Billions (2016–…): Season 6, Episode 4 - Burn Rate - full transcript
Previously
on Billions...
The very first New
York Olympics.
The city's down, hurting.
It's the perfect
opportunity to rebuild.
Selecting a host city is
a very political process.
I want to make an impression,
but as I understand it,
the men and women
of the commission
don't look kindly upon
strangers bearing gifts.
The office is not where my
new war is going to be waged.
Not at first.
The venue matters
less than the message.
No,
I realized it's not one billionaire
having his way with the City.
The overall effect of
the billionaire class...
they're a scourge.
Prince has different priorities.
He seems to be after
more than profits here.
- So, what are you saying?
- I don't know yet,
but I know he's not Axe.
I am hereby creating
the Prince List.
Shedding all the dirty
capital currently invested.
From now on, clients will
have to qualify to invest with us.
Sometimes you just
have to break some shit.
Make them know
that no one is safe.
You promised me a winning season,
Chuck.
I'm running out of
time if I'll have to quit.
I can't lose my MVP yet.
I need you, Kate.
Okay, boss.
What do we do
when the carpetbaggers
and the land barons try
to shove us out of the way?
We shove back!
Take back our city!
Take back our city!
I was approached.
For a job?
Nobody said
anything about a job.
It's a job.
You did good by coming to me.
So, obviously, I'm not going--
Oh, no, you're going.
But you're going for me.
You'll be my Vincent Terranova.
It's natural to celebrate,
to go big.
Especially with the
tools you have here.
The fun and the
talent in this room.
You think it's gonna
go on and on and on.
It's never gonna end.
But we know that's not true.
You all in this room
are not immune
to the mistakes
other people make,
where they spend
more than they make.
The burn rate gets
them every time.
I've had 52 players
drafted in the NBA.
Thirty-five are in
the league right now.
My suggestion to
them and to you:
Put the first million away!
Forget you have it.
You put yours back in this fund,
you know five, six, seven years,
you're a multimillionaire.
With that behind you,
no fear.
No anxiety seeps in.
You have a clear mind
to think good thoughts.
All of a sudden,
you get in the zone,
and you're doing stuff you
don't even believe you could do,
and you win championships.
National championships.
And when you win a
national championship...
I've never played basketball,
but I'd follow this man
through the gates of hell.
...don't let the
burn rate drag you down,
because at the end of the day,
it's about winning
championships for all of us, isn't it?
Coach gave us a great
deal on the speaking fee.
He really did. Worth every cent.
And I hear he's
donating it to charity,
so a win for all.
State-of-the-art facilities,
accommodations, transportation.
Designed to accommodate any
and all environmental concerns.
Everything pristine.
Uh-huh.
Yeah, well, I tell you, Mike,
the whole thing'd be
a lot more believable
if there was, uh,
dirt somewhere.
- I mean, just...
New York City's
never been this clean.
It was never my mandate before.
I told them, make it dazzling.
Dazzle the man,
don't leave anything to the imagination.
And that's what I'm gonna do
when the Games
are actually here.
You know,
they used to have a sundae at Haagen-Dazs
called the Dazzler.
I think they still do. You know,
it's dulce de leche ice cream
with, like, ribbons of caramel,
and then more dulce,
more caramel.
Then you'd put whipped cream on it,
and then they would just
cover the whole thing in,
like, hot caramel sauce.
It earns its name: the Dazzler.
I would guzzle that sucker down.
But, you know...
before long,
I'd start to feel
milk-sick and bloated.
And, you see,
I'm afraid it's going to be the same way
with the Olympic
Games here in our city.
Could be delicious,
but more likely to make me ill
when the voters paddle my ass
'cause they don't like them,
so...
Everyone loves--
Chuck Rhoades
changed the conversation
before it even started,
all right?
Now,
we wouldn't be selling the Games,
we'd be defending
them from the jump.
And the city council,
legislator, activists,
they're all going to
crap on this Olympic bid
and they're going to
tag it with regulations,
and that's after
you jump through
a bunch of fucking
hoops first-- flaming ones.
You can't win if you
forfeit before the tip-off.
Yeah, well, the only winner
in this hopeless fucking outing
is going to be your
chief legal counsel
in billable hours.
You and I,
we can solve these issues together.
The Games are
never coming to the city
without the governor's support.
I hope that I can count on it.
Mike,
public opinion is 2% positive on this.
I believe cancer
is polling at 3%.
Chuck's stunt only
worked 'cause it lit a fire
under something
that's already lighted.
I am not getting in the
bucket bailing relay line
next to you on this one,
all right?
Buzz me when you got
something that'll work.
God,
is the stink of losing actually sticking?
I don't want that
gamy shit on me.
If he's right and we're stuck in
a municipal swamp, we need--
Some serious legal firepower.
Yes.
White-shoe firm.
Maybe more than one.
A fixer at bar.
A street fighter.
A master of the dark arts.
Bill Barr's a little
controversial right now.
Someone to navigate
the land mines,
specifically the ones
planted by Chuck Rhoades.
We have to hire from
inside the government,
to backslap and crony our
way past the city council.
You're saying hire the guy
who set the speed traps,
and you'll always know
when to slow down.
Absolument.
Hell,
we hired Spyros straight from the SEC,
and as lame as he is,
we haven't gotten calls from
enforcement for two years.
Someone like
Manhattan D.A. Gramm.
Seems likable,
but full-on pit bull.
She'd be perfect,
but she's a lifer.
M-Tap, I think he's right.
Oh, I'm right,
'cause this is the
down and dirty,
and I happen to be both.
Yep,
and if you can add Neil Young to your band,
you do it,
even if you were already
getting by with Crosby and Nash.
Good. Do it.
Now, on another front:
Colin has the advance team
from the International
Commission of Sport
in from Europe.
They need to leave so happy--
Ah, that's why you came to me.
The down and the dirty,
as you said, yes.
So that they go
home to their masters
and tell them we're the ones
that should top the short list.
And that the gift
bags you'll hand them
will be pendulous and
heavy as Bo Derek's--
You can't just bribe them.
Everyone's willing
to bribe them.
Don't use the "B" word
in front of me. Come on.
Yes, but the point is,
if we were the bribing type--
which we are not--
they need to be
made to feel special.
Pretty certain we have
different ideas on "special."
Well, since you two are already
happy bunkmates, do it together.
No way. No way you get
all that crap in that pack.
Now,
if you had a spatial algorithm
and someone who knew how
to use it along with you, maybe.
Oh, I guess that'd be you.
Do you want to come along
with your spatial-packing algo?
As your worthy Sherpa.
I'll start optimizing
the algo to our route
for strategic
climate-to-weight--
Oh, bud, buddy. Yeah,
no. Big no.
So, you don't want--
Company? Help? Unh-unh.
I'll stuff it in
with a toilet plunger
and throw away
half of it if I have to.
But I won't have to,
because Rolf shows us how.
Feeling that Jack London,
Elizabeth Gilbert call, huh?
I don't aim to leave for another
eight to ten months, at least.
Just pre-planning.
- Once you've saved up enough.
- Right.
No shame in the frugality
game. I'll peace once I have 600k.
But for now,
it's more about grooving the feeling.
Visualizing.
Active anticipation has
psycho-physical benefits,
and you can afford the time off.
But why do this here
and not at home?
I had enough at-home time,
thanks.
And the fantasy is,
you go right from work,
like one day you just stand
up and grab your rucksack
and take off from your desk
into the sun-drenched deck
of some Turkish
hostel in the summer.
If reality were as
good as the fantasy,
we wouldn't have had
to invent "The Sims."
If we start talking Sims,
I'll never get back to work.
Yeah. I lost all of 8th grade
in service of one particularly
needy pet Sim dog, an Akita.
Thing is, fantasy or reality,
you aren't calculating
opportunities lost.
Here. To your career.
To your development.
Come on,
you never think about getting free?
No hidden agenda.
I too have considered
and calculated
an out number.
Assuming it's a little steeper
than the cost of a Pittsburgh duplex,
huh?
How much?
Twenty mil? Fifty?
- About twice that.
- Oof!
Boss wants a beach
house and a ski chalet.
No.
No, they do not.
Or that's not the why, anyway.
Correct. It's not for lifestyle.
I plan to leave once I've
accrued enough personal capital
to drive real, measurable,
prosocial advancement.
A 5% withdrawal rate to
protect against principal erosion?
Exactly.
One hundred million
is a solid starting point
to build a legacy of truly
effective humanitarian progress.
Okay, but if my math is right,
and I'm p-sure it is,
you still got a while before
you get to temple-run.
I do, so I gotta serve my master,
get paid,
and make sure I
can move the needle
even before I hit my number.
To that end, there's something
we need to work on for Prince.
- He asked you to?
- Not yet.
Oh.
Yes.
I do love a Taylor Ham.
I made a swing out to
Jersey and nabbed 'em.
Nothing like the original.
Absolutely so.
Tremendous sandwich.
The pork roll.
John Taylor original.
And you, Chuck Rhoades,
went out to Jersey and
snagged us a couple.
I did.
- I bagged a few for us.
- Ah.
It's a shame the Olympics
only come every four years,
or else I'd have guys like you
and Prince playing fetch for me
up and down the Eastern
Seaboard on the regular.
Could fire half my staff.
Governor,
I am a longtime friend and ally,
while Mike Prince is--
Between us,
I told him he's mostly shit out of luck.
Perfect. So you're
with me on this.
That's what I told Prince.
And it might be true.
Listen,
I know I got to take a flume ride
with one of you
two lunatics on this.
I just haven't decided
who I win with yet.
And you both need me more,
so I finally got my balls back.
Can you hear 'em clank?
Loud as the cymbal crashes
on "Hungry Like the Wolf."
But perhaps this
isn't a decision
that requires a great
show of inner steel.
Perhaps it merely
requires remembering
that we, both of us,
serve the people.
And Mike Prince's grand plan,
it doesn't really serve them.
We know this.
You may know this.
But I may need a
little more convincing.
I have an ask.
I need your input on a new hire.
Trader, PM, or analyst?
Lawyer.
I need one from the other side
to break trail with city
and state lawmakers.
I know what you're asking,
and I have the answer.
Kate Sacker is the name
you know you need to say
but can't quite
bring yourself to.
Salut.
Is she as good as they say?
Steel-trap legal mind, charisma,
knows how to work the angles.
Has political ambitions too.
Learned at Chuck's elbow.
Sounds amazing. Is she gettable?
No. She's completely loyal.
- Right, who's next on your--?
- There's no next.
Kim Philby seemed loyal too.
And he broke a nation's heart.
What's my best first move?
Nah.
I'm going to respectfully
stay out of this one.
Things are fraught enough
between me and my ex-husband
without me steering you in
the plucking of his personnel.
There must be something
that would induce you
to do it for me,
to make it worth it.
I'm not that transactional.
And it's not just
because of Chuck.
Sacker's special in all
the ways I just mentioned,
but in intangible ways too.
The thought of
bringing her in here?
Even if I dealt with
the Chuck-of-it-all--
In here is not the
place it used to be.
We're different.
I want to believe
that that's true.
Consider it.
You hear what you're asking,
right?
You hear what I'm offering,
right?
So will you?
Well, if anyone could give
Jersey a fighting chance,
it's Bruce Springsteen
and Jon Bon Jovi.
I'm glad to hear you fellas
are down for the cause.
I'll send you details.
Great stuff. Just
great. Thank you.
The Boss and Bon Jovi.
Ah.
You starting a band?
We may have a
meeting across the river,
if you know what I'm saying.
Let's switch to you
knowing what I'm saying.
Congress.
It's time.
I need you to get guys
like that donating to me.
- Playing for me.
- And they will. We will.
Soon enough, but not quite yet.
We got big stuff on our plate.
I need to start raising money,
building a staff,
doing the grip-and-grins
in my district,
the kinds of things I cannot
do while I'm on the state's dime.
I get it.
We all had to hit the
pause button for months.
But everyone's plans
have had to take a back seat
for the greater good.
That was fine for a while.
No more.
All due respect,
I need big cases with big wins
to burnish the rep,
or I need to get out.
We are going to have big
cases. You will. Very soon.
We're stopping Citizen
Prince from buying off
the greatest metropolis
in the history of mankind,
which will cement
your political place.
You've stayed the
course with me this far.
All I ask is that you
use your instincts
and hang in with
me a little longer.
We're finally doing the
good thing for good reason,
and it will be good for you,
Kate.
You know what the most
powerful four-letter word is?
I don't curse much.
"Free."
I know how to unlock
it for our benefit,
and to help a whole
whack of people.
We give Wi-Fi away as
part of our gift to New York.
- That a huge--
- There's a company.
People of the World.
They use blockchain
to siphon unused Wi-Fi
from existing networks of
major telecom companies,
then bundle the undetectable
excess for civilian use.
So free public Internet
can start now in New York
as a goodwill
incentive pre-Olympics,
and continue gratis through
the Games for athletes,
and to cover the
influx of tourists.
Dumpster diving
for bit rate. Genius.
- You have a line into it?
- Yes. Here's the pitch:
New Yorkers get it gratis,
courtesy of the Games.
Free Internet in the five
boroughs is the holy grail.
And we set it up so that every
time a New Yorker uses it,
someone in sub-Saharan Africa
gets the same
allotment of Wi-Fi.
It's a do-good, feel-good,
look-good play.
The greatest trio since
Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay.
What's it gonna cost?
Twenty-two million,
and we control the company.
Do it.
You seem like a man
who needs antioxidants.
Hmm, shit, you're right.
How's this whole "Tango
and Cash" thing going?
Ah,
the Stallone-Russell classic.
Which one is Stallone in that?
- Tango.
- Glad you know that one, Wags.
Which is why you will relate,
personally,
so well to certain of these
folks on the advance team.
Make them feel special.
I will handle the business
forward part of the evening,
the front of the El Camino,
as it were, and you will--
Organize the junk in the trunk.
Sure. I already went
to the trouble to get...
I don't need the
granular detai--
Are those Quaaludes?
That's right. Methaqualone.
A.K.A., Beiruts, Bandits,
Wagon Wheels.
They're not Lemmons.
I couldn't get that lucky.
But they are Rorers.
Our friends will feel
as warm and fuzzy
as a baby kitten on
the cover of Cat Fancy.
Can you legally possess
those in the U.S.?
I have a
prescription... of sorts.
Another reason why I
won't be there for that part.
Neither will I.
I'll just hand them out.
I'm working on a project that...
Chelz and I have decided to try,
you know?
She's got this
app which tells her
when she's...
when she's ovulating.
So when the thing bings or
beeps or whatever it does,
I need to hop to.
I have got to be home and
ready by 5:30 a.m. that morning,
guns loaded, so to speak.
Well, at the appropriate time,
I cannot wait to wish you mazel.
Tango and Cash,
or is it more Bialystock and Bloom?
I can't quite tell.
But I think I like it.
Night, gents.
Initial infrastructure costs
in sub-Saharan Africa
are hella-spensive.
Yes,
as most things of value are.
The numbers,
they just-- They don't...
It's a sucky thing to say,
but I'm just gonna say it.
We should dump
the Africa Wi-Fi piece.
Not dump it, but hold it.
If that capital is rolled into
marketing and development,
the company comes out
of the Olympics stronger--
I'm sorry you did say it,
because this is all
about the Africa piece.
That's the whole thing. We'll make money,
and do good.
It won't be as much money. Barely any,
really.
Willing to pay that price.
Yeah. Me too. More than willing.
That's what I always say.
It's not really.
It just seemed like
what I should say now.
Oh.
Kate.
So nice to see you.
And you.
Wasn't she incredible?
Oh, I'm buzzing.
I still remember how I felt
reading Crenshaw's 1989 paper
on intersectionality for
the first time in law school.
Hm.
So how have you been?
Bene. You?
How goes Axe Cap?
It's not Axe Cap anymore.
I mean, okay, but...
Different name on the
shingle. Different vibe.
- So you say.
- No, no.
It's, uh, different.
This guy gives a shit
about more than money.
He still makes plenty.
It's weird, but in a good way.
But weird.
- Hmm. Sounds like it.
- Yeah, like right now,
we're engaged in this
big municipal project,
poised to make major impact,
but still facing
public-sector resistance.
You could hear what that sounds like,
if you wanted.
Hear it how?
Come by for a half hour.
Meet the guy.
Listen. Talk.
The whole thing.
You suggesting I
walk into your offices?
That's right.
Well,
thanks anyway for thinking of me.
You know, Kate...
sometimes staying
too long is a bigger risk
than leaving too soon.
There's never a right
time to make a big change.
It's good running into you.
You too.
Act interested, but coy.
Be your charming self.
Engage enough to keep
them flashing the bait,
but make them work for it.
Elida Geisha?
Thank you.
Thanks for coming, Kate.
Wendy said I
had to sit with you.
She said the same about you.
Nice to be here
without a warrant.
Love what you've
done with the place.
No basis for warrants
in these parts anymore.
Then I'd love to know
what this meeting is about.
It's about me offering
you the role of lead counsel
for New York City's
first ever Olympics.
Nice and shiny.
Why me?
Your granular expertise
in city bureaucracy,
balanced by panoramic
understanding
of the political landscape.
We want you at the
epicenter of this undertaking.
Leading the farthest-reaching
legal proceedings
the state has seen in a decade.
There's just the tiny
wrinkle of my current boss
and entire career history.
Why would you trust me?
There's nothing
illegal happening here,
so we don't need you
as our co-conspirator.
Our only crime
will be ushering in
a new era of opportunity.
A safer, cleaner,
more prosperous New York.
For who?
Your investors?
When Sinatra sang
about this place,
when Jay-Z and Alicia Keys did,
they meant it.
They captured that romance
and the possibility of
what this city could be.
When you look around now,
is that what you see?
- Of course you don't.
- Of course you don't.
The city's been
gored and gutted.
We're gonna turn it around.
The Games bring
so much in their wake.
Infrastructure. Excitement.
Free cultural
events. Free Wi-Fi.
Sounds grand.
Where do I fit in?
I need someone to bushwhack
through the legal thickets
so I can make all
that a possibility.
Think about how landing
a well-run Olympics
could play for you in
a congressional run.
Nice info,
but it's not at all clear
that this would help
if those were my plans.
By the time I'm done,
this city's gonna be
begging for the big top.
And you'll be touted as the
woman who cleared the way
to make it all possible.
Yeah.
Yeah, okay.
Why don't I send over
some good names.
Thanks for the pricey coffee.
You were right.
It was a job offer.
My experience with
government in general,
and, I think, this office,
was the driver.
Oh, I bet. What'd you pick up?
They are going to vivify
and beautify this fair city,
first for the Games,
then for all of
us in their wake.
- But there are, of course--
- Regulatory--
Measures and thickets of--
Rules, I'd imagine, that need--
Just the sort of sharp knife I carry,
yep.
All sorts of infrastructure
improvements,
from buildings to the
shit flying through the air
connecting the world,
which he's going
to give away for free.
Sure.
Sure,
they will need someone like you
if they think the telecom
and wireless folks
are going to welcome
whatever he's got planned.
Not going to be me.
You want me to pass right now,
in front of you?
No. Not yet.
In 24 hours,
you're going to pass.
First,
I know who I want to take that job:
Ira Schirmer.
And I know what I'm going
to do about this bullshit,
pandering free
Wi-Fi initiative too.
You're a wealthy man.
Young wife, young child.
You have it all.
But you know what
you don't have?
An alpaca?
Might be kind of
tough in the apartment.
But, no, it's true. I saw Downey
on the newish Letterman thing.
- Alpacas--
- Relevance.
Access.
Being in the mix.
I want this? This sounds
like a pain in the ass.
You need this.
And I get it how?
Prince offered Sacker a job
steering him through
the legal quagmire.
You go be his
baby driver instead.
That guy is too
smart to go for this.
He knows I'm your friend.
My best friend. And
you lead with that.
This is why
you're perfect for it.
You know my moves and--
- And he sees right through it.
- Not if you declaim:
I won't hurt Rhoades personally.
I love the man.
But this is business,
and I will be your lawyer,
and couldn't betray you
without risking my license.
So I'm an asset,
and you're running me at him.
You been reading Ambler?
Yeah,
a bit. The Zaleshoff books.
And I can tell you,
it's not going to work.
He's-- he's too smart.
So you go further.
We use those very
smarts and his ambition.
You tell him that your
friendship with me
is hurting you professionally.
- You've lost clients over it.
You have to show that you're
not afraid to go against me,
that you know my moves
and how to blunt them.
And you commit
to it and mean it.
I can mean it if I have to.
As you have shown
me in the past.
Go do it.
Can't wait to finish
building this boat for you.
- Can you hurry it up?
- Yeah, I am.
I'll have it done for
you in three years.
That includes greening,
right? Has to.
I need this thing
carbon-neutral.
No carbon footprint.
Not just the power plant.
Stem to stern.
That's what I do.
Ira,
of course I know who you are,
but not why you're calling.
Well, how could you know
before you've heard my spiel?
You may be magnificent,
but you're not Carnac.
- Ira?
- I'm calling because
you're looking
for a legal eagle.
One who can be a big
blocker against the government.
Ah,
and you're the Chuck whisperer?
The Chuck neutralizer.
Your friendship is widely known.
As is attorney/client privilege.
I'd be sworn to
work on your behalf
and keep everything
confidential.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised
that a man like Rhoades
- has friends ready to--
- I won't hit him personally.
Ever. Even though I know what
an utter hemorrhoid he can be
when you're against him,
I love the guy.
But it's important
for me professionally
to be seen to stand up to him.
And when I do,
I will sit his ass down.
Let's get together
and talk in person.
I'll have Kristy get with
your office to lock in.
Sounds good.
You really got
with the spirit there.
What can I say?
- You can't consider it.
- I consider everything.
It's a setup. You
know it's a setup.
He had to know we'd think that,
and called anyway.
Look,
it's moot unless you guys close tonight,
so let me worry
about the barrister.
You nail your part.
Chuck Rhoades is
fucking with our Wi-Fi play.
Someone is coming for what's yours,
folks.
You're big telecom.
We can't let that happen.
Rhoades has
mobilized big telecom
against People of the World.
They're calling it piggybacking,
signal theft,
antitrust,
even though it's excess signal
that no one's using.
We need PR firms.
Legal. Lobbyists.
We've got to spend
against this move.
Ballpark it for me.
Thirteen and a half million.
Okay, I'll get into it.
Thank you.
The Games in New York City
will be a sports
and a cultural event.
It'll be the only way you
can still see the Gates again.
We've secured the
rights with Jeanne-Claude
and Christo's estate.
That is something.
It's not nothing.
Let's move to dinner.
If Jeanne-Claude and Christo
aren't blowing you away,
I imagine Chef Scott
and his team will.
Oh, I know this lot.
This is as
interested as they get
without being
absolutely committed.
Welcome, members.
This is the whole hog.
Understand, folks,
that I have slow-cooked
and hand-pulled for
you to enjoy to the fullest.
Hear, hear!
Yum!
And there'll be more
stops pulled out after that,
don't you all worry.
Remember, I'm gone after dinner.
Yeah, after we eat,
it's off to Palazzo with our soft targets.
Place is loaded with
talent. Clean talent.
And I mean clean.
Ladies, gentlemen, other.
Everything they'll want.
And all documented,
vaxxed, and virus-free
with antibodies onboard.
Then I'll peel off, too.
What? No, no, no.
Gentlemen, if you both depart,
our friends will
become uncomfortable.
They'll have you
right there with them.
This is what you're
getting paid for.
Yes,
but if one of you doesn't partake,
they'll be looking for cameras.
They'll imagine it's a setup.
A blackmail play. It's
happened before in Bogotá.
But Bogotá never had the Games.
- Oh.
- Exactly.
Ah.
Well, I've done my part.
So it's on you, Wagsy. Enjoy.
Now excuse me while I
pander to my audience.
Who is
hangry for some hog?
- Whoa!
- Whew.
You scared me there...
with your Batmobile.
What brings you up
to the triple digits?
We have to talk. It's your time,
Kate.
America doesn't
elect pessimists,
it elects those that see the
brighter and better future.
The Olympics
will do for this town
what they once did for Greece.
And they'll do you
some good too.
This isn't America.
It's New York.
And the only thing worse
than a pessimist is a bullshitter.
If I come aboard
and you are wrong,
it'll be the end for
me as a candidate.
I know what I'm doing.
You're smart.
Exceptionally smart.
That's why I want
you on my team.
But be careful not to let
your brilliance get in the way.
Having blind faith in anyone
can be dangerous, even yourself.
Adam Grant talks about
this in Think Again.
The best predictors of
the future aren't smarter.
They're just willing
to take one more look,
one more time,
than the other folks.
That's good advice. But,
uh, I'm aware.
If your mother asks
how many eggs you want,
and you say one,
but she makes two
and you eat both,
who's better at math,
you or your mother?
Excuse me?
What my old man used to say
when I'd worked myself
into a knot over something.
Doesn't matter how
good your gut is,
don't double down
on old instincts
when presented with new insight.
Marc Andreessen calls it having
strong opinions, weakly held.
Always being ready to
change to the better idea.
- Bingo.
- Yeah, but I don't see how
leaving to work for you,
trashing the reputation
I've built in the public sector,
turning my back on my mentor--
A mentor shouldn't get in
the way of your success.
Unlike Chuck,
I want to invest in your future.
Entwine it with my own.
The last thing I need
is another father figure
with ideas about my future.
Here's where I'm different
from those you've come across.
I don't want to be the one
giving advice all the time.
I want to take your advice.
I need it.
I'm not your father. I
want to be your peer.
Watch you score.
Bask in your glow.
That's a new wrinkle.
Still--
You see yourself
as a civil servant.
I get it.
I, too, believe in service.
The thing you've
got to ask yourself is,
am I still serving
best where I am?
Or is there something better?
Once you complete
the job for me,
that'll be your campaign office.
I see.
Twenty-four hours
after you declare,
your field staff--
already hired--
will collect and submit
all the signatures you need
before the filing deadline...
leaving you free to chase
the real cheesecake.
You sure you know
what you're buying?
You think I'm concerned
because you brought my Wi-Fi play
back to Chuck?
Yes,
it did screw me up for a minute.
But I'd have been
disappointed if you hadn't.
I love that you're loyal.
You did right by your boss
despite the potential
cost to yourself.
That's what matters.
It's how I know that you'll
serve me loyally as well.
Until I help get you
elected to Congress.
Gentle-folk,
it's been a pleasure.
I look forward to
doing it again in 2028.
I wish you good night
and bid you adieu.
- Cheers.
- Thanks very much.
Fellows, exciting offer.
It seems our friends
in New Jersey
have arranged an
impromptu private concert.
The Boss and Bon
Jovi at the Stone Pony.
Choppers are waiting.
What the fuck?
Colin,
you said Jersey was on the sideline.
How did you let
them into the game?
I didn't let them anywhere,
I assure you.
This is coming from outside.
A concerted attack.
Could this be Rhoades?
Feels like him.
That's it then, I guess.
"It" nothing. It's right
there for you to finish.
Well, sure,
like a diamond ring in a cesspool.
I just have to dive in,
swim around,
find it and clean it off.
However you want to
say it. Ride the damn tiger.
Go with them,
get them back to the city,
and give them an experience
that knocks the taste
of American rock and roll
- right out of their mouths.
- My guns, they can't be empty.
Maybe you'll have
a stray bullet left.
"Wrecking Ball,"
into "Blaze of Glory..."
with a twin acoustic
guitar finisher of "Rosalita,"
in a tiny private club.
"Rosalita," damn.
Really incredible.
I mean, what can you hope to do
when the other side
has freaking Bruce?
- And Bon Jovi.
- And Bon Jovi.
It's all the more
impressive you got it done.
It really is.
I mean, congratulations,
Scooter.
You saw the play.
I knew I
had the man for the job.
But he was balking,
and you got it out of him.
Really, unbelievably done.
"Him" is me, right?
He manipulated me and
you're congratulating him for it?
Absolutely. Always give props
to the guy who made the assist.
The guy who scored
already knows what he did.
I need a slap on
the ass when I score.
That's how I'm wired.
Good job, Wags! Feel better?
Yeah.
How'd you get it done,
Wags?
Considering your other agenda?
Ahh! Wags!
I'd heard of these guys
who go behind closed doors
and only talked.
I always imagined
they were pathetic losers
of the most desperate stripe
looking for connection.
But I guess they
had their reasons.
Like I did.
Uh-oh, that's my cue.
Give it another
five or six minutes,
then finish it off big.
You're a dear.
Good luck with
your dissertation.
The truth is,
we actually had a lovely chat
before we got down
to putting on the show.
Well,
Colin said you guys killed it.
Figured out exactly which
ones could be moved.
Bid round's looking as
good as it possibly can.
Oh,
thanks for warning me about Ira Schirmer.
I do know you were
trying to protect me.
Nah. You were playing him from jump,
to get Rhoades leaning.
Couldn't believe
I didn't see it.
Won't miss it next time, sir.
I believe you.
Miss Sacker's
already sat with him,
so she can finish
getting you prepped.
Huh.
Oh, no.
Uh-oh.
My meeting just got canceled.
Son of a bitch.
They played the Albin on me.
- Chuck?
I fancied myself some
chess grandmaster
and brought my
big piece out early.
Albin's a
hyperaggressive counter.
I lost my advantage...
and failed to protect
my goddamn queen.
Welcome to Michael Prince Capital,
Kate.
Thanks.
So, where do I work?
Wherever you want.
Welcome, Miss Sacker.
Allow me to show you the place.
Hmm.
The Olympics.
That's what I
get for doing this.
You want to be on the
performance coaching team.
To run it.
Use my talents to turn those
athletes into medal machines.
Their goal, my goal,
the country's goal: aligned.
So that my heart and
soul are engaged in all of it.
Done.
It's not that you
weren't transactional.
It's that you're
very good at it.
And for the right reasons...
which pleases me.
I can see you aren't happy.
I imagine this is visible on my
face and in my demeanor, yes.
And how could it not be so?
You made a deal that you
knew would displease me.
Once the telecom companies
figured out what
we were trying to do,
the only move was to
make a deal with them,
include them,
let them be a part of it.
So they get the pop for
agreeing to provide free Wi-Fi
for the fortnight of the Games.
Made the most sense.
The city gets nothing
leading up to that.
Just two lousy weeks.
And the Africa initiative,
that just dies?
This deal doesn't
contemplate an Africa piece.
But that was the whole
reason I brought the idea to you.
- Ideas change.
- Or die.
It's back-burnered, not dead.
We were...
I thought we could-- and
I know this sounds corny--
but it's the thing, right,
that we are put
in a position to do,
and that's to change,
to actually change the world,
which is what this
would have done.
What I would have done.
And now they get what?
The consolation
prize: a free tote bag?
People love free tote bags.
Especially when they don't
know what they could have gotten.
But, come on, what did you think
your plan was really going
to accomplish long term?
- What was going to change?
- You know the answer.
With Wi-Fi they
could connect to the--
I don't have to
spell it out for you.
You know the answer.
I do.
You know,
I've lived through versions of this before.
More than that, Africa has.
There was a great initiative,
with great goodwill
and good intentions,
to build wells in
different places.
Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali. More.
Ones that really needed it.
Only once the wells were built,
there was no money
to maintain them.
So when they broke
and fell into disrepair,
no one knew how to fix them.
The people also
became reliant on them.
So instead of
making things better,
the people ended up worse off.
This would be like that.
You'd get them dependent
on the connectivity,
and then, when it disappeared,
they'd be lost.
Sure,
it's easy to take that position now.
Nothing easy about it.
But I pick and choose my
shots to make things better,
so that when I do it, it works.
It holds. It sticks.
That's what I'm going to do too,
soon enough, full-fucking-time.
You have a number.
I do.
Hundred.
Gotta be a hundred mil.
That's the nine-digit
combination
that opens the lock
to the escape hatch.
It is.
You must be within
striking distance
of that number, too, by now.
I am. Getting there.
The problem is the number shifts
when you see what
it can and can't do.
I'm at over 10 billion.
I'm a philanthropist, like you,
yet I haven't left.
Your eyes are always
bigger than your stomach,
and at your level,
they should be.
- Why is that?
- If this had been my cause,
those struggling folks
would be getting their Wi-Fi,
regardless of the business end,
with the money baked
in to keep it going.
Infrastructure,
technicians on payroll
to keep it reliable,
sustainable,
so the well would never run dry.
Because even at a 150
mil a year personal OPEX,
I can afford it, you can't.
So you're trying to turn this
into an object lesson on scale.
Not trying to do
anything. That's what it is.
I'm independently
wealthy. You're not.
You're kind of rich,
which is great.
But if you want to
change the world,
nine digits ain't gonna do it.
I can see that you are right
that my number was faulty.
I have a new one now.
A billion.
Darken the city Night is a wire
Steam in the
subway Earth is afire
Do-do-do-do Do-do-do
Do-do-do Do-do-do-do-do
Woman,
you want me Give me a sign
And catch my breathing
Even closer behind
Do-do-do-do Do-do-do
Do-do-do Do-do-do-do-do
In touch with the ground
I'm on the hunt I'm after you
Smell like I sound
I'm lost in a crowd
And I'm hungry Like the wolf
Straddle the line In
discord and rhyme
I'm on the hunt I'm after you
Mouth is alive
With juices like wine
And I'm hungry Like the wolf
Not hiding from you.
So I see.
How could you, Kate?
It'd one thing if you
had ditched before.
But now,
when I'm doing it right?
All the ways. And winning.
For us and the folks.
Finally.
I'd think you would know
that this is the moment to stay,
not leave.
But after all I taught you...
Oh, you did.
You taught me.
It's maybe how I knew to
make the decision I made.
Maybe I'm ready to do some teaching,
too.
To be a peer,
not just an acolyte.
We could do that.
No, we can do that.
No.
No, you made me wait.
Then you put me in play.
Some would ask,
how could I have waited so long?
And what would you say to them?
That I felt I still
had more to learn.
And I had the best professor.
What if that professor
isn't done teaching yet?
Then he'd better find
someone who's still in need
of those particular lessons...
because this student has
already left the campus.
High blood drumming On your skin
It's so tight
You feel my heat I'm
just a moment behind
Do-do-do-do Do-do-do
Do-do-do Do-do-do-do-do
In touch with the ground
I'm on the hunt I'm after you
A scent and a sound
I'm lost and I'm found
And I'm hungry Like the wolf
Strut on a line
It's discord and rhyme
I howl and I whine I'm after you
Mouth is alive
All running inside
And I'm hungry Like the wolf
on Billions...
The very first New
York Olympics.
The city's down, hurting.
It's the perfect
opportunity to rebuild.
Selecting a host city is
a very political process.
I want to make an impression,
but as I understand it,
the men and women
of the commission
don't look kindly upon
strangers bearing gifts.
The office is not where my
new war is going to be waged.
Not at first.
The venue matters
less than the message.
No,
I realized it's not one billionaire
having his way with the City.
The overall effect of
the billionaire class...
they're a scourge.
Prince has different priorities.
He seems to be after
more than profits here.
- So, what are you saying?
- I don't know yet,
but I know he's not Axe.
I am hereby creating
the Prince List.
Shedding all the dirty
capital currently invested.
From now on, clients will
have to qualify to invest with us.
Sometimes you just
have to break some shit.
Make them know
that no one is safe.
You promised me a winning season,
Chuck.
I'm running out of
time if I'll have to quit.
I can't lose my MVP yet.
I need you, Kate.
Okay, boss.
What do we do
when the carpetbaggers
and the land barons try
to shove us out of the way?
We shove back!
Take back our city!
Take back our city!
I was approached.
For a job?
Nobody said
anything about a job.
It's a job.
You did good by coming to me.
So, obviously, I'm not going--
Oh, no, you're going.
But you're going for me.
You'll be my Vincent Terranova.
It's natural to celebrate,
to go big.
Especially with the
tools you have here.
The fun and the
talent in this room.
You think it's gonna
go on and on and on.
It's never gonna end.
But we know that's not true.
You all in this room
are not immune
to the mistakes
other people make,
where they spend
more than they make.
The burn rate gets
them every time.
I've had 52 players
drafted in the NBA.
Thirty-five are in
the league right now.
My suggestion to
them and to you:
Put the first million away!
Forget you have it.
You put yours back in this fund,
you know five, six, seven years,
you're a multimillionaire.
With that behind you,
no fear.
No anxiety seeps in.
You have a clear mind
to think good thoughts.
All of a sudden,
you get in the zone,
and you're doing stuff you
don't even believe you could do,
and you win championships.
National championships.
And when you win a
national championship...
I've never played basketball,
but I'd follow this man
through the gates of hell.
...don't let the
burn rate drag you down,
because at the end of the day,
it's about winning
championships for all of us, isn't it?
Coach gave us a great
deal on the speaking fee.
He really did. Worth every cent.
And I hear he's
donating it to charity,
so a win for all.
State-of-the-art facilities,
accommodations, transportation.
Designed to accommodate any
and all environmental concerns.
Everything pristine.
Uh-huh.
Yeah, well, I tell you, Mike,
the whole thing'd be
a lot more believable
if there was, uh,
dirt somewhere.
- I mean, just...
New York City's
never been this clean.
It was never my mandate before.
I told them, make it dazzling.
Dazzle the man,
don't leave anything to the imagination.
And that's what I'm gonna do
when the Games
are actually here.
You know,
they used to have a sundae at Haagen-Dazs
called the Dazzler.
I think they still do. You know,
it's dulce de leche ice cream
with, like, ribbons of caramel,
and then more dulce,
more caramel.
Then you'd put whipped cream on it,
and then they would just
cover the whole thing in,
like, hot caramel sauce.
It earns its name: the Dazzler.
I would guzzle that sucker down.
But, you know...
before long,
I'd start to feel
milk-sick and bloated.
And, you see,
I'm afraid it's going to be the same way
with the Olympic
Games here in our city.
Could be delicious,
but more likely to make me ill
when the voters paddle my ass
'cause they don't like them,
so...
Everyone loves--
Chuck Rhoades
changed the conversation
before it even started,
all right?
Now,
we wouldn't be selling the Games,
we'd be defending
them from the jump.
And the city council,
legislator, activists,
they're all going to
crap on this Olympic bid
and they're going to
tag it with regulations,
and that's after
you jump through
a bunch of fucking
hoops first-- flaming ones.
You can't win if you
forfeit before the tip-off.
Yeah, well, the only winner
in this hopeless fucking outing
is going to be your
chief legal counsel
in billable hours.
You and I,
we can solve these issues together.
The Games are
never coming to the city
without the governor's support.
I hope that I can count on it.
Mike,
public opinion is 2% positive on this.
I believe cancer
is polling at 3%.
Chuck's stunt only
worked 'cause it lit a fire
under something
that's already lighted.
I am not getting in the
bucket bailing relay line
next to you on this one,
all right?
Buzz me when you got
something that'll work.
God,
is the stink of losing actually sticking?
I don't want that
gamy shit on me.
If he's right and we're stuck in
a municipal swamp, we need--
Some serious legal firepower.
Yes.
White-shoe firm.
Maybe more than one.
A fixer at bar.
A street fighter.
A master of the dark arts.
Bill Barr's a little
controversial right now.
Someone to navigate
the land mines,
specifically the ones
planted by Chuck Rhoades.
We have to hire from
inside the government,
to backslap and crony our
way past the city council.
You're saying hire the guy
who set the speed traps,
and you'll always know
when to slow down.
Absolument.
Hell,
we hired Spyros straight from the SEC,
and as lame as he is,
we haven't gotten calls from
enforcement for two years.
Someone like
Manhattan D.A. Gramm.
Seems likable,
but full-on pit bull.
She'd be perfect,
but she's a lifer.
M-Tap, I think he's right.
Oh, I'm right,
'cause this is the
down and dirty,
and I happen to be both.
Yep,
and if you can add Neil Young to your band,
you do it,
even if you were already
getting by with Crosby and Nash.
Good. Do it.
Now, on another front:
Colin has the advance team
from the International
Commission of Sport
in from Europe.
They need to leave so happy--
Ah, that's why you came to me.
The down and the dirty,
as you said, yes.
So that they go
home to their masters
and tell them we're the ones
that should top the short list.
And that the gift
bags you'll hand them
will be pendulous and
heavy as Bo Derek's--
You can't just bribe them.
Everyone's willing
to bribe them.
Don't use the "B" word
in front of me. Come on.
Yes, but the point is,
if we were the bribing type--
which we are not--
they need to be
made to feel special.
Pretty certain we have
different ideas on "special."
Well, since you two are already
happy bunkmates, do it together.
No way. No way you get
all that crap in that pack.
Now,
if you had a spatial algorithm
and someone who knew how
to use it along with you, maybe.
Oh, I guess that'd be you.
Do you want to come along
with your spatial-packing algo?
As your worthy Sherpa.
I'll start optimizing
the algo to our route
for strategic
climate-to-weight--
Oh, bud, buddy. Yeah,
no. Big no.
So, you don't want--
Company? Help? Unh-unh.
I'll stuff it in
with a toilet plunger
and throw away
half of it if I have to.
But I won't have to,
because Rolf shows us how.
Feeling that Jack London,
Elizabeth Gilbert call, huh?
I don't aim to leave for another
eight to ten months, at least.
Just pre-planning.
- Once you've saved up enough.
- Right.
No shame in the frugality
game. I'll peace once I have 600k.
But for now,
it's more about grooving the feeling.
Visualizing.
Active anticipation has
psycho-physical benefits,
and you can afford the time off.
But why do this here
and not at home?
I had enough at-home time,
thanks.
And the fantasy is,
you go right from work,
like one day you just stand
up and grab your rucksack
and take off from your desk
into the sun-drenched deck
of some Turkish
hostel in the summer.
If reality were as
good as the fantasy,
we wouldn't have had
to invent "The Sims."
If we start talking Sims,
I'll never get back to work.
Yeah. I lost all of 8th grade
in service of one particularly
needy pet Sim dog, an Akita.
Thing is, fantasy or reality,
you aren't calculating
opportunities lost.
Here. To your career.
To your development.
Come on,
you never think about getting free?
No hidden agenda.
I too have considered
and calculated
an out number.
Assuming it's a little steeper
than the cost of a Pittsburgh duplex,
huh?
How much?
Twenty mil? Fifty?
- About twice that.
- Oof!
Boss wants a beach
house and a ski chalet.
No.
No, they do not.
Or that's not the why, anyway.
Correct. It's not for lifestyle.
I plan to leave once I've
accrued enough personal capital
to drive real, measurable,
prosocial advancement.
A 5% withdrawal rate to
protect against principal erosion?
Exactly.
One hundred million
is a solid starting point
to build a legacy of truly
effective humanitarian progress.
Okay, but if my math is right,
and I'm p-sure it is,
you still got a while before
you get to temple-run.
I do, so I gotta serve my master,
get paid,
and make sure I
can move the needle
even before I hit my number.
To that end, there's something
we need to work on for Prince.
- He asked you to?
- Not yet.
Oh.
Yes.
I do love a Taylor Ham.
I made a swing out to
Jersey and nabbed 'em.
Nothing like the original.
Absolutely so.
Tremendous sandwich.
The pork roll.
John Taylor original.
And you, Chuck Rhoades,
went out to Jersey and
snagged us a couple.
I did.
- I bagged a few for us.
- Ah.
It's a shame the Olympics
only come every four years,
or else I'd have guys like you
and Prince playing fetch for me
up and down the Eastern
Seaboard on the regular.
Could fire half my staff.
Governor,
I am a longtime friend and ally,
while Mike Prince is--
Between us,
I told him he's mostly shit out of luck.
Perfect. So you're
with me on this.
That's what I told Prince.
And it might be true.
Listen,
I know I got to take a flume ride
with one of you
two lunatics on this.
I just haven't decided
who I win with yet.
And you both need me more,
so I finally got my balls back.
Can you hear 'em clank?
Loud as the cymbal crashes
on "Hungry Like the Wolf."
But perhaps this
isn't a decision
that requires a great
show of inner steel.
Perhaps it merely
requires remembering
that we, both of us,
serve the people.
And Mike Prince's grand plan,
it doesn't really serve them.
We know this.
You may know this.
But I may need a
little more convincing.
I have an ask.
I need your input on a new hire.
Trader, PM, or analyst?
Lawyer.
I need one from the other side
to break trail with city
and state lawmakers.
I know what you're asking,
and I have the answer.
Kate Sacker is the name
you know you need to say
but can't quite
bring yourself to.
Salut.
Is she as good as they say?
Steel-trap legal mind, charisma,
knows how to work the angles.
Has political ambitions too.
Learned at Chuck's elbow.
Sounds amazing. Is she gettable?
No. She's completely loyal.
- Right, who's next on your--?
- There's no next.
Kim Philby seemed loyal too.
And he broke a nation's heart.
What's my best first move?
Nah.
I'm going to respectfully
stay out of this one.
Things are fraught enough
between me and my ex-husband
without me steering you in
the plucking of his personnel.
There must be something
that would induce you
to do it for me,
to make it worth it.
I'm not that transactional.
And it's not just
because of Chuck.
Sacker's special in all
the ways I just mentioned,
but in intangible ways too.
The thought of
bringing her in here?
Even if I dealt with
the Chuck-of-it-all--
In here is not the
place it used to be.
We're different.
I want to believe
that that's true.
Consider it.
You hear what you're asking,
right?
You hear what I'm offering,
right?
So will you?
Well, if anyone could give
Jersey a fighting chance,
it's Bruce Springsteen
and Jon Bon Jovi.
I'm glad to hear you fellas
are down for the cause.
I'll send you details.
Great stuff. Just
great. Thank you.
The Boss and Bon Jovi.
Ah.
You starting a band?
We may have a
meeting across the river,
if you know what I'm saying.
Let's switch to you
knowing what I'm saying.
Congress.
It's time.
I need you to get guys
like that donating to me.
- Playing for me.
- And they will. We will.
Soon enough, but not quite yet.
We got big stuff on our plate.
I need to start raising money,
building a staff,
doing the grip-and-grins
in my district,
the kinds of things I cannot
do while I'm on the state's dime.
I get it.
We all had to hit the
pause button for months.
But everyone's plans
have had to take a back seat
for the greater good.
That was fine for a while.
No more.
All due respect,
I need big cases with big wins
to burnish the rep,
or I need to get out.
We are going to have big
cases. You will. Very soon.
We're stopping Citizen
Prince from buying off
the greatest metropolis
in the history of mankind,
which will cement
your political place.
You've stayed the
course with me this far.
All I ask is that you
use your instincts
and hang in with
me a little longer.
We're finally doing the
good thing for good reason,
and it will be good for you,
Kate.
You know what the most
powerful four-letter word is?
I don't curse much.
"Free."
I know how to unlock
it for our benefit,
and to help a whole
whack of people.
We give Wi-Fi away as
part of our gift to New York.
- That a huge--
- There's a company.
People of the World.
They use blockchain
to siphon unused Wi-Fi
from existing networks of
major telecom companies,
then bundle the undetectable
excess for civilian use.
So free public Internet
can start now in New York
as a goodwill
incentive pre-Olympics,
and continue gratis through
the Games for athletes,
and to cover the
influx of tourists.
Dumpster diving
for bit rate. Genius.
- You have a line into it?
- Yes. Here's the pitch:
New Yorkers get it gratis,
courtesy of the Games.
Free Internet in the five
boroughs is the holy grail.
And we set it up so that every
time a New Yorker uses it,
someone in sub-Saharan Africa
gets the same
allotment of Wi-Fi.
It's a do-good, feel-good,
look-good play.
The greatest trio since
Run-DMC and Jam Master Jay.
What's it gonna cost?
Twenty-two million,
and we control the company.
Do it.
You seem like a man
who needs antioxidants.
Hmm, shit, you're right.
How's this whole "Tango
and Cash" thing going?
Ah,
the Stallone-Russell classic.
Which one is Stallone in that?
- Tango.
- Glad you know that one, Wags.
Which is why you will relate,
personally,
so well to certain of these
folks on the advance team.
Make them feel special.
I will handle the business
forward part of the evening,
the front of the El Camino,
as it were, and you will--
Organize the junk in the trunk.
Sure. I already went
to the trouble to get...
I don't need the
granular detai--
Are those Quaaludes?
That's right. Methaqualone.
A.K.A., Beiruts, Bandits,
Wagon Wheels.
They're not Lemmons.
I couldn't get that lucky.
But they are Rorers.
Our friends will feel
as warm and fuzzy
as a baby kitten on
the cover of Cat Fancy.
Can you legally possess
those in the U.S.?
I have a
prescription... of sorts.
Another reason why I
won't be there for that part.
Neither will I.
I'll just hand them out.
I'm working on a project that...
Chelz and I have decided to try,
you know?
She's got this
app which tells her
when she's...
when she's ovulating.
So when the thing bings or
beeps or whatever it does,
I need to hop to.
I have got to be home and
ready by 5:30 a.m. that morning,
guns loaded, so to speak.
Well, at the appropriate time,
I cannot wait to wish you mazel.
Tango and Cash,
or is it more Bialystock and Bloom?
I can't quite tell.
But I think I like it.
Night, gents.
Initial infrastructure costs
in sub-Saharan Africa
are hella-spensive.
Yes,
as most things of value are.
The numbers,
they just-- They don't...
It's a sucky thing to say,
but I'm just gonna say it.
We should dump
the Africa Wi-Fi piece.
Not dump it, but hold it.
If that capital is rolled into
marketing and development,
the company comes out
of the Olympics stronger--
I'm sorry you did say it,
because this is all
about the Africa piece.
That's the whole thing. We'll make money,
and do good.
It won't be as much money. Barely any,
really.
Willing to pay that price.
Yeah. Me too. More than willing.
That's what I always say.
It's not really.
It just seemed like
what I should say now.
Oh.
Kate.
So nice to see you.
And you.
Wasn't she incredible?
Oh, I'm buzzing.
I still remember how I felt
reading Crenshaw's 1989 paper
on intersectionality for
the first time in law school.
Hm.
So how have you been?
Bene. You?
How goes Axe Cap?
It's not Axe Cap anymore.
I mean, okay, but...
Different name on the
shingle. Different vibe.
- So you say.
- No, no.
It's, uh, different.
This guy gives a shit
about more than money.
He still makes plenty.
It's weird, but in a good way.
But weird.
- Hmm. Sounds like it.
- Yeah, like right now,
we're engaged in this
big municipal project,
poised to make major impact,
but still facing
public-sector resistance.
You could hear what that sounds like,
if you wanted.
Hear it how?
Come by for a half hour.
Meet the guy.
Listen. Talk.
The whole thing.
You suggesting I
walk into your offices?
That's right.
Well,
thanks anyway for thinking of me.
You know, Kate...
sometimes staying
too long is a bigger risk
than leaving too soon.
There's never a right
time to make a big change.
It's good running into you.
You too.
Act interested, but coy.
Be your charming self.
Engage enough to keep
them flashing the bait,
but make them work for it.
Elida Geisha?
Thank you.
Thanks for coming, Kate.
Wendy said I
had to sit with you.
She said the same about you.
Nice to be here
without a warrant.
Love what you've
done with the place.
No basis for warrants
in these parts anymore.
Then I'd love to know
what this meeting is about.
It's about me offering
you the role of lead counsel
for New York City's
first ever Olympics.
Nice and shiny.
Why me?
Your granular expertise
in city bureaucracy,
balanced by panoramic
understanding
of the political landscape.
We want you at the
epicenter of this undertaking.
Leading the farthest-reaching
legal proceedings
the state has seen in a decade.
There's just the tiny
wrinkle of my current boss
and entire career history.
Why would you trust me?
There's nothing
illegal happening here,
so we don't need you
as our co-conspirator.
Our only crime
will be ushering in
a new era of opportunity.
A safer, cleaner,
more prosperous New York.
For who?
Your investors?
When Sinatra sang
about this place,
when Jay-Z and Alicia Keys did,
they meant it.
They captured that romance
and the possibility of
what this city could be.
When you look around now,
is that what you see?
- Of course you don't.
- Of course you don't.
The city's been
gored and gutted.
We're gonna turn it around.
The Games bring
so much in their wake.
Infrastructure. Excitement.
Free cultural
events. Free Wi-Fi.
Sounds grand.
Where do I fit in?
I need someone to bushwhack
through the legal thickets
so I can make all
that a possibility.
Think about how landing
a well-run Olympics
could play for you in
a congressional run.
Nice info,
but it's not at all clear
that this would help
if those were my plans.
By the time I'm done,
this city's gonna be
begging for the big top.
And you'll be touted as the
woman who cleared the way
to make it all possible.
Yeah.
Yeah, okay.
Why don't I send over
some good names.
Thanks for the pricey coffee.
You were right.
It was a job offer.
My experience with
government in general,
and, I think, this office,
was the driver.
Oh, I bet. What'd you pick up?
They are going to vivify
and beautify this fair city,
first for the Games,
then for all of
us in their wake.
- But there are, of course--
- Regulatory--
Measures and thickets of--
Rules, I'd imagine, that need--
Just the sort of sharp knife I carry,
yep.
All sorts of infrastructure
improvements,
from buildings to the
shit flying through the air
connecting the world,
which he's going
to give away for free.
Sure.
Sure,
they will need someone like you
if they think the telecom
and wireless folks
are going to welcome
whatever he's got planned.
Not going to be me.
You want me to pass right now,
in front of you?
No. Not yet.
In 24 hours,
you're going to pass.
First,
I know who I want to take that job:
Ira Schirmer.
And I know what I'm going
to do about this bullshit,
pandering free
Wi-Fi initiative too.
You're a wealthy man.
Young wife, young child.
You have it all.
But you know what
you don't have?
An alpaca?
Might be kind of
tough in the apartment.
But, no, it's true. I saw Downey
on the newish Letterman thing.
- Alpacas--
- Relevance.
Access.
Being in the mix.
I want this? This sounds
like a pain in the ass.
You need this.
And I get it how?
Prince offered Sacker a job
steering him through
the legal quagmire.
You go be his
baby driver instead.
That guy is too
smart to go for this.
He knows I'm your friend.
My best friend. And
you lead with that.
This is why
you're perfect for it.
You know my moves and--
- And he sees right through it.
- Not if you declaim:
I won't hurt Rhoades personally.
I love the man.
But this is business,
and I will be your lawyer,
and couldn't betray you
without risking my license.
So I'm an asset,
and you're running me at him.
You been reading Ambler?
Yeah,
a bit. The Zaleshoff books.
And I can tell you,
it's not going to work.
He's-- he's too smart.
So you go further.
We use those very
smarts and his ambition.
You tell him that your
friendship with me
is hurting you professionally.
- You've lost clients over it.
You have to show that you're
not afraid to go against me,
that you know my moves
and how to blunt them.
And you commit
to it and mean it.
I can mean it if I have to.
As you have shown
me in the past.
Go do it.
Can't wait to finish
building this boat for you.
- Can you hurry it up?
- Yeah, I am.
I'll have it done for
you in three years.
That includes greening,
right? Has to.
I need this thing
carbon-neutral.
No carbon footprint.
Not just the power plant.
Stem to stern.
That's what I do.
Ira,
of course I know who you are,
but not why you're calling.
Well, how could you know
before you've heard my spiel?
You may be magnificent,
but you're not Carnac.
- Ira?
- I'm calling because
you're looking
for a legal eagle.
One who can be a big
blocker against the government.
Ah,
and you're the Chuck whisperer?
The Chuck neutralizer.
Your friendship is widely known.
As is attorney/client privilege.
I'd be sworn to
work on your behalf
and keep everything
confidential.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised
that a man like Rhoades
- has friends ready to--
- I won't hit him personally.
Ever. Even though I know what
an utter hemorrhoid he can be
when you're against him,
I love the guy.
But it's important
for me professionally
to be seen to stand up to him.
And when I do,
I will sit his ass down.
Let's get together
and talk in person.
I'll have Kristy get with
your office to lock in.
Sounds good.
You really got
with the spirit there.
What can I say?
- You can't consider it.
- I consider everything.
It's a setup. You
know it's a setup.
He had to know we'd think that,
and called anyway.
Look,
it's moot unless you guys close tonight,
so let me worry
about the barrister.
You nail your part.
Chuck Rhoades is
fucking with our Wi-Fi play.
Someone is coming for what's yours,
folks.
You're big telecom.
We can't let that happen.
Rhoades has
mobilized big telecom
against People of the World.
They're calling it piggybacking,
signal theft,
antitrust,
even though it's excess signal
that no one's using.
We need PR firms.
Legal. Lobbyists.
We've got to spend
against this move.
Ballpark it for me.
Thirteen and a half million.
Okay, I'll get into it.
Thank you.
The Games in New York City
will be a sports
and a cultural event.
It'll be the only way you
can still see the Gates again.
We've secured the
rights with Jeanne-Claude
and Christo's estate.
That is something.
It's not nothing.
Let's move to dinner.
If Jeanne-Claude and Christo
aren't blowing you away,
I imagine Chef Scott
and his team will.
Oh, I know this lot.
This is as
interested as they get
without being
absolutely committed.
Welcome, members.
This is the whole hog.
Understand, folks,
that I have slow-cooked
and hand-pulled for
you to enjoy to the fullest.
Hear, hear!
Yum!
And there'll be more
stops pulled out after that,
don't you all worry.
Remember, I'm gone after dinner.
Yeah, after we eat,
it's off to Palazzo with our soft targets.
Place is loaded with
talent. Clean talent.
And I mean clean.
Ladies, gentlemen, other.
Everything they'll want.
And all documented,
vaxxed, and virus-free
with antibodies onboard.
Then I'll peel off, too.
What? No, no, no.
Gentlemen, if you both depart,
our friends will
become uncomfortable.
They'll have you
right there with them.
This is what you're
getting paid for.
Yes,
but if one of you doesn't partake,
they'll be looking for cameras.
They'll imagine it's a setup.
A blackmail play. It's
happened before in Bogotá.
But Bogotá never had the Games.
- Oh.
- Exactly.
Ah.
Well, I've done my part.
So it's on you, Wagsy. Enjoy.
Now excuse me while I
pander to my audience.
Who is
hangry for some hog?
- Whoa!
- Whew.
You scared me there...
with your Batmobile.
What brings you up
to the triple digits?
We have to talk. It's your time,
Kate.
America doesn't
elect pessimists,
it elects those that see the
brighter and better future.
The Olympics
will do for this town
what they once did for Greece.
And they'll do you
some good too.
This isn't America.
It's New York.
And the only thing worse
than a pessimist is a bullshitter.
If I come aboard
and you are wrong,
it'll be the end for
me as a candidate.
I know what I'm doing.
You're smart.
Exceptionally smart.
That's why I want
you on my team.
But be careful not to let
your brilliance get in the way.
Having blind faith in anyone
can be dangerous, even yourself.
Adam Grant talks about
this in Think Again.
The best predictors of
the future aren't smarter.
They're just willing
to take one more look,
one more time,
than the other folks.
That's good advice. But,
uh, I'm aware.
If your mother asks
how many eggs you want,
and you say one,
but she makes two
and you eat both,
who's better at math,
you or your mother?
Excuse me?
What my old man used to say
when I'd worked myself
into a knot over something.
Doesn't matter how
good your gut is,
don't double down
on old instincts
when presented with new insight.
Marc Andreessen calls it having
strong opinions, weakly held.
Always being ready to
change to the better idea.
- Bingo.
- Yeah, but I don't see how
leaving to work for you,
trashing the reputation
I've built in the public sector,
turning my back on my mentor--
A mentor shouldn't get in
the way of your success.
Unlike Chuck,
I want to invest in your future.
Entwine it with my own.
The last thing I need
is another father figure
with ideas about my future.
Here's where I'm different
from those you've come across.
I don't want to be the one
giving advice all the time.
I want to take your advice.
I need it.
I'm not your father. I
want to be your peer.
Watch you score.
Bask in your glow.
That's a new wrinkle.
Still--
You see yourself
as a civil servant.
I get it.
I, too, believe in service.
The thing you've
got to ask yourself is,
am I still serving
best where I am?
Or is there something better?
Once you complete
the job for me,
that'll be your campaign office.
I see.
Twenty-four hours
after you declare,
your field staff--
already hired--
will collect and submit
all the signatures you need
before the filing deadline...
leaving you free to chase
the real cheesecake.
You sure you know
what you're buying?
You think I'm concerned
because you brought my Wi-Fi play
back to Chuck?
Yes,
it did screw me up for a minute.
But I'd have been
disappointed if you hadn't.
I love that you're loyal.
You did right by your boss
despite the potential
cost to yourself.
That's what matters.
It's how I know that you'll
serve me loyally as well.
Until I help get you
elected to Congress.
Gentle-folk,
it's been a pleasure.
I look forward to
doing it again in 2028.
I wish you good night
and bid you adieu.
- Cheers.
- Thanks very much.
Fellows, exciting offer.
It seems our friends
in New Jersey
have arranged an
impromptu private concert.
The Boss and Bon
Jovi at the Stone Pony.
Choppers are waiting.
What the fuck?
Colin,
you said Jersey was on the sideline.
How did you let
them into the game?
I didn't let them anywhere,
I assure you.
This is coming from outside.
A concerted attack.
Could this be Rhoades?
Feels like him.
That's it then, I guess.
"It" nothing. It's right
there for you to finish.
Well, sure,
like a diamond ring in a cesspool.
I just have to dive in,
swim around,
find it and clean it off.
However you want to
say it. Ride the damn tiger.
Go with them,
get them back to the city,
and give them an experience
that knocks the taste
of American rock and roll
- right out of their mouths.
- My guns, they can't be empty.
Maybe you'll have
a stray bullet left.
"Wrecking Ball,"
into "Blaze of Glory..."
with a twin acoustic
guitar finisher of "Rosalita,"
in a tiny private club.
"Rosalita," damn.
Really incredible.
I mean, what can you hope to do
when the other side
has freaking Bruce?
- And Bon Jovi.
- And Bon Jovi.
It's all the more
impressive you got it done.
It really is.
I mean, congratulations,
Scooter.
You saw the play.
I knew I
had the man for the job.
But he was balking,
and you got it out of him.
Really, unbelievably done.
"Him" is me, right?
He manipulated me and
you're congratulating him for it?
Absolutely. Always give props
to the guy who made the assist.
The guy who scored
already knows what he did.
I need a slap on
the ass when I score.
That's how I'm wired.
Good job, Wags! Feel better?
Yeah.
How'd you get it done,
Wags?
Considering your other agenda?
Ahh! Wags!
I'd heard of these guys
who go behind closed doors
and only talked.
I always imagined
they were pathetic losers
of the most desperate stripe
looking for connection.
But I guess they
had their reasons.
Like I did.
Uh-oh, that's my cue.
Give it another
five or six minutes,
then finish it off big.
You're a dear.
Good luck with
your dissertation.
The truth is,
we actually had a lovely chat
before we got down
to putting on the show.
Well,
Colin said you guys killed it.
Figured out exactly which
ones could be moved.
Bid round's looking as
good as it possibly can.
Oh,
thanks for warning me about Ira Schirmer.
I do know you were
trying to protect me.
Nah. You were playing him from jump,
to get Rhoades leaning.
Couldn't believe
I didn't see it.
Won't miss it next time, sir.
I believe you.
Miss Sacker's
already sat with him,
so she can finish
getting you prepped.
Huh.
Oh, no.
Uh-oh.
My meeting just got canceled.
Son of a bitch.
They played the Albin on me.
- Chuck?
I fancied myself some
chess grandmaster
and brought my
big piece out early.
Albin's a
hyperaggressive counter.
I lost my advantage...
and failed to protect
my goddamn queen.
Welcome to Michael Prince Capital,
Kate.
Thanks.
So, where do I work?
Wherever you want.
Welcome, Miss Sacker.
Allow me to show you the place.
Hmm.
The Olympics.
That's what I
get for doing this.
You want to be on the
performance coaching team.
To run it.
Use my talents to turn those
athletes into medal machines.
Their goal, my goal,
the country's goal: aligned.
So that my heart and
soul are engaged in all of it.
Done.
It's not that you
weren't transactional.
It's that you're
very good at it.
And for the right reasons...
which pleases me.
I can see you aren't happy.
I imagine this is visible on my
face and in my demeanor, yes.
And how could it not be so?
You made a deal that you
knew would displease me.
Once the telecom companies
figured out what
we were trying to do,
the only move was to
make a deal with them,
include them,
let them be a part of it.
So they get the pop for
agreeing to provide free Wi-Fi
for the fortnight of the Games.
Made the most sense.
The city gets nothing
leading up to that.
Just two lousy weeks.
And the Africa initiative,
that just dies?
This deal doesn't
contemplate an Africa piece.
But that was the whole
reason I brought the idea to you.
- Ideas change.
- Or die.
It's back-burnered, not dead.
We were...
I thought we could-- and
I know this sounds corny--
but it's the thing, right,
that we are put
in a position to do,
and that's to change,
to actually change the world,
which is what this
would have done.
What I would have done.
And now they get what?
The consolation
prize: a free tote bag?
People love free tote bags.
Especially when they don't
know what they could have gotten.
But, come on, what did you think
your plan was really going
to accomplish long term?
- What was going to change?
- You know the answer.
With Wi-Fi they
could connect to the--
I don't have to
spell it out for you.
You know the answer.
I do.
You know,
I've lived through versions of this before.
More than that, Africa has.
There was a great initiative,
with great goodwill
and good intentions,
to build wells in
different places.
Burkina Faso, Ghana, Mali. More.
Ones that really needed it.
Only once the wells were built,
there was no money
to maintain them.
So when they broke
and fell into disrepair,
no one knew how to fix them.
The people also
became reliant on them.
So instead of
making things better,
the people ended up worse off.
This would be like that.
You'd get them dependent
on the connectivity,
and then, when it disappeared,
they'd be lost.
Sure,
it's easy to take that position now.
Nothing easy about it.
But I pick and choose my
shots to make things better,
so that when I do it, it works.
It holds. It sticks.
That's what I'm going to do too,
soon enough, full-fucking-time.
You have a number.
I do.
Hundred.
Gotta be a hundred mil.
That's the nine-digit
combination
that opens the lock
to the escape hatch.
It is.
You must be within
striking distance
of that number, too, by now.
I am. Getting there.
The problem is the number shifts
when you see what
it can and can't do.
I'm at over 10 billion.
I'm a philanthropist, like you,
yet I haven't left.
Your eyes are always
bigger than your stomach,
and at your level,
they should be.
- Why is that?
- If this had been my cause,
those struggling folks
would be getting their Wi-Fi,
regardless of the business end,
with the money baked
in to keep it going.
Infrastructure,
technicians on payroll
to keep it reliable,
sustainable,
so the well would never run dry.
Because even at a 150
mil a year personal OPEX,
I can afford it, you can't.
So you're trying to turn this
into an object lesson on scale.
Not trying to do
anything. That's what it is.
I'm independently
wealthy. You're not.
You're kind of rich,
which is great.
But if you want to
change the world,
nine digits ain't gonna do it.
I can see that you are right
that my number was faulty.
I have a new one now.
A billion.
Darken the city Night is a wire
Steam in the
subway Earth is afire
Do-do-do-do Do-do-do
Do-do-do Do-do-do-do-do
Woman,
you want me Give me a sign
And catch my breathing
Even closer behind
Do-do-do-do Do-do-do
Do-do-do Do-do-do-do-do
In touch with the ground
I'm on the hunt I'm after you
Smell like I sound
I'm lost in a crowd
And I'm hungry Like the wolf
Straddle the line In
discord and rhyme
I'm on the hunt I'm after you
Mouth is alive
With juices like wine
And I'm hungry Like the wolf
Not hiding from you.
So I see.
How could you, Kate?
It'd one thing if you
had ditched before.
But now,
when I'm doing it right?
All the ways. And winning.
For us and the folks.
Finally.
I'd think you would know
that this is the moment to stay,
not leave.
But after all I taught you...
Oh, you did.
You taught me.
It's maybe how I knew to
make the decision I made.
Maybe I'm ready to do some teaching,
too.
To be a peer,
not just an acolyte.
We could do that.
No, we can do that.
No.
No, you made me wait.
Then you put me in play.
Some would ask,
how could I have waited so long?
And what would you say to them?
That I felt I still
had more to learn.
And I had the best professor.
What if that professor
isn't done teaching yet?
Then he'd better find
someone who's still in need
of those particular lessons...
because this student has
already left the campus.
High blood drumming On your skin
It's so tight
You feel my heat I'm
just a moment behind
Do-do-do-do Do-do-do
Do-do-do Do-do-do-do-do
In touch with the ground
I'm on the hunt I'm after you
A scent and a sound
I'm lost and I'm found
And I'm hungry Like the wolf
Strut on a line
It's discord and rhyme
I howl and I whine I'm after you
Mouth is alive
All running inside
And I'm hungry Like the wolf