Marvel Comics Group presents
X-MEN
screenplay by
Andrew Kevin Walker
FIRST DRAFT
2nd revision June 7, 1994
EXT. CITY STREET -- NIGHT
A BILLBOARD atop one building reads, "MUTANTS MUST REGISTER."
BELOW, Hollywood Boulevard sidewalks are filled with weirdos,
tourists and movie-goers. People stop to watch as a VAN with
MEGAPHONES on its roof drives past slowly.
VOICE (V.O.)
(from van megaphone)
... deadline for mutant registration is
August fourth. All mutants must file for
identification papers by this date...
INSERT TITLE -- LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
People seem uneasy. FOLLOW the megaphone van as it makes its way
down the street, still announcing. It stops at a red light. A
National Guard troop TRUCK races through the intersection.
ELSEWHERE, on a dark, back street, a few men run towards a
commotion ahead. The troop truck rounds a corner and passes them,
HORN BLARING. FOLLOW the truck till it arrives at a PARKING LOT
behind brick apartment buildings. A rowdy CROWD of curious
CIVILIANS parts to let the truck through, then regroups.
NATIONAL GUARDSMEN leap from the truck, heading to the far corner
of the lot to join other soldiers there. Military Men have
surrounded a group of HOMELESS MEN. Four of the homeless are
against a wall, held at gunpoint. It's the FIFTH HOMELESS MAN a
fearful COMMANDER is concerned with, coming to shove him roughly.
COMMANDER
Turn around and face the wall. Do it!
Keep your arms down.
The scruffy Fifth Man, in a tattered raincoat, looking just as
frightened, obediently turns his back to the guns leveled at him.
Commander approaches, cautious, reaching to the raincoat...
Commander pulls the raincoat down. Fifth Man is shirtless and
dirty. He has four arms. Muscular arms. The other homeless men
react in fear, moving away. The CROWD begins SHOUTING, calling
out for Guardsmen to "Kill him!" "Shoot the mutie!" "Freak!"
Soldiers holding the crowd at bay tighten their ranks.
A National Guardsman steps forward with a CAMERA and a high-
powered FLASH. He takes pictures of the mutated Fifth Man,
FLASHBULB FLASHING... FLASHING... blindingly bright.
At the edge of the lot, away from the crowd, a well dressed MAN
stands watching, his face tense with anger. His hair is pure
white. His manner refined and stately. We will call him MAGNETO.
Magneto turns and walks away, into a narrow, dark alleyway.
EXT. METROPOLITAN SKYLINE -- NIGHT
A glittering cityscape. In one sleek skyscraper, in a penthouse
window, a man, LOGAN, in a black suit, looks out.
INSERT TITLE -- TORONTO, CANADA
INT. SKYSCRAPER OFFICE, RECEPTION AREA -- NIGHT
Logan has an animalistic look to him, complimented by thick black
sideburns and spiked hair. He studies the city, lights a cigar.
MALE VOICE (O.S.)
Mister Logan...
Logan looks to the snotty RECEPTIONIST at a desk, blows smoke.
RECEPTIONIST (CONT)
This is a non-smoking building.
LOGAN
Not anymore, bub. Unless you're thinking
of trying to take this away from me.
The receptionist shrinks. Big doors open. PERKINS enters, suave.
PERKINS
Mister Logan. Follow me.
INT. BOSS MAN'S OFFICE -- NIGHT
Perkins enters, followed by Logan, who carries a BRIEFCASE.
Across the room, BOSS MAN sits behind a desk, flanked by EIGHT thug-
brute BODYGUARDS. Boss Man wears a garish WRESTLING KASK.
BOSS MAN
Stay where you are.
LOGAN
Whatever you say. Nice mask.
BOSS MAN
You have no need to see my face. By
insisting on meeting me, you've created a
atmosphere of mistrust. However, the
customer is always right... especially
when he has a suitcase full of cash. Will
you do the honors, Perkins?
Perkins goes to take a short, BLACK METALLIC ROD off a bookshelf
He flicks a switch on it. It HUMS. Logan eyes the device.
LOGAN
Now, hold on a second. What's that?
BOSS MAN
A metal-detector.
LOGAN
Yeah? What happened to a good, old
fashioned frisking?
BOSS MAN
This is less offensive to most, and more
effective. What seems to be the problem?
Logan looks unhappy. VERY CLOSE on his TIE TACK, we can see it's
tip has a tiny, waffled MICROPHONE HOLE.
EXT. TORONTO STREET -- NIGHT
A large, innocuous van is parked at the curb. MONITORING:
BOSS MAN'S VOICE (V.O.)
You wouldn't have been foolish enough to
bring a weapon here. You wouldn't...
INT. INNOCUOUS VAN -- NIGHT
Inside the van, MANY AGENTS are surrounded by recording devices.
The team's MONITOR MAN listens through headphones:
BOSS MAN'S VOICE (V.O.,CONT)
... insult me like that, would you?
Monitor Man looks up to several armored STRIKE-FORCE AGENTS.
MONITOR MAN
Things just went sour.
INT. BOSS MAN'S OFFICE -- NIGHT
Logan, in a no-win situation, resides himself, holds up his hands.
LOGAN
Knock yourself out.
Perkins brings the metal-detector under Logan's arm. It lets out
a SQUEAL. Boss Man stands, angry, points a gun at Logan.
BOSS MAN
Disarm the gentleman, Perkins.
PERKINS
(searching Logan)
There's... there's nothing here.
BOSS MAN
There must be. Find the gun.
The detector gives a WHINING ALARM all over Logan. Even his head
triggers it. Perkins is baffled. Logan smiles, shrugs -- KICKS
Perkins, SLAMS him aside and charges at Boss Man. Boss Man FIRES.
Logan hits the floor and rolls. He tries to get up, but is wracked
by a SPASM of pain. He cringes, his eyes shut tight...
FLASHBACK -- LOGAN'S MEMORY -- P.O.V. FROM UNDERWATER: through a
tangle of wires and tubes. Like looking from inside an aquarium
to the outside world. A FIGURE in a lab coat passes, their image
warped and made unrecognizable by the water and glass.
BACK TO SCENE IN BOSS MAN'S OFFICE
Logan opens his eyes, gasps, disoriented. Perkins POUNDS him
across the forehead with the metal-detector. Knocks him out.
Across the room, Boss Man pushes a button on his desk. A
BOOKSHELF SLIDES UP behind him, revealing a hidden passageway.
EXT. TORONTO STREET -- NIGHT
Four armored Strike-Force Agents run from the innocuous van.
INT. CHEMICAL WEAPON TEST LAB -- NIGHT
Bodyguards carry Logan's body into a futuristic lab. There's a
gleaming GAS CHAMBER ahead. Logan's body is thrown in. The
chamber door is slammed and sealed shut.
Logan lies groggy. CLOSE: the gash on his head, from Perkins'
blow, pulls shut, already BEGINNING TO HEAL.
OUTSIDE THE CHAMBER, Boss Man, Perkins and bodyguards look in
through the ultra-thick window as Logan comes to his senses.
BOSS MAN
The chemical weapon you came here to
purchase is called Bio-thrax, Mister
Logan. Within minutes of contacting human
flesh it causes blistering ulcers.
INSIDE THE CHAMBER, Logan gets to his knees. Through a SPEAKER:
BOSS MAN (CONT)
But, that's nothing compared to what it
does to your lungs. Please accept this
free sample with my compliments.
OUTSIDE, Boss Man snaps his fingers. Perkins pulls a lever.
Clouds of GAS begin HISSING into the chamber. Boss Man laughs.
Through the window, Logan looks up, furious, lifts his fists.
Just before Logan is enshrouded by the gas -- SNICKT -- three LONG
METAL CLAWS shoot out from the backs of his hands.
BOSS MAN
What... what was that?
PERKINS
Looked like... some sort of knives.
At the gas filled chamber, SLUNKT -- Logan's metal claws jab
through the glass. Boss Man and the others back away.
SKRRREEEEKKK -- Logan's claws cut the glass with ease, then
withdraw. SKKRRRENK - SKKKKKREEEEEK - the claws slash quick,
completing a triangular pattern. The triangle is kicked out.
BOSS MAN
Don't just stand there. Get him!
Bodyguards, guns out, keep back to avoid the escaping gas which
rises to the ceiling. Then, Logan LEAPS straight out...
He TACKLES one bodyguard to the floor, crazed, face covered in
gas-induced blisters, raising a clawed fist, about to kill...
INT. INNOCUOUS VAN -- NIGHT
Monitor Man hears a SCREAM THROUGH his HEADPHONES. GUNSHOTS.
Monitor Man reacts, throws the headphones off. More SCREAMS.
SOUNDS like bodyguards are battling a snarling, murderous beast.
MONITOR MAN
(grim, of the sounds)
Here we go again.
INT. RECEPTION AREA -- NIGHT
The four Strike-Force Agents cross from the elevator, guns up,
past the flustered, lame Receptionist, towards offices.
RECEPTIONIST
Um... do you have an appointment?
INT. BOSS MAN'S OFFICE -- NIGHT
BOOM -- the door is kicked in. Strike-Force Agents enter. Across
the room, the bookshelf slides up. Strike-Force Agents level
their guns, tense, waiting. After a moment, Logan walks in,
disheveled, less blistered, his suit shredded and spotted with
blood. He looks around calmly, straightening his tie.
LOGAN
I hope you brought a mop.
INT. CIRCUS BIG TOP TENT -- NIGHT
Under hot spotlights, a RINGMASTER speaks into a microphone. A
BANNER behind him reads "FREAK SHOW" in big, red letters.
RINGMASTER
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls...
nothing you have experienced in your
lifetime has prepared you for this
evening's entertainment. He will delight
you. He will shock you. He will make
your hair stand on end. And, so, without
further ado, the Malkin Brother's
Traveling Circus is proud to present...
BLOB!
MUSIC BLARES. Spotlights spin, then converge on... BLOB. Wow.
Mountainously obese is an understatement. He is 500 pounds of
sweat-dewy flab in a Speedo bathing suit. The CROWD is AWED.
RINGMASTER (O.S.,CONT)
Yes, friends, yes... here he is. Let your
eyes try to take him all in.
Blob is bored and irritable, but dutifully raises his arms like a
champion. He walks, flesh quivering, looking to the crowd.
IN THE CROWD, CHILDREN laugh at Blob. A pretty WOMAN is repulsed.
AT CENTER RING, the sights make Blob angry. He stops in front of
a cinderblock wall with a bull's eye painted on it.
RINGMASTER (O.S.,CONT)
No scale can tell his true weight. No
lone tape measure can accurately reveal
his girth. But, that is not all. Blob is
much more than a man with a severe
glandular problem. Much more indeed...
DRUM ROLL BUILDS. Spotlights reveal FIFTEEN CIRCUS COWBOYS with
rifles in a semi-circle. Against the bull's eye wall, Blob holds
his arms away from his body. The CROWD MURMURS excitedly.
Cowboys cock their rifles.
RINGMASTER (O.S.,CONT)
Rifles ready... Aim...
Rifles target Blob. DRUM ROLL BUILDS. Blob closes his eyes.
RINGMASTER (O.S.,CONT)
FIRE!
Rifles CRACK and POP, echoing. Clouds of rifle smoke immediately
obscure Blob. SCREAMS are HEARD from the CROWD.
RINGMASTER (O.S.,CONT)
Watch very carefully, ladies and
gentlemen. Behold the behemoth!
Blob walks back into view, arms still up. There are many
indentations in his flesh. Blob takes a breath... flexes his
body. Bullets pop out from the indentations, all directions:
POP... POP POP POP... POP...
The CROWD ERUPTS, APPLAUDING. Ringmaster comes to stand beside
Blob, soaking in acclaim, but perturbed with Blob.
RINGMASTER (CONT)
Don't just stand there, idiot. Take a
bow. Give them a smile. They love you.
IN THE APPLAUDING CROWD, at the back, PALE MAN and TAN MAN, in
sunglasses, share a mutual box of popcorn, watching impassively.
INT. BLOB'S DRESSING TEXT -- NIGHT
Irritating MERRY-GO-ROUND MUSIC is HEARD from outside. Blob, in a
big robe, is seated before the remains of an enormous, glutton's
delight meal. He jams food into his maw, eating everything,
turkey, corn and mashed potatoes alike, with his hands.
BLOB
(grumbling to himself)
Give them a smile, Blob... they love you,
Blob. They don't love me.
Blob stands, wiping his mouth with his sleeve and letting out a
bellowing BURP. He walks towards a giant CANVAS BATHTUB. A huge
bubble bath. He clips a clothespin to his nose as he disrobes.
BLOB (CONT)
(still to himself)
Okay, okay... relax. It's your special
time now. Time to pamper yourself. Time
to treat yourself like a little princess.
He awkwardly hops into the tub, displacing much water, letting out
an "ah" of pleasure. He submerges. UNDERWATER: it is silent.
Blob holds his breath and rests his head, eyes closed.
IN THE DRESSING ROOM TENT, designer shoes traverse the wet floor.
Pale Man and Tan Man have entered. Pale Man takes a switchblade
out, cuts a slash in the side of the canvas tub. Water gushes
out, leaving Blob high and dry, covered in bubble. After a
moment, Blob realizes and instinctively covers his breasts.
BLOB
Hey... what the hell's going on?
PALE
Bath-time's over, fat boy.
TAN
You don't want to wrinkle.
Pale Man throws Blob his robe. Blob puts it on and takes the
clothespin off his nose, flustered and getting angry.
BLOB
Who... who are you guys?
TAN
(flashes I.D.)
We're with the government. We caught your
act tonight. You're quite the performer.
Tan Man sits down across the room.
PALE
The Mutant Registration Act was enacted by
Congress several months ago, Mister Blob.
Now, are you thinking you can simply
ignore the laws of these good United
States, or do you only obey those certain
laws that please you?
BLOB
I don't know what you're talking about,
but this is my private dressing area...
Pale Man backs off. Tan Man vainly examines his fingernails.
PALE MAN
Let me explain something, doughboy. You
have unnatural powers. You are a mutant
and a danger to society. So, we normal
folks need to know "who," "what," and
"where" you are at all times.
Behind Pale Man, on the canvas wall, a HUGE SHADOW rises outside.
Blob sees the shadow, not understanding, as... the SHADOW of a CLAWED
HAND reaches to the canvas, RIPPING...
Across the room, Tan Man looks up, horrified by what he sees.
Pale Man flies past, slides across the food table and his the
floor, unconscious. Tan Man jumps up, reaches to his holster.
SABRETOOTH enters through the ripped canvas, a massive man with
blonde hair, bushy sideburns and white eyes with no pupils or
irises. He wears a fine suit and smiles a fanged smile.
Tan Man brings his gun up, points it. But, behind Sabretooth
another FIGURE LEAPS, springing high -- a somersaulting blur. Tan
Man follows with his gun, above, trying to aim. The figure lands.
It is TOAD, an ugly, hunched man in a bad suit, crouched, long-
legged, grinning from under greasy hair.
TOAD
Hello.
Tan Man FIRES. The bullet misses as Toad springs up, agile. Toad
lands in a crouch on Blob's dressing table. Tan Man points his
gun to follow, but his eyes widen.
Behind Toad, in the dressing mirror, Sabretooth closes in. Tan
Man cries out, turning. Too late. Sabretooth is on him...
Toad leaps away as Tan Man is tossed head-long into the mirror.
The mirror SHATTERS, and Tan Man falls back, out cold. Toad lands
beside the rather bewildered Blob.
TOAD
The name's Mortise Toynbee. Pleased to
meet you. You really don't look like much
of a menace to society.
SABRETOOTH
Give him time.
Sabretooth crouches over Pale Man, about to claw his throat.
MALE VOICE (O.S.)
No, Sabretooth. Let them live to tell
others that the Brotherhood was here.
The owner of the voice, Magneto, comes through the tent's proper
entrance. Sabretooth, still poised to rend, GROWLS GUTTURALLY.
MAGNETO (CONT)
If you treasure your own life.
Sabretooth reluctantly relents. Magneto motions for Sabretooth and
Toad to leave, and they obey, exiting. Blob is wary.
MAGNETO
No reason for you to be frightened, Blob.
BLOB
I'm not frightened. And, I could've taken
care of those fellows all by myself.
(looks at them)
What did they want from me, anyway?
MAGNETO
What everyone wants... to look upon you
and rationalize their own existences.
But, the hour has come for you to stop
accepting the label of freak. You are not
a freak. You are the next step in homo-
superior evolution. Homo-superior.
Magneto puts his hand on Blob's shoulder. Blob's shy about this.
MAGNETO (CONT)
Would like to stop being hurt by humans,
and instead be the one who does the
hurting for a change? Would you like
that, my handsome friend?
BLOB
Yeah... yeah, I'd like that a lot.
EXT. RIKER'S ISLAND -- NIGHT
A souped-up armored car speeds along the lone road leading to a
concrete bunker of a building: THE VAULT.
INSERT TITLE--THE VAULT: SUBTERRANEAN PRISON FOR CRIMINAL MUTANTS
RIKER'S ISLAND, NEW YORK CITY
Extremely tall PERIMETER WAILS are topped by razor wire and TWO
GUARD TOWERS. A big steel door in the perimeter wall opens to
allow the armored car's entrance to a concrete courtyard. Ahead,
the massive doors of The Vault itself slide open, revealing a huge
ELEVATOR RISING from below. SEVEN PRISON GUARDS exit the elevator
with the WARDEN, followed by a FORKLIFT. Guards take positions.
The DRIVER exits the armored car and walks to open the rear doors.
The forklift goes to work, lifting a pallet from the truck. On
the pallet, unconscious, is the mega-mutant JUGGERNAUT, in a
uniform of thick metal, with wicked brass knuckles and a round-
topped helmet (all encompassing except for eye and mouth slots).
The helmet is riveted to his chest armor.
WARDEN
Why's he still wearing his metal skivvies?
DRIVER
Couldn't get it off. They tried. They
can't even figure out what it's made of.
WARDEN
Well, we'll get it off, believe me. I
don't care if we have to use dynamite.
They follow the forklift as it labors towards the elevator.
DRIVER
How can you hold him, anyway? I mean, I
hear once he's moving, nothing stops him.
WARDEN
Is he moving now?
DRIVER
No... but, he's all drugged up.
WARDEN
And, that's pretty much how he's going to
spend the next twenty years.
SABRETOOTH (O.S.)
Hie-de-hie-de-ho! Lookie, lookie...
All eyes go to Sabretooth. He's up on the perimeter wall, near a
guard tower, dangling an UNCONSCIOUS GUARD.
SABRETOOTH (CONT)
Drop your guns, screw-heads. Or, Humpty
Dumpty here will have a great fall.
Several guards point their weapons. The Warden waves them off.
WARDEN
Hold your fire. Hold on...
The Warden looks to see the mutant BLOB waddling through the open
perimeter gate, then turns to look to the other guard tower...
Toad is seated up there. He grins and waves.
INT. THE VAULT, CENTRAL CONTROL ROOM -- NIGHT
Several security MONITORS show Sabretooth. A TECHNICIAN stands,
terrified. The SECURITY CHIEF is near, talking with a guard.
TECHNICIAN
Sir, sir... we've got trouble upstairs.
The Security Chief comes over, looks. Yikes. He grabs a PHONE.
SECURITY CHIEF
(into phone)
I need men up here, right now!
EXT. THE VAULT -- NIGHT
Toad helps Blob herd everyone into the rear of the armored car.
BLOB
Move it... squeeze in. Plenty of roam.
Toad closes and locks the doors as Blob goes to the front bumper.
Blob lifts the truck with a grunt, till it's propped up on it's
rear, nose-up with the men trapped inside.
Above, Sabretooth tosses the unconscious guard into the tower,
then slides down the wall, slowing his fall by dragging his claws.
The villains converge around the forklift. Toad leaps onto
Juggernaut's chest, takes out a metal-canister and opens it.
TOAD
Pure adrenaline.
Toad produces a big HYPODERMIC. He presses the long needle
against Juggernaut's arm, but the needle, unable to pierce, SNAPS.
TOAD (CONT)
I was afraid of that.
SABRETOOTH
Nice going, Toad. Now what do we do?
A RUMBLING is HEARD. Behind them, the perimeter wall door closes.
In front of them, The Vault's elevator doors slam shut.
BLOB
Uh oh.
Toad leaps down, goes to look under the forklift's seat. He pulls
out a tool box, dumps the contents and picks up JUMPER CABLES.
TOAD
I've had a spectacular brainstorm.
INT. THE VAULT'S ELEVATOR -- NIGHT
The elevator doors open to the Central Control Room. FIFTEEN
GUARDS run into the elevator as the Security Head barks orders.
EXT. THE VAULT -- NIGHT
Jumper cable jaws are clamped to forklift BATTERY TERMINALS.
Toad clamps the other cable ends to Juggernaut's thumbs, then
looks to Sabretooth, who's behind the forklift's wheel.
TOAD
Let her rip.
Sabretooth turns the key. The engine roars. ZZ-ZZZ-ZZZ--
electricity shoots through Juggernaut. His body spasms. Not far
away, Blob forces open the elevator doors and looks down. The
ELEVATOR is RISING. Blob's worried. He shoves his hand into the
NUMERICAL KEYPAD beside the doors, yanks out the sparking guts.
INT. THE VAULT'S ELEVATOR -- NIGHT
The elevator halts. The guards look up. Lights go out.
EXT. THE VAULT -- NIGHT
Blob looks down the shaft, pleased, laughing excitedly.
Sabretooth keeps revving as Juggernaut convulses violently.
TOAD (CONT)
If this doesn't wake him up, nothing will.
Behind them, the perimeter wall door EXPLODES off it's hinges and
falls with a BOOM. Toad, Sabretooth and Blob turn to look...
Enter the X-MEN (in armored battle gear). CYCLOPS leads,
handsome, lean muscled, eyes hidden behind a visor with a
horizontal ruby red slit across it. Behind him is the stunning
JEAN GREY, and BEAST, surprisingly attractive for a knucklewalker
covered head to toe in blue fur. Hovering above, flapping his
vast, feathered wings, is ANGEL, the youngest. ICEMAN brings up
the rear. His name says it all. Composed of rough-hewn ice, when
he moves you can HEAR his limbs CRACKLING.
CYCLOPS
Knock, knock! Who's there?!
SABRETOOTH
X-Men!
CYCLOPS
That's right.
Sabretooth runs at them. Jean Grey rises into the air. Cyclops
SHOOTS a concentrated RED BEAM of ENERGY from his visor slit...
The ray BLASTS Sabretooth back, into the forklift. He's hurt.
Blob looks with shock to the stunned Sabretooth, then runs towards
the X-Men, angry, while Toad runs and LEAPS another direction.
BLOB
You hurt my friend!
Toad lands on the armored car. Angel and Jean Grey come to hover
above him. Toad tears the metal front-bumper off the truck and
swings it, keeping them at bay, hissing angrily.
Blob charges towards Cyclops, Beast and Iceman. Iceman steps up
and holds out his arms -- FIRING big ICE BALLS. The ice balls
bounce harmlessly off the thundering Blob's flab.
ICEMAN
Who is this guy?
Cyclops lets out a visor BLAST, but it does not slow Blob one bit.
CYCLOPS
Scatter!
Blob lunges as Cyclops and Iceman split up -- but Beast falls
backwards and KICKS with both legs just as Blob arrives, adding to
Blob's momentum, sending him past, flipping and screaming...
Blob lands flat on his back with a huge THUD.
Across the courtyard, Angel and Jean still hover around Toad.
ANGEL
Give it up, Toad.
JEAN GREY
We don't want to have to hurt you.
TOAD
How's a girl like you going to hurt me?
Toad flings the bumper, missing Jean. Angel swoops from behind...
Toad jumps straight up and Angel grasps empty air, coming up
behind Toad. Toad lands. Angel spins in the air, looking back.
Toad turns, opens his mouth and SQUIRTS SPITTLE from his tongue...
The black spittle covers Angel's face. He cries out, flying up.
JEAN GREY
Angel!
Toad leaps at Jean, but she PROJECTS a BLAST of PSIONIC ENERGY to
knock him down. Toad CRASHES through the armored car windshield.
JEAN GREY (CONT)
That's how.
Jean looks up, rising to follow after Angel.
Cyclops, Beast and Iceman circle Blob, who gets to his feet.
CYCLOPS
You should have stayed down.
BLOB
I don't think so.
Beast LEAPS from one side, but Blob backhand SWATS him away.
Iceman jumps up behind Blob, wraps his arms around his throat.
CYCLOPS
Bobby, no...
Blob struggles, then falls to one knee and bends forward quickly,
throwing Iceman into Cyclops. Both heros tumble.
Blob turns to see Beast trying to get up. He goes to Beast and
lifts him into a bear hug, crushing. Beast roars in pain.
BLOB
You're going to be my great big Teddy
Bear, aren't you? Aren't you?!
Blob throws Beast to the ground. Beast gasps, hurt, crawling.
BLOB (CONT)
Where you going, Teddy Bear?
Beast's still crawling when he stops, face to face with two
massive, iron clad feet. Beast slowly looks up in horror...
Juggernaut towers over him, angry eyes peering from his helmet.
JUGGERNAUT
X-Men. I hate X-Men.
FAR AWAY, HIGH IN THE NIGHT SKY: Angel flies erratically, pulling
at the gummy Toad spittle. Jean soars after him.
JEAN GREY
Warren... wait for me...
She catches up to him, grips him. He struggles, frightened.
JEAN GREY (CONT)
It's me, Warren. It's Jean.
FAR BELOW, ON A GRASSY FIELD OF LA GUARDIA AIRPORT: Jean brings
Angel down to the ground, comforts him as she pulls at the goop.
ANGEL
It burns, Jean... it burns.
JEAN GREY
It's coming off. You're going to be okay.
(looks away, worried)
I have to get back, Warren. I have to.
You just stay here.
Angel nods. Jean stands, raises her arms and rises up.
EXT. THE VAULT (TIME CUT) -- NIGHT
Jean moves through the air, heading back towards the Vault.
She lands on the perimeter wall, aghast. Below, Iceman, Beast and
Cyclops are down, wounded, crawling. The bad guys are gone. She
lowers herself to Cyclops. Distant HELICOPTERS are HEARD.
JEAN GREY
Scott!
CYCLOPS
Jean... where were you?
JEAN GREY
Angel was hurt. I'm sorry...
CYCLOPS
We have to get out of here... before the
police come. Can you carry us all?
JEAN GREY
I think so. Hold on to me.
Cyclops does. Jean holds out her hands, making a great effort.
Beast and Iceman rise, still stunned and limp, ENVELOPED in a
MENTAL ENERGY FIELD. All four X-Men rise up, into the night air,
beyond the Vault's walls. HELICOPTERS are HEARD CLOSER.
INT. UNITED STATES SENATE -- DAY
Senate is in session. Packed house. SENATOR CHESTER, a heavy-
set, charismatic, boisterous speaker, has the floor.
SENATOR CHESTER
We've all heard these stories about the
mutant problem. More and more we hear
them. Anyone who watched the news in the
last twenty-four hours knows of the man
named Cain Marko. Wears a gigantic suit
of armor... calls himself Juggernaut, for
good reason, I might add. For years, he
used his incredible powers to rob banks,
and he was supposed to be unstoppable.
But, someone stopped him. The National
Guard did. They had him. They had him,
that is, until last night, when he was set
free by a group of mutant terrorists.
And, according to witnesses, the X-Men
were spotted at the scene of the crime.
INT. WAR ROOM -- DAY
On a vast TV SCREEN, C-SPAN's coverage takes over without pause:
SENATOR CHESTER (V.O.)
Well, who are these mysterious X-Men? If
they fight for the common good, like some
claim they do, then why haven't they come
forward to be accounted for under the
Mutant Registration Act? Why is that?
ON THE TV, there's APPLAUSE from senators. IN THE dark WAR ROOM,
CHARLES XAVIER, bald, handsome, in a wheelchair, watches sadly.
SENATOR CHESTER (V.O.,CONT)
My distinguished colleagues, the problem
with mutants is they're different...
... but you can't always tell by looking.
They don't carry concealed weapons. They
are concealed weapons. So, I say it's
time to seriously consider internment
camps for mutants, and mandatory tattoos.
Because, without these... without these,
who knows where the danger lies?
"MUTE" appears on the TV screen. Cyclops enters, now wearing RUBY
RED SUNGLASSES in place of his visor, in civilian garb.
XAVIER
What were we expecting? We filled the
earth with pollutants. We depleted the
ozone... sprayed every chemical imaginable
on our food, and now that our progeny
begins to show the evolutionary result, we
act surprised, as if it were shocking.
CYCLOPS
Sir, I... I, uh, wanted to talk to you...
about what happened last night.
XAVIER
You did your best, Scott. Leave it at
that. Amends will be made, eventually.
Cyclops is troubled. Xavier wheels up to a keyboard, punches
keys. The TV IMAGE is replaced by COMPUTER LANGUAGE DATA...
XAVIER (CONT)
I finished my latest excursion on the
Internet. The final C.S.S. UNIX code was
nearly impossible, but I broke through. I
found what I was searching for...
ON THE SCREEN: computer generated IMAGES of LOGAN'S SKELETON.
XAVIER (CONT)
He's an agent at Canada's Department H.
He has the ability to heal almost any
injury with unbelievable efficiency, and
his bones are coated with adamantium
metal, the strongest alloy known to man.
CYCLOPS
What are these... on his hands?
XAVIER
Retractable claws. Also adamantium. His
code name is "Wolverine," and if we don't
get to him soon... they will.
INT. CANADIAN SECRET SERVICE OFFICE -- DAY
Logan, in a suit, is slumped in a cushy chair, smoking a cigar.
LOGAN
Flashbacks are coming more often now.
Full of needles and torture. They're even
working their way into my dreams.
Across the office, JAMES HUDSON, a scholarly-looking man, fills
out paperwork. KA-CHUNK -- Logan imbeds his claws in the papers.
LOGAN (CONT)
Somehow I don't think you're giving me
your undivided attention.
Hudson calmly looks up. Logan retracts. Hudson caps his pen.
HUDSON
You're the best agent we've got, Logan.
You've served the Prime Minister well...
LOGAN
Don't start whistling "Oh, Canada" at me
again.
HUDSON
Let me finish, ok? You've been on Hazard
Duty a long time, left a lot of damage in
your wake and no one's complaining about
that. But, you've earned some nightmares.
LOGAN
No... I think these visions are pieces of
memories, rattling around in my head.
(long pause)
I want to know who I am. I want to know
who made me this way.
HUDSON
No one knows.
LOGAN
Well, I'm starting to find that harder and
harder to stomach.
HUDSON
You're exactly the way you were when we
found you... adamantium claws and all.
Out in the wilds of the Buffalo Woods,
half-insane... living like an animal.
LOGAN
As opposed to the way I'm living now?
HUDSON
What dredged this up again?
LOGAN
It's just too convenient. Secret Service
stumbles upon me, cleans me up... has
their shrinks give me back some of my
sanity. All done out of the goodness of
your heart, right, Hudson? Oh, but,
lucky for you, I also happened to be the
ultimate killing machine.
HUDSON
Look. Department H has tried to research
your background plenty of times and it's
always a dead end. We can't even verify
the name "Logan." What more do you want?
LOGAN
Nothing. I'm quits. That's all. I'll
see ya in the funny papers.
HUDSON
I can't let that happen.
LOGAN
Yeah? What're you going to do about it?
You going to push a button on me?
Logan waits. No answer. He exits, shuts the door behind him.
EXT. CANADIAN WILDERNESS -- DAY
Logan, in flannels and jeans, rides his EXTRA-LOUD Harley down an
expansive highway, through scenic mountains.
EXT. SMALL CANADIAN TOWN -- DAY
Logan rides slow through this fishing village, studies buildings.
He stops in front of the "WHITECAP BAR." The bar has a log-cabin
motif, decorated in blobs of white plaster made to resemble snow.
Logan digs an old photo from his pocket. It shows the WHITECAP
BAR, less dirty, less old. Same place though.
INT. WHITECAP BAR -- DAY
Surprising number of afternoon customers. Logan sits at the bar.
BARTENDER
What can I do you for, friend?
LOGAN
I'm hoping you can answer me some
questions. Like, how long's this place
been around, the way it is now, with the
whole winter wonderland thing going on?
BARTENDER
Oh, I'd say... at least fifteen years.
LOGAN
You a townie?
BARTENDER
Born and raised.
LOGAN
And, how many years you put in here?
BARTENDER
Say... what's this all about? You some
kind of reporter or something?
LOGAN
Well... that's hard to explain. You want
the long story...
(holds up TWENTY DOLLARS)
... or the short?
BARTENDER
(takes money)
I like stories with happy endings. I been
working this dive for about ten years.
LOGAN
Okay, good. Do me a favor... take a hard
look at me. You ever seen me before?
BARTENDER
(studies him, pause)
No... no, not that I can recall.
LOGAN
You sure? Take your time. It might've
been a while ago. Maybe years ago.
BARTENDER
Sorry, friend, but I think if I'd have
seen that face before, I'd remember.
LOGAN
It's alright. It was a long shot. How
about sliding me a bottle of Jack?
The bartender brings up a bottle. Logan uncaps it, pours a drink.
A WAITRESS comes with an order, eyeing Logan.
WAITRESS
Now, how is it you and I are going to get
to know each other if you're sitting all
the way up at the bar like this?
LOGAN
(pause, gulps drink)
Darlin', you don't want to know me. You
wouldn't like me very much.
EXT. WHITECAP BAR -- NIGHT
Logan starts his cycle. It roars. He sits back, sad, looks to
the Whitecap Bar. He takes out the photo of the bar, stares at
it, then bends one corner -- makes a sharp crease. Pockets it.
EXT. CANADIAN FORESTS -- DAY
Logan rides a dirt trail, headed for a small HUNTING CABIN.
INT. LOGAN'S CABIN -- DAY
Logan sits at a weathered desk. There's an old SHOEBOX there,
full of photographs, hundreds. Logan puts the photo of the '
Whitecap Bar (corner bent) in the box. He replaces the lid.
INT. LOGAN'S CABIN -- NIGHT
Logan sleeps, shifting, dreaming. He opens his eyes and sits up,
abruptly alert. He turns his head and sniffs the air.
EXT. FOREST -- NIGHT
Logan moves, stealth-like. SOMEONE is HEARD ahead. In the dark,
a MAN carries some sort of metal contraption.
Logan leaps to action, runs... tackles the man. The contraption
goes flying.
Logan hits the ground with Cyclops pinned under him. Logan POPS
his claws, holds them close to Cyclops' face.
LOGAN
Don't move, pretty boy.
Logan glances to the metal contraption: a folded wheelchair.
LOGAN (CONT)
Good thinking. You're going to be needing
that in a minute.
CYCLOPS
Mister Logan, I presume.
LOGAN
Well, how about you... all calm, cool and
collected.
Logan retracts his claws, puts his fist against Cyclops' throat --
lets only the claw to the left POP, close to Cyclops' neck.
LOGAN (CONT)
That's one...
(POPS right claw)
That's two. You want to go for three?
Logan looks up just as he's PULLED skyward by an AURA of PSIONIC
ENERGY and TOSSED to one side. He tumbles, but comes up in a
crouch, pissed. Jean Grey walks to stand beside Cyclops as he
gets to his feet. She carries Professor Xavier in her arms.
XAVIER
Back down, Wolverine. We're friends.
LOGAN
How do you know that name?
XAVIER
I know a great deal about you. If you
want, we'll leave... but we have no
quarrel with you. Quite the contrary, in
fact. We'd like your assistance.
Logan studies them. He retracts his claws.
INT. LOGAN'S CABIN -- NIGHT
Jean, Cyclops and Xavier (in wheelchair) are at the kitchen table.
Logan sits on his bed, opens a beer.
LOGAN
Ain't this comfy cozy... Goldielocks and
the Three Mutants. So, you want me to
join your... what'd you call them?
XAVIER
X-Men. So, named because they possess
extra powers which ordinary humans do not.
LOGAN
And, how'd you manage to find me?
XAVIER
I have contacts in the international
intelligence community. But, you
understand, I cannot go into details...
not till I have your answer.
LOGAN
Well, how would this work, exactly? I
mean, the C.S.S. and Department H ain't
just going to give me a goodbye kiss.
XAVIER
You would disappear. Your Canadian
citizenship would become null and void.
CYCLOPS
You'd live in secrecy, the same as us.
Logan stands, nonchalantly placing his foot on the old shoebox on
the floor and kicking it under the bed. Jean notices this.
LOGAN
For the good of humanity, you said.
(off Xavier's nod, pause)
Humanity. Are we a part of that?
JEAN GREY
We are, unless we make the mistake of
excluding ourselves.
LOGAN
You know, I could really get to liking
you, sweetheart.
CYCLOPS
You're out of line, Logan.
LOGAN
Maybe. But, then again, I never was much
of a team player. I'm declining the
invitation. Thanks anyway.
Logan plops down in a ratty easy chair, turns on the television.
CYCLOPS
Let's go. He's a lost cause.
XAVIER
Listen to me, Logan. Many of the tasks
you've performed for your country were
questionable, not to mention your methods.
I'm willing to forgive that... to put past
times behind.
LOGAN
I don't remember asking forgiveness.
XAVIER
You are a murderer by trade. This is the
label which best defines you, isn't it?
Murderer. Or, will you dispute that?
LOGAN
No. But, I can live with it.
XAVIER
Can you? There is a war on the way.
Humans against mutants, mutant against
mutant... far worse than anyone imagines.
And, as battles escalate, you'll be forced
to choose, a side. I'm offering you an
opportunity to fight for something far
more honorable than a government agenda...
without killing.
LOGAN
Sorry... the answer's still "no."
Logan turns his attention back to the television. Xavier just
stares at Logan, unblinking. After a moment, Logan looks at him.
LOGAN (CONT)
You can show yourselves out.
Xavier wheels back, turning to leave. Jean and Cyclops follow.
EXT. SKY -- DAY
SCREECHING -- a small, PRIVATE JET streaks across the sky.
INT. SENATOR'S JET -- DAY
Luxurious. Assistants mill about, on cellular phones. Senator
Chester stands, cocktail in hand, reading paperwork.
SENATOR CHESTER
No, no, no, this is all wrong. Who
drafted this? Start from scratch. Go!
Chester throws the papers, drains his drink, then rattles the ice.
SENATOR CHESTER (CONT)
Heeellllo... I'm dry here.
EXT. SKY -- DAY
The Senator's jet soars. Higher up, a SECOND JET flies into view.
INT. SECOND JET -- DAY
On the cockpit floor, a PILOT lies unconscious, tied up. Toad is
in the pilot seat, in an oxygen mask. He looks back to the cabin,
gives thumbs up. Blob stands by the open door, fingers crossed.
EXT. SECOND JET -- DAY
Blob sticks his head out. The Senator's jet is below and behind.
Blob swallows. He leaps out, yelping...
Free falling. Blob tumbles through the air, a blubber projectile.
INT. SENATOR'S PLANE -- DAY
Senator Chester sits down. WHHOOOOMP!! -- the plane lurches
violently. Senator Chester's cocktail spills. He's furious.
SENATOR CHESTER
What in tarnation... ?
(looks out window, aghast)
There's an enormous fat man on the wing!
EXT. SENATOR'S JET -- DAY
Blob is barely hanging on. He grips tight with one hand, PUNCHES
a HOLE in the wing. Jet fuel spews.
INT. SENATOR'S JET -- DAY
Senator Chester backs away from the window, panicky. He pushes
an aide aside, sits again and frantically fastens a seatbelt. He
puts his head between his legs, keeping it there. FROM INTERCOM:
PILOT (V.O.)
... Um, excuse me, gentlemen... this is
your pilot. We have a bit of a problem...
CO-PILOT (B.G.,V.O.)
We're all going to die!
PILOT (V.O.)
Shut up!
SENATOR CHESTER
What am I doing!? This is madness!
Senator Chester tries to stand, realizes his seatbelt's on. He
pulls it open, bolts down the aisle. The ENGINE is HEARD
STRAINING. Senator Chester reaches the cockpit door and throws it
open. IN THE COCKPIT, the PILOT and CO-PILOT argue heatedly.
SENATOR CHESTER
Parachutes! Where are the parachutes?
PILOT
Sir... get back to your seat!
SENATOR CHESTER
(grabs pilot, shaking him)
Parachutes, man! We need parachutes!
EXT. SENATOR'S JET -- DAY
The wind-blown Blob is beating the wing. It's bent out of shape.
Blob hoots with pleasure as the jet begins to spin. He lets go of
the jet, soars away into open sky...
As he falls, Blob looks back to the SCREAMING jet, which spirals
downward, smoking, out of control. Blob claps like a happy child.
INT. SUBURBAN HOME, LIVING ROOM -- DAY
A SUBURBAN MAN is on his couch, watching FOOTBALL on TV. He
cheers a play, then picks up a plate and walks out of the room.
INT. SUBURBAN HOME, KITCHEN -- DAY
Suburban Man comes to a cutting board to slice himself another
hunk of a submarine sandwich. Suddenly, a loud KA-BOOM is HEARD
from the other room. Suburban Man is thrown to the floor as the
kitchen SHUTTERS around him. Walls crack. Windows break.
Shelves dump their contents. The BOOM reverberates. Then,
relative quiet returns. Suburban Man looks up, terrified.
INT. SUBURBAN HOME, LIVING ROOM -- DAY
Suburban Man enters, scared, clutching the sandwich in his fist.
The living room is ruined. There's a huge HOLE in the CEILING.
Below that, there's a big crater full of debris where the couch
used to be. Blob's crawling out from the crater.
Blob stands, coughing, trying to dust off. He sees Suburban man
and sheepishly tries to straighten his hair, backing away. Blob
opens the door, gives one last embarrassed look, and exits.
Suburban Man is left dumbfounded.
EXT. FOREST, JET CRASH SITE -- NIGHT
Wreckage and burnt forest. Lots of investigative activity.
GYRICH, a stern man in military-issue glasses and a crew cut,
stands looking at the jet's severed, Blob-beaten wing. Gyrich
turns, walks to meet an arriving Range Rover. He opens the door.
Tan Man and Pale Man, in their sunglasses and angry, are inside.
GYRICH
Get out.
PALE
Who's in charge here?
GYRICH
That'd be me.
PALE
Yeah, well, what gives you the right to
drag us out here into the boondocks
without a word of explanation? Huh? You
think you can strong-arm us, tough-guy?
GYRICH
Do you realize you're speaking to a
superior officer of the National Security
Council?
PALE
No, actually I didn't, since you haven't
even bothered to show us any i.d.
Gyrich looks a little annoyed, but smiles, nodding.
GYRICH
Let me rectify that.
Gyrich reaches into his pocket. He takes his hand out, holds it
up and turns it to show it's empty -- SLAPS Pale Man's face, hard.
GYRICH
There's my identification, soldier. And,
if I hear another peep out of you before I
give you permission to speak, I'm going to
knock both your heads together so hard
you're each going to end up with the other
guy's childhood memories. Got it? Is
that clear? Just nod if you understand.
Pale Man and Tan Man, stunned into silence, nod.
GYRICH (CONT)
Good. Now, I have some business to finish
up, but when I'm done, you're going to
tell me about the mutants you ran into at
that freak show, and you're going to tell
me in such excruciating detail that I'll
feel like I was with you. Except, if I
had been, I wouldn't have let a bunch of
filthy muties beat the crap out of me.
An earnest, young AGENT comes over with a cellular phone.
AGENT
Mister Gyrich. Trask on the line.
GYRICH
Why don't you two take a seat on that log
there and start collecting your thoughts.
I Ill get back to you when I feel like it.
Gyrich walks away, taking the phone and shouting into it. Pale
Man and Tan Man look at each other. Pause. They walk over to the
log and sit down, dejected. Pale Man rubs his red cheek.
EXT. CANADIAN LAKE -- DAY
Logan is on an outcropping of rock, staring at the lake. Hudson
comes from foliage, irritated, pulling burrs out of his suit.
LOGAN
Hey there, Hudson. Looking for me?
HUDSON
How you can stand living around all these
trees and dirt, it's beyond me. I know
you claim to have quit... but you might
like to see this. It came in on one of
our ghost channels. A request for a
meeting, addressed to you, and it's not
hard to figure out who sent it.
Hudson hands over a YELLOW PAPER. Logan reads, getting angry.
HUDSON (CONT)
Department H still considers him absent
without leave. We want him back.
LOGAN
I'm in... but, only if I go alone. No
back-up. No extraction team.
HUDSON
I figured as much. You know, he's
probably counting on that.
LOGAN
How would you like him? Alive or dead?
HUDSON
Use your discretion.
LOGAN
I'll do that. I'll use my discretion.
Logan tosses the sheet of paper in the air, POPS claws, swings...
Four cut strips of paper float onto the lake's placid surface.
INT. NIAGARA FALLS RESTAURANT -- NIGHT
High-class restaurant. Busy. CLASSICAL MUSIC PLAYS. At the
entrance, Logan, well dressed, searches the crowd.
MAITRE D'
Do you have a reservation, sir? Sir?
Logan spots what he came for. He walks. One wall of the dining
room is comprised of windows affording a spectacular view of the
HORSESHOE FALLS at night. Logan reaches a table occupied by
Sabretooth. These two hate each other lots.
SABRETOOTH
Logan. Grab a seat. We need to talk.
LOGAN
(sits, wary)
How's the mercenary business these days,
Creed? Assassinate any good foreign
dignitaries lately?
SABRETOOTH
Actually, I been monogamous for a while
now. Working on a sort of a... crusade.
LOGAN
Isn't that special?
A WAITER approaches timidly. He puts a plate down in front of
Sabretooth. A completely raw steak, with garnish.
WAITER
Your... um, steak, sir.
The waiter splits. Creed cuts the meat with a forefinger claw.
SABRETOOTH
Hope you don't mind I ordered without you.
LOGAN
Nah. Seeing you again, I doubt I'd be
able to keep solid food down.
SABRETOOTH
Now, what kinda way is that to talk to
your old spying partner? We been through
a lot together, you and me.
LOGAN
We worked together, but we were never
partners.
SABRETOOTH
If looking at it like that makes you feel
better, fine. But, I been sent to ask if
you want to team up again. See... a bunch
of us got something going. It's called
the Brotherhood...
... kind of a pussy name if you ask me,
but anyway, we're about to be putting a
big hurt on a lot a people.
LOGAN
I'm not interested, okay? So, that's all
of that, right? You done jawing?
SABRETOOTH
Sure am.
Logan stands, takes off his jacket, starts rolling his sleeves up.
LOGAN
You know, there's not a day goes by I
don't think about how much I'd like to
take you out.
SABRETOOTH
Hey, I was only fulfilling an obligation
there. I'm glad you said no. Cause now I
got an altogether different obligation to
stomp you into the ground. I've been
hating you so long, I can't even remember
what started it.
As he talks, Sabretooth takes off his cowboy boots, revealing feet
with long-clawed toes. Logan takes off his tie.
LOGAN
I know what started it for me. You
murdered the only woman I ever loved.
SABRETOOTH
Hah, that's right. Now, why did I snuff
her again? Oh, yeah, I remember... didn't
really have a reason... I did it for fun.
SNICKT -- Logan's claws shoot out as he lunges...
Sabretooth tips back his chair, hits the floor and does a backward
somersault. Logan misses, knocking over the table and slamming
his claws into the floor. Sabretooth springs to his feet, takes
the napkin from around his neck and tosses it aside, ready.
SABRETOOTH (CONT)
Step right up.
Logan pulls his claws free, advances. Dinner-goers are freaked,
starting a panicked rush for the door. WOMEN SCREAM. Sabretooth
and Logan circle, then attack, grappling. Sabretooth holds
Logan's wrists to avoid claws, shifts his weight and throws...
Logan hits the wall, falls to the floor.
Sabretooth grabs a sharp steak knife, throws it.
Logan ducks to one side -- THUNK -- the knife imbeds in the wall.
Logan charges towards Sabretooth, but Sabretooth leaps up onto a
table. Logan slashes at him, missing. Again and again, Logan
swings and misses, chopping tables and chairs to pieces...
Sabretooth keeps avoiding, leaping from table to table.
He's amazingly adept, keeping his balance even as he leaps from
chair back to chair back. Logan's getting furious, flailing.
LOGAN
Hold still, ya freak!
Logan whiffs as Sabretooth leaps and kicks him across the face.
Logan goes sprawling. He struggles to get up, but falls to his
knees, gripping his head, crying out in pain...
FLASHBACK -- LOGAN'S MEMORY
FROM BLACKNESS, a RUSHING SOUND, like a FREIGHT TRAIN. P.O.V.
IMAGES APPEAR, MOVING THROUGH an INDUSTRIAL CORRIDOR, fast,
passing metal doorways, searching. ROUNDING a CORNER... ahead are
high-tech MILITARY MEN in strange uniforms. The Military Men look
this way, alarmed, pointing, raising automatic weapons...
BACK TO SCENE, IN THE RESTAURANT
Logan's still wrapped up in the flashback. Across the room,
Sabretooth grasps an espresso machine, yanks it out of the wall...
SABRETOOTH
Anyone for an after dinner espresso?
Logan throws his head back and opens his eyes, released by the
vision. He looks towards Sabretooth just as Sabretooth throws...
Logan dodges. The espresso machine SMASHES, barely missing.
Logan leaps onto the buffet table, moving. There's a large ICE
SCULPTURE there. Logan slices off a huge chunk...
He heaves it. Sabretooth runs, but the ice chunk CLOBBERS him,
knocks him down. Sabretooth's dazed. Logan leaps down and closes
in, SCRAPING his claws together.
LOGAN
Say goodnight, Gracie.
Logan brings one hand back for the kill, but several spoons fly
over - CLINK, CLINK - and attach to his claws. Logan looks...
Silverware leaps from everywhere, drawn to his claws.
CLINK, CLINK, CLINK -- hundreds of knifes, forks and spoons.
Logan tries to shake them, but his claws are useless, heavy.
In a corner of the room, one final patron has remained, seated in
shadows. He stands into light. It's Magneto.
MAGNETO
You should have joined us, Wolverine.
What a pitiful waste of talent.
Logan sees Sabretooth getting up and moving in for the kill.
Logan lets out a HOWL of rage, runs ahead, SLAMS into Sabretooth.
They both SMASH through one of the plate glass windows...
EXT. NIAGARA FALLS, HILLSIDE -- NIGHT
The RAGING SOUND of the HORSESHOE FALLS is DEAFENING. Logan and
Sabretooth fall, surrounded by shards of broken glass and cutlery.
They hit a steep, rocky hillside, tumbling down...
WHOOMP -- they finally land on a rail-bordered ledge. It's a
SCENIC LOOK-OUT POINT, very close to the falls. They're both in
bad shape. Sabretooth is the first to rise. Mist sprays down.
SABRETOOTH
You're too much, shrimp. Trying to kill
me... you almost killed yourself.
Sabretooth picks Logan up, lifts him over his head in both hands.
SABRETOOTH (CONT)
Silly me... did I say almost?
With a grunt, Sabretooth throws Logan's body over the rail.
Logan's body drops... disappears into the raging fury of Niagara.
EXT. X-MANSION -- NIGHT
INSERT TITLE -- UPSTATE NEW YORK, SALEM CENTER
It's raining hard. Lightning illuminates the X-Mansion, an
expansive, two-winged brick structure. The sign at the top of the
circular drive reads "XAVIER INSTITUTE FOR HIGHER LEARNING."
INT. X-MANSION 2ND FLOOR, BEAST'S LIVING QUARTERS -- NIGHT
Beast, in reading glasses, upside down, clings to ceiling-mounted
"monkey-bars" with his feet, reading "TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD."
INT. X-MANSION 2ND FLOOR, ANGEL'S LIVING QUARTERS -- NIGHT
Angel sleeps on his stomach, shirtless, his wings spread wide.
INT. X-MANSION 2ND FLOOR, XAVIER'S LIVING QUARTERS -- NIGHT
Xavier is at a worktable, using a soldering iron to do delicate
work on a bread-box sized, ANTENNAED DEVICE. He looks tired.
INT. X-MANSION SUB-BASEMENT, WAR ROOM -- NIGHT
Iceman (human form) is asleep at a SECURITY STATION of TV and
radar screens. An ALARM SOUNDS loudly. Iceman awakens, startled.
He stands, ICE FORMING rapidly on his skin, TRANSFORMING him to
his ICY PERSONA as he punches buttons and studies screens.
INT. X-MANSION 2ND FLOOR, XAVIER'S LIVING QUARTERS -- NIGHT
ALARM. Xavier looks up, worried, wheels quickly across the room
into an elevator. The doors shut.
EXT. X-MANSION GROUNDS, LAWN -- NIGHT
A small door pops open in a LAWN ROCK and a RADAR MAST rises up,
starts shifting back and forth, scanning and BEEPING.
EXT. X-MANSION, 2ND FLOOR WINDOW -- NIGHT
ALARM. A window is thrown open. Angel climbs out and leaps.
He spreads his wings and soars into the rainy sky.
INT. X-MANSION SUB-BASEMENT, WAR ROOM -- NIGHT
ALARM. Elevator doors open and Xavier enters, wheeling to Iceman.
XAVIER
What have we got, Robert?
ICEMAN
The thermal sensors and radar are going
crazy, but they're being taken out before
they can cross-reference. Watch...
Iceman points to a radar screen. It shows an erratic BLIP heading
towards the screen's center. Then the SCREEN GOES DEAD.
EXT. X-MANSION GROUNDS, LAWN -- NIGHT
At the rock, the RADAR MAST has been ravaged, innards exposed.
INT. X-MANSION 2ND FLOOR, LIVING QUARTERS HALLWAY -- NIGHT
ALARM. A long hallway. Beast runs down the hall. Cyclops comes
out a door, adjusting his visor. He waits till Beast is past,
making sure the coast is clear, then ushers Jean Grey out.
EXT. X-MANSION GROUNDS/FRONT-GATE -- NIGHT
Angel lands gracefully and runs.
He sees that the wrought-iron of the Institute's main gate has
been SLASHED open. Angel goes to an INTERCOM on the gate pillar.
ANGEL
(into intercom)
This is Angel. I'm at the front gate.
The perimeter's definitely been breeched.
EXT. X-MANSION FRONT DOOR -- NIGHT
ALARM. HEAVY BOLTS are HEARD CLUNKING. The doors swing open.
Cyclops, Beast and Jean Grey step out, ready for battle.
INT. X-MANSION SUB-BASEMENT, WAR ROOM -- NIGHT
Iceman and Xavier continue monitoring. Suddenly, the PITCH of the
ALARM CHANGES and the entire War Room is bathed in red light.
Xavier looks, then sits back in his chair and shuts his eyes...
XAVIER (V.O.)
(PROJECTING his thoughts)
Jean... can you hear me?
EXT. X-MANSION FRONT DOOR -- NIGHT
Beast, Cyclops and Jean Grey fanning out across the drive when
Jean turns her head, responding to Xavier, also PROJECTING.
JEAN GREY (V.O.)
I'm here, Professor.
XAVIER'S VOICE (V.O.)
The intruder has entered the mansion.
Jean heads back toward the mansion, shouting to Beast and Cyclops.
JEAN GREY
Scott, he's inside the house.
EXT. X-MANSION GROUNDS/FRONT GATE -- NIGHT
Angel pushes through the remains of the gate, peering forward.
Lightning illuminates a Harley Davidson motorcycle parked ahead.
INT. X-MANSION, FRONT DOORS -- NIGHT
Jean runs into the foyer and halts, looking up in shock just as
Beast and Scott arrive to back her up.
JEAN GREY
Logan.
Logan sits at the top of the broad, central staircase. He's still
in the clothing Sabretooth ruined, soaked, hurt bad. The entire
right side of his face is swollen and badly bruised.
LOGAN
Your security system could use some
improvements.
He stands, weak, keeping his hand on the rail, tossing a duffel
bag off his shoulder. He takes a step down, but blacks out and
tumbles. Jean Grey comes to catch him, cradles his battered form.
LOGAN (CONT)
... nice catch...
JEAN GREY
What happened to you?
LOGAN
Bad things, darlin'... bad things.
LOGAN'S DREAM -- LOGAN'S MEMORIES
P.O.V. FROM UNDERWATER, as before, through a tangle of wires,
blood tubes, and bubbles; like from within an aquarium to the
outside world. FIGURE in a lab coat passes, warped and made
unrecognizable by the water and glass. It FADES TO BLACKNESS...
FROM BLACKNESS, a RUSHING SOUND, like a FREIGHT TRAIN. P.O.V.
IMAGES APPEAR, MOVING THROUGH an INDUSTRIAL CORRIDOR, fast,
passing metal doorways, searching. ROUNDING a CORNER... ahead are
high-tech MILITARY MEN in strange uniforms. The Military Men look
this way, alarmed, pointing, raising automatic weapons...
P.O.V. CHARGES straight at Military Men, heedless of the guns,
PICKING UP SPEED, into the BRIGHT, RAPID GUNFIRE. Everything goes
pale. Then, BLINDING WHITENESS.
FROM WHITENESS... a different type of image blooms... P.O.V. of a
FIELD OF FLOWERS. Peaceful. Colors so clear. Even as the P.O.V.
TURNS: FLOWERS EVERYWHERE, with sky and mountains beyond.
INT. X-MANSION, WOLVERINE'S LIVING QUARTERS -- NIGHT
Logan sleeps, shirtless, still baring his massive wounds. TIME
CUT to LATER NIGHT... as Logan sleeps, he HEALS...
TIME CUT, LATER NIGHT... Logan's face is less swollen. His torso
is almost completely healed, but covered in many thick scars.
TIME CUT, LATER NIGHT... morning. Logan is whole. No scars.
INT. X-MANSION, VARIOUS ROOMS, LIBRARY, HALLWAY -- DAY
Xavier leads Logan through the vast library, into a hall.
XAVIER (CONT)
The dining rooms, kitchen and parlor are
found in the other wing. As you can see,
everything on this floor and above has
been designed to be viewed by the general
public. As far as they know, this is
merely a school for gifted students.
They reach an elevator and enter it. As the door close:
XAVIER (CONT)
The sub-basements, however, are an
entirely different matter.
INT. WAR ROOM -- DAY
The vault-like door opens. Xavier and Logan enter. For the first
time we see the War Room's full glory. There are many futuristic,
multi-screened computer stations.
XAVIER
The War Room. We've tapped into NORAD
Central Command, the F.B.I. and C.I.A...
even your Department H. All civilian,
military, and police data is harvested,
twenty four hours a day.
LOGAN
I hope you don't expect me to learn Word
Perfect.
(pause, looking around)
Why are you trusting me... showing me all
your secrets right off the bat?
XAVIER
Trust is the only thing of any value I'm
showing you. You already know the one
piece of information that could hurt the
X-Men most. Our location.
LOGAN
Now that you mention it, how did I know
that? I mean, I came right here...
XAVIER
The night we met, I planted it in your
mind, hidden away with a memory trigger
attached. So, the moment you decided to
accept my offer, the trigger was activated
and the information was revealed to you.
LOGAN
You did that, without me even knowing.
XAVIER
And, I do apologize. Normally I feel such
uninvited intrusions are wrong, but I felt
I had no choice. As a telepath, I face
innumerable moral dilemmas every day. You
can only begin to imagine. Right now, for
example, I could read your every thought
with ease... if I choose to.
Logan ponders this as Xavier wheels to a security door.
INT. CEREBRO CHAMBER -- DAY
The door rises. A high-tech chair sits surrounded by controls,
beneath a techno-amazing CEREBRO HELMET attached to a swing arm.
XAVIER (CONT)
This is Cerebro. Its sensors constantly
sweep the globe, piggy backing existing
satellite projections. By linking with
it, I have the ability to detect the
unique waves of psionic energy emitted by
super humanly powerful mutants.
Xavier hits some keys: producing a 3-D HOLOGRAPHIC MAP of N.Y.C.
in the air. Wispy SIGNALS of RED ebb and flow across it.
XAVIER (CONT)
It unfortunately cannot specify exact
locations. However, I have recently
discovered an unusual gathering of mutants
in and around New York City.
LOGAN
The Brotherhood... and Sabretooth. Who's
running that road show, anyway? Who's the
guy who turned me into a giant magnet?
XAVIER
(troubled pause)
The time will come for this discussion.
Till then, I have to ask you not to
mention that incident to the other X-Men.
INT. X-MANSION, DANGER ROOM CONTROL ROOM -- DAY
Another technological wonderland. Beast is in the control chair,
working controls. Jean Grey and Cyclops flank him. We can't see
what they're looking at through the large, VIEWPORT WINDOW.
JEAN GREY
Not bad.
BEAST
Not bad at all.
CYCLOPS
Not good enough.
Xavier and Logan enter. Angel, seated, takes his nose out of his
Wall Street Journal and stands. Jean and Cyclops turn.
XAVIER
Logan... you've already met Jean Grey, and
our team leader, Scott Summer, or Cyclops.
And, this is Warren Worthington the Third.
Nicknamed Angel, for obvious reasons.
Angel, rather snobbish, shakes hands, looks like he'd rather not.
LOGAN
Worthington, huh? As in Worthington Industries?
ANGEL
I'm Chairman and principal stockholder.
LOGAN
How does a mutant manage that?
ANGEL
In this age of teleconferencing and fax
machines, it's not too hard.
XAVIER
This busy gentleman over here is Henry
McCoy. Biochemist and genetic researcher
extraordinare, otherwise known as Beast.
BEAST
A distinct pleasure meeting you. I'd
shake hands, but I don't have a free one.
XAVIER
Beast is putting our young Iceman, Robert
Drake, through his paces.
(to Logan, of viewport)
Come look. We call this the Danger Room.
Logan comes to the viewport, looking into a positively enormous
room. The dented, greasy, burnt, metal walls and ceiling of the
DANGER ROOM are covered in irregularly shaped geometric sections
formed by the seams of trap doors, hidden compartments, hinges,
gun barrel holes and slightly jutting sensors. Iceman, dwarfed by
the room, runs for his life, dodging LASER BEAMS.
IN THE DANGER ROOM, Iceman sprints, LASER BEAMS ZIPPING past. He
looks back over his shoulder. KACHUNG -- a metal WALL suddenly
juts up from the floor and the oblivious Iceman slams into it.
Iceman rolls, still under fire. He places his palms on the floor.
A PILLAR OF ICE forms under his hands, growing, shooting quickly
up into the air, carrying him.
Across the room, LASER CANNONS in the wall shift to retarget.
At the top of the still forming ice pillar, Iceman FIRES back at
the cannons with jagged ICE PROJECTILES, disabling them. Iceman
lets out a laugh. Below, a panel whips opens in the wall...
A BATTERING RAM shoves out and SHATTERS the pillar in the middle.
Iceman cries out as he falls. He points with both hands...
On the floor, a crude ICE SLIDE morphs into existence. Iceman
hits it near the top and slides through to slow his fall. The
slide spits him out the bottom. He slides across the floor.
Iceman comes to a stop. In front of him, a trap-door slams open
and a menacing FIRE CANNON rises on pistons, targeting. The
cannon SHOOTS a FLAME, engulfing Iceman before he can crawl away.
A BLARING HORN SOUNDS and the fire cannon lets up, then withdraws
into its hiding place. Iceman's sharp edges have melted.
XAVIER (V.O.)
(from LOUDSPEAKER)
That's enough for today, Robert.
Iceman reforms his melted edges, pounds the floor in frustration.
IN THE D.R. CONTROL ROOM, Xavier lets his finger off the intercom
button. Cyclops watches Iceman exit the Danger Room below.
BEAST
A disappointing score for Bobby Drake,
ladies and gentlemen. If only he could
have landed that triple axle.
CYCLOPS
Alright, Beast, alright. We all know he
needs lots of practice.
JEAN GREY
He has to learn to react quicker.
BEAST
More quickly, actually.
XAVIER
He will. See to it, Scott. Spend some
extra time with him.
Cyclops nods. Xavier looks to Logan.
XAVIER (CONT)
So... what do you think?
LOGAN
It looks fun. When's my turn?
CYCLOPS
It's not fun, Logan. It's for real. I
doubt you're ready for it.
LOGAN
Hey, I'm for real too, Cyke, so it's a
perfect match. Or, didn't your mommy
teach you to share your toys?
CYCLOPS
You don't know anything about the D.R.
except what you just saw. You go in now,
you're just going to get yourself killed.
LOGAN
Well, why don't we let the big man decide?
Logan and Cyclops look to Xavier.
INT. THE DANGER ROOM (TIME CUT) -- DAY
D.R. doors open. Logan enters. Doors slam. Logan walks to the
center. SNICKT -- he pops claws, looks up at the control room.
CYCLOPS (V.O.)
You still want to do this?
Logan looks all around, retracts and extends his claws on both
hands... 1,2,3, 1,2,3, 1,2,3, like impatient, drumming fingers.
LOGAN
I'm waiting.
THREE TONES are HEARD. Then, four irises in one wall open
quickly. PHUT - PHUT - PHUT -- leather MEDICINE BALLS are fired.
Logan runs, missed by several, but one medicine ball WRACKS him in
the small of his back and knocks him down.
CYCLOPS
Last chance to change your mind.
LOGAN
Shut your cake-hole.
Logan stands. CLANK -- up pops the FIRE CANNON.
Logan runs straight at it, leap-frogs over just as it BLASTS.
Ahead, three long, multi-sectional ARMS fly up from the floor.
Spider legs with sharp SWORD TIPS. They swing and jab at Logan,
but he ducks and dodges. The swords whistle as they swipe. Logan
blocks them with the backs of his claws, then ducks and runs...
He CHOPS two of the arms down as he passes. The third arm
retracts. Logan searches for the next threat.
High above, a mini MISSILE LAUNCH RACK reveals itself.
Logan books. Mini-missiles EXPLODE behind him. Ahead, a semi-
circular wall jumps up, creating a dead end. Logan does not slow,
leaps, kicks off the wall with one foot and repels, running the
other direction without missing a step.
Logan runs to the wall ahead and flattens against it. He looks
up. The missile launcher is directly above. It stops firing,
WHIRRING as it tries to target. It can't make the angle.
Logan smiles, but that smile wipes away as the wall he's pressed
against starts slowly tipping towards him. Logan runs. A big
section of the wall is falling like a ten ton domino. Logan gets
out from under as the wall SLAMS flat with a THUNDEROUS BOOM.
Logan slides to a stop, looks back up at the viewport, cocky.
LOGAN
You'll have to do better than...
Logan looks up. Uh oh. A spiked, metal RAM ARM hurtles down.
Logan dives away as the ram POUNDS. The ram retreats.
The floor opens in front of Logan, and he is momentarily eye to
eye with a DRONE ROBOT. Logan gets up. The bizarre, lanky drone-
bot rises into full view as the platform bringing it locks in
place. Logan looks behind him. How about that? FOUR other
DRONE-BOTS arrive similarly. Logan backs up, claws ready.
The drone-bots attack with buzz-saw hands and serrated fingers.
Logan kicks one. Another drone-bot strikes, sends Logan flying.
Logan lands hard, his shoulder cut up pretty bad.
IN THE D.R. CONTROL ROOM, Xavier and the rest of the X-Men watch.
CYCLOPS
I'm shutting it down.
XAVIER
No. Let him continue.
IN THE DANGER ROOM, Logan stands, furious. The drone-bots are
coming. Logan goes to meet them with a cry of rage.
He swings, cutting into the drone-bots as they try to counter.
Drone-bot pieces fly to the Danger Room floor.
Logan cuts one drone-bot in half, grabs another drone-bot's arm,
cuts it off. A drone-bot buzz-saw SLICES Logan's back with a
glancing blow, but Logan turns and IMPALES the drone-bot's head.
Logan keeps swinging, RIPPING, SHREDDING, SMASHING, BASHING.
IN THE D.R. CONTROL ROOM, Cyclops is amazed, a little frightened.
CYCLOPS
My God...
IN THE DANGER ROOM, Logan tosses the last drone-bot, breathing
hard, calming. The HORN BLARES. Pause. Logan looks up.
LOGAN
I'm going to Disneyland.
INT. X-MANSION, XAVIER'S QUARTERS -- NIGHT
Cyclops broods by the window. Xavier's in his wheelchair.
CYCLOPS
He's not one of us.
XAVIER
You must have patience.
CYCLOPS
Besides his... his berserker instincts...
putting that aside for a moment, we still
both know the only reason he's here is to
get another crack at Sabretooth.
XAVIER (CONT)
Wolverine is an X-Man now, Scott. Like
you, or Iceman... any of you. One by one,
you came to me, or I sought you out. And
now that Logan has come, he is just as
deserving of chance to learn to control
his abilities. We need him, and although
he may not know it yet... he needs us.
INT. X-MANSION, INDOOR SWIMMING POOL -- NIGHT
Jean Grey swims laps in the pool. She crosses under the diving
board, turns and swims back. At the other end, she climbs out.
LOGAN (O.S.)
Nice night for a dip, sweetheart.
Jean's startled. Logan's on the diving board, smoking a cigar.
JEAN GREY
What can I do for you, Logan?
LOGAN
You're doing it.
She does look good in her bathing suit. Jean motions. Her towel,
far away, leaps into the air and comes to her. She covers up.
LOGAN (CONT)
Aw... you don't have to be shy around me.
JEAN GREY
Let me explain something, before you try
to take this relationship beyond the
leering stage...
LOGAN
I know... you already got a boyfriend. A
certain fella goes by the name of Cyclops.
(off her confusion)
That night in my cabin, I could smell your
lipstick on pretty-boy's breath. So,
either you two had been smooching it up,
or he was borrowing your shade. But, it
doesn't bother me. It's a woman's
prerogative to change her mind.
JEAN GREY
Good night, Logan. Sleep tight, don't let
the bed bugs bite... as if they'd try.
LOGAN
What's your hurry?
JEAN GREY
Something about being alone in a room with
you makes me uneasy.
LOGAN
That's my animal magnetism.
JEAN GREY
No, it's fear.
LOGAN
Afraid you're going to fall in love.
JEAN GREY
Afraid you're a lunatic.
LOGAN
Crazy for you.
Jean Grey just shakes her head and exits. Logan's alone.
LOGAN (CONT)
Logan... you are a heel.
Disgusted with himself, he chucks his cigar into the pool.
INT. X-MANSION, CYCLOPS' LIVING QUARTERS -- NIGHT
Jean Grey is on the bed, drying her hair with her swim towel. She
stops, stares at the wall, thinking. Cyclops (sunglasses) comes
from the bathroom in a robe.
CYCLOPS
What's the matter?
JEAN GREY
Hm? Oh, nothing.
(pause, sees his doubt)
Really. Just thinking. That's all.
Cyclops lets it go, sits beside her, kisses her. Long kiss.
JEAN GREY
We have to tell them.
CYCLOPS
Tell them what?
Cyclops leans to kiss again, but she stops him with a weak smile.
JEAN GREY
Scott, I'm tired of sneaking in here every
night, and then having to hurry back to my
own room before the sun comes up.
CYCLOPS
But, what are they going to say? And,
with Professor Xavier... around him I
still feel like... like some little kid.
JEAN GREY
We shouldn't worry what the others will
think or say. We shouldn't have to worry.
Jean falls back on the bed. Cyclops joins her, takes her hand.
JEAN GREY (CONT)
I wish, just once... I'd give anything to
be able to look into your eyes. Just once
in my lifetime.
CYCLOPS
You know that can never happen. These
lenses are the only thing keeping me from
destroying everything I look at. Without
them... without them, who knows?
Jean comes close to him, puts her arms around him. A breeze blows
the curtains of a nearby window. MUSIC can be heard, QUIETLY...
INT. X-MANSION, WEIGHT TRAINING ROOM -- NIGHT
The MUSIC comes from a RADIO on a shelf in the weight training
room. Iceman (de-iced) lifts weights, straining, covered in
sweat, pushing himself.
Across the room, Angel is seated studying financial charts and
graphs on a LAPTOP COMPUTER while he speaks on the phone.
ANGEL
(into phone)
I don't care what's hot in the Asian Bond
Markets, Jack. S...E...L...L, got it?
Now, what's MRV's close? Okay... lock in
one millions shares. And, by the way,
whatever happened to those ballet tickets?
INT. X-MANSION, BEAST'S LIVING QUARTERS -- NIGHT
Books, books, books. One half of the suite is a chemical test
lab. Beast mixes things in test-tubes, watches for a reaction.
He gets none, disappointed, goes to write down his findings.
INT. X-MANSION, LOGAN'S LIVING QUARTERS -- NIGHT
A SAMURAI SWORD rests on a display rack. Logan sits crosslegged
on the floor, sorts through photos from the shoebox.
Photos, of different people, different places. Logan studies one,
then puts it on the floor and picks up another. He seems
frustrated. Many photos are laid out on the floor around him.
Many of have one corner sharply bent.
EXT. MANHATTAN -- NIGHT
If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. It's big,
shiny, and beautiful. It's the Manhattan skyline. The CITICORP
BUILDING, with its distinctive slanted roof, stands tall.
All and all, besides the SOUNDS of DISTANT SIRENS, it's a quiet
night. Then, a RUMBLE is HEARD. The Citicorp Building trembles.
It shifts impossibly, just slightly, to one side, shuttering...
Thousands of windows shatter, raining glass towards the street.
Then, it's quiet again, for a moment. Only a moment. With a
SCREAM of TORTURED METAL and a SOUND like ONE THOUSAND
LOCOMOTIVES, the Citicorp Building falls towards the east river...
Its lights go dark as it TOPPLES surrounding structures, BURIES
streets filled with cars, and SMITES brownstones.
The DESTRUCTION ECHOES in the sky. It's over. A great cloud of
dust rises. The Manhattan skyline is forever altered.
INT. X-MANSION, XAVIER'S LIVING QUARTERS -- DAY
The TELEVISION shows NEWS IMAGES of rubble strewn streets and busy
emergency rooms. Xavier listens, his head lowered in sorrow.
ANCHOR'S VOICE (V.O.)
(from television)
... alliance of mutant terrorists calling
themselves "The Brotherhood" has claimed
responsibility for the bombing. Here is a
portion of the message we received just
moments before the explosion:
MAGNETO'S VOICE (V.O.)
The thunder you hear across a cloudless
sky is not the sound of a storm rising.
It is the sound of mankind falling.
Xavier looks to the TV. This voice fills him with dread.
MAGNETO'S VOICE (V.O.,CONT)
If it is your desire to fear mutants, it
will be our pleasure to give you something
worth fearing. If you hate us, we gladly
hate you back. And, if you attempt to
imprison us, we will rise up, and we will
build our cities with your bones.
INT. X-MANSION, PARLOR -- DAY
Xavier sternly faces the assembled X-Men: Beast, Iceman (human),
Angel, Jean Grey, Cyclops and Logan.
XAVIER
Beast and I leave for Manhattan within the
hour. I would like very much to see a
marked improvement in this team upon my
return. Will I see such an improvement,
Scott? Can I depend on that?
CYCLOPS
Where there's room for improvement. Yes.
XAVIER
There is one other thing. Angel... you
are no longer required to participate in
Danger Room exercises. I've decided
you'll serve as only a pilot and a scout.
This is surprising to everyone, except Logan, who doesn't care.
ANGEL
What?
XAVIER
You are talented, son, but your skills are
not enough in a combat. You're too
vulnerable.
ANGEL
This isn't fair. You're overreacting to
one incident.
JEAN GREY
I have to agree with Angel.
XAVIER
I'm sorry, it's not open to discussion.
The destruction of the Citicorp building
was only a prelude...
ANGEL
So, that's it? Suddenly, I'm just some
junior-league flunkey?
ICEMAN
Since when do we run things this way?
XAVIER
(building anger)
The darkest days of our lives lie just
ahead for all of us and we have little
time to make ready. So, in this one
instance, this is how it will be, without
question. Is that understood?
EXT. UPSTATE NEW YORK ROADWAY -- DAY
Xavier's car speeds along through lush, upstate NY forests.
INT. XAVIER'S CAR -- DAY
Beast drives, disguised in an overcoat with the collar pulled up,
sunglasses and a hat. Xavier stares out the passenger window.
BEAST
What exactly was that back there, Charles?
Tough love?
XAVIER
It had to be done.
(pause, regretting)
How harsh was I?
BEAST
Perhaps you were right to limit Angel's
participation, but a quote by Mark Twain
does come to mind regarding your delivery.
XAVIER
And it is... ?
BEAST
"Intemperate temperance injures the cause
of temperance, while temperate temperance
helps it in its fight against intemperant
intemperance." Or, in other words, "chill
out." Just a little.
XAVIER
I'll try to remember that. Thank you.
BEAST
Just what do we hope to accomplish on this
breezy jaunt into the Big Apple?
XAVIER
I'm not certain yet. We may be looking up
an old acquaintance of mine.
BEAST
Interesting. Care to elaborate?
XAVIER
No.
BEAST
Alright then. As long as you don't make
me sit through "Cats" again.
(looks in rearview mirror)
Uh oh...
Xavier looks back. A POLICE CAR follows, red lights revolving.
XAVIER
Oh my.
EXT. ROADWAY -- DAY
Beast and Xavier's car stops. The police car stops behind.
INT. XAVIER'S CAR -- DAY
Beast looks in the mirror, watches the POLICEMAN get out.
He takes off his sunglasses, looks expectantly to Xavier.
XAVIER
No. Not this time. You know how I feel
about this.
BEAST
I understand your reticence, but what
choice do we have. It's harmless...
XAVIER
I won't do it. I simply will not.
BEAST
Okay, okay. The only other thing I can
think of is for you to switch places with
me, and I could hunker down and hope he
doesn't notice me. But, that might be a
problem, if, say, oh... the officer
happens to ask you to step out of the car.
XAVIER
Alright... alright. Take off your hat.
EXT. ROADWAY -- DAY
The policeman walks to the driver's side, taps the window. The
tinted window rolls down... reveals MEL GIBSON at the wheel.
MEL GIBSON
Howdi there, officer. Jeez, was I going
too fast or something?
POLICEMAN
Hey... I know you. You're that actor
guy... in all those great cop movies where
everything explodes.
MEL GIBSON
Yeah, well, that's me. I, uh, was also in
this thing called "Hamlet," but anyway...
Xavier has his eyes closed, fingers pressed to his temples.
MEL GIBSON (CONT)
Don't mind him. That's my agent there.
He's got a really bad migraine headache...
had a busy day back-stabbing and double-
dealing. Listen, I'm on my way into town
for a big movie premiere, and I was kind
of hoping you might, you know... see your
way clear to letting me slide this time.
Just this once.
He smiles his winningest, movie-star smile.
EXT. BROOKLYN NAVY DEPOT -- DAY
TWO massive TRACTOR TRAILERS move through Brooklyn streets. They
approach the sprawling, industrial Brooklyn Navy Yards, across
from the lower tip of Manhattan. The yards have definitely seen
better days. Two guards open the gates for the tractor trailers.
EXT. BROOKLYN NAVAL YARDS, THE COMPOUND -- DAY
Doors slide opened to allow the tractor trailers to enter a
massive, RUSTY BUILDING the size of an airplane hanger.
INSIDE THE COMPOUND, the doors behind close. Doors in front open.
The tractor trailers move on, into a cavernous, Ken-Adamish,
government station. Shiny, busy and well equipped, it's a sharp
contrast to its exterior. TROOPERS and TECHNICIANS mill about.
Gyrich walks to meet BOLIVAR TRASK, scientist, nebbish, who climbs
from one truck, looking weary.
GYRICH
Welcome to the Compound, Trask. Your
illegally siphoned tax dollars at work.
TRASK
Thank you. It's very nice. Um, now... if
I could be shown my room, I'm exhausted...
GYRICH
Later. First, I want a look-see at the
goodies you brought me.
Gyrich grasps Trask and leads him. AT THE BACK OF ONE TRUCK, men
open the doors. MACHINES are HEARD HUMMING. We ENTER the dark
trailer. All we can make out are THREE PAIRS of GLOWING EYES.
EXT. NEW YORK CITY STREET -- NIGHT
Beast (in overcoat and such) and Xavier come to a red-globed
SUBWAY ENTRANCE, looking around. Beast vaults over the rail.
He lands on the stairs below. The station is closed, boarded up.
Beast pulls at the boards. Xavier keeps watch above.
INT. UNDERGROUND PASSAGEWAY -- NIGHT
A passageway and entrance used for going from building to
building. It is dark and empty except for Beast and Xavier.
Ahead are WARNING SIGNS and yellow POLICE BARRIER RIBBONS.
XAVIER
News reports said it was an explosion that
took the building down, as if it were a
bomb. But, I have a strong feeling they
haven't been told the truth.
INT. BELOW CITICORP, PARKING GARAGE -- NIGHT
A long escalator is covered in rubble. Hastily assembled boards
block the escalator off. Beast shoves through from the other
side, carrying Xavier. He stops, looking up in awe.
The escalator they're on goes only a little further down before it
abruptly ends, hanging over a MASSIVE CRATER. The crater has
ruined several floors of parking garage. At its center, many
massive STEEL girders and thousands of METAL support rods have
been RIPPED from their concrete moorings and walls, stretched and
joined together, TWISTED round and round each other, forming what
looks like a giant tornado of heavy metal frozen in time.
BEAST
Lord... who could have done this?
INT. X-MANSION, DANGER ROOM -- DAY
Logan leads. Iceman follows. They rush through a metal hallway,
staying low, cautious. They come to a corner. Logan peeks
around. Ahead, a MACHINE GUN comes to life and FIRES. Logan
pulls back as RUBBER BULLETS pound a nearby wall, meant for him.
LOGAN
You want it?
Iceman nods, steps up. The machine gun fires. Rubber bullets
bounce off Iceman as he raises his arms, PROJECTING COLD...
The machine gun keeps firing, but frost begins to form. It
CREAKS, mechanisms slowing, so cold and brittle, as it fires, it
SHATTERS into millions of pieces. Logan looks around the corner.
LOGAN (CONT)
You do quality work, Frosty. Don't let
anybody tell you different.
ICEMAN
I aim to please.
ABOVE THEM, we see they move through a complicated MAZE formed by
hundreds of interconnecting walls jutting from the floor of the
D.R. ELSEWHERE IN THE MAZE, Jean Grey and Cyclops navigate from
an opposite corner, also heading towards the center.
They're a lot closer to the center GOAL than Iceman and Logan.
Jean is in front. She moves down a long section of the maze.
Suddenly, a panel opens, revealing THREE HOLES. Three ROUND
OBJECTS shoot out at incredible speed...
Jean leans back, furrowing her brow. The objects freeze in the
air, inches from her face. Three GRENADES, spinning, suspended.
CYCLOPS
Um... you might want to get rid of those.
With an upwards glance, Jean sends the grenades into the air.
They EXPLODE above the maze, harmless. Jean looks to Cyclops.
JEAN GREY
Oh, ye of little faith.
IN ANOTHER SECTION OF THE MAZE, Logan and Iceman pick up the pace.
They move around another corner. DEAD END.
LOGAN
Give me a friggin' break. What's this
stupid game supposed to teach us again?
ICEMAN
Threat assessment... team work...
LOGAN
Truth, justice and the American way.
Well, nuts to all that. You want to win?
ICEMAN
I'd love to. Nobody's ever beaten Cyclops
and Jean when they're paired up.
LOGAN
Yeah, they got a real synergy going.
Well, them days is over. From here on
out, it's you and me and create-tive-ity.
Logan pops claws, leaps, digs in the wall and climbs.
INT. DANGER ROOM CONTROL ROOM -- DAY
Angel's at the controls, looking down on the maze through the
viewport. He sees Logan's head stick up, pushes buttons.
INT. THE DANGER ROOM, MAZE MODE -- DAY
LASER BEAMS fire, barely missing as Logan ducks down. INSIDE THE
MAZE, Logan lands back beside Iceman. Over the D.R.INTERCOM:
ANGEL (O.S.,V.O.)
No coming over the top, wolverine.
LOGAN
Now we know where we're going. All we go
to do is get there. And, the shortest
distance between two points...
Logan shoves his claws into the metal maze wall, CUTTING. He cuts
a big circle, like slicing butter, and kicks it in.
LOGAN (CONT)
... is right through here. Watch my back.
ICEMAN
I'm there.
AT THE CENTER OF THE MAZE, a RED FLAG sits atop a steep, metal
hill. At one side of this open area, Cyclops and Jean enter.
CYCLOPS (CONT)
We made it.
But then, SKKKKKEEEEEERUNK -- SCCCCRREEEEETTTTTCH. Logan kicks a
hole in the opposite wall. Iceman is behind.
Cyclops books. Logan runs from the other side. They both sprint
up the hill, heading towards the red flag. Cyclops dives forward
and grabs the flag, just before Logan gets there.
CYCLOPS
Close, Logan, but not close enough. I bet
you could almost taste it.
LOGAN
That's alright. The better man won. Put
her there...
Cyclops is pleasantly surprised, goes to shake hands, but Logan
punches him, sends him tumbling. Logan picks up the flag.
LOGAN (CONT)
I don't remember hearing the final bell.
The LOUD HORN BLARES. Logan points up at it.
LOGAN (CONT)
Now the game's over, and you lose. It's
mighty nice being king of the hill, but
you got to be ready to defend it.
Logan throws the flag. It lands on Cyclops as Jean comes to make
sure Cyclops is alright. Logan comes down beside Iceman.
ICEMAN
That was dirty pool.
LOGAN
That was winning, kid. You'll recognize
it after you've done it a few times.
BLAM -- Cyclops' energy ray SLUGS Logan from behind. Logan hits a
wall. He gets up, shaking it off, angry.
LOGAN (CONT)
What were you thinking?
CYCLOPS
Let's go... you and me.
Cyclops moves forward. Logan approaches, but Iceman steps in
front, blocking him while Jean restrains Cyclops.
JEAN GREY
Stop this. Are you crazy? Stop it!
ICEMAN
Ease back, Logan. Step off.
CYCLOPS
(easing off, to Jean)
Okay... okay, I'm alright.
LOGAN
Nothing worse than a sore loser, One-eye.
You should learn to take it like a man.
Logan walks out. Iceman and Jean look worried.
INT. NEW YORK APARTMENT, OFFICE -- EARLY EVENING
The door to the office is closed. Beast is on the phone.
BEAST
(into phone)
Whomever it is leading the Brotherhood...
well, it seems Charles may have had
dealings with him in the past.
INT. X-MANSION, LIVING ROOM -- EARLY EVENING
Cyclops, Jean, Angel and Iceman (human) are in attendance, looking
towards a SPEAKERPHONE on a table. (Intercut conversation.)
JEAN GREY
If that's so, why didn't he tell us?
BEAST (V.O.)
He may feel we're not ready to hear the
full truth just yet. In the Battle of
Britain, the Royal Air Force was very
heavily outnumbered by the German
Luftwaffe. I doubt each man flying for
Britain truly comprehended the enormity of
the odds against him. Yet, after three
months of fighting, the RAF handed Hitler
his first major defeat of world War Two.
It was of this battle Churchill said,
"Never in the field of human conflict was
so much owed by so many to so few."
ICEMAN
Man, where do you get all this stuff from?
BEAST (V.O.)
Churchill also said, "It is a good thing
for an uneducated man to read books of
quotations."
CYCLOPS
Where's Professor Xavier now?
INT. NEW YORK CITY APARTMENT, OFFICE -- NIGHT
Beast, still on the phone, looks towards the closed door.
BEAST
In the other room here. He's gone into
some sort of deep, psionic trance.
CYCLOPS (V.O.)
What?
BEAST
As far as I can tell, he's reaching out
across the entire city with his mind...
sorting through the millions of states of
consciousness around us...
INT. NEW YORK CITY APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM -- DAY
Xavier faces windows overlooking the city. He's motionless, Zen-
like. His eyes are rolled up and bloodshot. Rather frightening.
BEAST (V.O.)
He's calling out the Brotherhood leader.
INT. LOGAN'S LIVING QUARTERS, BALCONY -- NIGHT
The balcony overlooks a lovely garden. Logan is on a bench,
looking at his shoebox of photos. He senses someone coming and
puts the pictures away. Across the room, Jean enters, KNOCKING.
JEAN GREY
Can I talk to you for a minute?
Logan nods. Jean comes to stand on the balcony with him.
JEAN GREY (CONT)
I've been thinking about you.
LOGAN (CONT)
Yeah? With or without clothing?
JEAN GREY
Give it a rest for once, Logan. A little
of that garbage goes a long way.
LOGAN
Alright. What's up?
JEAN GREY
If I ask you a straight question, will you
answer honestly?
LOGAN
Depends what the question is. Try me.
JEAN GREY
Why are you still alive?
LOGAN
Want to run that by me again?
JEAN GREY
If the records Professor Xavier dug up
from Department H are anywhere near
accurate, you've been shot at least a
hundred and twenty times in the line of
duty. You've been stabbed over sixty
times. You've been bludgeoned, burned...
you even went over Niagara Falls. Yet
there you sit, alive and well. But, what
keeps you going? It can't all be because
of your healing factor. Not all of it.
To survive what you have, it would take
this unbelievable rage to live.
LOGAN
What are you getting at?
JEAN GREY
Well, like I said, I've been thinking
about you, and there's something I don't
get. I mean, what in the world could you
possibly be living for? You don't care
about anyone, and it's pretty clear you
loath yourself. Most people have someone
they care about. So, I wonder, what does
Logan look forward to? Does he look
forward to the next time he has the
pleasure of digging his claws into
someone? Is he just, in his heart of
hearts, breathlessly anticipating his next
victim's last gasp? Is that enough? It
couldn't be... but, what else is there
for him?
Logan's getting a sour stomach. He walks into his room and puts
the shoebox on his desk. Jean's not enjoying this anymore.
JEAN GREY
Oh my, did I hurt your feelings?
LOGAN
Maybe you better leave.
JEAN GREY
It's interesting... I was about to say the
same thing to you.
Logan stares down at the shoebox. He looks to Jean.
LOGAN
You asked. Do you really want to know?
Pause. Jean nods. Logan comes back, sits facing her.
LOGAN (CONT)
I'm here, sitting with you. Right? Okay.
Before that, I worked for Department H a
bunch of years, and just before that I was
living in a forest in Canada, running
around, killing and eating and howling at
the moon. That's as far back as my memory
goes, and its got some pretty rough edges
as is. So, while you might have a
recollection of some freckled faced brat
pulling your pigtails in kindergarten, or
the first time you rode a bike without
training wheels, I have these...
(opens box of photos)
I've had them every single day of what
little of my life I remember. I don't
even know if they belong to me. There's
not a single picture in here that has me
in it, or that means anything when I look
at it. But still... is this my mother?
Is this my father, or my brother? And,
that's the whole other thing. With my
healing and all, it's a good bet I don't
age too fast. So, I could be thirty years
old, or a hundred, in which case my past
is ancient history.
JEAN GREY
Why are some of the corners bent?
LOGAN
Those are ones where I looked for that
person, or went to that place. I ain't
found nothing yet, but someday one of
these pictures is going to tell me who I
am. Other than that... I don't do a whole
lot of looking forward.
EXT. X-MANSION, LIVING QUARTERS HALLWAY -- NIGHT
Cyclops comes down the hall, notices Logan's door ajar. He stops,
looking in. Ahead, he sees Logan and Jean on the balcony
together, facing away, talking. Cyclops is a bit bothered by
this. After a moment, he backs off, then walks away.
INT. NEW YORK CITY APARTMENT, LIVING ROOM -- MORNING
Dawn light. Beast is asleep on a couch. Xavier still sits
motionless. Then, he releases from the trance with a gasp. The
nearby ANTENNAED DEVICE, comes to life, flashing and BEEPING.
XAVIER
Henry... wake up. Wake up.
Beast sits up, awakening as Xavier wheels over to the windows and
throws them open. Xavier looks down to the empty streets.
XAVIER (CONT)
He's here. He's very close.
EXT. NEW YORK APARTMENT BUILDING, FIRE ESCAPE -- MORNING
Beast comes out a window to the fire escape, leaps up and climbs.
ON THE ROOF OF AN ADJACENT BUILDING, higher up and not far away,
Magneto watches as Beast climbs the fire escape and springs onto
the opposite rooftop. Beast looks around. He notices something
at the roof-access door, walks...
ON THE ROOFTOP OF BEAST'S BUILDING, Beast sees, in raised letters
on the METAL surface of the roof door: "CENTRAL PARK. THE POND.
WEST END. 11:00pm TOMORROW." Beast looks to surrounding
buildings. No one in sight. Magneto's gone.
EXT. CENTRAL PARK, THE POND -- NIGHT
The park is peaceful. Beast, in overcoat garb, crouches by the
pond, makes quacking sounds to the ducks on the water.
Away from Beast, on a path across the lawn, Xavier sits in his
wheelchair, looking out into the park, waiting, pensive.
At the pond's edge, the ducks are suddenly frightened, flying away
in a group, quacking loudly. Beast watches them, curious, stands
and looks around. Suddenly, THWAP -- a DRUG DART slams Beast's
chest. Beast twists, roaring in pain.
Xavier looks towards Beast, ENGINES are HEARD coming to life.
Three RANGE ROVERS burst from the surrounding wooded areas,
tearing across the lawn. Xavier wheels towards Beast.
XAVIER
Henry!
IN THE FOREST, a SHARPSHOOTER aims his gun through foliage.
SHARPSHOOTER'S P.O.V.: Xavier's in the NIGHT SCOPE cross hairs.
ON THE PARK PATH, Xavier's moving quickly. THUNK - a drug dart
hits him in the shoulder. Xavier grips the dart, cringes as his
wheelchair jerks to one side. The chair topples, throws Xavier.
Beast is pinned down by headlights as the Range Rovers slide to a
halt. Heavily armed, military TROOPERS leap from the vehicles.
Gyrich, in protective medical garb (surgical mask and rubber
gloves) is amongst them. Beast turns, snarling.
GYRICH
He's still standing, boys!
Trooper one levels a huge barreled weapon at Beast.
TROOPER ONE
Fire in the hole!
POOT, POOT -- the weapon fires two MEGA-TAZER contacts trailing
wire. They hit Beast. He roars as the charge races through him.
Xavier's trying to crawl towards the attack, losing consciousness.
Gyrich watches as Beast tries to pull the tazers out.
GYRICH
Hit him again!
Trooper Two FIRES his tazers. Hits. Beast tries to get up, tries
to run, but he falls forward, out cold. Troopers immediately
gather to lift him, carrying him to one Range Rover.
The Sharpshooter runs to Xavier's body. Xavier's unconscious.
Sharpshooter pulls and pockets the dart, whistles. Across the
lawn, Gyrich looks, then runs towards Sharpshooter.
SHARPSHOOTER
Who's Kojak here?
Gyrich arrives, eyes Xavier. Shakes his head. Doesn't know.
SHARPSHOOTER (CONT)
Do we take him?
GYRICH
What good's a cripple do us? Leave him
where he lays. Let's go.
EXT. NEW YORK CITY STREETS/EDGE OF CENTRAL PARK -- NIGHT
The Range Rovers move in tandem from the park to New York streets,
taking the turns with smoking, screeching tires.
EXT. CENTRAL PARK, THE POND -- NIGHT
Xavier lays unconscious, not far from his fallen wheelchair.
A shadow falls across him. It's Magneto.
MAGNETO
Xavier... my dear fellow. What have you
gotten yourself into?
Magneto goes to Xavier, bows and lifts him into his arms, gentle.
EXT. STATUE OF LIBERTY -- NIGHT
Xavier's starting to come around. He sits up, sees his wheelchair
nearby, looks around and realizes he's lying ATOP THE CROWN OF THE
STATUE OF LIBERTY, with the mighty, torch-bearing arm above.
Magneto stands nearby, looking to Manhattan's distant skyline.
MAGNETO
Welcome back to the land of the living.