The Curse of Professor Zardonicus (2020) - full transcript

- So, Mr. Hartman,

maybe you can explain
to us your relationship

with one Darren Mitchell.

Mr. Hartman, it's imperative
that you cooperate.

- It all started with
Professor Zardonicus.

With Professor who?

- Zardonicus.

- All right, just.

Go. Go, please.

Go, go, go. Thank you.

Okay.



Hello, this is Greg Hartman of comm three.

Hello, this is Greg Hartman of comm 4328--

Well maybe if you weren't

cheating on my with my fucking brother

we wouldn't be in this fucking mess!

- Hi, this is Greg Hartman of comm 4328

and this is my thesis video

on how to be an asshole.

Fuckin'.

Hello, this is...

That was weird.

Hello, this is Greg Hartman.

Hello, this is Greg Hartman of comm 4328

presenting my thesis video for--



Hey babe,
where'd you put my computer?

- I gave it back to you.

No, you didn't.

- I'm still doing the video.

I have a paper due tonight.

- Okay, well I, I, um...

I need to find it

and I'm pretty sure you
didn't give it back to me.

- If I told you that it
was right next to me,

how would that,

how would that be?

It was, um...

Actually, can I borrow it again tonight?

- No.
- Okay.

Hello, this is Greg Hartman of comm 4328

with my thesis video
for our final project.

Since the assignment was
to make a documentary

about one of our fellow students,

I made a post on the university's
official social media page

and I got a variety of responses.

Some with more compelling
stories than others, obviously.

But then I was personally messaged

by a student named Darren Mitchell

and this is what he had to say.

Hello, my name is Darren Mitchell.

I'm responding to your Facebook post.

Cutting right to the chase,

I am the survivor of a violent assault

that took place here on campus.

After struggling to cope with this,

I am finally ready to share my story.

Intrigued as I was by that message,

I met with Darren personally,

a meeting that changed
the basis of the project

quite dramatically.

So, here we are now.

This is the game plan, all right.

I'm gonna go in and I'm gonna be polite,

I'm gonna be courteous, and yeah.

I'll get his trust and he'll get me an A.

Yeah, maybe just cut that out.

So Darren has just asked me

to go back and refilm our introduction.

So I have to walk back up there

and pretend like I didn't meet him

just like five seconds ago.

Okay.

Second time's the charm.

Hello?

Hello?

Um.

Okay, I'm not really sure

what I'm supposed to do right now.

Maybe I should--
- Hey man, hey!

How's it going?

Greg, right?

Yeah.

- Oh, pleasure to meet
you, man. I'm Darren.

Yeah.

- I didn't keep you waiting
for too long, did I?

No, actually I just got here.

- Perfect. Would you like to come inside?

- Sure.
- Great.

Sorry I kept you waiting.

I was volunteering at
the homeless shelter.

Things went overtime.

Okay.

- Was that good?

Was what good?

- Was that take good?

Like me coming up there

and saying the thing about
the homeless shelter?

Make me look good?
- Yeah that was perfect.

- Cool, you don't wanna
do it again in case or?

No, we can just go inside.

Hey, so this
thing is on, right?

Like it's recording?

Oh, the mic? Yeah.

- Yeah. Okay.

Well, here you go.

Welcome to my home.

Sorry I didn't have much
of a chance to clean up.

Oh, it's all good.

Yeah, do you live here with a roommate?

- No, just me and the voices in my head.

Oh, that was a joke.

It's completely a joke.

Oh, yeah, yeah.

Yeah, no. I could tell.

- Okay, good 'cause sometimes I say it

and people think I'm serious.

They can't tell when I'm joking.

It causes some awkward interactions.

Oh, that's weird

'cause I could definitely
tell you were joking.

- Oh, well good.

I'm glad you could tell.

Do you want anything to drink?

- No, thanks.
- Okay.

Yeah, so how do
you wanna approach this?

Hmm?

You know, the
interview and stuff.

Oh, um, I don't know.

What'd you have in mind?

Well, we could sit down

and you could talk to
me about the incident,

how it's affected you,

and we can just go from there.

- Actually, there's
something I should tell you.

Now, I don't want you to think

I'm a bad guy or a liar or anything.

Wait, did you lie
about getting assaulted?

- Oh, no, no, no.

I got assaulted. See?

Oh my God!

I know, it's nasty, right?

Jesus, that looks like

an animal attack or something.

- See, that's the complicated part.

Have you ever heard of
Professor Zardonicus?

No.

What class does he teach?

Darren?

Hey, what's going on?

- Just...

Before you come in here,

I need you to,

I need you to be ready, okay?

Okay.

Dude.

What is this?

Like, what am I looking at?

The kids on campus

thought he was an urban legend.

Honestly, so did I.

That is, until that night.

Wait, hold on.

You're saying this thing attacked you?

- I was on campus late one night.

I was working an
all-nighter for a midterm.

As I was walking to my car

I heard this rustling in the bushes.

I thought maybe it was a squirrel.

But then...

Then it started growling.

I tried to run.

But I barely got two
steps before he attacked.

But then I came home.

I came home and I started drawing.

I drew and I drew until I
finally got the right one.

And now,,

now that I have the right one

and now that I have you, Greg,

I can do this.

Do what exactly?

- I can prove that I wasn't lying.

That Professor Zardonicus is real.

But I can only do this with you, Greg.

I'm going to help you prove this?

- Mm-hmm.

That's why I'm here?

- Absolutely. I mean, it's so simple.

If we just follow my plan exactly

we can prove that he was--
- Can I go to the bathroom?

Please, just real quick?

- Um...

Sure, yeah.

It's down the hallway.

- Thanks!

Holy shit, holy shit.

Okay.

So clearly we've shifted
gears a little bit.

My subject appears to be under the belief

that he encountered an urban legend

named Professor something.

Now, obviously, given
the scratches on his arm,

he must've been attacked
by some kind of animal.

Now whether he believes that animal

to actually be his mystical professor,

that remains to be seen.

But what doesn't remain to be seen

is that this is going to make

for a much more interesting
project than I anticipated.

So, yes.

This is what I'm going with.

Hey, Darren?

- Oh, hey.

I hope I didn't scare you off.

No, no, not at all.

Actually, I've come to
the decision that, yes,

I will absolutely make
this documentary with you.

- You will?

Yeah, man.

Somebody's gotta shed the
light on the truth, right?

- Oh my God.

That's amazing. Thank you!

Oh, no, no. You're good.

- Thank you, man.

I really, really thank you.

Yeah, okay.

- You know what?

I'm gonna pour us a drink, hmm?

You wanna drink?
- Yeah, go for it.

Yeah, sure.

- First and foremost,
that camera you got there,

that should not be turned off.

That should be constantly rolling.

In an investigation like this,

you can't afford to miss a thing, right?

Next thing, we're on the search

for truth here, Greg, all right?

You know what that means?

That means we're gonna face
trials and tribulations.

All sorts of nasty things,
lots of tough stuff.

There's gonna be critics and cynics

that tell us we're wrong

and that what we believe isn't true.

Well you know what I say to them, Greg?

I say the truth will show
them what's really going on.

And you know who's gonna
find the truth, Greg?

Us.

All right.

Okay.

To Professor Zadromatis.

- Zardonicus.
- Zardonicus, sorry.

There you go.

- Once I accepted Darren's offer,

I decided to become more acquainted

with the legend of Professor Zardonicus

and I did some research.

Hey, babe?
- Yep?

Have you ever heard
of Professor Zardonicus?

- Uh, yeah, yeah.

Why are you asking about this?

Oh, it's for a project.

So, he's like an urban legend right?

- Yes.

Yeah, around campus I think.

We were at orientation

and they made this joke about,

remember to watch out
for Professor Zardonicus

when you're walking out at night

or something like that.

Okay, um.

Is he like something that
you would take seriously?

- Do you want me to
ask him out for coffee,

to get a feel for who he is?

I mean, like, if I told you

that I think there might be something

to this whole Zardonicus thing,

how would you react to that?

You're joking right?

No, it's for a project.

- On a scale--
- This is worth

like a fourth of my total grade, Rachel.

So please take this seriously.

- I didn't realize that
we were being serious.

Okay, yeah. You're, yeah.

- What?
- Fuck, whatever.

- I'm participating!
- Okay.

From this interaction it became clear

that in order to uncover
any kind of real truth

behind the Zardonicus legend,

I would really have to dig.

So I decided to go straight to the source

and ask the student body directly

what they know, if anything,

about this mysterious legend.

Mysterious fucking legend.

Jesus Christ.

Hey, guys. Hey.

Hey, hi. Excuse me?

- Yeah?
- What?

Could you tell me what you know

about Professor Zardonicus?

- Well, I know he was a
professor here in the '50s.

He was a chemistry professor.

- None of his students really liked him.

They thought he was mean
and terrible or whatever.

Do you have any
idea of where he comes from?

- Uh.

Texas?

- He worked in the old science building

and there was like something with a fire?

Hey, could you tell
me about Professor Zardonicus?

- Man, fuck off, man.

Okay.

This is kind of an expensive camera.

- A senior of class, I
don't remember which one.

- Decided to play a prank on him.

- And that prank set the fire
in that old science building.

- Apparently, a lot of people
got out and everything,

if not everybody.

Did he get out?

- No, except for Zardonicus

and there goes the legend.

So what happened with that?

- Oh well, like, people say
that his body was never found.

- If you go in the building or something,

he's supposed to attack
you or, I don't know.

I don't know.

Do you think
you've ever seen him?

- Uh.

I think I ran into him
at Walmart the other day.

- He's like this weird like monster thing.

The fucking ears of a bear,

the snout of a wolf.

- Sounds like a--
- He's got fucking

scales on his arms.

- Dude, there's like multiple people

in my lab that look like that.

- It's just turned into this big thing

that's lasted for, since 1950, Jesus.

Yeah, so if somebody were

to try to prove that he were real,

what would it take, I guess,

to convince you of that?

- Just footage, man.

Just footage. Like anything else.

With my research
providing no results,

I had to imagine that there
was no Professor Zardonicus

and that the only connection to reality

that this story has,

is the fire that took place
in the old science building.

However, I also discovered

a 1961 film titled "Mr. Sardonicus".

The timing being too coincidental,

it became clear how this
legend began and spread.

That being said, I do not know

how Darren plans to prove
himself or this legend

but I cannot wait to find out.

- Hey, man.

Hey, how's it going?

- Going good. You ready for this?

Yeah, yeah I think so.

What about you?

- I mean, honestly I'm a little nervous,

but yeah I think I'm ready.

Why are you nervous?

- I mean, we're hunting
down the truth, Greg,

and that doesn't come easy to anybody.

Well, uh...

Well, that's a cool jacket.

- Oh, really?

Thanks, man.

It was my dad's.

He fought in Vietnam.

Oh, seriously?

- Yeah.

I guess I have warrior's blood
running through my veins.

Anyway, I don't know
what kind of equipment

we were planning on working with,

but I went ahead and got us a
couple of those just in case.

Wait, GoPros?

You got GoPros?

- You heard of them?

Well, yeah, Darren.

They're really expensive.

- You know what comes cheap, Greg?

Denial.

But the truth doesn't come cheap.

That's priceless.

Okay, so uh,

what are we gonna be doing today?

- Ah, we're actually gonna be doing this.

Whoa.

We better get started then.

- Yeah. Come on, hop in.

Jesus.

- Oh, hey man, you want some coffee?

No, thanks. I'm good.

- I envy you.

I can't function without at least

three cups in the morning.

So, Darren, what's
your intention for today?

- Well, my intention for today

is to spread awareness, you know?

Lay the groundwork for the whole project.

Now, I'm not naive.

I don't think that I'm gonna be able

to find this fantastic creature on my own.

This is gonna be a whole student affair.

We're gonna need the entire
student body on our side.

We have attended this campus

completely blind to reality for years

and the reality we do receive

we mock and sneer at with
this postmodern cynicism.

But we're gonna break through that, Greg.

That camera you got there?

That's the battering ram.

You have the argument being made

that in a more scientifically
advanced society

such as our own,

something like Professor Zardonicus

would've been disproved by now.

The fallacy in that statement

is that, as we grow as
a scientific society,

we become more knowledgeable.

When, in fact, I believe the opposite.

Wait, you're saying that science

makes us more ignorant?

- Well, not exactly.

Let me rephrase it for you.

Before the scientific advancements,

we were far more inclined as a society

to believe the highly fanciful.

We would use these fantastic ideas

to justify expressions beyond our grasp.

Now, science has devolved into
this confirmation bias game.

We try to disprove theories
that differ from our own.

When our realities don't coincide,

we tend to believe the one that
we're most comfortable with.

We, as a society, have turned
into these snide cynics

of ideas that differ from our own.

We are inclined to only believe

what is directly in front of our eyes.

For example, if I were to tell you

that at one point the world
was overrun by giant lizards,

now that'd be a hard
pill to swallow, right?

It doesn't matter that it's true

or that I'm right.

The fact of the matter is

that because it's not directly
in front of your eyes,

you're gonna have a hard
time believing it to be true.

Hey, so when Professor
Zardonicus attacked you,

how did you escape?

It seemed, you know, pretty vicious.

- Well, see, I've been
thinking about that a lot

and from what I can figure,

I must've just ran away quick enough

before he really got his claws into me.

But when he came out,

his huge claws were
just swinging everywhere

like some kind of beast, you know?

But it's weird

because it didn't seem
like he wanted to kill me.

Like he just wanted to scare you?

- I don't know. It's hard to explain.

Maybe in his warped mind,

this campus is like his home.

You know, his territory.

So, do you think
there's humanity left in him?

- I don't know. It's hard to say.

How do you define humanity?

Is it more of a--
- Yo!

The fuck is this?
- What?

- This shit serious?

- No, I'm just going around

hanging up these posters ironically.

What do you think?

- Y'all got some off the wall
shit going on right here.

I don't really know
what it is but thank you

'cause you made my fucking day.

- Oh, well that's great,

'cause it's not hard to
make an imbecile's day, huh?

- Uh, Darren?
- Imbecile?

What the fuck does that mean?

Uh, okay guys.

- No, no, no, no, I get it!

This is some kind of
fucking joke, isn't it?

- What? A joke?

Oh, that's great, you know,

because I'm sure Christianity seemed

like a joke at the time too, right?

- Hey bro, what the fuck!

Hey, hey, hey.

Whoa, whoa. Hey, hey, hey!

He's just messing...

We're just messing around.

Yeah, it's just a joke.

And actually, we're done.

We're done for the day.

- Man, fuck y'all.

Darren, what.

- I'm sorry things had to get so ugly

so quickly back there, Greg,

but I guess that's people for ya.

Well, you didn't
really seem fazed by it.

- Well, yeah, I mean that kinda stuff

happens to you enough times,

you kinda get used to it.

That happens to you a lot?

- Well, yeah, Greg.

I mean, when I went to the police

and told them about Professor Zardonicus,

they laughed in my face.

But what'd they say
about the wounds on your arm?

- Thought they were self-inflicted.

They thought I was trying

to get a lawsuit out of the school.

A lawsuit?

I don't get it.

- Well, think about it this way, Greg.

There's a 50 year old monster

roaming around campus
attacking college students.

How's that look for campus PR?

What do your
friends think about this?

- Sorry, that's really watered down.

What were you saying?

I was just
wondering what your friends

think about all this.

- Oh, you know, I don't burden myself

with the issue of companionship.

So it's not really a
problem what they think.

Oh, okay.

- What about you?

What do your friends think?

Well, I've
only told my girlfriend.

- Oh, well what did she say?

Well, she's uh...

She's skeptical by nature, I'd say, so.

- Does she go to school here?

Yeah, yeah.

She's a civil engineering major.

- Oh, that must be interesting,

engineering civility and all.

Right.

Well, I mean, it pays a lot.

It's like one of the highest
paying degrees out there.

It's a lot more lucrative than film,

I can tell you that much.

- Yeah, well she does support
your film making, right?

Yeah.

Well, there's not a whole
lot to support right now

just 'cause I'm mostly
focused on my vlogs.

- Oh.

Wait, vlogs or?

- I know guys are really into twins.

I don't really get that whole thing.

I mean, yeah, there are two of them.

Yeah, I have like 500
subscribers, actually.

So it's pretty cool.

- That's good. You do that by yourself?

For the most parts,

just 'cause everybody's
busy with school and stuff.

- You see, Greg, that's...

That right there's the
problem with school, okay?

There's people like you and me

who are out here trying
to achieve our dreams,

trying to show the world our truths,

and what are our friends doing, hmm?

They're getting degrees,

they're getting careers, making money.

It makes me sick to my stomach, Greg.

But that's why you and I gotta
stick together, right, Greg?

Just you and me.

And that is just as
disgusting as it was before.

I'm gonna go get another drink.

Do you want something?

No, I'm good. Thanks.

- Okay, I'll be right back.

So I think that was
a pretty solid first day.

We got some good stuff.

Yeah, let's just figure
out when we're gonna--

- No, no, no. We're not done, Greg.

Uh, okay.

Well, what are we gonna do?

- We're gonna find him.

What?

How are we gonna find him?

- From up there.

Wait.

Um...

I'm sorry. Are we allowed
to go up there right now?

That's funny.

I think that's what the
Washington Post asked

before they published the
Pentagon papers, Greg.

- What?
- Come on.

If anything else, it'll
make for good footage.

That was in like 1972.

See anything?

- No.

Do you?

Nah, just some
illegally parked cars.

- Of course.

I come out here in search for the truth

and find a bunch of misdemeanors instead.

Hey, you...

You believe me, don't you, Greg?

What, about Professor Zardonicus?

Well yeah, of course I believe you.

I wouldn't be doing this
project if I didn't.

- Good.

That's good.

The only thing worse than monsters

are the people who exploit them.

Well, couldn't some people say

that you're exploiting him,

you know, for publicity maybe?

- See, I've thought about that, Greg.

I really have.

But I can't let that cloud my judgment.

I can't let it get in the
way of our investigation.

We're on the search for truth.

The people of this campus,

they deserve to know the truth

even if they choose to reject it.

I don't know, man.

You just seem so righteous
about the whole thing.

- Only the discontent would see that

as a criticism, Greg.

Some people might say it's harsh.

But you know what I
would say is harsh, Greg?

I would say turning
your chemistry professor

into a mythological
beast is a little harsh,

wouldn't you say?

I would call that overkill, yeah.

- Yeah, it's overkill.

It's really overkill

especially when you kill a man's humanity

by turning him into some beast.

Have you seen those lifeless eyes?

So you actually
know his intrinsic character

after one encounter?

- I'm not talking about
his intrinsic character.

I'm talking about his spirituality.

The essence around him in that moment.

I saw him. I looked him
dead in the eyes, Greg.

And you know what I saw in there?

Nothing that resembled a human

except for the torn lab coat

and once pinkish skin.

Once.

What does it look like now?

- It's disfigured and torn.

Like he was trying to

claw his way out.
- So anybody who's not

the same color as you
doesn't have humanity?

- No, Greg.

Don't make this about race.

Don't make this about race.

He is not a race.

He is a creature, okay?

It just sounds
kinda like you're saying

people without my skin
color are like a creature.

- Oh Jesus Christ, Greg.

I don't wanna sound like one of those

discontent people but--
- You have to be prepared

for these kinda things, right?

- I'm not racist, all right?

I mean, eventually
we're gonna have to move

beyond just posters, right?

Sure.

- I don't know much about
this whole documentary thing

but do you think that Sundance might be...

Wait, wait, wait.

Wait, did you see that?

See what?

I mean, it was just a blur

but it definitely looked like him.

I can't see anything

back there, man.
- It looked like

Professor Zardonicus, Greg.

What are you talking about?

- I saw him go around that corner.

Darren, you're not thinking

about going back there?

- Well yes, I'm thinking
about going back there.

I just saw him!

Plus, he's not gonna attack

if there's two of us.
- Dude, look how sketchy

that place is, man.

What?

- He won't attack if
there's two of us, Greg.

Yeah, a guy with a gun might.

So, maybe just call it a day.

- Fine. Yeah.

Let's call it a day, that'd be great,

when we saw him just around the corner.

I'm just...

Darren?

No fucking way.

Darren!

Darren!

Fuck.

Darren?

Darren?

Okay.

Good.

Calm down, calm down.

He's gotta be here somewhere.

Fuck.

Just put the fucking switch on.

- Hey.
- Darren, oh!

- Did you see anything?

What?

- Did you see anything?

No!

- Shit.

I didn't see anything either.

It was definitely worth
a try though, right?

Right?

Just...

Can we go?

- Well, yeah. I mean, sure.

It's kinda creepy back here anyway.

Are you coming or are you
just gonna stand there?

Yeah, I'm coming.

- Come on, let's go.

Honestly, today was a little slow

but tomorrow we're gonna
hit the ground running.

The whole flyer thing, big waste of time.

I say we go straight to the press.

Go to the campus media outlets,

see if we can't get some good--

- Wait, Darren! I think I saw something!

- What?

- I don't know but I think
it went into the fountain.

- The fountain, of course.

That's the last place I'd think to look.

- Exactly.
- Of course he'd go there.

All right, come on.

Start recording now.

- Yeah. Yeah.
- Start recording, Greg!

Come on!

Wait, wait.

Sorry, I forgot my light.

- You said he went in there?

What? The fountain?

Uh, yeah, yeah.

- So Professor Zardonicus
might be aquatic.

Uh, you know,
I'm not really too sure.

- You know what? I am.

Wait, Darren.

You're not thinking of going in there.

- No.

I'm gonna lose Professor Zardonicus

because I'm scared of a little water.

What do you think, Greg?

But wait, wait.

We can't do that.

No, no, wait, Darren, Darren!

No, come back here. Darren!

- So, I mean, at least tonight

wasn't a complete waste, right?

No, not at all.

- Now we know Professor
Zardonicus is at least buoyant!

He's extremely buoyant!

Come back here!

- Oh shit!

See?

The campus doesn't wanna know the truth.

Fuck you!

Wait, you made him do what?

- Oh, I had to.

I had to call his bluff, man,

and he did it.

Wait, Greg,
you could've been caught,

both of you.

- Ah, but we weren't.

That's not...

Whatever.

- Fuck, this is cool.

Okay, wait.

I'm having a really hard
time focusing on your face.

- Well, just press the button.

Okay, yeah.

- No, that button right there.

No that's--

So, what's
the course of action?

Like?

Do you think he's dangerous?
- And he's in my movie.

What'd you say?

I said do you
think he's dangerous?

- Well, no.

He's like...

He's a littler pretentious

but he's not gonna hurt anybody.

How long do you
think you can keep this up?

- As long as he wants to.

Could I get him to go on like public news?

Could we set something
up like we're gonna--

Come back down to earth.

Come over here. Sit down.

- Why? It's cool.

Okay, real question, Greg.

Do you actually know what you're doing?

- Yeah, I'd say so.

After confirming Darren's sincerity

with the fountain incident,

I began to wonder

could he persuade people to his beliefs

on conviction alone?

Stranger things have happened

and stranger beliefs have spread.

Could Darren be sitting
on a potential cult

akin to Heaven's Gate?

However, our second day of activities

proved that Darren's beliefs

were not so contagious.

- Let me tell you!

Do not be afraid of those who can kill

both the body and the soul!

Matthew 10:28.

Do not be afraid of those
who can kill the body

but cannot kill the soul.
- Jesus.

Literally.

I mean, you have to
admire his tenacity, really.

I don't know if I'd
call it tenacity, Darren.

- He's out here defending his beliefs,

no matter how controversial.

What would you call it?

I mean, he really reminds
me a little bit of...

Wait.
- What?

- Wait, wait.

Follow my lead.

Wait, Darren, no.

Come on, don't do this.

- Do you believe what I'm saying?

Do you--
- Hold on. Hi.

How's it going?

- What is this?

Are you trying to humiliate
me for my beliefs?

- Well, no.

No, no, no. Not at all.

I respect what you're doing out here,

standing up for your beliefs like that.

- Don't patronize me.

- No, no, no.

I would not patronize you.

I'm a fellow believer.

- You're a fellow believer?

- Well, yes. I do believe.

- A college student

who isn't a radical atheist.

All the proof of God that I need.

So what's with the camera?

- Well, actually I was gonna get to that.

I actually came over here

to give you one of these.

- I'm confused.

Is this...

Did your little brother draw this?

- Well, no, that is...

That's Professor Zardonicus, see?

- Professor what?

- Zardonicus.

I think it might be a Hungarian name.

My friend and I are actually out here

trying to prove his existence.

I was just wondering if you could,

I don't know, keep an eye out,

let us know if you see him.

- I mean, this looks like a monster.

- Well, he is.

Not to put too fine a
point on it or anything,

maybe a creature.

Whatever the more
politically correct term is.

- Wait, wait, wait, wait.

You're trying to get me to believe

in a damn monster?

- Well, yeah.

You're a believe, so believe.

- I believe in the Lord!

- Okay.

So do I.

Congratulations!

I've scratched your
back. Now scratch mine.

I think that's what
Christ would've wanted.

- I'm not gonna support this insanity!

Do I look like a lunatic to you?

- No, you look like an
open-minded individual

which is why I approached you

in the first place.
- Will you just

leave me alone?

Just go!
- Why?

- Go!

Just leave me alone!
- You don't believe!

- Darren, let's go.

Let's go, let's go, let's go.

- You believe in nothing.

So, Darren, what
do you think went wrong?

- Um, I don't know.

It seemed like all the cards

were stacked in our favor, you know?

I approached a like-minded individual

and I guess he didn't believe me.

I thought he might relate
to what I was going through

but even if he doesn't believe me,

then who the hell will?

Darren, you don't wanna relate

to guys like him, right?

I mean, nobody takes him seriously.

- Greg, there's an old saying

that goes beggars can't be choosers.

You know who the beggar
is in this situation?

'Cause it sure as hell isn't him.

Hey, Darren,

do you think it might be your approach?

- Do I think what might be my approach?

Why people might
not be resonating with you?

- This is just how I am, Greg.

Well, think of it this way.

So you have regular Christians

and then you have fundamentalist
Christians like that guy.

Now, even though these people

basically believe the same kinda stuff,

one is accepted by society

and the other isn't.

So why do you think that is?

- I mean, it could have something to do

with the whole your mom's a whore

and the church knows it signs.

Well, the signs are indicative

of a bigger problem though, right?

They're too blunt.

And I think you're kinda too blunt.

- I'm too blunt?

Well...

So the priests that I had growing up,

they had a certain way
of talking about things.

Like they eased you into it.

They didn't beat you over the head

with this apocalyptic stuff.

- Okay.

So, I mean, what do I do?

Well, you know,

we could try a PR touch up.

- But I wouldn't even know where to begin.

- I would.

While this wouldn't get us any closer

to proving the existence
of Darren's monster,

my curiosity compelled me

to suggest something rather unorthodox

which he thankfully accepted.

- First, just let me say thank you so much

for meeting with me, Father.

- Absolutely.

I'm always happy to talk.

Especially when it's about
something urgent, as you put it.

- Yes, I would say it's urgent.

I was actually hoping to get some advice.

- You know, it's not often
that someone your age

comes to me for spiritual advice.

It's...

Honestly, it's quite touching for me.

- Well, you know, it is spiritual

but at the same time it isn't.

You know what I mean?

- No, I'm sorry. I don't follow.

- Let me rephrase.

I'm actually thinking of
becoming an ordained minister.

- Oh.

Well, that's wonderful.

- Yeah, but I was hoping you could help me

with the approach to the more
personable side of priesthood.

- Personable?

- Well, maybe I phrased it weird.

What I meant was,

when I preach the word,

I'm met with scorn and mockery.

- Oh, speak no more.

Everybody in the church
is in the exact same boat.

- Well, yeah, that's the thing though.

You guys have a boat.

I'm kind of floundering at sea here.

I mean, how do you get your
word to resonate with people?

- Well, that's a difficult
question because--

- Oh, just a second.

I brought a notebook.

I'm gonna take some notes, you know.

- Faith means different
things to different people.

But I think it's also
important to keep in mind

that you're asking people to take a leap

and people don't leap out of fear.

It only paralyzes them.

It has to be for love.

And you have to make people understand

or to guide them to the understanding

that to worship God and to accept Him,

is to be loved.

- That's amazing.

That, really, that's fantastic.

- Thank you.

But it's also important to keep in mind

that it's not just about faith--

- How do you make people believe

in the whole resurrection thing?

That seems like kind of
a big pill to swallow.

Um.

- Wow. They really knew their stuff, huh?

- What'd I tell you?

- Look, I don't know what
to do with this information,

but when I find out it's gonna be like,

look out Professor, here I come!

- Well, just follow the model, right?

- Yeah but, I mean, where
am I gonna find my crowd?

Wherever you can.

The resulting solution was drastic

to say the least.

- That it does not cast their sunlight

in the Garden of Eden.

You nervous, Darren?

- What?

Just asking if you're nervous.

- I mean, a little bit but, you know,

I did theater in high school, so.

Like what?

- You know, "King Lear",
"Hamlet", "Macbeth", all the--

- Shh!

- What the fuck?

You're not supposed to say

the name of the play.

- Superstitious much?

All I said was "Macbeth".

But there's a
curse around "Macbeth".

That's the idea.

That's why people get upset.

- So, what? I shouldn't
say "Macbeth" anymore?

- No.
- Shh!

- Fine, I'll stop saying "Macbeth".

Is that what you want?

Just say the
Scottish play instead.

- What?

The Scottish play.

Say that instead.
- I'm talking about "Macbeth".

I'm not talking about a Scottish play.

What are you talking about?

- I say hate is the
ancient theme run afoul

in mankind's passage.

Darren, I'm having
second thoughts about this.

- I'm the one that's
going out there on stage.

You're just filming it.

Yeah, I just...

It seemed like an
interesting idea at the time

but being here, I don't know
how you're gonna come across.

- Come across?

This audience right here?

They're built around acceptance

and never ending love.

They want the truth to come out, right?

I mean, that's what they're--

When they're saying coming out

they're talking about something different.

- Listen, Greg.

I think you're over analyzing this.

These people are very
accepting, all right?

They embrace everyone with open arms.

They're gonna embrace a creature

who's been locked away by society,

who's been put in a corner,

who's been seen as a monster.

- Yet you force me to look away from you.

- Hi, everyone.

Thank you so much for coming out.

My name is Darren.

And I wanna share something
with you guys tonight.

You see, because there's someone

very near and dear to my heart

that needs to come out to the world,

that needs accepting people such as you.

And of course, I'm talking
about Professor Zardonicus.

Yes, that's right.

Professor Zardonicus.

The secret of this university
for the past 50 years.

He has been the subject

of cynicism and skepticism,
mockery, and scorn,

because we've been misunderstanding him.

Oh, we've been all wrong.

You see, because Professor Zardonicus

is not a creature who's driven by fear.

But instead, driven by love.

He needs us to find him

because only by finding
Professor Zardonicus

can we truly find ourselves.

I'm here today to tell you

that Professor Zardonicus has
only remained in the shadows

because we have not made a space for him

in our heart and souls.

For the begotten are not the beloved.

- Shut up!
- Because the beloved

are those who believe

in Professor Zardonicus.
- Boo!

Would you stop?

I'm not done!

I'm not done yet!

I'm not done yet!

I wasn't done!

You're supposed to be accepting people!

I wasn't done yet!

I wasn't done yet.

See, Greg? That's what happens!

That's what happens when you
try to put yourself out there

and get people to believe in something

that hasn't been fucking programmed

into their minds since birth!

Darren, it's okay.

- No, it's not okay, Greg!

It's not okay!

They kicked me off the stage.

I had five fucking pages left

and they kicked me off the stage

like my opinion didn't matter!

Maybe that's
because an LGBT poetry slam

isn't the best platform--

- That was your idea, Greg!

That was your fucking idea!

It was a joke.

It was a joke!

I just don't get it, Greg.

You don't get what?

- Has it ever occurred to you

that the right place and time

is the only difference between
a mad man and a prophet?

I don't know about that.

- Professor Zardonicus deserves better.

He deserves better than
these fucking people.

- Okay.

Upset as he was about
the poetry night debacle,

Darren found that the event had in fact

succeeded in raising his profile.

So he was invited...

Um, kinda doing something.

Are you ready to go?

- To what?

To Mark's birthday party.

Greg, you said we were gonna go.

- Okay.

I mean, you said you were gonna go.

I said I was thinking about going.

Greg, I asked
you about this last week

and you said yes.

- Okay, I don't remember saying that, so.

God, what
is with you right now?

It's happened three

times this week.
- What's with me right now?

Like, can you not see
what's with me right now?

Yes, and I can't
depend on you anymore.

- You can't depend on me

to go to a birthday party

to a guy that I barely fucking know.

- You're making commitments

and then you're dropping
them and it makes me

feel like shit.
- That's my commitment.

That's my commitment.

- Okay.

Do you want
me to get an A or not?

That's worth 25 %

of my final grade.
- So, what is this?

What?

- Is this not a commitment?

This is your grade, okay, I get it.

But what else, is it really helping you,

this documentary, this
Professor Zardonicus bullshit?

You're chasing a monster. It's not real.

- Before I didn't work hard enough

and now I word too hard.

You can either complain about me--

- Greg, that's work.
- Watching movies and

playing video games all day

or you can complain about me going

not going to parties.
- This isn't work.

What is this?

You're talking about a monster

that doesn't exist, Greg.
- You gotta choose one.

This project exists.

That should be good enough for you.

It's good enough for me.

So just go to the party.

- Great.

All right, it would be great
if you were there but--

- Yeah, whatever.

All right.

- Tell Mark I said hi.

Sure.

- Fuck.

After Darren's video went viral,

he was invited to an interview

at the official university radio station

and the results were to be expected.

- All right, everybody.

Welcome back to the show.

You know what station you're at.

It's your host, Keegan Michaels,

bringing you the latest campus news.

Joining me is a very special guest.

You know that one weird dude

who crashed the poetry slam?

It's our university's
very own Darren Mitchell.

Darren, how are you doing today?

- Well, I'm doing all right, Keegan.

Thank you for asking.

- It's customary.

What I really wanted to know and get to

was more along the lines of

what the hell were you
thinking that night?

Um, well.

You see, that was a night of expression

and I got up on that
stage to express myself.

- No, everybody else was
expressing themselves.

What you did was you stole the spotlight

away from people who were
sharing their experiences

as members of the LGBT community

to talk some bullshit about a monster.

- Well, okay, Professor
Zardonicus is not a monster.

Hitler was a monster.

Would you compare the victim

of a horrific prank to Adolf Hitler?

- Okay.

You are a grown ass man.
- I am.

- A student of this university

who would rather choose to spend his time

talking about the Boogie Man.

- Yes, because there are
just so many similarities

between the Boogie Man and
Professor Zardonicus, right?

- Which are figments of
your imagination, so.

- Tell me something, Keegan.

Have you ever met your
great great grandfather?

- Um--
- Let me stop you right there.

You haven't.

Does that make him a
figment of your imagination?

Does that make him not real?

- Darren, the fact that
we have a cameraman

recording this whole thing
clearly makes it obvious

that you're just looking for attention.

- Well, you're the one with
a radio station, Keegan.

Are you just looking for attention?

- No, I'm looking for a story.

- So am I.

Just because my story doesn't align

with societal norms,

doesn't mean that it's not worth telling

or that it's not true.

- Let's go to our student body.

Everyone, I want you to call in

and tell me what you think on the matter.

You're on the air with Keegan.

To whom am I speaking?

Hi, Keegan. My name is Casey.

I'm a junior.

- Nice to be talking to you, Casey.

Tell me, what are your thoughts
about this whole thing?

Well, let's give
the benefit of the doubt

and say this guy really believes
in Professor Zardonicus.

What I have to ask is
how is what you're doing

even getting closer to proving that?

- You don't think I'm
doing a good job, Casey?

I don't even think
you're trying, honestly.

All you do is harass people

and you expect us to
take you on your word?

- How am I harassing people?

I am out there spreading the word

about Professor Zardonicus.

I am making people aware of a creature

that stalks this campus.

If people are aware,

they can find him.

I don't know how else to
explain this to you, Casey.

How am I not coming across?

Honestly, I
think you're just dodging.

I think you're not going after him

because, like the guy said,

you want attention more
than you want this truth.

Why aren't you going out there

and really trying to find this thing?

And why don't you find other witnesses?

There has to be somebody
else who's seen this thing.

Can you say that you have actually gotten

any closer to proving that he's real?

Got anything to say, Darren?

- I mean, um,

there's just the fact that he's, uh...

I think you got him, Casey.

- So, update.

Darren has asked me to come out here

and meet him the middle of the woods.

Which will surely not
end in my violent murder.

Yeah, so my car broke down

and now I'm being driven by

the lovely and beautiful Rachel Patten.

- Shut up.

- Okay.

Anyways.

- This is a really bad idea, by the way.

- You said that part.

Since the radio interview

Darren has not been doing so well.

He has withdrawn even from me

and I don't think he talks
to anybody else, honestly.

He only invites me over now

so I can record random footage

of him researching stuff on his laptop

and, I don't know,

like staring out the window.

That's a lot of progress.

- Well, at least today he said

that something big was gonna go down.

And I don't think he would hype it up

without something to show for it.

- Something to show for
it as in your death?

From what you've talked about, Greg,

it sounds like he has issues.

Like real, real issues.

- He's kind of out there

and he's a little forward.

- He's kind of out there?

- He's, okay--
- Greg.

- I don't know if he's insane,

if that's what you're getting at.

- You don't know anything about him, Greg.

You don't know where he came from,

about his parents.

You have no idea about anything.

- I know he's not dangerous, okay?

And that's like the
important thing, right?

- I'm not talking about
him being dangerous.

- Then what are you talking about?

- I...

It sounds like you're
taking advantage of him.

- Taking advantage of him?

What, like he's not
taking advantage of me?

- Shut up, Greg.

- Okay.

- If I were you,

I would at least try to figure out

what it is I'm dealing with.

- How would you approach that?

- I don't know, Greg.

You're the one making a documentary.

This is it.

There he is.

- Hey, hey, guys.

Glad you could make it
all the way out here.

- Yeah.
- Absolutely, man.

We haven't actually met.

I'm Rachel, Greg's girlfriend.

- Hi. Nice to meet you.

Thank you for letting
me steal him away again.

- Yeah, just make sure
you bring him home alive.

It's his turn to do the dishes tonight.

Oh, come on.

You know I'm not gonna do the dishes.

- Yeah, we're just,

we're just gonna hang out.

You know, maybe uncover the existence

of some humanoid type create, right, Greg?

Yeah!

- Yeah.
- Sweet.

Well, yeah,
thanks for the ride, babe.

- Get to it. Of course.
- Yeah, thanks, babe.

Thank you.

Thank you.

She was pretty nice.

Rachel, I mean.

Yeah, I would say so.

- How long have you two been going out?

I guess it's
been about three years.

We started dating back
when we were freshmen, so.

- Nice.

Nice.

You know, I didn't wanna
say anything back there

but uh, my last girlfriend
was actually named Rachel.

Oh yeah?

- Yeah.

I wish I had more to say about her

but, uh, that's about it.

Why? It didn't end very well?

- I mean, relatively to what?
The Hindenburg disaster?

No, I think it was okay compared to that.

Well, if you
don't mind my asking,

what happened?

- You know, the normal relationship stuff.

She says she wants honesty and openness,

that she wants to know the truth.

But when I try to tell her the truth...

It's not always easy
getting what you want, Greg.

Was this truth
Professor Zardonicus related?

- Yeah.

It was.

Oh.

Uh, Darren?

How much further do we got?

Not much further, honestly.

You said that last time though.

Okay, well time
is a subjective thing, Greg.

I don't know what you want me to say.

That's your answer?

That time is subjective?

- Yes.

No, we have clocks, Darren.

They measure time.

- Okay, look, it's just a
little bit further, I promise.

Now, please, can we just keep moving?

There's thorns in this part.

Yeah, uh, look.

I didn't really sign up for this

"Blair Witch" shit, all right?

I don't know what that is.

What?

- You watched in like
film class or something?

No, it's iconic, Darren.

What are you talking about?

- Well, it's not that iconic.

I haven't heard of it.

Oh, what? You're a connoisseur?

You're the fucking arbiter of culture?

I don't know what
you're trying to say, Greg,

but I haven't seen that movie

so it must not be very good.

You good?

- Yeah, come on.

Okay.

Goddammit.

Do you even know where we're going?

- Of course I know where we're going.

We gotta take a right up here.

Take a right.

That's going straight.

You're going straight.

- Straight to the right.

You gotta climb--
- The fuck are you doing?

Whoa, are you okay?
- Don't fall.

Don't fall like me, Greg.

There's thorns everywhere.

Why are you climbing a tree?

Okay, Darren, can we
just stop for a second?

- Stop? We can't stop, Greg.

It's gonna get dark if we don't hurry up.

I'm just getting
a little overwhelmed.

There's a lot of mosquitoes.
- It's fine.

Just follow me.
- A lot of branches.

A lot of shit around.
- Greg.

Follow me.

We're gonna take a right up ahead

and everything's gonna be fine.

Just come on.

Fuck. Okay.

- Watch out.

Bear hole.

What?

- Bears dig holes like that.

They keep their young in them.

Darren, how
much do you actually know

about wildlife?

- I know quite a bit.

I've read quite a few books on bears.

Did you say you've written

quite a few books on bears?

- Read.

You totally
fucking said you wrote them.

- I said I've written, Greg?

Learn to speak before you--
- You said you written--

- Accuse me.
- Shut the fuck up and go.

Hey, why'd you stop recording?

- Because I'm tired.

Well, yeah,
I'm tired too, Greg.

But that doesn't mean you stop recording.

We're on the search for the truth here.

Of course it's gonna be tiring work.

I mean, we've been walking around for--

- You know, I have a test coming up

that I could be studying for?

Oh, I'm sorry. You have a test.

I didn't realize that was more important

than the life and safety

of people on our campus.
- Yeah instead of studying

I'm out here lost in the
middle of the woods with you.

Okay, we're not lost, Greg.

I told you that.
- Yes, we are.

- We are not lost.
- Yes, we are!

We took a right

when we should've taken a left.

- What the fuck does that mean?

We're in the woods!
- That means that

we're not lost.

Do you know who's really lost, Greg?

- Don't say it.

Don't fucking. No.
- The real lost people--

- No, not this shit.
- Are the people

that don't believe in
Professor Zardonicus.

The truth that's right
there in front of them.

The monster that's been
living on their campus

right under their noses

and they can't see it.
- Rachel was right.

How about that?

What does that even...

What do you mean

Rachel was right?
- Figure it out, smart guy.

What'd she say about me, Greg?

What are you doing? Stop!

- What?

Why are you doing that?

You don't need your phone right now.

You need your camera so we can film.

- No, I need my phone
to call my girlfriend

so she can pick me up
and get me out of here.

We're not done, Greg.

- I am. Yeah.
- You're done?

- I'm done with this whole
fucking thing actually.

Oh, so you're
just, you're leaving?

Is that what this is?
- Yes, I am.

Yeah.
- Fine, you can leave

but I'm keeping this, all right?

What?

- I'm keeping this camera.
- Wait, hold on.

Are you serious?
- Yes, I'm serious.

- Give me back my fucking camera!

- This is my truth. Get back!

Get back or I will drop it.

This is my truth, Greg.

You wanna leave? Fine.

- Fuck.
- You leave,

you go find another subject,

and then you can go
back to your little life

making little videos

while everyone you know passes you by.

- That was...

Fuck.

That was,
what, the truth, Greg?

But you're not gonna do that, hmm?

You're not gonna give up

because we are this close
to finding something

that no one else has
even come close to, Greg.

We're this close to discovering the truth

and you wanna give up 'cause you're tired,

because your feet hurt?

Guess what, Greg?

The truth doesn't come easy

and you could have all the glory

if you would just walk five more minutes!

- Okay.

Okay?

- That's what I said, yes.

Fuck.

Well, stop moping around

and take your camera.
- I'm not moping.

Give me my camera.

Do you even know how to use a camera?

- Watch your step.
- I know.

- There it is.
- What?

It's actually here.

What?

That's what we were looking for?

A fucking truck in the
middle of the woods?

- No, no, no, no.

That's what we found.

We found a truck in the
middle of the woods, Greg.

Come on.

Mr. Kint!

Mr. Kint!

Um, Mr. Kint?

Uh, Darren, does he--

- Hey! Hey!

What the hell are you--
- Oh no, Mr. Kint.

Mr. Kint!

I'm Darren. We spoke.

- Wait, you're that kid?

Yeah, you said I
could come out to your house.

- Well, I didn't expect
for you to actually show.

Jesus, kid.

What the hell is this?

What, you making a movie or something?

- Oh, no, no.

This is a documentary.

I thought I mentioned it to you.

- A documentary?

Well, I don't know what
sorry son of a bitch

would sign up for this.

It's okay, sir.

I'm getting school credit for this.

- Jesus fucking Christ.

Kids would suck their own dicks

for school credit these days.

All right, don't just stand there

with your thumbs up your ass.

Come on. Let's do this thing.

Darren.

- What?

What the fuck
have you gotten us into?

- What I've gotten us into?

I've gotten us Herb.

What do you mean what have I

gotten us into?
- Who is Herb?

How did you even find him?

- Um, it's called the internet, Greg.

Have you heard of it?

- So, what did you have in mind, kid?

- Oh, just a typical interview.

Maybe those two chairs
over there somewhere.

- All right.

Yeah, that'd
be great. Thank you.

- Darren?
- Yeah?

I know you're not a film student,

but how are you gonna do an interview

with only one camera?

- Oh, that's the thing, Greg.

We don't just have one camera.

- Dude.

You had a camera this whole fucking...

You were gonna steal mine.

Well yeah, you
can't do a proper interview

with only one camera.

You have to get my reaction
and Herb's reaction.

You're a film student, Greg.

You should know this.

- Just tell me who this guy is.

- Oh, that guy, Herb?
- Yes.

- Oh, no.

He's no one big.

I mean,, not a big deal really.

He's just, you know,

the only other documented
witness of Professor Zardonicus.

Whoa. That guy?

Yeah. That guy.

- Really?

Okay, let's do it then.

- How's it going, Greg?

- We're good. Okay.
- Good.

All right. Good.

And the cameras are already rolling?

- Yeah.
- All right, Herb,

how are you doing?

- Well, um, I'm all right.

It's just I
haven't talked about this

in, what, 30 years.

- That's all right. You're gonna do fine.

Just let's start by having
you introduce yourself.

- Uh, okay.

Well, I'm Herbert Kint.

I'm a freelance musician.

- Oh.

That's great.

I didn't know you were
a freelance musician.

Maybe you could play something for us.

That'd be good for B
roll or something, right?

- Oh.

Um, sure. Well, uh...

I would but my guitar is um...

Well it got, you know,

it got very cold last night

and I needed fuel for the fire.

So, my guitar--
- Oh. Oh.

- I had to use it for--
- Yeah.

- I'm gonna get another one.

- Yeah, yeah, I mean.
- Maybe even a few.

- You know what they say,

music warms the soul, right?

Yeah, it, yeah.

- But yeah, enough about that.

Let's just get into the questions.

Okay. Okay.

- You didn't graduate, correct?

- Well, no.

No, I didn't.

Well, at the time

I said it was because of stress

because I um--

- But what was the real reason, Herb?

- The real reason was
that I saw something.

Something that I couldn't unsee.

- Now was this something,

was it Professor Zardonicus?

- I guess.

Look, whatever it was,

there's nothing else like it.

- And you saw this creature
on campus, correct?

- Yes.

Yes, I did.

It was uh...

It was in the spring semester of '89.

Yes, I remember.

I just finished my midterms.

- But you didn't tell
anyone about the incident?

- Well, no.

I didn't tell the newspapers

because I didn't want
to be a laughing stock.

And I didn't tell the campus officials

because, well, I was in a place

that I wasn't supposed to be.

- Oh, really?

Where was this place?

- The old abandoned science building.

Yeah.

It had been shut down and
abandoned for decades.

But one night we were out there.

Well, it was all a part of this initiation

in this fraternity I
was trying to get into.

They wanted the pledges to spend the night

in the old abandoned science building.

And, you know,

there were rumors that it was haunted

and people had gone and disappeared and...

So I was, you know,
thought I was big shit.

I stumbled in and started
going down the halls

and then there was just nothing.

Just all of a sudden there was nothing.

And um...

But then I heard the noise.

You know, I was drunk
off my ass that night

but I have never ever
heard a sound like that.

Then I turned around and

it was on me, this creature.

And it was coming at me

and it was, he was swinging his claws,

these giant claws.

- What else happened, Herb?

- What happened?

What happened was I ran.

I ran and I ran and I ran

and I ran for my life

and I just ran until I was
out of the goddamn building

and I just kept running and running.

Anyways, the next thing I
know I'm,

well I'm back at my place

and my friends are all around me

and they're, you know,

telling me something happened

or wondering what happened

and I don't know what happened and it's--

- Why didn't you tell anyone, Herb?

- Well, I wish I had told someone.

I mean, I wish I had the
guts to tell somebody.

Listen, you can't do the same, all right.

If that creature is still out there,

you can't do the same.

Do you understand me, son?

- I understand you completely, Herb.

Now, not that I'm keeping
track or anything, Greg,

but I think that's
Darren one, society zero.

You know, Darren,

you could've told me what
we were doing out here.

- I don't know, it didn't
seem relevant at the time.

It didn't seem relevant?

Darren, this guy could've been dangerous.

- Yeah, dangerously woke.

Darren, that's
such fucking horse shit.

- What do you mean?

What do you think
we even did out here?

What do you think we proved?

- We just found the tide turner.

We have another witness
of Professor Zardonicus.

I'm not alone.

It proves that I wasn't lying.

But that can't be--

- Say, you boys want a drink for the road?

- Oh, no thanks.

We're just about to head out.

You ready, Greg?

Thank you again, Mr. Kint.

- Sure.

No problem.

- We got a long walk back.

Let's just go, Darren.

- All right.
- Fuck.

I love your place.

- After today's journey into the woods

to meet Herbert Kint,

some developments were made.

We learned that Darren
might actually be...

What am I saying?

We learned that there

might be more credence...

So I was thinking about what
Rachel said the other day

and she's right.

I don't know anything about Darren.

I don't know his history.

Like nothing.

And with his behavior
becoming even more erratic,

I thought it would help
to do some research

and I found out some
pretty interesting things.

So Darren Mitchell was
born to Ryan Mitchell.

Ryan Mitchell is an oil and gas guy.

He's been around forever.

He's worked with ExxonMobil,
Shell, and Enron.

Now, there's an unfortunate thing here.

Darren was not born to
Ryan Mitchell's wife.

Darren was born to Ryan
Mitchell's secretary.

So we can probably see where

some developmental issues start occurring.

So Darren seemingly
had a normal childhood.

He was just going to different

private schools around the country

until one gap where he just
stopped going to school

for about two years

when he was maybe 11 or 12.

There's no real way to find out why.

All of this is confidential, of course.

So, there's only one person I can talk to.

And if I'm right,

that person will be getting
out of work right now.

Hi, Mr. Mitchell?

Hi, Mr. Mitchell. I need to talk to you.

- What the hell is this?

No, I need to talk to you, sir.

- You can't just accost me like this.

I'm not accosting you, sir.

Sir, this is important.

This is about Darren.

This is about your son, Mr. Mitchell.

- Who are you?

I'm a friend of Darren's and I--

- Friend?

Yes.

And, look, just give me a couple minutes,

I'll explain, but I do
need to talk to you.

- You're making a documentary about this?

Yeah.

It's for a school assignment.

- About what again?

Professor Zardonicus.

- Ah.
- Yeah, I know.

- That's a new one.

I'm sorry. New one?

What do you mean by that?

- When my son was a boy,

he had an overactive imagination.

Most children are
steadfast in their beliefs

but Darren was unusually convicted.

Unfortunately, I indulged his beliefs,

even the ridiculous ones.

It was the only thing
that would satisfy him.

Then I hear from his teachers

that he has started taking
his stories to school,

scaring his fellow classmates.

One year he told us that Santa Claus

had tried to kidnap him.

That was a rough Christmas.

Then I hear that he has started

luring other children out into the woods.

I didn't think he would do anything but

it was time to get him some help.

So I,

I sent him to a child psychiatrist

recommended by my colleagues and...

And what? What happened?

- They couldn't find
anything wrong with him.

Couldn't diagnose him with a single thing.

I don't know what Darren thinks he saw

but he wasn't lying.

Anyway, I...

I gotta get going.

I gotta beat the traffic.

Oh, sure. I understand.

Look, if you could just not tell Darren

that we had this conversation,

I'd appreciate it.

- You don't have to worry about that.

My son doesn't speak to me anymore.

- So that did nothing.

I learned that Darren has
been to an institution,

though they couldn't
diagnose him with anything.

So that doesn't really comfort me

when he has a long history

of luring people out into the woods.

And I don't know how I'm
gonna talk to Darren about it.

What, am I gonna tell him that I thought

I ran into his estranged
father at the grocery store

and we just got to talking

about his history with delusions?

I mean, no matter what,
this is a lose lose for me.

Either Darren's fine

and I've been just sneaking into his past

or he's actually unstable

and I've been exploiting
a mentally ill person

for a fucking class assignment.

There is a distinct possibility

that I don't know what I'm doing

and that I've really hurt this guy.

'Cause this, this right here,

cannot be healthy for him.

I've just created an atmosphere

where I make him think

that this behavior is okay.

I've indulged him and for what?

I don't know if I should
tell him that he needs help,

but I can't keep indulging this, right?

I can't keep pretending that thing...

What the fuck?

Shit.

Darren?

- Hello, Gregory.

What are you doing here?

- I have some very important
information to relay to you.

Okay.

This couldn't have been over the phone?

- I'm sure it could've been over the phone

if you want the NSA to eavesdrop on us

and have us murdered and
covered up as a suicide, yeah.

But I don't think that's
what either of us wants.

So the more important question is

thank you for saving my life, Darren.

That's not even a question.

- Keep the camera up here.

Can we keep this short?

- I mean, as short as
uncovering and verbally sharing

a piece of crucial information

to our investigation can be.

Sure, I'll keep it short.

Okay, and this is
not technically my apartment.

So if you could just
be careful around shit.

- You have a key, right?

- What?
- You have a key?

You have a key

to the apartment?
- My girlfriend gave me a key

but this--
- Perfect. Then let me in.

I've been waiting.

Is she not here?

- Fuck.
- Keep the camera up here.

- Okay, goddammit.

Darren, what are you doing here?

- How much does this thing cost exactly?

The coffee maker? I don't know.

- Yeah, I mean, the only reason I asked

is because I have one just like it

and I think it's starting
to break down on me

'cause this morning I made
myself a cup of coffee

and it was just, it was mostly grain.

There was hardly any liquid in it at all.

And it's hard to start the morning

with a mouthful of grain,
you know what I mean?

Did you come to
talk about coffee grains?

Why are you here, Darren?

Just tell me why you're here.

- No reason, nothing big except...

Oh, oh yeah, I remember now.

I know where to find Professor Zardonicus.

What?

- Don't tell me you already forgot

who Professor Zardonicus is, Greg.

I didn't forget who he was.

I just...

Okay.

How? Was, where?

- I don't know how I can explain it

any simpler than that, Greg.

I know where he is, where he lives,

the place he rests his head at night,

where he keeps all of
his magazines, you know.

The place--
- Hey, Greg?

Are we still going to the movie?

It's about to start.
- How long have you

been standing there?

- A second.

- Greg, did you see her walk in?

Yeah, I mean, she lives here

so I didn't think it was a big deal.

- This is a private conversation, Greg.

Two ears only. No third parties.

- I can just go.

- No.

No, she already fucking ruined it.

The whole ambience is just...

- Greg, what's going on?
- I don't know.

I don't...

We're just having like
a production meeting.

- I would be much more comfortable

if we talked in here.

The closet?

- Yeah.
- The fucking closet?

- The closet.

I would be much more comfortable

if we had this conversation in here

and I assume my comfort matters to you.

- Like I said, I can just go.

- Oh, I'm so glad you can do something.

I didn't hear you the first time.

Greg, will you say something?
- Hey!

I'm not going in the closet.

I'm not.
- If you're not

going in the closet,

then I'm gonna stop speaking entirely.

- Greg, don't go into the closet.

I'm not going in the closet.

- Then I'm gonna stop
speaking starting now.

- Oh, so if I said that
Professor Zardonicus

is a little horseshit--

- I would!

I would say you're full of shit.

But I'm not speaking, so there's that.

We can go anywhere else, okay?

We can go to a cafe.

We can go to a library.

Just not the fucking closet.

- If I was speaking I would
say that's a great idea.

But I'm not speaking, so there's that.

- Greg, you're not actually
humoring this, are you?

- There's nothing humorous about this.

Now, Greg, go in the closet with me.

I can't go in the closet.

- Please, Greg.

You and me in the closet together now.

- Fucking stop it!

- You'd better not follow
us in there either!

- I don't plan on following

you into the closet.
- I see it in your eyes.

- What's even going on here?
You're gonna follow

us in there.

Are you gonna stand out here with a cup

to the door and listen?
- I am not going into

the closet with you.

What are you doing?
- Is that what you want?

This whole fucking time!

Jesus fucking Christ, Darren.

I mean you have been an idiot for most--

- The science building.

What?

- The old science building.

That's where we find him.

There's where Herb ran into him.

That's where he was created,

where Professor Zardonicus was born.

It's been right in front of
our face this entire time.

We're going down there tonight

and we're proving to the
world once and for all

that Professor Zardonicus is real.

Okay, you are asking me

to do something very very stupid, Darren.

If we go there, if we're caught--

- If he's not there, I'll quit.

There's nowhere else to look, Greg.

This is it.

Our last chance.

Do you actually mean that?

I wouldn't say
it if I didn't mean it.

If he's not
down there, we're done.

Completely done.

- That's what I'm saying.

I have your word on that?

- Yes.

Okay.

Hey, look, I got something I gotta do.

Just give me a minute.

Uh, hey.

So, I know that was weird
and that I've been weird

but I can promise you that
tonight is the last night.

Where are you going?

It doesn't matter.

He said he's gonna quit.

That means we can put
everything behind us.

It means you never have to hear

the name Professor Zardonicus ever again.

Okay.

- Okay?
- Yeah.

Thank you.

I will be back.

Soon, I hope.

Okay, love you. Bye.

- Today is November 5th, 2019.

I, Darren James Mitchell,

am standing in front of
the old science building

which also serves as the resting place

for Professor Zardonicus.

As we reach the end of my journey,

I look back on all the times

my partner and I were met
with mockery and scorn.

I think back on my life

and how at times it seemed like

nothing more than a sad joke.

In many ways I have much more
in common with the Professor

than I do with, say, regular people.

He was the subject of a
horrific and cruel prank

which transformed him into something,

something less than he was before.

I do not wish to harm the
Professor or judge him in any way.

My allegiance is to the truth

and the truth I shall have

at all costs.

- What?
- Did you hear that?

What?

- Come on.
- What?

The fuck are we going?

Where are we...

Darren!

Darren, slow down, slow down.
- Shit.

Holy fuck. Where are we?
- He's in here somewhere.

Okay, let's just
make this quick, all right?

- There it is.

I thought I forgot it.
- What the fuck?

What?

Is that a gun? A real gun?

- No, Greg, I brought a fake gun

to fight a very real monster.

What do you think?

I think you're gonna go to jail

when somebody finds you with that.

- Oh, I'm sorry I wanted to
be at least a little prepared

if we're hunting down a monster.

You can't keep doing
this shit to me, Darren.

- Doing what?

All the fucking mystery stuff

where you put me through a heart attack.

I thought we were partners!

- We are partners, Greg.

Then why don't you
console me about anything?

- Because I don't wanna
make things more complicated

than they have to be.

Oh, like they're
not complicated right now?

Doesn't this feel complicated?

- Because I don't wanna
get into a little fight

over every single thing, all right?

This is not a big deal.

Everything's worked out so far.

Says the man
with lipstick on his face.

- That's not the point.

Okay, Darren, stop.

We need to talk.

Darren, I said stop.

Fuck.

Darren, stop or I turn off the camera!

- What?

Yeah.

Well, that did it, didn't it?

That's all this is,

is just showing off
for the fucking camera.

- What are you saying, Greg?

I'm saying that the only reason

you pretend to need me,

like when you obviously have enough money

to buy your own equipment,

to buy whatever you need,

it's just to satisfy your own ego.

- I never said that.

You don't have to.

You need the one thing
that money can't buy you

and that's the validation.

- You're making stuff up now.

Am I? Am I really?

Dude, okay, that is the
only reason we're down here.

That's the only reason

I'm walking around a
fucking basement with you

looking for something
that doesn't even exist!

- Wait, you don't...

You don't believe in Professor Zardonicus?

Of course I don't!

Jesus Christ.

So you've been
lying to me this whole time.

Okay, don't
turn this on me, dude.

- No, what about that night
at the fountain, Greg?

- What?
- Did you see

Professor Zardonicus then

or were you just lying for
some sort of sick joke?

- Do not--
- Is that all this whole

experience has been?
- Do not pretend

that you don't have some serous issues.

- Oh, I'm sorry that
I'm able to comprehend

something beyond your
limited scope of imagination.

And I'm sorry that
you're fucking delusional

just like when you were a kid.

Okay, I'm sorry.

- What'd you just say?

I shouldn't have said that.

I'm sorry.
- When I was a kid?

- Yes, I, look--
- Have you been snooping

around my past, Greg?
- No, I've been

doing research.

I've been doing research.

I'm making a documentary.
- You talk about trust.

- I had to do research.
- You talk about understanding

having each other's back?
- Hey, hey! Put the gun down!

Put the fucking gun down.
- Then you pull

this shit, Greg.

Put the gun down, Darren.

- I'm not gonna put the gun down

because you're a fucking liar

and you're going behind my back.

You're not
gonna put the gun down?

- You're supposed to be my partner, Greg!

- Okay, fuck you.
- What?

- I'm out.
- No.

- I'm really out, man.
- You're not being...

You crossed the fucking line.

- Stop it! Greg!
- No, no!

Let go of the fucking
camera, you son of a...

Ah, fuck.

Are you okay?
- Get away from me.

- What?
- Get away from me, Greg.

What happened? What?

Did you get hurt?
- Just go away!

- Wait, wait, wait.
- Please.

Stop, Greg.

Where are the scars?

- Please, Greg, stop.

Where are the scars, Darren?

Show them to me.

It was all a lie?

- No.

You're just a fucking liar.

- No, it wasn't a lie.
- You're such a fucking liar.

- Please, Greg, I just
needed someone to believe me.

All of your
pretentious bullshit about truth

and you're just a fucking liar!

- I just needed you to
believe in me, please.

I didn't know what else to do.

I'm sorry, I didn't
mean to hurt you, Greg.

Where are you going?
- Truth my fucking ass.

- Where are you going?
- I'm leaving, Darren.

What does it look like?
- Please don't leave me.

You can't leave me down here with him.

He'll kill me.

Please, Greg.
- Yeah?

- Please.
- Good luck.

- Greg.
- Bye, Darren.

Greg, no.

No, Greg, please!

- This is Greg Hartman of comm 43...

I can't remember the name.

I have to announce that

the Zardonicus project, my final project,

is officially canceled.

I just can't...

I just can't...

I'm sorry, Professor,

and I hope you understand.

What the fuck?

What the?

- Oh God, please.
- Darren?

Please, go away.

Darren, that's you, right?

- Please, Greg, help me.

Help me, Greg, help me!
- Darren!

- Greg, are you still there?
- Darren?

- Help me, Greg, please.

- Darren!

Don't kill him!

Darren! What the.

Darren?

What the fuck.

Darren?

Oh.

Oh.

Darren.

You don't have to do this, Darren.

You really don't.

I believe you now.

No, I believe you.

Darren, I believe you.

I believe you, Darren.

You were right.

This is the police.

Wherever you are, come out with your...

Shit.

What the hell?

So you have
no idea what happened to him?

- No.

I don't think he made it.

You
don't think he made it?

So what, do you think he was injured?

- I think he got exactly what he wanted.

And what was that?

- To meet Professor Zardonicus.

Wait, wait,
wait, so now you're saying

you believe in this Professor Zardonicus?

- I know what I saw.

I know what I saw.

- Do you need help with that?

- No, that's okay.

It hasn't been too long

since I was on the other
end of this operation.

- Okay, well, first of all,

I just wanna say thank you for doing this.

- Oh yeah, sure.

- I know it's been a lot for you.

- It is what it is, right?

- Mm-hmm.

So, I just wanna start off,

just how are you now after everything?

- Sure.

Well, since Darren's disappearance,

things have changed for me a lot.

So, I'm sure you guys know this,

but after everything came out

about what Darren and I were up to,

a huge scandal came out of it

and the film department decided

to put me under academic probation.

And on top of that,

the footage that I had
been shooting leaked

and everybody saw it

and all these intimate moments

that Darren and I had.

Seeing those from a
stranger's eyes, I guess,

puts a different perspective
on the whole thing

and I just couldn't be on that campus

without thinking about him, honestly.

I decided to cut the cord.

Fuck.

I decided to cut the cord
and drop out of school.

Which sounds like a pretty
dumb idea right now.

My girlfriend at the time was a very,

she still is, a very ambitious person

and I think we both realized

that I was just dead weight to her

and that I probably had
been for a very long time.

And yeah, that was the end of that.

So I'm kinda on my own these days.

- Okay.

I'm sorry.

I kinda wanna focus more on Darren now,

if you don't mind.

I just wanna know,

'cause I know you've been looking for him.

- Well, I mean, looking for him,

I don't expect to find him.

What I've done is I've
created a movement of sorts

to try to reach out to him, you know.

I want him to come back to me.

I want it to be a mutual thing

'cause I don't blame him for feeling

that I took advantage of him

and that I exploited him.

So I want him to know
that I do care about him

and that I am sorry

and I've just been putting up
these flyers and everything

hoping to hear back from him.

Obviously, nothing's come from that but

it does feel good knowing

that I am doing what I'm
supposed to be doing.

That's not something I've ever

really been able to say
before but I can say it now

and that's at least one positive thing

I can say about this whole mess.

- Okay.

Does this involve anything

with Professor Zardonicus by any means?

I mean, you did say that
you believe you saw him.

- Well, okay.

This is gonna be a little complicated

so just bear with me.

I saw him and I saw
Darren Mitchell that night

together.
- You saw, okay.

Both of them in the basement, right?

In the old science building.

- I saw them both at the same time.

- So you believe that Zardonicus took him?

- No.

- I'm sorry, I'm just,

I'm having a hard time following.

- No, I'm not good at explaining this.

You know these guys.

Professor Zardonicus is a good example.

- Like Big Foot?
- Big Foot, Loch Ness Monster.

- Okay.

- We have all of these guys

and they're not creatures
and monsters to us.

That's not why we care.

It's that they're Rorschach tests, really.

It's that they are what
we need them to be.

And Professor Zardonicus,

Darren needed him to be real.

He needed that.

And so what he did was he made him real.

- I mean, to me it just sounds like

you think that Darren had
just dressed up as a monster.

- I mean, I'm dressed up right now.

You guys all here, you're dressed up.

Right? Like--
- Yes.

- It's all about appearances

and it's all about becoming

that thing you were meant to be.

I mean,

what I saw that night, it
was Professor Zardonicus.

You may not wanna call him that,

but that's what he was to me.

- So you're essentially saying

that Darren became Professor Zardonicus?

- I'm saying that Darren realized

to make something real
you have to believe.

But to get people to
believe, it has to be real.

- I do not wish to harm the Professor

or judge him in any way.

But my allegiance is to the truth

and the truth I shall have

at all costs.

Was that good or...

I mean, I felt like it
was pretty good overall.

I don't think it was too rehearsed.

Yeah.

All right.

You wanna just?

♪ Relative circle of time ♪

♪ Paths of faith ♪

♪ Chance aligned ♪

♪ Sharing space ♪

♪ Sharing a path ♪

♪ Don't know why we're here ♪

♪ So get over this prophet of fear ♪

♪ Institutions have killed ♪

♪ Too many of us ♪

♪ Tears, sweat, and rain ♪

♪ Will save my skin ♪

♪ Eclipsed stars cast a shadow ♪

♪ Eyes roll to the back of the head ♪

♪ Just like old times ♪

♪ Things are the same ♪

♪ She's gotten older now ♪

♪ Cast in gray ♪