Knives Out

KNIVES OUT:

A Murder Mystery by

Rian Johnson

EXT. THROMBEY ESTATE MANOR HOUSE - DAWN

The grounds of a New England manor. Pre-dawn misty.

INT. MANOR - PANTRY / LIVING ROOM / FOYER / HALLWAY - DAWN

INSIDE THE MANOR

Unlit and still. Gothic with a theme of antique games,

arcane puzzles and decorative weapons.

First floor:
A drawing room, living room, kitchen. The

detritus of a party. Stray champagne flutes.

INT. THROMBEY ESTATE - 2ND FLOOR - DAWN

Follow one housekeeper named FRAN carrying a tray of coffee

up a flight of stairs.

Second floor:
a hallway, doors all closed. The house has

not woken up, and Fran steps lightly. Up a much narrower

creaky flight of steep stairs.

INT. THROMBEY ESTATE - 3RD FLOOR MASTER BEDROOM - DAWN

Third floor:
the master bedroom suite.

FRAN:

Morning Mr Thrombey

But the bed is empty, unslept in. A robe thrown across it.

Fran heads out onto the landing and UP an EVEN NARROWER half

flight of stairs, which leads to a single door.

INT. HARLAN THROMBEY'S STUDY - DAWN

A cramped attic study, every shelf crammed with curios.

The door swings open and Fran sees:

HARLAN THROMBEY himself. 85 years old. Slung across a

white leather day bed.

Throat slit. Drenched in blood. Very much dead.

CUT TO:
Title card, on black.

THEN TO:

INT. MARTA'S BEDROOM - MORNING

MARTA CABRERA wakes with a cry.

Plain, modern, cramped. Marta, in her late twenties, takes

a moment to catch her breath. Opens a window.

EXT. SOUTH BOSTON HOUSING PROJECT - MORNING

A tiny window in a cheap apartment building opens, Marta's

face appears breathing deep.

SUPER:
"ONE WEEK LATER"

INT. CABRERA KITCHEN - MORNING

Marta sits in front of a laptop. Her MOM is at the table

with her, her sister ALICE watches CSI on an iPad on the

counter top. Murder related dialog from the show.

Marta scroll through a jobs site, tired, eyes dead. Her mom

watches, concerned.

MOM:

Alice, turn that off now.

ALICE:

Why it's almost over, what -

they're finding out who did

it and the wifi sucks in my

room so it doesn't play it's

like two minutes left what

there isn't even anything

bad on it, it's just normal

tv and they're just talking

ok ok goddddd whatever ok

whatever.

MOM:

Now please just turn it off.

Turn it off. Now.

Alice. Off.

They're talking about murder

on it, your sister just had

a friend she loves slit his

throat open she doesn't need

to be hearing that right now

let's be sensitive!

Mom standing yelling, Alice slams the iPad cover closed.

Marta puts her head in her hand. Looks at her mom, who

looks back at her with protective sympathy. Marta starts

laughing at the absurdity of it, but the laugh turns into

crying.

MARTA:

Thanks mom. I love you. God, none

of this seems real. Alice you can

keep watching your show it's alright.

2.

ALICE:

No, I guessed who did it anyway. I'm

sorry Marta.

Alice hugs her sister. Marta's phone rings. WALT THROMBEY.

MARTA:

It's Harlan's son. Maybe it's about

the funeral.

answers

(

)

Hi, Walt.

listens

(

)

Uh huh.

Her face shifts in confusion.

MARTA (cont'd)

What?

EXT. PRIVATE ROAD - LATE MORNING

A long narrow private road leading to the Thrombey estate.

Marta's shitty SUBCOMPACT car buzzes by, towards the house.

EXT. THROMBEY ESTATE FRONT DRIVE

Several cars, including a police cruiser with a few

uniformed officers by it. Marta pulls up. An officer eyes

her, approaches.

COP:

Excuse me ma'am. Are you with the

help?

MEG, Thrombey's college aged granddaughter, trots out.

MEG:

Hey! Her name is Marta, she was

granddad's nurse, she's with us.

"The help?" What the hell.

MARTA:

to the cop

(

)

It's ok, sorry.

MEG:

mutters

(

)

It's not ok. Cops, man.

They hug, and are both instantly crying. They laugh.

MEG (cont'd)

Oh god. Look at us.

3.

MARTA:

How are you? This week, how have you

MEG:

Yeah. It's been rough, the whole

week just awful. And now this,

the cop cars

(

)

we thought we were done.

MARTA:

Walt called me, but yeah I thought

the cops got our statements already,

what are we

MEG:

I dunno, they've got more dumbass

questions, something. Dumb.

she vapes

(

)

How are you doing?

MARTA:

Not good. Alone, lots of just, this

the crying

(

)

and not knowing what to do next.

MEG:

Anything you need, you're part of

this family Marta.

MARTA:

Thanks.

beat

(

)

I wanted to ask, but I didn't want to

bother you guys, I didn't hear

anything, is the funeral, is there a

day for it, or

MEG:

It was yesterday.

Marta's face falls.

MEG (cont'd)

Marta I told them that all of you,

Fran, everyone who worked with him

should have been there, you were

closer to Granddad than anyone the

past few years, but they got on this

whole roll about it was for the

family and it was a family thing,

they took a vote and we got outvoted.

I'm so sorry.

4.

MARTA:

It's ok

MEG:

It's not ok. This idiot family.

They both start laughing.

INT. FOYER

Thrombey's eldest daughter Linda opens the door for Marta.

LINDA:

How you doing kiddo.

Linda is 60ish, well put together, sharp and steely eyed.

She dresses and speaks with just a little more sharpness

than any situation she's in requires.

MARTA:

Hi Linda. How are you?

LINDA:

Ueuh. The funeral helped. I guess.

Just seeing him. I thought you

should have been there, I'm sorry. I

was out voted.

Linda's husband Richard walks in, on the phone. Same age as

Linda, gruff and confident, will put his feet up on

anything.

RICHARD (ON PHONE)

I'm not the cop so I don't know.

Alright fine, don't come, get

arrested. Die up your own ass all I

care.

hangs up

(

)

He's not coming.

to Marta

(

)

Ransom. Little sh*t. Missed the

funeral. No, he is, he's a little

sh*t.

STATE TROOPER WAGNER, fresh faced in his 30s, pokes his head

in through a door.

TROOPER WAGNER:

Excuse me, we're ready for you now,

we'd like to see you one at a time.

5.

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