Knives Out Page #2

INT. LIBRARY

The strange man in the linen suit taps Elliott's chair with

his toe, as if reminding to ask him something.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Right, did all three of you arrive to

the party at the same time?

LINDA:

N...o, Richard went over early to

help the caterers set up, I got there

around 8, Ransom a little later.

She raises a questioning finger to ask about the man but

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

And in Boston you and your husband

work for a real estate firm?

LINDA:

sharp

(

)

It's my firm.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

checks notes

(

)

Sorry. Right.

LINDA:

I built my business from the ground

up.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Just like your dad.

LINDA:

Just. Like my dad.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Were you very close?

LINDA:

We had our own secret way of

communicating. You had to find that

with dad. You had to find a game to

play with him. And if you did that,

and played by his rules...

beat

(

)

Yeah we were close.

CUT TO:
Richard in the chair Linda was in, giving his

statement.

8.

RICHARD:

Everyone idolizes their dad, right?

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Do they?

RICHARD:

Very much not, don't know why I said

that. But Linda does.

INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT OF THE PARTY

Harlan Thrombey, surrounded by his family, Richard and Linda

flanking him, a birthday cake with candles. All smiles.

RICHARD (V.O.)

Harlan started with a rusty Smith-

Corona, built himself into one of the

bestselling mystery writers of all

time. Linda followed his lead. We

did. Linda and I.

INT. LIBRARY

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Seems like all his kids are self made

overachievers.

Richard makes a "...sure" face. CUT TO:

WALT THROMBEY now sits in the questioning chair. Late 40s,

softly obsequious in a sweater and loafers. His leg is in a

cast.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT (cont'd)

Speaking to Walt Thrombey, Harlan's

youngest son.

Elliott points to Walt's cast.

WALT:

Augh, bicycling accident. Dumb.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

So you run your dad's publishing

company?

9.

WALT:

Yeah. It's my - it's our, it's the

family's publishing company, dad

trusts me to run it. 30 languages,

over 80 million copies. A real

legacy. You guys fans?

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

I don't read much fiction -

TROOPER WAGNER:

BIG fan. Big.

TROOPER WAGNER (cont'd)

His plots, like something like "A

Thousand Knives," with the - I don't

want to spoil it but - the cow and

the shotgun, I'm like how did he come

up with that?

WALT:

Dad said the plots just popped into

his head fully formed, that was the

easy part for him -

TAP from the linen suit man's foot.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

You live in town, right? What time

did you and your family arrive at the

party?

Walt looks at Linen suit, thrown.

WALT:

Uh. We all got there about 8.

INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT OF THE PARTY

Walt laughing and mingling with his nervous wife DONNA.

WALT (V.O.)

My wife Donna, she's my rock.

Richard backs up into Donna, who YELPS in fear and throws

her martini in the air. Richard jumps, but Walt doesn't

even register it.

RICHARD:

Jeeesus! Donna, you alright?

WALT (V.O.)

And my son Jacob, he's sixteen. Very

politically active.

10.

His angry looking son JACOB, who is always on his phone.

INT. LIBRARY

Quick cuts, each in the chair:

MEG:

He's an alt-right troll dipshit

RICHARD:

The boy's literally a nazi

WALT:

Kids today, with the internet,

amazing.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

So the night went well then?

INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT OF THE PARTY

The exact same moment we saw with Richard and Linda of

Harlan in front of the birthday cake - but now it's Walt,

Donna and Jacob next to Harlan.

WALT (V.O.)

Yeah. We're all gutted but I'm happy

we got that night with dad. To be by

his side, to think about our books

and what we've accomplished with

them, it's like I can still feel his

hand on my shoulder.

INT. LIBRARY

WALT:

Passing the torch.

Cut to:
JONI THROMBEY in the chair. A striking woman, tall

and boho chic in chunky jewelry and a flowy dress.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Speaking now to Joni Thrombey,

Harlan's... daughter in law?

JONI:

Mm. I was married to his son Neil,

We had one daughter, Meg, and then

Neil passed on fifteen years ago.

11.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

And you've obviously stayed close to

the Thrombeys.

INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT OF THE PARTY

Joni dances with various family members, free and flowing.

JONI (V.O.)

Oh they're my family. I feel

simultaneously freed by and supported

by them, that balance of opposites is

the nugget of Flam.

INT. LIBRARY - PRESENT

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Nugget of?

JONI:

Flam.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Flam nugget.

JONI:

The nugget of truth.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Uh?

JONI:

At the center of the Flam philosophy.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Ah! Sorry Flam, right, your skin

care company.

JONI:

I forgive you yes, it's skin care but

it promotes a total lifestyle. Self

sufficiency with an acknowledgment of

human need. That's Flam, but it's

also Harlan. He got me and Meg

through some tough times.

Meg in the chair.

12.

MEG:

Granddad gives my mom a yearly

allowance, and he's never missed

wiring a tuition payment to my

schools. He's a genuinely selfless

man.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

You left his party early?

MEG:

To see some friends at Curry.

INT. LIVING ROOM - NIGHT OF THE PARTY

Meg trots out. Linda, pissed, to Richard so Joni can hear:

LINDA:

Dad's paying for her crypto-Marxist

postdeconstructual feminist poetry

theory whatever major, she could have

stuck around for the cake.

INT. LIBRARY

JONI:

I think Linda was upset. But Harlan

understood.

Tap.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

But you two arrived together to the

party?

Joni looks at the linen suit man.

JONI:

If I could - pause - because I, who

is that guy? And why are we doing

all this? Again?

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

Right. We're following up here, just

being thorough, in order to determine

the manner of death.

Cut back to Walt in the chair.

13.

WALT:

what?

(

)

The manner of death? I can save the

taxpayers some money here -

Walt gestures vaguely to his throat.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

That's the cause of death. The

manner of death is still pending.

WALT:

almost laughing

(

)

So by "manner of death" you mean if

he was killed. If one of us killed

him. One of his family?

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

None of us think that, this is pro

forma, all of it.

CUT TO:
Richard in the chair. He doesn't buy it.

RICHARD:

Ok. So who the f*** is that?

He points at linen suit. Elliott takes a breath.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

This is Benoit Blanc.

RICHARD:

the hell?

(

)

Benoit Blanc?

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

He is... a...

Elliott looks back at Blanc, prompting him to introduce

himself, but the man stays silent.

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT (cont'd)

He's a

RICHARD:

Does he talk?

LIEUTENANT ELLIOTT

He does.

They all look back at Blanc.

14.

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