Billions (2016–…): Season 3, Episode 12 - Elmsley Count - full transcript
Axe dominates a capital raise event, but is soon challenged by an unexpected competitor. Chuck looks to strike the ultimate blow on an enemy. Wendy reckons with past decisions, and chooses a side. Connerty confronts Sacker about Chuck's activities. Taylor takes a big position.
Previously on Billions...
You want an unprecedented
raise in record time.
So how are you going to help
me get the first ten stacks?
We need Grigor Andolov.
I just want to see you work
a little bit harder for it.
You breached my threshold
and threatened me.
Just wait a second...
Drop your credentials
at the guard's desk.
And GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!
What the fuck?!
What, exactly, did you do?
How do I get you to break
your letter of intent
with Oscar Langstraat?
It basically solves our problem.
You sold out my relationship
in order to do it.
He said I was off
the raise team.
I won't stagnate.
Not for Axe. Not for anybody.
I'll talk to him.
With someone like Taylor, what
they need is forward momentum,
above all things.
Where the fuck did Jeffcoat
get all this money?
TexasSouthCable.
I want you to launch
an investigation
into Jock Jeffcoat's brother
and TexasSouthCable.
Nothing makes me feel so alive
as putting my head
in a tiger's mouth.
We're gonna get Jock
on trying to stop it.
Obstruction of justice.
I'm putting you on
the raise team.
Fuckin' A. Onward and upward.
There's gonna be 30
bil on the table,
get ready to help me
haul it outta there.
It looks like you're ready
to get into business.
I need a meeting with your
boss, Grigor Andolov.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
[Frank Sinatra's "Come
Fly With Me" playing]
The Sands is proud to present
a wonderful new show,
a man and his music.
The music of Count Basie
and his great band.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
And the man is Frank Sinatra.
You smell that?
You smell that?
That's money, son...
People who have never
been near money will say:
"I smell money," when
entering a casino
or showing up at a
sales conference.
They, of course, can't
because they don't know how
to recognize the scent.
But you?
Like a shorthaired pointer
on a dabbling duck.
And I am telling you,
Sef, I smell money.
How did all these
people get in my room?
♪ Come fly with me, we'll
fly, we'll fly away ♪
Gentlemen, today's the day!
- By the close of the event,
30 billion will be earmarked,
invested, captured.
If we don't walk out of here
with at least a third of
the available capital...
I've teed this whole thing
up so that you will.
♪ Come fly with me ♪
Should I give you "napalm
in the morning"...
I already got a version...
Then "no vice but beggary"?
How 'bout Nick Saban?
Roll Tide... Roll!
That's fucking impressive.
I count on it.
Where's Taylor?
I have a text. They say: "Soon."
Organizing some
last-minute things."
Pitch doesn't work
without Taylor.
They better make it.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I was just asking
myself if I would.
And you know what?
I would!
Wow.
Every day you live this life
you learn something
about yourself.
Delightful!
If you're delighted, just
imagine how it makes me feel.
That's good.
You didn't even flinch.
Like the titan, Lee lacocca.
That's important.
To business then.
I read your approach in
the materials you sent.
What's your market outlook?
I could tell you
that interest rates
have topped out for
the near term,
that the tax and regulatory
climate are favorable,
that growth is looking
somewhat robust...
I could also read
your tea leaves
or the creases in your palm
or divine the future
by cleromancy...
Cleromancy?
Casting bones.
But I'm no gypsy.
So instead I'll tell you that
my anticipation and my reaction
to moment by moment changes
in market conditions
are lightning quick.
And cutting edge tech:
A quant piece that wasn't even
in place during the past year
that reflects my already
positive results.
Sure. But it's all words.
And words have very little to
do with how I decide things.
What then?
Internal process.
Like your casting bones.
But inside.
Last question...
Why are you leaving Axe?
After all, he made you.
We can debate that
statement some other time.
As for your question:
The same reason
you leave a house
that has a furnace
leaking carbon monoxide:
It's the only way to survive.
I like this image.
They say you can't
taste it or smell it
or even know that it's
putting you to sleep.
But I always think I would:
Most people are
already sleepwalking
through their lives.
So they don't even notice.
How could they, it's
only a matter of degree.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
You crushed it.
I'm glad I brokered
this meeting.
I have to talk to
him, but I imagine
money will be flowing shortly.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
So your suite is
the largest one.
Because there is more demand
for you than we can fit.
- Hey, Sara.
- Hey, Axe.
I didn't see you
down on the list.
Yeah, I'm not here to invest, so
I didn't want to take a spot.
I know you've said you'll
never take Spanx public...
And I won't.
Yeah, but when you
do, let me know.
See ya, Axe.
Oh, ho, ho, I thought the
velociraptor was extinct.
And yet it walks amongst us.
A velociraptor doesn't walk.
It stalks, hunts, kills, with
great stealth and speed,
and if you want him
to prove that to you,
- keep fucking talking.
Easy, pal.
They're just jealous 'cause
we got a waiting list.
Because you're the freak
show, the ten-in-one.
Everyone wants to take a look.
But after they stare at the
bearded lady for five minutes,
they'll walk down to my
suite, hand me the grisbi.
After today, everyone will know
that Axe Capital is
just like Atlantis,
this once great land,
now totally underwater
and feels like a figment
of someone's imagination.
Sorry to interrupt
the rebalancing
of your lower body meridians.
- Uh-huh.
Target letter
announcing the investigation
into Zeb Jeffcoat.
Once it's signed and
the hard copy is sent
along with the PDF,
there's no turning back.
No. The proverbial Rubicon.
We cross it and Jock
goes on the offensive.
And even though that's
what we want...
Intimidating nevertheless.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
We are in the chute...
♪♪♪
We can expect Zeb to call his
big brother immediately...
And for him to go batshit.
♪♪♪
Or...
Or he's cool as can be.
But there's no way
he's cool enough
to simply let this
play out in court.
Since it would lead back to him.
He'll confer with his lawyers.
But not in a way that
will leave a trail.
Ultimately he will fall
back and make his move
to derail the case.
And that attack will come
on one of two fronts.
He will either ruin,
threaten, pressure
or otherwise discredit
and destroy you,
since you'll be
bringing the case.
Or he will try to compromise
who he surmises to
be the star witness.
♪♪♪
Now, if we can leak to him
that Ashley Cutler is the key
and is in our neck of the woods,
Jock will likely
head to New York.
But the question is: Which
move will he make first?
If he digs on me, he'll come
up with a bouquet of begonias.
Yes. Yes. I did as hard a
vet on you as one could do.
I knew to get where
I needed to get
I'd have to be Jackie
Robinson clean.
Then I want that witness.
Which means he can
either try his luck
with the head of the
State Police...
Over whom he has no sway...
Or he can call me,
and implore me
to use my particular set of
powers to aid in his cause.
My phone has to be
the one that rings.
Yes, we need that to happen.
But what if it doesn't?
You and I know Cutler
is a weak witness.
But Jock might figure that too.
And if he's patient enough,
he might just wait it out.
Then you do the thing:
Impanel a grand jury,
and schedule Cutler.
It invariably leaks and Jock
knows we're going forward.
But if, but when
that call does come,
and we know we've got
him following along,
you can't just offer him help.
No, he'll sniff it
out, of course.
Ask for something, big.
For yourself.
So he believes you're in
it for your own reasons.
And then it's time
for The Prestige.
♪♪♪
Put your shoes on and get ready.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Only Ricky Roma gets
to show up late.
Well, I am at the
top of the board.
What the fuck?
Uber...
If you're gonna go around,
go like a rich person.
Take a chopper.
I'm here now. Let's
do this thing.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
Remember: They are not buying
your proprietary
trading platform,
they are not buying
your strategies,
they are buying you.
Remind them that we
have the answers.
That they are safe
in your loving arms.
Like Barry White.
Oh, he'd have had them
hands in the air,
weeping and singing along.
So, yes, exactly
like Barry White.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
There are only two things
these allocators
really want to know,
but they'll never directly ask:
Can we be trusted?
And are we special?
We nail those. We nail
this entire thing.
♪♪♪
Welcome, everybody. Welcome.
Thanks for coming.
Now, you've read all our stuff.
You know my Sortino ratio proves
that we get a higher rate of
return with less downside vol.
How we avoided the
XIV liquidation
by selling our VIX positions
two weeks before
everybody else did.
And you know who made
sure we did that?
Taylor Mason!
♪♪♪
Over the past year, we've seen
the lowest market correlation
of any fund in the business.
You will, of course, want
to know why and how.
So come sit in and
shadow me for a day,
because it's like
asking a magician
how they do their tricks.
We all know it's not magic.
It's the opposite of magic.
It's grinding, focused work,
it's sitting on their bed for
weeks, months at a time,
working slip cuts, perfecting
the Elmsley Count...
So that the audience never sees
where the cards really are.
No. It's not magic.
But when the effect
is presented,
it sure feels like a miracle.
And if you invest
with us, you will be
behind the curtain with Axe.
And me.
All the mysteries revealed.
Nothing kept secret from you.
Nothing held back.
Fully transparent work.
I could go on but...
But there are bars
in New York City
some of you want to hit
before they close tonight.
Look, Taylor is the single most
effective manager of money
I have ever come across.
They are the future
of Axe Capital.
And I'm just thrilled
that you're all gonna
get the opportunity
to work with them directly
alongside me and the team.
♪♪♪
[mid-tempo music
plays on speakers]
I've got him.
Dramatic. Who you got?
Beer tonight? No, you
need something stronger.
Chuck. Pulling shit again.
What shit?
He's using FBI to hide a witness
who's bad for Jock Jeffcoat.
What do you think you know?
That Chuck is helping his
boss's legal troubles go away.
And you're helping him...
♪ dramatic music ♪
Me?
You're on the text
transcripts, Kate.
Getting favors from the FBI.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
How did you, uh...
Administrative subpoenas.
Blessed from on high.
So either you can help me.
Or go down with Chuck.
Well, you're right about me
needing that stronger drink...
- Mm.
- Mm-hmm.
Two coming up.
You got the rest of
it backwards, though.
- Yeah.
You can't mix in here and
try to take Chuck down.
Not on this one.
He's finally doing it, Bryan.
The right thing.
He is not helping Jock
by hiding the witness...
Jock has been telling us
which cases to pursue
and which ones to drop.
Like the Lugo nightmare.
So us having to
look the other way,
stuffing all the bullshit down.
It finally got to be
too much for Chuck.
He is going after him.
He's doing that Chuck thing...
But for the right fucking
reasons this time, all the way.
[Michael McDermott's "Never
Going Down Again" playing]
Fuck!
Yeah.
So let us drink our boilermakers
and let him finish...
You can take him down
over something else
if you still feel
that you have to.
And if you do, I promise
I'll stay out of it
and leave it between
the two of you.
♪♪♪
We. Fucking. Did it!
Six billion dollars committed.
In one morning.
We are back!
All the fucking way back!
Wendy, Wags
and Taylor.
They all came through
for us huge.
Let's have a big shout out
for all three of them!
The Hold Steady!
[The Hold Steady plays
"Entitlement Crew"]
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪ Tequila take off,
Tecate landing ♪
♪ Sorry about the centerpiece,
thanks for understanding ♪
♪ Hard branding, soft salesmen,
Campari commissions ♪
♪ I was sitting in the kitchen ♪
♪ Trying to guess where
she was living now ♪
♪♪♪
It's not exactly
like we thought.
Then what is it?
We have it flipped.
Chuck's going after Jock,
not covering for him?
Sorry to drag you up here...
There's an Acela back to
Washington tomorrow at 8:00.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
This is new.
What? I come over all the time.
Not without an agenda.
A man can't want to
see his own father?
A man can.
Not this man.
This is big game, you're after.
Big fucking game.
The only problem
is: No call yet.
Make your man do what
you want him to do,
not what's good for him...
The object of any
worthwhile contest.
Well, there is one move we've
been holding in abeyance,
because it might bring
him along too quickly...
To a fatal mistake or
walking away free.
Better to play fast
and aggressive
with inferior matériel,
than let them be exposed later.
Rommel?
Me.
If the end game is coming
sooner or later...
Even if it might crush you,
I say: Bring it on.
Shift the pressure of the
decision from you, to him.
Let him have to
avoid the mistake.
Or see the one move that
might get him through.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Epstein.
Do it. Pull the trigger
on the grand jury.
Let's see how patient Jock is.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
- No.
It was, indeed, some
party last night.
But I fear it might be over.
Meaning?
I've been making follow up calls
to book the money that
was pledged at the race.
I'm having problems
locking it in.
What fucking problems?
Problems reaching people.
They're dodging.
I'm feeling like somebody
slipped us a Cosby.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
Where the fuck is Taylor?
They're here before
me most of the time.
Not sure.
Sent a text this morning,
didn't hear back.
Huh...
♪♪♪
♪ I feel I've been abandoned ♪
♪ Never got to say
goodbye to you ♪
♪ Give my best to the
Entitlement Crew ♪
♪♪♪
And no Mafee today.
I figured it was
the whiskey flu.
Fuck.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
A new kind of organization.
Top down but not imperious or impetuous.
Integrated.
And you can make more
than you do now.
With a partnership stake.
Goddamnit... When?
Now.
Taylor's making a move.
They've played the
Elmsley Count on us.
So we wouldn't see
their real cards.
Fuck.
Pretended to be one of us...
For just long enough to take
our personnel and our capital.
All of it.
♪♪♪
Wendy. Now.
Tell me she's fucking here.
She is. I saw her.
♪♪♪
Is there anything I can do
to stop Taylor from
officially opening?
You could file, and we will, for
intellectual property theft,
for tortious interference
for both the investor piece
and any employees
they enticed away,
and these suits will have
to be defended, but...
But we won't win.
We won't win fast enough to
injunct them from opening.
♪♪♪
File anyway.
Let's get Taylor distracted
from the bottom line.
Let's see how they
do with split focus.
Now, who's actually gone?
And who's on the fence?
So far, it appears
that other than Mafee,
only Ben Kim sleeps
with the fishes.
As for the cash: 500
million came on board,
three and a half billion
went with Taylor,
the other two billion pulled
back, went elsewhere...
Didn't want to be involved
in a family fight.
I'm gonna quarantine a few
traders I have my doubts about
before this thing spreads
like black death.
Ben Kim is here.
He just got off the elevator
and went to his station.
The important thing
is: I said no.
So you're not a spy?
'Cause you showed up late
on this particular day.
So you can see how I'd wonder.
I can. But I'm not.
I said no.
Walk us through how
Taylor approached you.
♪ Mid-tempo music ♪
♪♪♪
Where did you come from?
Wrong question.
Where are we going
is the right one.
Is it?
Come work for me.
I already do.
At Mase Cap.
♪♪♪
You're leaving.
Left.
But Axe has been loyal...
He promoted me.
In title, yes, after
I told him to.
But what kind of money
bump did he give you?
♪♪♪
He gave you a paper title
as a way to keep you
running in place.
But I will give you an
entire field to sprint down.
♪♪♪
Ben.
Ben, I'm sorry to have
to tell you, but...
Oh, no... Taylor told you
not to give me the raise.
So that I would be
dissatisfied and go with them.
That's pretty sound from a
game theory perspective.
Yeah. Well. This ain't no game.
But Taylor treated it like it
was, and you fell for it...
I don't mean that.
No. I was suckered.
And now I will have my turn.
So now that we know
why you didn't
give me more money,
do I get the...
Finish that sentence at
your own peril, Ben Kim.
Though you do have
a future here.
And one that'll have you getting
as rich as a feudal lord
if you keep performing.
Are you in?
I am.
Fuck.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
At a time like this, I
suggest looking within.
To see what you... what we...
May have done to cause this.
We rebuild our business
as we rebuild our selves.
Or, don't look inside.
Do what I do instead.
Go drinks, dinners, parties,
funny massage joints
with every fucking
whale in the Street
and poison that
bitch's name to them.
For starters.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
General!
I'd like to see you.
Something I can help
with now, here?
Come on over to the hotel.
Better to talk there.
And I'm on my way, sir.
Here we go.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Grigor.
We must meet. Now.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Nice place.
Yeah.
Once I own every
townhouse on the block,
I'll put them all together.
Make a real home, you know?
Quilts on the beds,
needlepoints on the walls,
healing crystals
in every window.
Until then, this one is a place
for special conversations.
They can hear it?
They hear everything,
but they know exactly
what happens
when someone speaks out of turn.
As, I imagine, your man does.
I do.
So, you know you
have a problem, yes?
Yes.
Because you don't
have pest control.
So the pests are running
all around the place
with no consequences.
But I'm very good at dealing
with pests, with vermin.
I have a perfect score
with Consumer Reports.
So if I promise you
that I will make your
problem disappear,
your problem will
never, ever return.
I can't allow Mr. Axelrod...
Shut the fuck up!
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I understand what
you're offering.
But I cannot ask you to
do it, at this time.
♪♪♪
If it were me and
I were standing
as naked as Paris Hilton
and twice as fucked,
I would not hesitate.
I know you wouldn't.
And that perhaps it's
what's called for.
So, then, you want me to do it?
You have to say it.
I have to hear you.
♪♪♪
Why are you willing
to do this for me?
Look at this from my
particular set of binoculars.
I gave you my assets.
At least in part
because Taylor was going
to help manage them.
So when they fucked you over.
They fucked me over, too.
But I ask your permission
because, really,
she is your property.
Not mine.
Well, I'm grateful
for your loyalty.
My loyalties are clear.
Can I respond by tomorrow?
Sure.
Shame about Taylor. So smart.
Loss for everyone.
♪♪♪
You seemed to take
that seriously.
Damn right.
When I've suggested such
actions in the past,
you never even considered it.
Well, once a guy like that
puts it on the table,
you have to think about
what happens if you say no
as much as if you say yes.
If you decide on
something this final,
it shouldn't be farmed out,
it should be done in-house.
Yeah. Maybe. I don't know.
Look, I need to think about
what other options I have.
And how to protect myself no
matter which choice I make.
And I need to look
Taylor in the eye.
Shit, Axe,
look, it was time for a change.
I'm sure you thought so too.
I want to thank you, of course.
Figured I would when
the dust settled...
Shut the fuck up, Mafee.
You did what you did,
you got your money,
but no amount I give to charity
will help me atone
for the ass fucking
I will give you
in this business.
You hearing me?
Now go get your new
fucking master.
The palace coup is complete.
Today you settled all
family business.
I get that you're angry.
But I think it's because
I left before you
could finish me off.
You think I was
acting against you?
The undercutting,
the manipulation,
and public, and
private, humiliation.
The lies and broken promises.
All while I good soldiered
it and made you money.
But how long, really,
was it going to be
before you sent me
off to slaughter?
Wrong.
I wasn't getting rid of you
or working against you.
You were on the inside.
We were succeeding together.
I trusted you in a way that I
almost never trust anyone.
It may have seemed unorthodox,
but that's the truth of it.
And now you've taken from me.
You've stolen from me,
under false pretenses.
And you've betrayed me.
I did what I had to do to survive.
And to win.
You've got to understand that.
I did it for me,
not against you.
Sure. Right.
Congratulations, now you
have your own shop,
billions under management.
You're moving even
quicker than I did.
Yes. I'll surpass your
assets under management,
at the rate I calculate, in
three years at the earliest,
eight at the latest.
Maybe.
You're ready for the summit.
But you know what they call
that spot up on Everest?
The Death Zone.
Some people that make it up, and
then they make it back home.
But there are countless
more, fucking dead,
encased in ice for all time.
That's where you are now.
And very few people
can even survive
on the available oxygen up here.
Even fewer can perform.
So we'll see.
Young lungs. So yeah, we will.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
You know your history,
so you know what
happens to usurpers.
Charles Edward
Stuart, for example.
Bonnie Prince Charlie. Yes.
His troops slaughtered. Him
exiled from the kingdom...
More like on the run for
the rest of his life.
And that was one of the
more civilized responses.
♪♪♪
You have to know
that anything I do to
stop you is warranted.
♪♪♪
I anticipated that
being your reaction.
So do what you must.
And I'll defend as I have to.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
General, I didn't expect to
see you back in town so soon.
Makes two of us.
Listen, the reason
I called you over
is there's a legal
matter of some subtlety
that I may need your help on.
I'll be as delicate as
a scrimshander then.
There's a prosecution
in the works.
If you can call it that.
More like a political
hatchet job.
Against you?
Nah, against my brother.
Designed to splatter on me.
Down in Texas? Well,
who's prosecuting?
Perhaps I know him and
could give a nudge,
help steer him away.
New York. State of.
Alvin Epstein.
Oh.
Rep on him is he is a
straight fucking shooter.
Epstein presents a real problem.
I know him enough to nod
at him, but I'm afraid
I've heard the same
thing as you about him.
He's a crusader type.
Probably not enough dirt
to dig on him either.
Forget about him.
I know who this whole
thing hinges on.
Seedy financier type I knew in
the old days, Ashley Cutler.
He's had his nose bent about
me and my brother for years.
I bedded his sister back
in the day, truth be told.
So did my brother.
She was something of
the town scooter.
But that aside,
if I could somehow get
ten minutes with him,
I'm sure I could remind
him what really matters
to him and his family.
General, I think you
should fall back
and just let this
play out in court.
Let justice take its course.
Safer that way.
Yeah, I could.
But no, I'm gonna give justice
just a little bit
of fucking help.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
♪♪♪
Well, a course of
action comes to mind
that could get you
what you want,
but it's a dangerous one for me.
So if I were to engage
on your behalf,
I'd expect something in return.
Would you now?
♪♪♪
Well, I can't say I'm a
hundred percent surprised.
A man looking out for
his own interest
is a man who can be counted on.
What do you want?
To be guaranteed my post
until the end of the
administration.
Chuck, you pull this off, how
could I live without you?
Granted.
And Southern becomes
the sovereign district
once again.
I call my own plays from now on.
♪♪♪
Well, I didn't realize my input
was so rankling to you...
♪♪♪
Fine, I give you your latitude.
Then I will do all I can.
♪♪♪
You'll hear from me soon.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
There are men, with the
kinds of resources I have,
who would deal with
this betrayal swiftly
and without mercy.
And are you one of them?
Am I?
Without mercy?
Without regard for
Taylor the person?
Not sure.
I'm that angry.
That I'm sure of.
What if you didn't go anywhere?
Did nothing.
Most people in the business
will think you sent Taylor off,
invested with them.
Maybe you still can?
He who makes the money wins.
Or take comfort in the knowledge
that the betrayer will
suffer for their actions.
Suffer how.
Yeah.
And when the reversals
show up, which they will,
and Taylor has to go it alone,
with no one to turn to...
They will have down years.
And they will spiral.
It's unavoidable.
All you have to do
is wait for it.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
I don't know that I can.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Well, General, it is indeed
Cutler at the heart of this.
I've subpoenaed him
on a federal matter.
New York State is gonna scream,
but I'll deal with that.
I have him installed in
a hotel under guard.
I know that an assuredly
private conversation
is of the essence for you.
So I've landed on the spa...
He'll be in a room
that's safe for
that conversation.
You'll be able to know... To see...
that he's not wired.
I have trusted FBI watching him.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
♪♪♪
And at the appropriate time,
I'll have them pulled
off the detail...
Yeah?
♪♪♪
We're out.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
You will then have
your time with him.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I am moved by your
loyalty, grace,
and tactical efficiency.
Gracias, amigo.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Alvin?
We got him. It worked. I
can play you the tape.
Oh, yes!
I-I'll come right
over to your office.
I can't be sure my
office isn't bugged.
Meet me at yours.
Very good.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Jesus Christ.
No. Just me.
What do you want?
You.
You think I'll actually
come with you?
Haven't you done enough damage?
I'm building, not destroying.
That's where you come in.
I'm assembling a place
that's tech-centric,
but I want my people
as frequently tuned
and upgraded as the software.
And I don't want them merely
calibrated to make money.
I want you to make sure
their whole selves
are being attended to.
It's a place free
of any arrests,
or indictments, or insinuations.
It's a place where
we can be our best.
Nice ideas.
But you are no moral
fucking compass.
For a moment, I
thought you might be.
Because you needed
me to think that.
But you used me.
If anyone has been using
people for their own ends...
Oh, don't even try that shit.
You preyed on me and
my empathy for you.
Programmed me to get you
what you wanted from Axe...
Being part of the raise.
So... fuck you.
You don't seem to understand...
I'm not just offering
you a job for my sake.
I'm offering you a fresh
start, for yours.
A re-set from your
slew of fuck-ups.
You let things devolve
at Axe Capital.
You didn't see me being
pushed out the door.
You couldn't stop
Axe from succumbing
to his own worst nature.
Instead you succumbed to it.
And who knows what other
fallout you've created
or at least allowed
elsewhere in your life.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
You're a brilliant person.
You have a lot of answers.
But you are very young
and there's a lot
more to this business
-than you've learned so far.
It is not just about numbers
and decimal points.
The thing that makes it matter
is: Lasting relationships.
True loyalty.
Real trust.
♪♪♪
No, I'm pretty sure
there's only money,
and it can buy all those things
or at least the same result.
That's what you and
Axe taught me.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
That thing you said. About
keeping it 'in-house.'
Maybe pride.
I have the...
craft, you know?
But doing it at a remove,
that makes much more sense.
Oh, so you've been
thinking about it, too.
The thing you said about saying
no to someone like Grigor,
that's where I've spent
most of my thinking time.
How it ramificates out if I
don't give the green light.
Yes.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
Mission e-val.
Just as you would've
for a superior officer
back in the day.
If Grigor did this,
it would be handled cleanly.
There would be an accident...
Falling debris on the street.
An overdose. A car crash.
A heart attack from a
blockage no one saw coming.
They are employing a
refinement of work flow
in this area that is
simply unmatched.
It would never come
back to you as a matter
law enforcement would bring.
But then...
Yes.
Then Grigor would have the
thing on you forever.
Suddenly he decides you'll
manage his money for no fee.
Then maybe he'll suggest that
you pay him, for his silence.
And once you let him get the
offer out of his mouth,
once he let you hear it...
Then I have something
on him now.
Almost as bad.
How you say yes or no
will determine a lot.
And I have a question
for you, too.
What is your objective?
With regards to Taylor?
Total destruction.
Not out of anger.
But if it becomes clear that
I can be taken advantage of,
that I can groom you, bring
you along, prop you up,
then lose you and a serious
chunk of business, too...
I agree. That's not a
tenable situation.
And it's not tenable to
have Grigor in my city,
knowing that I'm
either indebted to him
or that I rejected him.
But you should know.
Should you move forward,
even through me,
that psychologically...
I do know. Residue. Of course.
More than residue.
Weight.
Whatever you decide.
However. Whenever.
I am ready.
Good luck.
Hey, Hall...
put extra security on
Lara and the boys.
The kind they don't see.
So, have you come to a decision?
I'm gonna pass on your offer.
I didn't have you
as a squeamish man.
A little delicate,
maybe, on the outside.
But I thought you
were a man like me.
A man with steel in all
the places one needs it.
Maybe we just need it
in different spots.
Ah. So you're beyond this
sort of thing, then.
Or you could say this:
I was raised in a place
that didn't require
these extraordinary measures.
You weren't.
If you don't want to
tell me to do it,
but want it to happen
anyway, that's fine.
No. I don't.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
Fine. Okay...
Then I will pull all my money,
and I will give it to Taylor.
I promised I would
give you a warning...
This is it.
Look, nothing in the way
I operate my business
has changed.
You loved it last week.
How can I keep my money
with a man who
won't kill for it?
I don't want Taylor dead.
I want them alive to experience
all that I am gonna do to them.
I'm gonna destroy them
in ways that'll make them wish
they got what you offered.
Sure. Why not? Have fun.
But remember,
if what you do to
them, costs me,
we will meet again.
♪♪♪
Until then, goodbye, Axe.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I'm expecting Alvin
Epstein shortly,
see him right in.
Morning, Kate...
You recognized I was
a political animal.
You fed it. Nurtured it.
And I warned you
it might bite you.
That's where we are.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Well, glad you could
join us, Chuck.
♪♪♪
Regrets, Chuck.
Tiger's breath was just too hot
when it was right in my face...
♪♪♪
I can't be sure my
office isn't bugged.
Meet me at yours.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
See you in Washington, General.
We'll break bread together soon, Mr.
Deputy.
Yeah.
♪♪♪
That's a good man, right
there, my new Deputy AG.
If you say he is.
That's right.
'Good' means something
when I say it.
These people...
They're good, too.
They've proven it.
The young lady was kind
enough to be of assistance.
♪♪♪
And especially these young men.
Oliver Dake reminded me
of our true purpose:
Restoring justice to the
Justice Department.
We reminded each other.
Now, General, I know
things didn't end
particularly well between us...
Certainly from your
point of view.
Nonetheless, I gained clarity
as soon as I left New York.
And then Mr. Connerty
came to me and...
we've discovered something
of a putsch against you.
The fellas told me what
you had in store for me.
So I decided to let
Cutler sit there.
By his lonesome.
Naked and afraid.
Of course, by now, he's free,
back upstate, with
his loved ones.
Because there is no case.
There never was.
My brother's down in Texas,
unmolested, as he should be,
tending to his flock.
What I know now, señor,
is that character cannot
be taught or learned.
It is innate.
Some people have it. These boys do.
Miss Sacker.
♪♪♪
- You clearly do not.
- General...
This is as fine a head covering
as a man could ever
hope to possess.
Yet you have it here as what,
some kind of joke at my expense?
You ingratiated
yourself to me, Chuck.
You inveigled yourself
into my life.
You invited me and my
wife into your house.
YOUR HOUSE!
Only to do me like some combo
of Iscariot and
Salvatore Tessio.
Well, I'm gonna do you
the same as they got.
Now, I'm sure you are aware,
but I will say it for posterity.
This is not obstruction
of justice.
Because that bullshit case
was brought by Mr. Epstein.
Not by you.
You had nothing. And
now you are nothing.
As of this moment,
you are a trespasser
in these hallowed
halls of the law.
♪♪♪
You, Charles Rhoades Junior,
are relived of duty.
On power of the
President, you are fired!
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Mr. Connerty, as
your first detail
as Interim United
States Attorney
for the Southern District,
please show this gentleman out.
My pleasure.
♪♪♪
What'd you manage to get
for yourself, professor?
I got to watch all this.
♪♪♪
Yeah, look at him,
going out like the teaser
I always knew you were.
Pathetic.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Enjoy this.
You've outplayed me. And
you have earned it.
But don't, even for a second,
think that that
smile on your face
is gonna be there for
very fucking long.
Oh, Chuck,
that's not my smile.
This is.
♪♪♪
Move him along.
Come on, Chuck.
♪♪♪
Bryan, think about what
you're doing, man.
Drop your credentials
at the desk,
and Get The Fuck Out Of Here.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I've brought you
some redemption...
Redemption Roasters
Coffee that is.
To wish you good luck
on your new venture,
and because, to make it go,
you'll be working
all night long.
Thank you, Oscar.
How'd you find me?
Word's traveling fast.
I also brought you this...
My letter of intent to come
on-board with some seed money.
Initial investment
of 500 million.
Thank you. Wow.
Would you like to meet up later?
There's a secret new
dumpling spot in Queens...
Doesn't even have a
name, just a door.
I'd like to talk, to try...
I'm happy to put
capital with you,
because you're smart.
And I think you'll
make me money.
But after what you did,
I could never open
myself up to you again.
♪ Frank Sinatra's
"One for my Baby" ♪
♪♪♪
♪ It's quarter to three ♪
♪ There's no one in the place ♪
♪ Except you and me ♪
♪♪♪
♪ So, set 'em up, Joe ♪
♪ I got a little story ♪
♪ I think you should know ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're drinkin', my friend ♪
♪ To the end ♪
♪ Of a brief episode ♪
♪♪♪
♪ Make it one for my baby ♪
♪ And one more for the road ♪
Hey.
I saw Taylor.
They tried to bring me aboard.
Can't imagine that
went well for them.
Or are you about to shock me?
Fuck them. As I said.
That's right. Good.
No, I mean fuck them over.
You have to. We do.
Well, that's different
from: "look inward."
Yeah.
Well, you know what?
I'm different.
♪ Can't you make the music ♪
♪ Easy and sad ♪
♪♪♪
♪ I could tell you a lot ♪
♪ But you've gotta be ♪
♪ True to your code ♪
♪♪♪
♪ Just make it one ♪
♪ For my baby ♪
♪♪♪
♪ And one more ♪
♪ For the road ♪
'Lo Bob.
Charles.
You know, Wendy
asked, and I said,
Mm, you know, I'm no
longer the US Attorney.
So there's no conflict.
And I have nothing
against the guy.
Not anymore.
I said much the same.
So come on in. Join us.
Love to.
So, you know how you're
gonna go after Jock?
Some ideas floating
around my head, yeah.
And, uh, Taylor?
Yeah. Yeah.
Got a plan that's
starting to form.
["We're Gonna Have a Real
Good Time Together"]
Tell him about it.
♪♪♪
There's no one better at
breaking down a strategy.
♪♪♪
You want to hear it?
♪♪♪
Hit me with what you got...
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're gonna laugh and
dance and shout together ♪
♪ Whoo ♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na na ♪
♪♪♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na ♪
♪ Oh, baby, oh ♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na ♪
♪♪♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na ♪
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪ You know that we're gonna have
a real good time together ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪ Ohhh ♪
♪ We're gonna laugh and
dance and shout together ♪
♪ Get it ready, now ♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na na ♪
♪ Oh, baby, na na-na-na-na
na, na-na na-na na ♪
You want an unprecedented
raise in record time.
So how are you going to help
me get the first ten stacks?
We need Grigor Andolov.
I just want to see you work
a little bit harder for it.
You breached my threshold
and threatened me.
Just wait a second...
Drop your credentials
at the guard's desk.
And GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!
What the fuck?!
What, exactly, did you do?
How do I get you to break
your letter of intent
with Oscar Langstraat?
It basically solves our problem.
You sold out my relationship
in order to do it.
He said I was off
the raise team.
I won't stagnate.
Not for Axe. Not for anybody.
I'll talk to him.
With someone like Taylor, what
they need is forward momentum,
above all things.
Where the fuck did Jeffcoat
get all this money?
TexasSouthCable.
I want you to launch
an investigation
into Jock Jeffcoat's brother
and TexasSouthCable.
Nothing makes me feel so alive
as putting my head
in a tiger's mouth.
We're gonna get Jock
on trying to stop it.
Obstruction of justice.
I'm putting you on
the raise team.
Fuckin' A. Onward and upward.
There's gonna be 30
bil on the table,
get ready to help me
haul it outta there.
It looks like you're ready
to get into business.
I need a meeting with your
boss, Grigor Andolov.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
[Frank Sinatra's "Come
Fly With Me" playing]
The Sands is proud to present
a wonderful new show,
a man and his music.
The music of Count Basie
and his great band.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
And the man is Frank Sinatra.
You smell that?
You smell that?
That's money, son...
People who have never
been near money will say:
"I smell money," when
entering a casino
or showing up at a
sales conference.
They, of course, can't
because they don't know how
to recognize the scent.
But you?
Like a shorthaired pointer
on a dabbling duck.
And I am telling you,
Sef, I smell money.
How did all these
people get in my room?
♪ Come fly with me, we'll
fly, we'll fly away ♪
Gentlemen, today's the day!
- By the close of the event,
30 billion will be earmarked,
invested, captured.
If we don't walk out of here
with at least a third of
the available capital...
I've teed this whole thing
up so that you will.
♪ Come fly with me ♪
Should I give you "napalm
in the morning"...
I already got a version...
Then "no vice but beggary"?
How 'bout Nick Saban?
Roll Tide... Roll!
That's fucking impressive.
I count on it.
Where's Taylor?
I have a text. They say: "Soon."
Organizing some
last-minute things."
Pitch doesn't work
without Taylor.
They better make it.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I was just asking
myself if I would.
And you know what?
I would!
Wow.
Every day you live this life
you learn something
about yourself.
Delightful!
If you're delighted, just
imagine how it makes me feel.
That's good.
You didn't even flinch.
Like the titan, Lee lacocca.
That's important.
To business then.
I read your approach in
the materials you sent.
What's your market outlook?
I could tell you
that interest rates
have topped out for
the near term,
that the tax and regulatory
climate are favorable,
that growth is looking
somewhat robust...
I could also read
your tea leaves
or the creases in your palm
or divine the future
by cleromancy...
Cleromancy?
Casting bones.
But I'm no gypsy.
So instead I'll tell you that
my anticipation and my reaction
to moment by moment changes
in market conditions
are lightning quick.
And cutting edge tech:
A quant piece that wasn't even
in place during the past year
that reflects my already
positive results.
Sure. But it's all words.
And words have very little to
do with how I decide things.
What then?
Internal process.
Like your casting bones.
But inside.
Last question...
Why are you leaving Axe?
After all, he made you.
We can debate that
statement some other time.
As for your question:
The same reason
you leave a house
that has a furnace
leaking carbon monoxide:
It's the only way to survive.
I like this image.
They say you can't
taste it or smell it
or even know that it's
putting you to sleep.
But I always think I would:
Most people are
already sleepwalking
through their lives.
So they don't even notice.
How could they, it's
only a matter of degree.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
You crushed it.
I'm glad I brokered
this meeting.
I have to talk to
him, but I imagine
money will be flowing shortly.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
So your suite is
the largest one.
Because there is more demand
for you than we can fit.
- Hey, Sara.
- Hey, Axe.
I didn't see you
down on the list.
Yeah, I'm not here to invest, so
I didn't want to take a spot.
I know you've said you'll
never take Spanx public...
And I won't.
Yeah, but when you
do, let me know.
See ya, Axe.
Oh, ho, ho, I thought the
velociraptor was extinct.
And yet it walks amongst us.
A velociraptor doesn't walk.
It stalks, hunts, kills, with
great stealth and speed,
and if you want him
to prove that to you,
- keep fucking talking.
Easy, pal.
They're just jealous 'cause
we got a waiting list.
Because you're the freak
show, the ten-in-one.
Everyone wants to take a look.
But after they stare at the
bearded lady for five minutes,
they'll walk down to my
suite, hand me the grisbi.
After today, everyone will know
that Axe Capital is
just like Atlantis,
this once great land,
now totally underwater
and feels like a figment
of someone's imagination.
Sorry to interrupt
the rebalancing
of your lower body meridians.
- Uh-huh.
Target letter
announcing the investigation
into Zeb Jeffcoat.
Once it's signed and
the hard copy is sent
along with the PDF,
there's no turning back.
No. The proverbial Rubicon.
We cross it and Jock
goes on the offensive.
And even though that's
what we want...
Intimidating nevertheless.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
We are in the chute...
♪♪♪
We can expect Zeb to call his
big brother immediately...
And for him to go batshit.
♪♪♪
Or...
Or he's cool as can be.
But there's no way
he's cool enough
to simply let this
play out in court.
Since it would lead back to him.
He'll confer with his lawyers.
But not in a way that
will leave a trail.
Ultimately he will fall
back and make his move
to derail the case.
And that attack will come
on one of two fronts.
He will either ruin,
threaten, pressure
or otherwise discredit
and destroy you,
since you'll be
bringing the case.
Or he will try to compromise
who he surmises to
be the star witness.
♪♪♪
Now, if we can leak to him
that Ashley Cutler is the key
and is in our neck of the woods,
Jock will likely
head to New York.
But the question is: Which
move will he make first?
If he digs on me, he'll come
up with a bouquet of begonias.
Yes. Yes. I did as hard a
vet on you as one could do.
I knew to get where
I needed to get
I'd have to be Jackie
Robinson clean.
Then I want that witness.
Which means he can
either try his luck
with the head of the
State Police...
Over whom he has no sway...
Or he can call me,
and implore me
to use my particular set of
powers to aid in his cause.
My phone has to be
the one that rings.
Yes, we need that to happen.
But what if it doesn't?
You and I know Cutler
is a weak witness.
But Jock might figure that too.
And if he's patient enough,
he might just wait it out.
Then you do the thing:
Impanel a grand jury,
and schedule Cutler.
It invariably leaks and Jock
knows we're going forward.
But if, but when
that call does come,
and we know we've got
him following along,
you can't just offer him help.
No, he'll sniff it
out, of course.
Ask for something, big.
For yourself.
So he believes you're in
it for your own reasons.
And then it's time
for The Prestige.
♪♪♪
Put your shoes on and get ready.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Only Ricky Roma gets
to show up late.
Well, I am at the
top of the board.
What the fuck?
Uber...
If you're gonna go around,
go like a rich person.
Take a chopper.
I'm here now. Let's
do this thing.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
Remember: They are not buying
your proprietary
trading platform,
they are not buying
your strategies,
they are buying you.
Remind them that we
have the answers.
That they are safe
in your loving arms.
Like Barry White.
Oh, he'd have had them
hands in the air,
weeping and singing along.
So, yes, exactly
like Barry White.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
There are only two things
these allocators
really want to know,
but they'll never directly ask:
Can we be trusted?
And are we special?
We nail those. We nail
this entire thing.
♪♪♪
Welcome, everybody. Welcome.
Thanks for coming.
Now, you've read all our stuff.
You know my Sortino ratio proves
that we get a higher rate of
return with less downside vol.
How we avoided the
XIV liquidation
by selling our VIX positions
two weeks before
everybody else did.
And you know who made
sure we did that?
Taylor Mason!
♪♪♪
Over the past year, we've seen
the lowest market correlation
of any fund in the business.
You will, of course, want
to know why and how.
So come sit in and
shadow me for a day,
because it's like
asking a magician
how they do their tricks.
We all know it's not magic.
It's the opposite of magic.
It's grinding, focused work,
it's sitting on their bed for
weeks, months at a time,
working slip cuts, perfecting
the Elmsley Count...
So that the audience never sees
where the cards really are.
No. It's not magic.
But when the effect
is presented,
it sure feels like a miracle.
And if you invest
with us, you will be
behind the curtain with Axe.
And me.
All the mysteries revealed.
Nothing kept secret from you.
Nothing held back.
Fully transparent work.
I could go on but...
But there are bars
in New York City
some of you want to hit
before they close tonight.
Look, Taylor is the single most
effective manager of money
I have ever come across.
They are the future
of Axe Capital.
And I'm just thrilled
that you're all gonna
get the opportunity
to work with them directly
alongside me and the team.
♪♪♪
[mid-tempo music
plays on speakers]
I've got him.
Dramatic. Who you got?
Beer tonight? No, you
need something stronger.
Chuck. Pulling shit again.
What shit?
He's using FBI to hide a witness
who's bad for Jock Jeffcoat.
What do you think you know?
That Chuck is helping his
boss's legal troubles go away.
And you're helping him...
♪ dramatic music ♪
Me?
You're on the text
transcripts, Kate.
Getting favors from the FBI.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
How did you, uh...
Administrative subpoenas.
Blessed from on high.
So either you can help me.
Or go down with Chuck.
Well, you're right about me
needing that stronger drink...
- Mm.
- Mm-hmm.
Two coming up.
You got the rest of
it backwards, though.
- Yeah.
You can't mix in here and
try to take Chuck down.
Not on this one.
He's finally doing it, Bryan.
The right thing.
He is not helping Jock
by hiding the witness...
Jock has been telling us
which cases to pursue
and which ones to drop.
Like the Lugo nightmare.
So us having to
look the other way,
stuffing all the bullshit down.
It finally got to be
too much for Chuck.
He is going after him.
He's doing that Chuck thing...
But for the right fucking
reasons this time, all the way.
[Michael McDermott's "Never
Going Down Again" playing]
Fuck!
Yeah.
So let us drink our boilermakers
and let him finish...
You can take him down
over something else
if you still feel
that you have to.
And if you do, I promise
I'll stay out of it
and leave it between
the two of you.
♪♪♪
We. Fucking. Did it!
Six billion dollars committed.
In one morning.
We are back!
All the fucking way back!
Wendy, Wags
and Taylor.
They all came through
for us huge.
Let's have a big shout out
for all three of them!
The Hold Steady!
[The Hold Steady plays
"Entitlement Crew"]
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪ Tequila take off,
Tecate landing ♪
♪ Sorry about the centerpiece,
thanks for understanding ♪
♪ Hard branding, soft salesmen,
Campari commissions ♪
♪ I was sitting in the kitchen ♪
♪ Trying to guess where
she was living now ♪
♪♪♪
It's not exactly
like we thought.
Then what is it?
We have it flipped.
Chuck's going after Jock,
not covering for him?
Sorry to drag you up here...
There's an Acela back to
Washington tomorrow at 8:00.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
This is new.
What? I come over all the time.
Not without an agenda.
A man can't want to
see his own father?
A man can.
Not this man.
This is big game, you're after.
Big fucking game.
The only problem
is: No call yet.
Make your man do what
you want him to do,
not what's good for him...
The object of any
worthwhile contest.
Well, there is one move we've
been holding in abeyance,
because it might bring
him along too quickly...
To a fatal mistake or
walking away free.
Better to play fast
and aggressive
with inferior matériel,
than let them be exposed later.
Rommel?
Me.
If the end game is coming
sooner or later...
Even if it might crush you,
I say: Bring it on.
Shift the pressure of the
decision from you, to him.
Let him have to
avoid the mistake.
Or see the one move that
might get him through.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Epstein.
Do it. Pull the trigger
on the grand jury.
Let's see how patient Jock is.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
- No.
It was, indeed, some
party last night.
But I fear it might be over.
Meaning?
I've been making follow up calls
to book the money that
was pledged at the race.
I'm having problems
locking it in.
What fucking problems?
Problems reaching people.
They're dodging.
I'm feeling like somebody
slipped us a Cosby.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
Where the fuck is Taylor?
They're here before
me most of the time.
Not sure.
Sent a text this morning,
didn't hear back.
Huh...
♪♪♪
♪ I feel I've been abandoned ♪
♪ Never got to say
goodbye to you ♪
♪ Give my best to the
Entitlement Crew ♪
♪♪♪
And no Mafee today.
I figured it was
the whiskey flu.
Fuck.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
A new kind of organization.
Top down but not imperious or impetuous.
Integrated.
And you can make more
than you do now.
With a partnership stake.
Goddamnit... When?
Now.
Taylor's making a move.
They've played the
Elmsley Count on us.
So we wouldn't see
their real cards.
Fuck.
Pretended to be one of us...
For just long enough to take
our personnel and our capital.
All of it.
♪♪♪
Wendy. Now.
Tell me she's fucking here.
She is. I saw her.
♪♪♪
Is there anything I can do
to stop Taylor from
officially opening?
You could file, and we will, for
intellectual property theft,
for tortious interference
for both the investor piece
and any employees
they enticed away,
and these suits will have
to be defended, but...
But we won't win.
We won't win fast enough to
injunct them from opening.
♪♪♪
File anyway.
Let's get Taylor distracted
from the bottom line.
Let's see how they
do with split focus.
Now, who's actually gone?
And who's on the fence?
So far, it appears
that other than Mafee,
only Ben Kim sleeps
with the fishes.
As for the cash: 500
million came on board,
three and a half billion
went with Taylor,
the other two billion pulled
back, went elsewhere...
Didn't want to be involved
in a family fight.
I'm gonna quarantine a few
traders I have my doubts about
before this thing spreads
like black death.
Ben Kim is here.
He just got off the elevator
and went to his station.
The important thing
is: I said no.
So you're not a spy?
'Cause you showed up late
on this particular day.
So you can see how I'd wonder.
I can. But I'm not.
I said no.
Walk us through how
Taylor approached you.
♪ Mid-tempo music ♪
♪♪♪
Where did you come from?
Wrong question.
Where are we going
is the right one.
Is it?
Come work for me.
I already do.
At Mase Cap.
♪♪♪
You're leaving.
Left.
But Axe has been loyal...
He promoted me.
In title, yes, after
I told him to.
But what kind of money
bump did he give you?
♪♪♪
He gave you a paper title
as a way to keep you
running in place.
But I will give you an
entire field to sprint down.
♪♪♪
Ben.
Ben, I'm sorry to have
to tell you, but...
Oh, no... Taylor told you
not to give me the raise.
So that I would be
dissatisfied and go with them.
That's pretty sound from a
game theory perspective.
Yeah. Well. This ain't no game.
But Taylor treated it like it
was, and you fell for it...
I don't mean that.
No. I was suckered.
And now I will have my turn.
So now that we know
why you didn't
give me more money,
do I get the...
Finish that sentence at
your own peril, Ben Kim.
Though you do have
a future here.
And one that'll have you getting
as rich as a feudal lord
if you keep performing.
Are you in?
I am.
Fuck.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
At a time like this, I
suggest looking within.
To see what you... what we...
May have done to cause this.
We rebuild our business
as we rebuild our selves.
Or, don't look inside.
Do what I do instead.
Go drinks, dinners, parties,
funny massage joints
with every fucking
whale in the Street
and poison that
bitch's name to them.
For starters.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
General!
I'd like to see you.
Something I can help
with now, here?
Come on over to the hotel.
Better to talk there.
And I'm on my way, sir.
Here we go.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Grigor.
We must meet. Now.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Nice place.
Yeah.
Once I own every
townhouse on the block,
I'll put them all together.
Make a real home, you know?
Quilts on the beds,
needlepoints on the walls,
healing crystals
in every window.
Until then, this one is a place
for special conversations.
They can hear it?
They hear everything,
but they know exactly
what happens
when someone speaks out of turn.
As, I imagine, your man does.
I do.
So, you know you
have a problem, yes?
Yes.
Because you don't
have pest control.
So the pests are running
all around the place
with no consequences.
But I'm very good at dealing
with pests, with vermin.
I have a perfect score
with Consumer Reports.
So if I promise you
that I will make your
problem disappear,
your problem will
never, ever return.
I can't allow Mr. Axelrod...
Shut the fuck up!
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I understand what
you're offering.
But I cannot ask you to
do it, at this time.
♪♪♪
If it were me and
I were standing
as naked as Paris Hilton
and twice as fucked,
I would not hesitate.
I know you wouldn't.
And that perhaps it's
what's called for.
So, then, you want me to do it?
You have to say it.
I have to hear you.
♪♪♪
Why are you willing
to do this for me?
Look at this from my
particular set of binoculars.
I gave you my assets.
At least in part
because Taylor was going
to help manage them.
So when they fucked you over.
They fucked me over, too.
But I ask your permission
because, really,
she is your property.
Not mine.
Well, I'm grateful
for your loyalty.
My loyalties are clear.
Can I respond by tomorrow?
Sure.
Shame about Taylor. So smart.
Loss for everyone.
♪♪♪
You seemed to take
that seriously.
Damn right.
When I've suggested such
actions in the past,
you never even considered it.
Well, once a guy like that
puts it on the table,
you have to think about
what happens if you say no
as much as if you say yes.
If you decide on
something this final,
it shouldn't be farmed out,
it should be done in-house.
Yeah. Maybe. I don't know.
Look, I need to think about
what other options I have.
And how to protect myself no
matter which choice I make.
And I need to look
Taylor in the eye.
Shit, Axe,
look, it was time for a change.
I'm sure you thought so too.
I want to thank you, of course.
Figured I would when
the dust settled...
Shut the fuck up, Mafee.
You did what you did,
you got your money,
but no amount I give to charity
will help me atone
for the ass fucking
I will give you
in this business.
You hearing me?
Now go get your new
fucking master.
The palace coup is complete.
Today you settled all
family business.
I get that you're angry.
But I think it's because
I left before you
could finish me off.
You think I was
acting against you?
The undercutting,
the manipulation,
and public, and
private, humiliation.
The lies and broken promises.
All while I good soldiered
it and made you money.
But how long, really,
was it going to be
before you sent me
off to slaughter?
Wrong.
I wasn't getting rid of you
or working against you.
You were on the inside.
We were succeeding together.
I trusted you in a way that I
almost never trust anyone.
It may have seemed unorthodox,
but that's the truth of it.
And now you've taken from me.
You've stolen from me,
under false pretenses.
And you've betrayed me.
I did what I had to do to survive.
And to win.
You've got to understand that.
I did it for me,
not against you.
Sure. Right.
Congratulations, now you
have your own shop,
billions under management.
You're moving even
quicker than I did.
Yes. I'll surpass your
assets under management,
at the rate I calculate, in
three years at the earliest,
eight at the latest.
Maybe.
You're ready for the summit.
But you know what they call
that spot up on Everest?
The Death Zone.
Some people that make it up, and
then they make it back home.
But there are countless
more, fucking dead,
encased in ice for all time.
That's where you are now.
And very few people
can even survive
on the available oxygen up here.
Even fewer can perform.
So we'll see.
Young lungs. So yeah, we will.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
You know your history,
so you know what
happens to usurpers.
Charles Edward
Stuart, for example.
Bonnie Prince Charlie. Yes.
His troops slaughtered. Him
exiled from the kingdom...
More like on the run for
the rest of his life.
And that was one of the
more civilized responses.
♪♪♪
You have to know
that anything I do to
stop you is warranted.
♪♪♪
I anticipated that
being your reaction.
So do what you must.
And I'll defend as I have to.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
General, I didn't expect to
see you back in town so soon.
Makes two of us.
Listen, the reason
I called you over
is there's a legal
matter of some subtlety
that I may need your help on.
I'll be as delicate as
a scrimshander then.
There's a prosecution
in the works.
If you can call it that.
More like a political
hatchet job.
Against you?
Nah, against my brother.
Designed to splatter on me.
Down in Texas? Well,
who's prosecuting?
Perhaps I know him and
could give a nudge,
help steer him away.
New York. State of.
Alvin Epstein.
Oh.
Rep on him is he is a
straight fucking shooter.
Epstein presents a real problem.
I know him enough to nod
at him, but I'm afraid
I've heard the same
thing as you about him.
He's a crusader type.
Probably not enough dirt
to dig on him either.
Forget about him.
I know who this whole
thing hinges on.
Seedy financier type I knew in
the old days, Ashley Cutler.
He's had his nose bent about
me and my brother for years.
I bedded his sister back
in the day, truth be told.
So did my brother.
She was something of
the town scooter.
But that aside,
if I could somehow get
ten minutes with him,
I'm sure I could remind
him what really matters
to him and his family.
General, I think you
should fall back
and just let this
play out in court.
Let justice take its course.
Safer that way.
Yeah, I could.
But no, I'm gonna give justice
just a little bit
of fucking help.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
♪♪♪
Well, a course of
action comes to mind
that could get you
what you want,
but it's a dangerous one for me.
So if I were to engage
on your behalf,
I'd expect something in return.
Would you now?
♪♪♪
Well, I can't say I'm a
hundred percent surprised.
A man looking out for
his own interest
is a man who can be counted on.
What do you want?
To be guaranteed my post
until the end of the
administration.
Chuck, you pull this off, how
could I live without you?
Granted.
And Southern becomes
the sovereign district
once again.
I call my own plays from now on.
♪♪♪
Well, I didn't realize my input
was so rankling to you...
♪♪♪
Fine, I give you your latitude.
Then I will do all I can.
♪♪♪
You'll hear from me soon.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
There are men, with the
kinds of resources I have,
who would deal with
this betrayal swiftly
and without mercy.
And are you one of them?
Am I?
Without mercy?
Without regard for
Taylor the person?
Not sure.
I'm that angry.
That I'm sure of.
What if you didn't go anywhere?
Did nothing.
Most people in the business
will think you sent Taylor off,
invested with them.
Maybe you still can?
He who makes the money wins.
Or take comfort in the knowledge
that the betrayer will
suffer for their actions.
Suffer how.
Yeah.
And when the reversals
show up, which they will,
and Taylor has to go it alone,
with no one to turn to...
They will have down years.
And they will spiral.
It's unavoidable.
All you have to do
is wait for it.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
I don't know that I can.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Well, General, it is indeed
Cutler at the heart of this.
I've subpoenaed him
on a federal matter.
New York State is gonna scream,
but I'll deal with that.
I have him installed in
a hotel under guard.
I know that an assuredly
private conversation
is of the essence for you.
So I've landed on the spa...
He'll be in a room
that's safe for
that conversation.
You'll be able to know... To see...
that he's not wired.
I have trusted FBI watching him.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
♪♪♪
And at the appropriate time,
I'll have them pulled
off the detail...
Yeah?
♪♪♪
We're out.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
You will then have
your time with him.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I am moved by your
loyalty, grace,
and tactical efficiency.
Gracias, amigo.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Alvin?
We got him. It worked. I
can play you the tape.
Oh, yes!
I-I'll come right
over to your office.
I can't be sure my
office isn't bugged.
Meet me at yours.
Very good.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Jesus Christ.
No. Just me.
What do you want?
You.
You think I'll actually
come with you?
Haven't you done enough damage?
I'm building, not destroying.
That's where you come in.
I'm assembling a place
that's tech-centric,
but I want my people
as frequently tuned
and upgraded as the software.
And I don't want them merely
calibrated to make money.
I want you to make sure
their whole selves
are being attended to.
It's a place free
of any arrests,
or indictments, or insinuations.
It's a place where
we can be our best.
Nice ideas.
But you are no moral
fucking compass.
For a moment, I
thought you might be.
Because you needed
me to think that.
But you used me.
If anyone has been using
people for their own ends...
Oh, don't even try that shit.
You preyed on me and
my empathy for you.
Programmed me to get you
what you wanted from Axe...
Being part of the raise.
So... fuck you.
You don't seem to understand...
I'm not just offering
you a job for my sake.
I'm offering you a fresh
start, for yours.
A re-set from your
slew of fuck-ups.
You let things devolve
at Axe Capital.
You didn't see me being
pushed out the door.
You couldn't stop
Axe from succumbing
to his own worst nature.
Instead you succumbed to it.
And who knows what other
fallout you've created
or at least allowed
elsewhere in your life.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
You're a brilliant person.
You have a lot of answers.
But you are very young
and there's a lot
more to this business
-than you've learned so far.
It is not just about numbers
and decimal points.
The thing that makes it matter
is: Lasting relationships.
True loyalty.
Real trust.
♪♪♪
No, I'm pretty sure
there's only money,
and it can buy all those things
or at least the same result.
That's what you and
Axe taught me.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
That thing you said. About
keeping it 'in-house.'
Maybe pride.
I have the...
craft, you know?
But doing it at a remove,
that makes much more sense.
Oh, so you've been
thinking about it, too.
The thing you said about saying
no to someone like Grigor,
that's where I've spent
most of my thinking time.
How it ramificates out if I
don't give the green light.
Yes.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
Mission e-val.
Just as you would've
for a superior officer
back in the day.
If Grigor did this,
it would be handled cleanly.
There would be an accident...
Falling debris on the street.
An overdose. A car crash.
A heart attack from a
blockage no one saw coming.
They are employing a
refinement of work flow
in this area that is
simply unmatched.
It would never come
back to you as a matter
law enforcement would bring.
But then...
Yes.
Then Grigor would have the
thing on you forever.
Suddenly he decides you'll
manage his money for no fee.
Then maybe he'll suggest that
you pay him, for his silence.
And once you let him get the
offer out of his mouth,
once he let you hear it...
Then I have something
on him now.
Almost as bad.
How you say yes or no
will determine a lot.
And I have a question
for you, too.
What is your objective?
With regards to Taylor?
Total destruction.
Not out of anger.
But if it becomes clear that
I can be taken advantage of,
that I can groom you, bring
you along, prop you up,
then lose you and a serious
chunk of business, too...
I agree. That's not a
tenable situation.
And it's not tenable to
have Grigor in my city,
knowing that I'm
either indebted to him
or that I rejected him.
But you should know.
Should you move forward,
even through me,
that psychologically...
I do know. Residue. Of course.
More than residue.
Weight.
Whatever you decide.
However. Whenever.
I am ready.
Good luck.
Hey, Hall...
put extra security on
Lara and the boys.
The kind they don't see.
So, have you come to a decision?
I'm gonna pass on your offer.
I didn't have you
as a squeamish man.
A little delicate,
maybe, on the outside.
But I thought you
were a man like me.
A man with steel in all
the places one needs it.
Maybe we just need it
in different spots.
Ah. So you're beyond this
sort of thing, then.
Or you could say this:
I was raised in a place
that didn't require
these extraordinary measures.
You weren't.
If you don't want to
tell me to do it,
but want it to happen
anyway, that's fine.
No. I don't.
♪ Suspenseful music ♪
Fine. Okay...
Then I will pull all my money,
and I will give it to Taylor.
I promised I would
give you a warning...
This is it.
Look, nothing in the way
I operate my business
has changed.
You loved it last week.
How can I keep my money
with a man who
won't kill for it?
I don't want Taylor dead.
I want them alive to experience
all that I am gonna do to them.
I'm gonna destroy them
in ways that'll make them wish
they got what you offered.
Sure. Why not? Have fun.
But remember,
if what you do to
them, costs me,
we will meet again.
♪♪♪
Until then, goodbye, Axe.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I'm expecting Alvin
Epstein shortly,
see him right in.
Morning, Kate...
You recognized I was
a political animal.
You fed it. Nurtured it.
And I warned you
it might bite you.
That's where we are.
♪ Dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Well, glad you could
join us, Chuck.
♪♪♪
Regrets, Chuck.
Tiger's breath was just too hot
when it was right in my face...
♪♪♪
I can't be sure my
office isn't bugged.
Meet me at yours.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
See you in Washington, General.
We'll break bread together soon, Mr.
Deputy.
Yeah.
♪♪♪
That's a good man, right
there, my new Deputy AG.
If you say he is.
That's right.
'Good' means something
when I say it.
These people...
They're good, too.
They've proven it.
The young lady was kind
enough to be of assistance.
♪♪♪
And especially these young men.
Oliver Dake reminded me
of our true purpose:
Restoring justice to the
Justice Department.
We reminded each other.
Now, General, I know
things didn't end
particularly well between us...
Certainly from your
point of view.
Nonetheless, I gained clarity
as soon as I left New York.
And then Mr. Connerty
came to me and...
we've discovered something
of a putsch against you.
The fellas told me what
you had in store for me.
So I decided to let
Cutler sit there.
By his lonesome.
Naked and afraid.
Of course, by now, he's free,
back upstate, with
his loved ones.
Because there is no case.
There never was.
My brother's down in Texas,
unmolested, as he should be,
tending to his flock.
What I know now, señor,
is that character cannot
be taught or learned.
It is innate.
Some people have it. These boys do.
Miss Sacker.
♪♪♪
- You clearly do not.
- General...
This is as fine a head covering
as a man could ever
hope to possess.
Yet you have it here as what,
some kind of joke at my expense?
You ingratiated
yourself to me, Chuck.
You inveigled yourself
into my life.
You invited me and my
wife into your house.
YOUR HOUSE!
Only to do me like some combo
of Iscariot and
Salvatore Tessio.
Well, I'm gonna do you
the same as they got.
Now, I'm sure you are aware,
but I will say it for posterity.
This is not obstruction
of justice.
Because that bullshit case
was brought by Mr. Epstein.
Not by you.
You had nothing. And
now you are nothing.
As of this moment,
you are a trespasser
in these hallowed
halls of the law.
♪♪♪
You, Charles Rhoades Junior,
are relived of duty.
On power of the
President, you are fired!
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Mr. Connerty, as
your first detail
as Interim United
States Attorney
for the Southern District,
please show this gentleman out.
My pleasure.
♪♪♪
What'd you manage to get
for yourself, professor?
I got to watch all this.
♪♪♪
Yeah, look at him,
going out like the teaser
I always knew you were.
Pathetic.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
Enjoy this.
You've outplayed me. And
you have earned it.
But don't, even for a second,
think that that
smile on your face
is gonna be there for
very fucking long.
Oh, Chuck,
that's not my smile.
This is.
♪♪♪
Move him along.
Come on, Chuck.
♪♪♪
Bryan, think about what
you're doing, man.
Drop your credentials
at the desk,
and Get The Fuck Out Of Here.
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
♪♪♪
I've brought you
some redemption...
Redemption Roasters
Coffee that is.
To wish you good luck
on your new venture,
and because, to make it go,
you'll be working
all night long.
Thank you, Oscar.
How'd you find me?
Word's traveling fast.
I also brought you this...
My letter of intent to come
on-board with some seed money.
Initial investment
of 500 million.
Thank you. Wow.
Would you like to meet up later?
There's a secret new
dumpling spot in Queens...
Doesn't even have a
name, just a door.
I'd like to talk, to try...
I'm happy to put
capital with you,
because you're smart.
And I think you'll
make me money.
But after what you did,
I could never open
myself up to you again.
♪ Frank Sinatra's
"One for my Baby" ♪
♪♪♪
♪ It's quarter to three ♪
♪ There's no one in the place ♪
♪ Except you and me ♪
♪♪♪
♪ So, set 'em up, Joe ♪
♪ I got a little story ♪
♪ I think you should know ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're drinkin', my friend ♪
♪ To the end ♪
♪ Of a brief episode ♪
♪♪♪
♪ Make it one for my baby ♪
♪ And one more for the road ♪
Hey.
I saw Taylor.
They tried to bring me aboard.
Can't imagine that
went well for them.
Or are you about to shock me?
Fuck them. As I said.
That's right. Good.
No, I mean fuck them over.
You have to. We do.
Well, that's different
from: "look inward."
Yeah.
Well, you know what?
I'm different.
♪ Can't you make the music ♪
♪ Easy and sad ♪
♪♪♪
♪ I could tell you a lot ♪
♪ But you've gotta be ♪
♪ True to your code ♪
♪♪♪
♪ Just make it one ♪
♪ For my baby ♪
♪♪♪
♪ And one more ♪
♪ For the road ♪
'Lo Bob.
Charles.
You know, Wendy
asked, and I said,
Mm, you know, I'm no
longer the US Attorney.
So there's no conflict.
And I have nothing
against the guy.
Not anymore.
I said much the same.
So come on in. Join us.
Love to.
So, you know how you're
gonna go after Jock?
Some ideas floating
around my head, yeah.
And, uh, Taylor?
Yeah. Yeah.
Got a plan that's
starting to form.
["We're Gonna Have a Real
Good Time Together"]
Tell him about it.
♪♪♪
There's no one better at
breaking down a strategy.
♪♪♪
You want to hear it?
♪♪♪
Hit me with what you got...
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're gonna laugh and
dance and shout together ♪
♪ Whoo ♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na na ♪
♪♪♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na ♪
♪ Oh, baby, oh ♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na ♪
♪♪♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na ♪
♪ Oh, oh, oh ♪
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪ You know that we're gonna have
a real good time together ♪
♪♪♪
♪ We're gonna have a real
good time together ♪
♪ Ohhh ♪
♪ We're gonna laugh and
dance and shout together ♪
♪ Get it ready, now ♪
♪ Na na-na-na-na na,
na-na na-na na na ♪
♪ Oh, baby, na na-na-na-na
na, na-na na-na na ♪