out
BooM! The van is right on their tair again. the page and holds J-t up. sarah peers it it one eye on the road, one on the map. (coNT'D) Got it
CHUCK Got w h a t?
72-12_06
A?
Now she makes another EX?. DOWNTOWN STREET The Geek Force Mobire
series
of
quick
turns.
whips past
some stoners
stumbling
home.
whoa, .o*ojffJ?.rnu..u.
rNT. GEEK FORCEMOBTLE Sarah weaves in and out of multiple TfcHT TURNS, ftying througrh cross streets. rire- van harf a turn behind them. NARROW ALLEY The mobite just barel y It makes it through. a\,yay at top speed.
GEEK FORCEMOBILE sarah hits the rights. our. R";;;"s for the door.
CHUCK Okay. So if you have trouble with . your^phone agai_n, f ,m gonna u"t-y"u try Circuit City... Bye. Voomp! There's something cold against his temple.
Don,r.. oiTT.i.u.. .
sarah aims the GirN_ri g h t a t Ch u c k , s h e a d . He , s n e v e r h a d a g un in hi_s face beforJ . s;.;;,s e x p re s s io n is c o rd .
head)
SARAH They're from other agencies. The Pentagon, the NSA. i,nd they,re after you.
12-72-06
A1
Sarah lowers
the
qun.
Chuck is
frantic
--
thi-s
i-s a mistake.
CHUCK Me? No, I'm nobody. I'm the supervisor of the Geek Force at BuyMore. Maybe someday f'II be assistant store manager. And f'm not even sure I want that iob but -The sound of CAR TIRES in the distance.
SARAH We need to move. EXT. GEEK FORCE MOB]LEIPARKING GARAGE Sarah maneuvers the mobile rNT. PARKTNG GAFAGE is empty. Sarah races to the top. into a nearby parking garage.
Each level
EXT. ROOF/ DESERTEDPARK]NG GARAGE The mobile is parked near the edge. Sarah looks over the streets, scanning for the van. Chuck's unsure what to do.
How wel I SARAH c J o vorr know B rvne CHUCK
/ qlrnnlrorl \
T,ar:ki n?
How do you know Bryce? SARAH We worked together at the CIA. Bryce a spy?
SARAH A rogue spy. Two nights ago, he downloaded sensitive information and then transmitted it. CHUCK Where? SARAH To you. Did you get an e-mail Bryce two nights ago? (l4oRE) from
72-12-06 SARAH (CONT'D) (Chuck nods, reeling) Where's vour backuP? CHUCK What back up? SARAH How did you back it Your computer. drj-ve? up? Is there an external CHUCK It crashed a few weeks ago... WhY would Bryce send secrets to me? Chuck sees the look on her face -this the is car. all for not.
44.
We have to
INT. GEEK FORCEMOBTLE They get in. Sarah takes out her ceII phone. Dialing.
The mobile's
whee]s explode.
FOUR AGENTS. One for each Sarah scans the parking lot. jackets. Their guns are already back under their corner. opens and Casey exits. A nearby elevator He siqnals for Sarah to is his offi-ce. Listen, at you. Nonchalant. talk. This
EXT. ROOF, DESERTEDPARKING GARAGE Sarah gets out of the car. Casey walks Iate, craP. towards her.
CASEY It's Enough, Sarah. Iet's cut the tired, him to me. Now. Sarah trains her sun ON CHUCK.
SARAH c l oser and I
I'ITI Give
C o me a n v
shoot.
LZ-
L Z - UO
,,1c
CHUCK (O.S.) ( f rom ins j-de the car ) f'm freakinq out. Sarah. Srrddcnlw Ca.qew draws hj-s GLIN. Aims at Sarah. CASEY then You shoot him, I shoot you... we leave your bodies here and get a Iate snack, maybe pancakes. INT./EXT. GEEK FORCEMOBILE - SAME a his left... there's The CLOSESTAGENT is Everyone spi-ns.
As Sarah and Casey talk, Chuck Iooks to He opens the mobile's door. stairwell. watching Sarah and Casey. He throws open the Chuck!
T ho aaontq an f n
running.
dr ar .r
thoi
fi r r nq
Don'tl
flying As bullets are about to start -- Chuck FREEZES. door -- in the distance -- he sees the Beyond the stairwell glass cylinders HOTEL. thick of the WESTIN BONAVENTURE APPLE PIE FtaSH. Thousands of images invade his vision: BIUEPRTNTSFOR THE WESTTN- COMPUTER SCHEMATICS PHOTOSOF of aII the THE SERBIAN DE!.IOLITIONS EXPERT. A culmination a staggering, images. It's overwhelming amount of data. Sarah,
aoents close
in.
Guns strll
drawn.
CHUCK (a whisper) The Westin. Apple pie. (snapping back) him. He's qoinq to kiII CASEY K1II who? minister.
l nnl r \
There's
T t ttl m !
me.
T L
romam}rori !gltlcltuc!IIIY
shouldn't
know.
L2-12-06
.to.
Talk
Like
what?
CHUCK There was a Serbian demolitions expert at The Home Depot this afternoon... which was strange.
t/ho talr ae a q hr oath\ vl 9q
9 r. ,/
Last week, the NSA intercepted blueprints for the Westin Bonaventure. And the CIA found a file in Prague with schemati-cs for a new Serbian bomb... the bomb in that hotel. Why do I know this? CASEY Why does he know that? SARAH
I r aal - LZ- Lrr 9 nn\ r cclr i qi \ J
Chuck, did
you
CHUCK There was an eguation. I tried to solve it. And then there were these pictures.. . So many pictures... What's wrong wj-th me? What's CASEY wrong with him?
SARAH He opened the e-mail. The Intersect secrets are subliminally encoded into images. If you see an image, you know the secret. Bryce sent him the entire server. Wait!
cnmntr f
Where's my
SARAII Don't you get it? AII our secrets they're in his head. (beat ) The computer is Chuck.
END OF ACT 3
12-12-06
41 . ACT 4
EXT. ROOF, DESERTEDPARKING GARAGE- NTGHT Chuck stares at Sarah and Casey -CHUCK you say? confused, stunned.
D.t|Jlft.Il
CHUCK WHAT'S HAPPENTNG ME? TO Chuck... What? SARAII can we save them? CHUCK Save who? in
CASEY The prime minister. The people that hotel. Can we save them?
CHUCK How do I know? There,s a bomb and going to explode. it's Go find Bryce, ask him to save the day. Sarah takes control. She closes in on Chuck, grabs his arms.
Bry c e th o s e
sendi ng
Pr r r no
i c
r lar rl ?
CASEY
Tf r!
' l ot s
r r nr r Jvu
r lan qvtr
, J_ u
.t_a I l r Lo!nf
ho rrc
r c D
annnz y v r tl r a
I^ Itdv c - ,,^
of
c om n e n v .
N O w t e }I
US
Can
we disarm
T r lr r nnn a+ ^- ^ D UAyE
+L^ Ullg
CASEY
/fn hiq m on\
12-12-06
48.
INT.
C.hrrr! tclr vr sv
C AS EY ' S V AN _ SE C ON D S LA TE R
Q:r ah :nd :' l' l fho c ni oq ni l o in Aq thor r qnr oonh
Journey's
explodes
to?
OnIy for
EXT. DOWNTOWN STREETS - SAME The van roars INT. over medians, heading for the entrance to...
HOTEL - SAME GARAGE, WESTIN BONAVENTURE Casey gets out as private He takes out a badge.
CASEY LAPD! TelI the night manager we need to evacuate the hotel. Sarah turns to Chuck, still SAFAH you'Il in the van. be safe.
LOBBY, WESTTN BONAVENTURE Pentagon agents race through CASEY gonna have to do a search. the lobby.
We're
SARAH Do we have time? They come to No! Chuck stands INT. an intersection ft's behind of halls, Casey looks for...
LATER SERVICE HALLWAY- SECONDS the Is spies down a series way? of service corridors.
Chuck leads
this
12-72-06
AO
CHUCK (turning right) They remodeled in ,83, this now goes a1I the way to the Huntington Room and the pool. That,s CASEY fascinatinq. go
chuck, sarah/ and the spies race out of a utirity croset and througrh these usuarJ-y private rooms. NAXED BUSTNESSMEN saunter about. onry a few have the decency to wear a tower. Excuse us ! Very sorry! INT. CHUCK/SARAH/CASEY Official business ! Don,t get up!
genitalia.
The room is packed with press and dignitaries. The ukrainian PRrME MrNrsrER is arready into his speech. The ukrainian frag decorates his podium. Chuck and the spies move around the side of the room. official-rooking badges are frashed and the team moves backstaqe. CASEY Chuck, focus. Where,s the bomb? CHUCK (rubbing his temples) C-4, computer detonator r rror I don't know that. BACKSTAGE Casey and his men spread out. CASEY Over here. Searchj_ng for the bomb.
12-72-06
50.
decorated
wlth
an American
A LAPTOP COMPUTER sits nn fnn of a weddi-ng cake-sized pile --o explosives. A digital countdown j_s in progress -- TWO MINUTES AND COUNTTNG.
C A S E Y (C ON T' D ) evacuate. Ideas? AGENT #1 the l aptop? CHUCK an auto-tri gger. SARAII + -he cabl es?
of
N o ti m e
to
Disconnect
No,
th e re ,s
Wh a t T h e re a re
about
T h e y w e re n ' t S a ra h ta k e s a b re a th
pl ans.
Get Ca s e y looks at
try for
the hi s
Go C h u c k .
/ i : ca r r r c man n ^ tr e
u a
too
vllq9^ C huck
i mportant.
to Lv the uIIc
IEa! 1ga1
c1-ano D uayc
dnnr uu\./J-
Suddenly,
Chuck
shakes
hi msel f
free.
D etermi ned.
A ngry.
dead.
L2-72-06
This sell
We
SARAH What are vou doinq? CHUCK What if the Serbian didn't reset the factory override? (he freezes) The Serbran. I qot an idea. The timer just hit SfXTY SECONDS. There's a static the bomb's fuses charge. Chuck looks at Casey. I think CHUCK (CONT'D) I can do this. This is real down. hiss as
CASEY ft's not a videogame. Iif e. . . reaL J-ives. Sarah looks from Casey to Chuck.
Sarah gives Chuck a Iook - please be right. Chuck nods. He types in a code. Nothing changes... hold on... a small BLACK WINDOW opens on the monitor. THE C PROMPT. The COUNTER continues it's deadly march... 30 SECONDS. No one is breathi-ng. Chuck blinks sweat from his eyes. Mr. CHUCK Bomb? Meet l4r. Gooqle.
He types in a code. The countdown is behind an INTERNET EXPLORER window. GOOGLE comes up. Chuck types in two words. SUPER CLOSE UP: I-R-E-N-E Irene
nnr n? |
D-E-M-O-V-A. for
The SITE LIST appears, Chuck clicks a link... the screen changes... and everybody reacts to some Serbian pornography.
Q qq Er r r ' , urr Ar la nJlr r / fl- ,a u r lc a666r ee4 u v*,r gr ie r ' < herd-6i 1.i V eve * -A .rl Wn]-f Whi fS S IOL-*J IOrrd'l w -
bad is
happening
inside.
S ometh..i nr "..*..9
L2-12-06 Chuck and the spies slowly step back. There's a spark under the keys. They flinch. The screen FLASHES/ more SPARKSfly, then the screen qoes BLACK. And nothing explodes. SARAH You did r did it! CHUCK it. r did it. r defused a -( suddenly reallzes ) Real- bomb. What if... I was wronq? Sarah and Casey exchange a look. The reality of the situation finally lands on Chuck. gives way to nausea. His adrenaline Don't CASEY puke on the C-4.
glass
r oa
doors,
Chr r nk
and guests
ho i r r qi
conduct
qar z od
Nearby,
k es}Jt n n
u
Thei-r voices
I
I o lvw w- .
rl raacr
uaDEy
ayEtr -^^-tS
WatC h.
CASEY
Hp' s - om ' i no wi f . h m e. Hc, s c.nmi no
SARAH
with me.
SARAH Do you know what those NSA doctors will do to him? It's barbaric. CASEY Rightf your CIA interrogators the real humanitarians. are
SARAH Go home. Get your strokes from the Pentagon. Bask in your own glory. ( beat ) But don't get used to it. CASEY Admit it. Your panties bunch 'cause we crashed
F i ahf l.rof aro rrnrr anll- a
mark.
72-12-06
r llE AD
nnl rr
your
CASEY When we get back to Washington, remember: f take my coffee black, no sugar... Sugar.
They glower at each o ther. CASEY me.
He c o m e s w i th
SARAH me .
H e comes w i th
Or,
rF hatr rl l E] l.r nf h !ULII 1- r r r n Lu!Il
me go home.
l ^^ Il C "-a W dJ +1- 'ar a LIIEIE.
CH U C K (C ON T' ,D )
T ^ ^ l!UU[7
mq:rszl- r o rtl ju
Trm f, ItL
foo'l !L e !JIr Y
i nrr
: e
'l
!Iu L l E
i ftl e
defusing a bomb and cocky after That saving like a hundred people. kind of thing can go to your head.
Pr r f T , m nr ol- f \r qr r r o R r \t- o qenf f he
And e-mail to me. And he's dead. gets now I'm the one who apparently government secrets every time f turn on the radio or watch DeaI or No DeaL. ( beat ) You need me. Which means you have to listen to me. And I'd like to go home.
l ._acor r v qo s l , I r\o r v vnnkq t^ .- .,nF of hi s aoent_o __ nof r aaAy tO. . .
SARAH
t- aqor r I{ o' q ri nhf
Sarah leads
Casey over
a few steps.
Out of
earshot.
CASEY This is about right. This isn't And mine are to about orders. bring thj-s jackwad to the DNI. SARAH He's too valuable to interrogate. is gone, but he The Intersect works.
12-r2-06
Wh a t
if
CASEY th i s w as
a fl uke?
SARAH he can W hat i f What if i t w asn' t? he W hat i f re m e m b e r o th er thi ngs. bi gger. c a n s to p s o methi ng Ca s e y - fru s tra te d dr a w - w h i p s o u t her reaches for hi s j acket. out GU N . A s C asey pul l s S arah sees hi m hi s P H ON E .
authori ty
to
make
The phone
Go . INT. P EN T AGON -ri n g s . GE N . B E C K MA N ' S OFFTC E , D C -Be ckman grabs i t. Ti red and IN TE R C U T angry.
The phone
GEN. BECKMAN Beckman. We s e e Gra h a m a n d Be ckman. B oth l i steni ng. A beat. Then --
Sa ra h .
S a ra h and C h u c k w a tc h e s p h o n e s s h u t. wh i p th e i r
He goes p ro te c t
W e both
the
Wh a t
just
72-L2-A6
Y ou get
to
go
Su re EXT.
A d:r k
you
prefer
a bul l et?
STREET,
qnr r r tq
LATER
INT. S a ra h
m^\ro rrrvvst
SAME in l frc
-r+to tu D
- r-h u c k
in rll
si ts
neqqon.rpr
l-,.1 ++in^ ttlLLatry
soat.
hin ltll(t...
H e doeS n,t
rinhf LLytrL nnr.r ltuw.
J-hnrr ahJurrvuyrrL.
SARAH Your car wiII be here i-n the just Iike it was. morninq... (off Chuck's silence) Are you okay, Chuck? CHUCK This morning I made eleven bucks an hour frxing computers. Now I have Tn my brain. one. And I don't know whv Brvce did this. . . SARAH He always talked about his old friend Chuck. And how he knew vou could be so much more. CHUCK
W :q ho nnnr l :i hoi nn : c nr z ?
U n ti l
SARAH h e w e nt bad,
he w as the
best.
CHUCK (n o d s , good to know , then) What if h e never meant for me to re a d th e e - mai l ? A nd | m the w ronq guy. C a n you fi x me? Transfer the fi l e s ?
SARAH Even supposing we could deactivate the sublj-minal triggers. . . we can ' t risk erasing what you know. You're aI] that's left of the Intersect. CompromJ-sing you would mean compromising national security.
12-12-06
qK
You could've
CHUCK j ust
sai d
Th e y p u II u p to th e DU P LE X . In the apartment' s ar e EL L IE / C AP T AIN AW E S OME , and I4OR GA N . W ai ti ng SARAH your fri ends? CHUCK my fami ty.
Those
a re
M o re
like
Ar o
thor z
in
j-n to
ctr azp y! uae
him.
naql- u !/qo
it.
R)r,r n:qc J t/4r o
They,re
hi q r t{D
'l i l l l /D^c
gonna kiss.
. rol =nl l lu a+ L L,i Il ID c
ear. The hair on his neck stands up. From the DUpLEX WINDOWS -- it looks like Chuck is getting a kiss goodnight. SARAH (CONT.D) (whispers ) Trust me, Chuck. INT. Ellie THE DUPLEX and Morgan jump to their feet when Chuck enters.
MORGAN She totally stuck her tongue down your throat. My Kayla plan worked. She vibed you and Kayla right? Chuck staggers to his
ELLTE How did it qo? Good? Was Did you like her? she nice? Shut-up, Morgan. and smiling mostly.
room, nodding
L2-12-06
E?
r nr l
ha' o
nr aLr = \ ' lv
ner z e r
r uqtr_t
rpAl
lv
li-ed
tO
them
befOre...
CHUCK ft was a nice date. Nothing too specia1 . Li-sten, guys , I 'rTrtired. Well, Chuck looks shadows out wiII ELLIE you see her again? there are a few more
CHUCK Yeah, definitely. EXT. PATIO, THE DUPLEX - LATER Chuck waits on the stoop by his door. She saying...
Kayla walks up the steps, just home from Spaceland. doesn't see Chuck. He watches her }ike before, not CHUCK KayIa. She stops, Iooks Hey. over her shoulder, KAYLA That was some date, CHUCK a kinda crazy huh? story.
you're
The patio gate opens. The drummer from the band that played at Spaceland slides inside, having just found a parking spot for his car. Kavla hasn't come home alone. CHUCK (CONT'D) But you are. So it can waj-t. Kayla smiles at Chuck. He looks place with the drummer... away as she heads into her
12-12-06
INT.
sarah sits on her bed, staring at her cerr phone's she scrorrs through surveilrance photos: Buy-More, coworkers. she takes a breath and scrorls back to set of shots.
we see BRYCE LARKTN standi-ng on a beach. He's smiring. she jumps forward one photo. we now see Bryce and sarah on the same beach. They look happy. INT. GEEK FORCEHELP DESK, BUY_MORE DAY -
The geeks arr stand around chuck. He's in the process of signing the applj-cation for assistant store manlger. And he's done. It's ready. He looks around at his team. Here I go. CHUCK Wish me luck.
And he moves out, heading through the DTFFERENT DEPARTI\,IENTS to the store manager's office. we hear Morricone,s Fj-stful of Dolrars score. chuck stops. This isn't the soundtrack. rt's Morgan blasting a cD from the Entertainment Department. He gives Chuck the thumbs up. proud of him.
PARSON You apply for this, Chuck? are done beinq friends. CHUCK We were friends?
And we
PARSON f'm watching you. And your dork squad. Every glgabyte of Spyware you install, every network server you slip up and I you on-Iine? take vou down. Yeah, we,re As Chuck walks CHUCK definitely calls not friends. him.
away - parson
after
L2-12-05
INT.
STOREMANAGER'SOFFTCE - SAME manager, stares at his computer. at his in-box and doesn't look up.
CHUCK Well, I'fiI ready for this, Bi9 Mike. And what it means - responsibility, decisive leadership. . . Save it for BIG I',IIKE the interview.
ENTERTAIMENT DEPARTI4ENT- MOMENTS LATER Chuck walks back through the aisles of media. He stops.
At the cash registers -- he sees SARAH, one of Langley's finest. In a Buy-More uniform. Ringing up customers. She gives him a nod. Then he sees CASEY, the Pentagon's top spy, uniform. fn front of the washing machines. Angry he's here at aII. in a BUY-MORE Watching hlm.
Chuck just stands j-n shock near the TV WALL. An entertainment news reporter appears on the waII. ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER The Legends of Punk wiII tour the US next month. Members include Chuck sees a montage of punk pelt Chuck: images furj-ously PHOTO - THE PUNK SINGER AS A NEEDLES. What the heII does Chuck is stunned.
Johnny
He turns.
singers screaming. FLA9H. The A HUMMING BIRD - A RUSSIAN ID YOUNG!I!.A}I- !,TUSIC SHEETS this mean?
E N D OF P TLOT