TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN (2-25-13b) PDF

THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN
Written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
Inspired by the film by Charles B. Pierce
2/25/2013
DARKNESS.
THE CAMERA PULLING OUT TO REVEAL: A BRONZE, THREATENING-

LOOKING BOWIE KNIFE. It PULLS OUT FURTHER, revealing that
the knife is, in fact, a detail of the iconic bronze
statue of Alamo hero JAMES BOWIE, crouched, in the center
of Texarkana...
We PAN towards CITY HALL, on the TEXAS/ARKANSAS BORDER;

Texarkanas literally a double-town, a town and its
reflection...
NARRATOR
In the spring of 1946, in the small town
of Texarkana, on the Texas-Arkansas
border, a series of horrific murders were
committed by a masked assailant known
only as The Phantom Killer.
As THE SUN STARTS TO SET, we begin touring the town,

looking down on and tracking A LONE FIGURE, casting a
long shadow, on the sidewalk in front of him. We follow
him around a corner, start to descend to street-level...
NARRATOR (CONTD)
Though several arrests were made in
connection to the brutal slayings, which
ended as suddenly as they began, the
killers identity was never confirmed.
Indeed, many people who lived through
that nightmarish time believed the
Phantom spent the rest of his days free,
walking the streets of Texarkana, quietly
and anonymously, until his assumed death.
...AND THEN HES GONE, but the Camera continues cruising

Main Street, focusing on VARIOUS STORE-FRONTS, studying
the REFLECTIONS in their windows. Something phantasmagoric
happens: We see CARS and PEDESTRIANS from the 1940s
driving/walking by; as the light changes, were half-
slipping into the past. The Camera continues snaking its
way through the town...the monologue continues...and we
transition into the 1970s, again reflected in various
windows, some boarded-up...
NARRATOR (CONTD)
In 1976, a film inspired by the infamous
Moonlight Murders was released. Every
year on Halloween, The Town that Dreaded
Sundown is screened somewhere in
Texarkana, in tribute to the Phantoms
legacy of death and blood.
2.
We round another corner...another time-shift...and we

catch a REFLECTION OF THE ORANGE SETTING SUN IN A WINDOW.
PUSH IN ON THE ORANGE so that it fills the screen...
NARRATOR (CONTD)
The following is based on true events
that happened in Texarkana last year.
...then we pull out and discover that, in fact, were

looking at the SETTING SUN that kicks-off the original
Town that Dreaded Sundown movie. Its next to the
OPENING TITLE CARD, but since were behind a movie
screen, were reading it backwards...
The Camera pulls back to reveal--a GIANT, BEATEN-UP,

MOVIE SCREEN, jerry-rigged between two towering cyprus
trees. Moths and bugs buzz around the screen, attracted
by the flickering light. Were at--
EXT. APACHE DRIVE-IN THEATRE - NIGHT (CONTINUED)
A field stacked deep with cars, motorcycles, pick-up

trucks. Kids sit on blankets on the roofs of their cars;
others loiter near the concession stand. There are groups
of friends, five to a car. Lots of couples, too. Theres a
timeless quality to this scene of Americana, so we
shouldnt immediately know if were in the past or present.
ONSCREEN, in the GRAINY, JUMPY MOVIE, housewife Helen

Reed (played by Dawn Wells) is running through her
farmhouse, pursued by the sack-wearing Phantom.
FROM THE AUDIENCE: SCREAMS and CHEERS, as we pan across

the faces of kids watching from their cars. The crowd has
a raucous energy. Its like a keg party or a Rocky
Horror screening. Two teenage boys (ROY and JOHNNY) are
walking from the concession stand back to where the cars
are parked. As they pass--
INT./EXT. - COREY HOLLANDS NEW MINI-COOPER - NIGHT
--the teens THUMP the trunk of Coreys car, startling:
Two country kids: COREY HOLLAND, 17, handsome, with JAMI

LERNER, also 17, pretty, soulful, not quite sure how shes
found herself on a date with one of the most popular,
handsome boys at her school. Jamis a bit anxious--for her
own private reasons, well discover--but Corey notices it.
COREY
Wanna get out of here?
3.
A beat. Jami debates, decides, nods... Then, as Corey

eases his car out of its spot, they pass--
--A TABLE SET-UP BY THE DRIVE-INS ENTRANCE. Advertising

the local radio show Praise in the Night, with Reverend
Joseph Harding, sponsored by the Texarkana Fellowship
Church. HARDING, surrounded by a gaggle of CHURCH LADIES,
distributing flyers, objecting to the screening. Jami
hears one of the ladies, MRS. SCOTT, tell a PIMPLY,
AWKWARD COLLEGE STUDENT, walking in, wearing a Town that
Dreaded Sundown T-shirt (PAUL MARTIN)--
MRS. SCOTT
...real people died, you know...
--Jami and the college student lock eyes, briefly...
INT./EXT. COREYS COOPER - CRUISING THE STREETS - NIGHT
Rushs Red Barchetta plays on the radio as--the Cooper

curves along Spring Lake Park Drive. The empty baseball
diamond. The quiet lake. The deserted dance pavilion...
Both kids are enjoying the song, the night, the ride...
JAMI
Thanks for leaving the movie. But this is
okay, right?
Corey smiles, takes Jamis hand, KISSES IT.
COREY
Seen it a hundred times.
The Cooper passes a sign on the side of the road: ROUTE

254 TEXAS LOOP.
In the cars rearview mirror, the built-up section of

Texarkana SHRINKS. Were crossing into a part of the
country that hasnt changed much in the last 60 years...
A DEER, eating grass in the woods, looks up as the Cooper

cruises by, its headlights bright in the darkness.
EXT. RICHMOND ROAD - NIGHT
The Cooper, parked in a wooded, grassy cul-de-sac, a rest-

stop off the highway, surrounded by trees. Isolated.
4.
INT. COREYS COOPER - NIGHT
Corey and Jami in the front seat, pipe-dreaming. Shes

snuggled into the crook of his arm.
COREY
...except Id keep it open year-round.
Weekends, at least. Not just Halloween.
And Id program double-features, like
they used to.
(then)
My parents would kill me if they knew.
You?
JAMI
No one reads it, but I like writing for
the paper.
COREY
I read your article about the Railroad
Museum. Made me wanna visit it before it
closes.
She smiles shyly, he touches her cheek.
COREY (CONTD)
Im glad you finally said yes...
Corey kisses Jami; THEY START GOING AT IT. Coreys eager,

Jamis hesitant; hes rubbing his hand up her leg; it
disappears under her skirt--
COREY (CONTD)
(kissing all the while)
...lets just get in the backseat...
EXT. COREYS COOPER - RICHMOND ROAD - NIGHT
From the woods, we see Corey and Jami climb out of the
car and then into its back seat...
INT. COREYS COOPER - THE BACKSEAT - NIGHT
The two start kissing again; Coreys unbuttoning Jamis

shirt, when--
JAMI
Wait.
COREY
What? Did I do something wrong?
5.
They break apart; Jami points through the windshield.
On the other side of the cul-de-sac, amongst the shadows

of the trees, we see...
THE TALL, HULKING FIGURE OF A MAN. WEARING JEANS, A PLAID

SHIRT, AND A WHITE SACK OVER HIS HEAD, WITH HOLES CUT OUT
FOR THE EYE SOCKETS. HE LOOKS, OF COURSE, LIKE THE
PHANTOM FROM THE MOVIE.
Hes just standing there, staring at them. Beyond

unnerving.
COREY (CONTD)
Its Halloween, that has got to be a joke--
(then)
What the hell is he doing?
In a panicky FLASH, Jami locks the doors on the left-hand

side of the car, front and back; Corey locks the ones on
the right; then, almost in unison, they refocus on
Sackhead...
...who hasnt moved. He continues standing there, eerily.
COREY (CONTD)
Hes--just a Peeping Tom...
They wait. A few moments pass. Nothing happens; Sackhead

doesnt move. Then:
COREY (CONTD)
Hes not gonna do anything--
JAMI
We dont know that--
COREY
Hold up, hold up, look, hes--
Sackhead is walking backwards, slipping into the woods

behind him... A quiet moment passes. Another.
COREY (CONTD)
See? Just wanted a show. Probly hes
going to beat off.
Jami peers into the woods, searching for any movement.
JAMI
Lets go, Corey.
Corey climbs out of the car, stops. Hes facing the

woods, transfixed by...
6.
JAMI (CONTD)
What? Do you see something?
COREY
I thought...
JAMI
Corey, come on, get back in the car--
He goes to open the door on the drivers side, but its

locked. (member, she locked the doors?)
COREY
Jami, unlock--
Jami reaches over and unlocks the door; Corey opens it--
and freezes...
On the other side of the car, standing maybe four feet

from Corey, is Sackhead. POINTING A GUN AT COREY.
JAMI
(to Corey)
What? What is--?
(turning to see S.H.)
Oh, God... Oh my God...
SACKHEAD
(gravel in his voice)
Get out of the car.
COREY
Dont, Jami. Stay in--
SACKHEAD
Get out of the fucking car or I will
shoot him in the fucking face.
JAMI
All right, all right, Im coming, Im...
Terrified, Jami gets out of the car, stands next to Corey;

Sackhead circles the Cooper, keeps his gun trained on them.
JAMI (CONTD)
(pleading)
...please, please dont kill us...
SACKHEAD
(to Corey)
Take off your pants.
COREY
What?
7.
SACKHEAD
Take off your fucking pants!
COREY
I dont under... (unsaid: ...stand.)
JAMI
Do it, Corey, just please--
COREY
All right, all right, I am, Im--
Corey undoes his belt, lets his jeans drop so that

theyre around his ankles. Then:
SACKHEAD
(to Corey)
Get down on the ground. On your stomach.
COREY
(WTF?)
What? Come on, man, I cant--
Sackhead COCKS THE GUN--
SACKHEAD
Get down on the fucking ground--
JAMI
(losing it, crying)
COREY--
COREY
Okay, all right, I will, Ill--
Corey gets down on the ground, on his stomach.
COREY (CONTD)
See? Im on the ground now, Im not gonna
run anywhere-- Now please, man, can you
please just--just let my friend go?
SACKHEAD
No.
(to Jami)
Turn around. Dont look back.
FROM THE WOODS, WE SEE, LEFT TO RIGHT: Sackhead...then

Corey, on the ground...then Jami, turning around so her
back is facing the two men...
COREY
(face in the ground)
If, if you want money...
8.
SACKHEAD
I dont want money.
JAMI
(turning around)
What do you--?
SACKHEAD
Dont look back!
Jami snaps her head back, so that shes staring straight

ahead, at the tree-line at the edge of the clearing. THE
CAMERA STAYS ON JAMIS FACE, SO WE HEAR (BUT DONT SEE)
WHATS HAPPENING WITH SACKHEAD AND COREY. THE SOUND OF
MOVEMENT, A STRUGGLE.
COREY (O.C.)
What are you...?
SACKHEAD (O.C.)
Shut the fuck up.
COREY (O.C.)
Oh, God, no... Please... What do you
want, what do you want...?
Jamis SOBBING. Shes looking at the trees. If she could

get to them, she could run for help. But she cant just
leave Corey... A LOUD, SICKENING THUNK; Corey SCREAMS--
COREY (CONTD)
NOOOOOOOHHMYGODNOSTOPPLEASESTOP--
Jami SCREAMS, too. Starts to turn towards--
JAMI SACKHEAD (O.C.)

C-corey? Dont turn around--
She turns back to face-front, weeping. The line of trees,

its right there... Coreys MOANING. More appalling THUNK
sounds... Then, quietly:
COREY (O.C.) SACKHEAD (O.C.)

...oh...oh God...please... Yeah...yeah...yeah...
As the SOUNDS continue, Jami struggles not to look back.

But its too much, whatever shes imagining. Stifling her
sobs, she slowly turns away from the trees, towards...
SACKHEAD HAS STRADDLED COREYS BACK, knees on either side

of the boys torso. Completely involved with what hes
doing, Sackhead has put his gun down and is now holding a
BOWIE KNIFE, STABBING Corey, in his back, his shoulders,
his neck, over and over. Its violent, sexual.
9.
Jamis eyes go wide in stark terror. She looks to Coreys

face. His glassy, dead eyes. Hes gone.
JAMI
(a moan)
...noooooo...
Hearing her, Sackhead stops stabbing Corey, looks up, so

that hes staring right at Jami.
SACKHEAD
You looked.
Holy shit, Jami BOLTS. Starts RUNNING, towards the tree-

line. Sackhead leaves the knife embedded in the boys
neck, grabs his gun, and takes off after the fleeing girl.
EXT. THE RICHMOND WOODS - NIGHT
Jami tears through the forest, out of control, screaming,

losing first one shoe, then the other...
After a few frantic moments, she stops, tries to catch

her breath, looks around. Nothing. Did she lose--?
She looks over her shoulder, at--Sackhead, barrelling

towards her. Jami pushes off a tree, resumes running.
When she hits a thicket, she SMASHES through it; branches

slap against her, tear her clothes, cut her bare arms,
her legs. She hits a small, barely-there creek, SLIPS and
falls, picks herself up--shes now dripping muddy water--
keeps going...
Jami STREAKS through the night, like an out-of-control

train, passing out of frame. Behind her, Sackheads
closing the distance between them... HE STOPS RIGHT IN
FRONT OF THE CAMERA.
We focus on: SACKHEADS FACE; hes just breathing...
EXT. HOUSE ON A SUBURBAN STREET - NIGHT
Evening-mist hugs the dew-wet lawn of a nice, well-kept

house. Its RED FRONT DOOR opens, and A SUBURBAN WOMAN, in
her early forties, comes out, with her DOG, Dusty. Shes
wearing an iPod, starts to jog with Dusty...
10.
EXT. SUBURBAN STREET - NIGHT
The womans jogging along a paved road through a wooded,

park-like area. Were on her face as she slows down, stops.
SUBURBAN WOMAN
Oh, Lord.
She pulls out her earbuds; we PAN from her ashen face to:
Jami, emerging from the woods. An apocalyptic vision. She

looks utterly wrecked. Her feet are bloody. Her clothes
are muddy; her face is mud- and tear-streaked. Shes
still screaming, but inaudibly, since her throats so
raw.
She rushes up to the woman, right into the camera; Jamis

face fills the screen, as WE SLAM TO:
THE TITLE: THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN
THEN, DAWN BREAKS OVER THE TOWN as...
EXT. JAMES BOWIE MONUMENT - STATE LINE AVENUE - MORNING
A FARMER, driving his battered PICK-UP, making his morning

deliveries. Hes hitting various stations on his radio--
all retro, only classic oldies--then looks back out his
windshield, SCREECHES TO A HALT--
He gapes at: The knife-wielding Statue of James Bowie,

only someone has put a CLOTH SACK on his head and a
DRIPPING RED SIGN around his neck that reads: REMEMBER
Draped across Bowies feet: COREYS FRESH CORPSE, face-

down, his back a pulped, bloody mess; Sackheads BOWIE
KNIFE sticking in his neck. A THICK CLOUD OF BLACK FLIES
SWARMING AROUND HIM...
SHERIFF DOYLE (V.O.)

Didnt call or text anyone, a girlfriend,
or...?
INT. HOSPITAL ROOM - CHRISTUS HOSPITAL - DAY
Jami, in bed. Her grandmother, LILLIAN, an attractive,

formidable woman, sits in a chair next to her. SHERIFF
DOYLE (50s), CHIEF DEPUTY TILLMAN (30s), and DEPUTY
CLAYBOURNE FOSTER (late 20s, handsome) are there.
JAMI
No, sir.
11.
SHERIFF DOYLE
And you dont have any friends or a boy-
friend who might have been angry or
jealous that you were at the movies with
Corey Holland? Who mightve followed you?
JAMI
No, sir.
TILLMAN
You werent going with Corey, were you?
JAMI
No, sir. Hed asked me out before, but...
LILLIAN
Shes shy.
JAMI
Grandma...
SHERIFF DOYLE
(gesturing towards him)
As a precaution, Im gonna have Deputy
Foster here parked in front of your
house. He or his relief will be there
twenty-four-seven.
LILLIAN
Appreciate that.
DEPUTY FOSTER
Anything you need, maam.
SHERIFF DOYLE
Wed just like to confirm a few things
you told us about the attacker.
LILLIAN
Shes barely got her voice back.
JAMI
Its okay, Grandma.
(to Sheriff)
It was the Phantom. Like in the movie.
Doyle and Tillman trade a look.
JAMI (CONTD)
He wore a mask, didnt he? In real life?
Or was that just in the movie?
12.
TILLMAN
(ignoring the question)
Were you drinking? Doing any drugs?
LILLIAN
(angry, lashing out)
Did the doctors find any drugs in her?
JAMI
Hows Coreys mom?
LILLIAN
Dont be worrying about that right now.
TILLMAN
Shes how youd expect shed be.
Lillian GLARES at Tillman. Then:
SHERIFF DOYLE
Until we have more information, Ms.
Lerner, wed like to ask you not to
discuss this with the press, with--
LILLIAN
Were not talking to anyone--
TILLMAN
You start shooting off about a guy wear-
ing a sack, you cause a panic.
JAMI
But people need to know.
EXT. THE TEXARKANA GAZETTE BUILDING - DAY
The HQ of Texarkanas daily paper, The Gazette. WERE

FOLLOWING: RICARDO CHAVEZ, a reporter, into the building,
a paper folded under his arm...
INT. THE BULLPEN - TEXARKANA GAZETTE - DAY
Ricardo, walking through a labyrinth-like newsroom, old,

decommissioned PRINTING PRESSES stacked high with
bundled, undelivered papers. He weaves amongst the desks,
cubicles until he gets to--
HIS CUBICLE. Cluttered, mounds of papers, notes, pictures

of his DOG, etcetera. His phone is ringing; he answers--
CHAVEZ
City, this is Chavez?
13.
JAMIS VOICE
(on phone)
Hi, is this...? Are you a reporter?
CHAVEZ
Trying to be. Look--
INT. HOSPITAL ROOM - CHRISTUS HOSPITAL - SAME TIME
Jami, dressed to leave the hospital now, a bag of her

stuff on the unmade bed, is on the phone. Furtively.
ON THE TV in the corner of her room: A News Report about

the vandalized James Bowie statue. The mask. The sign.
JAMI
Mr. Chavez, I...I think I can tell you
why that statue had a mask on it.
CHAVEZ
(on phone)
You can? Who is this?
Lillian appears at the door. Picking Jami up:
LILLIAN
Ready to go?
At his desk, Chavez has found a yellow pad of paper--
JAMI
(blurting it out)
The man who attacked Corey Holland and
that girl was wearing a mask like the
Phantom, he wants us to remember, thats
what that sign was about, thats what you
should ask the police about--
Jami HANGS UP, turns to her grandma. Who just stares at her.
LILLIAN
Youre kiddin.
EXT. JAMIS HOUSE - NIGHT
The MOON hangs in the sky, over a well-kept, modest house

on a tree-lined, suburban street.
RONALD MURRAY (V.O.)

...look, Ive shown it the last ten
years, kids like gettin scared on
Halloween.
(MORE)
14.
RONALD MURRAY (V.O.)

And Town, thats jes a story to em
now, same as Texas Chainsaw, same as
Friday the 13th, they werent alive
back then, when it happened, they dont
know. Its jes a scary movie to em--
INT. JAMIS HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
Jami and her grandmother sit on the couch. Lillians got

a TV tray in front of her. Theyre watching the news--
NEWSCASTER (ON SCREEN)

--a movie, and a murder spree, that has
cast a shadow over Texarkana for more
than 60 years. Mayors Stephen Collins and
Tom Holdridge issued a joint statement,
condemning the annual screenings of the
cult classic--
EXT. TOWN HALL - DAY
Texarkanas TWO MAYORS (one from the Texas-side, one from

the Arkansas-side), stand at a podium, in front of the
building:
ARKANSAS-SIDE MAYOR
Every year, this film, which exploits one
of the darkest chapters in our history,
is screened to the delight of our teens
and our children.
TEXAS-SIDE HOLDRIDGE
There can be little doubt that its
depictions of murder and mayhem have led
directly to this grim, tragic affair--
EXT. JAMES BOWIE MONUMENT - STATE LINE AVENUE - DAY
NEWSCASTER
Radio personality and community leader
Joseph Harding offered his condolences to
the families of the victims:
EXT. TEXARKANA FELLOWSHIP CHURCH - DAY
Reverend Harding, in front of his church:
REVEREND HARDING
...our prayers are with Corey Holland, and
his mother, and his father.
(MORE)
15.
REVEREND HARDING (CONT'D)

It is unreasonable to try and find meaning
in such a grotesque, godless crime, but
that is exactly what we must do as a
community--
--the TV CUTS OUT. Lillians holding the remote.
LILLIAN
Least they cant say your name.
Jami stares at the dark television screen. Then:
JAMI
I know you werent born, Grandma...
LILLIAN
No, I wasnt, mercifully.
JAMI
...but do you remember anything about the
murders? Anything you heard, growing up?
LILLIAN
Oh, baby girl, barely, that was so...
(then)
Of course, your great-grandpa and great-
grandma were living in this house, when it
happened. Sometimes, their friends would
come over, and they would talk about how
they would sit up to all hours of the
night, at the kitchen table, drinking
coffee, cause they were afraid to go to
sleep... I remember my mother said once
that it seemed like the town was being
punished, but no one knew why. (Maybe
thats a thing she told me later, I dont
know...)
(then)
They were scared--all the grown-ups were,
even years later--I remember that.
JAMI
What about when they made the movie?
A beat. Something shifts in Lillian.
LILLIAN
What about it?
JAMI
Were people still afraid?
16.
LILLIAN
Of the Phantom? Hed become less...real.
(then)
Most people, they didnt know exactly who
he was, or what hed done, only that hed
lived in our town, and hurt some
teenagers who went parking on lovers
lane, and everyone was supposed to be
scared of him...
(a beat)
Then the movie brought it all back.
(moving on:)
You sure you dont want to stay at the
Comfort Inn for a bit?
JAMI
No, thats-- I dont think that would
help, honestly.
LILLIAN
How bout my room tonight? Have a slumber
party?
JAMI
(shaking her head)
Ill be okay, thanks, Grandma.
INT. JAMIS HOUSE - JAMIS BATHROOM - NIGHT
Jami, in the shower, crying, releasing all the tension and

horror of the last few days, getting it out of her system.
These HUGE, RACKING SOBS. (Note: This is how Jami processes
emotions: A raw, primal--but contained--expulsion.) CUT TO:
INT. JAMIS HOUSE - JAMIS BEDROOM - NIGHT
Jami, in a robe, combing out her wet hair. No signs of the

outburst in the shower. Controlled, contained. She hears--
A CAR CRUISING BY, IN FRONT OF HER HOUSE. Goes to the
window. Sees: A rubbernecker. As the car slows to a crawl,
ANOTHER CAR, parked on the other side of the street,
FLASHES its lights, BLARES its siren for a quick, scary
second. Its DEPUTY FOSTERS POLICE CAR, there for
protection. The Rubbernecker moves on; Fosters car goes
dark again.
Jami gets back into bed, clicks off the light, rolls on
to her side to sleep--
--which she does. When she opens her eyes again, ITS
MUCH LATER. She sits up in bed. Did she hear something?
17.
JAMI
Grandma?
She slips out of bed, creeps to the window, looks outside

for reassurance, but--the Deputys car is gone. Jami scans
the dark, deserted street, spots--
SACKHEAD, STANDING ACROSS THE WAY, UNDER A TREE, HALF-IN,

HALF-OUT OF THE SHADOWS. Its hard to tell from the way
the murk falls across his face, but...Sackhead seems to
be staring up at her.
JAMI (CONTD)
(gasping it out)
Oh, my God--
Jami retreats, presses herself against the wall next to

the window. Did he sees her? Sloooowly, she inches her
way back, sneaks a peek--Sackhead is still there.
Panicked, eyes locked on Sackhead, Jami takes a few steps

backwards. She turns, pivots right into--Bloody Corey,
standing in her room, knife sticking out of his neck.
COREY
You looked.
Jamis eyes SNAP open. A nightmare. She gets out of bed,

goes to the window. The Deputys car is there. Quiet and
dark, but its there.
Heart thumping, Jami gets back into bed. This time, she
keeps her eyes open.
INT. GAWLERS FUNERAL HOME - TEXARKANA - THE NEXT DAY
A well-appointed parlor. Crowded. The women in dresses,

the men in coats and ties. Lots of HIGH SCHOOL-AGED KIDS.
A CLOSED CASKET. Next to it, a PICTURE OF COREY Holland
rests on an easel. The quiet, somber whisperings of a
viewing/wake.
THE CAMERA FINDS: A WOMAN IN HER FORTIES, a Texas grande

dame, excusing herself from a conversation, slipping out
of the parlor and into...
INT. GAWLERS FUNERAL HOME - HALLWAY - CONTINOUS
The woman is having a private moment. Fighting to control

her emotions. She hears--
18.
JAMIS VOICE
Mrs. Holland?
The woman immediately composes herself--shes steely,

this one--turns to face...Jami, standing there, in her
black dress, holding flowers, her face wet with tears.
MRS. HOLLAND
Yes?
JAMI
I dont mean to interrupt, but I just
wanted to say... Im so sorry about your
son...
MRS. HOLLAND
(brave face)
Thank you... Are you one of Coreys
friends?
Jami realizes: This poor woman doesnt know who she is.
JAMI
My names Jami Lerner--
What little color there is in Mrs. Hollands face DRAINS.
JAMI (CONTD)
--I, I was with Corey, that night, and I
want you to know--
Mrs. Holland SNAPS. She starts WAILING, in grief, in

rage; its a harrowing, primal sound. She collapses to
her knees. Wanting to help, Jami takes a step towards the
stricken woman--
JAMI (CONTD)
Mrs. Holland--
--as MOURNERS, hearing Mrs. Hollands cries, start

POURING into the hallway. Including COREYS DAD.
COREYS DAD
Margaret? Margaret?!
Jami--instantly regretting her decision to come and pay

her respects--turns on her heels and hurries away, tears
streaming down her face--
INT. DOCTOR LINDSAYS OFFICE - DAY
Jami, sitting in an easy chair. Opposite her: Trauma

therapist DOCTOR LINDSAY, also sitting in a chair.
19.
DOCTOR LINDSAY
Under these circumstances, I would typically
prescribe something for you, to help with
the nerves, with the anxiety, but I read in
your file...
(its in her lap)
...youve taken PTSD medication before?
JAMI
Yes, maam.
DOCTOR LINDSAY
You were in an accident.
JAMI
Yes, a, a car crash.
DOCTOR LINDSAY
Your parents--?
JAMI
(cutting her off)
Yes, maam.
Doctor Lindsay waits for Jami to say something else, but

when the girl doesnt:
DOCTOR LINDSAY
So, have you thought about taking a
break?
JAMI
From school? Yeah, I-- I dont think Im
gonna go back for a bit.
DOCTOR LINDSAY
I think thats all right. How about
leaving Texarkana? Even for a few weeks,
just until--
JAMI
Ive always wanted to leave. Go some place--
anywhere--else. Just--out of Texarkana. But
now...I dont. Maybe Ill change my mind,
but I dont think it would make me feel
better, and leaving because of this...
DOCTOR LINDSAY
(gets it)
Lets talk about these dreams. What do
you think theyre about?
20.
JAMI
Corey asked me out, and I was...flattered,
I dont really get asked out a lot... And
I wanted to show him that I was, uhm...
DOCTOR LINDSAY
Grateful?
JAMI
(she nods, quickly)
So I...I suggested we leave the movie.
Me. That was my idea. Cause I thought,
if we went somewhere, even just to kiss,
he...hed like me more.
(the hard part:)
And if I hadnt, we wouldve stayed, and
Corey would still... He would...
DOCTOR LINDSAY
Jami, Im gonna stop you right there. You
did not cause this.
JAMI
No, I know, I know, but then--
(tears spring into her eyes)
...then he let me live.
EXT. THE RICHMOND WOODS - NIGHT (FLASHBACK)
JUMPING BACK TO: Jami, being chased through the woods by

Sackhead. Hysterical, she slips and falls. Exhausted, she
can barely roll over on to her back, and when she does...
SACKHEAD has caught up to her, looms over her.
DOCTOR LINDSAY (V.O.)

Is that what you believe happened?
JAMI
He was on top of me, he couldve killed
me, Doctor, but...he didnt, he just said--
EXT. THE RICHMOND WOODS - NIGHT (FLASHBACK)
BACK TO: SACKHEAD, WHO NOW STRADDLES JAMI, looking down

at her. Shes crying, convulsing with fear.
Jamis POV: Sackhead, the cloth in front of his mouth

rising and falling with his terrible breathing... He
reaches down to CARESS Jamis cheek...
21.
SACKHEAD
...Mary.
DOCTOR LINDSAY
(referring to her notes)
Mary Jeanne Larey was the Phantoms first
victim, back in 1946.
Jami nods; so shes been told.
JAMI
...I keep thinking, Why? Why kill Corey
and not me? And I think its cause he
only needed one person to tell people
what he wants them--us--to know.
DOCTOR LINDSAY
Whats that?
JAMI
That hes back.
EXT. TEXARKANA NATIONAL BANK - MAIN STREET - DAY
On the corner, a building thats existed since the towns

incorporation. Through its front window, we see: Lillian,
at her CASHIERS STATION, on a stool, talking to...HER
MANAGER, an officious little man.
MANAGER
Hows Jami holding up?
LILLIAN
Getting through.
MANAGER
Look, Lillian. I, uh. Got your request
for time off--
LILLIAN
Even a couple of weeks, to get away--
MANAGER
--if I gave your shifts to someone else,
it would be hard to give em back.
We RACK TO SEE--reflected in the banks window--

22.
EXT. TEXARKANA PUBLIC LIBRARY (TEXAS) - DAY
Establishing. A squat, industrial building.
INT. TEXARKANA PUBLIC LIBRARY (TEXAS) - DAY (LATER)
Jami, at the librarys check-out counter, a guy in his

late teens, NICK, good-looking, a bit nerdy, manning it.
JAMI
Hey. The Gazettes online archives only go
back the last ten years, so if I wanted an
article from the fifties or forties...
NICK
About the Phantom?
JAMI
(surprised)
I-- Yes.
He pulls out a THICK FOLDER of Xeroxed articles, slaps it

on the counter.
NICK
Thats every article the Gazette
published, back when it was happening.
Then they did a retrospective fifty years
after the fact. Thats in there, too.
(then)
Theres probably more stuff in the
archives, in City Hall...
Jami starts flipping through the packet...
NICK (CONTD)
I figured it would save me some time.
Its normally twelve dollars for
Xeroxing, but--dont worry about it.
JAMI
Oh. Thanks...
Jamis scanning the articles. Old-school. Gruesome, black

and white pictures. Of the victims, the crime scenes.
INSERT: Photo of Mary Jeanne Larey. Artists sketches of
the Phantom...
NICK
Youre Jami Lerner, right?
Jami tenses; Nick puts up a hand in an its okay way--

23.
NICK (CONTD)
My names Nick. I went to Evans High,
too.
(shes silent, so...)
One of my friends posted that the girl
who was with Corey Holland was Jami
Lerner, and I was like, I think I was in
Chem with her--
Jami snatches up the packet and starts hustling away--
EXT. TEXARKANA PUBLIC LIBRARY - DAY
Jami rushes from the building down the sidewalk; Nicks

pursuing her--
NICK
Wait, wait-- Hold up-- I didnt mean--
(then)
When I recognized you, I was like, Holy
shit, thats her, I hope shes okay--
(the truth:)
I was just gonna ask, Are you okay...?
(beat)
Are you?
A beat. Jami looks at Nick. She believes him, but...
JAMI
I have to go.
EXT. MUSIC HALL THEATRE - DOWNTOWN TEXARKANA - EVENING
An old movie theatre; its marquee still has a few letters

advertising the last film shown then: Close Encounters. An
OVERHEAD SHOT looking down on--DOZENS OF COWBOY HATS,
belonging to CONCERNED CITIZENS, heading into the theatre...
PRE-LAP: THE SOUND OF A RAPPING GAVEL...
INT. MUSIC HALL THEATRE - AUDITORIUM - EVENING
A beautiful old theatre, well-passed its glory days. The

MEETING is PACKED. On a stage: Two tables, next to each
other, behind which Texarkanas CIVIC LEADERS (including
ITS TWO MAYORS, the SHERIFFs, COUNCILMEN, etcetera) sit.
The rest of the room taken up by chairs, all occupied.
Angry, scared CITIZENS crammed in every corner, lining
the walls, including reporter Chavez and--
24.
--Jami and Lillian, in the back row. A Councilman (with

the gavel), trying his best to moderate:
COUNCILMAN
(rapping away)
--Sheriff, you were saying?
SHERIFF DOYLE
I just want to, uh, update you, and
reiterate, the most important thing right
now is to stay calm, not to overreact--
In the Front Row, a BIG LADY TOWNSPERSON leaps to her

feet, outraged!
BIG LADY TOWNSPERSON

Not overreact? You aint told us shit--
Is it the damn Phantom? Is he back?
SHERIFF DOYLE
Maam, hed be close to a hundred years
old. It is not--most definitely not--the
Phantom.
Reverend Harding, in the audience, stands up. He is quite

calm when he says:
REVERND HARDING
Its the Angel of Death.
A beat of uneasy silence as this declaration hovers...
SHERIFF DOYLE
Well now, Reverend Harding, it is not the
Angel of Death, we know that much.
TEXAS-SIDE MAYOR
If theres any specific insight you could
share with us, Sheriff, I think theres a
lot of scared people in this room--in
this town--whod appreciate it.
SHERIFF DOYLE
Its a man, probably local, who knows us
and our history very well. And not just
our history, but our...mythology.
One of the Church Ladies, MRS. SCOTT (from the Opening),

holding a bible, stands up.
MRS. SCOTT
The Reverends right, praise him this
night! It is the Angel come to judge us
for our sins, our fallen, fallen ways.
25.
COUNCILMAN
(trying to quiet her)
Mrs. Scott, youll have your turn--
Mrs. Scott goes to sit down, but then reconsiders, jumps

back up:
MRS. SCOTT
Everyones acting all surprised, all
shocked that the Phantoms come back. You
cant keep a candle burning in the window
for someone and then be surprised when he
finally shows up.
Mrs. Scott finally sits; Sheriff Doyle stands:
SHERIFF DOYLE
...we want to stress: Despite certain
opinions being expressed here tonight,
theres no reason to believe that Corey
Hollands death was anything other than
an isolated tragedy, not the work of a
serial-killer--
The FARMER, who drove his truck in the opening, stands.
FARMER
I believe its someone with an agenda,
who put on that mask to send a message--
MRS. SCOTT
(agreeing with him)
Yes! YES! He is holding up a mirror--
He is saying, You fornicate, you revel
in bloodshed--
FARMER
(agreeing with her)
In a way-- We show that gee-dee movie,
every year, its like a gee-dee party out
there--
TEXAS-SIDE MAYOR
As Ive already said: That film will
never be shown in Texarkana again, not on
the Texas-side--
The other, ARKANSAS-SIDE MAYOR, nods in agreement:
ARKANSAS-SIDE MAYOR
Not on the Arkansas-side, either. It was
banned before, itll be banned again--
26.
FARMER
Good idea! And while youre at it, why
dont you tear down the statue of James
Bowie, too? I mean, hes holding a gee-
dee Bowie knife, isnt he? Rip it down!
COUNCILMAN
All right, Luke, settle down--
FARMER
But arent we, Ralph? Arent we, with
that statue, celebrating a killer?
The Crowd--led by both Mrs. Scott and the Farmer--is

whipping itself into a frenzy. Lillian shakes her head...
LILLIAN
Bunch of crazies...
MRS. SCOTT
(spiralling)
And mocking the Lord! With our bars, and
our drugs, and our fallen, godless ways--
FARMER
I think this guy, whoever he is, I think
hes saying to us, You think killings
nothing? You think its a statue? You
think its a movie? Something you can
laugh at? Well, then, you need to
remember, what its like to spill real
blood--
Lillian takes Jamis hand--
LILLIAN
All right, were done.
--and starts leading her out.
MRS. SCOTT
Yes, remember-- And stop the sinning--
REVEREND HARDING
Praise, Sister. Amen.
MRS. SCOTT
You want the Angel of Death to pass over
your house without killing your children,
you shutter the bars--
REVEREND HARDING
(and OTHERS)
Amen.
27.
MRS. SCOTT
Burn down the meth dens--
(Amens of approval--)
Run out the fornicators--
(More Amens--)
And the sodomites, because theyre here,
too, oh, yes, even here--
Mrs. Scott continues her (steadily building) tirade; more

and more of the Crowd joining in on the Amens--as Jami
and Lillian slip out of the meeting; we end with a C-U on
REVEREND HARDINGs face, taking it all in, pleased...
INT. JAMIS HOUSE - JAMIS BEDROOM - NIGHT
Jami sits at her desk, hunched over all her Phantom research,
including an old VHS of Town. QUICK CUTS OF: Jami, on the
internet, scanning articles about the killings (victims,
locations, suspects)... ONE HEADLINE: A TOWNS SINS.
Finally, bleary-eyed, she takes a break, goes to window,

looks out. We FOLLOW her gaze, over Fosters car, into
darkness, and into...
...A DREAM, JAMIS DREAM In Darkness, her POV, as she runs

through a pitch-black, COVERED COUNTRY BRIDGE. She comes
out the other side of the bridge--shes wearing what she
was wearing that night with Corey--finds herself on...
EXT. LONELY COUNTRY ROAD - NIGHT (DREAM)
...Jami, looking around, sees a LITTLE GIRL, 9- or 10-years-

old, in pajamas, covered in blood. Traumatized. Shes crying,
but no sound is coming out. Jami goes to the girl, kneels
down next to her, tries to calm her down. Nothing doing. In
fact, the girl gets even more hysterical, as she starts to
point at something OFF-CAMERA. Jami turns to look, sees--
A GRUESOME, HORRIFIC CAR ACCIDENT: A family-type of CAR,

mangled beyond recognition, glass and metal everywhere.
Two bodies, a man and a woman--JAMIS MOTHER AND FATHER--
mutilated, torn and twisted, one lying on the pavement,
one half-in, half-out of the car, blood over everything--
Jami recognizes the accident--recognizes the little girl

as her younger-self--takes YOUNG JAMI up in her arms,
turns away from the wreck so that the girl wont be able
to see the carnage--and comes face-to-face with her DEAD
PARENTS, drenched in gore. She GASPS, and--
28.
--THEN WERE BACK IN JAMIS BEDROOM, IN THE PRESENT:

Jamis CELL, on her night-table, BUZZING AND GLOWING.
Groggily, half-asleep, Jami answers it:
JAMI
H-hello?
(no response)
Hello...?
VOICE
...I have to do it again.
JAMI
(half-beat)
What?
The CALLER hangs up--
EXT. UNION TRAIN STATION - EDGE OF DOWNTOWN - DUSK
A train has pulled in. The stations glass doors BURST

OPEN, releasing--a THRONG of people into the waiting
crowd, including POLICEMEN, patroling, scanning faces.
Among them...DANIEL TORRENS, a built, handsome man in his
20s. From what he wears, his short hair, the duffle bag
slung over his shoulder, we can tell...this guys in the
service. He looks around, breaks out into a BIG GRIN...
...cause hes looking at--KENDRA COLLINS, a beautiful,

sexy woman, also in her early twenties, walking from her
car to meet him. They reach each other, KISS.
KENDRA
Hey, baby. Welcome home.
DANNY
Happy Thanksgiving.
She kisses him again. Arms around each other, they head
back towards Kendras car...
They climb in--Dannys driving--but the camera lingers on

THE HOLIDAY CROWD IN FRONT OF THE STATION. So many people,
anyone could be getting on or off the train...
HARD CUT TO: A BIG, FAT, BLOOD-ORANGE SUNSET, filling the

screen. We think: Oh, fuck.
EXT. SLEEPY TIME MOTEL - SUNDOWN
A run-down, low-rent, two-story motel not far from the

train station. Only a couple of cars in the parking lot.
29.
The neon Vacancy sign FLICKERS. We hear LOUD, RHYTHMIC

THUMPING--
INT. MOTEL ROOM - SLEEPY TIME MOTEL - NIGHT
A dingy room. Kendra and Danny, fucking. Kendras on top,

very vocal. Moans, screams. The bed is BANGING against
one of the rooms paper-thin walls. Off the bedroom,
theres a bathroom, as well as a COMMUNICATING DOOR that
leads to an adjoining room. From that room, we hear a
SURLY MAN yell, Shut the fuck up--
Without missing a beat, going at it even harder, Kendra

and Danny yell back--
KENDRA/DANNY
FUCK YOU!!!
TIME-CUT TO: Kendra and Danny, spent, sweating, their

naked bodies twisted in the sheets...
KENDRA
(tender)
Glad you made it back safe, baby...
He grabs her, suddenly, pulls her under him--
DANNY
Feel that? Thats for you--
(grinding against her)
That...is...all...for...you--
KENDRA
(laughing)
Baby, Im sore, I need a break.
(beat)
Can you get me a Coke? Pleeeeeaase?
Danny smiles--hes thirsty, too--slips on his boxers.
KENDRA (CONTD)
Theres a machine by the stairs.
DANNY
Yesm. Just a Coke?
KENDRA
If they got cookies, get me some cookies,
I need the sugar--
(as he goes)
Moneys in my purse, love you, baby--
30.
Danny walks out, shirtless, shoeless; Kendra smiles after

him... Then, as soon as hes gone, she DARTS over to the
other side of the bed. Reaches down for her overnight
bag, unzips it, takes out A BOTTLE OF CHAMPAGNE AND TWO
GLASSES. Then she takes out a small velvet box, opens it,
admires the ENGAGEMENT RING shes bought for Danny...
INT./EXT. SLEEPY TIME MOTEL - NIGHT
Danny walks along the open-air hallway that runs along

the second-floor of the motel, overlooking the parking
lot, hemmed in by a forest... Goes around a corner...
At the vending machines, Danny gets two Cokes. A pack of

cookies. Smiles. Kendra loves her cookies... Starts back--
--but when he rounds the corner again, HE STOPS COLD.

Half-way down the exposed hallway, SACKHEAD IS STANDING
IN FRONT OF HIS MOTEL ROOM. Fiddling with the doorknob.
DANNY
(huh?)
What the fuck...?
Sackhead turns to looks at Danny, who starts running

towards SH. (Angry, not scared; hes a damn soldier.)
DANNY (CONTD)
What the fuck?!
Danny DROPS the cookies, the Cokes--(one can explodes)--

keeps barrelling towards Sackhead, who stands his ground.
Right as Danny reaches SH, theres a FLASH of steel--
Then: Dannys backing away from Sackhead, a WET, GURGLING

SOUND escaping from the SLIT across his throat, where
Sackhead sliced him. A TORRENT OF BLOOD STREAMS DOWN
DANNYS CHEST. He staggers backwards, sinks to his knees,
in front of Sackhead, who holds a bloody Bowie knife...
Sackhead looks down at Danny...close-up on those terrible

black eye sockets...he lifts his knife...then SLAMS IT
DOWN, INTO DANNYS SKULL WITH A CRUNCH!!
INT. MOTEL ROOM - SLEEPY TIME MOTEL - NIGHT
Kendra looks up. Did she hear...?
She gets out of bed--still completely naked--looks out

her big picture window...theres nothing for a beat--
31.
--then, suddenly, we see: Dannys HEAD being smashed

against the window by Sackhead, CRACKING THE GLASS--
KENDRA
DANNY!
Sackhead SMACKS Dannys head into the window again; the

crack widens; the heads turning to pulp--
KENDRA (CONTD)
DANNY!!!
Kendra turns to her rooms communicating door, throws it

open. The adjoining rooms door is shut and locked--
KENDRA (CONTD)
Help! Help me! Open the door!
SURLY MAN
(through the door)
Fuck you! Shut the fuck up!
KENDRA
GODDAMNIT, FUCKING HELP ME!
Kendra grabs whatever she can--a shirt, Dannys jeans--

FLIES into the bathroom--
She locks the door behind her, but Sackhead is already

pounding on it, trying to kick it in. Kendras eyes zip
around the bathroom. The only way out is the window. She
pries it open, but its one of those fucking child-proof
windows that only allows five inches--
KENDRA (CONTD)
OH, GOD--
Then, the bathroom doors SPLINTERING! Kendra takes a towel,

wraps it around her fist, PUNCHES the window; her wrist
CRACKS--the window doesnt give--she SCREAMS in pain! Another
kick behind her, and a GIANT FISSURE appears in the door--
She PUNCHES AGAIN; this time the window BREAKS! As fast

as she can, Kendra knocks the shattered glass out of the
frame, just as Sackhead THRUSTS one of his arms through
the door, searching for the knob to unlock it--
Kendra lifts herself onto the windows sill, shards of

glass cut into her ass; again, she SCREAMS, as Sackhead
gets the door open and forces his way into the bathroom--
Its a 20-foot drop, but Kendra JUMPS, slips through Sack-

heads fingers, trying to grab hold of her hair. (In fact,
he rips out a handful of Kendras scalp as she falls.)
32.
EXT. PARKING LOT - SLEEPY TIME MOTEL - CONTINUOUS
Kendra lands on her ANKLE; we hear a sickening SNAP,

something definitely broke--
She looks around the deserted parking lot, back at the

motel. Every room dark except for one, her neighbor--
KENDRA
Help! HELP ME!!!
At her screams, the lights in that one room GO OUT. Kendra

looks back up at her room. The shattered bathroom window,
but no sign of Sackhead. Shit, where did he go? She HOBBLES
towards her car, every step is agony, digging through the
pockets of Dannys jeans to fish out the car keys.
She reaches the car, finds the keys. Across the parking
lot, SACKHEAD REAPPEARS, emerging from the motels
shadows, thundering towards Kendra like a tank--
Kendra tumbles into the car, starts it, puts it into

drive--
--even as Sackhead catches up to her, throws open the car

door, reaches for Kendra, who is scrambling away from SH,
climbing into the car--
LOOKING AT: THE PASSENGERS SIDE OF THE CAR. The door

SPRINGS OPEN; its Kendra; it looks like shes going to
make another break for it; but this time, Sackheads too
quick for her; his hands circle her neck and DRAG her
back into the car, towards him.
WERE LOOKING AT THE CAR, as both doors are SLAMMED SHUT.

Then, all we see is the HORRIBLE STRUGGLE, within the
dark car, through its windows, as Sackhead does whatever
hes doing to Kendra--and by the way, its awful--who
SCREAMS AND SCREAMS.
PAN FROM THE CAR TO THE MOON, SHINING DOWN ON EVERYTHING.

Kendras SCREAMS continue for a long, long time, until--
BLACKOUT. Then: SUNRISE, over:
KENDRAS CAR, every window broken, the drivers side door

thrown open. KENDRAS CORPSE, half-in, half-out of the
car. Lying draped over the front seat, so that her heads
upside-down, dangling towards the pavement, her neck
fairly sawed-through, barely connected to her body; a
giant BOWIE KNIFE protruding from her bare chest...
33.
SLOW PAN ACROSS...THE STILL-QUIET TOWN. Front-and-center:

Texas State Highway 93. Nothing for a few moments, TOTAL,
EERIE SILENCE, then:
A SERIES OF POLICE CRUISERS SPEED INTO FRAME, shockingly

loud, one after the other. A whole LAW-ENFORCEMENT CONVOY
headed towards Texarkana.
NEWSCASTER (V.O.)
Corporal Daniel Torrens was coming home
to spend Thanksgiving with his girlfriend
Kendra Collins when they checked into
this motel behind me on Rural Route 2,
near Union Train Station--
INT. BARBER SHOP - DOWNTOWN TEXARKANA - MORNING
Old-school shop. Two old-school BARBERS are buzz-cutting

the heads of TWO YOUNG SOLDIERS; all four men watch the
TV that hangs in one of the shops corners...
SOLDIER ONE
(hang on...)
Holy shit, thats Danny...
NEWSCASTER SOLDIER ONE

The couple was attacked and *
killed, their bodies
mutilated almost beyond Theyre fucking talkin
recognition-- about Danny--
INT. JAMIS HOUSE - KITCHEN - MORNING
Lillians frying up bacon and eggs, watching the news on

the kitchens TV. ON THE SCREEN, the coverage continues:
NEWSCASTER (V.O.)
Security footage from the motel reveal
the suspect--
On the TV, we see GRAINY SECURITY FOOTAGE, recorded by a

camera in the motels stairwell, of: Sackhead, slowly,
methodically, climbing the stairs... PULL OUT TO:
INT. DORM ROOM - COLLEGE OF TEXARKANA - DAY
The college kid from the drive-in, PAUL MARTIN, in his

dorm, its walls covered with slasher movie posters. Hes
at his desk, having a multi-screen experience. Watching
the newscast on his TV; playing a video game on his
desktop. Lots of demons, this kid...
34.
NEWSCASTER (ON TV)

Texarkana Sheriff Jim Doyle held an early-
morning press conference--
Two COLLEGE JOCKS, in boxers, with towels, are passing in

front of Pauls door, on their way to the showers--
COLLEGE JOCK 1
Hey, faggot--
--then continue on their way. Paul doesnt even look at

the dudes, remains transfixed by his screens...
EXT. POLICE STATION - DAY
Sheriff Doyle, giving a press conference, with LAW

ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS behind him...
SHERIFF DOYLE
--all we can say at this point, except
that we have every able-bodied, available
man in our department on this case, we
got city policemen and sheriffs
departments on loan from neighboring
counties, we got the Texas Rangers coming
in--
INT. THE BULLPEN - TEXARKANA GAZETTE - DAY
The same reporter we met before, Ricardo, in his cubicle,

at his computer, LOGGING IN. He has a dozen NEW E-MAILS.
One is from: TEXASPHANTOM. Subject: RECKONING.
CHAVEZ
Oh, shit.
He CLICKS the e-mail open, one big paragraph, no capital

letters/punctuation. Ricardo reads; the e-mail text fills
the screen as we hear A MANS VOICE:
MANS VOICE
you didnt catch me 66 years ago and you
never will i am not a human being i am
not a spirit i am not an angel i am a
full demon from the hottest hell of texas
i come and go as i please and i kill when
i please it will not be three weeks i
promise you that you may think i am a
horrible sick murderer but i am not i
could be much worse believe me
35.
As the V-O continues, we see Ricardo PRINT the e-mail,

then walk it through the newsroom, to his EDITORs
office...
MANS VOICE (CONTD)

i wish to save the soul of this place i
love my neighbors and i wish them to stop
and let me soul rest in peace i did not
want to come back but you called me you
need me you need my knife
INT. EDITORS OFFICE - TEXARKANA GAZETTE - DAY
Ricardo, in a chair, while his EDITOR, gray temples, sits

behind his desk, reading the e-mail. On the walls behind
him, FRAMED FRONT PAGES FROM THE GAZETTE, its most famous
headlines from the decades.
EDITOR
...i am the reckoning foretold when you
are cleansed when you are pure i will
stop you have my word the phantom.
(then)
Crap.
CHAVEZ
Its what the Zodiac did in San
Francisco, what Son of Sam did in New
York, what the Axe-man did in New
Orleans. Taunt the press, get a message
out there--
EDITOR
(as he picks up the phone)
This is, more n likely, a hoax.
CHAVEZ
Yeah, anyone can set up an e-mail address,
even a demon from hell...
EDITOR
Yeah, we still print it, though.
(into phone)
Sheriff Doyle?
INT. SHERIFFS OFFICE - WAR ROOM - DAY
DEPUTIES, POLICE OFFICERS, MARSHALS, sitting and standing

around a conference table; Texas Ranger LONE WOLF
MORALES (loud, obnoxious) at the head of the table, the
man in charge, waving the latest edition of the Texarkana
Gazette (PHANTOM SPEAKS!) around like a madman--
36.
LONE WOLF
--we are done speaking to the press, the
press is not our partner. As you have
seen, they are in the business of
stirring up hornets nests, and they will
be trouble, believe me--
(beat)
Furthermore, since as of this moment, the
Texas Rangers are in charge of this
investigation--specifically, I am--if and
when there is something of substance to
report--
Morales looks at Sheriff Doyle as he says this--
LONE WOLF (CONTD)

--for instance, either that we have
caught this deviant or, preferably, that
we have killed him--I will reach out to
the press myself, and convey to them the
pertinent facts. From now on, until our
collective business is done, I am the
public face of this investigation--
Some of the other officers trade looks; who the fuck is

this guy?
LONE WOLF (CONTD)

(then)
Getting down to business: I want a
profile--
SHERIFF DOYLE
Of the Phantom?
LONE WOLF
I grew up in Texas, I know everything I
care to about the Phantom, and we are
not--repeat, not--hunting a ghost. We are
going after a flesh-and-blood, cold-
blooded killer who so far hasnt made any
mistakes--
A series of packets--captured photos/stills and sketches

of Sackhead--make their way around the room.
SHERIFF DOYLE
Due respect, Ranger Morales--
LONE WOLF
You can call me Lone Wolf, Sheriff.
37.
SHERIFF DOYLE
...due respect, Lone Wolf, he was video-
taped--
LONE WOLF
True, but I suspect he wanted to be seen,
he wanted to be caught on tape--
(TCB:)
I want to visit the murder sites, past
and present--
Doyle nods to DEPUTY TILLMAN, who pipes-up:
TILLMAN
I can take you there--Lone Wolf.
LONE WOLF
Thank you, Deputy-- Every street is to be
patrolled. Every back road, every alley,
every everything. If its paved, its
fair-game. I want people to see us on the
streets, but I do not want them to be
panicked, I want them to be comforted.
Weve got two jobs, friends: Catching
this bastard and keeping the good people
of Texarkana from killing each other out
of fear--
MONTAGE OF TEXARKANA GOING INTO LOCK-DOWN; ONE OF REVEREND

HARDINGS FIERY SERMONS RUNNING UNDERNEATH THE IMAGES...
1) INT. GUN SHOP - DAY
A mom-and-pop gun store. Rows of rifles mounted along the

walls. Crowded. With men, women, military, civilian. A
poster behind the counter reads: IT IS YOUR RIGHT TO
PROTECT YOURSELF. WE SEE: Jami and her grandmother, at
the cash register--
LILLIAN
(to Cashier)
I need a service rifle and a handgun for
my purse and the name of a firing-range
where we can both practice.
REVEREND HARDING (V.O.)

...friends, Ill tell you what Heaven
is...
38.
2) EXT. LIQUOR STORE - DAY
Colters on East 35th. People carrying bags and pushing

carts of booze (bottles, kegs) out the doors. In the
stores window, a sign advertising: SACKFACE SPECIAL! Keg
of Lonestar $75!

...it is a mansion, friends, the most
glorious mansion youve ever seen...
3) INT. POLICE STATION - LOUNGE - DAY
The cops screening Town that Dreaded Sundown, taking

notes. Doyle and Tillman, stand against a wall, side-by-
side. Doyle leans over, whispers:
DOYLE
By the way, you just try to get between
Lone Wolf and a camera...
Tillman laughs.
4) EXT. THE WOODS NEAR THE MOTEL - DAY
A SQUAD of LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS moving through the

brush, armed with rifles, BARKING POLICE DOGS...

...repentance, that is a key, atonement,
thats another key...
While thats happening, PAN TO SEE: Lone Wolf, giving a

soundbite to a NEWSREPORTER and CAMERA MAN...
5) INT. HARDWARE STORE - DAY
People buying supplies with which to fortify their homes.

Deadbolts. Chains for doors. Two-by-fours. Spotlights...

...with rooms, rooms of all kind...
6) EXT. HOUSE ON RURAL STREET - DAY
A FAMILY, packing up their station wagon cause they are

getting the hell out of town-- Or moving into town, to--
39.

...gold and silver, and theyre just
sitting there, waiting for you...
7) INT. LOBBY - CANDLEWOOD HOTEL - DAY
The CHECK-IN CLERK is at his counter, at his computer,

talking to a YOUNG MOTHER, holding a TODDLER in her arms.
(This lobby, too, is crowded.)

...provided you have the key, and what is
the key?...
CHECK-IN CLERK
(typing away)
And where are you visiting from?
YOUNG MOTHER
Oh, no, I live here.
8) INT. A CAJUN RESTAURANT - EVENING
Chavez, on a date with a PRETTY YOUNG COPY GIRL. Theyre

splitting a HUMONGOUS bowl of crawfish...
CHAVEZ
(laying it on)
...theres a theory that the Moonlight
Murders stopped in Texarkana because the
Phantom moved away--then resurfaced,
years later, in San Francisco, as the
Zodiac...
9) INT. ROOM AT THE COMFORT INN SUITES - NIGHT
Lone Wolf sits on the edge of his bed, a napkin around

his neck, digging into a JUICY STEAK hes eating out of a
Styrofoam container, off a side-table hes pulled up to
his knees, while listening to HARDINGS PREACHING:
REVEREND HARDING (V.O. RADIO)

...humility, devotion, sacrifice, these
are all keys to His Kingdom...
10) INT. THE HOLLAND HOUSE - DINING ROOM - NIGHT
Coreys MOTHER and FATHER sitting down to a somber dinner

in their well-appointed dining room, CURTAINS DRAWN.
40.
A bare PLATE noticeable set in front of an empty chair, a

RIFLE by the door...

...now, whats gonna keep you out of this
mansion...
11) INT. SOLDIERS RUN-DOWN STUDIO APARTMENT - DAY
The TWO SOLDIERS from the barbershop sit at a small card

table, heads bowed in prayer over their microwave
dinners. A pair of RIFLES leaning in the corner...

...a heart full of hate, thatll do it, a
heart full of vengeance, sin...
12) INT. FIRING RANGE - DAY
Pan across the lanes: Each one occupied with an unlikely

person (a housewife, an older gentleman, etc.) practicing
their shooting. In the last lane: Jami and her grandma
(the one firing) wearing goggles and noise-mufflers--

...the wages of sins, friends, the wages
of sin, which can only be paid one way--
END MONTAGE WITH:
INT. TEXARKANA CITY HALL - THE OLD JAIL - DAY
A COUNTY CLERK, with a clipboard, leads Jami down a hall,

PRISON CELLS on both sides, every one of them stacked
high with CARDBOARD BOXES, bursting with files,
documents, etc.
COUNTY CLERK
...tell you what, it was a relief when they
decommissioned the prison. Now we use it
for storage, where we keep all our
archives, our files...
They arrive at one particular cell, the Clerk checks her

clipboard:
COUNTY CLERK (CONTD)

Everything from 1945 to 1952 would be in
there.
41.
Jami looks in at--A MOUNTAIN of FILE BOXES. She steps

into the cell--AND A PIGEON FLIES OUT, STARTLING HER! A
beat, then:
COUNTY CLERK (CONTD)

Yeah, they get in sometimes. Good luck.
LATER: Jami, at a table, pouring through the REAMS OF

MATERIAL. Yellowed originals. Articles, transcripts,
depositions, personal effects, photographs...
INT. LONE WOLFS OFFICE - POLICE STATION - DAY
An office the Lone Wolfs commandeered. As Lone Wolf and

Tillman take their seats opposite Jami:
LONE WOLF
Sorry to keep you waiting, what can I do
for you, Ms. Lerner?
JAMI
Uhm. Sheriff Doyle said if I remembered
or thought of anything else...
LONE WOLF
Have you?
Jami slides her folder over to Lone Wolf. Who starts

flipping through it as their conversation continues...
JAMI
Do you know who Yewell Sweeney is, Sir?
LONE WOLF
Should I?
Jami goes to answer, is interrupted by--
TILLMAN
He was a car-thief, arrested in 1946,
here in Texarkana, for possession of a
stolen automobile.
INSERT: STOCK, HISTORIC FLASHCARDS of Sweeneys arrest.
JAMI
They, uhm. Couldnt prove it, but a lot
of people thought Sewell was the Phantom.
Even more so cause the killings stopped
after he was arrested.
LONE WOLF
How long was he in for?
42.
JAMI TILLMAN
Thirty years-- Thirty years--
TILLMAN
And then Yewell Sweeney died, Ms. Lerner.
JAMI
Last summer, in a hospital in Fort Worth.
This Halloween was the first showing of
Town since Yewells death.
(then)
I called that hospital and spoke to a
nurse whos worked there since, since
before Yewell died--
TILLMAN
Oh, come on, we dont have time for--
LONE WOLF
(overriding him)
Go on, Ms. Lerner.
JAMI
This nurse said that a young man used to
visit Yewell. His son, they thought...
Whod be in his thirties now, his late
thirties... So I started thinking...what
if its his son?
(off their silence)
What if Yewells passing set him off and
hes come back after all these years? To,
to finish his fathers work?
Jami lets that hypothesis hang there. The two men look at
each other. Then:
TILLMAN
Yewell Sweeney did have a son, Ms.
Lerner. But he died in a bar fight two
years ago. Before Yewell, himself, did.
Jamis surprised, deflated. She thought she had

something.
JAMI
He, he did?
TILLMAN
(to Morales)
We checked all this.
43.
LONE WOLF
Can I say something here? All this youve
put together, its impressive, young
lady. Ive been through every file that
exists, and they are a mess. Half the
murders happened in Texas, half in
Arkansas, no one shared any information
back then, its no wonder they couldnt
catch the son of a bitch...
JAMI
He, he has to have a reason...
LONE WOLF
Youre looking for a connection, its the
human thing to do, especially after what
you went through, but...
(shakes his head)
There is none, Ms. Lerner. No sane one.
Common evil.
TILLMAN
Hes what we call a nonspecific-motive
killer.
JAMI
He, he sent that note to the paper.
TILLMAN
Someone did, sure. But we dont know--
LONE WOLF
Probly, someone made himself a mask for
Halloween, liked what he did to you and
Corey Holland, so hes kept on doing it. Or
maybe hes done it before, but this is the
first time were hearing about it because
you lived to tell the tale.
INT./EXT. JAMIS CAR - STREETS OF TEXARKANA - DAY
Jami drives, through the town... (Again, were hearing a

classic--only oldies play in Texarkana--on the radio...)
EXT. JAMIS HOUSE - DAY
As Jami pulls up to her house, she sees...Nick, standing

on the curb, holding a stack of books, braced against the
cold. Deputy Foster stands outside his car, leans against
it, keeping Nick squarely in view...
44.
INT./EXT. JAMIS HOUSE - LIVING ROOM/PORCH - DAY
Inside, Lillian hovers near the window, making sure that

all is well with Jami and Nick, who are--
OUTSIDE, on a bench, looking at--the street. The leafless

tress. The dried grass. It finally feels like fall...
NICK
(chin-nodding to Fosters car)
He said he would shoot me if I got any
closer.
(then)
It got cold.
JAMI
I like it.
(then)
I found an essay in the archives. Written
by one of the original victims. Polly
Anne Moore. She wrote it about a month
before...
INT. TEXARKANA CITY HALL - THE OLD JAIL - DAY (F.B.)
At the table, Jami, holding the essay--which looks like a

school project--each page in a piece of cellophane to
preserve it. A black-and-white photo of a YOUNG GIRL on
the projects cover. Haunting.
JAMI
Its all about her dreams. In real life,
she was a straight-A student, but in the
movie version, shes...a struggling
waitress. Her brother, whos still alive,
never got over that...
NICK
(suddenly)
I always wanted to talk to you.
JAMI
Why didnt you?
NICK
Didnt think Id get far. I never saw you
with a boyfriend, or--I mean--friends, I
asked around, I was like, Whats her
story? And then someone told me...
45.
JAMI
About my parents or about the fact that I
spent the seven years totally out of it,
on about two dozen drugs? At the same
time?
NICK
Uh. Both.
(then)
Im sorry. About...all that.
A searching moment between the kids. Nick wants to reach

out and hug Jami, or hold her hand, or something...but
that would be too fast, too soon, so instead he says:
NICK (CONTD)
Theyre having a vigil tonight, at the
school. For the soldier and his girl-
friend. And, uhm. For Corey. Wanna go?
SMASH TO: ANOTHER SUNSET. Against which we hear A SIMPLE,

PLAINTIVE SONG (perhaps George Harrisons All Things
Must Pass) being sung by an assortment of voices...
EXT. CENTRAL HIGH - NIGHT
Looking at the high school from a distance. Its later;

many pinpoints of light (candles and candle-bearers)
assembled in the parking lot. Surrounded by woods.
EXT. CENTRAL HIGH SCHOOL - PARKING LOT - NIGHT
THE CANDLELIGHT VIGIL: Teenagers and their parents, young

kids, old folks, blacks, whites, Hispanics, coming
together as a community. In prayer circles. Some people
from the army--friends of Danny--in their military-wear.
THREE MAKE-SHIFT MEMORIALS: Photos of Corey, Danny, and

Kendra, surrounded by flowers, votive candles. REPORTERS
with cameras, conducting interviews and filming, in the
BG. Representatives from the police there, but hanging
back respectfully.
At Coreys memorial--(a sign reads: We Miss You, Corey.

You Are Still With Us)--Coreys parents are there, with
other members from their church, praying. Jami and Nick
pass by, keeping their distance. Other kids (who recognize
her) STARING at Jami, whos feeling every set of eyes on
her when she asks:
46.
JAMI
Would it be...callous if I wrote about
this?
NICK
This, meaning...?
JAMI
What happened to me and Corey, whats
happening to the town...
(working something out...)
We--we dont deserve this. If someones
doing this to punish us? Like they say.
Corey didnt do anything wrong.
Nick reaches out, takes Jamis hand.
NICK
He seemed like a good guy.
From the across the parking lot: SCREAMS. Nick and Jami
stop, as people from that area of the vigil start to RUN,
in every direction.
NICK (CONTD)
The hell...?
MORE SCREAMS, MORE RUNNING; the cops, on the fringes,

move into the crowd. One of them cautions another: Do
not fire-- Jamis instinct is to get closer to the
commotion, but Nick steps in front of her, protectively--
The cameras ON JAMI, craning her neck, trying to see

whats causing the mayhem. THE CAMERA CIRCLES HER as she
turns around, because now the confusion seems to be
coming from another part of vigil. Jami turns, and--
--holyshitholyshitholyshit--
ITS SACKFACE, armed with a knife, moving through the

SCATTERING CROWD, headed towards Jami, who is petrified--
EVERYTHING ELSE SEEMS TO FALL AWAY AND GO QUIET. ONLY

JAMI AND SACKFACE EXIST AS HE MARCHES TOWARDS HER--
CLOSE ON JAMI; she cant believe this is happening, out

in the open... Sackhead stops a few feet in front of her;
its a total horror movie moment, frozen in time: Laurie
Strode and Michael Meyers; Nancy Thompson and Freddy
Krueger; the Face of Innocence versus the Death-Mask...
Jamis POV: Something about Sackheads mask, his profile,

the knife hes holding, its all...off...
47.
BLAM! A gunshot-- One of the soldiers from the barber

shop has shot Sackhead in the chest--
INSANE CHAOS, PEOPLE STAMPEDING, as Sackhead sinks to his

knees... By instinct, Jami, too, drops to the blacktop--
The soldier is all adrenaline and rage--
SOLDIER ONE
You like that? Motherfucker! You killed
Danny--
Against the unfolding pandemonium, the soldier SHOOTS

SACKHEAD AGAIN, sending him (S.H.) backwards--
POLICE SWARM the soldier, grappling him to the ground--
While thats happening, Jami crawls over to Sackhead,

flat on his back; hes GURGLING, blood seeps out of his
chest, hes having trouble breathing--
The soldiers being forced to his knees, hands cuffed

behind his head by the cops, hes yelling--
SOLDIER ONE (CONTD)

Arrest me! Arrest me, but I got him! I
got his ass!
Next to Sackhead, shaking, Jami does the unthinkable...

and pulls off Sackheads mask, revealing--PAUL MARTIN,
the messed-up kid from the dorm room. Though, of course,
Jami doesnt recognize him, she knows, somehow, that this
isnt the Phantom...
JAMI
Oh, my God...
As MORE COPS converge on her (and Paul), a hand--Nicks--

grabs Jamis shoulder, starts dragging her away from the
crime scene--
NICK
Come on--
JAMI
I dont think thats him--
As Nick pulls Jami through the crowd, she tries to grab a

PASSING POLICEMANs attention--
JAMI (CONTD)
Thats not the Phantom, thats not--
NICK
Jami--
48.
JAMI
(trying another COP)
Please-- Listen to me-- Thats not--
And then theyre gone, vanished into the dissipating

crowd, as THE CAMERA STARTS TO PULL BACK from that
ABSOLUTE DISORDER to--
EXT. TEXARKANA COUNTRY CLUB (TEXAS-SIDE) - NIGHT
A trio of stately, Georgian-style buildings, surrounded

by trees, an 18-hole golf-course. WE HEAR THE SOUNDS OF
DINNER, OF SILVERWARE CLINKING, TAKING US INTO...
INT. TEXARKANA COUNTRY CLUB - MAIN BALLROOM - CONTINUOUS
Candle-lit tables, DINERS in coats-and-ties, nice dresses,

having a subdued meal. WHITE-COATED WAITERS AND WAITRESSES
move through the room...
On a stage, A BAND of YOUNG MUSICIANS (guys and gals) sit

in their chairs, quietly playing their instruments; the
dance-floors EMPTY. (Not much to celebrate this year...)
THE CAMERA FINDS AND TRACKS--DEPUTY TILLMAN, snaking

around the tables, until he reaches...THE TEXAS-SIDE
MAYOR, sitting with his FAMILY, his wife, his kids.
CLOSE-UP ON: Tillman, WHISPERING into Texas-Mayors ear.

Texas-Mayor, taking in the news, asking a question;
Tillman, nodding. Texas-Mayor stands; his wife grabs his
hand.
TEXAS-MAYORS WIFE
Maybe you should wait, Tom.
TEXAS-SIDE MAYOR
Why in the hell...?
TEXAS-MAYORS WIFE
Well, because youve had a few of those--
(meaning his drink--)
And because--
(looking at the Deputy--)
You said it hasnt been confirmed?
TILLMAN
Not a hundred-percent, maam, but...
49.
TEXAS-SIDE MAYOR
Well, Im confused, then. Did you or did
you not get the sick fuck?
INTERCUT WITH:
INT. TEXARKANA COUNTRY CLUB (ARKANSAS-SIDE) - SAME TIME
Mirroring whats happening on the Texas-side. THE

ARKANSAS-SIDE MAYOR is on the stage, in front of the
band, standing at the microphone.
ARKANSAS-SIDE MAYOR
Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and
gentlemen...
Club Members, looking up from their plates; waiters,

stopping mid-service for the Arkansas-Side Mayors words.
ARKANSAS-SIDE MAYOR
(CONTD)
...one of my deputies has just informed
me. The Phantom...the man pretending to
be the Phantom, who killed Corey Holland,
who viciously killed that couple last
night...that man has been shot, Im told--
CUT BACK TO THE TEXAS-SIDE COUNTRY CLUB FOR:
TEXAS-SIDE MAYOR
--hes been caught, I dont know what his
condition is, but I do know that no one
else was hurt, and that that, finally, is
something to give thanks for--
Following the Texas-Mayors lead, the DINERS APPLAUD.

Then, the Texas-Mayor gestures to--
TEXAS-SIDE MAYOR (CONTD)

Reverend Harding, would you lead us in a
short prayer of gratitude?
REVEREND HARDING, in a black shirt and coat, joins the

Texas-Mayor on the stage. Lifts his hands.
REVEREND HARDING
Let us pray.
Everyone in the ballroom bows their heads.
REVEREND HARDING (CONTD)

Our Father, thank you for delivering us
this night.
(MORE)
50.
REVEREND HARDING (CONTD)

Bless the families of those in our
community who are no longer with us, and
bless the fine men and woman who helped
guide us through this time of fear and
darkness--
CUT BACK TO THE ARKANSAS-SIDE COUNTRY CLUB FOR--
--a collective Amen.
ARKANSAS-SIDE MAYOR
Weve had a quiet night here, but I think
a little music wouldnt be inappropriate--
(turns to the band)
Something we can dance to?
BACK TO THE TEXAS-SIDE COUNTRY CLUB AS--
--the BAND (fresh-faced, high school-aged kids) PLAY THE

SHIT OUT OF THEIR INSTRUMENTS. RETRO-DANCE MUSIC.
SHOTS OF: COUPLES DANCING. Husbands, wives; grandparents

with their grandchildren; young couples...
Focus on ROY, the trumpet player, good-looking, 18,

shooting a quick glance at JOHNNY, the trombone player,
who catches the look, smiles...
EXT. TEXARKANA COUNTRY CLUB - LATER THAT NIGHT
Dinner-guests wait in front of the clubhouse; VALET BOYS

rush around, retrieving cars, under the watchful eye of A
DEPUTY (DEPUTY JONES) stationed at the doors...
Through the Main Front Doors: The two band guys, ROY and
JOHNNY, walk out into the November night, carrying their
instruments, head around the building... The Deputy clocks
this; shines his flashlight on them.
DEPUTY JONES
Straight home, now.
JOHNNY ROY
Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
OFF the two, innocent-looking band boys, we SMASH TO:

51.
INT./EXT. JOHNNYS CAR - THE HIGHWAY - NIGHT
Cruising Fall Creek Highway, Johnny drives, Roy rides shot-

gun, BOTH DRINKING BEERS, A DUDE SONG ON THE RADIO: Say,
The Gaslight Anthems The 59 Song. NOTE, and this is
important, THEIR INSTRUMENTS ARE IN THE BACKSEAT.
JOHNNY
(almost casually)
Betcha all the cops are over at the
school...
ROY
(smiling)
Betcha youre right...
Johnny smiles, jerks the wheel to the right--making a

sharp jag off the highway, on to a LESS WELL-LIT ROAD...
EXT. SILCO SALVAGE YARD - NIGHT
JOHNNYS CAR, at the end of a gravel road, surrounded by

DERELICT CARS. Piled high, on top of each other, like
teetering pyramids. It should feel like an abandoned
amusement park. CHAIN-LINK FENCE/BARBED WIRE indicate
where public property ends and where the junkyards
property begins. Beyond the fence: WOODS.
INSIDE THE CAR: Johnny and Roy are still drinking, but
the music, and the mood, are...mellower. The two guys
even seem a little bit...nervous?
JOHNNY
Were nowhere near there, you know. Where
he got Corey. Thats the other side of
town. The motel, too.
ROY
I know.
JOHNNY
In case you were scared...
ROY
Im not.
They lapse into silence. Johnny looks out the window, at

the junkyards main gate. We can practically hear the
wheels turning in this kids head. He looks back to Roy
and--
52.
JOHNNY ROY
So-- (suddenly)
So how does this work?
JOHNNY
Hell, I dont know. I thought maybe you
could...you know...
This is obviously a delicate, tentative dance these two

horny guys are doing... (First time for both of them.)
ROY
What?
JOHNNY
You know...
(meaning his crotch)
...go down there.
ROY
(uh-huh...)
...and what?
JOHNNY
And maybe...suck it--
ROY
--suck it?!
JOHNNY
I dont know, maybe just a little--
ROY
What, is it hard?
JOHNNY
Yeah, isnt yours?
ROY
Yeah.
JOHNNY
Well, there you go--
ROY
Well, then, why dont you suck mine a
little--?
JOHNNY
Cmon, you said you would--
ROY
I didnt--
53.
JOHNNY
The fuck you didnt--
ROY
I changed my mind, then--
JOHNNY
Cmon, you first, then Ill do you--
ROY
Oh, yeah, right--
JOHNNY
So you wont? Youre not gonna?
ROY
Johnny--
JOHNNY
(all riled-up)
Fine-- All right-- But dont EVER say you
wanna do something when obviously you
DONT-- Damn, Im all--frustrated now--
ROY
Well-- Okay-- You wanna...I dunno...jerk
off together?
Johnny actually considers this, but...ehhhh, whats the

point?
JOHNNY
Screw that-- Least at home I got porn--
ROY
Are you sure? Cause maybe--
Roy stops. The color drains out of his face.
JOHNNY
Maybe youll cocktease me some more?
Close on: Roy, whos looking at Johnny...and past Johnny,

out the drivers side window. FUCKING SACKHEAD IS FUCKING
WALKING RIGHT UP TO THEIR FUCKING CAR! FUCK!!
JOHNNY (CONTD)
Whats your problem?
ROY
(terrified)
D-DRIVE!
54.
Johnny twists around and sees Sackhead, picking up his

pace--
JOHNNY
HOLYFUCKINGSHIT--
Johnny finds the key, turns it, STARTS the car, and pulls
out, on to the gravel road, leading out of the junkyard--
Too slow, though; Sackheads running alongside the car.

Hes holding a PIPE, with which he SMASHES the drivers
side window, sending SHATTERED GLASS into Johnnys face--
Roy and Johnny SCREAM like lunatics--
Sackheads hanging on to the still-moving car--as it

passes underneath the yards main gate--trying to wrench
the drivers door open, even as the car swerves madly,
off the gravel road, into the trees--
Johnnys car SMASHES into a tree--
BLACKNESS AND SILENCE for a few moments, then--
FADE UP ON: Roy, still in the car (crumpled against the

tree), sitting up. (No clue how long hes been
unconscious. Seconds? Minutes...?) But his foreheads
bleeding. He looks around; the drivers seat is empty.
ROY
John-ny...?
He looks out the CRACKED WINDSHIELD, sees:
Sackheads crouched over Johnnys prone, motionless body.

Slowly, methodically, BEATING JOHNNYS HEAD OVER AND OVER
AGAIN WITH THE PIPE. A WET THUNKING SOUND.
Roy manages not to scream. Until Sackhead pauses, lowers

his pipe, grabs a handful of Johnnys hair and lifts his
head...so Roy can see how thoroughly smashed and bloody
Johnnys head actually is--
ROY (CONTD)
Johnny--
Sackhead turns to Roy, starts lumbering towards the car--
ROY (CONTD)
Fuck-- FUCK--
Panic; Roy goes to escape, but his door is jammed shut--

55.
ROY (CONTD)
No-- NO--
He slides over to the drivers OPEN DOOR, but only gets

so far as the steering wheel before Sackhead reaches the
car, grabs Roy--
--strikes him across the forehead with the pipe, once,

quick, so that Roys dazed. Groggy.
Sackhead starts to drag Roy (by the wrists), away from

the car, over the ground, towards a tree.
ROY (CONTD)
P-please...
As Roys being dragged, his heads at ground-level, with

a clear view of Johnny, who...wait...is he moving? Is
that possible?
Sackhead gets Roy to a tree, pushes him up against it so

that he--Roy--is hugging the tree, his arms encircling
its trunk.
Sackhead reaches into a pocket, takes out A PLASTIC ZIP-

TIE, LASHES Roys wrists together, so that Roys tied to
the tree, his lower body resting on the ground, his upper-
body against the tree.
Roys out of his mind. He cranes his neck around--sees

Johnny, unbelievably still alive, struggling to push
himself up. Roy gasps out a warning:
ROY (CONTD)
Johnny-- Johnny, run! RUN!
Sackhead SLAMS Roys head against the tree, STUNNING HIM

into silence, then stalks back towards Johnny and the
car. Sackhead stops at his duffle-bag, unzips it, takes
out a GUN WITH A SILENCER ON IT, then continues on to
Johnny. Roy, returning to his senses, realizing--
ROY (CONTD)
Oh, God, oh, God--
BLAMM!! With zero preamble, Sackhead SHOOTS Johnny in the

head, executioner-style. Roy SCREAMS.
FROM ROYS POV: Sackhead goes to the car, YANKS OPEN one
of the doors to the cars backseat, pulls out Johnnys
TROMBONE CASE.
56.
ROY (CONTD)
(begging)
Please... Pleeeease...
Sackhead goes back to his duffle-bag, pulls out a roll of

DUCT-TAPE, moves just beyond Roys line-of-vision.
ROY (CONTD)
Please dont do this, please dont hurt
me...
With a child-like quality, Sackhead takes Johnnys

trombone out of its case, slides it, lifts it to his
mouth, BLOWS into it.
ROY (CONTD)
What--? What...?
Satisfied with the trombone, Sackhead takes his trademark

BOWIE KNIFE out of the sheath at his belt and DUCT-TAPES
IT TO THE TROMBONES SLIDE, SO THAT THE KNIFES A BAYONET
AT THE END OF THE SLIDE, A TRUE INSTRUMENT OF TORTURE.
Roy struggles to free his wrists--forget it--as Sackhead

moves directly behind Roy, gets down on his knees.
ROY (CONTD)
Please-- Oh, God, dont-- Dont--
Sackhead lifts the trombone so its slide is aimed right

at Roys back...
Then Sackhead BLOWS into the trombone and PUSHES the

slide out, IMPALING ROY IN THE NECK WITH THE BOWIE KNIFE;
ROY SCREAMS IN AGONY!
Sackhead pulls the slide back; the Bowie knife retracts,

now dripping Roys blood.
Sackhead REPEATS the action, this time stabbing Roy in

the back; MORE SCREAMS.
ROY (CONTD)
Please, God, stop, STOP...
A third time: Sackhead BLOWS on the trombone, STABS Roy

in the back. A fourth time. A fifth time. Over and over.
Finally, Roy stops screaming, goes silent. Hes dead, his

face collapses against the trees trunk, but Sackhead
doesnt relent. Hes enjoying it waaayyy too much. He
continues blowing on the trombone, penetrating Roys
corpse. The rote-action builds into a sexualized frenzy.
57.
From far above, AN OWL HOOTS.
Sackhead stops, looks up. At the owl, staring down at him

in silent judgment. We see Sackheads eyes through his
hoods sockets. (Theyre blue...) The cloth in front of
Sackheads mouth RISES AND FALLS...
EXT. JAMIS HOUSE - EARLY THE NEXT MORNING
Frost on the grass. The front door opens. Jami, in her

PJs and a coat, freezing, holding a cup of coffee, comes
out, walks over to Deputy Fosters car, knocks on the
window. He lowers it; she gives him the coffee.
DEPUTY FOSTER
Thanks for this.
(after a sip)
Did you and your grandma get any sleep
last night?
JAMI
(shaking her head no)
Have you found out anything else about
that guy from the vigil?
DEPUTY FOSTER
(hesitates, then:)
His names Paul Martin, he was a freshman
at Texarkana College. Messed-up kid, but...
JAMI
Hes not the Phantom?
DEPUTY FOSTER
He left a suicide note in his dorm room,
something like--he hoped his death would
be an example to others, and that
hopefully some good would come of it.
Suicide by cop. In this case, soldiers.
JAMI
(shakes her head)
...horrible. But, how does that prove--?
DEPUTY FOSTER
--it doesnt, but...ahhh, Christ. Youre
gonna hear about it. There was another
murder last night, two boys. Were checking
security cameras at the scene, but looks
like it happened after Paul Martin was
shot.
58.
EXT. DEVOLS FUNERAL HOME - DAY (THE NEXT DAY)
In Arkansas, directly across the street from Gawlers

Funeral Parlor, in Texas.
INT. DEVOLS FUNERAL HOME - BASEMENT HALLWAY - DAY
JIM DEVOL, the undertaker, wearing EMBALMING WHITES,

leads Lone Wolf and Deputy Tillman down a windowless
hallway. Linoleum, harsh lighting.
INT. DEVOLS FUNERAL HOME - EMBALMING ROOM - DAY
DeVol FLICKS ON THE LIGHTS as they come into the sterile

room. A BLACK BODY BAG lies on a CERAMIC TABLE. Another
body bag is on a metal gurney, next to the table.
He starts to put on rubber gloves, nods towards a PREP

COUNTER, against the wall.
DEVOL
We got masks on that table there. Id use
em.
Morales and Tillman take up surgical masks, tie them

around their mouths and noses.
DEVOL (CONTD)
What were they doing at the junkyard? Was
it drugs?
LONE WOLF
Thats something private their families
wouldnt want discussed, dont you think?
DEVOL
Course, course...
Morales unzips the body bog on the ceramic table,

revealing one of the boys naked bodies.
DEVOL (CONTD)
This is Roy Denning.
We see his bare back mostly; DOZENS OF DEEP INCISIONS

ACROSS HIS TORSO. Gawler indicates with a CAPPED PEN:
DEVOL (CONTD)
There are twenty-six puncture wounds, but
your pathologist can confirm that...
59.
LONE WOLF
Mm-hm.
DEVOL
Based on the depth of incision, and the
dimensions of the Bowie knifes blade you
gave me, they were made with that, that
weapon you found at the scene.
TILLMAN
Must be strong as hell, given how he
rigged that knife...
DeVol looks at Tillman. No kidding, Sherlock.
DEVOL
There was something else. When we took
off his pants to get him cleaned-up...
DeVol unzips the body bag further, revealing the lower

half of the corpses body. CHUNKS OF FLESH MISSING FROM
THE BOYS LEGS AND BUTTOCKS.
TILLMAN
What in the hell is that?
LONE WOLF
Bite marks, Mr. DeVol, arent they?
DEVOL
Yes, sir, they are.
Tillman leans in for a closer, more gruesome look.
TILLMAN
Jesus Christ, from what, an animal?
DEVOL
Not unless the animal took off Roy
Dennings pants, put on a bib, had
himself a snack, then put the boys pants
back on.
(then)
Youd know better than me, but I think
you can get an impression made from some
of these wounds--
(he points)
--maybe that one, or that one... You can
start looking for him that way. Using
dental records.
LONE WOLF
What about the other boy? Johnny Fisher?
60.
DEVOL
He was hit with a blunt instrument, that
pipe, and shot point-blank.
LONE WOLF
What about bite-marks?
DEVOL
Yes, sir. His pants were also taken off,
he was also...bitten, and then his pants
were replaced.
LONE WOLF
Bitten on his buttocks and legs?
DEVOL
No, sir, his genitals.
INT. DEVOL FUNERAL HOME - BATHROOM - DAY
Lone Wolf and Tillman, washing their hands at the sinks.

Morales is frustrated, his composures fraying.
LONE WOLF
This fuckers having a ball, isnt he?
And whats hilarious is, hes not even
recreating the actual damn murders, hes
following the piece of shit movie.
TILLMAN
In the movie, after the trombone killing,
its another double-homicide, at a
farmhouse.
LONE WOLF
Every damn house out here is a farmhouse--
TILLMAN
On the outskirts, yes, sir.
LONE WOLF
Okay, well, get me a map of these quote-
unquote outskirts. With residences that
are actually occupied. We cant cover em
all, we can at least do our best--
TILLMAN
Yes, sir. And youre still sitting down
with--
LONE WOLF
(snapping)
I goddamn know, Deputy--
61.
EXT. DINER ACROSS FROM FUNERAL HOME - LATER THAT DAY
LOOKING AT: Lone Wolf, at a table, in the diners corner.

Across from them, the two dead boys fathers: MR. DENNING
and MR. FISHER, both of them salt-of-the-Earth, grief-
stricken. Ashen-faced, shell-shocked.
MR. DENNING
Why would he...why would anyone...do that
to them?
Denning and Fisher are utterly raw. Unravelling...
LONE WOLF
Mr. Denning, Mr. Fisher...I wish I had
better answers for you--youre owed that
much, at least--but this man, if you can
call him that, he has a sadistic
imagination, he has sadistic impulses,
and, quite simply, he acts on them.
(then:)
Thats not a comfort to you, but I want
you to have as much information as I can
give you.
MR. FISHER
Could you tell? When he bit them...? Were
they already...?
Mr. Denning is moments from completely losing it.
LONE WOLF
Yes, sir. We believe the boys had passed
before the worst of it.
MR. DENNING
(quiet, almost a cry)
Oh, thank you, God-- Thank you, Jesus,
thank you...
LONE WOLF
I have two daughters waiting for me back
home. I swear to you: My team and I, we
will do everything we can to see this man
caught and punished for what he did to
your boys.
MR. FISHER
Anything you need, money, anything...
MR. DENNING
If you find him--when you find him...
(simply)
He has to suffer.
62.
The most calm weve seen Mr. Denning in this scene:
MR. DENNING (CONTD)

So he knows what it feels like...make him
suffer...then kill him.
LONE WOLF
My son was killed.
(long pause)
Whats happening here...happens every day,
on the border, and the people living there,
they dont even talk about it, its so
common...
(looks at them, promises them)
It is my sincerest intention to catch
this man and kill him for you...
INT./EXT. DINER - SAME TIME
The Camera pulls out, through the diners picture window;

we see the three fathers sitting in their booth. Time
passes, the light changes, the men disappear...
WE SLIDE UP TO--THE SUNSET...then, a Sunrise...
JAMI (V.O.)
This town...where I was born, where I grew
up, the only place Ive ever known...
EXT. THE CENTER OF TOWN - MORNING
START BY LOOKING DOWN ON: Jami, walking the streets of

Downtown, recalling the Opening Tracking Shot, but the
light is different; and its her reflection were seeing
in the shop windows, as the Camera follows her..
JAMI (V.O.)
...a monster lived here once. He didnt
have a soul, he didnt have pity. For
three months, he hurt and killed people,
then--for no reason--stopped. Years went
by. People thought the monster must be
dead, but...
EXT. A PARKING LOT - MORNING
A blacktop mostly devoid of cars. Jami stands with her

back to us, a low-rent SHOPPING MALL in the BG.
63.
JAMI (V.O.)
...real monsters dont die.
(then)
Before moving away, I wanted to visit all
the spots. I wanted to see if these
places felt different, somehow. Evil, I
guess. If you could feel that...history.
I started with where he attacked the
first couple, Mary Jeanne Larey and Jimmy
Hollis, on February 22nd, 1946--
A SHOCKING JOLT, A QUICK FLASHBACK TO: Two kids, 1940s-

style, in a car, parked in lovers lane, at night. THE
1940S VERSION OF THE PHANTOM SHOOTING THEM. INTERCUT
WITH THE CORRESPONDING MURDER FROM THE ORIGINAL TOWN
THAT DREADED. Then, back to the parking lot as Jamis
terror trail continues...
JAMI (V.O.)
There used to be woods there, but now
its a parking lot in front of Central
Mall, which we call Murder Mall. Which
is a joke, but also...crazy.
EXT. A ONE-STORY HOUSE ON A RURAL STREET - DAY
Jami, looking at a nondescript house. The trees stark

around it. A tire-swing, twisting in the wind...
JAMI (V.O.)
The first time I heard about the Phantom,
it was at a sleep-over at my friend
Chrissies house. I was eight-years-old,
and Chrissies older brother Steven put a
pillowcase on his head to scare us--
INT. ONE-STORY HOUSE ON A RURAL STREET - NIGHT (F.B.)
ANOTHER FLASH: In a living room, a TEENAGE BOY wearing

boxers and a T-shirt, a white pillow case, eye-sockets
cut-out, JUMPS INTO VIEW, arms lifted in a threatening
way, YELLING, sending a gaggle of PAJAMAS-CLAD LITTLE
GIRLS, including Young Jami (in pajamas), screaming and
jumping--
EXT. A ONE-STORY HOUSE ON A RURAL STREET - DAY
Young Jamis Mother and Father, BARRELLING out of the

house, towards their car. Young Jami (still in pajamas),
crying, scared, in her fathers arms.
64.
Wearing the clothes theyve worn in previous flashbacks,

related to the car accident, THEY BLOW BY JAMI IN THE
PRESENT, looking on...
EXT. TRAIN TRACKS AT THE EDGE OF DOWNTOWN - DAY
A FREIGHT TRAIN, rumbling along its tracks. Jami, writing

in her journal, looks up as it passes...
JAMI (V.O.)
People are saying the Phantom is back.
That after sixty-some years, hes come
back...
EXT. THE GRIM HOTEL - DOWNTOWN - DAY
The once grand hotel, now a boarded-up, condemned RUIN.

Jami, passes a few HOMELESS MEN AND WOMEN, clustered in
the hotels porticos, its doorways...
JAMI (V.O.)
...but I dont think he ever left. I
think we kept him here. With our stories
and our legends and that stupid movie...
INSERT: Stock footage depicting the Texarkana of yester-

year. Images of the people and landmarks, including...
JAMI (V.O.)
The Grim Hotel, downtown, was where every-
one in Texarkana would come to hear news
about the Phantom. The police, the
reporters, concerned citizens. Now, its
like this abandoned amusement park, this
haunted house people walk by, without
even looking at it...
EXT. THE TENNIS COURT - SPRING LAKE PARK - DAY
Jami, in front of the deserted tennis courts, the rest of

the park stretched out behind them. Nets pulled down for
the winter season. Weeds growing through the clay.
JAMI (V.O.)
Same with the old tennis courts at Spring
Lake Park. Those used to be a field...
The courts DISSOLVE, leaving the cleared-away, grassy

field...
65.
THEN, FLASH TO: Night. A 1940s car, parked in the middle

of a grassy clearing. Leafy trees swaying in the breeze.
1940s Sackhead standing across from the car, gun raised,
aimed at the cars front seat. TWO FLASHES OF BRIGHT
GUNFIRE in the night; BLOOD SPLATTERING the windshield.
THEN, PAN TO REVEAL: THE FILM CREW (FROM THE 1970s)

SHOOTING THE MOVIE VERSION OF THE MURDER WE JUST SAW.
EXT. THE TENNIS COURTS - SPRING LAKE PARK - DAY
Jami, at the chain-link fence that encircles the tennis

courts...
JAMI (V.O.)
...the field where Richard Griffin and
Polly Ann Moore were shot and killed...
INT. POLLY ANN MOORES BEDROOM - DAY (FLASHBACK)
A teenage girls bedroom from 1946. 15-year-old Polly

Anne sits at her small wooden desk, writing her essay,
looking out the window...
JAMI (V.O.)
...what does it do to you, I wonder,
growing up alongside those ghosts, in the
town that dreaded sundown? Where the
most important thing that ever happened
is five people were killed, and then,
thirty years later, they made a movie
about it?
As Jamis V-O continues, we SMASH CUT to Polly Annes

CRIME SCENE PHOTO, then quickly cycle through ALL THE
VICTIMS CRIME PHOTOS, then--
EXT. MUSIC HALL THEATRE - NIGHT (FLASHBACK)
Where we had our town meeting, only now the theatres in

its PRIME, decked-out for the premiere of the first
Town movie. A HUGE CROWD (including the filmmakers),
dressed to the nines, jockeying to get in. Which brings
us back to the present for:
EXT. JAMIS HOUSE - THE FRONT PORCH - DAY
Jami, sitting on the bench with Nick, reading from her

pad. Across the street: The Deputys car, stationed
across the way, keeping surveillance...
66.
The questions hangs there. Nick isnt sure if he should

answer or what, so...
JAMI
Thats how far Ive gotten... Im not
sure what, exactly, it does...
(then)
I mean, it messes you up.
(then)
Im messed up.
INT. JAMIS HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - MOMENTS LATER
...Jami enters the house, to discover--Lillian, sitting

on the couch, seemingly waiting for her.
Jami sees that the TVs on, that the end credits of Town
that Dreaded are PAUSED on the screen. She glances down,
at the coffee table. An old VHS copy of Town.
LILLIAN
Found it in your room. Mustve been the
only person in Texarkana who hadnt seen
it until tonight.
(she starts:)
I was fifteen when they came to town.
JAMI
When who did?
LILLIAN
All the movie people. They were making a
movie called The Phantom, thats what
it was gonna be called at first, all
about the lovers lane killings, it was
gonna be like, like real Hollywood, right
here in our backyard, and everyone was so
excited... Maybe this would fix the town.
Maybe this would get us back on track.
Maybe businesses would bounce back, maybe
the train station start humming again...
Maybe, maybe wed all come together and,
at least, have some fun for a change...
Wouldnt that have been something...?
Jami sits down, opposite her grandmother, who is very

still throughout this story. Clearly, shes tapping
something deep and primal within her...
67.
LILLIAN (CONTD)
They put flyers up at all the local high
schools--I was a junior at Texas High--
and the director of the film, he said he
was looking for kids, real kids, to be in
a big spring dance scene they were gonna
shoot at the VFW--which, by the way, is
where we had our dances, our real
dances... (Everyone kept using that word,
real.) So me and my girlfriends, we put
on the most old-fashioned dresses we
could find, and we went down to the Grim
Hotel, where--I guess it was all the
producers--had set-up shop, and we went
into this room, some room where the
director was, and...we didnt have to
dance or anything, we just had to
introduce ourselves, and talk a bit about
our lives, where we were from, how old we
were, and could we do a twirl for him...?
(she looks at Jami)
So I gave him my best twirl... And he
said, Well, Lillian, you are by far the
prettiest girl Ive seen all day, so Im
gonna feature you in the dance scene, so
you wear that same dress, and you make
your hair nice, and do your make-up, and
Ill make sure youre right in front,
right in front of the camera... And I
thought it was just gonna be so, oh, I
dont know, special. I thought, Oh, hes
picking me.
JAMI
Youre not in that dance scene...
LILLIAN
(after a few moments)
...the night they were getting ready to
shoot that scene, we were all in the
parking lot, waiting around, and this
man, this good-looking man, comes up to
me, and he introduces himself, and he
says hes playing the Phantom, and I was
surprised, I remember, but he had the
mask--in his hand, he was holding it--and
he was a well-respected member of the
community, so when he said the director
had given him permission to pick his co-
star for a scene with lines, actual lines
68.
LILLIAN (CONTD)
I...believed him, and off I went with
him. Somewhere quiet, he said, so we
could talk.
JAMI
What, what was his name?
LILLIAN
No, I wont tell you that, not that, but
I will tell you that he was lying about
being the Phantom, he wasnt even in the
movie, and that I did not share a tear
for him when he died....
(then, grimly:)
...so no, I was not in that scene.
JAMI
Did you tell anyone what happened?
LILLIAN
What, that Id gone parking with someone
because theyd promised me lines in a
movie? Because I thought that would help
me get out of Texarkana? And that hed
taken advantage of me? In the worst way
possible?
(shakes her head)
No, thank you, I was dumb, but I wasnt
that dumb, and I thought, if I keep my
mouth shut, the summer will end, and
these movie people will go away, and
well be talking about something else in
the fall, and then, after senior year,
Ill go away, and maybe nobodyll even
see it, see the movie, but...they did see
it, and I never left, and people have
never stopped talking about it, least not
here...
She grips Jamis hand, tightly.
LILLIAN (CONTD)
...I shouldve left, after high school...
Then I shouldve left--we shouldve left--
after what happened to you--
(shaking her head)
I will not let this mess become the most
important thing in your life.
JAMI
It already is--
69.
LILLIAN
I talked to your uncle in California.
Hes happy to have us, for as long as we
care to stay.
JAMI
Grandma--
LILLIAN
Were going, Jami.
Jami, sitting opposite DOCTOR LINDSAY, in her chair.
JAMI
My grandma thinks Im morbid.
DR. LINDSAY
When I was your age, I used to make
charcoal tracings of headstones. My
mother thought that was morbid, too.
(then)
Is it research for something you want to
write?
JAMI
It is. The Phantoms victims, they
shouldnt be forgotten, who they were,
who they wouldve become...
(a beat, then)
I tried to write about my parents. I
couldnt, not even in my journal.
DR. LINDSAY
Do you want to talk about that?
Jami evades:
JAMI
Nicks father also died in a car-crash.
(then)
Nicks nice. Hes helping me.
DR. LINDSAY
With your project?
(Jami nods)
So the plan is...?
JAMI
Right after the holidays, we go to
California to stay with my uncle
until...its over, hopefully.
70.
EXT. REVEREND HARDINGS FELLOWSHIP CHURCH - DAY
Harding, bundled-up, at the ROADSIDE SIGN in front of his

Church, inserting the SLIDING LETTERS to spell out the
message: TIS THE SEASON, PRAY FOR FORGIVENE--
Lone Wolf and Sheriff Tillman drive-up; they both get out
of the car, approach Harding, who smiles warily...
REVEREND HARDING
Marshal. Hank. Merry Christmas.
LONE WOLF
Merry Christmas, Reverend.
TILLMAN
Merry Christmas, Steve.
REVEREND HARDING
How can I help you gentlemen?
TILLMAN
Can we go inside and talk, Joe?
INT. THE FELLOWSHIP CHURCHS RECTORY - DAY
A CLOCK TICKING. Harding at his desk, holding a sheet of

paper, a copy of the Phantoms e-mail. Morales and
Tillman sit in chairs, waiting for him to say...
REVEREND HARDING
I didnt write this e-mail.
TILLMAN
The FBI traced it back to you, Joe.
REVEREND HARDING
I dont know what to tell you...
Tillman looks at Lone Wolf. Step in, please.
LONE WOLF
Heres what I think: I dont think you
killed anyone, Reverend. Hell, you were
with the Mayor on Thanksgiving Eve. But I
do think you sent that message. Ive
heard you at night, preaching. Not much
else to do in my hotel room. I dont know
if youre lookin for publicity, or--
REVEREND HARDING
(quietly)
Hes doing the Lords work.
71.
TILLMAN
(a long beat)
Hes killing our kids, Joe...
REVEREND HARDING
My Church is more full than its been in
years. People are coming to me, looking
for--salvation. Redemption. Theyre
scared, Hank. They want to be on the
righteous path, again...
(then)
I want to call the Mayor, then I want to
call my lawyer.
PRE-LAP: A HOLIDAY SONG, taking us into...
CHRISTMAS EVE IN TEXARKANA: NIGHT-TIME SHOTS OF HOUSES

AND STORES, decorated for the holidays. Some tastefully:
Wreaths, garlands, Nativity scenes, plastic reindeers,
elves. Christmas in Small Town America...
INT. SACRED HEART CATHOLIC CHURCH - NIGHT
The churchs lights are dimmed. Candles at the end of

each pew give off a warm, yellow glow...
VARIOUS SHOTS OF: Residents in the over-crowded pews.

Jami and Lillian among the SINGING WORSHIPPERS. Nick,
too, apart from them. He sends Jami a text; she gets it,
reads it, looks at him--really?
EXT. SACRED HEART CATHOLIC CHURCH - NIGHT
Post-service. The congregation leaving the church, shaking

hands with the PRIEST at the top of the stairs. Jami and
Lillian, making their way down; Nick joins them.
NICK
(to Lillian)
Merry Christmas, maam.
LILLIAN
Merry Christmas.
Lillian goes. Nick pulls Jami away from the other people.
JAMI
I got your text, what does it--?
NICK
Mary Jeanne Lareys alive, Jami...
72.
INTERCUT: An image of the real Mary Jeanne Larey from a

black-and-white picture in the Gazette.
NICK (CONTD)
...The first Mary, living in Arkadelphia,
under a different name, Dorothy
Bellweather--
JAMI
Howd you find her?
NICK
The library. Lexus-Nexus. Worth a trip,
right?
JAMI
Definitely, just--
(beat)
Nick...why are you helping me so much
with this?
NICK
(no hesitation)
To give you a reason to come back to
Texarkana.
Okay, whoa. And now Nicks digging a small, gift-wrapped

box out of his coat pocket to give to her.
NICK (CONTD)
This is for you.
JAMI
(totally surprised)
Nick...
NICK
Call me tomorrow. We can take your
grandma to a Christmas movie.
Nick gives her a peck, then walks off, leaving Jami on

the steps, not knowing quite what to do with herself...
EXT. NIP N SIP BAR AND LOUNGE - NIGHT
A dive bar on the Arkansas side of things. A string of

colored Christmas lights along the edge of the bars
roof. A dozen cars in the parking lot...
73.
INT. NIP N SIP BAR - NIGHT
Lots of sad, lonely CHRISTMAS DRINKERS. Little Drummer

Boy plays on the haggy sound-system. Behind the bar: A
framed, autographed, vintage Town poster. THE CAMERA
FINDS: An almost-attractive woman, ARDELE, sitting at the
bar, nursing a drink, having a cigarette... A man sidles
up next to her. It takes us a few moments to recognize
him since hes out of uniform: Its Deputy Tillman.
TILLMAN
(holding up his beer)
Every Christmas, Ardele.
ARDELE
(toasting him)
Every Christmas, Hank. They dont have
you working tonight?
TILLMAN
Up till half an hour ago. Time and a half
for my trouble.
ARDELE
Good for you, thats good money. You got
plans for tonight?
TILLMAN
Just arrested one of Texarkanas most
prominent citizens for sending an e-mail,
so...getting drunk.
She laughs, then sees hes not kidding.
EXT. NIP N SIP BAR AND LOUNGE - PARKING LOT - NIGHT
Tillman and Ardele, walk to their respective cars.
TILLMAN
You wanna follow me?
ARDELE
You been sneakin me into your Mommas
farm since we were kids, Hank, I remember
the way.
TILLMAN
(smiling)
I guess you would...
They get into their cars. First Tillman, then Ardele pull
out of the lot--OUT OF FRAME.
74.
But the Camera remains FIXED. A few moments pass; then,

the TAILLIGHTS on a car at the far edge of the parking
lot TURN ON. Uh-oh...
EXT. THE TILLMAN FARM - NIGHT
Where Deputy Tillmans lived his entire life. His car and
Ardeles car parked in the driveway, next to the houses
screen-in porch. A PATROL CAR cruising by...
INT. TILLMAN FARM - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
Slow pan across the living room, REVEAL: Tillman, in an

easy chair, holding a bottle of beer. Ardele, in her bra
and panties, on her knees, between his legs, head
boppin. Tillmans eyes are closed, his heads back...
He brings the bottle of beer to his lips, takes a long

gulp, puts his hand on the back of Ardeles head...
TILLMAN
Oh, yeah...yeah, baby...
Nice rhythm... Up and down, up and down... Tillman sits

forward a bit, starts stroking Ardeles hair, opens his
eyes... Up and down, up and down...
Tillmans POV: Looking at his front door and the window

next to it. Sackhead, standing on the porch, is looking
back at him. Had been staring at them, in fact.
TILLMAN (CONTD)
Fuck-- Ardele--
Sackhead lifts his gun, which has a silencer, FIRES. An

almost comical POP! Tillman slumps back in his chair.
Still between his legs, Ardele looks up at him.
ARDELE
Hank?
Ardeles POV: Tillmans left eye is just gone. BLOOD

seeps down his cheek...
ARDELE (CONTD)
Hank--?!
She stands up, wheels around. SACKHEADS NOW POINTING HIS

GUN AT HER. She opens her mouth to scream; Sackhead FIRES.
75.
THE BULLET HITS ARDELE IN THE FACE, TEARS THROUGH HER

CHEEK, BUT DOESNT KILL HER. Now she screams, AN
EXPLOSION OF SOUND, BLOOD, AND SHATTERED JAWBONE!
Sackhead SMASHES through the window, as Ardele BOLTS, out

of the living room, blood GUSHING from her face.
INT. TILLMAN FARM - KITCHEN - CONTINUOUS
Hand at her cheek, Ardele lurches into the kitchen, trips

over a chair, falls down. On her hands and feet, she
scurries along the kitchen floor, towards A DOOR, leaving
a RED SMEAR in her wake.
INTERCUT ARDELES FLIGHT WITH SACKHEADS HUNT:
As he moves through the living room, passes Tillman--
INT. TILLMAN FARM - GARAGE - CONTINUOUS
Unfinished, with a concrete floor. Ardele slams the door

shut behind her, beelines towards another door, this one
leading to the outside world--
IN THE KITCHEN, SACKHEADS POV, looking down at the

streak of blood, stepping over the toppled chair--
EXT. TILLMAN FARM - THE BACKYARD - NIGHT
Ardele bursts out of the back door, heads right for: THE
CORNFIELD THAT ABUTS THE TILLMAN BACKYARD.
IN THE GARAGE, Sackheads still following the trail. He

passes a set of tools, leaning against the wall, out of
frame...a beat...Sackhead returns, goes to the tools,
SELECTS A PICK-AX, resumes his hunt...
EXT. CORNFIELD - NIGHT
FOCUS ON: Ardele, crawling through the winter corn. Its

not too tall, but it might be enough to hide her...
FOCUS ON: Sackhead, entering the field, holding the pick-

ax, striding up and down the rows of corn, scanning for
Ardele... He stops, takes a moment, rests the pick-ax on
his shoulder, strains to listen... ALL WE HEAR IS THE
SOUND OF HIS TERRIBLE BREATHING BENEATH HIS MASK...
FOCUS ON: Ardele, in the dirt, trying not to scream, not

to cry, as she prays Sackhead doesnt see her...
76.
NOTE: Sackheads in the BG of this shot; Ardeles COLD

BREATHS--the vapor--in the F.G. NOTE: They are very close
to each other, but then Ardele holds her breath, even
with a shredded cheek, and--after a few tense moments--
Sackhead moves on, away from--
Ardele, letting out deep, silent breaths of relief. She

resumes her crawl, away from the Tillman farm...
THE EDGE OF THE CORNFIELD: Ardele, dragging herself out

of the corn. As she emerges from it, she sees--A HOODED
FIGURE--SHE SCREAMS--but its only a SCARECROW, keeping
silent vigil.
FOCUS ON: Sackhead, deep in the corn, jerking his head

around at the sound of Ardeles shriek. Got her.
BACK WITH ARDELE: Shes gotten to her feet and is moving

across a yard towards another farmhouses back door.
(Essentially, the mirror-image of Tillmans.)
Halfway across the yard: A VICIOUS, HUGE PITBALL CHARGES

AT HER, BARKING LIKE CUJO. Ardele screams and jumps back,
falling on her ass, but the pitbulls on a chain, so its
teeth stop a few feet short of ripping out her throat--
FOCUS ON: Sackhead, picking up steam as he thrashes

through the corn, towards the screams/barking--
Ardele scurries away from the pitbull, reaches the

farmhouse, starts BANGING on the back door--
INSERT: A FLASH/FLASHBACK to the corresponding beat from

the original Town, which we saw at the drive-in--
A LIGHT within the dark farmhouse TURNS ON--
Over Ardeles shoulder: Sackheads stomping out of the

corn--
She screams; the pitbull LUNGES towards Sackhead--
--who swings the pick-ax in a clean arc, HITTING THE DOG

IN THE DEAD-CENTER OF ITS HEAD, killing it instantly,
pinning it (twitching in its death-spasms) to the ground.
Ardele SCREAMS some more, POUNDS some more, as Sackhead

closes the gap between them...
77.
INT. FARMHOUSE - NIGHT (SAME TIME)
An OLDER FARMER and HIS WIFE, in their robes, woken up by

this commotion, moving towards their Back Door, the
Farmer gesturing for his Wife to hand him his rifle--
EXT. FARMHOUSE - NIGHT (SAME TIME)
Ardeles pressed up against the side of the farmhouse,

hitting the back door, but--shes running on fumes.
Sackhead is suddenly two feet away from her. He reaches
out a hand--she tries to bat it away, weakly--he grips
Ardeles throat...
INT. FARMHOUSE - NIGHT (SAME TIME)
Armed with his rifle, the Farmers at the back door,

about to open it; he orders his Wife--
OLDER FARMER
Call the police and do not come outside--
FARMERS WIFE
Evan--
OLDER FARMER
Just close the damn door behind--
A LOUD THUNK! And then, suddenly, everything outside goes

QUIET. No more screaming, no more struggling, no more
whimpering.
The Farmer and his Wife freeze for a moment--what the

hell just happened??--then, a whisper:
FARMERS WIFE
Evan...
But he throws open the door and heads out.
FARMERS WIFE (CONTD)

Evan--
EXT. FARMHOUSE - NIGHT - SAME TIME
The Farmer rushes out his back door, looks around. Theres
the dead pitbull. Theres the scarecrow, theres the corn,
swaying in the night-wind, but...no sign of anything else.
Then, behind him, a SOB of horror:
78.
FARMERS WIFE
Eh-evan...
Evan turns around. His POV: Next to the back door, Ardele
has been IMPALED into the side of the house, ONE OF
SACKHEADS BOWIE KNIVES STICKING OUT OF HER CHEST. Shes
like a butterfly pinned to a tray of wax...
The Farmers Wife collapses into a distraught heap in the

doorway; the Farmer lowers his rifle, defeated; the moon
is three-quarters full over the corn... WE HEAR:
OLD WOMANS VOICE (V.O.)

My family wanted me to move, and I did,
eventually, but not till a year or two
after I was attacked...
INT. RESIDENTS ROOM AT A NURSING HOME - DAY
Nick and Jami, sitting with--white-haired, bright-eyed,

vital DOROTHY BELLWEATHER (aka Mary Jeanne Larey).
DOROTHY
You say youre going away?
(Jami nods)
Probably I shouldve done the same.
(then)
Were both lucky girls, though, arent
we? To be sitting here, together?
Jami nods.
DOROTHY (CONTD)
No one else really understood what it was
like, afterwards. I had questions, as you
do. Why me? Why was I spared?
JAMI
I-- Yes. Exactly.
DOROTHY
Ive been asking myself that the last
sixty-six years of my life, and I dont
think Im any closer to an answer. But--
you do need to ask, thats true.
JAMI
Just--anything you can remember...
79.
DOROTHY
There was a curfew, 5:30 in the afternoon.
If you were out and about, and you didnt
have a purpose, they put you in jail, no
questions asked...
(thinking about it)
People nailed boards on their windows so
no one would be able to shoot into their
homes... Wives set booby-traps, pans,
empty cans of coffee, in front of their
doors--you read about that?
(Jami nods)
Oh, it was hellish... We were so
afraid...
JAMI
How long did it last?
DOROTHY
The fear? I still wake up some nights.
(then)
This is how it was: Before that summer,
you left your door unlocked. After that
summer, you saw a stranger, you didnt
wave hello, you crossed to the other side
of the street. Texarkana wasnt the same
place, ever again.
JAMI
Mrs. Bellweather, some people believed
that the Phantom was Yewell Sweeney--
DOROTHY
Oh, no. No, no. We knew Yewell, Yewell
wasnt the killer. Oh, no, they
railroaded him. They needed someone to be
the killer--after not catching him
themselves.
JAMI
How do you know for sure?
DOROTHY
Well, I dont, but Ill tell you. Bout
twenty years ago, I got a call from
Lucille Parker, she was a reporter for
the Gazette, the one who interviewed
me...
(beat)
...Lucille had been kind to me, wed kept
in touch, and she was coming to
Arkadelphia for a family reunion, and--
did I want to have lunch?
80.
JAMI
Lucille Parker wrote all those first
articles...
DOROTHY
Thats right. So we get together, and of
course, you know, we started talking
about the Phantom--mind you, this was
forty years after the fact--and Lucilles
telling me how, now that shes retired,
shes thinking about writing a book about
the Phantom, but only if she could tell
the story of what happened to Earl
McFadden...
Jami and Nick trade a look. Maybe this is something...
JAMI
Earl...?
DOROTHY
McFadden. A few days after the last
murders, at the Stark farm, the police
found a body on the Arkansas-side of the
train tracks north of town. All in
pieces, it looked like a train had run
over it...
EXT. TRAIN TRACKS - DAY (FLASHBACK, 1946)
In the foreground, A 1940s-style TRAIN streaks by, right

in front of the Camera. Once its out of frame, we see--
in the BG--POLICE huddled around a MUTILATED BODY.
DOROTHY
This is the Arkansas police, by the by. Who
say, Its the Phantom, we were about to
catch him, he felt the noose tightening, he
felt guilty, so he threw himself in front
of a train and committed suicide, no more
Phantom.
NICK
Based on...what?
DOROTHY
Well, that was just it. Nothing. According
to my friend Lucille, Earl McFaddens wife
demanded an autopsy--took about a week to
get it. Come to find out, McFadden hadnt
been run-over, hed been stabbed maybe two
dozen times, next to the tracks--
81.
EXT. TRAIN TRACKS - NIGHT (FLASHBACK)
Close-on: Earl McFadden, lying on the ground, the 1940s

Phantom straddling him, stabbing him viciously. (This
scene plays like a weegee flipbook, stills coming to
life almost animation-style.) A few quick moments of
this, then--ANOTHER TRAIN whooshes by, in front of this
scene, carrying us back to THE PRESENT:
DOROTHY
...and thats how come he was all torn-
up. Lucilles theory was, and it was a
good one, the Phantom killed Earl
McFadden, then hopped a train, went off
to California or something...
JAMI
He shouldve been front-page news.
DOROTHY
Of course, everything about the Phantom
was, believe me. But while the Arkansas
police was finding McFadden, Texas police
were arresting Yewell, so you had two
different camps, both claiming theyve
got the Phantom, then they do the autopsy
on McFadden--
Nick shakes his head, This is fucked-up.
DOROTHY (CONTD)
--and the only person whos piecing
together that Yewell was in custody when
McFadden was murdered--proving that neither
man was the Phantom--is Lucille, whose
editor killed the story because no one--
neither force--would cooperate with her. By
this point, everyone wanted things to get
back to normal.
JAMI
So Yewell went to jail, and McFadden...
DOROTHY
Well, he was dead.
(she sighs...)
So many lives ruined for no good
reason...
(oh, well:)
At least Yewell got in the movie.
OFF Jami and Nick, what the hell now? HARD CUT TO:
82.
INT. THE GAZETTE - RICARDO CHAVEZS OFFICE - DAY (LATER)
Ricardo, sitting at a conference table with Jami and

Nick. The kids, rapid-firing:
JAMI
--Dorothy Bellweather--thats the name
Mary Jeanne Larey goes by now--
NICK
--shes in a nursing home in Arkadelphia,
and she--we--
JAMI
--we think you need to talk to her. About
Earl McFadden, one of the original
Phantoms victims--
NICK
--a forgotten victim, someone whose son,
or grandson, might have a grudge--
JAMI
--I have all her information, her numbers
903-792-0983, its written there on that
piece of paper-- We told the police, but
you should call her--
She slides it over to Chavez. Who looks at it, then:
CHAVEZ
--I will definitely speak with Ms.
Bellweather.
New Years Eve. Jami and Lillian, pouring plastic cups of

champagne, watching a NEW YEARS EVE PARTY ON TV. As a
Newscaster counts down:
NEWSCASTER (ONSCREEN)
...6, 5, 4, 3--
They take up their cups--
NEWSCASTER (CONTD)
...2...1...Happy New Year!
ON SCREEN: CROWDS OF PEOPLE CELEBRATING. Lillian toasts:
LILLIAN
May we all be in a better place a year
from now.
83.
They clink cups. Jami puts her arms around Lillian.
JAMI
I love you, Grandma.
LILLIAN
I love you, too, sweet girl. Moren
anything.
LATER. The two are on the couch, watching an old episode

of The Twilight Zone. To Serve Man. Lillian announces:
LILLIAN (CONTD)
Ive seen this one. Its a cookbook. Im
going to bed.
She gets up, looks at Jami:
LILLIAN (CONTD)
Lots of packing and driving tomorrow...
JAMI
Im just gonna finish this.
LILLIAN
Youll come kiss me goodnight?
JAMI
Youll be asleep.
Lillian goes. Jami waits a beat, pulls out her cell,

sends a text...
EXT. DARK STREET NEAR JAMIS HOUSE - NIGHT
A lone figure, walking along the sidewalk, in the shadows

of the darkened houses... The figure passes close to a
house--a motion-sensors tripped--and a SPOT TURNS ON,
illuminating--Nick. Who keeps walking, triggers a SECOND
SPOT... CUT TO:
Nicks arm around Jami, on the couch. (This was the plan,
to wait for Lillian to go to sleep.) They watch a few
moments of The Twilight Zone, then Jami touches the neck-
lace around her throat. A silver chain, a moon pendant.
JAMI
I love this. I love the moon...
Tentatively, Jami leans over...KISSES Nick. Then:

84.
JAMIE
You can stay over, we just have to be
quiet.
INT. JAMIS HOUSE - JAMIS ROOM - NIGHT (LATER)
Jami and Nick, in Jamis bed, kissing, both kids eager...
NICK
Jami...
He leans her back onto the bed, eases on top of her. Its
real, awkward, raw. Theres fumbling--the kids are doing
what they think theyre supposed to be doing--but theres
a naivet, a tentativeness, as they undress and begin to
make love...
EXT. JAMIS HOUSE - NIGHT (LATER)
Looking at the house from, say, the POV of the police car
across the street. Night-wind in the trees...
INT. JAMIS HOUSE - JAMIS ROOM - NIGHT (LATER)
Post-sex. Under the covers. Jami shivers, Nick wraps his

arms around her...
NICK
Better?
She nods. Nick kisses her neck, closes his eyes, settles
in for the night. But Jamis not there yet... Somethings
weighing on her still. She whispers:
JAMI
I left Corey in those woods...
NICK
(a beat, then)
You said he was--
JAMI
He was, I think he was. But maybe if Id
stayed--
NICK
If youd stayed, youd be gone, too.
Jami takes one of Nicks hands, pulls his arm tighter

around her.
85.
JAMI
Im so...tired...
NICK
Sleep. You can sleep tonight.
She kisses him, then puts her head on the pillow. Closes
her eyes, almost immediately slips into...
DARKNESS.
THEN: Looking at the kids. Nick, sound asleep...
Jami stirs awake, sits up in bed. Jamis POV, looking at

the foot of her bed:
SACKHEADS THERE, framed by the window behind him. The

moonlight turns him into--a shape, more than anything...
Sackheads POV. Looking at Jami. THEN REVERSE IT, so its

her POV again--
Sackhead is now blood-covered COREY. In the same exact

pose. Freaky. Jamis eyes well with tears.
JAMI
Im sorry...
Corey starts to turns away from her...
JAMI (CONTD)
Corey...
Corey is walking out of the room...
JAMI (CONTD)
Im sorry...
THE CAMERA FOLLOWS Corey out of the room, passing from

Jamis life...
Once hes gone, the Camera slides back to Jamis bed.

Shes waking up. Again. For real this time.
Jami sits up; moonlight fills the room. But no Bloody

Corey. No Sackhead. Just Nick, asleep next to her, his
chest rising, up and down... It feels over.
EXT. JAMIS HOUSE - THE NEXT DAY - EARLY MORNING
Nick slips out the front door, quietly. Walks down the
porch steps, eyes the Deputys car across the street.
86.
He looks up at Jamis bedroom window. Shes there, tries

to smile, but--its hard. They wave. What a colossal
bummer.
EXT. JAMIS HOUSE - DAY
New Years Day. Cloudy; it might rain. Or snow.
Jami and her Grandma at the car, packed and ready to go.
Grandmas already shotgun; but before Jami climbs in--
JAMI
One sec, I wanna do something--
Jami trots over to the parked POLICE CAR. Deputy Foster

sits behind the wheel, drinking from a thermos of coffee.
He lowers his window...
JAMI (CONTD)
So, uhm. I dont know if anyone told you,
but my grandma and I are taking off for a
month or so.
DEPUTY FOSTER
I heard. Thats why Im on this shift.
JAMI
Should be better there. Not many people
in California know us.
DEPUTY FOSTER
At least here in Texas youll always be
remembered for something...not everyone
can say that. What part of California?
JAMI
Near San Francisco. We have--
Jamis looking at Deputy Fosters eyes. Theyre very,

very BLUE... And now that Jamis really looking at them,
shes wonders: Has she stared into them before...?
JAMI (CONTD)
...we have relatives there. And, and my
grandmas wanted to visit them for
awhile, and...
It cant be. Itcantbeitcantbeitcantbe...
DEPUTY FOSTER
Thisll be done by the time you get back.
87.
Unnerved, Jami smiles, nods. Its a weird, paranoid

moment, broken by--Lillian, calling from their car:
LILLIAN
Jami?
DEPUTY FOSTER
You drive safe.
Jami heads back to her car, climbs in, starts the engine.
She adjusts her rearview mirror, to see--FOSTERS CAR.

Hes already pulling it into a U-turn, away from Jami...
JAMI
(relieved, muttering)
Stupid...
LILLIAN
What is? That were heading out so late?
I agree, lets get a move on.
INT./EXT. JAMIS CAR - STREETS OF TEXARKANA - AFTERNOON
Cruising through town. Deserted because its New Years

Day and everyones recovering. Or because...this is
simply how it is now.
INT./EXT. JAMIS CAR - THE HIGHWAY - AFTERNOON (LATER)
A few miles beyond town, Jamis driving past...THE APACHE

DRIVE-IN THEATRE. She shudders, drives.
TIME-CUT TO: Jami, driving past a cornfield. Acres and

acres of dry, winter corn husks. Jami keeps driving, a
setting sun--theyve been getting progressively bigger,
more violent--reflected in the cars windshield...
EXT. REST-STOP - INTERSTATE 30 - AFTERNOON
The days shading into dusk. In the BG, bare woods surround
the rest-stop, its parking lot. Jami gets out of her car.
As she walks towards the OPEN PAVILION, where there are a
few picnic tables, restrooms, vending machines, Jamis
grandmother lowers her window:
LILLIAN
Second thought, if they have those peanut
butter crackers...
88.
JAMI
Okay.
As Jami heads for the WOMENS ROOM, she glances at the

only occupied picnic table. TWO TEENAGERS sit across from
each other. The girl CRIES. The boy, clearly out of his
depth, holds her hand, trying to comfort her. And the
world keeps turning, thinks Jami.
INT. WOMENS ROOM - REST-STOP - MOMENTS LATER
A row of stalls; a row of mirrors and sinks. IN A STALL:

Jami, on the toilet, peeing.
THEN, AT THE SINK: Jami, washing her hands... She hears a

POP. Shuts off the water. Waits a beat, hears a SECOND
POP. This one, more discernible; it sounded like...
Oh...fuck... Jami rushes to the door, pushes it open.
INT./EXT. REST-STOP - DUSK
Jami moves down the short hallway towards the picnic

tables. At the corner, she hesitates, inches around to
look, sees...
THE TEENAGERS, at the picnic table, slumped over, dead,

their heads on the table, twin pools of blood spreading
across it, red rivulets flowing down the tables sides...
CLOSE ON THE TEENS: The boy was shot in the back of the
head; the girl, in the face.
Jami opens her mouth to scream, covers it with her hands.

She takes a step out from around the corner, towards the
dead kids--
BLAMM! A third shot! From the parking lot.
No hesitation, Jami SPRINTS in that direction--
JAMI
Grandma-- GRANDMA!
JAMIs POV as she crosses the pavilion; HER CAR COMES

INTO VIEW--
Sackhead stands at the passengers side of the car,

holding his gun, down at his side; the windshield is
SPLATTERED WITH BLOOD; Jami SHRIEKS--
89.
JAMI (CONTD)
NOOOOOOO!!
Sackhead turns to Jami, starts walking towards her. Shes

completely reeling. She doesnt know what to do--run or--
Jami takes off, back towards the pavilion--
As she passes the dead kids, Jami WIPES OUT in the puddle
of the blood next to the picnic tables, YELLS--Sackhead
keeps advancing--picks herself up, sprints down the hall,
back into--
INT. WOMENS ROOM - REST-STOP - CONTINUOUS
Jami locks the door behind her. A deadbolt, thank God.

Shaking, Jami takes out her cell phone, manages to dial a
number; the call RINGS...RINGS...A PICK-UP!
NICK (ON PHONE)

Hey, I was just thinking about--
JAMI
NICK! NICK, HES HERE!
INT. NICKS KITCHEN - SAME TIME
Nick, on his cell; hed been making himself a sandwich.
NICK
What?
INTERCUT WITH JAMI, IN THE BATHROOM:
JAMI
Oh, God-- I think he shot my grandma!
NICK
Jesus Christ, where are you? Tell me and
Ill--
JAMI
I, I dont know-- The rest-stop on, on
the highway--
NICK
What highway?
A SUDDEN, VICIOUS BANGING AT THE BATHROOM DOOR; JAMI

SCREAMS--
90.
JAMI
I dont know, on 30, on Route 30--
NICK
Where on 30? Where on--?
BLAM! BLAMM! TWO GUNSHOTS BLOW OUT THE DEADBOLT.
On Nicks end: The call DISCONNECTS.
INT. WOMENS ROOM - REST-STOP - CONTINUOUS
Armed with his gun in one hand, Bowie knife in the other,
Sackhead steps into the bathroom, looks down its length.
The row of stalls. No Jami in sight. S.H. walks to the
first stall. Pushes the door open. Empty. The second
stall, also empty...
The Camera, looking down, slides over the other empty

stalls, revealing: JAMI, COWERING IN THE LAST STALL...
Sackhead tries the third stall, nothing. As he moves to

the fourth stall--
JAMIS CELL PHONE STARTS TO RING--its damn Nick, calling

back--startling both Jami and Sackhead--who turns towards
the ringing. Got her.
But before S.H. can even step towards the last stall, its
DOOR SLAMS OPEN. And out rushes Jami, shrieking, a war-
cry, barrelling towards Sackhead--this is her only
chance, to use this moment of surprise to her advantage--
--SO SHE SLAMS INTO SACKHEAD, AND THEY BOTH FALL TO THE
GROUND; SACKHEADS GUN CLATTERS OUT OF HIS HAND--
JAMI IS SCURRYING OFF AND AWAY FROM SACKHEAD, TOWARDS THE

RESTROOMS BLOWN-APART DOOR--
Sackhead LUNGES, grasps Jamis ankle; she falls down again,

hard. (Jamis cells still ringing, by the way.) Theyre
both on the ground, Sackhead is dragging Jami closer to
him, HE SLICES AT HER LEG WITH HIS BOWIE KNIFE, cutting
through her jeans, opening a GIANT GASH down her leg.
Jami kicks Sackhead in the face--CRUNCH! His nose caves

beneath his mask. Its enough of a jolt that Jami can
twist her leg free-- And get UP and OUT of the bathroom--
91.
EXT. REST-STOP - NIGHT (CONTINUOUS)
As Jami DASHES across the pavilion, to her car, to her

grandmother, she answers her phone--
NICK (ON PHONE)

Tell me where the hell are you and I will
come get you--
JAMI
I, I dont fucking KNOW--
NICK
Jami, stop-- STOP and tell me what you
see--
A moment of quiet, then Nick hears: DEEP SOBS COMING FROM

JAMI, on the other end of the phone--
JAMI (ON PHONE)

Oh...God... Oh...oh no, no, no, no...
NICK
What? Jami? What is it?
EXT. REST-STOP - JAMIS CAR - SAME TIME
Jami, standing by her car, looking down at SOMETHING OFF-

PANEL; shes crying, she lets her hand (holding her cell)
drop down to her side...
NICK (ON PHONE)

Jami? Talk to me, whats going on?
Jamis looking at: Lillian, shot, dead, her head cocked

at a terrible angle. Her knitting blood-soaked; the purse
in her lap OPEN, as if shed been going for something in
it...
JAMI
(deep, wracking sobs)
Grandma... Oh, God, Grandma...
NICK (ON PHONE)

Jami? Jami, whats happening?
Nick, trying to stay calm for Jamis sake--

92.
JAMI (ON PHONE)

He...he shot her... He shot my grandma...
Oh, God...
A beat as Nick tries to figure this out. Whatwhatwhat?
NICK
Okay, Jami? Listen to me--
INTERCUT WITH JAMI AT THE REST-STOP:
JAMI
He shot her...
NICK
I know, I know, but--
(oh, God...)
Where is he, Jami? Do you see him?
JAMI
I...I dont know...
NICK
Look around, Jami-- Are you looking
around?
She looks back to the pavilion. No sign of Sackhead.
NICK (CONTD)
Do you see a sign anywhere? A sign that
says anything?
Jamis eyes dart everywhere, looking for Sackhead,

looking for a sign, anything, any movement, anywhere.
Finally, they land on a STONE SIGN, its back towards
Jami, its front facing the highway, at the entrance to
the rest-stops parking lot.
JAMI
Theres one--
NICK
What does it say?
JAMI
I--I cant read it, Im behind it--
Nick practically punches a wall.
NICK
Okay, Jami, you--you need to go to that
sign and tell me what it says--
93.
JAMI NICK
But my grandma-- And then you will go right
back to your grandma, okay?
But you need to tell me
where you are so I can call
the police--
JAMI
I, I dont wanna hang up--
NICK
Ill stay on with you, and then Ill call
the police-- And then Ill come to you--
All right? Jami?
Jami, a wreck, nods.
JAMI
All right.. I--I just have to...
Jami reaches through the cars window. Gets her grandmas

purse. Opens it, pulls out LILLIANS GUN, which is what
Lillian had been reaching for when she was shot.
JAMI (CONTD)
All...all right...
Jami takes a few steps, away from the car, towards the
sign...
JAMI (CONTD)
Stay on with me...
NICK
I am, Im right here-- Anything?
JAMI
No...
(barely hanging on)
Ni-ick...
NICK
Its okay, youre okay, just, just get to
that sign...
Even holding her grandmothers gun, Jami looks incredibly

vulnerable as she walks across the empty parking lot,
towards the sign... Her leg is bleeding, remember, as she
keeps twisting around, trying to keep everything in view.
Her car, the pavilion, the back of the sign...
As she circles closer to it, the front of the sign BEGINS

to come into view. She looks back to the parking lot,
nothing. Back to the sign, its front is almost visible...
94.
Back to the parking lot, the pavilion... Behind the

structure, out of sight, the SOUND OF A CAR STARTING UP--
JAMI
(blood freezing)
Oh, my God--
HEADLIGHTS TURN ON--
NICK
Jami, are you there? What does it say?
She can finally read the sign--
JAMI
Redwater, Im at Redwater--
NICK
Okay, great, Jami, Im--
SUDDENLY, FROM BEHIND THE PAVILION, DEPUTY FOSTERS CAR--

THE ONE THAT HAD BEEN PARKED IN FRONT OF JAMIS HOUSE THE
ENTIRE MOVIE--TEARS AROUND THE STRUCTURE--
JAMI
OHMYGOD--!!
NICK
Jami? Whats happening?
THE CAR IS SPEEDING TOWARDS JAMI--
NICK (CONTD)
(keeping focused, on task)
Listen to me, I have to hang up to call
the police, but if thats him, you have
to--
Jami BOLTS. Runs from the parking lot, on to the highway.

Crosses it as the car (with, yes, Sackhead at the wheel)
streaks out of the parking lot, headed right for her--
Once on the other side of the highway, Jami slides down a

steep embankment that slopes down towards--WOODS; thick
trees clumped together--
FOSTERS CAR APPEARS BEHIND HER! Tears down the

embankment, bearing down on Jami--
--Who makes it past the tree line just as Sackheads car

is about to run her over.
It SLAMS into a THICK TREE, however, which stops the car

COLD, in a LOUD CRUNCH OF METAL.
95.
Jami looks back. Maybe...hopefully...the crash killed--
Nope; though his cars totalled, Sackheads already

climbing out of it--
Jami takes off, deeper into the woods...
...but we stay on Sackhead, who opens up his cars trunk,

hauls out his huge duffle-bag, drops it to the ground,
unzips it, pulls out three pieces of black metal, starts
assembling them into--A HUNTSMANS COMPOUND BOW. Holy
shit, this fucker is CRAZY--
INT. NICKS KITCHEN - NIGHT
Nick is grabbing his keys, preparing to head out after

Jami himself, on his phone, RAGING--
NICK
No, asshole, I need to talk to Marshal
Morales directly, tell him I know where
the fucking Phantom is--
EXT. THE REDWATER WOODS - NIGHT
Jami limping through the trees. The terrains swampy and

muddy, almost a bayou. She takes a minute, sits down on a
tree, inspects her leg; its bad, shes losing a lot of
blood... She takes off her jacket, takes off her shirt,
rips it into strips, ties off her leg--poorly, shes no
expert--puts her jacket back on, gun in the waist of her
jeans, resumes her Dario Argento-like flight...
QUICK CUTS OF: JAMI RACING THROUGH THE WOODS, BEING

PURSUED BY SACKHEAD. Though we dont see him--and Jami
doesnt--we should feel like S.H.s just out of sight,
mere moments from catching up to her. NOTE: This chase
should feel evocative of our first one. It should feel
like were closing a circle, the serpent eating its
tail...
As Jami tears through the woods, she sees, on the periphery

of her vision, a LITTLE GIRL IN HER PAJAMAS, COVERED IN
BLOOD--her 9-year-old self--running parallel to her, run-
ning from the past...
SHOTS OF: Jami and Young Jami streaking past--FLASHES OF

HER MUTILATED PARENTS, staring on, silent witnesses...
Triggering a FLASH TO: THE CAR CRASH, playing in reverse,

from Young Jamis POV in the backseat;
96.
her mom and dads bodies, flying back into the car,
through the shattered windshield, reassembling itself...
EXT. CLEARING IN REDWATER WOODS - NIGHT
Panting, Jami limps into...a natural, circular clearing

in the forest. Hemmed in by trees, it (bizarrely) almost
feels like a sanctuary. Serene. She starts across the
clearing, as fast as she can manage, to get back under
the cover of the trees--
When shes halfway across it, we hear a loud--FWOOMP!

Jami SCREAMS in and CRUMPLES to her knees. She looks down
at her (sliced-up) leg, and--
--AN ARROW IS STICKING THROUGH HER LEG; went clean-

through it.
JAMI
Oh, God-- Oh-- God--
She looks around. It came from somewhere in the woods,

but which--?! Fuck it, doesnt matter-- She tries to
stand up--somehow makes it to her feet, wincing and
whimpering with each step, resumes her hobbled march
across the clearing, when--
Another FWOOMP! Jami SCREAMS, PITCHES FORWARD, face-down

on to the ground. This time, THERES AN ARROW STICKING
OUT HER LEFT-SHOULDER. Sackheads playing with her...
Jami SOBS, she can only lift her head a few inches... HER
POV: The edge of the clearing, the line of trees...
SACKHEADS BOOTS step into frame, he drops his duffle-

bag. Jami lifts her head up a little higher so she can
get a better look at him... Hes regarding her with a
terrible, uncanny stillness...
JAMI (CONTD)
Wh...why me...?
Sackhead says nothing.
JAMI (CONTD)
Why everyone else but not...me?
Sackhead unzips his bag, carefully takes out one of his

Bowie knives. Its almost a ritual now.
JAMI (CONTD)
N-o-o-o-o-o...
97.
Sackhead walks out of Jamis line of vision, to get

behind her. She knows: Hes going to do to her what he
did to Corey. Doesnt matter, she thinks; shes already
losing consciousness... If she keeps her eyes fixed on
the trees, if she doesnt have to look at him, it will
all be over and done with, and...and...
In the woods, in the trees shadows, a GHOSTLY FIGURE...
Its BLOODY COREY. There...and then not there...

There...and then not there... Something from Jamis
subconscious or--?
SACKHEADS BEHIND JAMI NOW. HE KNEELS DOWN, ONE KNEE ON

EITHER SIDE OF HER TORSO, SO THAT HES STRADDLING HER.
In the woods: BLOODY LILLIAN JOINS BLOODY COREY...

There... and then not there... Jamis blacking out,
fighting for consciousness... There...and then not
there... In the BG, Young Jami, wandering through the
woods, as though she were looking for help...
THEN ON JAMIS FACE, registering: One last attempt to do

something, anything: She tries to twist around, onto her
back, so she can see Sackhead, but its hopeless. Shes
too weak.
WERE LOOKING UP AT SACKHEAD, whos already raised his

knife up over his head, which he cocks to one side...
Somehow...affected by Jamis efforts... And suddenly, he
wants to be able to look into her eyes when he does it...
So he reaches down and helps Jami, eases her onto her

back. (This makes the arrow in her shoulder hurt worse, a
stab of agony, but it jolts Jami into further clarity...)
Sackhead is looking down at Jami; she is looking up into

his face. His BLUE EYES, going saucer-wide, because
theyre seeing:
Jamis hands at her waist, holding the gun she got from
her grandmothers purse, pointed directly at Sackhead.
SHE FIRES IT--BLAMM!!
The bullet hits Sackhead in the chest, blowing him

backwards, off her.
Jami pulls herself to her feet; going numb, the pain in a

different place now, somewhere far way...
She staggers over to Sackhead, looks down at him... At

his eyes, staring through their cut-out holes...
JAMI SHOOTS SACKHEAD A SECOND TIME, IN THE FACE.

98.
In full shock, she turns from him, starts walking back

the way she came...
WE STAY ON SACKHEAD, LOOKING DOWN AT HIM: Blood spreads

across one side of his mask. One eye snuffed out, the
other, dead and glassy, staring up at the night sky...
EXT. EDGE OF THE FOREST - NIGHT
Jami, arrows still sticking out of her shoulder, out of

her leg, covered in blood and dirt (not dissimilar to how
she looked the first time she emerged from the woods),
staggers out of the forest, a half-dead horror-show.
The CAMERA PANS from her to the Highway... A DOZEN POLICE

CARS ARE PARKED ALONG IT. AT LEAST 50 LAW ENFORCEMENT
OFFICIALS THERE, INCLUDING LONE WOLF. NICKS ALSO THERE.
Jami lurches towards them; one of Deputies finally sees

her, starts yelling to everyone else. (NOTE: We dont
hear any of this; this is all in dumb-show.) They rush
forward to help Jami; Nick gets there first. He puts his
arms around her waist, supports her. Morales is asking
her something; she gestures to the woods behind her:
There, in there.
A group of ARMED MARSHALS heads into the woods; they have

BLOODHOUNDS with them. Nick helps Jami to an ambulance...
THE CAMERA PANS UP TO THE BLACK SKY. No stars tonight, NO

MOON... THEN, THE CAMERA PANS BACK DOWN TO--
EXT. THE STREETS OF TEXARKANA - DAY
The town, waking up from its collective nightmare. Shops

opening, people walking the streets. LIFE RESUMING...
JAMI (V.O.)
A thorough search of the Redwater bayous
yielded nothing, no body...
INT. LONE WOLF MORALESS HOME - LIVING ROOM (LAREDO) - DAY
Back in hometown. Lone Wolfs on his couch, his hat on

the end table next to him. Hes got a paper folded on his
lap; he was doing a crossword, but now...hes looking at
his TWO DAUGHTERS, playing in front of the TV...
99.
JAMI (V.O.)
Texas Ranger Lone Wolf Morales speculated
that despite his injuries, the man who
had been impersonating the Phantom--
Deputy Clayborn Foster--retreated deeper
into the swamps and subsequently fled the
state...
INT. TEXARKANA POLICE STATION - DAY
Sheriff Doyle and OTHER POLICE MEN going about their day-
to-day business. In the BG, on a bulletin board of WANTED
POSTERS and FLYERS, we find: A half-covered POLICE SKETCH
of Sackhead, looking on, impassively...
JAMI (V.O.)
Clayborn Foster was born in Plano and
lived in Texas all his life. His mother,
deceased, was Ann Foster. His grand-
mother, also deceased, was Ruth McFadden,
wife of Earl McFadden, who had been
stabbed to death alongside a set of train
tracks in Texarkana, in 1946...
EXT./INT. A RAMSHACKLE SHACK IN THE MOUNTAINS - DAY
Isolated and remote. A FIGURE, with his back towards us,

is walking into the CABIN, a plume of smoke curling up
from its chimney...
JAMI (V.O.)
Fosters current whereabouts remain
unknown...
WE FOLLOW HIM INSIDE; the figure passes through the door--

we catch a quick, distorted glimpse of him, reflected in
a piece of beveled glass, but half his face is definitely
scarred, and he wears an eyepatch--but FOCUS ON: A piece
of dirty, white cloth, stained pink (faded blood) hanging
on a nail...
JAMI (V.O.)
...and three months after the events of
New Years Day, no arrests had been made
in connection to the second string of
horrific Moonlight Murders, which took
the lives of at least eight people...
100.
EXT. TEXARKANA - CENTER OF TOWN - DAY
In the FG, the statue of James Bowie. In the BG, City

Hall. People going about their business...
JAMI (V.O.)
And once again, Texarkana is best known
as...The Town That Dreaded Sundown.
EXT. A BLUFF OVER THE OCEAN - DAY
Were very clearly NOT in Texas. California, lets say.

But Jamis sitting on the hood of her car, looking out at--
THE SUN, dipping towards the sea, behind low clouds...
JAMI (V.O.)
I carry a copy of Polly Anne Moores
essay with me, wherever I go. I re-read
her last words every day now...
As the V-O continues, Jami gets into her car...
JAMI (V.O.)
"Sometimes, though it may be many years
from now, I hope to be a typist or do
some kind of business. With this war
going on, no one can make too many plans
for the future... Next year, if nothing
happens, I will graduate from high school
at the age of 16, and will I be glad!"
Jami starts the car, begins driving, down a winding road,

away from the bluff...
JAMI (V.O.)
This story Im writing down is for Polly
Anne Moore and all the others, who didnt
get the chance I got...who didnt live to
see another sunrise...
PULL BACK FOR A LONG-SHOT of JAMI DRIVING, as the SUN passes

from behind the clouds. Its suddenly HUGE, deep orange--
APOCALYPTIC. It fills the screen--
--as Red Barchetta, the song Jami and Corey heard on their
night-drive, so long ago, starts to play...
END OF MOVIE. *

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THE TOWN THAT DREADED SUNDOWN

Written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa

Inspired by the film by Charles B. Pierce

THE CAMERA PULLING OUT TO REVEAL: A BRONZE, THREATENING-

We PAN towards CITY HALL, on the TEXAS/ARKANSAS BORDER;

As THE SUN STARTS TO SET, we begin touring the town,

...AND THEN HES GONE, but the Camera continues cruising

We round another corner...another time-shift...and we

...then we pull out and discover that, in fact, were

The Camera pulls back to reveal--a GIANT, BEATEN-UP,

EXT. APACHE DRIVE-IN THEATRE - NIGHT (CONTINUED)

A field stacked deep with cars, motorcycles, pick-up

ONSCREEN, in the GRAINY, JUMPY MOVIE, housewife Helen

FROM THE AUDIENCE: SCREAMS and CHEERS, as we pan across

INT./EXT. - COREY HOLLANDS NEW MINI-COOPER - NIGHT

--the teens THUMP the trunk of Coreys car, startling:

Two country kids: COREY HOLLAND, 17, handsome, with JAMI

A beat. Jami debates, decides, nods... Then, as Corey

--A TABLE SET-UP BY THE DRIVE-INS ENTRANCE. Advertising

--Jami and the college student lock eyes, briefly...

INT./EXT. COREYS COOPER - CRUISING THE STREETS - NIGHT

Rushs Red Barchetta plays on the radio as--the Cooper

Corey smiles, takes Jamis hand, KISSES IT.

The Cooper passes a sign on the side of the road: ROUTE

In the cars rearview mirror, the built-up section of

A DEER, eating grass in the woods, looks up as the Cooper

EXT. RICHMOND ROAD - NIGHT

The Cooper, parked in a wooded, grassy cul-de-sac, a rest-

INT. COREYS COOPER - NIGHT

Corey and Jami in the front seat, pipe-dreaming. Shes

She smiles shyly, he touches her cheek.

Corey kisses Jami; THEY START GOING AT IT. Coreys eager,

EXT. COREYS COOPER - RICHMOND ROAD - NIGHT

INT. COREYS COOPER - THE BACKSEAT - NIGHT

The two start kissing again; Coreys unbuttoning Jamis

They break apart; Jami points through the windshield.

On the other side of the cul-de-sac, amongst the shadows

THE TALL, HULKING FIGURE OF A MAN. WEARING JEANS, A PLAID

Hes just standing there, staring at them. Beyond

In a panicky FLASH, Jami locks the doors on the left-hand

...who hasnt moved. He continues standing there, eerily.

They wait. A few moments pass. Nothing happens; Sackhead

Sackhead is walking backwards, slipping into the woods

Jami peers into the woods, searching for any movement.

Corey climbs out of the car, stops. Hes facing the

He goes to open the door on the drivers side, but its

On the other side of the car, standing maybe four feet

Terrified, Jami gets out of the car, stands next to Corey;

Corey undoes his belt, lets his jeans drop so that

Sackhead COCKS THE GUN--

Corey gets down on the ground, on his stomach.

FROM THE WOODS, WE SEE, LEFT TO RIGHT: Sackhead...then

Jami snaps her head back, so that shes staring straight

Jamis SOBBING. Shes looking at the trees. If she could

Jami SCREAMS, too. Starts to turn towards--

JAMI SACKHEAD (O.C.)

She turns back to face-front, weeping. The line of trees,

COREY (O.C.) SACKHEAD (O.C.)

As the SOUNDS continue, Jami struggles not to look back.