(Name of Project)

by
(Name of First Writer)

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 CUT TO:

EXT. SPACE

The screen is black. We hear a NARRATOR speaking as stars and

planets come into view.

NARRATOR
Since the beginning of time, man’s
understanding of his true potential
has grown by leaps and bounds. The
development of man’s ability to
walk erect, the brain’s capacity
for logic and reason... For
millions of years, the human race
has been pushing it’s limits.
Constantly changing to adapt;
survival of the fittest. Evolution.
Where will it lead? What is the
next leap this race of creature
will take, or has the evolution of
their kind already reached it’s
peak? Unfortunately for them,
entertainment media has given them
hopes of extraordinary abilities.
Comic books, movies, and TV all
giving them false hopes for what
the human body is capable of. The
world is stuck in fascination of
the Supermans, Spider-mans, Hulks,
etc...

CUT TO:

EXT. DAN’S HOUSE- DAY

NARRATOR
Humans are dangerously
impressionable. If they arent
careful, someone might actually
believe what they see on TV. Case
in point:
 2.

CUT TO:

TITLE CARD: “DAN”

NARRATOR
Up until a few weeks ago, Dan was a
normal guy with a good grasp on
reality... That is,until the
accident.

CUT TO:

INT. KITCHEN- DAY

DAN stands in the kitchen, with his head in the open

microwave. He has a bandage around his head.

NARRATOR
A recent head injury has seemingly
left Dan even more easily
impressionable than most humans. If
you don’t follow what I’ve been
saying for the past minute and a
half, you dim witted fool, Dan
thinks he is the next step in human
evolution. A superhero, if you
will.

JULIE enters.

JULIE
What are you doing this time?

DAN
Same as usual. Still trying to get
my powers back...

JULIE
By microwaving your face?

DAN
I’m trying to get the radiation
from the waves to alter my DNA. It
worked for Bruce Banner and the
Fantastic Four. And Spider-man!

JULIE
I though Spider-man was bit by a
spider...
 3.

DAN
RADIOACTIVE spider!!

DAN takes his head out of the microwave and sits at the
table. As he sits down, he reaches his arms out to the
countertop, as if beckoning to a box of cereal. He is
focusing extremely hard.

JULIE
Whatever... So what “power” will
you be trying today? Flight? Super
strength? It BETTER not be fire
manipulation. I am NOT shelling out
the money to buy anyone a new couch
again!

DAN
That was a fluke, Julie. The fire
got out of my control! I almost had
it!

JULIE
The fire was never IN your control!
You held a lighter up to Bill’s
couch and set it ablaze and tried
to put it out with your mind.

DAN ignores JULIE and tries once again to beckon the cereal.
JULIE walks over, grabs the cereal box and brings it back to
DAN, slamming it down on the counter in a very annoyed
fashion.

JULIE (CONT’D)
Dan, for the last time, you don’t
have any superpowers. I know it’s
hard. That car accident cost you
almost everything. Doctors were
surprised you could even walk.
Luckily paramedics got there quick,
or else you would have bled to
death. You lost your job; your
livelihood...almost your life! Now
PLEASE... give up these illusions
of grandeur or you’re going to lose
me too.

DAN
Okay. It’s just been a confusing
mess these past few weeks. I’ll get
over it. Just.... Give me a bit
more time, okay?
 4.

JULIE
Fine. I’ll give it some more time,
but if you’re not over this fantasy
world in a few days....

JULIE can’t finish her sentence. She gets up and walks out of
he room. DAN gets up and looks out the door. He hurries back
to his seat, sits for a few seconds, seemingly deep in
thought. After a few seconds, DAN raises his arms, once again
beckoning, this time a bowl and spoon. JULIE suddenly enters
and yells. Flustered, DAN knocks over his glass of juice.

JULIE (CONT’D)
STOP IT!!

DAN
SORRY!

JULIE
I’m going grocery shopping. Do you
need anything?

DAN
Um... paper towels?

JULIE rolls her eyes and walks out again.

FADE TO:

TITLE CARD: “THE MAGIC OF FLIGHT”

FADE IN:

EXT. DAN’S HOUSE- DAY

JULIE is seen getting out of her car carrying a plastic bag

of groceries. As she approaches the house she hears a voice
calling her name.

DAN
JULIE! HEY, JULIE!

JULIE looks around for the source of the voice.

DAN (CONT’D)
UP HERE!!

JULIE looks up to see DAN leaning out the upstairs window,

with what appears to be a towel tied around his neck.

JULIE
Oh, God, no. Not Superman again...
 5.

DAN
Guess what?

JULIE
What?

DAN
Superman was on TV while you were
gone!!

JULIE
Aw, damnit. DON’T YOU REMEMBER LAST
WEEK WHEN YOU WATCHED THE FIRST FEW
EPISODES OF HEROES?

CUT TO:

EXT. DAN’S HOUSE- DAY

DAN is seen preparing to jump out the same window.

DAN
IF NATHAN CAN DO IT SO CAN I!

We then see a closeup of DAN hitting the ground.

CUT TO:

EXT. DAN’S HOUSE- PRESENT DAY

JULIE
It’s not going to end any
different!

DAN
Don’t you remember when I used to
fly?! Wouldn’t it be great if I
could do that again? Think of the
possibilities! It could REALLY cut
down on our gas expenses!

JULIE
You could never fly! How much
longer will it take... How much
more physical pain... until you
realize the truth behind this?
Besides, gas prices are going back
down anyway!

DAN
But they could go back up!!
 6.

DAN seems to get excited by the word “up.” He looks to the

sky, repeats the word to himself a few times, and prepares to
jump.

JULIE
I’m going inside. I don’t want to
see this.

CUT TO:

INT. DINING ROOM- DAY

Julie walks across screen and past the camera towards the
kitchen.

JULIE
I’M NOT TAKING YOU TO THE HOSPITAL
EITHER!

JULIE is now off screen. We hear a distant scream grow

rapidly louder as DAN’S body falls past the window.

FADE TO:

TITLE CARD: “DAN’S NEW OBSESSION”

FADE TO:

INT. LIVING ROOM- DAY

DAN is sitting on the couch watching TV.

JULIE (O.C.)
Dan, what are you doing?

DAN
Renting a movie on demand!

JULIE (O.C.)
It BETTER not be another super hero
movie!

DAN
Don’t worry, it’s not. I’m over the
superhero thing.

JULIE (O.C.)
(reluctantly) okay...
 7.

A few hours later DAN is on the edge of his seat, and he

stares in amazement while he picks up the remote and turns
the TV off. He enthusiastically stands up and runs to the
kitchen, making a lot of noise.

JULIE (CONT’D)
What was that noise?

CUT TO:

INT. KITCHEN- DAY

We see JULIE walk into the kitchen. She begins to speak.

JULIE
What’s going on I was upstairs and
I heard---

JULIE, once again, cannot finish her sentence. The shot

changes to DAN, covered nearly head to toe in aluminum foil.

JULIE (CONT’D)
What the hell are you doing?

DAN
Well, the movie just ended and...

JULIE
What movie?!

DAN
Iron Man.

JULIE
Iron Man? IRON MAN?! You said you
weren’t watching a superhero movie!
You told me you were done with
superheroes! I was okay with living
with a guy who thought he had
superpowers for a while. I
convinced myself it’d pass when you
made a full recovery. But now
you’ve even resorted to LYING TO ME
about it?!

DAN
I was not lying to you!

JULIE
You’re dressed head to toe in
aluminum foil right after watching
another superhero movie when you
said you were done with that.
 8.

DAN
But I AM done with superheroes!

JULIE
Just like you were done with X-Men
after you watched Spider-man 2,
right?

CUT TO:

INT. BASEMENT- DAY

DAN is seen holding himself up on one of the support beams,

while singing the Spider-man theme. JULIE walks by, without
so much as glancing at him.

DAN
Look honey! I’m SPIDER-MAN!!

JULIE walks back in the other direction, holding a basket of

laundry, again without looking at him.

JULIE
Hey Spider-man, your fly’s open.

DAN falls backwards off the support beam.

CUT TO:

INT. KITCHEN- DAY

DAN
That was working until you
distracted me!

JULIE
That’s not the point. You still
lied to me.

DAN
I wasn’t lying!

JULIE
You CLEARLY aren’t done with
superheroes!

DAN
I swear to you that I’m over that
obsession. Tony Stark is NOT a
superhero.
 9.

JULIE
Oh no?

DAN
No. He has no biological powers,
aside from an iron liver and epic
womanizing skills. Everything else
he has is entirely mechanical. No
superpowers, therefore, not a
superhero.

JULIE
Iron Man’s suit also wasn’t made of
tin foil, you idiot!! It was a high
tech alloy made by a brilliant
scientific mind with billions of
dollars and years of exper- what am
I saying? Listen to me, I’m arguing
comic books with a guy who
legitimately believes he’s a
superhero... I can’t take this...

JULIE begins walking towards the door.

DAN
Wait, wait... Julie, I’m sorry. Let
me make it up to you. Why don’t we
go to a movie?

JULIE
(reluctantly) What movie?

DAN
Um.... Dark Knight?

JULIE
That’s it. I’m leaving. MAYBE I’ll
be back tomorrow.

JULIE walks out, towards the front door. We hear the door
slam.

DAN
Wait, don’t go!

CUT TO:

EXT. DAN’S HOUSE- DAY

JULIE is already in her car, pulling out of the driveway. The

camera pans to the front door.
 10.

We see DAN run out, still entirely dressed in his foil armor.
He struggles to keep from crying.

FADE TO:

TITLE CARD: “REVELATION”

FADE TO:

INT. DAN’S ROOM- NIGHT

We see DAN lying in bed asleep.

CUT TO:

WHITE VOID- DAY

DAN is standing before a man he has never seen before.

DAN
Who are you?

THE MAN
That’s not important. What IS
important is that you remember who
you are and where you’re from.

DAN
What are you talking about? I’m
Dan. An average guy from middle
class suburbia.

THE MAN
That’s what they programmed you to
believe. You still have no memories
of the facility do you?

DAN
What facility?

THE MAN
I’ll take that as a no. I’m
speaking of course of Area 51.

DAN
I still don’t follow. Why would I
have recollection of Area 51?
 11.

THE MAN
In the mid 80s, the government
began investigating a string of UFO
sightings in the mid west. At first
they took it all in as a hoax, as
it was approaching the 40th
anniversary of Roswell. You know
how those humans are... irrational.

DAN
THOSE humans? What does that make
you? Hell, what does that make ME?

THE MAN
That is not important, although it
will be very clear shortly... One
of those days, there were reports
of crash. Upon investigating the
scene, remains of a spacecraft the
like of which humans had never seen
before were discovered. All around
were the corpses of dozens of human-
like figures. Only one had
survived. An infant. Not wanting
the public to know, federal agents
cleaned the scene immediately. The
baby was taken to Area 51. He was
observed for years; the humans put
him in a hermetically sealed room
with a synthetic atmosphere similar
to that of the alien’s home planet,
as found in some of the undamaged
rooms and compartments from the
downed craft.

DAN
I still don’t understand how it all
fits. What does this have to do
with me?

THE MAN
Well,you see, while the alien child
was held captive, he displayed
great power. Inhuman strength,
flight, telekinesis... There was no
limit to what he could do. More
experiments were conducted. It was
concluded that it was not something
additional in the synthetic
environment that made these
abilities possible for him, but
rather something additional in
Earth’s atmosphere that prevented
it.
(MORE)
 12.
THE MAN (CONT'D)
The environments were near
identical, though. The only
difference was oxygen.

DAN
So the presence of oxygen stunted
the use of his supernatural
abilities? That’s interesting and
all, but again I’m forced to ask...
What does this have to do with me?

THE MAN
The child aged at the same rate as
a human being. When he reached
teenage years, it was decided that
he could no longer be kept in
captivity, but he could not be
revealed to the world either. So, a
microchip, much like this one, was
installed in his head to repress
any memory of the facility.

DAN
You’ve got to be thinking of
someone else. I grew up in suburban
New Jersey. I had a family, went to
school, played with friends... I
remember Little League!

THE MAN
In addition to repressing the
memories of Area 51, they also
added false memories of an average
childhood, so that you could lead a
normal life like any everyday human
being. The day of your accident,
the microchip was damaged.

THE MAN hands DAN the microchip.

DAN
But if this microchip, repressing
all my memories of being a freaking
SPACE ALIEN was damaged, how come I
still remember none of this? Why do
I still remember childhood?

THE MAN
The chip was damaged, but not
destroyed. Only vague memories have
come back; vague memories of having
otherworldly power.
(MORE)
 13.
THE MAN (CONT'D)
As long as the chip is intact, it
will function, regardless of it’s
location.

CUT TO:

INT. DAN’S ROOM- MORNING

A scream coming from downstairs awakens DAN. He sits bolt

upright for a second, looking confused, and rushes downstairs
to see what is going on. After he leaves, the camera focuses
on the nightstand, upon which sits a small microchip.

FADE TO:

TITLE CARD: “THE RISE”

FADE TO:

TRACKING SHOT, FOLLOWING DAN TO THE BASEMENT

DAN get’s downstairs to see JULIE being held at gunpoint by

an INTRUDER.

JULIE
DAN! HELP!

INTRUDER
This guy? You think HE’S gonna help
you? Look at him. He’s already
bandaged up! Come on, man, do your
worst.

DAN freezes. He looks very contemplative.

THE MAN (V.O.)

The environments were near
identical, though. The only
difference was oxygen.

DAN (V.O.)
It can’t be. Me, an all-powerful
alien? It seems so illogical.
Without oxygen, a necessity to
life, I’m supposedly
indestructible. What are the odds
it’s all true? Then again, what
chances do I stand If I face this
guy on my own? I’ll be dead in
seconds... and JULIE will no doubt
be shortly after.
(MORE)
 14.
DAN (V.O.) (CONT'D)
If I try to see if its true and it
isn’t, he’ll kill us both in
seconds anyway. What other choice
do I have?

DAN snaps out of it and runs upstairs.

INTRUDER
Some hero. Sit down!

The INTRUDER pushes JULIE into a chair.

CUT TO:

INT. KITCHEN- DAY

DAN spots the plastic grocery bag on the counter. He

frantically empties it. He holds the bag and looks down at
it.

DAN
You really must be crazy, Dan...
Let’s hope that was more than a
dream.

DAN puts the bag over his head and hurries back downstairs.

CUT TO:

INT. BASEMENT- DAY

DAN is seen running down the stairs, letting out a fierce,

but comically muffled battle cry. He runs up to the INTRUDER
with his arms outstretched. There’s a sudden loud bang. The
INTRUDER bursts into a fireball and instantly disappears.
JULIE sits, astonished and amazed. DAN helps her out of the
seat, takes off the bag, and hugs her, with nothing but a
pair of sneakers and a plume of smoke next to them, where the
INTRUDER stood just seconds ago. DAN ends the embrace, and
looks at JULIE.

DAN
Hate to say I told you so, but...

JULIE gives DAN a playful shove

JULIE
How the HELL did you do that?!?

DAN
Apparently it’s long story. I’m
still fuzzy on the details myself.
 15.

Their dialogue fades and the NARRATOR begins to speak. The

two head upstairs.

CUT TO:

EXT. DAN’S HOUSE- DAY

NARRATOR
Human potential. Where will it lead
us? When will it reach a peak? I’d
like to say that DAN is an example
of the possibility of future leaps
in evolution; a true superhuman.
But as you have all just witnessed,
he is not of this world. However,
there is no denying the
similarities between those of our
kind and those of yours. Perhaps
even similar enough that our kind
holds the genetic key to aiding
your kind reach the pinnacle of its
existence. Nothing is ever as it
seems. This applies to people as
well. DAN, to everyone around him,
was just like any other guy, but he
was capable of so much more. Even
those close to him did not realize
his true potential; how similar he
was, yet how vastly different.
Capable of greatness in his own
ways. Let DAN stand as an example
to you and the rest of your
species: Never judge a book by it’s
cover. There is always much more to
a person that what is visible to
the human eye.