ERIN BROCKOVICH
A True Story
by
Susannah Grant
February 1, 1998
EXT. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA SUBURB, MAIN DRAG - DAY
Palms sway ... the sun washes everything in yellow ... cars
motor down either side of the landscaped median ... the calls
of mockingbirds mingle with the BLIP BLIP of car alarms.
ON THE SIDEWALK, a SKATEBOARD CA-LUNKS down the sidewalk,
past the foot traffic of Southern Californians: flip-flops,
Doc Marten's, Rollerblades, Nikes ... then, in the middle of
this pedestrian normalcy, a pair of IMPOSSIBLY HIGH SPIKE-
HEELED PUMPS struts out of a shop. So high it hurts to look
at them. As the shoes leave frame, we TILT UP and see
they're leaving a 99-cent store.
As the Pumps turn and head up the street, we see they are
connected to a pair of IMPOSSIBLY LONG, SHAPELY LEGS.
Eveready legs -- they just keep going and going.
They saunter past two BUSINESSMEN on a lunch break. The men
pause and glance as men tend to when they see a beautiful
woman. In fact, everyone this woman passes lets their eyes
rest on her a microsecond longer than usual.
- Two SKATEBOARDERS note the STRETCHY MICRO-MINI skimming the
tops of her thighs.
- A MAILMAN spots the BIG, DARK SUNGLASSES tucked into a
MOUNTAIN OF BIG, BLOND HAIR.
- A PRE-TEEN GIRL glimpses the PLUNGING NECKLINE of the
TIGHT, BRIGHT RED MIDRIFF-BARING BUSTIER.
It isn't until she rounds the corner at the end of the block
that we see her entire figure and appreciate why everyone is
so goggle-eyed. Eye-catching is an understatement. All
those folks who say Barbie's proportions are unrealistic have
obviously never met ERIN BROCKOVICH.
EXT. AROUND THE CORNER - DAY
A side street. No pedestrians, just parked cars. A PARKING
TICKET flaps under the wiper of an old Hyundai.
ERIN
Fuck.
Even when she talks dirty, there's a heartland goodness to
her voice. Like Kansas corn fields swaying in the breeze.
As she grabs the ticket from the windshield, her sunglasses
accidentally CLATTER to the ground.
ERIN
Shit.
When she picks them up, a fingernail snags on the pavement.
ERIN
God damn it.
She tends to the nail as she opens her car door and gets in.
WIDER ON THE STREET
The Hyundai starts it up, signals. Then, just as it pulls
slowly out into the street, a JAGUAR barrels around the
corner, accelerating out of the turn, and rams into the side
of Erin's car, sending it CAREENING into the median. It
SMASHES into a foot-thick lightpost. And stops.
EXT. MASRY & VITITOE - DAY
A boring building on a boring block in the Valley, surrounded
by strip malls. Definitely not where the power lawyers work.
ROSALIND (O.S.)
Morning, Mr. Masry. How you doing today?
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, RECEPTION - DAY
Generic. Cottage cheese ceilings, motel art. A sign over
the reception desk reads: MASRY & VITITOE, ATTORNEYS AT LAW.
ED MASRY, senior partner, slumps by ROSALIND, his chipper
receptionist, with a cup of coffee in his hand. He's in his
mid-50's, compact and -- even though it's only 9 AM --
already rumpled.
ED
Don't ask that on Mondays, Rosalind.
Whatever passion he once had for the personal injury law that
is his career has long since dissipated. He trundles off
toward his office.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, OUTSIDE ED'S OFFICE - DAY
Ed's secretary BRENDA -- 50's, jaded, hates her job, but what
can you do? -- is on the phone when Ed rounds the corner.
She puts the call on hold, turns to Ed.
BRENDA
Tony Marvin.
ED
Oh, Jesus. Who's responsible for his pain
and suffering this time?
BRENDA
His dry cleaners. You want him?
ED
What do you think? What's this?
He grabs a gift-wrapped bottle off her desk, reads the card.
BRENDA
Tequila. From your drug dealer friend.
ED
Carlos isn't a friend; he's a client.
BRENDA
He's a low-life. Speaking of which, that's
your nine o'clock in there.
Ed peers into his office. It's a mess -- papers everywhere,
unopened mail. Standing in the middle of the room is Erin,
in a teensy, leopard-print mini-dress. As she jiggles a
spike-heeled foot, everything about her shimmies gloriously.
Except her head, which is held in place by a neck brace.
ED
Whoa.
(to Brenda)
Remind me.
BRENDA
Erin Brockovich. Car accident. Not her
fault, she says.
(sarcastic)
And she looks like such an honest girl, don't
you think?
ED
You shouldn't judge, Brenda.
BRENDA
Right. Lap-dancers are people too.
As Ed heads into his office, Brenda picks up the phone.
BRENDA
I can't find him, Tony. We'll have to call
you back.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ED'S OFFICE - DAY
Not an office that exudes authority, and Ed's blustery
entrance only adds to the sense of chaos.
ED
Erin -- hi. Sorry you had to wait. Here,
sit down, sit down.
He clears a stack of papers off a chair.
ERIN
Thanks a lot.
(as she sits)
I tell you, I never thought just standing
would take it out of me, but ever since that
shithead hit me, it feels like my whole
body's put together wrong.
Ed gives her a look of pro-forma sympathy.
ED
Jesus, you poor thing.
(he sits)
Well, listen, you came to the right place.
Whoever did this to you made one hell of a
mistake, and you and me, we're gonna make
him pay for it.
He takes out a pad and paper, gets ready to write.
ED
Why don't you tell me what happened?
DISSOLVE TO:
INT. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA COURTROOM - DAY
Erin is on the stand, wearing the most conservative thing she
owns: a red, form-fitting mini dress, telling her story to
Ed, who's questioning her.
ERIN
I was pulling out real slow, and out of
nowhere, his Jaguar comes racing around the
corner like a bat outta hell ...
She glances at the defendant's table, where a DOCTOR sits
nobly in surgical scrubs. His WIFE and two beautiful KIDS
are behind him. A frigging Norman Rockwell painting.
LATER IN HER TESTIMONY:
ERIN
They took some bone from my hip and put it
in my neck. I didn't have insurance, so I'm
about seventeen thousand in debt right now.
STILL LATER:
ERIN
... couldn't take painkillers cause they
made me too groggy to take care of my kids.
STILL LATER:
ERIN
... Matthew's six, Katie's four, and Beth's
just nine months.
STILL LATER:
ERIN
... just wanna be a good mom, a nice person,
a decent citizen. Just wanna take good care
of my kids. You know?
ED
(oh so moved)
Yeah. I know.
INT. COURTROOM - LATER
Erin is still on the stand. But now the doctor's lawyer is
questioning her.
DEFENDING LAWYER
Seventeen thousand in debt. Whew. Is your
ex-husband helping out?
ERIN
Which one?
DEFENDING LAWYER
(feigning shock)
There's more than one?
ERIN
Yeah. There's two. Why?
Erin looks over at the jury. The personification of
conservative family values. Oh, shit.
LATER IN HER TESTIMONY:
ERIN
(getting defensive)
... not like a career, cause I had my babies.
But I woulda worked, for sure, if I didn't
have this neck thing.
Erin sees a juror staring judgmentally at her short hem.
Erin gives it a tug, pulling it down a stitch.
DEFENDING LAWYER
(sarcastic)
Right. No doubt.
Erin sees a few jurors share dubious glances. Great.
STILL LATER:
The defendant's lawyers is on the offensive. Erin's starting
to feel the case slipping away.
DEFENDING LAWYER
So. You must've been feeling pretty
desperate that afternoon.
ERIN
(pointed)
What's your point?
Ed shakes his head slightly to her -- don't get mad.
DEFENDING LAWYER
Broke, three kids, no job. A doctor in a
Jaguar must've looked like a pretty good
meal ticket.
Erin sees jurors nodding almost imperceptibly in agreement.
She's on a sinking ship.
ERIN
What? Hey -- he hit me.
DEFENDING LAWYER
So you say.
ERIN
He came tearing around the corner, out of
control --
DEFENDING LAWYER
An ER doctor who spends his days saving
lives was the one out of control --
ERIN
(erupting)
That asshole smashed in my fucking neck!
INT. COURTHOUSE HALLWAY - DAY
The door to the courtroom flies open and Erin comes out,
furious. Ed follows her as she heads for the elevator.
ERIN
Open and shut? Open and fucking shut?
ED
If you hadn't used profanity --
ERIN
Oh, please, it was long over by then. God
damn, he made me look like some cheap --
ED
I told you the questions might get a little
personal --
ERIN
Bullshit. You told me I'd get half a
million dollars. You told me I'd be set.
Ed notices her ranting is starting to draw attention.
ED
Okay -- let's try and settle down here.
ERIN
Settle down? I got 74 bucks to my name, Mr.
Masry! I can't afford to settle down!
Beat.
ED
I'm sorry, Erin.
ERIN
Yeah? Well, fuck you. Sorry doesn't feed my
kids.
Erin turns away from him and heads for the stairway.
EXT. ERIN'S HOUSE - DAY
A shitty little house in a shitty part of Northbridge. The
Hyundai with a bashed-in side pulls up to the curb.
Erin gets out, takes the mail from her mailbox, then heads
over to the equally grim house next door and rings the bell.
A Hispanic woman in her 60's opens the door, holding a white
baby. This is MRS. MORALES.
MRS. MORALES
Hi, Erin! You're back so soon. How was it?
She hands Erin the baby. It's BETH, Erin's 9-month old.
Erin avoids the question by focusing on her baby.
ERIN
Hi, sweetie. Were you a good girl? Where
are Matt and Katie?
MRS. MORALES
Outside with the sprinkler. So it's good?
The truth is too depressing to share.
ERIN
It'll be fine, yeah.
MRS. MORALES
Ai, bueno. Because I didn't want to tell
you before, with your worries --
ERIN
What?
MRS. MORALES
My daughter, she's bought a big house with a
room for me. I'm going to move in with her.
ERIN
You're moving away? When?
MRS. MORALES
Next week.
ERIN
(stunned)
Wow, that's soon --
MRS. MORALES
I know. But it's good for me. Now I can
help my daughter take care of my grandkids.
And it's good for you, too. Now you have
money, you can find a good babysitter, huh?
Not the old lady next door.
Oh, God. In Erin's arms, Beth starts to COUGH.
EXT. ERIN'S HOUSE - DAY
Erin carries Beth up to her house. As she nears her door,
she steps on a GIANT WATER BUG. It crunches under her sole.
ERIN
Ugh.
Insult added to injury. She heads up to the house, dragging
her shoe, wiping off the bug guts.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, MAIN LIVING/DINING SPACE - DAY
Just as dull inside. Salvation Army furniture. A lot of
beige. Erin's two older kids, MATTHEW (7) and KATIE (5) are
at the table. Beth is in a baby seat. Erin spoons some Mac
& Cheese onto their plates, trying to hide her worry.
MATTHEW
I don't like this part, it's all crusty.
KATIE
I like the crust.
Erin switches the plates.
ERIN
Put your napkins in your laps and eat up.
KATIE
How come you're not eating?
Cause there isn't enough food.
ERIN
Mamma's gonna eat later.
From her baby seat on the table, Beth COUGHS some more.
Thick, sick-sounding coughs. Erin looks at her.
ERIN
Don't go getting sick on me, baby. Okay?
INT. ERIN'S BATHROOM - NIGHT
The shower and sink are both on full, filling the room with
STEAM. Erin is seated with COUGHING, CRYING Beth on her lap,
trying to steam the illness out of her.
ERIN
It's gonna be okay, sweetheart. I promise.
But her face doesn't look like she believes it.
EXT. DRUGSTORE - DAY
Matt and Katie are messing around with a gumball machine.
INT. DRUGSTORE, AISLE - DAY
Erin is holding Beth, wandering the aisles. She stops at the
medicines, thinks for a long moment, then, hating herself,
glances to make sure no one's looking, and picks up a bottle.
INT. DRUGSTORE, AT THE REGISTER - DAY
As a CUSTOMER steps away from the register, Erin steps up
with the bottle in her hand and smiles at the CHECK-OUT LADY.
ERIN
Hi, remember me? I was in yesterday. Bought
a whole mess of stuff? Round about five?
CHECK-OUT LADY
Honey, it's a zoo here at five. I'm lucky
if I even see a face, much less remember it.
ERIN
Oh, shoot, yeah, I guess that'd be tough.
Well, listen, I meant to buy my baby here
some medicine, and by the time I got home, I
realized I'd bought the adult stuff by
mistake. And now, wouldn't you know, I
can't find the receipt. I was wondering --
could I maybe exchange it anyway ...
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, KITCHEN - DAY
Erin feeds Beth her medicine, feeling miserable about it.
ERIN
Just remember. No matter what your Mamma
does, lying and stealing is real bad. I
don't ever wanna hear you doing something
like that ...
On the table beside her sit the classifieds. Row after row
of want ads circled, then X-'d out in red. A WATER BUG
crawls across the edge of the paper.
ERIN
... Cause there's no excuse for it, you hear
me? No excuse at all.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ED'S OFFICE - DAY
Midday. Ed enters with a cup of coffee in his hand. As he
heads to his desk, he trips on a box of files. Coffee
sloshes out of his cup, onto his shirt.
ED
Damn it!
(calling out)
Brenda!
She pops her head in.
BRENDA
Yeah?
He grabs a tissue, swabs his shirt, then kicks at the box.
ED
What the hell is this doing here?
BRENDA
It's those files you asked for.
ED
I didn't mean for you to leave them in the
middle of the floor. Jesus. Look at me.
What do I have this afternoon?
BRENDA
Nothing you can't show up for with a stain.
As Ed checks his reflection in the glass wall of his office,
he notices, on the other side:
ERIN, standing in the middle of the secretaries' area, in a
miniskirt and leather bustier, talking to MARIO, the firm's
mentally challenged office boy. Mario heads away from her.
ED
What's she doing here?
BRENDA
Who?
Ed goes to his office door and waves Mario over.
ED
Hey -- Mario -- what's she doing here?
MARIO
She works here.
Ed looks back at her -- what the hell?
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, MAIN ROOM - DAY
The support staff -- mostly middle-aged women -- are all
stealing glances at Erin. Ed comes up to her, all friendly.
ED
Erin! How's it going?
Up close, the wear and tear of worry show on her face.
ERIN
You never called me back. I left messages.
ED
You did? Wow, sorry about that.
(beat)
Listen, Mario's a little not so bright. He
seems to think that you said --
ERIN
There's two things I can't stand, Mr. Masry.
Being ignored, and being lied to. You did
both.
Glances skitter between the secretaries -- get a load of
this. Ed lowers his voice.
ED
I never lied. I may have miscalculated --
that happens sometimes, but --
ERIN
You said things would be fine, and they're
not.
ED
I'm sorry about that. Really. But --
ERIN
I don't need pity. I need a paycheck. And
I've looked, but when you've spent the last
six years raising babies, it's real hard to
convince someone to give you a job that pays
worth a damn. So I figure, since you're the
one who said I was gonna be okay, you should
be the one to hire me.
Ed sees everyone watching him, listening.
ED
I'd love to help, Erin, but I'm sorry, I
have a full staff right now, so --
He starts to escort her out, but she stays put.
ERIN
Bullshit. If you had a full staff, you'd
have time to return your damn phone calls.
She's backing him into a corner here. He shifts gears.
ED
Okay, look. If you really want to apply for
a job here, you can do it the way everyone
else does. Send in a rÈsumÈ, make an --
ERIN
I'm not everyone else, Mr. Masry. I'm
someone you made promises to that you didn't
deliver on. I trusted you. With my kids'
well-being. Now, I'm smart, and I'm hard-
working, and I'll do anything. But if you
think I'm leaving here without a job, you
got another thing coming.
Ed glances around the room. Not a whole lot of options here.
He looks back at Erin.
ED
No benefits.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, FILE ROOM - DAY
A tight office lined with file cabinets and shelves. ANNA,
the humorless file clerk, is showing Erin around.
ANNA
... what we do in here is keep track of all
the case files. That way, at any time, we
can find out a case's status -- where it is
in the office, stuff like that. We file 'em
all here, alphabetically --
ERIN
Oh, hell.
(beat)
I'm dyslexic.
ANNA
That's a joke, right?
Erin shakes her head, no. Great, thinks Anna.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, MAIN ROOM - DAY
As Anna shows Erin around the office, they pass JANE, the
bitter office manager, and Brenda, at the coffee area.
JANE
Just last week, he told my sister we weren't
hiring.
BRENDA
What's your sister look like?
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ED'S OFFICE - NIGHT
Ed is packing up his office. Erin sticks her head in.
ERIN
Mr. Masry?
He turns, sees her.
ED
Yeah?
ERIN
I was wondering -- could you tell me who I'd
talk to about maybe getting an advance on my
paycheck? Just -- for the weekend.
ED
Jane's the office manager. She handles
payroll and petty cash. But she leaves early
on Fridays.
ERIN
Oh. Okay. That's okay.
Ed looks at her a moment, sees that it's far from okay.
ED
Oh, for Christ's sake ...
He takes out his wallet, looks in.
ED
All I have is hundreds.
ERIN
I don't wanna take your money, Mr. Masry.
ED
Bullshit, you don't.
He slaps a hundred in her hand and leaves. When he's gone,
she looks at the bill -- her life raft -- and gives it a
great big kiss.
EXT. BABYSITTER'S HOUSE - NIGHT
Erin is at the door, taking Beth from the BABYSITTER, a
shabby, unkempt-looking woman in her 40's. Katie and Matt
pull on their backpacks and troop out of the sitter's house.
EXT. SUPERMARKET - NIGHT
Erin is leaving the store, carrying Beth in one arm and a bag
of groceries in the other. Katie and Matt are each carrying
a bag of groceries as well. They are all singing and moving
with the jaunty step of the newly carefree. Katie spots a
flower display outside the store.
KATIE
Mommy, can I get a flower?
ERIN
Sweetheart, you can get a whole big bunch.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, MATT AND KATIE'S ROOM - NIGHT
A small room with Salvation Army furniture. A BUNCH OF
DAISIES is propped in a Ragu jar on Katie's bedside table.
Matt and Katie are asleep in bed. Erin looks down at them,
smiles, then kisses them good-night.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, HALLWAY - NIGHT
Erin comes out of the bedroom and softly closes the door.
But just as the handle clicks into place, the house is filled
with the DEAFENING ROAR of a MOTORCYCLE, REVVING and REVVING.
It sounds as if it's gonna drive through the wall.
EXT. ERIN'S HOUSE - NIGHT
Erin steps out onto her front stoop and looks over at what
used to be Mrs. Morales's house. A few MOTORCYCLES are
parked on the lawn; A FEW BIKERS are drinking beer on the
stoop; and one asshole is on his bike, REVVING HIS ENGINE.
ERIN
Hey!
But of course he can't hear her. She walks over to him,
stands right in his line of vision.
ERIN
HEY!
He sees her and kills the engine. Everything about GEORGE
HALABY is tough -- his denim, his leather, his bike, his long
hair. Everything but his eyes, which twinkle like Santa's.
GEORGE
Well, hello to you, darlin'.
ERIN
What the hell do you think you're doing,
making all that Goddamn noise?
GEORGE
Just introducing myself to the neighbors.
ERIN
Well, I'm the neighbors. There, now we're
introduced, so you can shut the fuck up.
The guys on the porch chuckle. Erin turns and starts back to
her house. George hops off his bike and follows her.
GEORGE
Ooh, now, see, if I'da known there was a
beautiful woman next door, I'da done this
different. Let's start over. My name's
George. What's yours?
ERIN
Just think of me as the person next door who
likes it quiet, and we'll get along fine.
GEORGE
Now, don't be like that. Tell you what.
How about if I take you out on a date to
apologize for my rudeness?
Erin shakes her head in disbelief and keeps walking.
GEORGE
Come on. Gimme your number, I'll call you
up proper and ask you out and everything.
She stops at her porch, turns to him.
ERIN
You want my number?
GEORGE
I do.
ERIN
Which number do you want, George?
GEORGE
You got more than one?
ERIN
Shit, yeah. I got numbers coming out of
my ears. Like, for instance, ten.
GEORGE
Ten?
ERIN
Sure. That's one of my numbers. It's how
many months old my little girl is.
GEORGE
You got a little girl?
ERIN
Yeah. Sexy, huh? And here's another: five.
That's how old my other daughter is. Seven
is my son's age. Two is how many times I
been married and divorced. You getting all
this? 16 is the number of dollars in my
bank account. 454-3943 is my phone number.
And with all the other numbers I gave you,
I'm guessing zero is the number of times
you're gonna call it.
She turns and heads inside. He calls out after her:
GEORGE
How the hell do you know your bank balance
right off the top of your head like that?
See, that impresses me.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, RECEPTION AREA - DAY
Morning. Erin walks in, wearing her usual garb. She passes
the coffee area, where Jane, Brenda, and Anna are milling.
Brenda sees her, gives Anna a nudge. They both check out her
short hem. Anna nudges Jane, who looks as well. Erin
glances over just in time to see all three of them staring at
her judgementally. She stops in her tracks and stares back.
ERIN
Y'all got something you wanna discuss?
The women go back to stirring their coffees. Erin walks on.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ED'S OFFICE - DAY
Ed is walking into his office with a coffee cup in his hand
when he trips over the same box of files again.
ED
Damn it!
(calling out)
Brenda!
(no answer)
BRENDA!
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, FILE ROOM - DAY
Erin is alone, filing as she talks on the phone.
ERIN
How long's she been crying like that? ...
Well, she's got that tooth coming in --
Ed appears in the door, carrying the box of files.
ERIN
Give her a cold washcloth to suck on --
(sees Ed)
I gotta go -- there's a clean one in that
bag -- I'll check back in a bit.
(hangs up)
Sorry. My kid --
ED
Where's Anna?
ERIN
Out to lunch with the girls.
ED
Oh. Huh.
(beat)
Well, look, I got this file I need valued.
Real estate thing. A lady has some property
next to a PG&E plant that PG&E wants to buy.
I need to know what to ask for it.
He plunks the box of files on her desk. She stares at it,
with no idea of how to go about that.
ERIN
Oh. Okay.
He sees her staring at the box.
ED
You do know how to do that, don't you?
ERIN
Yeah. I got it. No problem.
ED
Good.
Ed heads out, but pauses before leaving.
ED
You're a girl.
ERIN
Excuse me?
ED
How come you're not at lunch with the girls?
You're a girl.
ERIN
I guess I'm not the right kind.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, FILE ROOM - NIGHT
Erin is at her desk, staring bewildered at the files from the
box Ed gave her, which are now spread across her desktop.
She sees Anna packing up her things, to leave.
ERIN
Anna? With this real-estate valuing stuff -
- could you remind me, cause I'm a little
confused about how exactly we do that.
ANNA
(exasperated)
Erin, you've been here three weeks. If you
don't know how to do your job by now, I am
not about to do it for you.
EXT. ERIN'S HOUSE - NIGHT
Katie and Matt are running up to the house. Erin follows,
toting Beth under one arm and the box of documents under the
other. She steps on another water bug.
ERIN
Ugh.
As she wipes the bug guts off the bottom of her shoe:
GEORGE (O.S.)
Hey, neighbor, wanna beer?
She spots George on his stoop, with a six-pack beside him.
ERIN
No.
GEORGE
C'mon. I bought 'em for you, to make up for
that night.
ERIN
Return 'em. Maybe you'll get your money
back.
He gets up and follows her to her house.
GEORGE
Now, why're you giving me such a hard time?
I'm just trying to be a good neighbor.
Erin turns to him. The kids are waiting at the door.
ERIN
I had a good neighbor, George. She was 60
and Mexican and she watched my kids for
free. Something tells me you're not gonna
be able to measure up to that.
GEORGE
You need help with your kids? I could
probably do that.
George reaches out and grabs the box from under her arm.
ERIN
I'm not gonna leave my kids with you.
GEORGE
Why not?
ERIN
Cause I don't even know you.
GEORGE
Yeah, and whose fault is that?
He's got a point there. After a beat:
GEORGE
What, you got so many friends in this world,
you don't have use for one more?
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
George is on the floor with Matt and Katie, playing War.
Katie points to the Harley emblem on his leather jacket.
KATIE
What's that stand for?
GEORGE
That's for Harley Davidson. The best damn
motorcycle ever made.
Erin comes in from the kitchen.
ERIN
And if I catch either of you anywhere near
one, I'll knock you silly. Go on to bed,
now -- I'll come tuck you in in a minute.
They get up ...
GEORGE
Night.
KATIE/MATT
Night.
... and head into bed. George starts cleaning up the cards.
GEORGE
Great kids.
Erin bends down to help him.
ERIN
Yeah. I'm probably ruining them.
GEORGE
How?
ERIN
I'm never here. I gotta leave 'em with this
weird sitter all afternoon who costs a
fortune and smells like chicken fat.
GEORGE
I was serious before, you know. If you need
someone to keep an eye on them -- after
school or something -- I don't have a job
now, so I'm around in the afternoons.
ERIN
Great. Another deadbeat.
GEORGE
I'm not a deadbeat. I work when I need to.
ERIN
Yeah? And what do you do the rest of the
time, live off your trust fund?
GEORGE
I do construction, which pays real good.
And I make it last by living cheap.
ERIN
(with a little laugh)
I hope that's not supposed to impress me.
GEORGE
Are you this hard on everyone who tries to
help you?
ERIN
It's been a while. Maybe I'm just out of
practice.
GEORGE
Then lemme remind you, the polite thing is
to say, thank you, that's a real nice offer,
I don't mind taking you up on it.
ERIN
Why in the hell would you want to watch my
kids?
GEORGE
Cause I like kids. I like hanging out with
them.
ERIN
Right.
She starts cleaning up the cards.
GEORGE
I do. I like how they keep it all simple,
you know? They don't get all complicated
about life, like grown-ups do. A bicycle
and an ice cream cone -- boom, done, they're
happy.
Erin thinks about the offer.
ERIN
You're around every afternoon?
GEORGE
Yup. Usually working on my bike.
(she's tempted)
No big deal. If it doesn't work out, you
can send 'em back to the chicken fat lady.
Tempting. Erin looks him over.
ERIN
This isn't gonna get you laid, you know.
GEORGE
(with a laugh)
Yeah, we'll just see about that, won't we?
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, ERIN'S BEDROOM - NIGHT
The wee hours. Erin's in a t-shirt, sitting on her mattress
on the floor. The paperwork from the box is now spread all
over the floor around her. She's reading a letter.
CLOSE ON THE LETTER
It's from PG&E, to Donna and Peter Irving. We see the
phrases, "purchase your house ...", "fair market value ..."
CLOSE ON ANOTHER DOCUMENT
It's a list of comparable house sales in the area. Owner,
cost; owner, cost. Every house is in the $65,000 range.
From another room, she hears the sound of BETH CRYING. Still
reading the file, Erin gets up and goes into:
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, BETH'S BEDROOM - NIGHT
Still reading, Erin gets Beth out of her crib. Beth quiets.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, ERIN'S BEDROOM - NIGHT
Erin lies down on the mattress and rests Beth on her chest.
She sets down the file she was reading and picks up another.
CLOSE ON THE FILE
It contains a letter from a Dr. Howard Reeves. The first
paragraph contains the phrase "... medical examination of
Donna and Peter Irving ..."
Toward the end of the letter, there are two columns. One is
headed: "IN RANGE". The other: "OUT OF RANGE". Under that
head appear the following: "lymphocytes, T-lymphocytes,
natural killer cells, T Helpers, T8 suppresser cells".
Erin stares at it, confused.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, COFFEE AREA - DAY
Erin is talking to Jane, who's pouring herself coffee.
ERIN
It was in this real estate file I'm valuing.
And -- see, I know they're the medical
records from the people selling the house --
but it talks about things like lymphocytes
and T8 suppressers.
Erin sees Ed pass behind Jane. She lowers her voice, so he
won't see her asking for help.
ERIN
I mean, it's not a problem or anything, but
-- I'm just a little unclear on what those
things are. I thought maybe you'd know.
JANE
What do I look like, Erin? A library?
And Jane walks away with her coffee.
EXT. UCLA MAIN LIBRARY - DAY
Large. Looming. Very establishment. Through the windows,
we see Erin at the desk, talking to a LIBRARIAN. She has the
file in her hands. Over this:
ROSALIND (O.S.)
Masry & Vititoe, can I help you?
ERIN (O.S.)
Hi, Rosalind, this is Erin. Brockovich.
From the file room? I was wondering if you
could tell Mr. Masry that I'm following up
on that real estate thing out of the office.
The librarian gives her directions to somewhere else.
EXT. UCLA MEDICAL LIBRARY - DAY
Smaller, but still establishment. Erin's Hyundai pulls into
the parking lot.
INT. UCLA MEDICAL LIBRARY - DAY
Erin is at the reference desk, eating a candy bar while she
talks to the LIBRARIAN. He checks something on the computer.
A couple of WHITE-COATED MEDICAL STUDENTS pass her, double-
taking. They don't see many like her around here.
INT. UCLA SCIENCE BUILDING, HALLWAY - DAY
A long, academic hallway lit by fluorescents. Erin gets off
an elevator and heads down the hall. She finds a door with a
nameplate that reads "Jim Paulsen, Epidemiology" and KNOCKS.
The door opens and DR. JIM PAULSEN appears. He's a classic
scientist: unruly hair, thick glasses. Nothing like Erin has
ever shown up at his door. He reels at the sight of her.
ERIN
Dr. Paulsen?
PAULSEN
Yes?
ERIN
Hi, I'm Erin Brockovich. I was just over in
the library there, asking a mess of
questions about -- I guess they call it
epidemiology? -- and the fella there told me
to find you, cause you know all about it.
PAULSEN
(suspicious)
Is this a joke? Did Baxter put you up to
this?
ERIN
Who's Baxter?
PAULSEN
He did, didn't he? Baxter!
BAXTER, another scientist, leans out of a door down the hall.
BAXTER
Yeah?
Baxter and Erin look at each other. No recognition, of
course. Paulsen is immediately embarrassed.
PAULSEN
Oh. Oh.
ERIN
No one put me up to anything. I was just
hoping I could ask you a couple questions.
PAULSEN
(mortified)
Of course! Oh, gosh, of course --
INT. PAULSEN'S OFFICE - DAY
Orderly chaos. Dr. Paulsen, still recovering, has Erin's
file in his hands. Erin is sitting across from him.
PAULSEN
Well, look, there isn't a ton of information
here, but from what there is, I'd say that
these two people here -- what are their
names? Shanna and Ashley?
ERIN
Right, I guess those are the kids --
PAULSEN
They've both got some immune system problem.
Can't say what from, whether it's viral or
genetic or what, but something's wrong. And
these guys -- Donna and Peter --
ERIN
Their parents, I'm pretty sure.
PAULSEN
Well, from what this stuff says, I'd say
they both have some form of cancer.
Wow. That's more serious than Erin was expecting.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, KITCHEN - DAY
CLOSE ON THE FILE on the kitchen counter. The Irvings' phone
number is written on the front. A PHONE IS RINGING.
ERIN (O.S.)
Whoa, whoa! Easy, easy, easy --
WIDEN to see Erin, phone to her ear, grabbing a carton of
juice from Matt and Katie, who are fighting over it at the
table. Just as she takes it from them, the phone picks up.
DONNA'S VOICE (O.S.)
Hi! You've reached the Irvings. Leave a
message and we'll get back to you just as
soon as we can. Bye-bye.
BEEP. Erin thinks a bit, then hangs up and looks at the
file. Scrawled on the cover is the Irvings' address, in
Hinkley, California.
EXT. L.A. FREEWAY - DAY
The beat-up old Hyundai heads east out of L.A. DISCO MUSIC
blares from its speakers.
EXT. HINKLEY, CA - DAY
This is a dry, desolate part of California. No downtown, no
community. Just tract after tract of arid farmland, with
small, bland, unprotected ranch home cropping up out of the
landscape like occasional tombstones.
A beat-up old sign on the road reads: "HINKLEY, CA. POP: "
but the corner where the number would be has broken off.
As a gust of wind lifts dust from the fields, Erin turns onto
Community Boulevard, the main road that cuts through Hinkley.
INT. ERIN'S HYUNDAI - DAY
Erin looks around. The house she's passing has been razed.
A heap of lumber and wires in the middle of the property.
As she checks the piece of paper with Donna's address, she
drives by the PG&E COMPRESSOR STATION, a massive gray
structure of pipes, chimneys and ladders, set way back from
the road. Erin passes it without noticing it.
She stops at an intersection. The house on the corner has
been boarded up with plywood. Erin notices it -- depressing
-- then turns the corner onto Donna's street.
EXT. DONNA IRVING'S HOUSE - DAY
A generic ranch home standing all alone in the middle of
nothing. There's a pool out back and a chain link fence
hugging the property. No landscaping. Dull, but clean. A
few BOTTLES OF SPRING WATER wait by the door.
The Hyundai pulls into the driveway and stops. Erin gets
out. As she heads up to the door, her spike heels sink into
the dirt. She rings the bell. It has a melody chime.
DONNA IRVING opens the door. She's 35, petite, with a
scrappy, high-strung manner. She's wearing tight jeans, and
her dark curls are piled on top of her head.
ERIN
Hi. Donna Irving?
DONNA
Yes?
ERIN
I'm Erin Brockovich, from Masry & Vititoe?
DONNA
(a little surprised)
You're a lawyer?
ERIN
Hell, no. I hate lawyers. I just work for
them. You got a minute?
INT. THE IRVINGS' HOUSE, LIVING ROOM - DAY
The house is furnished with little money, but lots of care.
Erin's on a plaid couch, in a sea of needlepoint pillows.
Out back, two GIRLS, ages 9 and 11, are playing in a pool.
ERIN
This is a real nice place you got here.
DONNA (O.S.)
Well it oughta be, with all the work I put
into it.
She comes out from the kitchen with a tray of iced tea.
DONNA
I added air conditioning, put in the pool,
made all those pillows by hand ...
ERIN
Yeah? I should learn to do stuff like that.
They make the place feel real homey.
Donna corrects the positioning on a couple of pillows.
DONNA
Thank you. I think so too. That's why I'm
being such a stickler on this house price
thing. I don't mean to be a pain in PG&E's
backside, especially after all they've done
for Hinkley, but I look around here and I
think, if they want this place, they're
gonna have to pay for it. And I don't just
mean pay for the house; I'd like them to pay
me for the trouble of starting over.
ERIN
Right.
DONNA
Cause first you gotta move, then there's
decorating, and if the windows aren't the
same size, you know -- you're making all new
curtains. Honest to God, I don't know if I
have the energy. You know, I've been sick.
Me and Peter both have.
ERIN
Yeah, I'm real glad you brought that up. I
was going through your file here, and I ran
into these medical records. They kinda
surprised me --
This would be the perfect opportunity for many to get self-
pitying. But not Donna. Life's handed her a shitload of
lemons, and darned if she hasn't made a shitload of lemonade.
DONNA
I know. They're more than a bit unusual.
See, two years ago, Pete got Hodgkin's
disease. That's a kind of cancer --
ERIN
Yeah, I'm real sorry to hear that.
DONNA
Thank you. It's in remission now, thank the
Lord, but you never know. And then while
that's going on, I end up having to have a
hysterectomy. Plus a whole mess of lumps
removed from my breasts. All benign so far,
but still, no matter how positive you stay,
an operation can still take it out of you.
ERIN
I'll say. Holy moley.
DONNA
So the whole idea of selling the house --
don't get me wrong, I'd be glad to move to
some better place, but if they aren't gonna
pay us properly, I just don't see the point.
ERIN
Yeah, I can see that.
(beat)
I guess the only thing that confused me is -
- not that your medical problems aren't
important, but -- how come the files about
them are in with all the real estate stuff?
Donna tops off their iced teas.
DONNA
Are you kidding? With how our lives are, if
I start subdividing files, I'll be sunk. I
just kept all PG&E correspondence in one
place.
ERIN
Right, but -- I'm sorry, I don't see why you
were corresponding with PG&E about it in the
first place.
DONNA
Well, they paid for the doctor's visit.
ERIN
They did?
DONNA
You bet. Paid for a check-up for the whole
family. And not like with insurance where
you pay, then wait a year to be reimbursed,
either. They just took care of it. Just
like that. We never even saw a bill.
ERIN
Wow. Why would they do that?
DONNA
Cause of the chromium.
ERIN
The what?
DONNA
The chromium. Well, that's what kicked this
whole thing off.
INT. IRVING HOUSE, GARAGE - DAY
CLOSE ON A BOX, with "CHROM INFO" scrawled on it.
DONNA (O.S.)
PG&E came around a few years ago, told us
they put chromium in our well by mistake.
And since we shouldn't have to drink it if
we don't want to, they gave us free spring
water and offered to buy our house.
WIDEN to see Donna pulling the box down into the room.
ERIN
What's chromium?
DONNA
It's a chemical they used over at that
compressor station up the road there.
ERIN
Well, hell, maybe that's why you all have
been so sick --
DONNA
I thought the same thing, right off the bat.
That's why we went to see the doctor. But
hunh-uh. Turns out one's got nothing to do
with the other.
She rifles through the box.
DONNA
This is the info they gave us. You'll see
if you look through it, chromium's good for
you. When I saw what they charged for it at
the health-food stores, I about fainted.
She hands Erin a printed fact sheet. Erin scans it.
ERIN
Seems like an awful big coincidence -- your
water being messed with and you being so
sick.
DONNA
Not around here. This is a rough part of
the world. Hard times, not a lot of money,
not a lot of luck.
(beat)
It's a challenge, staying healthy in a town
like this. Heck, even our dogs up and die.
INT. ERIN'S CAR - NIGHT
Erin's driving away from Donna's house. A street lamp throws
light on the box of chromium documents in the passenger seat.
She gets to an intersection and looks across the street at
the massive COMPRESSOR STATION. Six stories high, lit up
like a Christmas tree, with all sizes of PIPES criss-crossing
the outside and GIANT COOLING TOWERS sticking up out of it.
Far more massive than anything else in town, it looms over
the horizon like the Capitol in D.C. or St. Peter's in Rome.
Erin takes a long look at the compressor station, then turns
onto Community Boulevard and drives away.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, KITCHEN - DAY
Erin is holding Beth, making her a bottle, when she hears
NOISES coming from outside. She follows them.
EXT. ERIN'S HOUSE - DAY
Erin opens the door to find George attaching bars to her
windows.
ERIN
What're you doing?
GEORGE
Better safe than sorry.
She shakes her head, amused by his persistence.
ERIN
You want some coffee, George?
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, KITCHEN - NIGHT
George follows Erin in.
GEORGE
I'm gonna put a dead bolt on your front
door, too. This isn't exactly the safest
neighborhood in the world, you know.
ERIN
Thanks for reminding me.
GEORGE
I guess we get what we pay for, huh?
Erin pours him some coffee, hands it to him.
ERIN
You think it could make you sick, living in
a place like this?
GEORGE
What do you mean?
George settles in, helps himself to sugar.
ERIN
I was talking to this lady -- she and her
husband both got cancer, and she thinks it's
cause they live in a bad neighborhood. You
think that's possible? That living in a bad
neighborhood could give you cancer?
George laughs a little at the thought.
GEORGE
Man, I hope not. You got enough damn
problems.
But Erin's still mulling it over.
EXT. NORTHRIDGE, ERIN'S BLOCK - DAY
Erin clips down the block in short-shorts and high-heeled
boots. Up ahead a few of DOWN-ON-THEIR-LUCK MEN are out on a
stoop, drinking their breakfast. Erin approaches them.
ERIN
Hi, y'all -- how you doing today?
MAN 1
Hangin' in, baby. How about yourself?
ERIN
I'm okay, I'm just fine. I was wondering --
could I maybe ask you a couple questions?
She settles down on the stoop with them for a chat.
INT. PAULSEN'S OFFICE - DAY
Dr. Paulsen and Erin are sitting, talking. He's thrilled to
have her back in his office.
ERIN
... and when I realized our area's just as
bad as Hinkley, I thought maybe my neighbors
are all sick too. So I went and asked.
PAULSEN
(surprised)
You did?
Erin digs a pad of paper out of her bag.
ERIN
Uh-huh. Spent the last few days knocking on
doors. And you know what? They're not.
(reads from the pad)
I mean, they got problems, but none of this
cancer stuff. And their pets are fine. So
I don't know -- I just can't shake the
feeling that it wasn't no multivitamin they
put in the water.
PAULSEN
Well, if you're talking about contamination,
you're getting out of my area of expertise.
Let me give you the name of a toxicologist
friend of mine over at USC.
Paulsen reaches for a notepad, scrawls on it.
INT. UCLA MEDICAL BUILDING, HALLWAY - DAY
Paulsen is seeing Erin out of his office.
PAULSEN
I gotta say, Erin -- first time I saw you, I
did not peg you as the kind to go off and
conduct her own epidemiological study.
ERIN
Don't go telling anyone. It'll ruin my
reputation.
EXT. USC CAMPUS - DAY
Erin towers over DAVID FRANKEL as she walks across campus
with him. He's the grittier variety of scientist: Patagonia,
Birkenstocks, bushy beard. He's as dry as dust, and as much
as Dr. Paulsen responded to Erin, Frankel barely notices her.
FRANKEL
What kind of chromium is it?
ERIN
There's more than one kind?
FRANKEL
Yes. There's straight-up chromium -- does
all kinds of good things for the body.
There's chrom 3, which is fairly benign, and
then there's chrom 6, hexavalent chromium,
which, depending on the amounts, can be very
harmful.
ERIN
Harmful, like -- how? What would you get?
FRANKEL
With repeated exposure to toxic levels --
God, anything, really -- respiratory
disease, liver failure, heart failure,
reproductive failure, chronic headaches,
bone or organ deterioration -- plus, of
course, any type of cancer.
He rattles it off coolly. Just facts. Erin's stunned.
ERIN
So that stuff -- it kills people.
FRANKEL
Oh, yeah. Definitely. Highly toxic, highly
carcinogenic. Bad, bad stuff.
ERIN
Well, how do I find out what kind of
chromium is up in Hinkley?
FRANKEL
Have you been to the water board?
ERIN
Hunh-uh. What's that?
FRANKEL
Every county has one. They keep records of
anything water-related within their
jurisdiction. You should be able to find
something there.
ERIN
County water board. All righty, thanks.
FRANKEL
Good luck.
(beat)
Oh -- I wouldn't advertise what you're
looking for if I were you ...
His line continues over:
EXT. LAHOTAN REGIONAL WATER BOARD - DAY
Erin's Hyundai pulls up and stops in a cloud of dust.
FRANKEL (O.S.)
... Incriminating records have a way of
disappearing when people smell trouble.
Erin hops out, checks her reflection in the side-view mirror,
then heads into the building.
INT. LAHOTAN REGIONAL COUNTY WATER BOARD - DAY
Drab, government-issue. ROSS, the bored desk clerk is
thumbing his way through ROAD & TRACK. Just as he stops to
stare at a motor oil ad in which a buxom blonde is straddling
the hood of a car, the huge door opens and Erin enters.
ERIN
Whew! Goddamn, that's a heavy door.
Ross looks up. It's like the girl from the ad walked right
off the page. He jumps up, to help her with the door.
ROSS
Oh, hey -- lemme give you a hand there.
ERIN
Thank you very much. Aren't you a
gentleman? Mr. ...
ROSS
Ross.
ERIN
Ross. Real pleased to meet you. I'm Erin.
She smiles. He can't believe his luck.
ROSS
Erin. Cool. What can I do for you, Erin?
ERIN
Well, believe it or not, I am on the prowl
for some water records.
ROSS
(with a laugh)
You come to the right place.
ERIN
(laughing along)
I guess I did.
ROSS
You just tell me what you want to look at
and I'll be glad to dig 'em out for you.
ERIN
I wish I knew. It's for my boss. He's
fighting his water bill, and he wants me to
find all manner of bills from all kinds of
places. The easiest thing would probably be
if I just squeezed back there with you and
poked around myself. Would that be okay?
ROSS
Heck, yeah. Come on back. Just gonna need
you to sign in here --
He hands her a pen. He reads over her shoulder as she signs
her name -- Erin Pattee Brockovich.
ROSS
Pattee? That your middle name?
ERIN
Nope. Maiden.
ROSS
(disappointed)
You're married.
ERIN
Not anymore.
She smiles and winks at him, then goes around the counter
with him and looks at the stacks and stacks of files.
ERIN
Well. Here goes nothing.
She heads down an aisle, reading the spines of the files.
They're all town names -- Barstow, Victorville, Oro Grande,
Helendale -- in no particular order. Finally, Erin spots one
that says Hinkley. She pulls it down.
IN THE FILE
are pages and pages of Xeroxed memoranda, letters, charts,
graphs, handwritten notes. All shoved in willy-nilly.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, MAIN ROOM - DAY
George is watching a football game on TV. He's just put TV
dinners on the floor in front of the Matt and Katie.
MATT
Our mom gives us sandwiches on Fridays.
GEORGE
That's a sandwich.
KATIE
No, it's not!
GEORGE
Sure it is. Here, I'll show you.
He picks up Matt's chicken, tears it in two ...
GEORGE
Most people think a sandwich's gotta have
bread on the outside. Not true. Chicken is
a perfectly good outside for a sandwich.
... then places the broccoli neatly between the halves.
GEORGE
See?
Katie and Matthew look at it, then up at George, and smile.
This guy just might be all right, after all.
EXT. WATER BOARD - NIGHT
It's gotten dark. Erin's Hyundai's still there.
INT. WATER BOARD - NIGHT
Erin is on the floor, her legs stretched out in front of her.
She has a bunch of files open and spread across the floor.
The one in her hand has caught her attention.
INSERT ON THE PAPER
It's a memo titled "CLEAN-UP AND ABATEMENT ORDER" from the
water board to PG&E. Erin is concentrating hard on it,
reading laboriously to herself.
ERIN (O.S.)
"... On December 7, 1987, the discharger
notified the regional board and the San
Bernardino County Environmental Health
Services of the discovery of 0.58 ppm of
hexavalent chromium in an on-site ground
water monitoring well ..."
(beat)
... hexavalent ...
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, RECEPTION - DAY
CLOSE ON A XEROX OF THE ABATEMENT ORDER. WIDEN to see it is
on top of a stack of papers that Erin is carrying as she
enters the office. She has an efficient air about her -- a
sense of purpose.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, FILE ROOM - DAY
Erin swoops in, ready to work, only to find her desk cleared
off. She turns to Anna, who's already hard at work.
ERIN
Where's my stuff?
Anna looks up.
ANNA
Where've you been?
ERIN
What the fuck did you do with my stuff?
ANNA
Don't use language with me --
But Erin's out the door before Anna can finish her sentence.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, JANE'S OFFICE - DAY
JANE is at her desk. Erin barrels in.
ERIN
Someone stole my stuff.
JANE
Nice to see you, Erin. We've missed you.
ERIN
I had photos of my kids, plus a mug --
Jane reaches under her desk for a box, looks through it.
JANE
-- toothbrush, toothpaste, and a pair of
hose. Here.
ERIN
What's going on?
JANE
There may be jobs where you can disappear
for days at a time, but this isn't one of
them. Here, if you don't do the work, you
don't get to stay.
She hands her the box. Erin doesn't take it.
ERIN
I've been working. Shit, that's all I've
been doing. Ask Mr. Masry. He knows.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ED'S OFFICE - DAY
Ed's at his desk, dialing the phone when Erin barrels in.
ERIN
You said to fire me?
He sets down the receiver.
ED
Erin, you've been gone for a week.
ERIN
I left a message. I've been dealing with
that real estate thing. I was gonna write
up a whole damn report and --
ED
That's not how we work here. You don't just
leave a message and take off.
Jane follows her in, still carrying the box of stuff.
ERIN
What am I supposed to do, check in every two
seconds?
JANE
Yes. It's called accountability.
ERIN
I am not talking to you, bitch.
JANE
Excuse me?
ED
Okay, enough --
(beat)
Now, look, Erin -- this incident aside, I
don't think this is the right place for you.
So what I'm gonna do is make a few calls on
your behalf. Find you something else, okay?
ERIN
Don't bother.
She turns to Jane, takes her box, and heads out.
ED
Come on, I'm trying to help here.
ERIN
Bullshit. You're trying to feel less guilty
about firing someone with three kids to
feed. Fuck if I'll help you do that.
And she leaves.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, OUTSIDE ED'S OFFICE - DAY
As Erin heads for the door, pleased glances fly from
secretary to secretary. Erin reaches the door, but can't
open it with the box in her arms. She turns to the room.
ERIN
I don't suppose any one of you cunts could
open the fucking door for me.
EXT. ERIN'S HOUSE - DAY
Erin's Hyundai rumbles to a stop in front of the house. Erin
shoves open the creaky, reluctant door, lifts her box of
stuff off the seat, and gets out.
As she walks around the car and toward the house, she runs
into the MAILMAN. He hands her a packet of mail.
MAILMAN
Here ya go, Miz Brockovich.
Erin looks at the top of the stack. It's the electric bill.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, MAIN ROOM - DAY
Erin enters, puts down the box and stares at the mail.
Bills, bills, and more bills. As she throws them on the
table, she sees George coming out of the kitchen.
ERIN
What are you doing here?
GEORGE
Fixing a leak under your sink.
She heads into the kitchen, weary and irritated.
ERIN
I didn't ask you to do that. Damn it,
George, I don't ask you to do things like
that.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, KITCHEN - DAY
Erin enters, sees all the cleaning stuff from under the sink
is spread around the kitchen floor. A tool box lies open.
ERIN
Great.
GEORGE
I'm gonna clean it up.
Erin gets down on her knees and starts putting things away.
GEORGE
Relax, Erin, I'll do it -- I'm not --
Before he can finish, a huge WATER BUG runs onto Erin's hand.
ERIN
Ugh -- Jesus --
She jumps and brushes it off.
GEORGE
Yeah -- you had a whole family of those
things hanging out back there.
She takes off her shoe and smacks at the bug, missing it.
ERIN
Damn it --
The bug skitters away from her, along the floorboard. Erin
chases it, smacking at it repeatedly, missing it every time.
GEORGE
Don't worry about it, I'll get it later.
But Erin keeps after it, corralling all her frustrations into
killing that one bug.
ERIN
Come here, you little motherfucker --
The bug crawls up onto the table, zipping behind the salt,
the pepper, the napkin holder. Erin keeps after it, BANGING
the table harder and harder with each SMACK of her shoe.
GEORGE
Hey, whoa -- relax --
The salt and pepper skid off the table. The napkins fly from
their holder. Just as Erin's about to nail the bug, it slips
into a crack in the wall and disappears. Erin hurls her shoe
at the crack. It SMASHES into the wall.
ERIN
GOD DAMN IT!
As Erin stands there staring at the wall, her breath starts
to come heavily -- those deep breaths that precede tears.
She slowly slides down into a chair, defeat overcoming her.
ERIN
(almost a whisper)
... God damn it.
She looks around at her for-shit kitchen and starts to cry.
ERIN
What kind of person lives like this? Huh?
What kind of person lets her kids run around
in a house crawling with bugs the size of
housecats?
GEORGE
It's a simple thing. Everybody gets them.
All we gotta do is call an exterminator.
ERIN
I can't call an exterminator. I can't afford
one. God, I can't even afford my phone.
(beat)
I got fired.
GEORGE
What? But you been working so hard --
ERIN
Doesn't matter. Doesn't make one bit of
difference.
(then, fragile)
Oh God, George, how'd this happen to me?
How'd I end up so ... so nothing?
George picks a napkin up off the floor, hands it to her.
GEORGE
You're not nothing, Erin.
ERIN
Well, I'm sure as hell not what I thought I
was gonna be. I was supposed to have one of
those great lives, with everything all laid-
out and perfect. I mean, hell -- I was Miss
Wichita, for God's sakes. Did I tell you
that? You live next door to a real live
beauty queen.
(wipes her nose)
I still got the tiara. I kept it cause I
thought it meant something. I thought it
meant I was gonna do something great with my
life. I thought it proved I was gonna grow
up to be someone.
GEORGE
You are someone.
ERIN
No I'm not. Look at me. I'm not.
GEORGE
You're someone to me.
(beat)
You're someone real special to me.
He takes a step toward her and kneels in front of her, very
close. He takes her shoe from her hand and puts it back on
her foot. Then he takes her hands in his and kisses them.
ERIN
I'm no good, George. I make people
miserable.
But he kisses her anyway. And for the first time in so long,
she feels like something other than a failure. He pulls her
into him, and she lets herself be pulled.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, ERIN'S BEDROOM - DAY
Erin and George are in bed, naked, curled around each other.
GEORGE
Man. Even your earlobes are beautiful.
He kisses one.
ERIN
Don't be too nice to me, okay? It makes me
nervous.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ED'S OFFICE - DAY
Ed is at his desk. The PHONE RINGS. And RINGS. And RINGS.
ED
Brenda!
(no answer)
BRENDA!
Nothing. Ed growls in frustration, then gets the phone.
ED
Yeah, Ed Masry here ... She doesn't work
here anymore. Who's this?
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, KITCHEN - DAY
CLOSE ON THE TABLE, where Beth is bobbing in her baby chair.
On one side of her is a heap of bills with "PAST DUE" and
"PLEASE REMIT" stamped on them. On the other, the well-
thumbed CLASSIFIED SECTION, with circles and X's all over it.
The DOORBELL rings. Erin swoops in and picks up Beth.
ERIN
Come on, baby. Maybe that's Ed McMahon.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, FRONT DOOR - DAY
Erin carries Beth over to the front door, spies through the
peephole, and sees Ed standing there. She opens the door.
ERIN
What are you doing here?
ED
I got an interesting call this afternoon.
It was from a Dr. Frankel.
ERIN
Oh, yeah?
ED
He wanted you to know the legal limit for
hexavalent chromium, is .05 parts per
million. And that at the rate you
mentioned, .58, it could be responsible for
the cancers in that family you asked about.
The Irvings.
ERIN
Well, that was nice of him. Isn't it funny
how some people go out of their way to help
people and others just give 'em the ax?
ED
Look, I'm sorry. You were gone. I just
assumed you were off having fun.
ERIN
Now, why in the hell would you assume that?
ED
I don't know. Maybe cause you look like
someone who has a lot of fun.
ERIN
Boy, are you ever a shitty judge of people.
Ed takes a beat, copping to the charge.
ED
So what's the story on this thing? This
cancer stuff?
ERIN
You wanna know, you gotta hire me back. I
got a lot of bills to pay.
He glares at her. Realizes he has no choice.
ED
Fine.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, LIVING ROOM - LATER
Erin has let Ed in. They're sitting.
ED
But, PG&E told her about the chromium?
ERIN
They told her something, but it can't have
been too specific, cause I talked to her,
and she sure didn't think her water was bad.
ED
So what made you think it was?
ERIN
It doesn't take a genius to look at those
medical records and think something's wrong.
ED
What medical records?
ERIN
The ones in the box of files.
(off Ed's blank look)
The box of files? The one from your office?
ED
I didn't see any medical records in there.
ERIN
Boy, you musta really fine-tooth-combed it
then, huh?
(to herself)
And you fired me. Jesus.
Ed thinks for a moment.
ED
That document you found, the one that says
it was the bad chromium -- you didn't happen
to make a copy did you?
ERIN
Course I did.
ED
Lemme see it, will you?
Before getting it for him, she looks at him, weighs her odds.
ERIN
I want a raise. And benefits. Including
dental.
ED
Look, Erin, this is not the way I do
business, this extortion nonsense.
Erin doesn't budge.
ED
Okay. A 5% raise, and --
ERIN
Ten.
(off his look)
There's a lot of other places I could work.
ED
A ten percent raise and benefits. But
that's it. I'm drawing the line.
She goes to her box of stuff from the office and digs out the
document for him. He scans it.
ED
This is the only thing you found?
ERIN
So far. But that place is a pig sty. I
wouldn't be surprised if there's more.
ED
Find out.
EXT. 10 FREEWAY - DAY
Erin's Hyundai zips along the freeway. "Funky Town" is
blaring from the tinny stereo. Over it:
MATTHEW (O.S.)
I hate this music.
INT. HYUNDAI - DAY
Erin's driving. Matthew's in the front seat. Katie and Beth
(in a car seat) are in the back.
ERIN
There's no way a son of mine hates Funky
Town. It's impossible.
MATTHEW
Well I hate it.
KATIE
I hate it too. I hate this trip.
ERIN
Oh, come on, where's your sense of
adventure? We're going someplace you never
been before.
KATIE
I'm gonna hate it.
MATTHEW
Me too.
She glances at them, frowns a little.
ERIN
You know what I'm realizing for the first
time? You kids are a couple of downers. I
mean, you are the real thing -- a couple of
honest-to-God depresso-types.
(small smile)
Who in the heck raised you, anyway? Some
kind of moron?
Katie smiles a little. She likes this side of her mom.
KATIE
Yeah. A real moron.
ERIN
Some kind of half-wit, no-good, big-haired,
bimbo, I bet.
MATTHEW
(also smiling)
Yeah.
ERIN
Thank God we got you away from her, huh?
By now they're all smiling. Funky Town plays on.
EXT. PG&E COMPRESSOR STATION - DAY
The Hyundai is parked at the entrance to the station, by a
row of dead trees. Erin is standing beside a sign that says
"Private Property. No Trespassing", taking pictures of the
massive structure in the distance. Matthew, Katie, and Beth
are drawing in the dirt with sticks.
ERIN
Stay out of the road. I'll be right back.
She wanders up the drive, onto PG&E property, moving around
the plant, taking pictures of it from every possible angle.
As she wanders over a big, flat, dry field to the side of the
plant, she glances over her shoulder to check on her kids and
notices the trail she made in the dirt has a greenish hue.
She looks at the dirt right her feet. Kicks the ground.
Below the surface, the dirt turns from brown to green. Erin
notes this, then looks back at her kids playing in the dirt.
Worry comes over her face. She heads back to them.
EXT. HINKLEY MART - DAY
The kids are waiting at the car. Erin comes out of the store
with a bottle of water and uses it to rinse off their hands.
EXT. WATER BOARD - DAY
The sound of a BABY CRYING. The Hyundai's parked in front.
MATTHEW (O.S.)
I'm hungry.
INT. WATER BOARD - DAY
Erin is at the Xerox machine, copying a file while she tries
to calm Beth. There's a stack of files on the nearby table.
Matthew and Katie are flopping around on the floor.
ERIN
We'll go eat in a minute. Settle down.
Whining, fussing. Ross goes over to her.
ROSS
You know what, Erin? I got nothing but time
here. Why don't you let me do that for you,
and you can get your kids some dinner.
ERIN
Ross -- you are an absolute angel.
She hands Ross the STACK OF DOCUMENTS.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, BRENDA'S DESK - DAY
Ed comes in in the morning, and without pausing, hands Brenda
a copy of the STACK OF DOCUMENTS, with a Post-it on the top.
ED
Fax these to this number, okay?
BRENDA
All of 'em?
ED
All of them.
He continues into his office and closes the door.
CLOSE ON THE FAX MACHINE LED
Brenda types in the number. The recipient's I.D. comes up on
the LED: PG&E CLAIMS DEPT.
INT. IRVING HOUSE, LIVING ROOM - DAY
Another copy of those DOCUMENTS, now in Donna's hands. She's
on her couch with Erin, reading them. Outside, Donna's two
daughters are playing in the pool. She reads the last page
and looks up at Erin, bewildered.
DONNA
An on-site monitoring well? That means --
ERIN
It was right up on the PG&E property over
there.
DONNA
And you say this stuff, this hexavalent
chromium -- it's poisonous?
ERIN
Yeah.
DONNA
Well -- then it's gotta be a different than
what's in our water, cause ours is okay.
The guys from PG&E told me. They sat right
in the kitchen and said it was fine.
ERIN
I know. But the toxicologist I been talking
to? He gave me a list of problems that can
come from hexavalent chromium exposure. And
everything you all have is on that list.
Donna resists this idea hard.
DONNA
No. Hunh-uh, see, that's not what the
doctor said. He said one's got absolutely
nothing to do with the other.
ERIN
Right, but -- didn't you say he was paid by
PG&E?
Donna sits quietly, trying to make sense of this. The only
sound is the LAUGHING and SPLASHING from the pool out back.
Then, gradually, Donna realizes what it is she's hearing --
her kids playing in toxic water. She jumps up ...
DONNA
ASHLEY! SHANNA!
... and runs out to the pool. Erin follows her.
EXT. DONNA'S HOUSE - DAY
From the door, Erin watches Donna run to the edge of the pool
in a frantic response to this news.
DONNA
OUT OF THE POOL! BOTH OF YOU, OUT OF THE
POOL, RIGHT NOW!
SHANNA
How come?
DONNA
CAUSE I SAID SO, THAT'S WHY, NOW GET OUT!
OUT! NOW!!!
Erin watches compassionately as Donna flails to get her kids
out of the contaminated water.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ED'S OFFICE - DAY
It's morning. Ed is checking the lie of his tie in his
reflection in the window. Erin is on his couch, high-heeled
legs stretched out in front of her.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, BRENDA'S DESK - CONTINUOUS
Jane is delivering paychecks. When Brenda gets to her desk,
Jane tips her head toward Ed's office, as if to say, check it
out. Brenda peers in and sees Erin.
BRENDA
What's she doing here?
JANE
He hired her back. With a raise.
BRENDA
What?? Why?
JANE
Well, let's see. It's not cause she's
smart, and it's not cause she's
professional. That leaves ...
Brenda's stunned. Takes a beat. Makes assumptions.
BRENDA
And dumb old me thought working hard and
being loyal was the way to get ahead.
INT. ED'S OFFICE - CONTINUOUS
Ed is still checking his reflection.
ED
I'm telling you, the minute Brenda sent the
fax -- I'm talking the second she pressed
that send button -- PG&E claims department
is on the phone to me, scheduling a meeting.
ERIN
So you think we got 'em scared?
ED
It sure as hell sounded like they were
sitting up and taking notice.
Brenda pops her head in, ignores Erin.
BRENDA
David Baum from PG&E is at reception.
Erin feels the chill Brenda's sending her way.
ERIN
Nice to see you again, too, Brenda.
Brenda leaves without acknowledging Erin.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, MAIN ROOM - DAY
Ed and Erin come out and see DAVID BAUM waiting at reception.
Forget law school, this kid looks like he's just out of
twelfth grade. Not a hair on his chin. His suit and shoes
look brand new.
ERIN
Not to question your judgment or anything,
Mr. Masry, but -- that doesn't exactly look
like sitting up and taking notice to me.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, CONFERENCE ROOM - DAY
Ed and Erin are seated across the table from Baum. To say
this kid lacks authority is a gross understatement. He
doesn't talk; he squeaks.
BAUM
... in the interest of putting this whole
thing to rest, PG&E is willing to offer the
Irvings 250,000 dollars for their home.
Ed laughs a little in disbelief.
ED
250,000?
BAUM
In terms of land value out in Hinkley, Mr.
Masry, we feel it's a more than fair price.
ED
What about in terms of medical expenses?
250,000 doesn't come close to what this
family's gonna have to spend on doctors.
BAUM
I understand they've had a bad run of luck,
health-wise, and they have my sympathies.
But that's not PG&E's fault.
ED
You're kidding, right?
(Baum doesn't answer)
Look at these readings for Christ's sake.
PG&E's own technicians documented toxic
levels of hexavalent chromium in those test
wells, on numerous occasions.
Ed shoves them across the table. Baum doesn't look at them.
ED
Everything the Irvings have had is a proven
reaction to exposure to hexavalent chromium.
They've had ...
He stalls a moment. Erin jumps in.
ERIN
-- breast cysts, uterine cancer, Hodgkin's
disease, immune deficiencies, asthma,
chronic nosebleeds.
Despite their persuasiveness, Baum parrots what is obviously
the party line:
BAUM
A million things could have caused those
problems. Poor diet, bad genes,
irresponsible lifestyle. Our offer is final
and more than fair.
ED
Wait a minute -- I thought we were
negotiating here.
BAUM
250,000 is all I'm authorized to offer.
Ed looks across at this pissant little kid.
ED
(to himself)
Jesus Christ.
(he stands, to leave)
I will present your offer to my clients. I
doubt they'll accept it.
As Ed starts out:
BAUM
Mr. Masry, before you go off on some
crusade, you might want to remember who it
is you're dealing with here. PG&E is a 28-
billion dollar corporation.
ED
(containing his anger)
Thanks. I'll keep it in mind.
And Ed leaves the conference room. Erin follows him out.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, MAIN ROOM - DAY
Erin follows Ed as he stomps back to his office.
ERIN
At least they made an offer.
ED
That wasn't an offer. A million would've
been an offer. When they send the God damn
mail clerk down to jerk me off, waste my
time, it's a fuck you.
ERIN
I don't get why they'd do that.
ED
Because they can. You heard that kid --
they have 28 billion dollars at their
disposal. They can afford to waste all the
time in the world.
ERIN
And you can't?
ED
What, you think I'm made of money?
Behind them, Baum steps out of the conference room.
BAUM
Hey, you know where I can get a cab? My
plane leaves Burbank in forty-five minutes.
Ed turns and looks at him. He gets a tiny smile.
ED
Tell you what, why don't you go on over to
reception, tell them I said Mario should
take you to the airport.
BAUM
Hey, excellent. Thanks.
Baum heads out to the reception area.
ERIN
Mr. Masry, Mario gets lost going to the
bathroom. They'll be driving around the
valley for hours.
ED
(gleeful)
Yeah. Isn't that a shame?
She watches him go into his office, impressed. Big smile.
ERIN
Well I'll be God damned.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, OUTSIDE ED'S OFFICE - NIGHT
End of the day. Most everyone has left. Erin is at her new
work space near Ed's office. She's poring over a fat file of
documents. ROSALIND wanders by with her coat on.
ROSALIND
You've been reading for hours.
ERIN
I'm a slow reader, on account of the fact
that I look at the word "dog" and see "god".
ROSALIND
Hey, just so long as you see Him.
Rosalind turns on Erin's desk lamp and heads out.
Outside the big glass office doors, Rosalind stops to talk to
a lost-looking COUPLE IN THEIR MID-30's. These are MANDY and
TOM BROWN. He's a security guard uniform, with an envelope
under his arm. Rosalind points to Erin. The Browns enter
the office and approach her.
MANDY
Excuse me, are you Erin Brockovich?
ERIN
Yeah. Who are you?
TOM
I'm Tom Brown. This is my wife Mandy. We
used to live across the street from the
Irvings. PG&E bought our house last year.
INT. ERIN'S DESK - LATER
CLOSE ON photos of chickens, each with a twisted, limp neck.
TOM
It's called wry neck. It's when they're
born without any muscles in the neck.
WIDEN to see Erin looking at them with Tom and Mandy.
ERIN
Wow. How many were born like this?
TOM
Twelve, maybe thirteen.
MANDY
When Donna told us about you, and what you
told her about the chromium, we figured that
might have something to do with this, too.
ERIN
It sure could, yeah. Thanks a lot.
She tucks them into a file, as if that's it.
MANDY
There's something else, too.
ERIN
What?
TOM
Well. Mandy here's had nine miscarriages.
ERIN
Are you kidding? My God --
MANDY
I know. It's an awful lot.
ERIN
I'm surprised Donna didn't say anything.
TOM
She doesn't know. No one does. It's not
something you want to talk about, you know?
MANDY
I figured it musta been something I did,
like when I smoked marijuana, maybe. Or
took birth control pills. But then Donna
told me you thought this chromium might be
to blame for her problems, so I figured ...
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, MATT AND KATIE'S ROOM - NIGHT
Matt and Katie are in bed, with the light off. Erin comes
in, quietly, in clothes from work.
ERIN
Hey. You guys still awake?
CLOSE ON MATT AND KATIE. They're awake and pissed.
ERIN
Come on, now. No faking. George told me he
just shut out the light a few seconds ago.
They still don't answer. She comes in and sits on a bed.
ERIN
Look, I know you're mad. But the way this
job is, things come up at the last minute,
real important things, and I gotta deal with
them. Now I don't like me missing dinner
any more than you do, but we're all gonna
have to get used to it, cause the fact is,
it's gonna happen sometimes.
KATIE
It happens all the time.
ERIN
That's not true; we had dinner together just
last night.
MATT
You were reading the whole time.
He's got a point there. Erin feels like shit.
ERIN
I'm sorry, pumpkins. I'll try a whole lot
harder to be around, okay? I promise.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, BEDROOM - NIGHT
The room is dark. Erin enters and flops down onto the bed,
exhausted. George is lying on the bed next to her.
GEORGE
If it's any consolation, I love you.
EXT. ROUTE 10, INLAND EMPIRE - DAY
Dry, flat California. Ed's big old Mercedes is toodling down
the freeway, at an overly safe, almost-geriatric speed.
INT. ED'S MERCEDES - DAY
Frank Sinatra is playing on the stereo. Ed is swaying in
time. This is his kind of music. He smiles, looks at Erin.
ED
It's Sinatra's world, we just live in it.
Whatever. Erin glances at the speedometer. Oy. So slow.
His car phone rings. He picks it up.
ED
Hello? ...
(his voice softens)
Hi, babys. Baby's fine. Yes, I did. I
did, too, you just didn't feel it.
He starts swerving across the lane markers. THWACK THWACK
THWACK. Ed doesn't notice. Erin's getting nervous.
ED
You think I could leave without kissing my
babys? Okay, here you go.
He kisses into the phone. Swerves. A car barely misses
them. Erin's eyes widen. Not fun at all.
ED
Bye-bye ... bye-bye ... no, you. Okay,
together. Bye-bye.
He finally hangs up, smiling to himself. Erin clears her
throat.
ERIN
Um -- you mind pulling over? Just -- for a
second?
EXT. FREEWAY - DAY
The Mercedes pulls to a stop on the shoulder. Erin gets out,
walks around to the driver's side. Opens the door.
ERIN
First of all, don't talk baby talk to your
wife in front of me. It really undermines
your authority. And second, I know you're
my boss and all, but you are the worst
fucking driver I've ever seen. Move over or
I quit.
He moves over. She gets in, turns off the Sinatra. They
pull back out onto the freeway in silence.
EXT. MANDY BROWN'S HOUSE - NIGHT
The Mercedes and a truck are parked out front.
PETE (O.S.)
There's something about this whole thing I
don't quite understand, Mr. Masry.
INT. DONNA IRVING'S HOUSE, LIVING ROOM - NIGHT
Donna and Pete Irving, and Mandy and Roy Brown are all
seated, sipping iced tea. While they talk, Erin hands them
all information packets on chromium. Ed is standing in front
of them, a little stiff.
PETE
If PG&E messed with our water, why would
they bother saying anything about it to us?
Why not just keep quiet about it?
ED
To establish a statute of limitations. See,
in a case like this, you only have a year
from the time you first learn about the
problem to file suit. So PG&E figures,
we'll let the cat out of the bag -- tell the
people the water's not perfect; if we can
ride out the year with no one suing, we'll
be in the clear forever.
DONNA
But it was more than a year ago that they
told us --
ED
It's okay. We're not suing. All we're
doing is using this information to get you
a real nice purchase price on your house,
and get you two --
(to the Browns)
-- a comparable retroactive bonus added to
your sale price. This way, and PG&E can
still look good to their shareholders, cause
they're not involved in an ugly lawsuit; all
they're doing is buying a little property.
Roy looks up from his retainer agreement.
ROY
It doesn't say here how much this whole
thing's gonna cost us.
ED
My fee's forty percent of whatever you get
awarded.
Erin watches them look around at each other, stunned by the
figure.
ERIN
Boy, do I know how you feel. First time I
heard that number, I said you got to be
kidding me. Forty God damn percent?
ED
Erin --
ERIN
I'm the one who's injured, and this joker
who sits at a desk all day is gonna walk
away with almost half my reward?
ED
Erin --
Erin's enjoying Ed's discomfort almost too much to stop. But
just almost. She shifts gears.
ERIN
Then I asked him how much he makes if I
didn't get anything.
They look at Ed. Well?
ED
Then I don't get anything either.
ERIN
And I realized, he's taking a chance too.
When they hear this, and realize he's in it with them, they
all reach for their pens and sign. They hand the agreements
over to Erin, who takes them across the room to Ed. He
stuffs them in his briefcase and closes it up. That's that.
ED
All right, then. Let's hit the road.
Boy. Cold as ice. Erin stares at him, stunned by his
brusque manner, then leans in to him, close.
ERIN
(whispering)
Mr. Masry, if you don't mind my saying, you
got a lot to learn about being friendly.
These people just hired you as their lawyer.
The least you could do is make a little
pleasant conversation.
She gives him a stern look, then turns toward the women.
ERIN
Donna, let me help you clean all this up.
She picks up a tray of iced tea and cookies and heads to the
kitchen. Donna and Mandy follow, leaving Ed alone with Pete
and Roy. He stands there, awkwardly. Then, finally:
ED
So, what's, uh ... what's new?
INT. DONNA'S KITCHEN - DAY
Erin and Donna are putting away the cleaned glasses. Mandy
is scanning the chromium pamphlet Erin gave her.
MANDY
You know that thing it says in here about
rashes?
ERIN
Uh-huh?
MANDY
Well, this old neighbor of mine, Bob Linwood
-- he ran the dairy on Community -- seemed
like someone in his family always had a rash
somewhere or other. I just figured it was
something in the genes. And you know how it
is -- you don't like to ask about things
like that ...
Erin listens, interested.
EXT. LINWOOD DAIRY, BARN - DAY
Another day. BOB LINWOOD, 40's and gruff, is in the barn,
tossing hay around.
ERIN (O.S.)
Excuse me. Are you Mr. Linwood?
He sees Erin picking her way toward him in her high-heels.
LINWOOD
Yeah?
ERIN
I'm Erin Brockovich. I work at the law firm
that represents your former neighbors the
Browns. They suggested I give you a call.
She steps in a cow patty. Laughs at herself good-naturedly.
ERIN
Boy howdy, did I ever wear the wrong shoes.
EXT. THE DESOTOS' HOUSE - DAY
CLOSE ON A SIGN that reads: THE DESOTOS, hanging on the side
of a small, paint-chipped house. Erin is at the door talking
to MARY DESOTO, 65, who's wearing a big cross at her breast.
ERIN
... and Mr. Linwood seemed to think that
your husband had been sick as well.
MARY
Yes, Mr. DeSoto has lung cancer. Never
smoked a day in his life, neither.
INT. LAURA AND MIKE AMBROSINO'S HOUSE - NIGHT
Erin is talking to MIKE and LAURA AMBROSINO -- 30's. Solid,
family folks. But Laura's left brow and cheekbone look
swollen and misshapen, and she's trying to hide the fact that
she's in a lot of pain.
ERIN
Mrs. DeSoto said she wasn't sure exactly
what it was that you had --
PETE
She's not alone on that one.
LAURA
Well, they know what it is -- it's called
fibrous dysplasia --
PETE
The bones start growing again. Gives her
headaches like you wouldn't believe.
LAURA
-- they just don't know what caused it.
INT. RITA AND TED DANIELS' HOUSE - DAY
Erin is talking to TED AND RITA DANIELS. Their daughter
ANNABELLE, 10, is sitting on the couch, wrapped in a blanket.
ERIN
... then Mike Ambrosino remembered seeing
you folks at the hospital from time to time
too, so I thought I'd just stop by.
(to Annabelle)
You must be Annabelle.
ANNABELLE
Uh-huh.
ERIN
Whew, are you ever a beauty. I mean, you
must drive those boys crazy.
Annabelle smiles a little.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, ERIN'S BEDROOM - NIGHT
Late night. George rolls over -- Erin's side of the bed is
empty. He checks the clock, then gets up and heads into:
INT. ERIN'S APARTMENT, HALLWAY - NIGHT
He peers around and spots her, sitting in the little kid's
chair in Matthew and Katie's room.
Erin is holding Beth, watching Matt and Katie sleep. Erin
hears the floor creak as George steps into the doorway.
ERIN
Tell me something, George. What kind of God
lets a beautiful little 10-year-old girl get
brain cancer? Isn't He supposed to be in
charge of stuff like that? Make sure it
doesn't happen?
(beat)
I swear, any other job, He'd be fired.
EXT. VALLEY SIDEWALK - DAY
Ed and Erin are walking down the street, take-out coffee cups
in their hands. Ed is sipping his, but Erin is in too much
of a lather to drink hers.
ED
Hunh-uh. Absolutely not.
ERIN
That's crazy -- why not?
ED
Because I said no. Look -- the only reason
PG&E's even talking to us is cause this is a
quiet little real estate dispute. We add
plaintiffs, and suddenly we're in the middle
of a toxic tort -- with a statute problem --
against a massive utility. No, thank you.
They go into their office building.
INT. ELEVATOR - DAY
Erin and Ed are riding up.
ERIN
Okay, so here's what I'll do. I'll go on up
to Ted and Rita Daniels -- two of the nicest
people you'd ever hope to meet, who spend
every single day watching their little girl
fight like a dog against this cancer -- I'll
tell them we can't help them cause you don't
feel like working that hard.
ED
It's not about working hard --
ERIN
Bullshit.
ED
-- It's about being realistic. Something
like this, Erin -- it could take forever.
They're a huge corporation. They'd
completely bury us in paperwork. I'm just
one guy with a shitty little P.I. firm.
ERIN
-- who happens to know they poisoned people
and lied about it.
The doors open. Ed gets off. Erin follows.
INT. MASRY LAW OFFICE BUILDING, HALLWAY - DAY
Erin's dogging Ed down the hall, to the office.
ERIN
And this shit is bad news, Mr. Masry. Not
only does it attack every organ of the body,
it fucks with your DNA, too. That means
these people's genes, and the genes of their
kids, and the genes of their grandkids --
ED
I know how DNA works, Erin --
He gets to the Masry & Vititoe doors. Opens them.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE - DAY
Erin tails Ed back to his office.
ERIN
We can get these people. With a little
effort, I really think we can nail their
asses to the wall.
ED
Oh, you do? With all your legal expertise,
you believe that?
ERIN
Okay, fine. I don't know shit about shit.
But I know the difference --
He shuts his office door on her.
ERIN
-- BETWEEN RIGHT AND WRONG!
INT. ED'S OFFICE - DAY
Ed goes over to his desk, sits down. He sees a stack of
messages there, starts flipping through them. Then he stops.
ED
Damn it.
He shoves the messages aside and puts his head in his hands.
He sits like that for a moment, GROANS to himself. Then he
pushes himself up and heads over to his door.
When he opens it, he finds Erin still standing there, exactly
where he left her, arms crossed. She hasn't budged.
ED
How many families we talking about here?
ERIN
Four more. Eleven people. So far.
ED
You think there's more?
ERIN
Well -- I found one document at the water
board that had a toxic test well reading
from 1967. A hell of a lot of people have
lived on that land since then.
Ed pauses, groans again, realizing what decision he's making.
ED
This is a whole different ball game, Erin.
A much bigger deal.
ERIN
Kinda like David and what's-his-name?
ED
Kinda like David and what's-his-name's whole
fucking family.
(heavy sigh)
Okay, here's the deal -- if, and only if,
you find me the evidence to back all this up
-- I'll do it. I'll take it on.
She smiles victoriously.
ERIN
You're doing the right thing, Mr. Masry.
ED
Yeah, yeah. Remind me of that when I'm
filing for bankruptcy.
He heads back to his desk. Erin follows him into his office.
ERIN
Course, gathering evidence -- now, that's a
big job. A hell of a lot bigger than just
filing. I'm gonna be working a lot harder
now, taking on a lot more responsibility ...
He gives her a look. Knows what's coming.
ED
What now?
ERIN
Another raise wouldn't hurt. And with all
the time I'm gonna be spending on the road,
I'll probably be needing my own cel phone,
won't I?
INT. TOYS 'R' US - DAY
CLOSE ON A BEEPING CEL PHONE
as Erin tries to program numbers into its speed dial. WIDEN
to see she is reading from the phone's manual as she enters
Toys 'R' Us with George, Matthew, Katie and Beth.
ERIN
You each can pick out four things. But
nothing huge. Look at the price. Nothing
crazy.
Matthew and Katie fan out into the store. Erin keeps messing
with the phone.
GEORGE
You can buy 'em all the toys you want, but
come Monday, when you split again, they're
still gonna be pissed.
Erin looks over at him, weary.
ERIN
George, I am just trying to do something
nice for my kids on my one day off. Could
you please not give me a hard time about it?
GEORGE
One toy per kid is doing something nice.
Four is ... something else.
ERIN
Well, hell, I guess that's it, then, huh?
They're scarred for life. They're gonna
start holding up 7-11's any day now.
GEORGE
I'm just saying --
ERIN
(with intensity)
I know what you're saying, and I don't wanna
hear it. I am doing the best I can.
And she walks away from him.
EXT. HINKLEY, ROADSIDE DITCH - DAY
Erin, in high heels and miniskirt, is straddling a ditch,
scooping clumps of gunky moss from the ditch into plastic
containers. Over this:
ERIN (O.S.)
Dr. Frankel, it's Erin Brockovich. Tell me
something: if I wanna find as much evidence
of hexavalent chromium contamination as I
possibly can, what should I do?
As Erin labels the containers, her heels slide down the side
of the ditch, and she lands smack in it, knee-deep in gunk.
EXT. HINKLEY, COMMUNITY BOULEVARD - NIGHT
Erin, now completely dirty, is climbing over a fence marked
"No Trespassing". Her arms are full of more containers.
FRANKEL (O.S.)
Well, what you have to remember is, if you
have hex chrom in the water, you have it in
anything that lived off the water.
She adds them to a growing collection of containers in the
trunk of her car.
EXT. HINKLEY, THE POOL BEHIND AN ABANDONED HOUSE - DAY
Another day. This time it's RAINING. Erin minces her way
down to the deep end of the pool in her spike heels.
FRANKEL (O.S.)
What I'd do is start a collection. Anything
that existed in water, on water, under water
...
She gets to the deep end and scoops up a Ziploc full of
rancid pool water and seals it.
FRANKEL (O.S.)
anything that had water flow over or under
it ...
Erin spots a few dead frogs in the water. She picks one up
by the leg, and seals it in a plastic bag as well.
EXT. WELL - DAY
With a sample cup held in her teeth, Erin hauls herself up
over the well's concrete wall, then, with her back against
one side of the well and her feet against the other, starts
shimmying down the well.
FRANKEL (O.S.)
anything that had water pass through it ...
INSIDE THE WELL
she winces at the algae and gook that's clinging to her as
she descends to the water level. When she's low enough, she
takes the sample cup from her teeth and scoops up the water.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ERIN'S DESK - DAY
Erin's at her desk, bending over her notebook in a miniskirt,
adding reports to the TOXICOLOGY binder.
FRANKEL (O.S.)
... collect 'em, label 'em, then bring 'em
to me. I'll analyze 'em, see what we got.
ON THE REPORTS: We catch a few words: "water sample A ...",
"soil sample D ...", "frog sample A ...", "... traces of
hexavalent ..."
Brenda looks at Erin and sees her hem rising in the back.
BRENDA
For God's sake, Erin, I can see your
panties.
Erin turns to Brenda, relishing the chance to irritate her.
ERIN
Liar. I'm not wearing any.
Ed, in his office, laughs. He's starting to like this gal.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE - NIGHT
It's a hot night. George is playing on the floor with the
kids. Erin is behind them on the couch, laboriously reading
a book labeled, simply, CHROMIUM. The phone RINGS. Erin
picks it up.
ERIN
Hello?
MALE VOICE (O.S.)
Is this the Erin Pattee Brockovich that's
been snooping around the water board?
His voice is flat, creepy. Not friendly.
ERIN
Yes. Who's this?
CLICK. Erin stares at the phone, freaked.
INT. ERIN'S HOUSE, FRONT DOOR - NIGHT
George watches Erin double-checking the locks on the door.
ERIN
I'm not gonna quit cause of one creepy phone
call, George.
GEORGE
Come on, Erin. A job's supposed to pay your
bills, not put you in danger.
ERIN
I'm not in danger. I have a dead bolt.
Remember?
She goes to the living room, double-checks the window locks
in there. George follows.
GEORGE
Look, don't take this the wrong way, but
don't you think you might be out of your
league here?
ERIN
No, see -- that's exactly what those
arrogant PG&E fucks want me to think -- that
because they got all this money and power,
we don't stand a chance in hell against
them. But you know what? They're wrong.
She heads into the bedrooms.
GEORGE
It doesn't have to be this complicated,
Erin. There's a lot of jobs out there.
ERIN
(off-hand)
How would you know?
George reacts, a little stung. He follows her into:
INT. MATT AND KATIE'S BEDROOM - NIGHT
Matt and Katie are asleep. Erin is checking their windows.
George comes in. They whisper.
GEORGE
You mind telling me what that's supposed to
mean?
ERIN
Nothing.
GEORGE
If you got a problem with me taking care of
your kids instead of getting some job, just
say so.
ERIN
I didn't say that.
GEORGE
Cause I can get a job. I will. And you can
start leaving the kids with the chicken fat
lady again. Would that make you happy?
ERIN
Keep your voice down.
GEORGE
I know what they can sleep through, Erin. I
probably know it better than you.
She gives him a glare, then leaves the room.
INT. WATER BOARD - DAY
Erin is reaching up to a high shelf for a dusty old box of
files. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Ross passing.
ERIN
Hey, Ross. Tell me something. Does PG&E
pay you to cover their ass, or do you just
do it out of the kindness of your heart?
ROSS
(a bad liar)
I don't know what you're talking about.
ERIN
The fuck you don't. No one calls me Pattee.
That heavy-breathing sicko that called the
other night could've only found out about me
from you.
(beat)
People are dying, Ross. You got document
after document here, right under your nose,
that says why, and you haven't said word one
about it. I wanna know how the hell you
sleep at night.
Ross is speechless. He just stands there. Erin drags the
box to the floor and goes to work.
EXT. WATER BOARD - NIGHT
Erin's car is parked in front. A DIRTY OLD PICK-UP comes
rumbling up the road. When its lights hit Erin's car, it
slows, then pulls over. The driver flicks on his BRIGHTS to
get a better look at the car. The truck sits there for a
bit, a dark presence. Then, as the headlights of another car
appear down the road, the truck goes back in gear, pulls out
and drives off.
INT. ERIN'S HYUNDAI - NIGHT
A pile of documents is strapped into the passenger seat. An
empty coffee cup rolls around the floor. Erin's driving,
exhausted. She yawns as she dials her phone.
GEORGE (O.S.)
Hello?
INTERCUT between Erin in her car, and George in bed.
ERIN
I'm so tired I'm about to drive off the
road. Keep me awake, willya?
GEORGE
What do you want, a joke?
ERIN
No, no jokes, I gotta pee. Just tell me
about your day. What went on back there?
GEORGE
Well, come to think of it, we did have a big
event around here. Beth started talking.
ERIN
What?
(beat)
Beth? My Beth?
GEORGE
Yeah. We were sitting around at lunch and
she pointed at a ball and said, "ball."
Erin says nothing, just stares out at the empty highway,
feeling all hollowed-out.
GEORGE
I'd never seen that before -- someone's
first word. Pretty intense.
Erin just nods. Keeps staring straight ahead as a tear rolls
down her cheek.
INT. MASRY & VITITOE, ERIN AND BRENDA'S AREA - DAY
CLOSE ON SOME FILES as Erin hands them to Ed. As he takes
them from her, he notices a crematory urn on Erin's desk.
ED
Is that what I think it is?
ERIN
She lived on the plume. You never know.
Ed laughs and hands the documents to Brenda without looking
at her. She grumpily takes them over to the fax machine.
CLOSE ON THE FAX LED as Brenda types in the number. The
recipient's name comes up again: PG&E CLAIMS DEPT.
EXT. HINKLEY BARBECUE - DAY
Open pits, pony rides, watermelon. George is watching Katie
and Matt being led around on ponies, an activity that stopped
being fun hours ago. Now they're just hot and tired.
BY THE BARBECUE, Ed is talking to an OLDER COUPLE as they
sign retainer agreements.
ELSEWHERE, Erin, holding Beth, is looking at pictures of a
swimming pool with FIVE OTHER WOMEN. The water is green.
ERIN
This was the community pool?
WOMAN 1
Yeah, that PG&E built. The whole time we
thought it was algae that made it so green.
LATER ...
Erin's trunk is open. She and Ed are clipping new clusters
of retainer agreements into the "PLAINTIFFS" binder.
LATER STILL ...
Erin and Ed are passing out informational pamphlets. She
sticks one in a hand before noticing that it's George's.
GEORGE
I'm bored, and so are the kids.
ERIN
Just a few more minutes, then we can go.
(as he heads off)
Take her, will you?
George drops the pamphlet and takes Beth from Erin. He heads
over to Matt and Katie, sitting glumly on a log.
As he steps away, a hand reaches down and grabs the flier he
dropped. It belongs to a MAN IN A BLACK JACKET. He's in his
50's, strong and sinewy. Military-style dark glasses obscure
his eyes. He scans the pamphlet, then watches Erin working
the crowd. Watches her carefully. He slides the pamphlet
into his inside pocket, and heads back his car -- the DIRTY
OLD PICK-UP TRUCK that idled in front of the Water Board.
LATER STILL ...
Erin is heading over to George and the kids, ready to leave,
when Donna comes up to her, with A MIDDLE-AGED MAN in tow.
DONNA
Erin, this here's Frank Melendez. He works
over at the compressor station --
Erin stops in her tracks, v