Extrapolations (2023) s01e04 Episode Script

1
[VIEWER SHUSHES] Here we go.
[SPEAKER] Good evening, America.
There are decisions that we are
asked to make in our lifetimes
that are truly humbling.
Decisions that in previous times
would have been left to the gods.
But the current crisis
requires that we act
from the limited perspective
of human experience.
I have prayed for guidance,
sought out the wisdom
of fellow G22 leaders
as well as members of the scientific
community, the business community,
and religious and Indigenous
leaders of every stripe.
And we have come to a decision.
I will be signing CIT 2, the
Climate Intervention Treaty,
and extending the
moratorium on geoengineering
or any act that seeks to
artificially manipulate the climate.
Technology alone is not
the solution we require.
Alpha, off.
- Hey, Ro.
- [TEENAGER] I can't watch this.
Congrats, Dad. The
president took your advice.
- Kiddo, come on.
- [TEENAGER] Now we're all fucked.
I hope you're proud of yourself.
I gave her that advice to try to
protect your future, man. [SIGHS]
I'm sorry, everyone.
Hey, Alpha, on. Sorry.
[BURDICK] We must look elsewhere
if we are to solve this crisis.
You hear from Rowan yet?
Mm-mmm.
For what it's worth,
I think it's shitty.
He said he was coming.
He should be here.
- Oh.
- It's Father's Day. You're his father.
I remember being 20, and Father's Day
was not my priority holiday either.
And my dad didn't get married
three times, so there is that.
[BOTH CHUCKLE]
Well, we don't have to
be back until tomorrow,
so why don't you decide what
you wanna do to celebrate,
- and I'll go make us something to eat.
- Okay.
- Call Rowan again.
- [PHONE BEEPS]
[SPEAKER] Gonna make my speech here
and there'll be a huge reveal
behind these glass doors.
- [PHONE BEEPS]
- Is it Jonathan?
Maybe you should answer it.
Yeah, and say what?
Well, "Happy Father's Day."
Well, that's the easy part.
It's everything after that.
You know, your father used
to quote Hemingway to me.
"The world is a fine place
and worth fighting for."
Maybe you should try that.
It would kill him to know
that I was helping you.
Maybe he'd be proud.
I guess we'll find out soon enough.
[JONATHAN] Okay, so
we're never gonna agree
on geoengineering, I get it.
But this is six months, you know.
It's like he-he's got
complete tunnel vision.
It's like we can't talk
about anything else.
He needs some space. It's
- [PHONE RINGS]
- Sorry.
Rowan?
Did you find him?
[FRIEND] Djibouti. Logged
on to his Alpha social.
- Is she with him?
- [FRIEND] This is wrong on many levels.
[JONATHAN] Come on. Make it look
like normal course of business checks.
- We did this all the time.
- [FRIEND] You don't work here anymore,
so that would be a lie.
And the last thing we need is a story
about Alpha spying on random people.
Oh, please. This isn't surveillance.
We're not We're not
hacking her password.
Just Just look at payments.
Did she, you know Did
she get a a pedicure.
Did she search for her
favorite fucking sneakers,
- or This is plain vanilla. Come on.
- Jon, seriously.
- This is easy.
- You're a US government official now.
Just ask the CIA to do it.
Or try the old-fashioned
approach and just call your son.
Yeah, I've done that
like a half a dozen times.
He doesn't even pick up.
Now you know why I never had kids.
Why are they in Djibouti?
I didn't say, "they." I said, "Rowan."
And if you didn't want
him to join her fan club,
you shouldn't have married her.
Thanks. Yeah, well, keep
at it. Just keep me updated.
- Any news on Rowan?
- Nope. Work drama.
[SIGHS]
When I was his age, I fought
with my parents relentlessly.
You did? Their Ivy League
superstar. Over what? [CHUCKLES]
Typical teenage stuff.
My pick of boyfriends.
The fate of the world.
[SPEAKER] From humble
beginnings to greatness.
The daughter of a math teacher
and an engineer in Badlapur, India,
Gita Mishra stands before us today
as CEO and founder
of New Sky Initiatives
to celebrate the inaugural flight
of the world's first unmanned,
fully carbon-neutral cargo plane,
capable of staying aloft perpetually.
The Rowan.
[CROWD APPLAUDING]
Gita Mishra, everyone.
[GITA] Thank you, Hiram.
And thank you for your help in
getting the Rowan in the air.
Yes, the Rowan.
Named for my stepson and colleague,
Rowan Chopin, who is here today.
- Come and take a bow.
- [CROWD APPLAUDING]
Do you like the name?
- Yeah.
- [CHUCKLES]
Rowan's work on the computer
interface of our plane
has made unmanned flight possible
at a level never before seen.
I'd say he takes after his stepmother,
but I suspect his father
has more to do with it.
[GITA CHUCKLES]
Now, as many of you know,
I am a betting woman.
And I want to thank all of
you here today who invested,
for betting with me and on me.
And to make it clear
just how much confidence I
have in our carbon-neutral tech,
I'm actually going to lead
today's test flight myself.
[CROWD MURMURING]
The planes have all been loaded
with a maximum payload of 250 tons
for this morning's demonstration.
If we are asking people
to trust the Rowan with
their most precious cargo,
then I think it only natural
that I make myself the guinea pig.
Thank you.
[PHONE BEEPS]
[FRIEND] I don't know why I'm
telling you this, but I found them.
"Them?" So, they they
are together? Goddamn it.
[FRIEND] Mm-hmm. I'm sending
you something right now.
Thank you, Hiram.
And thank you for your help in
getting the Rowan in the air.
What the fuck is that?
[FRIEND] You're supposed
to say, "thank you."
Thank you. What the fuck is that?
It's NSI's new pilotless cargo drone.
Very hush-hush. Full media embargo.
[JONATHAN] How'd you get it?
Scraped it off an illicit
phone in the room.
And spare me the surprised face.
Evidently, she named
the plane "the Rowan."
My God.
Certainly explains why he's there.
Doesn't explain why he
didn't tell me about it.
It also doesn't explain
why she's flying a plane
that's supposed to be pilotless.
Does that make any sense to you?
None of this makes any sense to me, Jon.
I'm erasing all of it.
Thank you, Martha. I know
you're going out on a limb.
Not to add insult to injury,
but Mr. Bilton might order a few
depending on how it goes today.
What?
What? She's using our batteries.
Good night.
[CLEARS THROAT]
- You know, he probably already knows.
- How would that happen?
And when he does find
out because he will,
everyone will in a few hours.
Just tell him it was all my idea.
Tell him that I tricked you and that
you had no idea what I was up to.
I'm not gonna lie to him.
Remind him of our honeymoon.
We were at an old hotel in Bali
and and the toilet broke.
[CHUCKLES] And Jonathan couldn't fix it.
I mean, the man could model albedo
feedback loops on sea-level rise
that were accurate to the centimeter,
but was baffled by a chain and
float in a 20th-century commode.
And I used to fix it daily.
When we got home, I bought him
a copy of the Whole
Earth Catalog from 1968.
First edition. It was
autographed as well.
And that told you how to fix toilets?
How to fix everything.
The first line,
"We are as gods, and might
as well get good at it."
And today, we're fixing
something a little bigger.
The other planes, they're all ready?
I'll put in the coordinates
once they're airborne.
You release your
cargo. They do the same.
They'll never let it
get that far, right?
- It's just
- Hey, Ro.
If you don't want to be here
anymore, you can leave, you know?
I just want it to be tomorrow.
It will be soon.
[PLANE FLYING]
[CROWD CHEERING]
You're changing all of those?
Gita wanted all the passcodes changed.
It's been six years of
work. Can't get hacked now.
Did you know about this?
[HIRAM] Did I know she was
worried about security? Yeah.
There. [SIGHS] Done.
Leader one, leader one, NSI tower.
Go for leader one.
Locked and loaded for 19.1668
north and 73.2368 east.
[GITA] Thank you, NSI tower.
Uh, wait. Where are you going?
Badlapur. Haven't been there in years.
[HIRAM] Why?
Hometown girl makes good. Maybe
I'll inspire the next generation.
[GITA] If we are asking people
to trust the Rowan with
their most precious cargo,
then I think it only natural
that I make myself the
The planes have all been loaded
with a maximum payload of 250 tons
for this morning's demonstration.
You're up early.
[GITA] we are asking people
to trust the Rowan with
their most precious cargo
You're lucky I don't have
the gene for jealousy.
No, watch this.
The planes have all been loaded
with a maximum payload of 250 tons
for this morning's demonstration.
Rowan's with her.
- Where?
- There.
[GITA] most precious cargo,
then I think it only natural that
I make myself the guinea pig.
I've gotta tell someone
what's going on here.
Tell them what? Tell them your
son is going through a phase?
Tell them he prefers his
stepmother's company to his father's?
No. Why do you think she's getting
ready to pilot an unmanned aircraft?
I don't know, Jonathan. I
also don't particularly care.
- Why do you?
- Mm-hmm. Because of this.
- [JONATHAN] Watch.
- [ROWAN] In 1991,
there was a volcanic
eruption. Mount Pinatubo.
[JONATHAN] This is what it's all about.
It sent ash ten miles up
into the stratosphere.
What is this?
It's Rowan's science project
in fifth grade. Listen.
[ROWAN] The ash spread
all over the stratosphere.
Billions of particles. And these
particles reflected the sun's rays.
That year, the planet
actually cooled .5 degrees.
After years of consistent
warming, it cooled.
So, some scientists started experimenting
with reproducing that effect.
My stepmom is one of those scientists.
And she says this will
solve climate change.
- [SIGHS]
- And my dad says she's right.
Sir, she's ascending.
Uh, you hit a button up
there by mistake, Gita?
Nope. New heading.
[HIRAM] Any reason?
Because I think it's
important for people to see
what the Rowan is capable of.
48,000 feet. Over.
[HIRAM] Okay, that's above the
ceiling for most commercial aircraft.
[GITA] We're not selling
most commercial aircrafts.
We did not file this as
part of your flight plan.
Military is gonna be all over us now.
So much for keeping this hidden.
[GITA] NSI tower, let's take the
other planes up to 48,000 feet.
Yep. On it.
[GITA] Leader out.
Alpha, give me the earnings performance
of the top chemical companies
for the last quarter.
[ALPHA] BASF is down 1%. Sinopec,
down 2%. Dow Chemical, unchanged.
What about Alpha Chem?
[ALPHA] Alpha Chemical Resources up 16%.
Alpha is always up. They own the world.
Slow down, Jon.
This doesn't prove anything
other than that Nick
Bilton is a very rich man.
Hey, what is this?
I ordered some lab
steaks from Alpha Protein.
We're gonna have a really
nice dinner tonight.
[DRONE] Your delivery has arrived.
- Alpha, call Martha private.
- [PHONE RINGS]
- [MARTHA] Are you out of your mind?
- Maybe.
- [JONATHAN] I need to know something.
- No, I need to know something.
- Why don't you have any boundaries?
- [CHUCKLES]
Look, I need to know if Alpha Chemical
sold NSI any of the
following substances.
Calcium carbonate, hydrogen
sulfide, or sulfur dioxide.
I can't possibly answer that.
Come on. Those are controlled
substances now under CIT.
I have every right to know if
significant quantities have been ordered,
especially by a buyer
without purchasing history.
No, I'm not answering.
A significant amount of any of
those substances could be used
in an act of global terrorism. Do
you wanna be an accessory to that?
Martha, just tell me if I'm wrong.
I I've gotta know if I'm
calling the authorities here.
I'll need to speak to
our chief counsel, Jon.
I've always thought of you as a friend,
and I felt horrible
when Nick let you go,
but I'm gonna have to ask you
to never contact me again.
- Wait, wait. Are
- [PHONE BEEPS]
Fuck.
[HIRAM] Gita, are you
turning around soon?
We have AFRICOM asking about us.
They're already in
touch with DC, with NATO.
- I I I don't know what you're doing, but
- Hiram, put Rowan on, please.
And give us a private line.
Hey, it's me.
[GITA] I think we need to
assume they know by now.
We're on everyone's radar
higher than we should be.
It's time, hon.
[GITA] They'll contact your
father when they've figured it out.
You need to move now.
Yeah, good to see you.
- Hi.
- Hey.
[KNOCKING]
I'm Special Agent Sanchez from
the FBI's counterterrorism unit.
I'm looking for Dr. Jonathan Chopin.
Jonathan?
Yeah, hi. Thanks for coming. Come on in.
- [PARTNER] You called the FBI?
- Yeah. Come in. We need to talk.
[BURDICK] Perhaps someday,
we will have a machine
that safely and reliably
removes carbon from the air,
but until then, we have
something even better. Trees.
So, thank you to the
Sunrise Movement for this,
the one-millionth tree
planted in Virginia.
Now we just need Congress to do its job
and work together to pass bipartisan
legislation to curb emissions.
[DEVICE BEEPS]
What next?
There is a situation developing
over the Gulf of Aden.
A fleet of planes headed east.
AFRICOM is tracking it. I have
Major Gutiérrez from AFRICOM.
Good morning, Major.
What can you tell me?
[GUTIÉRREZ] We just heard
from Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti.
It's a demonstration flight.
Some sort of new technology.
A formation of private aircraft
built by New Sky Initiatives.
Gita Mishra's company.
Was this authorized?
[GUTIÉRREZ] The flight was, yes, ma'am,
but then they changed their
flight plan while aloft.
They're now currently at
43,000 feet and rising.
- Did they give a reason for the change?
- No, ma'am.
- Have they responded to any communication?
- No, ma'am.
Is there a reason to
to believe that there's
an issue with the plane?
- A distress signal?
- No, Madam President.
Well, thank you,
Major. Keep me apprised.
[ASSISTANT] The FBI has been
made aware. C-Counterterrorism.
- Who asked for that?
- You remember Jonathan Chopin?
Remind me.
Secretary of State Garrett appointed
him to the carbon commission.
Used to work for Nick
Bilton over at Alpha.
That's right. Chopin.
Also used to be married to Gita
Mishra. He reached out to us.
About his ex-wife?
He has a pretty crazy theory.
We may want to consider
distancing ourselves from him.
[GLASS BREAKS]
[AGENT] So you think
your son is involved
with some sort of illegal activity?
I I haven't spoken
to my son in many weeks.
We've noticed a fair
amount of phone activity
between your number and his.
If you looked at that,
then you also noticed
he hasn't answered me even once.
That's That is not normal for him.
Could mean a lot of things besides
international terrorism, Doctor.
You might wanna call a family
therapist instead of the Bureau.
No, no. Wait, wait, wait.
This isn't about my family. I'm
talking about a global security event.
Thi I I'm one of President
Burdick's lead science advisers.
I have a security clearance.
I know who you are, Doctor.
I took the liberty of
reviewing your background.
Okay, so then then
then you know, in the past,
I-I was an advocate for something
called geoengineering, okay?
And And my very famous ex-wife
and I put a lot of resource
and focus into not just imagining it,
but contemplating how
would you actually do it.
She called it the
biggest and the brightest
new business opportunity
of the century at Davos.
Here's the thing. We were
wrong. We were arrogant.
We We-We disrespected one of
the most fundamental principles
of scientific investigation,
which is that an experiment
has to be able to be replicated,
uh, to get the same results,
or based on the data,
to change the experiment.
Geoengineering doesn't
allow for that, okay?
You get one shot, and then
you you live with the results.
That's not science. That's gambling.
And you decided you weren't a gambler.
With the planet as the
table stakes? No. No.
And how exactly does
this tie into your son?
Because he's with her.
He's with her, and he's gone dark on me
because she's planning something.
And if we don't wanna be a part
of the gamble that she's taking,
you need to help me get to
Washington. I I need to get to DC.
Dear President Burdick
and other world leaders.
By the time you see this, I
will be over the Indian Ocean.
Gita's a donor. You actually
spoke at an event she hosted.
I am aware. And the ex? Chopin?
He's inbound. We did confirm
that his son is with her.
- In the plane?
- Possibly.
Any attempt to stop me by violent means
will cause a worldwide
deployment of calcium carbonate,
which cannot be stopped
by military intervention.
[ASSISTANT] We do have a
SEAL team in the region.
My demands are simple, Madam President.
I'm only doing what should've been
done by world leaders years ago.
Temperature on Earth
has risen .65 degrees
since the Tel Aviv Accords.
It continues to rise.
The cost to the world
economy is immeasurable.
This is the only way to slow
temperature increase immediately.
Is it a Band-Aid? Yes.
But when one is bleeding the
way our planet is bleeding,
a Band-Aid is needed.
If the United States will
commit to geoengineering,
I will land without incident, and
we can solve this problem together.
How far is she from landfall?
- [ASSISTANT] Two hours and 12 minutes.
- Let's get everyone together.
Rowan, tell me when you're safe. Over.
- Let's go! Everybody on the ground.
- [CLAMORING]
- Now!
- Move your hands.
Where are they?
Ro, do you copy?
Go, go! Stay where you are.
- Nobody move.
- He's not here!
Where's the kid?
Where is he? [BREATHES HEAVILY]
Come on, Ro. It's okay if
you've changed your mind.
Just Just let me know you're safe.
[INHALES SHARPLY]
[ROWAN] Go for squadron leader.
[INHALES DEEPLY] Ro,
you're okay. [SIGHS]
- All good.
- [CHUCKLES]
It's like I'm sitting off your tail.
[GITA] Do you see that up there?
- India.
- It's Mumbai.
My mum helped design the seawall there.
I remember watching them
build it when I was little.
What's taking Burdick so long?
I know she received our demands.
[GITA] They're trying to figure
out a way to publicly condemn me,
privately thank me, just
like the rest of them.
Alpha. The oil companies.
You're an hour out.
It all looks so beautiful from up here.
You'd never know how
badly we fucked it up.
[INHALES SHARPLY, SIGHS]
[EXHALES SHAKILY] Um, Madam President,
I I know you're very
well-informed on all of this,
so [STAMMERS] for
the benefit of everyone
I think it helps to look at
climate change like a bear. [SIGHS]
And the whole planet's been in the ring
wrestling with the bear for decades now.
And so far, the bear's
been kicking our ass.
Geoengineering is like taking a lion
and deciding to put it in the
ring to help you fight the bear.
It's certainly gonna change things,
but not necessarily guarantee
that you're gonna win.
If she does what she's
threatening, what are we looking at?
Changes in rainfall patterns that
lead to crop failures and floods.
Uh, extreme weather events
leading to mass migrations,
social unrest, stress on infrastructure.
All the wonderful things
that we're so familiar with,
except now in new and
totally unpredictable places.
Hence, CIT 2. I think we need to
call this what it is. It's terrorism.
I spoke to other leaders.
Oliveira, Liang, Richter.
They all stand by CIT and feel that
the legal exposure here is ours.
How's that?
New Sky is a Delaware
corporation based in New Mexico.
The rest of the world sees a violation
of the treaty as an act
of unilateral aggression.
Uh, you know her. [STAMMERS]
You think she'd actually do it?
I wouldn't doubt her
resolve for one minute.
I mean, she she's worked
these models for years.
You've seen her lectures. You've
hosted one, Madam President.
But can she?
She didn't start a social
network to get rich.
She's She's one of the most talented
chemical engineers of our generation.
She She She gets a lot
more right than she gets wrong.
I would not bet on her failure.
We don't hand over policy
to individual billionaires,
even ones that are good at guessing.
With all due respect, I'm not
sure that's historically accurate.
But Gita's success has never
rested on waiting for permission.
But why this? Geoengineering,
it's-it's not a one-time event.
You'd need to [STAMMERS]
do it every few years.
You know, I think she just
wants to change the conversation.
She thinks when it works, people
will start to follow her lead.
But But that's that's
not the core of the problem.
I-If it works,
all the oil and gas and coal and
other dirty, polluting industries,
they're gonna be knocking
on your door asking
for permission to
continue the carbon party.
That's That is why I'm here
with you and not up there with her.
- [ASSISTANT] She's made contact.
- [OFFICIAL] Okay.
We managed to establish
communications. She wants to talk.
[CHATTERING]
[BURDICK] Ms. Mishra.
Madam President.
[BURDICK] The last time
I saw you was at Davos.
I apologize for the circumstances.
Well, I'd like to see
those circumstances change.
I was wondering if I could convince you
to come back here and
and talk things over.
I learn something new
every time I'm with you.
And so do I, Madam President.
I learn that even very talented
and powerful people, like yourself,
can be confined by broken
systems that limit them.
Oh, I appreciate that,
but CIT 2 is the decision
our broken system came to,
and it would be an
even more broken system
if you take unilateral action.
There are ten million
people from my homeland
trapped between a
resource war to the north
and droughts to the south and east,
- and tens of millions more
- Oh, come on.
in every country and every continent
- dying in the heat every day.
- This has nothing to do with the science.
And the very people
who have done the least
to cause this catastrophe
are perishing because of it.
I'm assuming that all of you are
sitting in an air-conditioned room
- discussing their fate with me right now.
- I'm only the president of one country.
And that is why I would
like you to land safely,
so that we can discuss this.
I cannot promise you that
the Chinese, or the French,
or the Israelis are gonna
offer you the same option.
And they are aware of your location.
You know, all all it
takes is two million tons
of calcium carbonate
dispersed into the atmosphere
to begin to cool the planet.
And how many children might die
because of the additional air pollution?
Madam Secretary, I can't answer that,
but far fewer than are
currently dying in Africa,
in Indonesia, in Texas even.
There are better ways, Ms.
Mishra. Even you must see that.
Yeah, of course, there are.
You know, and if the billionaires
this century gave birth to
had focused on them instead
of proving their manhood
by shooting rockets into space,
- I would not be here now.
- Keep her talking.
then her plan no longer
works, and she'll call it off.
Gita, I know that there's
there's a way that we
can work together on this.
Uh, we have the same goal.
What if I What if I
try to reconvene the G22,
and we meet with you and-and try to see
if we can find some middle ground?
I think you already had that
meeting, Madam President.
Look, we have the technology
to solve a problem.
Are we going to use it,
or just sit by while
the problem solves us?
But what-what if it's us
that's the problem, Gita?
What [STAMMERS] It's
It's human behavior.
It's It's how we
move ourselves around
and how we eat and how we build.
We've We've treated this planet
like an all-you-can-eat
buffet for 250 years
since we started burning fossil fuels.
And changing the chemical composition
of the atmosphere is
not going to fix it.
Jonathan, there you are.
Madam President, I'm sure
Jonathan has told you
about the bear and the lion.
And And maybe he's told you
that what I'm doing is
a reckless experiment
- that can only be done once, but
- [JONATHAN] That's right, because it is.
- Okay, look, you you
- But
you don't know what's gonna happen.
Even if you get it right, what
what'll happen to the ozone layer?
You don't know.
What-What'll happen to
the oceans? You don't know.
What, the two billion people you say
y-you're you're trying to save.
You're about to drop another
climate volatility event
right on their heads. How
doe How does that help?
But the real reckless experiment
is the one civilization
has been running.
You know, adding carbon
to the atmosphere,
adding plastic to the ocean.
Removing species from ecosystems.
Nobody was trying to change the climate.
We We didn't even think
that we had that capacity.
We We didn't know
better, but we do now.
And yet, human behavior doesn't change.
The sky is easier to reengineer
than the human brain, Jon.
Exactly.
And if you tell that greedy
monkey brain it's cooled off,
and everything's okay, it's gonna say,
- "Give me a little bit more."
- Ugh.
"Just let me burn a little bit more.
Just let me Just let me mortgage
a little more of the children's future
so that I can make sure I can
juice this quarterly balance sheet.
I just need that one."
It's-It's-It's Gita.
Gita, even if you got all of
of the chemical interactions right.
If you got the dispersal pattern right.
The-The problem here is bigger
than the heat of the sun, Gita.
It's It's the way we see the world.
And-And you alone up in a
plane with this technology,
- this is not gonna solve the problem.
- [ROWAN] Yeah, so says the problem.
Rowan?
That's my son.
Are [STAMMERS] please tell
me that you're not up there with her.
- [ROWAN] I'm not gonna tell you that, Dad.
- Oh, God.
W-What? Gita, what are you
what are you doing to him?
- Why? Why would you involve him in this?
- I'm I'm not.
[ROWAN] She's not doing anything to me.
She's trying to stop
things from getting worse.
And what are you doing?
- Going to another conference?
- I I haven't talked to him in months.
Setting another goal
then moving the goal?
You told me when I was six
that we had ten years left
- before the feedback loops.
- He's under her in
I'm 22 now.
This is about her, it's not him.
[ROWAN] You know this is the only way.
[GITA] Jonathan, I
can see the shore now.
And the last time I was here
was with you. Do you remember?
We were bringing battery
tech to Badlapur.
- My mother was there.
- She's gonna do it.
- She's not talking
- [PLANE APPROACHING]
We were going to use it
to power water pumps
[DEVICE BEEPS]
What was that? What
happened? Rowan? Rowan?
Why What did you do?
- Just a flyby.
- A flyby?
But then why did we lose
contact? Why can't we hear them?
We don't know who else they're
working with. We had to jam them.
Are you out of your
mind? We [STAMMERS]
We've gotta talk to them.
I-I know he's [STAMMERING]
How do we know where his
allegiances lie, Madam President?
- He could be working for them.
- What did you say? What?
[STAMMERS] Hold on. He-He
came here of his own volition.
He alerted us. You
just heard what he said.
I'm the I'm the one
who dialed you up and
and let you know what was going on.
He's well beyond his
security clearance here,
- Madam President.
- You don't Come on.
I I'm one of the only
people who understands
what the fuck is going on up there.
I'm afraid I need to
ask you to step outside.
[SIGHS, STAMMERS] If I can talk
to him, he really can be a help.
He has influence with
her, bel Trust me.
- He's not He's not a kid. He c
- Let's go.
- Okay, okay. [STAMMERS] Okay.
- Please.
Please, Rowan, if you can hear me,
there's there's a there's
a better way to do this, man.
- [OFFICIAL 2] Okay, let's go.
- [DOOR CLOSES]
Am I under arrest? I mean,
I I'm in the fucking closet.
You are here until this is resolved.
If I were you, I'd work on calming down.
Okay, I'm sorry, but I need to
be in the room with the president.
- You blew that.
- Something's way off.
Gita's talking two million tons
of calcium carbonate. She's only
- I I've gotta go.
- Can I get my phone?
- No.
- Can I get a piece of paper and a pencil?
Seriously, let me work on something.
- Fine.
- Okay.
[EXHALES DEEPLY]
[OFFICIAL 2] Our people at
Langley confirm it is possible
that the planes are rigged to
release if we take her out of the sky.
So, that's that's ten planes
loaded with calcium carbonate?
- Yes, Madam President.
- Worst-case?
What Chopin said.
The estimate from NASA is
localized weather disruption,
but the knock-on effects are unknowable.
One rogue actor changes life on Earth.
A flood in Shanghai,
a snowstorm in Hanoi.
[STAMMERS] You can see how this
can destabilize the world order.
I think that's a likely knock-on effect.
A-And it's opening the door for others.
If we do nothing, we'll look complicit.
I think we need to act now.
[BREATHES DEEPLY] What if
her gambit ends up helping?
[OFFICIAL 3] Helping? Helping what?
Solve a problem that
diplomacy is failing at.
Oh.
We're so far off Tel Aviv, we'll
be lucky to keep it under 2.5,
even three degrees by
the end of the century.
You wanna talk about
those ramifications?
Madam President, you're
wanted on the phone.
Uh, not right now.
I think you wanna take this.
[OFFICIAL 1] Can we have the room?
[SIGHS]
- Hands in the air!
- Freeze! Don't move!
Stay where you are.
Keep your hands up!
[GRUNTS] It's a hologram.
Where the fuck is he?
I don't know how long we
have before they jam us again.
They sent a a woman to collect
me. I guess I should be flattered.
At least it's not a drone.
[ROWAN] What is she doing?
- She's pointing?
- At what?
Down. [SIGHS] She wants me to land.
- [GRUNTS, GROANS]
- Are you okay?
Yeah.
Guy next to me just got
obliterated by some aliens, though.
She probably only has enough
fuel for a few more minutes.
Likely from a carrier
in the Persian Gulf,
she's just there to scare you.
Oh, well, she's doing that. [SIGHS]
Maybe we've done enough now,
shown them that anyone
with the resources can
I-If someone shoots me down,
you must promise to go ahead.
You need to promise me that.
I-It doesn't have to
be you. I-It doesn't.
The President will meet
with you. G, you can land.
We can go home. They know now.
What your father says, it won't
work. You know that. We know that.
[BREATHES SHAKILY]
[INHALES SHARPLY]
Let's call their bluff.
Mr. Bilton, I'm wondering
what your awareness is
around Gita Mishra's actions today.
[NICK] Yes, Gita. Alpha
also received her demands.
Well, I thought so, and as
you and I have discussed,
my own feelings about geoengineering
are very aligned with yours.
Well, it's a pity the rest of
the world doesn't agree with it.
Another problem looking for a solution.
Well, we have planes
in the air, Mr. Bilton,
but I I can't help but wonder
if there isn't a way of resolving
this outside of official channels.
Are you familiar with the
term "cover for action"?
[NICK] Interesting turn of phrase.
I'm sure the scrutiny you face
limits your options, Madam President.
- [SIGHS]
- Madam President?
You know what they call this desk?
[STAMMERS] The Resolute desk was a gift
from Queen Victoria in 1880 made
from the timbers of the HMS Resolute.
You know what happened
to the HMS Resolute?
I don't, Madam.
Was abandoned in the Arctic ice in 1854
in Melville Sound off of Alaska.
Stuck in place.
[BREATHES SHAKILY]
There's not any ice there
anymore, hadn't been for 20 years.
You know, when I first got here I
I thought they gave
the President this desk
to inspire them to be tough.
Now I feel like it's to
prepare them for being trapped.
AFRICOM is waiting for your order.
How old is the kid again?
Rowan Chopin is 22, Madam.
But that's not possible. That
I need to speak to the
President. Or Secretary Garrett.
Get someone, please. They're
gonna want to see this.
Last time I spoke to President Burdick,
she told me she thought this
was the best way forward.
Better for business.
Better for humanity.
Why didn't she do it herself then?
Because everybody wants the result,
nobody wants to take the risk.
That's how fear runs our lives.
- Ro, they're leaving.
- Who is?
The The Air Air
Force. They're all gone now.
I think I think we
did it, Ro! They caved!
Should I shut the other
planes down? Call them back?
No. Let me contact Burdick,
see what the plan is.
[INHALES DEEPLY, CHUCKLES]
I think they're finally ready to
work with us. [BREATHING DEEPLY]
- We did it. We You did it.
- [SIGHS]
The gamble worked. I
mean [STAMMERS, SIGHS]
like Hemingway said,
- "The world is a fine place"
- [DEVICE BEEPS]
- Gita?
- [GASPING]
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
[IN HINDI] Come on.
- What is that?
- What?
- Can't you see that light?
- That?
Maybe it's the sun and we'll
all be dead in eight minutes.
You come on. Come on
Gita?
[INHALES SHARPLY]
[OFFICIAL 3] What was that?
I thought we sent the planes
back? Why did we engage?
- Wasn't us.
- Who was it?
Who brought her down?
I wanna know what happened, Tom.
We have satellite imagery, but
it's hard to make heads or tails.
Uh, Russia's blaming India.
India's blaming Pakistan.
Iran's blaming the US.
Uh, maybe it was a a
private military contractor.
She had enemies.
Dr. Chopin has something
urgent to share.
Send him in.
I'm I'm sorry, but
I was thinking about it,
and she's got us focused on ten
planes that take 250 tons each,
but she she mentioned two
million tons of calcium carbonate.
We need to look into how
much she actually procured.
If she's got anything
close to two million tons,
then then all this with the
planes is a is a performance.
It's a dist a distraction
from something else.
She's gotta have many
more, like, thousands more.
We We need to talk to Gita.
I'm afraid that's not possible.
What, why?
What's happened?
Her plane was destroyed over India.
You shot her down?
I can assure you it was not us.
I'm so sorry, Doctor.
Uh, what about my son?
Was he on the plane?
- [OFFICIAL 4] We don't know.
- [BREATHING SHAKILY]
- What did you mean by "more"?
- [OFFICIAL 1] More what, Doctor?
[OFFICIAL 4] Madam President,
the other nine planes just
released their payloads.
We're picking up a message
on the hailing frequency.
Please.
[ROWAN] "The world is a fine place
and worth fighting for." Right, Dad?
Gita told me it was on your desk.
What the hell is he talking about?
"And I hate very much to leave it."
Trace his signal.
"And I hate very much to leave it."
[JONATHAN] That's the
end of that, Rowan.
Rowan, wherever you are
and whatever you're doing,
just stop it. Stop it!
Just step back from it, pal.
I'm doing what Gita taught
me, what you taught me.
Mount Pinatubo.
No. No [STAMMERS]
you-you need to come home.
You need to come home and turn
yourself in before you get hurt, Rowan.
I I cannot listen to you
get hurt. [BREATHES SHAKILY]
You can't fight for the
world if you're not here, pal.
She told me, Dad.
She told me about the book she gave you.
"We are as gods, and we
might as well get good at it."
- [SIGHS]
- That's what the book said, right?
[BREATHES HEAVILY] No, no.
[STAMMERS] We're not gods.
None of us. Not Gita, not you, not me.
We're just parents and children.
Please come home. Just come home.
It's too late now, Dad.
[INHALES DEEPLY]
[OFFICIAL 2] The line's gone dead.
[SNIFFS] It's go time.
Release. Release. Release.
[SIGHS] Release. Release. Release.
Release.
- [BURDICK] What the hell?
- [BEEPING]
[BEEPING INTENSIFIES]
[BURDICK] What is going on?
Oh, my
There are reports of dispersals
everywhere, Madam President.
[INHALES SHAKILY] They
used drones. [SIGHS]
Thousands of Alpha delivery drones.
[BREATHING SHAKILY]
["WHAT A WONDERFUL WORLD" PLAYING]
[PARTNER] What's gonna happen now?
I don't know.
Nobody does.
[SONG CONTINUES]
[SONG ENDS]