Insert cut: a Woman is lowered into the prison. The prisoners below all have their faces covered with muslin masks …
PRISONER
And she was with child. The mercenary’s child.
Insert cut: the Woman watches as the Doctor (the Blind Prisoner, younger-looking, sighted) examines her small child. The Doctor exits, locking the cell …
PRISONER
One day the doctor forgot to lock the cell …
Insert cut: Prisoners move into the cell towards his mother. The child runs at them with a knife …
PRISONER
Innocence cannot flower underground. It was to be stamped out. But the child had a friend. A protector …
Insert cut: the Protector, face covered, pulls the Child off the attackers. One grabs for the Child – the Protector snaps his arm, carries the Child into a corner …
PRISONER
… who showed the others that this innocence was their redemption. To be prized. The mother was not so lucky.
The Blind Prisoner shouts at the Prisoner. He nods.
PRISONER
This is Bane’s prison now. Bane would not want his story told.
The Prisoner pulls – Wayne screams in pain as he is pulled upright.
The Prisoner ties him off. Checks his spine.
You have a protruding vertebra … I’m going to force it back …
WAYNE
How –?
The Prisoner punches Wayne in the back, hard. Wayne screams.
PRISONER
You stay like this. Until you stand.
Wayne passes out from the pain, and we fade to black.
Wayne is hanging in his cell, delirious …
RĀ’S AL GHŪL
(o.s.)
Did you not think I’d return, Bruce?
Rā’s al Ghūl, in his Ducard guise, steps in front of Wayne.
RĀ’S AL GHŪL
I told you I was immortal.
WAYNE
I watched you die.
RĀ’S AL GHŪL
There are many forms of immortality.
Wayne looks inward, remembering …
Insert cut: Rā’s at the campfire (from Batman Begins).
RĀ’S AL GHŪL
Once I had a wife. My great love. She was taken from me …
Insert cut: the Woman is lowered into the prison …
Wayne looks at Rā’s.
WAYNE
You were the mercenary. Bane is your child. Your heir.
Insert cut: the Mercenary at the side of the road. Rā’s.
RĀ’S AL GHŪL
An heir to ensure the League of Shadows fulfills its duty to restore balance to civilization.
WAYNE
No …
RĀ’S AL GHŪL
You yourself fought the decadence of Gotham for years. With all your strength and resources, all your moral authority. And the only victory you could achieve was a lie. Finally, you understand … Gotham is beyond saving …
WAYNE
NO!
RĀ’S AL GHŪL
And must be allowed to die.
Cut to white. And we are –
EXT. STREET, DOWNTOWN GOTHAM – DAY 210
Snow blankets the street. A Tumbler carves tracks as it patrols the deserted street. Blake peers from behind a parked car – he is crouched, feeding a kite string down a storm drain.
INT. SEWER TUNNEL – CONTINUOUS 211
Ross strains to reach a note dangling from a string – he grasps it. All around him are dozens of Cops living underground …
EXT. GOTHAM STREET – CONTINUOUS 212
Blake winds the string, picks up a jerrycan, hurries off.
INT. ST. SWITHIN’S HOME FOR BOYS – CONTINUOUS 213
The home is packed. People, not just kids, huddle in every corner. Blake spots Father Reilly. Hands him the can.
BLAKE
For the bus in case there’s a chance to evacuate. Keep it in here – people are siphoning parked cars.
FATHER REILLY
Really?
BLAKE
(grins)
How do you think I got it?
FATHER REILLY
Right. Any news? Is the Commissioner –
BLAKE
Less you know, Father. How’re the boys?
FATHER REILLY
Power’s been on more, so they get some TV.
Blake smiles. Moves to the door.
Blake, be careful out there. They’re hunting down cops like dogs.
Blake nods. Leaves.
INT. ELEGANT APARTMENT, PARK BOULEVARD – DAWN 214
Following Selina through rooms strewn with trash, empty bottles and sleeping partygoers. She spots a family photograph, glass smashed. A hand lands on her shoulder.
JEN
What’s that?
SELINA
This was someone’s home.
JEN
Now it’s everyone’s home.
Selina stares out at a Tumbler rolling by.
JEN
‘Storm’s coming’, remember? This is what you wanted.
SELINA
No. It’s what I thought I wanted.
INT. STONE CELL, UNDERGROUND PRISON – DAY 215
The Prisoner unties the rope from Wayne’s chest. Wayne stands. Just. Then walks.
INT. SAME – LATER 216
Wayne does push-ups. Stronger. The Prisoner watches.
PRISONER
Why build yourself?
WAYNE
I’m not meant to die in here.
The Prisoner indicates the TV: SIEGE OF GOTHAM: DAY 84.
PRISONER
Here? There? What’s the difference?
Wayne ignores this. Focuses on his body …
INT. STONE CELL, UNDERGROUND PRISON – DAY 217
Wayne moves to the wall – takes the rope from the Tattooed Prisoner, wraps it around his chest. Curious Prisoners gather, the Prisoner at their head. Wayne looks up at the light, hundreds of feet above. Starts to climb. Prisoners get excited as Wayne rises – money starts changing hands.
Reaching the precipice, he checks his rope, looks up at the next handhold, far away. He takes a breath, then leaps.
His fingers brush the ledge. Wayne drops a hundred feet – the rope catches, slamming him into the rock face. The Prisoners disperse, losing interest as the Tattooed Prisoner lowers Wayne on the rope. The Blind Prisoner turns away.
PRISONER
I told you it could not be done.
WAYNE
You told me a child did it …
PRISONER
No ordinary child …
Insert cut: the Protector fights off Prisoners as the Child, older now, moves to the climbing wall …
A child born in hell.
Insert cut: the Child makes the climb … pauses, looking down – making eye-contact with the Protector, who fights off Prisoners … They swarm over the Protector, knives drawn.
A child forged by suffering. Hardened by pain …
Insert cut: the Child leaps across the abyss, grabbing a handhold on the ledge and swinging up …
Not a man from privilege.
Wayne’s eyes close in despair.
EXT. CHECKPOINT, GOTHAM BRIDGE – DAY 218
Supply trucks await inspection. Mercenaries open an 18-wheeler – check boxes of rations … wave it on …
EXT. SUPERMARKET – CONTINUOUS 219
The 18-wheeler pulls up. A line of Gothamites waits patiently along the sidewalk.
INT. 18-WHEELER – CONTINUOUS 220
Three plain-clothes Special Forces Men emerge from the boxes, checking, then concealing weapons. The doors open – they exit.
INT. SUPERMARKET – CONTINUOUS 221
The Special Forces Men carry boxes into the store as if delivering. The Store Manager leads them into the back and down into –
INT. LOWER STOREROOM – CONTINUOUS 222
Where they are met by four Cops out of uniform.
FOLEY
> You have ID?
SPECIAL FORCES 1
Of course not.
FOLEY
How can we trust you?
GORDON
(o.s.)
We don’t have any choice.
Gordon and Blake emerge from the back of the room.
SPECIAL FORCES 1
Commissioner Gordon? Captain Jones, Special Forces.
GORDON
Captain, glad to have you here.
CAPTAIN JONES
How many of you are there?
GORDON
Dozens. I’d rather not say exactly. But the men trapped underground number almost three thousand.
CAPTAIN JONES
What kind of shape are they in?
GORDON
They’ve been getting water, food.
CAPTAIN JONES
Could we break them out?
BLAKE
Yes, sir – take out the mercenaries guarding the outflow south of Ackerman Park, blow the rubble, you’ve got a hole big enough for ten at a time. I’m in contact with my partner – they’re waiting for the day.
SPECIAL FORCES 2
Men who haven’t seen daylight for three months?
BLAKE
Men with automatic weapons who haven’t seen daylight for three months.
CAPTAIN JONES
What about the bomb? The satellites can’t see any radiation hot spots …
EXT. DOWNTOWN STREET – DAY 223
Blake scouts with Jones. A rumble makes them turn.
GORDON
(voice-over)
They keep it on a truck – it must have a lead-lined roof. They move it constantly.
CAPTAIN JONES
(voice-over)
But you know the truck?
GORDON
(voice-over)
They’ve got three of them. The routes don’t vary much.
Two Tumblers lead a massive black truck down the street. Captain Jones reaches into his jacket and triggers a Geiger counter. Shows Blake the display. Nods. One of the tumblers stops, turns back. Blake leads them down a side street.
INT. LOWER STOREROOM – CONTINUOUS 224
CAPTAIN JONES
What about the triggerman?
GORDON
No leads. It’s a bluff – Bane wouldn’t give control of that bomb to someone else.
CAPTAIN JONES
We can’t take that chance. Until we have the triggerman, we just track the device, smuggle men over –
BLAKE
Meanwhile Gotham lives under a warlord, like in some failed state?
CAPTAIN JONES
Dial it back, officer. This situation is unprecedented. We can’t do anything to risk millions of lives.
BLAKE
(to Gordon)
Aren’t you gonna tell him?!
GORDON
Captain, things are more complicated than you think. There’s somebody you need to meet. Blake?
Blake nods, leads Jones and his men up the stairs.
EXT. SIDE STREET, DOWNTOWN – CONTINUOUS 225
Blake leads them to the door of an empty bank.
INT. TELLSONS BANK – CONTINUOU 226
They head across the empty lobby to an elevator.
INT. OFFICES ABOVE TELLSONS – MOMENTS LATER 227
Blake leads them into empty offices. Cots and makeshift furnishings line the offices and corridors.
BLAKE
I was up here looking for a vantage point. Found the people who run the corporation who owns it living here.
CAPTAIN JONES
Which corporation?
FOX
(o.s.)
Wayne Enterprises.
Lucius Fox is there, with Miranda Tate.
BLAKE
Captain, meet Mr. Fox. Mr. Fox, I’d like you to brief the Captain.
Captain Jones indicates Miranda.
FOX
Miss Tate is fully aware of the situation.
MIRANDA
And, as CEO of Wayne Enterprises, I have to take responsibility for it.
CAPTAIN JONES
Why?
MIRANDA
Because, Captain, we built it.
CAPTAIN JONES
You built the bomb?
FOX
It was built as a fusion reactor. The first of its kind. Bane turned the core into a bomb, then disconnected it from the reactor.
BLAKE
And here’s the important part.
FOX
As the device’s fuel cells decay, it’s becoming increasingly unstable … until the point of detonation.
BLAKE
The bomb’s a time bomb.
FOX
And it will go off. In twenty-three days.
Captain Jones reels at this news.
BLAKE
Bane’s revolution’s a sham. He’s watching Gotham rearrange its deckchairs while the whole ship’s going down. Your appeasement plan might not be as practical as you thought.
Captain Jones throws Blake a look. Addresses Fox.
CAPTAIN JONES
Could you disarm it?
FOX
I don’t know. But I could reconnect it to the reactor. Stabilize it.
CAPTAIN JONES
We have to let the Pentagon know.
SPECIAL FORCES 2
They’ll be monitoring our frequencies –
CAPTAIN JONES
We have no choice. Let’s move away from this location, then call it in.
INT. TELLSONS BANK – MOMENTS LATER 228
Captain Jones exits the elevator, followed by his men and Blake. Halfway across the floor, hell breaks loose. Mercenaries blast them with machine guns – the lobby becomes a devastating ambush. Blake dives back into the elevator.
INT. OFFICES ABOVE TELLSONS – CONTINUOUS 229
Blake flies out of the elevator.
BLAKE
Fox, somebody sold us out!
Fox and Miranda burst into the corridor.
FOX
Take Miranda –
Blake grabs Miranda, heads for the back stairs. Mercenaries jump out of the elevator, firing high.
MERCENARY
DOWN ON THE FLOOR!
Fox freezes. Lowers himself to the ground.
INT. TELLSONS BANK – CONTINUOUS 230
Captain Jones goes down in a hail of bullets. The other Special Forces
Men are down. Bane enters, nudges Jones with his toe. He is alive. Barely. Bane leans in close. Jones looks up at him, defiant.
CAPTAIN JONES
I’ll die before I talk …
BANE
I’m on your schedule, Captain.
Bane places his hand over Jones’s nose and mouth.
MERCENARY
There were people living upstairs.
Bane looks up, disinterested. Jones is dead.
BANE
Give them over for judgement. (Indicates bodies.) Hang them where the world will see.
INT. STONE CELL, UNDERGROUND PRISON – DAY 231
Wayne stares at the TV: the Special Forces bodies hang in the cables of Gotham Bridge. Wayne throws a stone into the screen.
INT. SAME – LATER 232
Wayne does endless push-ups, squats, stretches. The Blind Prisoner listens. He speaks in his ancient tongue.
PRISONER
He says the leap to freedom is not about strength.
WAYNE
My body makes the jump.
BLIND PRISONER
(cracked English)
Survival is the spirit. The soul.
WAYNE
My soul’s as ready to escape as my body.
BLIND PRISONER
Fear is why you fail.
WAYNE
I’m not afraid. I’m angry.
Wayne throws punches … focused.
INT. UNDERGROUND PRISON – DAY 233
Wayne takes the rope at the foot of the climb. Prisoners look up, but none bother to gather round. Wayne starts climbing, determined
.
He fights the rock face … breathing hard. Grabs at a rock – it comes away in his hand. He drops – smashes into the rock face. The Blind Prisoner shakes his head.
A Skinny Prisoner playing cards with the Prisoner looks up at Wayne, hanging upside down.
SKINNY PRISONER
Shouldn’t you get him down?
The Prisoner glances up at Wayne, disdainful.
PRISONER
He’ll keep.
As Wayne drifts into unconsciousness we –
Insert cut: Young Bruce lies at the bottom of the well, looking up at his father, lowering down to rescue him.
THOMAS WAYNE
(voice-over)
And why do we fall?
INT. CAVE PRISON – NIGHT 234
Wayne wakes with a start – the Blind Prisoner is there.
BLIND PRISONER
(cracked English)
You do not fear death. You think this makes you strong. It makes you weak.
WAYNE
Why?
BLIND PRISONER
How can you move faster than possible? Fight longer than possible? If not from the most powerful impulse of the spirit. The fear of death. The will to survive.
Wayne gets up onto his elbow. Looks at the Blind Prisoner.
WAYNE
I do fear death. I fear dying in here while my city burns with no one there to save it.
BLIND PRISONER
Then make the climb.
WAYNE
How?
BLIND PRISONER
As the child did. Without the rope. (Dry laugh.) Then fear will find you again.
Wayne considers this.
INT. CAVE PRISON – MORNING 235
Wayne puts some scraps of bread into a rough coat which he folds into a makeshift shoulder pack.
PRISONER
Supplies for your journey?
Prisoners nearby laugh. Wayne moves to the cliff face. The Prisoner follows, intrigued by Wayne’s new demeanor. The Tattooed Prisoner offers him the rope. Wayne refuses. Starts to climb. Prisoners gather around as word spreads. Wayne makes his way cautiously up the treacherous rock face. Down below the Prisoners start a low chant.
THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY: The Complete Screenplays with Storyboards Page 35