The Offer (2022–…): Season 1, Episode 6 - A Stand Up Guy - full transcript

Carmine, Lenny.

Is there someplace to go?

You don't feel safe
here in Harlem?

- Carmine.
- Fuck.

Al, this is really scary.

You did the right thing
by coming here.

I appreciate that.

Pacino can't do the film.

He signed on
to another project.

I need you
to get him out of it.

You have got to be
fucking kidding me.



De Niro does "The Gang
That Couldn't Shoot Straight,"

Pacino does "The Godfather,"

everybody wins.

You got Pacino.
You got him!

Al, there are two FBI agents
waiting for you.

We need to take
Gallo out now.

I gotta talk to Carlo
and the rest of the Commission

to get the okay to rip
this motherfucker's face off.

This is turning
into a fucking fiasco.

We should be partners.
No.

I hear that Paramount's
getting spun off.

Gulf and Western want out.

We can get
a much better price

if we offload Paramount now
and cash out.



Come work for me.

You're selling Paramount.

Big day tomorrow.

They said that this
was not going to succeed.

You made it happen.

After intense negotiations

with Gulf and Western,

the League has decided
to allow them

to make the movie
"The Godfather."

And it's all because
of this man right there,

Al Ruddy.

♪

♪

I'd also like to announce

after intense negotiations
with Gulf and Western,

the League has decided
to allow them

to make the movie
"The Godfather."

That's right.

And... and I should say

that it's all because
of this man right there,

Al Ruddy.
Al, come up here.

He's the film's producer.

It's because of him
that we were able

to come to this agreement.
Fuck!

This is the man
solely responsible

for the alliance
between the Italian League,

Gulf and Western,
and Paramount Pictures.

Fuck.

You're one of us.

Hey, come on, come up here.

How long have you
been working with Mr. Colombo?

Take a picture.

What are the details

of this financial
relationship?

How does Paramount Pictures

feel about this, Mr. Ruddy?

Fuck.

How does
Gulf and Western feel about...

Hey.
What the hell, Al?

I take it you're not here
to pick me up

for our first day of shooting.

I would be,
if you hadn't decided

to make your romance
with Joe Colombo official.

You really think
that was my decision?

Why didn't you tell me?

Because... Do not answer that.

Maybe nobody's seen it.

Are you kidding me?

Everyone in the five boroughs
has seen this.

Look, I walked
into an ambush, okay?

Joe invited me down
to the League office.

I had no idea that
he was gonna do what he did.

You need to tell
Charlie that.

I need to go to set
because I promised Francis

I'd be there first thing.

No, Bluhdorn first.

Francis needs you
to keep your job, Al,

and so does the rest
of the crew.

Fine. Relax.
Nobody's losing their job.

I wish I had your confidence.

It's kinda all I got.

Barney says we're gonna open
four points down

and that there's gonna be
blood in the streets.

Fuck.
And the "Journal," Jesus.

"Is Gulf and Western in
business with organized crime?"

I don't need you reading me
the fucking papers.

Where's... the head of PR.

Where the hell
have you been, Gary?

I... I was just...

we've been monitoring
the situation.

Monitoring the situation.

Where from?
Your bedroom?

You're fired.
I'm what?

Charlie, I don't... The story broke this morning

and now you're just starting
to think about damage control.

You fucked up. You're fired.

It broke two hours ago.
How is this my fault?

You are lucky
this window doesn't open.

Get out!

Charlie,
I don't think it's prudent

to fire the head of PR...

I don't believe
I asked for your opinion.

Where are we on the sale?

We're still in
preliminary talks.

We had four interested buyers.

But after this fiasco... Line up calls this morning.

I want Paramount off my books
by the end of the day.

What do we tell Evans?

Screw Evans.

After today, that oily fuck
is someone else's problem.

♪

This is gonna be
a shit storm.

You don't know that for sure.

The producer of my movie

just shook hands
with a goddamn mobster on TV.

I gotta get to New York.

- Waldorf Astoria.
- Al Ruddy, 304.

Are you kidding me?

Do I look like
I'm kidding you?

We're in deep shit, babe.

We're going to Texas,
remember?

My movie, dinner at McQueen's?

Or do you just forget
every promise you make

the second
it leaves your mouth?

I have to deal with this
right now.

I'll meet you there later.
Oh, yes.

I'll hold my breath
waiting on that promise.

Hello, sir?
Yeah.

I'm sorry.
Mr. Ruddy doesn't appear

to be in his room.

I can leave a message
if you want.

Fuck.

I'll have the office
get the jet ready.

You're literally
going to New York right now?

If Ruddy manages
to survive this thing,

he's gonna need backup,
and if he doesn't,

I gotta be there
to produce this thing myself.

Don't you have people
that work for you

who can deal with this?

Honey!

I'm the head
of the goddamn studio.

I am the fucking people
that deal with this.

♪

I'll take one of those.

And, ooh,
one with sprinkles.

Or two.

Guys, another five feet
of track toward the corner.

Okay.

No doughnuts?
Oh, I already had two.

Hey, thanks
for getting the truck.

It was very nice to you.

All right, just about ready.
Great.

Francis.

We're finally here, huh?

We're making snow.
I mean, this is great.

Oh,
it's very exciting, Mario.

We wouldn't be here
without your beautiful words.

You and I make
a hell of a team.

Hmm?
Yeah.

Where's Ruddy?

Good question.

He should be here any minute.

- Freddy.
- Yeah.

Where's Ruddy?
Haven't seen him.

Okay.

Let's do it.

Okay.

Everybody, first shot is up.

Lock it down.
Quiet on set.

Places, everyone.

Where is he going?

♪

Off to a great start.

What do you think?

Do we really need
a dozen picture cars,

140 extras

just for a shot of two people
walking down the sidewalk?

We could have shot it tight
and been done by now.

And what's with
all the presents?

It makes him look
even smaller than he is.

That is no leading man.

So what are we gonna
do about it?

Give them enough rope.

- Al?
- Yeah.

You okay?
Oh, yeah.

I'm, uh, I'm just
a little nervous, you know.

I'm holding presents
and everything.

The lines keep flying
out of my head.

Yeah.

Hey, I don't really care

if you get all the lines
exactly right.

Don't tell Puzo.

Okay, okay.

The motivation, that's
the most important thing,

and you got that.

Look at this beautiful girl.
Look in her eyes.

Yeah?

Just be in the moment

with this woman that you love.

That's all I need.

All right.
I could do that.

You wanna try one?

Yeah.
All right, let's do it.

Give it a shot.

Okay, everyone.
Here we go.

Did he at least yell "fore"?

You're funny, huh?

Oh, that's right.
You got your start in sitcoms.

Look, is he coming or not?
Because I gotta get to set.

Charlie,

I'm sure you... Shut the hell up.

Zip it, I don't wanna hear
your fucking voice.

What the hell is this?

Al brought you
a little gift.

Ah, pastries.

You fucked me, Ruddy.

You fucked me good.
You destroyed my company.

I'm sorry,
but it's not my job

to care about your company.

My job is to do
what's best for the movie

and I would do it
all over again.

Is that so?
Yeah, that's so.

You're in bed
with the fucking mafia

for the whole world to see.

There's not a single
production in this town

that isn't, okay?

The unions, the Teamsters.

Who do you think controls them?

And I'm sorry,
but I didn't exactly

see anybody at this office
lining up to deal with them.

Yeah, for good reason.

And I don't see
any other producers

holding their hand
on the front page of the paper.

I did what I had to do.

So either fire me
or let me get to work.

There is no "or."

You're fired.

Get the fuck out.

Good luck finding somebody
that'll do my job.

♪

Mr. Bluhdorn,

Mr. Dunston's here to see you.
He says it's urgent.

♪

♪

Al, what's going on?

Why do you have
Charlie's cigars?

He fired you.

Call Evans.

He won't wanna bring on
somebody new.

He's not returning my calls.

It will take them
way too long to catch up

and that's money
out of their pockets.

Maybe I can talk to Charlie.

Fuck Charlie.

And Lapidus and Bob.
They don't get it.

So make them get it.
Don't just walk away.

I don't really have
much of a choice.

Al, what do you
want me to do?

I don't know.
Go back to Oklahoma.

Go back to your pies,
your husband.

I don't care.

You selfish prick.

Hey!

When you cozied up
next to Colombo,

did you ever stop and think
about what would happen?

About the repercussions?

About what that meant
for the rest of us?

No, but it wasn't
exactly my idea.

No one forced you
to have your picture taken.

You try saying no
to Joe Colombo.

Let me know how that
works out for you.

You did it because
you were thinking

of nobody but yourself.

You bulldoze through life
with blinders on,

just focusing on
what is right in front of you.

And that is great for you
and your job,

but it sucks for those of us

who are stuck
standing behind you,

trying to protect you

from whatever is outside
of your eye line.

I didn't hire you
to protect me.

You're a fucking assistant.

Go find another fucking job.

♪

♪ Devil walking

♪ Devil walking

♪ Oh, I used to be so

You know what?

Whatever that crazy Austrian
thinks he wants to do,

we're gonna stop him.

G and W's cratering,
you know?

He's losing his shit.
We're ready, Peter.

"Love Story"
has made him a ton.

If we can just get
"The Godfather" out there...

Two hits in a row.

We show Charlie
we're back to printing money.

Bottom line, baby,
bottom line.

That's all he cares about.

But if he fires Ruddy
and Ballard takes over...

It's gonna be a shit storm
for the picture.

- I hate that asshole.
- ♪ Devil walking

Fuck it.

Fuck it.
I'll produce the movie myself.

♪ You are nothing but a

♪ Devil

Big, big misunderstanding,
Dickie.

Al Ruddy is a two-bit producer

who has no authority
to speak for us.

He's been terminated.

We're dealing with the fallout,
but we'll survive.

Survive?
That's what you think I want?

- Look at this headline.
- It's bad.

We understand,
but Charlie's handling it.

It'll be a bumpy week,

but G and W
is bigger than Paramount.

I told you we shouldn't be
in the goddamn movie business.

We're not... I'm dealing with it.

I don't think
you're equipped to, Charlie.

I think you need help.

I called an emergency
board meeting this afternoon

so we can offload this quickly.

You better have some people
ready to buy.

Fine.
I'll see you at the meeting.

We'll stock the bar.

♪

You said you could
control Gallo.

I'm gonna take care of it,
Carlo.

Don't you worry about that.

We trusted you.

You said that don't worry
once before, yet here we are.

He blew Carmine's head off
with a sawed-off shotgun.

I thought this was
gonna be peaceful but...

This cannot escalate.

We cannot have another war.

Then what happens?

I just sit on my hands
and wait for this...

while this fucking animal
runs wild?

I'll talk to Gallo.

What good is that gonna do?

Huh?

If he had done this
to a member of your family,

what would you do?
You'd talk to him?

It's a sensitive matter, Joe.

Come on, come on.

I want your word

you will not take any action
at this time.

I want your word.
Okay.

Okay.

You have my word.

Okay.

Let's go.

How you doin', Joe?

You should've
stayed in prison.

It was safer for you there.

Yeah, okay.

Hey, Joe.
What?

For Carmine's family.

Okay. Okay.

I wanted to pay
my respects.

It's $1,000, Joe.

Go ahead, count it.

Ciao,Joe.

♪

Morning, Bettye.

I need to see him.
It's urgent.

It's not a good day.

This cannot wait.

Trust me,
now is not the time.

♪

Thank you.

Where are we with buyers?

Well, yesterday we had
four potential suitors

looking to acquire Paramount.

So who are we calling first?

But this morning,
three of them called

to formally withdraw
their bids.

No one wants to be
in bed with the mob, Charlie.

Fucking Ruddy.

We do have one option,
though.

It's this guy out of Texas,
oil money.

It's not my first choice

but that's what's
still on the table.

Set up a lunch.

Tell Texas
he has to meet us today.

That's short notice.
I'm not sure...

Today.

♪

Cut!
That's a cut.

Check the gate.

Terrific.
It's terrific.

How did that feel for you?

Feel good?
It was great.

Really good for me.

And thank you
for taking the pressure off.

I'm so glad
we started with this.

So nice of you to join us

after the scene
already wrapped.

Moving on.
Ruddy?

Francis, let me talk to you
for a sec.

I saw the headlines
and I thought

they were gonna fire you
for sure.

They did fire me.

What... what are you
talking about?

They can't do that.

It's the first day of shooting.
It's done.

I just came by
to tell you something

before I head out.

You're gonna make
a beautiful film.

You got your yellow.

And another thing.
Yeah.

Grow eyes on the back
of your head.

Ballard's out for blood.

What are you doing now?
I don't know,

but there's probably a drink
in my future.

You got this.

Ruddy, what...

where's Ruddy going?
Why's he leaving?

Something wicked
this way comes.

Hey, Jean.

Can I talk to you for a second?
Do me a favor.

When we get
to the next location,

I want you
to find me a telephone.

You get Charlie Bluhdorn
on the line.

You tell him it's an emergency.

Hey, Jack, look at that.
We're ahead of schedule.

Yeah, good start.
Let's keep it that way.

Keep it that way.

♪

Hey. Come here.

Where is everybody?

Where is every...
this is everybody.

Well, who else
are you waiting on?

You.

Sit down.

It's just you and me?

Take it easy.

Here, have some wine.

I got some antipasti coming.

What's the matter with you?

Every time I see you,

you're choking down
on some fucking hoagie

and now all of a sudden
you're shy?

Come on, eat.

I gotta talk to you.

Yeah, we talk every day.

Yeah, but this is
a different kind of talk.

Okay.

How's your nonna doing?

She's all right.

You know, when I was a kid,

I'd be playing with my friends

out on the street.

If it got late,
she'd come out screaming,

waving a broom handle around.

She'd say, "Vai a casa,
vai a casa,you bad boys."

And if she caught you,

she'd beat the shit
out of you with that thing.

But you know what?

No matter what I did,

she never told my mother.

Some things never change.

She's still a tough broad.

How long have
we known each other?

My whole life.

You know,

after this business
with Carmine...

I realized I never asked you
what you wanted to do.

What do you mean?

Well, sometimes in life,

unfortunate things
present opportunities.

But to take it,
you gotta be ready to step up.

Really be a man.

Is that what you want?

Yeah.

Think about it.

No, I don't need to.

I'm ready.

I'm with you.

♪

Cin cin.

♪

♪

Barry,
if you don't order steak,

I'll stick you with a fork.

Oil people,
they don't trust fish.

Well, technically,
caviar is fish.

It's a delicacy
and expensive as fuck.

This must be him.

Andy Calhoun.

Does your father
know you're here?

Mr. Bluhdorn,
your reputation precedes you.

Barry Lapidus.
We spoke on the phone.

You spoke to my brother.

He drank a little too much
on the jet.

So you just get me today.

What can I get you, sir?

Sparkling water.
Thanks.

How can I trust a man
who drinks seltzer with caviar?

Oh, no worries there.

I hate caviar.

Well, the steaks here
are fantastic.

Ah, business works up
my appetite.

I love movies, Mr. Bluhdorn.

I always have.

It's a sexy business.

It's full of vagrants
and lowlifes,

but if you hit it right.

"Love Story."
Have you seen it?

I took my mom.
She loved it.

Takes his mother
to the movies.

That's a good kid.

Calhoun, I love Paramount

but Gulf and Western is so big
that it takes up

more of my attention
these days.

So we're looking... I'm sure recent headlines

make it a little easier
to part with Paramount.

Thank you.

Your offer was definitely
in the ballpark, Andy.

Oh, well, we're in
a new ballpark now, Barry.

Based on the news,
I would assume

some sort of discount
from what we discussed.

We're open
to an accommodation

given the circumstances.

Oh, well, I'm glad
to hear that

because my first, middle,
and final offer

is 50%.

♪

Sorry, sweetie.

No women allowed.

Really?

Bettye.
Hi.

What are you doing
in Brooklyn?

Um...

That one right there.

Mr. Colombo.

You know,
you could've called.

You can call me anytime.

Thank you.

I know how phones can be.

Smart girl.

Ruddy's lucky to have you.
Here, sit down.

Ruddy was lucky to have me.

Oh, what's that's
supposed to mean?

I just wanted to come
and tell you in person

that Ruddy's been fired
off the movie.

They can't do that.

What happened?

Don't be nervous. Here.

Thank you.

It's good.

They're pissed about this.

Look.

Ruddy did what he had to do.

He's a stand-up guy that way.

The suits
at Gulf and Western,

they don't see it like that.

Is that right?
Mm-hmm.

Well, thank you
for telling me.

I'm gonna look into this.

Don't you worry
your pretty little head, okay?

Listen, you got some stones
coming in here.

All my life, I ain't ever seen
a broad inside.

I'm not trying
to make history.

I just came for Ruddy.

Thank you.
Okay, okay.

Come to my office.

I can't believe
they fired Ruddy.

Who's gonna produce
the picture now, huh?

What are we gonna do?

What are we gonna do?

We're gonna make the best
damn picture we possibly can.

That's what we're gonna do.

Okay.

Okay.

Good.

Michael and Enzo right here.

They're looking down.

They see the hitman car

drives up to right about here.
They look up, they see them.

They think
they're muscle, right?

And then they keep driving.

Next part of the scene
we play here

where Michael
gets his jaw broke by McClusky.

And then we have
Tom Hagen's car

stops here and that's it.
That's the end of the scene.

We play everything
on this spot.

I need a 5K
across the street for this.

Like it's the moon or...

No, like a street lamp.

Questions?

Okay, let's do it.

All right.
Set belongs to the crew.

First shot from the street
looking up the stairs.

We should take it.

In this climate,

the faster we can sell
Paramount the better.

I know it's not
what we were looking for, but...

Big fucking
Wharton bullshit fuck!

You never show your hand,
you desperate fucking idiot.

You never let them know
what we're thinking.

- Hello?
- Al, it's Joe.

Listen, I heard
about what happened.

It ain't gonna stand.
I'm shutting this down.

No, Joe,
you gotta listen to me.

I appreciate that, but this...
this movie's important

to a lot of people
so please don't...

No, no, fuck that.
I let you make the movie.

I didn't let them make it.

You're my guy.

No you, no movie.

But Joe...

♪

How you doing?

♪

Francis, you need something
for lunch?

Freddy,
I need this truck to move.

Can somebody move
this fucking truck?

It's in the picture

and we need to get started
right after lunch.

Thank you.

Hey, Francis.
Yes.

We got a problem.

What kind of a problem?

Union problem.

Some of the crew,
they're threatening

not to come back after lunch.

You're kidding me.
Why?

I can't say for sure,

but we know who's got control
over the unions, right?

You did the right thing.

I hope so.

♪

Hey, there, beautiful.

I need to see Charlie
right away.

I'm sorry, Mr. Evans.

He's in an emergency
board meeting.

♪

Gentlemen,

I think we can all agree
that Paramount Pictures

is an embarrassment
to Gulf and Western.

I move the motion
to sell Paramount Pictures

to Calhoun Enterprises.

Forward to a vote.

Sorry, it was... it was locked.

Bob, this is outrageous.

- You can't just storm in...
- Evans.

Got something to say?

Yeah.

I do, Charlie, yeah.

Sit down, Barry.

Thank you, Barry.

Hello, everyone.

I'm Robert Evans,

Senior Vice President
of Paramount Pictures.

Now, look, last few years
have been rough for Hollywood.

I'm sure the only question
on your minds is,

should you sell short
or go long?

And I understand that.

I do.
You're a Fortune 500 company.

You're worried
about your reputation.

But take a look around
this table.

You're politicians, innovators,
captains of industry.

None of you are sitting here
because you played it safe.

And you all know in some ways
that the most important tool

to help you in your pursuits
is loyalty.

But you don't want investors

looking for a good time
on a park bench.

No, you want to develop
a deep relationship.

You want to create trust
and love.

But you can't do that
with empty promises.

No, you have to...

you have to feed their souls.

Now, how do you do that?
Well, that's hard.

That is hard.

Right now,
the soul of America is broken.

War, assassination,
civil rights protests.

We're hurting. We're hurting.

And people don't trust
politics or big business.

So what can America look up to?

Well, I'll tell you.
I'll tell you.

Excuse me, Charlie.

Paramount.

Take a look at the logo.

We're the mountaintop.

We're the goddamn
Statue of Liberty

because you can give us
your tired, your poor,

your huddled masses
yearning to breathe free,

and we'll give them
two hours of respite

from the harsh realities
of this world,

complete with...

with popcorn and Coca-Cola.

And we'll do
what other people can't,

we'll entertain them.

We'll give them escape.

We'll feed their souls
until they're fit to burst,

and that's something
that you can't quantify

by checking the stock
on the daily ticker.

So sell short or go long.

Well, a year ago, the answer
might have been obvious.

But then came "Love Story,"
which has grossed

over a hundred million dollars

and fed the souls of America.

And people might say, you know,

"Evans,
you only get lucky once."

At Paramount,
we make our own luck.

"Love Story" was the second
biggest selling

book of the decade
beaten by only one other.

And let me tell you, gentlemen,
you do not throw in the towel.

You do not throw in the towel

when your fighter
is about to land

the second part
of a one, two combination,

and that right cross.

Which is gonna bring us
the championship,

that's gonna bring Paramount
right back to its glory,

well, that's the biggest
selling book of all time.

It's "The Godfather"
and it's ours.

It's ours!

We can feed their souls

because we know people want

more than sugar or auto parts

or whatever else
Gulf and Western does.

They want...
they want stories, Charlie.

They want escape.
They want love.

And they want guns, romance,

and violence,

"Love Story" and...

"The Godfather."

Is that it, Evans?

That's it, Charlie.

Then get out.

Thank you, gentlemen.

He's on, sir.

Mr. Calhoun.

I appreciate all the time
that you've given us,

especially
at such short notice.

I've, um,

given your offer
some serious thought and...

Uh, I'm happy to say that
my board and I have decided...

that you can go fuck yourself,

you inbred,
toothy motherfucker.

♪

Francis Coppola's
on the line.

This is the second time
he's called.

Says it's urgent.

♪

What is it, Francis?

I gotta get Ruddy back.

Uh, I don't care
what you have to do.

Francis, trust me,

the production's better off
without him.

Well, someone ought
to tell that to the mafia

because they're threatening
to shut us down.

Do you understand?

Don't let him get on a plane.

They're gonna stop everything.
I need you to please stop him.

This movie's never gonna
get made without him.

Charlie.

I can't believe
you talked to Joe Colombo.

Even I wouldn't talk
to Joe Colombo.

It's the craziest thing
I ever heard.

You're a little...

a little kooky in the head.

My ex-husband
would agree with you.

You know, that's...

that's some loyalty
you got for Ruddy.

I didn't do it for him.

I did it for me.

I'm so sick of living a life

that is determined by
everyone else's choices.

Huh.When I was a kid,

all I ever had
were hand-me-downs.

Nothing I wore
was my style or my choice.

It all depended on
what my siblings wanted

or what they chose.

And then I got married
and moved into a house,

paid for by my husband,

yet another thing
I didn't choose.

I hate that feeling.

Other people making choices
for me

because I don't have the power
to make those choices myself.

So I'm getting Ruddy
his job back.

Or I'm gonna die trying.

Looks like it worked.

Hey, Ruddy, where you been?

Ruddy.

Man, am I glad to see you.

You know that the mob
is trying to shut us down?

Sonny said no one's coming back
after lunch.

I got it. I'll handle it.
Okay.

Caesar.

Hey, you're back.
I'm back.

Good, 'cause the boss said
nothing moves without you.

Well, I'm here,
so let's get a-moving.

Thanks, buddy.

♪

And I thought you were fired.

I was.

And I am.

Why are you here?

This movie's important
to a lot of people I care about

so I thought
I could help 'em out.

So my backstabbing producer
turns up to save the day

even though
he can't save himself.

Why in God's name

did you do that press
conference with Colombo?

You were threatened.

You asked me to deal with it

and that was my way
of dealing with it.

You are one
crazy motherfucker,

you know that?

Takes one to know one.

We good, you and me?

Always, bubbe.

I wish I could say the same
about you and Bluhdorn.

I'm sorry.

♪

Charlie.

Thank God you came.
I have to tell you,

- I have no faith in these...
- Quiet on set.

♪

- Rolling.
- Sound speed.

Action!

♪

Paramount.

We're the mountaintop.

We're the goddamn
Statue of Liberty

because you can give us
your tired, your poor,

your huddled masses
yearning to breathe free,

and we'll do what
other people can't,

we'll entertain them.

We'll feed their souls
until they're fit to burst.

Cut!

Check the gate.

Would you look at that?

Mob threatens to shut it down,

Ruddy gets it going again.

Who said loyalty
doesn't exist anymore?

♪

I'm guessing
as you're here, Charlie,

Paramount lived
to see another day.

With a performance
like yours,

how could it not?

You know you gotta
hire him back, right?

♪

Looks like you've got
friends in high places.

Not the same places you do.

Yeah, no shit.

If you ever talk
to the press again,

I won't just fucking fire you.

I will kill you.

And I mean that, Ruddy.

Understood, Charlie.

Bettye.

Let's get a drink.

Yeah, just gimme a second.

♪

Apparently,
you're not replaceable.

Bettye.

I'm sorry.

I should've never have talked
to you the way that I did.

And...

you were right.

I know.

Try not to fuck this up
again.

We'll see.

Is it cool if I go
grab a drink with Charlie?

Do I have a choice?

No.

♪

She's something else,
that broad, isn't she?

Yes, she is.

It's a good thing
that she did,

going to the boss like that.

She did what?

Oh, yeah.

How do you think
the boss found out?

All right, quiet on set.

- Rolling.
- Sound speed.

Action!

You had a lot of people
nervous, Charlie.

Do I make you nervous?

Me?

Of course not.

So what happened?

The board decided
to keep Paramount?

It was split, six-six.

Ah.

So you decided to keep it.

What swayed you?

Was it Evans?

Ah, that Evans.
He's too emotional.

Why then?

It wasn't personal.

It was business.

Do you know why dogs
show their bellies?

Tummy rubs?
It's a sign of submission.

When the other dog sees it,
he knows he holds the power.

In business, you never
want to be a bitch

that shows its belly.

Hmm.

Heard you wanted to see me?

Lapidus told me
to meet you here.

Well, I'm glad
that Wharton fuck

could get one thing right.

You're done, Dunston.

Off the board.
Effective immediately.

What?
You can't do this.

I can.
And I did.

Now get the fuck out of here.

You're out of
your fucking mind,

you crazy Austrian fuck!

Just business, huh?

That fucker questioned
my hold on the company.

Sometimes it is personal.

Get me another glass
of scotch,

you crazy Austrian fuck.

I'm so glad
you could make it.

How was your first day on set?

Really good, yeah.

I can't believe
we're actually filming.

And, Joe,
I can't thank you enough

for everything you did.

Hey, no, forget about it.

We couldn't have done it
without you.

I told you,
we're friends here.

Come here, come here.

All right, come on.

Let's go meet
this fucking joke.

Hey.
Joey Colombo, get in here.

Good to see you.

How are you?
Good, good.

Come on, let's have a drink.
Come on, come on, come on.

♪

Thanks for doing this,
bub.

Ah, it's the least
I could do, Joe.

The League
is very important to me.

Yeah, yeah.

Frank, I want to introduce you

to my friend Al Ruddy.

He's the producer
I was telling you about.

How are you?

Wait.

Do I know you from somewhere?

Not officially.

Big fan.
Ah, I appreciate that, kid.

Sit down, gents.

Wait a second.
Hold it, hold it, hold it.

You're the guy who straightened
out the script, right?

That's right, that's right.

I just do whatever
my friend Joe asks.

Smart man.
Right?

Really,

thanks for making it
happen for me.

Not a problem.

♪

What's that mean?

♪

It loosely translates to, uh,

"Those that wish us harm

can go fuck themselves."

Cin cin.

♪

♪

♪

Colombo!
Colombo! Colombo! Colombo!

We have a big problem.
Are there any little ones?

He's dead.
Jesus.

You're doing great, Joe,
keep it up.

So this is a gangster film?
It's more than that.

This movie...

This looks like
a goddamn circus.

...is a mess.
So what's our solution?

Find me a better one.

I'm in charge of the horse head?
Fuck.

I'm not cutting the scene!

He has no appreciation
for anyone, and I'm done.

Coppola has lost his crew.

They wanna fire him.
What about Ruddy?

I want you out! Now!

You better be ready
to take over.

I need someone I trust.

You have to learn
if you're cut out for this life.

Say the word,
I'm there, buddy.

Let's do it.

Having just worked
with the real Al Pacino,

I spoke with him at great
length about The Godfather.

And this was before
I even realized

I was going to be a
part of this project.

And so when Anthony Ippolito
showed up on set

and I heard his voice,
it was uncanny.

It was like being
with the real Al.

You wanna try one?

Yeah.
Let's do it.

There's something
really pure about the fact

that he's just a
guy at this point.

Now he's Al Pacino.

So it's just a privilege
to be able to capture

the beautiful period in time

where he is kind of on
the precipice of greatness.

He told many different
stories about his experience

on The Godfather,
the different battles

that he endured in
playing Michael Corleone.

Al Pacino was almost
fired multiple times.

That is no leading man.

I could definitely identify

with so much
of where he was at at that time.

I definitely understand
the path of being an actor,

or struggling actor
and trying to get work.

Yeah. I'm, I'm just a
little nervous, you know.

To see him completely transform

into Al Pacino,
into Michael Corleone.

his mannerisms, his gait,
the way that he spoke.

That's all I need.

All right.
I could do that.

It was really interesting
and a privilege to be able

to portray him at this
period of time in his life.

I just think that's a
really cool period of time

to tell a story about.

Cut.
That's a cut!

I did what I had to do.

So either fire me
or let me get work.

In a way Ruddy has a few
partners making this movie.

He has, obviously, Coppola

and everybody concerned
with the film.

Evans, sometimes unwilling...

You are one crazy motherfucker,
you know that?

But definitely his partner.

I heard about what happened.

Colombo.

It ain't gonna stand.

He would've never got his
permits without Colombo.

Colombo will shut
down production

right on the first day
they were shooting.

No you, no movie.

And Bettye is a big partner.

What are you doing in Brooklyn?

Um...

I think she has the balls,
because she comes

from an honest place,
to go and see someone like...

Mr. Colombo.

You know, walk into a room

where she might never
walk out of.

I just wanted to come
and tell you in person

that Ruddy's been
fired off the movie.

It was a scene I was
actually really nervous about.

And a scene that felt
very kind of meta.

The nerves felt
really good for it.

Is that right?

She's even told to her face

that they've never seen
a woman in there before.

Listen, you got some
stones coming in here.

All my life, I ain't never
seen a broad inside.

You know,
we tried when we were
putting the story together

to think about the backdrop
of America at the time.

We're right in the middle
of the women's lib movement.

And yes, we don't live in
those moments for this show,

but they do play in,
and they are a backdrop.

I'm not trying to make history.

There's this wonderful
moment between Bettye and Puzo.

Puzo says, "You went to
talk to Joe Colombo?"

Even I wouldn't
talk to Joe Colombo.

It's the craziest
thing I ever heard.

You're a little, well,
little kooky in the head.

She has this real
heartfelt moment with him

where she explains
why she did it.

It's some loyalty
you got for Ruddy.

I didn't do it for him.

I did it for me.

It's not just for Ruddy,

it's really about her own needs
and her own wants as a woman.

You did the right thing.

I hope so.

Yeah, she wanted to go
and get Ruddy's job back,
but she wanted to go

and get his job back
because she wants
to keep her job.

It's not just
working for the man,

it's because she also knows
she has a place where she is

and she wants to keep it.

You were right.I know.

I think she does surprise people

and she's more
than meets the eye.

That's why all these
men in this universe

take her seriously, ultimately.

It's a good thing that she did,

going to the boss like that.

She did what?