Spotlight Page #13

press. So I sent you guys a list of

names and you buried it.

ROBBY:

I want those names tomorrow.

ERIC MACLEISH:

Check your goddamn clips, Robby.

Robby turns and leaves. Sacha follows. They walk a bit.

11/26/14 80.

SACHA:

We didn’t find anything in the

clips.

ROBBY:

Yeah. Big surprise.

93 INT. MIKE’S APARTMENT, EAST BOSTON - NIGHT 93

Mike boils hot dogs on the stove.

MIKE:

Richard, do you still go to mass?

SIPE (ON SPEAKERPHONE)

No, I haven’t been to church for

some time now. But I still consider

myself a Catholic.

MIKE:

How does that work?

SIPE (ON SPEAKERPHONE)

The Church is an institution, Mike,

made of men. It’s passing. My

faith is in the eternal. I try to

separate the two.

MIKE:

Sounds tricky.

Mike’s shakes his pen, out of ink. He crosses to his backpack

by the front door. He reaches in, digs around.

SIPE (ON SPEAKERPHONE)

It is. Especially since the Church

continues to go after me. It takes

a toll, Mike.

SIPE (CONT’D)

They’ll try to silence anyone who

speaks out. I’m sure they’ll come

after you and your team soon enough.

MIKE:

And how do you think they’ll do

that? Hello? ...Richard?

Mike checks his phone. Disconnected. Huh. Suddenly,

there’s a loud KNOCK on the door. Mike JUMPS.

MIKE (CONT’D)

Who is it?

11/26/14 81.

BEN (O.C.)

The Archbishop of Canterbury.

Mike opens the door. Ben’s there with a PIZZA BOX.

BEN (CONT’D)

I had dinner at Santarpio’s, had

some leftovers.

He hands Mike the pizza.

MIKE:

Ah, you’re the freakin’ best. You

want a beer?

BEN:

Yeah.

Ben enters, takes in Mike’s apartment. Mike grabs two beers.

Jesus. How much longer you gonna be

in this shithole?

MIKE:

Working on it.

BEN:

She’s a good girl, Mike.

MIKE:

Yeah, she is. We’ll figure it out. I

haven’t had a lot of time lately.

(then)

I was just on the phone with Sipe

actually.

BEN:

Have you met this guy in person yet?

MIKE:

No, but his knowledge of this is on

a whole other level.

Ben frowns, skeptical. Mike hands him a beer. They sit.

Mike opens the pizza box, digs in.

MIKE (CONT’D)

Oh man, I’m starving.

BEN:

So, where are we on the ninety?

MIKE:

Close.

11/26/14 82.

BEN:

How close?

MIKE:

We’re close.

BEN:

Just answer the question, will you?

Mike clocks this.

MIKE:

We got 87 names. We’re trying to get

confirmation. I think we will.

(then, off Ben)

Something bugging you?

BEN:

Just surprising, that’s all.

MIKE:

Yeah, it is. For everyone.

93A EXT. MIKE’S APARTMENT BUILDING, HALLWAY - NIGHT 93A

Ben walks out of Mike’s apartment, heads up the stairs when

Mike opens his door, calls after him.

MIKE:

Hey. Ben, I forgot to ask, Phil

Saviano said he sent a bunch of info

to the Globe years ago. You have

any idea to who?

BEN:

(irked)

No. Why?

MIKE:

Just curious. I wanted to see if

there were any other leads you guys

didn’t run out?

BEN:

(pissed off)

Saviano was a f***ing train wreck

five years ago, Mike. We didn’t miss

anything. This story needed

Spotlight.

Mike’s taken aback.

MIKE:

Yeah. I know. Just following up.

11/26/14 83.

Nothing more to say.

BEN:

Good night.

Ben walks off. Mike watches him go.

94 INT. GLOBE, MARTY’S OFFICE - DAY 94

CLOSE ON an EMAILED LIST of Priests and victims.

BEN (O.C.)

This is unbelievable.

MARTY:

When did you get this?

ROBBY:

MacLeish emailed the list this

morning. He settled cases against

forty-five priests.

REVEAL Marty and Ben across the table from Robby and the rest

of the Spotlight team. Marty pages through the printout.

MARTY:

Where are we on Law? Anything that

shows he had knowledge of this?

BEN:

We’re still working Garabedian. But

nothing concrete.

Marty considers this. Then he turns to Robby.

MARTY:

I keep thinking about that

conversation we had the other night.

You said Law called down the power

of God when we reported on Porter.

BEN:

That’s just Law being Law.

MARTY:

Okay, but I checked the clips,

Porter wasn’t even in the Boston

Archdiocese. He was in Fall River.

So, why the extreme reaction?

ROBBY:

(realizing)

Law had to know.

11/26/14 84.

(MORE)

That’s why he had the reaction. He

knew there were others.

MARTY:

I think that’s the bigger story.

The team reacts. Robby watches.

MIKE:

Bigger than fifty priests?

MARTY:

If it came from the top down, yes.

SACHA:

But the numbers clearly indicate

senior clergy were involved.

MARTY:

That’s all they do, indicate.

MIKE:

You’re telling me we run a

story about fifty pedophile

priests in Boston --

ROBBY:

(stepping in)

Mike--

MARTY (CONT’D)

We’ll get into the same cat fight

you got into on Porter, which made a

lot of noise but changed things not

one bit. We need to focus on the

institution not the individual

priests. Practice and policy. Show

me the Church manipulated the system

so that these guys wouldn’t have to

face charges. Show me they put

those same priests back into

parishes, time and time again. Show

me this was systemic, that it came

from the top down.

Beat. Pretty f***ing clear.

BEN:

Sounds like we’re going after Law?

MARTY:

We’re going after the system.

94B INT. GLOBE, SPOTLIGHT - LATER 94B

The team enters together, heads for their desks. Robby talks

to Sacha.

11/26/14 85.

ROBBY (CONT'D)

ROBBY:

Make a list of all the victims we

have and start reaching out. Pull

Matt in if you need help.

SACHA:

Okay.

ROBBY:

(to Mike)

When you are going to Springfield?

MIKE:

Hearing is Monday.

Robby nods, heads into --

94C INT. GLOBE, ROBBY’S OFFICE - CONTINUOUS 94C

Robby settles in. Starts to check e-mails.

MATT:

Robby? You got a second?

Robby looks up, Matt’s in the door.

ROBBY:

Yeah.

MATT:

I, uh, got one of those treatment

centers a block from my house.

(then)

We got neighbors with kids. I know

our work is confidential but I feel

like I should tell ‘em.

ROBBY:

We’ll tell ‘em soon.

Matt hesitates. Then nods and exits.

95-99 SUMMER VICTIM MONTAGE 95-99

In a series of quick cuts, we see --

-- Sacha (and Matt) out and about in JP, Dorchester, Mission

Hill, trying to find victims. They knock on some doors

and get no answer, they knock on others to find that

victims have moved, it’s tough to track folks down.

-- Sacha (and Matt) manage to track victims down, but face

obstacles. Obstructionist family members, reticent

victims...

11/26/14 86.

-- Finally, Sacha (and Matt) actually are let in. We see

shot after shot of them entering houses, some new, some

where they were previously denied. They’re getting the

story...

100 INT. RUNDOWN HOUSE, DORCHESTER - DAY 100

Sacha sits with the middle-aged-man.

MIDDLE-AGED-MAN

The Bishop came over the house. He

said nothing like this had ever

happened before, they asked us not

to press charges.

SACHA:

And what did your mother do?

MIDDLE-AGED-MAN

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