SECOND CHANCES

Screenplay by

Sean Mc Callion

Adaptation by

Tomala White

From the Book by

Charles Gillen

Tomala White
Address: 37 Rosemount Avenue
Phone Number:07749446215
 ACT I

1 EXT. DERRY - NIGHT 1

The camera tracks forward through Derry to establish the

town. Starts with wide of the city and continues to track
forward through an empty town, passing back alleys and ending
on an approach to a large, old chapel. A LITTLE BOY, 10 years
old, can be seen running through the alley.

Voices begin to speak.

PAUL
Bless me Father for I have sinned,
it’s been... a very long time since
my last confession.

PRIEST
The Lord is a good shepherd my
child, and always happy to welcome
a lost sheep back into His flock.
Tell me your sins.

2 INT. CONFESSIONAL BOOTH - NIGHT 2

PAUL, a man in his 40s, is clearly out of his comfort zone as

he talks to a priest, who can barely be seen through the mesh
screen of the confessional booth.

PAUL
(exhales loudly)
Where to begin... I guess I’m just
trying to start over, I haven’t
been a very good person for most of
my life.

PRIEST
(laughing gently)
But surely you can only be as God
made you, no?

PAUL
Well, I...

PRIEST
That is to say, if God wanted you
otherwise he would’ve made you
otherwise, would he not?

PAUL
Well, yes, but-
 2.
2 CONTINUED: 2
PRIEST
(patronizing)
Unless you think He made a mistake,
is that it? Do you think God made a
mistake?

PAUL
No! I just don’t understand why-

PRIEST
(raising his voice)
Do you question the will of your
God?

PAUL
No, Father!

PRIEST
(relaxing)
Then tell me, why are you really
here?

PAUL
Honestly, I don’t know. Forgiveness
maybe?

PRIEST
And do you think you deserve
forgiveness?

PAUL
Does anyone?

A loud banging is heard some distance away, startling Paul.

The Priest continues as if he hasn’t heard it.

PRIEST
God’s grace is not for everyone,
and you carry darkness under your
feet Paul. You have made the
darkness your secret place, the
canopy that surrounds you. There is
no penance to be found here.

PAUL
Wait, how did you know my-

The banging is heard again, this time closer, louder and more
frantic.

PRIEST
The least of the apostles, unworthy
to be an apostle.

The banging is now almost deafening, cutting off Paul when he

tries to speak.
 3.
2 CONTINUED: 2
PAUL
(almost yelling)
Sorry, can’t you hear that?

PRIEST
You think your mother’s rosary
beads can protect you? They
couldn’t protect her.

Paul looks down at the old worn rosary beads in his hand. He
doesn’t remember bringing them. The banging continues.

PRIEST (CONT'D)
(ranting)
JOHN 8:44- “YOU BELONG TO YOUR
FATHER, THE DEVIL, AND YOU WANT TO
CARRY OUT YOUR FATHER’S DESIRES. HE
WAS A MURDERER FROM THE BEGINNING,
NOT HOLDING TO THE TRUTH, FOR THERE
IS NO TRUTH IN HIM. WHEN HE LIES,
HE SPEAKS HIS NATIVE LANGUAGE, FOR
HE IS A LIAR AND THE FATHER OF
LIES”.

PAUL
What are you saying?!

PRIEST
(still ranting)
THE ONE WHO DOES WHAT IS SINFUL IS
OF THE DEVIL, FOR THE DEVIL SINNETH
FROM THE BEGINNING!

PAUL
(straining to hear)
THE DEVIL?

The banging suddenly stops, the priest is heard softly

laughing behind the panel. He slowly leans towards the mesh,
revealing the best view of his face so far

PRIEST
He is coming for you Paul, and he
takes many forms.

With this the Priest slinks back into the darkness of the
booth. There is brief moment of silence before the banging
begins again, this time more violent than before. Paul holds
onto the sides of the shaking booth as the noise consumes his
senses, fading to light as the banging continues into the
next scene, where we see Paul and Maria waking up in bed with
the banging rattling their home.

3 INT. BEDROOM - NIGHT 3

The knocking from Paul’s dream bleeds into reality as he

awakes in his bed with a shock.
 4.
3 CONTINUED: 3
Maria, his pregnant girlfriend is lying beside him, she is
awake too, in a panic at the sounds rattling the walls.

MARIA
Paul?!

Paul gets out of bed just as the knocking stops. He raises a

hand to gently silence Maria as he listens.

MARIA (CONT'D)
(whispering)
Paul, what the hell is that? Is
there someone in the house?!

Paul rushes to the closet and pulls a baseball bat from a

pile of shoes and old clothes at the bottom. He raises a
finger to his lip in Maria’s direction and mouths the words
“I’ll go check it out”. He stands beside the closed bedroom
door, bat in hand, and turns the handle to open it while
staying just off to the side. Once the door is open he takes
a quick look to make sure the hallway is empty before
stepping through the threshold.

MARIA (CONT'D)
(whispering)
Be careful.

4 INT. HALLWAY - NIGHT 4

Paul moves through the hallway, towards the door to the spare
room. He raises his bat before cautiously and quietly turning
the handle. The door opens slowly. The room is empty. Relief
comes over Paul, but also the fact that the spare room is
freezing, to the point his breath is visible in the air. Paul
barely has time to register this as he’s startled by a noise
from downstairs, something like breaking glass. He closes the
spare room door quietly and continues downstairs with his bat
ready to swing.

5 INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT 5

He enters the living room the same way he left the bedroom,
with a quick glance from the side before entering. Once in,
he again is relieved that the room is empty, but a cursory
glance around the room reveals something is out of place- a
picture from the mantle has fallen face down onto the floor.
This removes Paul’s relief as he once again tenses up and
wields his bat for another quick look around. Once he’s
satisfied that there’s no one in the house he returns to the
fallen picture. He crouches to pick up the photo. It’s a
picture of he and Maria, all smiles. The glass in the frame
has smashed and falls from the frame as he picks it up. He
begins to pick up the broken pieces and stack them on the
picture when we get a shot that shows a crucifix on the wall
behind him begin to turn upside down on its own.
 5.
5 CONTINUED: 5
Paul, oblivious to this, finishes picking up the pieces of
broken glass and stands. It is only when he turns to leave
that his eyes lock on to the crucifix on the wall. His
confusion at this sight is short-lived and quickly turns to
terror as something flies over his shoulder and shatters on
the wall beside his head. This scares the bejesus out of Paul
who drops the picture frame holding the broken glass on the
floor.

MARIA
(from upstairs)
Paul?? Is everything ok??

Paul takes a death breath and lets it out slowly before

replying.

PAUL
I’m fine Maria, I just…dropped
something.

He looks down at the broken glass at his feet before turning

to investigate the object that had shattered against the
wall. Crouching to gather up the pieces, he finds it is the
same set of rosary beads from his dream.
 6.

ACT II

6 EXT. CHURCHYARD - DAY 6

Paul enters looking for someone. He spots a priest, FATHER

JOHN, up on a small step ladder, attempting to swat something
with a cloth.

PAUL
Father John?

The voice startles Fr. John who becomes unsteady on the step
ladder. Paul rushes over, just in time to catch Fr. John as
he stumbles, causing both men to arrive at an awkward
embrace.

PAUL (CONT'D)
Are you Father John? The
housekeeper sent me around.

FATHER JOHN
Ahem, yes... Yes, I am.
The two men separate and straighten themselves out awkwardly.

FATHER JOHN (CONT'D)

Tea?

7 INT. PAROCHIAL HOUSE - DAY 7

Cut to a shot of a dainty teapot pouring tea, in what we can

assume is the parochial house due to the religious décor. A
wider shot reveals it is father John pouring tea for Paul as
he begins to speak.

PAUL
Basically, we don’t really feel
safe.

FATHER JOHN
Milk?

PAUL
Yes, please. So, aye... we don’t
really feel sa-

FATHER JOHN
Sugar?

PAUL
No thank you, look Father, I know
this all sounds crazy, but trust
me, I wouldn’t be here if I thought
there was someone else that could
help me.
(MORE)
 7.
7 CONTINUED: 7
PAUL (CONT'D)
That’s not to say, I mean…I just
know how insane it sounds.

Father John takes a seat across from Paul and pours himself a
cup while he talks.

FATHER JOHN
Regardless of anything else, it’s
good to talk to someone in times
like this, starting a new family
can be quite stressful, how are
things with your wife? Maria was
it? Biscuit?

PAUL
No thanks. Yeah, um, things are
good, great even. Look Father, this
isn’t stress, there are no issues
between Maria and me, that I could
handle. Most things I could handle,
what I can’t handle is bloody
rosary beads blowing up and
knocking rattling the whole house
in the middle of the night.

FATHER JOHN
I understand you’re upset, and
believe me I don’t mean to make
light of your situation, but we’re
always taught to search for
rational causes before tossing
around any supernatural theories.
History has shown that what people
once thought of as demonic
occurrences could usually be
attributed to more earthly bound
causes, mental illness,
hallucinations, stress like I said,
even structural issues in the house
itself.

PAUL
This is no structural issue,
Father.

FATHER JOHN
I see. I’ll tell you what, why
don’t I come around this evening
and give the house a blessing. It
can’t hurt and it’ll hopefully help
you and Maria get a good night’s
sleep. You’ll have enough sleepless
nights when that baby arrives.

PAUL
If you think that will help.
 8.
7 CONTINUED: 7
FATHER JOHN
And make sure Maria’s there too,
and I’ll bless the whole clan, just
to be sure.

PAUL
Thank you, Father.

Paul gets up to go, Father John walks him to the door.

FATHER JOHN
Paul, just to be clear, in the
church we’re taught that “demons”
are parables, myths used to
represent something within us that
has strayed too far from the Lord’s
light, all I can do is give a
blessing, but it’s up to you to
figure out why this is happening to
you. You may find the answer lies
rooted somewhere closer to reality
than in the heavens.

PAUL
Here’s hoping. Thanks again,
Father.

8 EXT. PAUL’S HOUSE - NIGHT 8

WE SEE FATHER JOHN APPROACHING PAUL AND MARIA’S HOUSE.

PERHAPS HE STOPS TO TAKE IN THE ENTIRE BUILDING IN A SUBTLE
HOMAGE TO THE EXORCIST.

CUT TO:

Maria opens the door to Father John.

FATHER JOHN
Hello there! Maria is it? I assume
Paul said I’d be stopping by.

MARIA
He did, nice to meet you Father. I
hope you brought your strongest
holy water!

Father John raises his briefcase and taps the side.

FATHER JOHN
Oh yes! The good stuff!

He enters the house.

 9.

9 INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT 9

Maria gestures for Father John to sit while she herself

lingers by the door, arms folded and uneasy.

MARIA
Paul should be down in a minute,
he’s just out of the shower.

FATHER JOHN
(lightheartedly)
Nothing other-worldly in the
bathroom then?

MARIA
(laughs nervously)
Not yet! It usually doesn’t happen
during the day, usually…

FATHER JOHN
So you’ve experienced things too?

MARIA
You mean, am I sure Paul’s not just
losing his mind? Aye, I’ve
experienced it too. I know he used
to be a bit of a madman, but he’s
come a long way since I found out
we were expecting, he’s really
trying, I’m just worried that this
is all gonna stress him out to the
point where he just gives up.

Maria winces and puts a hand to the side of her pregnant

bump.

MARIA (CONT'D)
Sorry Father, can you excuse me a
moment, the joys of pregnancy! Paul
should be down in a sec.

FATHER JOHN
Of course! I’ll be fine here, you
do what you have to do.

Maria leaves.

Father John, still in a light mood despite the confirmation

of strange occurrences by Maria, takes the opportunity to
look around the living room while on his own. The pictures on
the mantle, the view out the window, until his eyes fall on
the upside down cross on the wall. He rolls his eyes, expels
a slight snicker, and shakes his head at the obviousness of
the imagery before stretching his hand out to turn the cross
the right way up.
 10.
9 CONTINUED: 9
His dismissive demeanor soon turns to confusion as he
realizes that the cross will not budge, no matter how hard he
tries. His efforts begin to verge on anger when Paul enters
the room, startling him.

PAUL
Father, thanks for coming round.

FATHER JOHN
Not at all, I was just...

He gestures towards the cross.

PAUL
Yeah, that. Maria thought to put up
a few crosses when all this
started, I thought it was a bit
creepy myself. And then they
turned. I bet she wishes she could
take them down now!

FATHER JOHN
I’m sure.

Eager to get started, Paul claps his hands together.

PAUL
Right, will we get started?

10 INT. STAIRS - NIGHT 10

Paul takes Father John upstairs, as they climb the stairs

Paul explains the spare room.

PAUL
There are small things happening
throughout the house, but the
knocking at night seems to be
coming from the spare room, well,
it’s supposed to be the baby’s
room, and it’s been freezing in
there since all this started. We
haven’t gone near it in a few days.

Paul stops at the landing and lets Father John go ahead, Paul
hangs back, intimidated by the room. We see the door from
Father John’s POV, perhaps a mild dolly zoom or tilt to
emphasize an ominous feeling. Father John looks back to Paul,
who is now joined by Maria. Father John’s demeanor is much
more serious now than it was when he arrived, though still
not completely convinced.

FATHER JOHN
(uneasy)
Well. That seems as good a place as
any to start.
 11.
10 CONTINUED: 10
Father John approaches the door to the spare room cautiously
but stops before opening it. We see a close up of the handle,
his hand stopping inches from it, a moment of hesitation, and
he reaches for and turns it. We see the door open casually,
our view from directly behind Father John. He slowly takes a
few steps into the center of the room, the camera following
him as he does. For a second everything seems fine, but
suddenly Father John turns back towards the doorway as the
camera quickly retreats along the same pathway it entered,
the door slamming shut on the view of Father John’s now
terrified face.

Paul rushes to the door calling Father John. Maria stands

rooted to her spot on the landing, trembling and scared. Paul
frantically but unsuccessfully tries to get the door open
while the noise from inside the room begins to rise. The
creaking of wood and rumble of earth as the house itself
seems to have swallowed the priest, while buried in the sound
is the groaning and breathing of something animalistic.

The banging sound from earlier scenes accompanies the sounds

from the room, as usual, growing in volume and intensity
until it’s clear that something is banging on the other side
of the spare room door. A large THUMP and both Paul and the
camera simultaneously jolt backward. Paul stands helpless,
Maria begins to cry, when suddenly the noise begins to
subside, getting quieter to the point it becomes nothing more
than a long exhaled breath. The door lazily swings open of
its own accord.

PAUL
Father?

Paul cautiously approaches the room, he gets to the doorway

and peers in. He stands at the threshold, careful not to be
swallowed up by the room himself, and sees Father John from
behind on his knees, his head in his hands.

PAUL (CONT'D)
Father? Are you okay?

Father John slowly takes his head from his hands, glancing
around the room to ensure that he is in fact safe now. He
looks completely defeated, tears streaming down his face, his
faith shaken to its very core, his mind filled with horrors
that’ll remain for the rest of his life. He looks up at Paul,
his eyes screaming. Paul once more begins to ask if he is
okay but as soon as the words begin to leave his lips Father
John hurries to his feet and claws his way out of the room.
He has no direction as he escapes, his hands feeling for
anything that can propel him quicker from this entire ordeal,
almost tumbling down the stairs and out the front door.

Paul and Maria stand open mouthed at the top of the stairs,
looking down the path the Priest has just taken.
 12.
10 CONTINUED: 10
Paul’s eyes do not leave the front door, whereas Maria is
able to stifle her sobs long enough to slap the back of her
hand off Paul’s arm.

MARIA
What the FUCK was that?

CUT TO:

11 INT. UPSTAIRS - NIGHT 11

HANDHELD OVER PAUL’S SHOULDER HAS HE TRIES TO CONVINCE MARIA

TO STAY AS SHE GOES FROM ROOM TO ROOM PACKING UP HER THINGS.

PAUL
Maria come on, we can sort this
out.

MARIA
Oh aye, sort it out, you always
sort it out don’t ye!

PAUL
What the hell is that supposed to
mean?

MARIA
I mean it’s always something Paul,
isn’t it?! If it’s not the drink
it’s the drugs, if it’s not the
drugs it’s the women, and now this?

PAUL
Now hang on, it’s hardly my fault
there’s a ghost!

MARIA
A ghost?! A GHOST?! That’s not a
bloody ghost Paul, it’s not like
Patrick fuckin’ Swayze’s up there
making pottery! There’s something
DEMONIC going on in this house, and
I’ll be fucked if I’m gonna stay
here one more night.

PAUL
Where will you go?

MARIA
My ma’s.

PAUL
Well, that’s hardly fair. I’m not
exactly welcome over there, what am
I supposed to do?
 13.
11 CONTINUED: 11
MARIA
I dunno Paul! I thought you were
gonna sort it out?! Isn’t that what
you do?

PAUL
(defiantly)
You know what? I WILL sort it out!

MARIA
You’re staying here?

PAUL
You’re damn right I am!

Paul sits down and folds his arms. His attitude is stern.

PAUL (CONT'D)
I’m gonna stay right here, ‘cause
this is MY house, and no bloody
specter is gonna chase me from it.

Maria slings her overnight bag over her shoulder and takes a
look at Paul as she turns to leave. Paul turns his head from
her defiantly, in a way planting himself to the spot.
MARIA
Suit yourself.

Maria leaves.

Paul stubbornly stays rooted to the spot for a few seconds as

she leaves before eventually getting up and running to the
door after her.

PAUL
Maria!

He realizes she is gone, closes the door and rests his head
against it for a moment before turning around and realizing
that he is all alone in the house.

PAUL (CONT'D)
FUUUUCCCKKK!!!!

CUT TO BLACK.
 14.

ACT III

12 INT. KITCHEN - MORNING 12

WE SEE PAUL SITTING AT HIS KITCHEN TABLE, AND EMPTY BOTTLE OF

ALCOHOL ON THE TABLE BESIDE AN EMPTY GLASS, AN ASHTRAY FULL
OF CIGARETTE BUTTS, AND A BASEBALL BAT ON HIS LAP. HE LOOKS
AWFUL, BAGS UNDER HIS EYES, LEG TREMBLING, CHEWING HIS
FINGERNAILS, IT’S CLEAR HE HASN’T SLEPT AT ALL. SUDDENLY AN
ALARM STARTS GOING OFF, CAUSING PAUL TO JUMP OUT OF HIS SKIN
AND CLUMSILY GRAB THE BAT, BUT IT’S JUST HIS PHONE, THE USUAL
7AM ALARM. HE SWITCHES OFF THE ALARM AND PUTS THE BAT DOWN. A
FEW DEEP BREATHS, A FEW LIGHT SLAPS ACROSS HIS OWN FACE, AND
A LOOK OF DETERMINATION COMES OVER HIM.

QUICK SHOT OF HIS HAND GRABBING HIS COAT.

QUICK SHOT OF HIS HAND GRABBING HIS KEYS.

QUICK SHOT OF THE FRONT DOOR CLOSING BEHIND HIM AS HE LEAVES.

13 EXT. COURTYARD - DAY 13

We enter the courtyard where Paul met Father John earlier.

Our view follows over his shoulder as he rounds the corner
until we see the housekeeper tending to the garden. Paul is
disheveled, having not slept the night before. His demeanor
is ragged and desperate.

PAUL
Is Father John here?

We enter the courtyard where Paul met Father John earlier.

Our view follows over his shoulder as he rounds the corner
until we see the housekeeper tending to the garden. Paul is
disheveled, having not slept the night before. His demeanor
is ragged and desperate.

HOUSEKEEPER
I’m sorry, Father john has had to
take an unexpected sabbatical, oh
wait, you must be Paul? He said you
might call, I have something for
you.

She reaches in to the pocket of her apron and pulls out a

letter with “Paul and Maria” written on the envelope. Paul
takes the letter, almost rudely and tears it open.
 15.
13 CONTINUED: 13
As he begins to read we hear the contents of the letter
narrated by Father John as the camera switches to various
shots of Paul taking a journey on foot through country paths.

FATHER JOHN
(voice over)
Dear Paul and Maria, forgive my
hasty departure from our last
meeting, but I cannot stress enough
how imperative it is that you leave
that house. Please, for the sake of
your unborn child, take yourselves
far from there and never return.
There is nothing within my power to
assist you both further, for that
you’ll need a particular type of
Priest, one who specializes in this
kind of thing. I’ve attached the
name and address of one such priest
on the back of this letter. I pray
he can help you through this
difficult time. May the lord
protect you both, Father John.

14 EXT. EDGE OF RIVER - GOLDEN HOUR 14

We see Paul stop to rest along his journey at the edge of a

river. He gazes out over the water, tired and almost
defeated, when he feels a tugging at his sleeve. He turns to
find a young boy, 7 or 8, who holds out a closed fist to hand
Paul something. Paul opens his hand and the boy drops a set
of rosary beads onto his palm, the same rosary beads that had
been flung across the living room and destroyed, except now
whole and new again. The boy runs away as soon as he has
delivered the beads. Paul stands dumbstruck at the sight of
the rosary beads in his hand and turns to question the boy as
to their origin but finds he is alone, very much alone. A
wide shot reveals no sign of the boy, who couldn’t have run
so quickly as to escape Paul’s view. After a few seconds of
scanning the area, Paul holds the rosary beads to his face
with both hands and says an inaudible prayer. He is now
resolute on his quest.

15 EXT. OLD CHAPEL - NIGHT 15

We open on a shot of the name and address written on the back

of Father John’s letter in Paul’s hand. He lowers the letter
to reveal that he has arrived at an old church in the middle
of nowhere. A wider shot shows him approaching the house. The
area is peaceful, with nothing to suggest anything may be
wrong. We see the front door over Paul’s shoulder as he
reaches up and knocks the large brass knocker. He knocks it 3
good times, feeling a sense of dread as he does. For the
knocker creates exactly the same sound that had been haunting
his nightmares, the same sound that had seemed to emanate
from his spare room.
 16.
15 CONTINUED: 15
It suddenly strikes him that something doesn’t feel right and
he begins to step backwards. We hear someone begin to unlatch
the door from the inside, our view from Paul’s POV, slowly
stepping back from the door.

The door opens to reveal an older Priest, a very familiar

Priest, in fact, the very same Priest from Paul’s nightmares.
Paul begins to stammer in terrified confusion.

PAUL
But how? You’re... This can’t be!

The priest slowly grins.

PRIEST
Paul! You made it! I was beginning
to think you’d never arrive.

PAUL
No, no no no….this is just a dream,
YOU’RE just a dream!

PRIEST
I told you Paul, he takes many
forms.

Paul drops to his knees and begins to cry while the priest
feigns sympathy looking down at him. We switch to a wide
shot, slowly pulling away from the scene.

THE END