One Trillion Dollars (2023) s01e04 Episode Script

1
What are you fighting for?
- For what?
- To change the world.
If you really want to change
how the people live,
you have to have the key
companies under your control.
You need to understand who you are
and where you are from.
Welcome to our headquarters!
How cool is this?
- We need the best analysts and traders.
- You can have whatever you want.
wants to buy shares
in key companies
a bike messenger
You want to invest one trillion dollars.
You can crash the market.
A nobody, sent by a prophecy.
The perfect projection screen.
He wants you to be a global brand.
- I don't want to be a brand.
- It's all or nothing.
So do we want to change the industry?
Don't you get it?
He wants to buy into companies,
and thinks that will change something.
That's why I don't think Abenheim's
turbines belong in coal power plants.
They belong in solar-thermal plants.
We're out there really kicking ass!
You're the wrong one!
Who is she?
Deyna.
John.
John.
- John!
- John.
John. John!
Let her in.
- Deyna.
- Where is he?
- They're operating on him now.
- Ms. Pohlmann?
- How is he?
- The bullet hit the right lung.
We had to remove
a piece of the outer lobe.
Your husband is in stable condition.
The surgery went well.
Franca Vacchi.
Can I see him?
Yes, he's in the recovery room.
Come with me, please.
John. The police just phoned.
They confirmed
the attacker is Luc Fontanelli.
Hey.
John, it's not your fault.
If I hadn't taken the money,
none of this would've happened.
- There's only one ahead of Luc.
- Who the hell is Luc?
He's next in the line of succession.
How can he just show up like that?
You mean Luc Fontanelli?
I thought the police
were investigating him.
Yes, but the French police
never found him.
And that's it? Nothing else?
I mean, you had a file on him too, right?
Yes, but when it was clear
he was not going to inherit,
we stopped having him watched.
But that's it.
You're the wrong one!
"There's only one ahead of Luc,"
that's what Michela said.
They wanted him to become the heir.
Why?
Who are they, Franca?
Who sent him?
The top one percent of Americans
took home 20 percent of the
nation's income last year.
Thank you, everybody, for making this
meeting possible on such a short notice.
In light of the recent events,
matters have to be dealt with
fast and efficiently.
The plan to replace the heir
was a massive failure
and must stay the only one.
Luc Fontanelli is a ticking time bomb.
Now he's sitting in prison
waiting to testify against us in court.
It's a disaster.
You assured us you'd bring the
inheritance under your control.
When we made the decision,
Luc Fontanelli was the youngest heir
of legal age, as the will describes.
On top of that,
he was the most influenceable
and easy-to-approach candidate.
He's not a threat.
He feels obligated to me,
and anyway, he knows nothing about us.
I have the impression your
closeness to Luc Fontanelli
is clouding your judgment.
The board is dismissing you, Elena.
And we want you to leave immediately.
Okay.
The matter has to be dealt
with utmost discretion.
But obviously, we need to move fast.
We don't know yet how this
incident affects the future course
of Fontanelli Enterprises,
but if this turns out
to be a moment of weakness
within the leadership,
we need to take advantage
of that immediately.
The money isn't yours.
You have to save the world with it.
You're the wrong one!
What is it?
Everything all right?
He's stable.
Then I've got something else for you.
- What's this?
- Information on the Frenchman.
Luc Fontanelli?
Where did you get this?
The less you know, the better.
His mother died when he was 14.
Her house was broken into.
She surprised the burglar.
He strangled her.
The man was never caught.
Her death completely
threw the boy off track.
He has a criminal record.
Theft, property damage, and assault.
"Tapage nocturne"?
"Nocturnal disturbance
of the peace."
So?
The address where the police
picked him up is interesting.
A mansion at Rue Beregadougou 24.
The house belongs to
an offshore company in Panama.
There was a leak two years ago
that revealed the owner
of the offshore company.
It's Philip Monet.
- Who's that?
- The richest man in France.
What the hell?
We're increasing our shares in Stellar?
Oh, yes. Yeah.
We're testing the market.
Why? We already hold 13 percent.
Anything else is a waste of money.
Plus, Stellar is a fortress, and
Hellstroem owns 40 percent of the B-stock.
A few measly percentage points
more won't help us there.
What? What?
Do you know Sarah Dermond?
The widow of William Dermond?
Yes, of course I do. What about her?
Her share package is also B-stock,
and she wants to sell it.
- Says who?
- JPN Capital.
And how much does she hold?
- Twenty percent?
- Eighteen.
That will nudge us past 30 percent.
- Stellar is also LSE-listed
- Yeah.
so UK laws apply.
If we then take over we have to
make a takeover bid to the others.
Yeah, that's why
we're testing the market.
It's better to secure options now
before we have to make it official.
After that, it'll be expensive.
You want to take over Stellar Industry,
a $500 billion company.
Yeah.
And when exactly
were you about to tell us?
Well, my people are working on
over 100 projects at a time.
I can't tell you about all of them
before anything is settled.
Sure, but this is not any project.
If we take over Stellar,
then we hold 60 to 70 percent.
That will cost us probably
more than $300 billion.
It's a third of the inheritance!
- Yeah.
- Okay.
I know you're used to making
decisions on your own,
but this is not your fund.
Nor yours, right?
My name is John Fontanelli.
I'd like to speak to Mr. Monet.
Please.
Monsieur Monet will be here in a minute.
Monsieur Fontanelli.
If you had announced yourself
your reception would certainly
have been more appropriate.
I wasn't sure
whether you would let me in.
What makes you say that?
I've been meaning to pay
my respects for a long time.
And in five weeks,
we would have met at the
annual general meeting anyway.
You hold 4.3 percent
of our company.
Oh, no.
You didn't know?
You should.
We have a high free float.
After my family,
you are the most important shareholder
of the Crédit de France Bank.
Please. You can sit down.
May I offer you something to drink?
Do you own a house
in Rue Beregadougou 24 in Paris?
My family owns many houses.
Sure, but only one
where Luc Fontanelli
rampaged in front of.
I have no idea what you're talking about.
If something had happened to me
before the reading of the will,
he would've inherited everything.
Luc Fontanelli.
One trillion dollars.
But nothing happened to you.
- Congratulations.
- No, not to me.
But to Lorenzo Fontanelli,
my predecessor.
But his name probably doesn't
mean anything to you either, does it?
He died in a car accident.
Quite suddenly, right before
he was about to inherit.
Wealth can be a burden.
All of a sudden, you think
everyone is out to get you.
Luc Fontanelli is not
the only one responsible.
Someone helped him.
Someone with power and influence.
And a lot of money.
You're still young.
You think you can give a damn
about everything.
But wealth makes you lonely.
Soon you will have no friends left,
and the very few that are
still standing by your side
will all be rich.
Because only they can see
the world as you see it.
Antoine.
Sir?
Monsieur Fontanelli would like to leave.
- Of course.
- Thank you for your visit.
What you're planning with the Crédit
de France Bank is very ambitious.
You won't be able to make it happen
without the support of my family.
Call me in case you change your mind.
Guys, I don't have much time right now.
John!
Stellar Industries is among the
market leaders in battery technology,
hydrogen technology and cloud computing,
except that the founder
and CEO, Morten Hellstroem,
would rather fly to Mars than
solve the problems on Earth.
If we make an impact here, John,
we will develop future industries,
and shape the course of the world
forty years from now.
And we have to take over Stellar
to do that?
I thought we were seeking
strategic majorities.
If we buy the widow's share package,
we will acquire 30 percent.
Then, by law, we're required
to propose a takeover offer
to the other shareholders.
And even if only half of them accept it
then we have to pay
at least $300 billion.
It's insane.
There is no other way to crack
U.S. tech companies.
The founders hold B-stocks
which have 10 times the voting rights.
You can't organize majorities
against that.
John.
John, are you okay?
Listen, guys,
I can't decide right now, okay?
Franca, can you please do it?
I'll get back to you.
John?
John!
If we don't go for the big ones,
we might as well do nothing.
Hello?
You're not digging deep enough.
Philip Monet is not alone.
- Who's there?
- That doesn't matter.
I have something of interest for you.
Concerning the family Monet.
Does your boss know
we're talking on the phone?
Of course not.
He wouldn't be very happy
if he knew, to say the least.
You're in great danger.
These people will destroy you
if you don't fight them.
- What do you want?
- You want information, I want a new life.
- And it comes at a price.
- How much?
Two million euros.
Cash. Today.
And what exactly do I get in return?
A gaze into the abyss,
Monsieur Fontanelli.
"Rue Beregadougou 24.
Come alone."
Hello?
I said alone.
Stop, wait.
Wait by the car.
My money.
You've said these people
want to destroy me.
You were not supposed
to get all this money.
They had their own plans
with the inheritance.
They'll do whatever it takes
to regain control of this fortune.
- Who are these people?
- I will show you.
Wait here.
The time for change has come.
Get back.
Come here. Come on.
John. Open the gate!
Open the gate, John!
They took the emergency exit.
We have to leave.
Immediately.
- John, where are you?
- I was in Paris,
but I'm on my way back to Berlin now.
Okay. What have you
been doing in Paris?
I'll tell you later.
What's going on, John?
I was really worried.
You could at least check your phone.
- Do you know the richest man in France?
- Philip Monet.
Listen, he's somehow involved
with Luc Fontanelli.
And what makes you think that?
I might have just received
some evidence to prove it.
It looks like Luc has just been
a puppet in a much bigger plan.
- What evidence do you mean?
- I'll get back to you.
No. John!
Hey.
I was hoping you'd still be here.
Do you recognize anyone here?
Must be from the '80s.
Yeah.
The man in front of the tree is
Charles Monet, the war financier.
- Philip Monet's father?
- Yeah.
And the others, who are they?
It's very overexposed.
- Hard to say.
- Come on.
Okay.
Yup.
That's Clifton Harris of National Power.
He was their biggest shareholder
in the '80s.
- On the right?
- Yeah.
And that might be
Robert Schulenberg.
He was the CEO of an oil
multinational in the mid-'80s.
And then that has to be George
Pickerton of Blue Machines.
There were no other businessmen
with more influence back then.
And the others?
Except for him, maybe.
If that's Claas de Leeuw.
- Leeuw Electronics?
- Yes, exactly.
- The Weerters.
- The Weerters?
Class de Leeuw was one of the
most powerful industrialists in Europe.
- One of the founders of the EPP.
- What's that?
The European Partnership Program.
Go on.
Okay.
The EPP is a club of the most important
business leaders in Europe.
Claas de Leeuw co-founded it in 1983.
The goal was
to shape Europe's nation shares
into a single market.
All in the interest of business.
Deregulation, free circulation
of goods and capital.
Wait.
- Another industrialist?
- No, Weiland is a business journalist.
He wrote a book
about the EPP in the '90s.
THE WEERTERS
WORLD POWER IN THE UNDERGROUND
Yeah, in '93.
In his research, he found out
that the EPP
is only the tip of the iceberg.
Underneath is a smaller group
of very influential people.
Like the elite substructure, so to speak.
This group has allegedly
existed since the '70s.
Their first meeting took place
at the Grand Hotel Weert in The Hague,
which is why they're called
"the Weerters."
The book wasn't exactly well received.
He never published
anything again after that.
Is he still alive?
He's still alive. In Frankfurt.
- Let's keep this between us.
- Of course.
But it wouldn't hurt
to adjust the photo's contrast.
- You know someone?
- Sure.
- Confidentially?
- Yes.
Okay.
Thank you.
Hello.
Hello. You are?
John Fontanelli. Yeah.
I'm sorry to barge in like this.
I'd like to speak with Martin Weiland.
I have an appointment.
Is he here?
Yes, come on in.
I'm from the mobile nursing service.
Mr. Weiland needs assistance
with everyday activities.
Can I take a picture with you?
Sure.
The Fontanelli Army.
Yeah!
Do you have any advice
on what I should buy?
I bought some Abenheim stocks.
Crazy how they're skyrocketing.
My friends and I are all with you.
We think what you're doing is great.
Hit them where it hurts.
That's the only way to change things.
Just a moment, please.
Mr. Weiland?
Your visitor is here.
Go ahead.
You can do this.
You're going to save the world.
And all of us.
Thank you.
Giovanni Fontanelli.
John.
John Fontanelli,
if you want to be formal.
Could I get an autograph?
I wanted to talk to you
about one of your books.
- The Weerters.
- You read it?
Unfortunately, it's not that easy to get.
That too.
Why the youngest?
- Was it a condition of the will?
- Yes.
Of legal age according to medieval law.
You were a bike messenger.
Why give the greatest fortune
that ever existed to someone like you?
Good question. And there are
people who wanted to prevent that.
And these people might be the Weerters.
I can't help you.
Maybe you can.
I have a photo of the Weerters.
There are no photos of the Weerters.
Yes, there are.
Must be from the '80s.
Where'd you get that?
Philip Monet had it.
Is Philip Monet a Weerter, too?
It's overexposed.
No kidding.
- I'm having it processed.
- I want
I want a print of this.
And I want to know who
belongs to the Weerters today.
These people are the living symbols
of a derailed world.
Then, as today.
But today,
0.1 percent of the people
own 80 percent
of the financial resources.
With that money,
they undermine everything.
The rule of law, freedom of the press,
democratic processes.
But you don't understand that,
you're too young.
But old enough to make up for it.
If you really want to save the world,
you have to break through
exactly these mechanisms.
And how am I supposed to do that?
Like this?
Set a good example.
Transfer your money
to a foundation so that
it's democratically controlled.
Maybe that's what
the Weerters are afraid of.
Yes, maybe. Believe me, I
really want to do the right thing.
But these people are trying to stop me.
By any means necessary.
They tried to kill me.
So, who belongs to the Weerters today?
- I want a copy.
- You'll get one.
As long as the system remains,
they will always exist.
Just look at the list
of the ten richest people.
There you'll find what you're looking for.
Philip Monet will be one of them.
And Morten Hellstroem will not be happy
that you took away his top position.
Thank you.
DEYNA
LINO WOKE UP
Lino is awake.
CLINICAL CENTER
WES
John, John, John!
Watch out.
Watch out.
- Step aside.
- Watch out. Hello.
Step back!
Hey.
Hey.
Sorry.
I'll wait outside.
How are you?
Great.
Never been better.
What's wrong?
We're moving to Argentina.
To Deyna's aunt's.
We need a fresh start
without all this shit here.
Somewhere where nobody knows us.
But we can ensure your safety
a lot better right here.
No, you can't.
And we don't want that.
We just want a regular life.
You're the richest man in the world.
Nothing's going to change that.
Sorry.
We're going to change our name.
And we want
We want you to leave us alone.
That means no more contact.
For how long?
- I don't know.
- No.
You can't decide that by yourself.
I'm your brother, man.
Deyna put that in your head, right?
- Let her tell me herself.
- We decided it together.
I don't believe you.
Hey, that was really close, man.
I almost died.
What would have happened to Noah?
I can't just pretend I don't give a shit.
They'll keep coming back.
You're picking a fight
with the whole world,
don't you realize that?
You have 20 minutes.
Where is my lawyer?
She gave me 20 minutes.
But she can't help you, anyway.
I can. I can push your bail.
I want to go back to my cell.
Guard!
- Did the Weerters want you to be the heir?
- Guard.
Why the hell
are you still protecting them?
Oh, yeah?
I'm not going to tell you shit.
You just don't get it.
What were you meant to do
with the inheritance?
These people do whatever
it takes to pursue their goals.
Guard!
Do you know they killed
the heir preceding me?
And then they tried to kill me.
Yeah.
Because you're the wrong one.
You invest the money in the stock market,
and think that will make a change.
It doesn't change shit.
You almost killed someone,
don't you care?
- I didn't mean to hurt your bodyguard.
- He's not my bodyguard, he's my brother,
you damn asshole!
Who helped you?
Do you honestly think
those people would've left you the money?
Screw you, man!
Screw you!
Can you please resend me the email?
Wait a second.
Oh, hi.
Good to see you again.
We have been waiting for you for days.
- I was with Lino.
- I know.
I understand that.
But it feels like
you've been avoiding me.
And I need you to be reachable.
All of this doesn't just go on hold.
Meeting in five minutes.
Yes, can you please just send it again?
Hey, John.
So this week is full.
And I'm telling you,
it's going to be exhausting.
And I expect everyone to know
what they have to do.
So we have eight new objectives
on our agenda for us to tackle.
Sienna, please.
John, these are all
your appointments of the week.
The ones you have to catch up on
and new ones.
All right.
So before we get into details,
we need to settle once and for all
the takeover of Stellar Industries.
It's not about a takeover.
It's about getting to know each other.
Sarah Dermond wants to meet us,
so we should at least
listen to what she wants.
- Right?
- It's not a mystery what she wants.
It's not rocket science
to pick up the phone
and ask JPN Capital.
And they say, surprise, surprise,
that Sarah Dermond wants to sell
her block of shares.
So that means getting into
an absolutely not necessary
takeover battle against Hellstroem,
the CEO of Stellar Industries.
And we don't need that.
Why not?
A meeting doesn't cost anything.
Let's do it.
- Yeah.
- What do you mean?
Hellstroem was the richest man
in the world before me.
He does whatever he wants, doesn't
give a shit, he has absolute power.
And what are we doing?
We buy company stocks and are disruptive.
We force out CEOs. So what?
Others will take their places.
Those who really have the power, who call
the shots, they couldn't care less.
Because we're driving up the share prices
and making them even richer.
We make them happy.
John, can we talk for a moment?
What the hell was that?
Is this some sort of power play
you're doing?
If you have any problem
with me, just say it!
- You think that's what this is about?
- What, then?
Do you know about those people
whose asses we're shoving money into?
Like Monet?
Him pretending to be
the role-model entrepreneur,
confronting his dark family history.
That's all bullshit.
In reality, he's one of those people
who are constantly screwing
the world, making things worse.
They are called "die Weerter."
Listen to me.
And I know it sounds crazy
but they are the ones
behind Lorenzo's death.
Listen to me, and the hit on me.
They wanted Luc to inherit
so they control everything.
There's a book about them, and I
spoke to the journalist who wrote it.
They shot him down,
they ruined his career.
The guy is a total wreck.
That's what they do.
You know there is no point in buying
company stock. McCaine is right.
We have to take their companies.
We have to take them over.
If we want to hurt those people,
we have to strip
everything away from them.
All their power.
Or nothing will change.
We don't have enough money to do that.
We just don't.
You think I enjoy running
to shareholder meetings
and shareholder meetings, and say
exactly the same thing all over again?
- I don't.
- They almost killed Lino.
They tried to kill me.
What am I supposed to do?
Wait until they succeed?
Do you want to squash these people?
Then make better deals than them.
You're talking nonsense.
Die Weerter.
You have no idea what we're doing here!
No, and you know what?
I don't care.
And I'm sorry I spent that much
time in the hospital
because I was worried Lino could die.
- It's not about that.
- You know what, it's okay
because he doesn't want
to see me anymore anyway.
They're gonna move to Argentina.
They want to change their names.
And you know what, I'm sick of this shit!
As long as I'm the richest man in
the world this will never stop, ever.
Unless I start to fight back.
I don't want to sit at the table with
those people, and talk about holdings.
Screw them!
I want to kick their asses!
Good.
If that satisfies you,
do it.
But I won't be part
of your personal vendetta.
Dermond was the founder and
a partner of Stellar Industries.
He had to leave Stellar after
an internal power struggle.
It was ugly.
He died of cancer four years ago.
Sarah Dermond's been the richest
widow in the world since then.
- She's very religious.
- Watch where you're going!
She translates and annotates
Old Testament writings.
Very passionate about religion.
I hope you know your Bible.
- Where are you?
- I'm there, waiting for you at the office.
- See you up there.
- Okay, see you in a bit.
Mrs. Dermond
holds 210 million in B-shares.
The share unit price at yesterday's close
was $449,
$94.29 billion in total.
She's willing to sell the package
as a whole, for $98 billion.
In the long term the stock
has enormous potential,
but in the mid-term,
there will be loss of value.
We're facing a gigantic
transformation process
that will consume enormous resources.
That's why we think the current
stock price is overvalued.
I'd be interested to hear
what you have to say about this, John.
Well, sure, Sarah. Why not?
I'll be honest, I can't say
anything about pricing.
But may I ask you a personal question?
- Please do.
- Your husband and Morten Hellstroem,
they founded Stellar Industries
together, right?
Were the two of them friends?
William was the godfather
of Morten's eldest daughter.
You know there is a group
of influential industrialists.
They're called die Weerter.
- Have you ever heard of them?
- I think we should get back on topic now.
What the topic is, I decide, Malcolm.
John.
Sarah, do you know them?
Are you asking this for a reason?
Morten Hellstroem became the richest man
in the world in absolutely no time at all.
Unlike anyone before him.
So I was just asking myself,
how did he manage that?
Are you religious, John?
No.
Without faith,
your inheritance wouldn't exist.
The Philadelphia Times printed
the prophecy of your ancestor.
"I saw wars where people
marched across the land
and devastated everything.
The sun fell from the sky
and everything froze
in fear of this power.
A war broke out that destroyed
the Earth itself."
How do you want to prevent that
if you don't believe?
Here
I believe in God, John.
I believe in good and also in evil.
Hi.
Hellstroem is evil.
Yes,
he is a Weerter.
Intemperate and arrogant,
like the others.
He devours and destroys
everything around him.
My husband was sick.
Morten forced him out of the company.
And Morten was still fighting William
on his deathbed.
That's what Morten Hellstroem is.
A monster.
And that's why
I want someone to stop him.
You
can destroy Hellstroem.
It's your mission, John. Whether you
like it or not, it is your destiny.
Just like mine,
that brought me here today.
Take my shares.
Take them all.
If you want to save the world
you must be willing to fight evil.
Hello, Morten.
Finally.
How can it be that our fake Jesus
is bouncing around Berlin?
- I thought you guys were taking care of him.
- Morten, you are a guest here.
If you cannot watch your tone,
I suggest you leave.
I'd say good manners
is the least of our problems right now.
The house is on fire.