The Fall of the House of Usher (2023) s01e03 Episode Script

1
[monkey chittering]
[monkey shrieking]
[siren blares]
[sergeant] We haven't even processed it.
Unis are puking their guts out
in that alley.
CSI's still getting suited up,
and now I got this guy
Yes, sir.
Yes, sir.
Yes, sir.
I understand.
I don't know who the fuck you know
Hey! I don't care who you know uptown,
you don't remove anything
from the crime scene.
Chief says you got ten minutes
and then we're coming in.
No more time.
Do you understand? Do you hear me?
- And don't touch anything.
- Thank you, sergeant.
[sergeant 2] Whoa, hey.
Sergeant.
I don't know how,
but apparently he's clear.
Don't touch anything!
[dog barking distantly]
[gasps]
[gurgles, grunts]
We got a survivor in here!
[Roderick] It was the sprinklers.
See, he'd tied into tanks on the roof,
but they weren't there
to hold fresh water.
We'd repurposed them
when we closed the lab,
just tucked some unfortunate material
away to avoid the EPA fines.
The idea was we'd come back
when no one was looking and dump it.
It was
medical byproduct, highly acidic from a
less than legal development process
and absolutely in violation
of multiple environmental regulations,
but we couldn't We had to keep it.
We couldn't ship it out
because it was so corrosive
and we shouldn't have had it at all.
And the fines would have come
with charges, so
It was bad
and those tanks,
they were barely up to the task.
It was already eating
through the tanks and the pipes.
And we had another few weeks
before we'd have a real mess on our hands.
We were gonna take it out
while the building was demolished and
hide the extraction behind the demolition.
Lots of material going in and out
of a demolition site,
so no one would notice.
[Auguste] Jesus, Roderick.
And my son would have understood this
if he'd paid a minute's fucking
attention to the family business. But no
He went off, hired a friend's
cousin's friend's friend
to hook onto the main line.
And they didn't test it.
A horrible accident.
[Auguste] Except for one thing.
There's one thing that doesn't jive
with the "horrible,
tragic accident" story.
So you caught that, did you?
[chuckles softly]
Go ahead.
Say it.
The wait staff.
[Madeline] You said the wait staff
left the building. All of them?
[Arthur] Could be a smoke break,
but that's the question.
Why'd they all leave
at the same time just before?
[Madeline] They knew. They fucking knew.
Then someone set this up.
How many dead?
Seventy-eight. So far.
Christ Almighty, the stock price
barely survived the indictment.
Arthur, get into it
with a few friendly reporters.
We say it was an underground party,
it was thrown by someone else.
There's a few felons on the guest list.
We put it on one of them,
keep Perry out of it.
Camille's gonna be furious
you didn't go through her.
This can't go through her.
It has to come from outside the family.
Keep Camille miles away.
It was someone else's party.
Perry was in the wrong place
at the wrong time.
[Arthur] We've got the footage
from the cameras.
He'd set up cameras.
My guys are scrubbing them now.
If anyone there isn't who they seem,
I'll find out.
I'm on everybody.
[door opens]
[panting]
Sir. Sir, you can't just go back there!
[Roderick] Where the hell have you been?
- Oh, what happened?
- It was an accident.
Just a terrible accident.
[ECG beeping]
[Roderick] Your brother's dead.
Did you hear me? Your brother is dead.
Yeah, dead Perry, got it.
We have to call the other kids.
Sun's gonna come up soon.
That means the fucking morning shows.
This is gonna get out any minute now.
- You're right, we need to close ranks.
- Mmm-hmm.
Bring them in.
[Arthur] We need to talk, Freddie.
What the fuck happened? Where was she?
What what is happening?
We need to talk because when people ask,
there are some things
you absolutely cannot say.
[Camille] Fuck, that's terrible.
Yes, it is.
[Camille] It makes everything worse.
The investigations, the lawsuits,
the fucking trial, it all gets juiced.
Fuck's sake, Camille.
Our brother just died.
[Camille] Half-brother.
[softly] You fucking cunt.
Say what you want, he was one of us.
He didn't deserve to die like that.
Fuck. [sniffles] No one does.
- How come you didn't know about the party?
- What?
Don't play coy. Knowing stuff
is your bread and butter,
and Perry throws an underground party
at a condemned Fortunato building
and you didn't know about it?
No, he didn't invite his sister
to the orgy.
Just his sister-in-law?
[Camille] No idea how I'll keep that down.
If the hospital doesn't leak it,
they're definitely gonna leak it,
somebody will notice that Morella Usher
doesn't have skin anymore.
[Madeline] That's enough.
We need to close ranks here.
Really close them.
You need to tell Pym to just stay
in his lane and leave the PR to me.
Your father feels that this has to come
from outside the family.
It's the opposite.
It's exactly the opposite.
He's wrong because
Perry Usher died horribly last night
in a preventable accident.
That's public sympathy.
We're gonna have something
we haven't had in three years.
- It's public sympathy.
- Okay.
What would you do?
I Two dozen memorial profile pieces
to start. I
Uh, "Perry Usher, America's son,
America's fallen prince."
We'll turn him into JFK Junior.
We can get, um, GQ, Us Weekly, USA Today.
Get his face on the checkout aisles
of the grocery store,
get his old friends telling
their best stories, like,
"Hey, remember that time that Perry
drove a college friend to rehab?"
Or no, um, "Remember when he financed
those village schools
- in India and Africa?"
- [Leo] No.
[Camille] That's why we've a charity wing,
so you paste someone's face on it.
We remember that he did it, so he did it.
He was very Paul Newman
about his charity work when he was alive
but now that he's gone,
we can sing about it.
But any attack on us
while we're grieving is an attack on him.
What else?
Multi profiles on Dad and you
and the siblings 'cause they'll carry on
the charity work in his name.
Picking up the torch.
Pics of us at the grave
but just long enough to say,
"Hey, no pictures, please."
The Usher family feels lost,
just like anybody else.
People are losing loved ones to opioids,
we know what loss is.
We grieve with you. So you grieve with us.
But public sympathy
is a finite fucking resource
and we can't let a man like Arthur Pym
waste a precious limited resource
like that.
We have a week, seconds count.
I am running out of time,
I've wasted too much time already.
- Okay. You're up.
- [sighs]
You wonder why people hate us.
This is why.
Actually, no.
If you're wondering how this family
built its multi-billion dollar empire,
this is why.
Because opportunity doesn't
give a fuck what you're going through.
That's why they hate us.
Not because we grabbed the opportunity,
but because they didn't.
[Roderick] Eight goddamn months.
[Frederick] I tried
to play it by the book.
You always say keep them back so
But the EPA, they were all over us.
[Roderick] You don't need
eight months to take a building down,
you need a few thousand bucks
and somebody to do the job.
You were supposed to take
that building down.
[Frederick] The permits
If you had done what I said,
just got the Jersey boys
to take the building down
- Can we talk about this somewhere else?
- You did this.
It was you.
Hey, hey, honey.
- [Lenore] What happened?
- It's okay.
It should never have happened.
[Lenore sniffles]
Okay.
Where is she?
She's in surgery.
She's in another surgery.
What happened? What kind of accident?
Where was she?
[Auguste] Prospero Usher's death
is a tragedy.
I was just saying that doesn't mitigate
the pain and sorrow the Ushers have caused
while at the helm
- of Fortunato Industries.
- Come on, get him.
In the past year
nearly 50,000 people have died
from overdosing on Fortunato painkillers,
and justice must be served.
Are you saying that Prospero Usher's
death is justice?
- There it is.
- [Auguste] No.
- [reporter] What comparison are
- Boom.
you making between accidental overdoses
and last night's events?
[Camille] That is why I love Fox.
Send the prosecutor an edible arrangement.
He just bought us more days
of good [sing-song voice] will.
Do you actually want to send
an arrangement? I can't tell.
Toby, damn it, everybody knows
that edible arrangements
are what you send to people you hate.
So, yes.
What have you got?
The Perry charity thing is sticking.
Got a nibble outta Vox,
they'll eat anything.
I'm not talking about bullshit,
I'm talking about the real stuff.
What'd you get on Vic?
The only thing that saves this family
is publicly executing the informant.
The interesting thing is with the animals.
Test animals.
It's not the number of dying animals,
that's market norm like you said.
The problem is with the livestock count.
- What do you mean?
- [Tina] The numbers don't work.
There's animals missing.
Go on.
[Toby] The numbers track
when an animal death is reported
during a trial,
but when the animal
is supposed to have survived a procedure
the inventory dumps a day or two later.
One less monkey on the grounds,
no explanation, no report,
no adjustment addendum.
The numbers are just changed.
What do they think?
[Toby] Just about no one knows.
No, what do the lab employees think?
What're the rumors?
What do they talk about on their break?
[Tina] The rumor is
that she swaps them out.
A chimpanzee dies on the table,
rumor is she pulls another,
shaves its chest,
makes an identical incision,
even stitches it up.
And claims that the animal survived.
That's tough.
She'd have to get rid of the other one.
[Toby] And retrieve the tech.
Which is tough
because there are cameras and personnel.
The rumor is that she cuts them up
after hours
and carries them out in pieces.
There's been jokes about her lining
the inside of her Birkin bag
with plastic and taking the pieces
to an incinerator.
Wow. [chuckles]
Um, okay.
Okay
How solid is your connection
at the RUE morgue?
It's passable. Not firm, not flimsy.
Get me tape.
Camille?
[Camille] Mmm-hmm?
We're really sorry.
For your loss.
[sighs]
There's a balance there.
It's an unfortunate balance.
But it is a balance.
And one that I don't think we can afford
[reporters clamoring]
[Alessandra] Jesus, get in here.
Sorry about that. How are you? You okay?
Oh, yeah, I'm just peachy.
Okay, let's go.
I'm rescheduling what I can.
I want to get you out of town.
- Babe, honestly, I was hoping for lunch.
- [chuckling] No, I mean it.
I'm here for you.
I got two more to see
and then I'm all yours.
- Okay.
- We'll hunker down.
Okay?
Stay here, drink your tea,
I'll be 20 minutes. 30 tops. Stay.
[sniffles]
[whimpers]
[sniffles, exhales]
[Verna] Oh!
I'm I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
Ugh, I should watch where I'm going.
- You think?
- I'm all turned around.
I was supposed to give this
to the receptionist
but she's gone and I can't find anybody.
Look. You can just leave it
at the receptionist's desk.
I would, but it's got all my information.
I don't care who knows
about my heart issues
but I'd hate for them to see
my social security number.
Isn't it awful that we live in that world?
If you have heart issues,
well, you really are in the right place
because Dr. Ruiz, she's She's the best.
Look, why don't I take you to her office?
Make sure your paperwork
gets to the top of her pile?
[breathing heavily] That'd be wonderful.
Thank you.
All right, then. You You all right?
Yeah, I just I have irregular heartbeats,
I get tired easily.
Well, um, I can take this.
You go sit down.
You work here?
Yeah, yeah. I work with Dr. Ruiz.
Oh.
[chuckles softly]
How wonderful.
[chuckles]
Have a seat.
[chuckles] You're just
You're just perfect, aren't you?
[Julius muffled] Leo. Leo.
Hey.
[louder] Hey!
- What are you doing here?
- I texted you an hour ago.
Really?
- Guess my edible's kicking in.
- I have to prep you. You're first up.
You have GQ, USA Today
and PC Gamer tomorrow.
And so we have to pre-game.
Also, Perry's dead, the family's fucked,
you're the frontline of my PR campaign
and you just took an edible?
You want some?
I mean, yeah, I want some.
[snorting]
- Easy, tiger.
- [clears throat]
I was getting too down
and this will even me out.
I know what I'm doing. [exhales]
Another glass, Camille?
Yeah.
I think I do.
[Leo] Mmm.
I like him. I think he's great.
I think that you should bring him
around to the family
and introduce him to the family
because he's got a keeper bod.
Please give me relationship advice.
Or have your assistants do it.
Did you know that Tammy and Froderick
call us "the bastards"?
You, me and Perry?
- And Vic.
- [Camille] Yeah, fuck Vic.
[chuckling] Why do you hate Vic so much?
They do though.
They call us "the bastards".
How old were you when you met the old man?
Eighteen.
[Camille] That's right. I was 20.
Oh, thank you, I love you.
Leo loves you too.
He says you're getting engaged.
Did he mean it or is it just the edibles
and the pot and the speed
and the wine
and the coke and the pills talking?
I was 18.
I just said that. Right?
He was just so little,
when he showed up. Perry.
He was 16 when he found out.
Rags to fucking riches.
He was just a teenager.
No wonder he was fucked up.
If you start thinking this is reality,
you'll just slip into the abyss.
You're speaking for yourself.
I stayed out of that.
- Now that's bullshit.
- Bullshit, what?
I make video games.
[hesitates] You know. [chuckles]
[sputters] I'm not part of the whole
Usher pharma bollocks.
Like, I make video games, you know?
[Camille] You don't make video games.
You give money to people
who make video games.
But you don't make shit.
Um, like, Froderick
is this Roderick Usher cover band
and he's playing the hits,
but it's sort of off-key,
and Tammy is basically just Goop with,
like, a big golden bug sticker on it.
And it's not even her face on the product,
it's BILLT, the fucking fitness clown,
and then Vic's heart mesh
isn't even her heart mesh,
it's the surgeon's heart mesh,
that's why she's fucking the surgeon,
and you're like this amazing,
I don't know, like, Xbox Gatsby.
- [Leo] Wow.
- And I just spin.
Dad decided that I belong
in a room of smoke and mirrors,
and I'm like a ceiling fan
and I spin and I spin and I spin
and I don't go anywhere.
Ushers don't make stuff.
None of us.
[R & B song playing]
- Okay, I'm still stuck on Xbox Gatsby.
- [Pluto meowing]
- Oh, fuck this
- [Julius] No.
- You got a cat?
- [Julius] She's mine.
Hey, Pluto, leave Daddy Leo alone.
He's grieving.
- [kisses]
- [doorbell rings]
And here come some fellow grievers.
- [Pluto meows]
- Company.
Yeah, having a little party.
Take my mind off things.
It's what Perry would've wanted.
Yes, that's my cue to go.
Tomorrow morning, I need you to
I need you to nail it.
You're my opening volley.
There you go, boom, you're prepped.
Hey, you want to stay?
It's nothing huge, just a few friends,
some top-shelf shit. Designer stuff.
[snorting] I'm aiming for total blackout.
Wow. I don't know who wouldn't want to be
ringside for that,
but no, I'm gonna
let you grieve yourself
- into a coma by yourself.
- [knock on door]
Please be careful.
I'll move the mags till the afternoon.
- Hey, I invented careful.
- [Julius] Hey guys, how are you?
[woman] Hey, good.
Haven't seen you in a long time.
[Leo] Hey!
- [Julius] It has been a while, right?
- [man] Sure.
- [woman 1] Wanna bring it in and chill?
- I can get it.
[woman 2] I need something already.
- Hey, Leo.
- Hey
- I brought some Monty.
- Oh!
[woman 2] You want some Monty?
[groans]
[Roderick] Death was something new
for my children.
They really hadn't faced it.
But like with all other things,
Ushers adapt quickly.
One thing I tried to teach them,
the art of the pivot.
When life hands you lemons
Make lemonade?
[sighs]
No.
[piano music playing]
First you roll out a multi-media campaign
to convince people lemons
are incredibly scarce,
which only works if you stockpile lemons,
control the supply, then a A media blitz.
Lemon is the only way to say "I love you,"
the must-have accessory
for engagements or anniversaries.
Roses are out, lemons are in.
Billboards that say she won't have sex
with you unless you got lemons.
You cut De Beers in on it.
Limited edition lemon bracelets,
yellow diamonds called lemon drops.
You get Apple to call their new operating
system OS-Lemón.
A little accent over the "o".
You charge 40% more for organic lemons,
50% more for conflict-free lemons.
You pack the Capitol with lemon lobbyists,
you get a Kardashian to suck
a lemon wedge in a leaked sex tape.
Timothée Chalamet wears lemon shoes
at Cannes.
Get a hashtag campaign.
Something isn't "cool" or "tight"
or "awesome", no, it's "lemon".
"Did you see that movie?"
"Did you go to that concert?
It was effing lemon."
Billie Eilish, "OMG, hashtag lemon."
You get Dr. Oz to recommend
four lemons a day
and a lemon suppository supplement
to get rid of toxins
'cause there's nothing scarier
than toxins.
Then you patent the seeds.
You write a line of genetic code
that makes lemons look
just a little more like tits
and you get a gene patent
for the tit-lemon DNA sequence,
you cross-pollinate
you get those seeds circulating
in the wild,
and then you sue the farmers
for copyright infringement
when that genetic code
shows up on their land.
Sit back, rake in the millions,
and then, when you're done,
and you've sold your lem-pire
for a few billion dollars,
then, and only then,
you make some fucking lemonade.
[storm rumbling]
[sighs]
Perry had some interesting drugs
in his system.
In fact, his autopsy toxicology report
said he had Monty in his system.
Didn't make lemonade
out of that one, did you?
What the fuck is Monty?
It's a street-engineered derivative
of Ligodone. Your drug.
In his system.
When he died.
Well, this is what I'm saying.
This happens all the time.
Amateur chemists take a run
at a quality FDA-approved drug,
they modify it.
There's been dozens.
Angel Tears. Downset. Now
Monty, I suppose?
That was redacted
from the original coroner's report.
That was withheld for more than a week.
And you didn't know that, did you?
My attorney, Arthur Pym, is protective.
And he's very, very good. As you know.
He obliterated your case, so
What is it?
[breathing heavily]
Apologies, I
I think I need another.
What say you, Auggie?
I'm good.
[Roderick] Well, Ligodone, I'll be honest,
there are days when I wish I had never
stumbled on that little pill.
I was a bit naive.
Truth be told, I
You can't help it when you're young. You
God, you assume a lot.
Like you assume the chemist isn't lying
about the addictive properties.
You assume your company will act ethically
with your pitch and you assume
[glass shatters]
[breathing heavily]
You know, it wasn't mine.
Is what I'm saying. Ligodone.
You fucking throw that at me, all glib,
implying what?
That Ligodone killed my son?
I didn't make the drug. I didn't design
the drug. Ligodone is not my
Roderick, you said
you killed Perry, not me.
Not with No, not with the drug.
Fuck, you're not listening.
That's not how
- [liquid pours]
- [bottle thuds]
[sighs]
You know, Ligodone
[hesitates]it's a lot of things
to a lot of people.
I'm just as much a victim
of it as anybody else.
I'm a middleman.
But it's not my drug.
It was never my drug.
- This is my drug.
- Stop! Wait, you can't just
[Roderick] No, I found the chemist,
I walked this in here and you passed.
Now what's this bullshit
about Fortunato buying Landor Pharma?
He pushed past me.
It's okay.
All right, suit yourself.
So I got to thinking. And you were right.
Ligodone, a fucking gold mine. [laughs]
Look, that was my pitch.
I'm sorry. You have an exclusive
agreement with Landor Pharma?
- No, but I
- No?
- Me and Metzer, we papered a deal.
- Mmm.
Yeah, well, he developed Ligodone
at Landor.
They own it. Metzer doesn't own anything.
He wasn't at liberty to make that deal.
It's in his contract.
Any intellectual property he creates
while in their employ
No, no.
utilizing Landor's facilities
shall remain the sole
No, he told me that he created it,
he owns it. It's his.
Well, I guess that's why he's a chemist
and not a lawyer, huh?
Landor owns it all.
And, well, I just bought Landor,
so now I own it.
Hell, I even own Metzer.
It's all done.
And no, Rod, I didn't come to you because
Well, who exactly are you
in this equation?
What did you think was going to happen?
I'm curious.
You were gonna walk in here,
talk a little and then we would, what?
Partner up?
You go from mail room to the boardroom?
And I'd turn to you and say,
"Hey, Rod, what do we do next?"
Come on, man. You're smarter than that.
You couldn't do what I did.
You couldn't buy Landor.
You couldn't lock down Metzer.
You can't lock down Ligodone.
You can't do anything
because you don't have any juice.
Yet. And that's not your fault.
The whole thing was all my idea.
No, no. An idea is nothing.
An idea is a fart that your brain makes.
But if you patent an idea,
well, then it's an asset.
Do you get it now?
Okay, look.
Here is something that you do have, okay?
This is gonna sound like a little,
but it's not.
You have, for the moment, my gratitude.
And that can be an asset.
Hell, that can even have a value.
You see, because I'm writing you a check.
In the amount of $500.
I don't have to do this, okay,
I don't pay finder's fees for ideas.
I don't pay for other people's farts.
But you're a smart guy,
you're gonna take this money,
you're gonna buy your wife something nice.
Money for nothing.
Money for words.
Money for hot air.
You walked in here, brain farted
and turned it into $500.
And now, if you're smart, you're realizing
what else my gratitude is worth.
You're realizing,
"Oh, this guy likes my ideas."
A good manager wants to keep people
with good ideas around.
Gratitude's worth more
than you thought, isn't it?
And now you're thinking, "Is he grateful
enough to want to promote me?"
And the answer is "yes."
Because that guy with the good ideas,
I'm gonna want a shorter elevator ride
between me, those ideas and that guy.
Better to have him on the fourth floor
than Sub 2, maybe the 10th floor.
It's a shorter ride to hear
those great ideas.
Maybe, down the line,
I'm gonna want him up here.
Down the hall from me.
Hell, I might even want him
right next door to me.
You seeing the big picture here?
Do you get me, Roderick?
I get you.
Okay, good. So maybe if you curb
the fucking attitude,
you shut your mouth
and you listen for a minute,
you will figure out
that you have an angle here.
An angle that takes you closer
to where you wanna go.
Or do you wanna yell at me more
and find yourself out on the street?
There you go.
See, I knew you were a smart guy.
[sighs]
Now, let's talk about
your future here at Fortunato, hmm?
["I Wish I Knew The Man
I Thought You Were" playing]
I wish I knew the man ♪
I thought you were ♪
He would tell me that there must be ♪
- I know that look.
- [Roderick] What are you talking about?
I'm celebrating.
[Madeline] Mmm.
What did you get?
[Roderick] 15% pay raise,
I'm on four now and $500 on top.
Five hundred dollars right now.
- It is huge for us.
- Yeah.
[Annabel] This is a good thing, Roddie.
Remember when we first got placed
with the Muldoons?
They were our first fosters
after Mom died.
Awful people. Had five foster kids,
five support checks coming in.
They were making money off the gig.
Stuffed us all into a tiny room,
rationed out our food,
cashed the checks
and kept most of it themselves.
Roderick was defiant.
Called them out.
Raised holy hell. Came right at them.
Charged.
What did it get you?
Locked in the closet mostly.
[Madeline] Right.
I went a different way.
- You kissed ass.
- I made myself their favorite.
Of all the kids.
Kept telling Mrs. Muldoon
how hard she had it.
"I don't know how you do it all."
Even suggested ways
that she could cut more corners,
keep more of those support checks.
And it worked.
She started to see me as a helper.
She gave me more responsibility. And more.
And pretty soon she didn't even cover
that ledger when I came into the room.
Then what happened?
Social services.
Broke it all up.
Right?
When I decided it was time.
She didn't know it was me
until they had her in cuffs.
You always charge right at it.
And I will always love you for that.
Rufus Griswold is just Mrs. Muldoon
in a nice suit.
You charge him, you're in the closet,
and he will brick you in there too.
And the more you fight,
the more bricks he'll add
until you're in your own tiny little tomb.
But you're smarter than that now.
You don't run right at him.
You get beside him.
You make him want to hand you that trowel.
Show you how it works.
Then you stab him with it.
[Annabel] We can get Tammy's medicine now.
It's been three months
we couldn't afford that medicine.
Now we can. That's great.
It's so great.
And we can fix the air conditioner too.
You did that.
[Roderick] I know. I know.
I know your sister had it hard.
You both had it hard.
You had to be so hard. Both of you.
So young.
And I will never understand that.
I won't. I can't, but
I don't like her, honey.
I'm sorry, I don't.
"I was a child and she was a child
In this kingdom by the sea
And we loved with a love
That was more than a love
I and my Annabel Lee."
More.
"With a love that the winged
Seraphs of Heaven."
[Annabel] Mmm
"Coveted her and me"
[siren wails faintly]
[inhales sharply]
Oh, fuck.
[grunts and breathes heavily]
[exhales] Fuck.
[groans]
Ah.
[sighs] Fuck.
[exhales]
[breathing heavily]
[Arthur] I've identified every person
in the footage except her.
How many people interacted
with this woman?
[Arthur] That's tough to say.
Wait staff all say the same thing.
They didn't see her face.
Red cloak, killer body, that's it.
It looks like maybe maybe
she tipped them off.
- Maybe.
- [Arthur] They're not sure.
They feel like maybe she said something
but they can't remember what.
Just felt they needed to get out.
[Madeline] I don't like it. I mean,
who does this? What's the point?
And why don't they reach out
and ask for something?
Press the wait staff again.
See if anybody made any big deposits.
Bought fancy shoes, anything at all
in the past few weeks.
Maybe you're right, Roddie.
Maybe it was just a horrible accident.
But you keep one foot
in both possibilities, Arthur.
You got it.
We'll know more when Morrie wakes up.
Good morning?
- Afternoon?
- [Leo] Oh, who can say?
Hey.
I made you eggs.
That's amazing.
I'm shocked you're on your feet,
I thought you wouldn't be conscious
until tomorrow.
Did you clean?
- You know, I did.
- [cell phone dings]
[Leo] I don't know.
Grief's a funny thing, I guess.
Keith just texted.
Apparently Liam was a mess
when he got home last night.
[chuckling]
Yeah, it was
Actually I I don't remember.
How How was it, actually?
It was whatever you think it was.
It was that and more.
I'm glad you don't remember.
It's a blessing anyway.
Why?
What was I like?
You were gone.
Yeah, but anything I don't know,
anything out of the ordinary? Anything
I'm not saying that.
Yeah, fuck.
I, uh, I cannot remember a fucking thing
after Camille left.
Nothing jumps out at you?
Hey, where's Pluto?
I don't know.
I put her food bowl out, see.
I put it out as soon as I woke up.
And I haven't heard
Fuck, did we let her out by mistake?
Oh, fuck. Not again. [sighs]
Hey, she always comes back.
- [sighs]
- I mean, what was it like last time?
Three days.
[nurse] She's still unconscious.
Checked on her an hour ago.
She's stable, but nothing yet.
I understand. Um
I'd still I'd love to see her
if that's okay.
[ECG beeping]
Mom?
[Morrie wheezing]
Mom! It's okay. I'm here. Mom?
- [beeping rapidly]
- [Morrie continues wheezing]
Mom! Mom, don't do that!
- [phone beeps]
- Hey, um
My Mom's awake but she's freaking out!
[shouting] Ma! Don't do that! Ma!
Hurry up! Mom!
[Morrie wheezing]
[both scream]
[line ringing]
[Victorine] Hi, is this Pam?
Hi there, this is, uh
It's Victorine Lafourcade.
We met yesterday at the clinic, I
[chuckling] Yeah.
Yes, that's right. That's right.
So, um, listen, the doctor and I,
we reviewed your file
and, um, well, I recall you talking
about your irregular heartbeat.
Mmm.
Well, we're just about to start trials
on a very, very exciting new treatment,
a new device,
that I think you would just make
a wonderful candidate for.
Well, that is if you're interested.
You're late. And I'm hoping you got
that hookup on Vic,
but we can talk about it after
because I've had a shit day
and I really just wanna starfish
and forget the world.
- You two have your work cut out for you.
- Camille.
Don't talk to me until I've come
at least twice.
[groans softly] Fuck.
It's okay, you got this.
With all respect, that part of this
is not happening anymore.
Oh, I've got to hear this.
Oh, my God.
You fucking children.
It just happened.
Don't minimize it.
- We're together now and it's serious.
- For the love of fuck's sake.
- This dynamic is grossly inappropriate
- Tina.
And we've been trying to figure out
a way to tell you,
but we feared repercussions,
which is not cool.
Don't say it.
You're in love.
Yeah.
Oh, God, my fucking day.
Okay, so you both signed NDAs,
which are, I mean they're phenomenal,
you should just read them again,
and you've both also, you'll recall,
signed consent forms. So
We thought that was weird at the time too.
You thought that was weird?
I'm not a fucking idiot.
And, like I told you, both of you
when you were hired,
[slowly] I require a lot of my assistants.
We're really sorry.
This is a full service position.
I don't have I have Okay.
I have specific needs.
I have specific requirements
for a very specific
and unique fucking lifestyle.
I think it's really convenient
that you two were excited
when you signed your NDAs
and consent forms
and that you two fell in love, Tina,
one month after I finish paying
off your student debt, Tina?
My name isn't Tina, it's Beth.
I don't give a shit, Beth!
Damn it, Toby and fucking Tina
makes me laugh,
so at work you're fucking Tina!
Why is that so Ow.
I have a fucking migraine.
Fine, okay, oh, okay, you're in love.
You're in love.
Adorable little morons.
You would think that spending
this much time around Fortunato Industries
would teach the two of you a little bit
about brain chemistry,
you dopamine-riddled little fuck puppets.
I'm just gonna Venmo you
your severance.
We're not quitting.
We just needed you to know.
No, you're not quitting. You're fired
because you're all but useless to me now,
if you can't perform your designated tasks
and I will not be able to fuck
either of you from here on out
- without laughing so, boom, we're done.
- [phone beeps]
[groans] When the norepinephrine wears off
and you are lying in bed
next to each other
and one of you lets out a long fart
in your sleep,
you're gonna look back at this moment
and realize what a stupid,
fucking decision you both just made.
Did you at least get the hookup on Vic?
For real?
[keys jangle]
[Toby] Deal with it yourself.
[door opens and closes]
[Tammy] She's late.
[Bill] It's okay.
It's unprofessional.
It wouldn't be the end of the world
if she flaked.
You've been through a lot,
whether you admit it or not.
[doorbell rings]
[Tammy] You're late.
- [Verna] Mmm.
- Where's Lauren?
She's under the weather,
didn't want to spread it around.
But don't worry, huh,
we work together all the time.
She filled me in on everything,
so I understand the gig.
I'm Candy.
You're Candy?
Darling, I'm whoever you want.
[door closes]
- [Bill] Oh.
- [Verna chuckles]
Lauren is under the weather.
Oh.
Okay, uh, you good? Or
[Tammy] I'm good. This works.
Okay. Hi, I'm Bill.
[Verna] Brilliant.
And, uh, we're having dinner to start?
There, uh There you go.
[Verna chuckles softly]
Thanks awfully.
[sighs] You know
[inhales] It smells terrific.
[exhales]
And I was craving that today.
I almost texted you
when I left the office.
I almost texted to ask
if you'd do your chicken piccata.
It's like you knew.
Ugh.
I just love you.
Yeah, well, I knew you had a bad day
so you deserve it.
Uh, tell me about your day.
[Verna] Today was something.
And I don't know how to talk about it.
I'm I don't know how to feel.
This fucked up tragedy and
I'm not sure how to feel about it.
So you know what?
[sighs]
Let's not talk about Perry or the family,
or anything else.
Not tonight.
Tonight
I just wanna have dinner
with my husband.
I just wanna feel seen
and do whatever we can to push
the rest of that away.
[whispering] And relax. [chuckles]
[in normal voice] And who knows?
How was your day, Bill?
[chuckles]
My day? Uh
It was okay, truth be told.
We finished two new videos, two episodes
and honest to God, I think
we finally found our music supervisor.
And it is making all the difference.
[Verna] Yeah.
[Bill] I think it's going to be great
for Goldbug, actually.
I have some ideas about the launch,
if you wanna hear them?
[Verna] Mmm.
Tell me all about it, love.
[car beeps]
Excuse me.
- This is a restricted area.
- [Camille] Yes, I know.
You must be new.
You shouldn't be here.
Roderick Usher is my father.
[Verna] I understand.
Shouldn't be here though.
[whispering] Oh, my God, my day.
What's your name?
Fuck it, I don't care.
Listen, security guard person,
I don't know if you've read the news,
but it's been a very difficult week
for the Usher family,
and we're doing an article
on my sister's work.
You know my sister. Victorine Lafourcade.
I know Miss Lafourcade.
And you work the night shift.
Which means that you know what she does
to those poor animals.
And also, she greases your palm
as she walks by with her drippy Birkin bag
full of monkey bits.
And so, unless you'd like me
to audit your deposits
and hold it up against
your predictably humble salary,
you're gonna do the smart thing
and go back to your crossword puzzle
or else I'll have you fired and sued.
What's a six-letter word for "fucked"?
Fucked.
But you shouldn't be here.
I know who you are.
Of course I know who you are.
You're the clever one.
But you shouldn't be here.
And you don't have to be here.
That's all I was saying.
Open the door.
[door beeps]
[door beeps]
Oh.
[monkeys chittering softly]
[whimpering]
Fuck!
[grunting]
[monkey screeching]
Yeah, she pump you full of adrenaline?
- Keep your little heart beating?
- [grunting]
- [camera shutter clicks]
- [shrieks]
Vic, Vic, Vic.
[camera shutter clicking]
[monkeys shrieking]
[camera shutter clicks]
Oh, Vic, you are so fucked.
- [Verna] Why do you hate her?
- [gasps]
What the fuck?
[Verna] You know, it was the Greeks
who started it.
Fourth century BCE.
First experiments on animals.
At least, documented.
Pigs and goats.
You know how many animals are used
for testing in a year?
More than a hundred million.
Human beings doing this
to so many other species.
It's impressive.
Medical research on chimpanzees
was pretty much banned in 2015.
I mean, they said exceptions could be made
if the research was proven to be critical
to understanding human disease.
And if a sizeable donation was made
to support the conservation
of wild chimps.
[chuckles softly]
Your dad is a force of nature, isn't he?
I'm gonna need you to tell me
who the fuck you think you are.
Why do you hate her?
I mean, on paper, you should be allies.
The bastard daughters of Roderick Usher.
What an alliance you could have made.
Okay, whoever you are,
you are so fucking fired.
[shrieks]
90% of drugs fail in human trials.
Even though they pass pre-clinical tests.
So, sorry, animals.
And what about the stuff
that has nothing to do with health?
I mean, you lot can't make a lipstick
or a dandruff shampoo
without making something suffer.
I love how deliciously,
pointlessly mean you lot can be.
Okay, fired is the wrong word.
Because I'm gonna have you
fucking killed.
[monkey shrieks]
[Verna] And you could too.
You picked the worst job
to hide your true nature.
You clean up dirt for a living.
[shrieking]
Victorine, on the other hand
she picked better.
She's Mother Teresa, far as they know.
[chimpanzee shrieks]
Saving humanity
one precious heart at a time.
Inside though, you two are the most alike.
[breathing heavily]
You hate her because she hid it better.
[groaning]
[groaning intensifies]
[screaming]
[monkeys shrieking]
[whimpering softly]
You're right
you know.
She lies.
And she pumps us full of adrenaline
to make it look like it works.
You still didn't need to come here though.
It could have happened quiet.
Peaceful.
In bed.
But I guess it's got to happen like this.
I'm sorry.
It's not personal.
It wasn't with your brother either.
It's just, well
[breathes deeply]
Here we are.
Fuck it.
I got mine.
That's weird, where's Phil?
[door clicks]
[monkeys chittering]
Oh, my God.
[monkey shrieks]
[growling]
[metallic rattling]
[monkeys chittering]
[grunting]
[panting]
[chittering]
[metallic squeaking]
[monkey grunting]
[panting]
[metal rattles]
[chittering]
[panting, grunting]