[footsteps approach]

Mmph.
You're in need of correction,
aren't you?
[muffled] Yeah.
I might leave marks.
Not a great idea.
That's not a no.
- [sizzles]//- Mnh! Oh!
Ohh!
[breathing heavily]
That's got to burn.
Let me fix it.
[leather creaking]
[urine splattering]
[moaning]
Ahhh.

_
[indistinct chatter]
See, what you have to
understand, Michael,
is that this is a fucked up free
zone.
Guys who sit in Chuck's chair
become mayor.
Governor.
We have to be beyond
reproach.
So no Tinder at the goddamn
office, okay?
[scoffs]
It feels like yesterday I//was
telling you all this.
- Mm, 18 months ago.//- Huh.
Added some stuff of my own
in there.
Yeah. Tinder. I heard.
Come on. He's waiting.
Well, off the record,//the, uh,
Attorney General's
always happy to take my
recommendations
on who to appoint to the
federal bench.
Uh-huh.
Very good.
Thank you.
SACKER Sir.
Okay, guys. What do we got
on deck?

Progress report on two of//the

open investigations.
[telephone rings]
KIM Ari Spyros from the
S.E.C...
Call back.
...is here.
I'm sorry, sir. He... he
wouldn't...
It's fine, Kim. It's okay. Thank
you.
Well, Spyros.
What's the occasion?
We're not interviewing right
now.
Funny. Here.
This got your panties all
sticky?
Drenched.
Suspect trading pattern//on
Pepsum Pharmaceuticals.
Uh-huh.
One of my grunts riding the
Midas
spotted a days-long buy spike.
[computer beeping]
Yeah, get me Spyros.
Take a look.
You can all study the charts,
or I can give you the answers
to the test.
- Please.//- Lenny Bosco... Old
Oaks Investments.
Peter Decker... Quaker Ridge
Financial.
Dan Margolis... Century
Capital.
These three small firms
all knew exactly when to
buy//and when to sell the
stock.
They had inside information.
You must get pings like that
every day.
We do.
So? Get them talking and fine
them.
It's bigger than that.
All three firms have//links to
Bobby Axelrod.

Bobby fucking Axelrod. Man of

the people.
You only have that exact
look//on your face when you're
here.
The pizza's just really fucking
good.
Take a bite.
Mmm. It's good.
Good? That is a thing of
beauty.
That's why we lived in//here
when we were kids.
Hey.
BRUNO I don't usually//open
for breakfast, guys.
You want another?
I do.
We want 'em all.
All?
I want to come in with you.
Partner up.
What the fuck did you tell him,
kid?
I don't want no charity.
Look, all I told him was//the
truth, Bruno, okay?
That I got a call from a guy
who said he was coming
in//here with a falafel shop,
and would I contract the
rebuild.
And when I asked you about
it,
you said that you were
getting//squeezed by a new
landlord.
And when I got that call,
I//made a couple calls of my
own.
Falafel shop goes in the mall.
We lock in you in on a 20-year
lease,
and I cover the overage.
I-I-I don't//know, Bobby.
Come on. What is there to
know?
You let me slide for weeks
without paying
when I was coming in
here//every day after school.

That was just 'cause//you were

a good customer.
Which I want to keep being.
Nothing changes.
Thank you. Thank you.
I'd love to tell you I knew
you'd grow up
to become what you did,
but to be honest, I had no
idea.
[chuckles] That makes two of
us.
Come here.
Thanks.
_
MICK Bobby, we are ready//to
roll on something sweet.
I think you'll want to
piggyback.
What do you got?
Lumetherm Power
getting//bought by Electric
Sun.
Price is $41. Stock's trading at
$35.
We're looking at a 17% bump
in two weeks when the deal
closes.
Annualized, that's $442...
I'd love to size up.
Maybe you buy 2
million//shares for the main
fund.
- Sounds about right.//- Great.
Scott Kazawitz's name is
being//floated as the new
chairman.
Kazawitz.
That's a new piece of
information.
Well, that's what you pay me
for.
Who said this deal is gonna
close?
Ben said it would this
morning.
Me? Everyone's saying it.
Who is this?
My new analyst.
Well, if we hired you,//you
must be a genius.

Yale?
Stanford. Then Wharton.
Okay, Stanford-Wharton.
Electric Sun is controlled by
Kazawitz.
He also owns 19.3% of
Lumetherm
backdoored through his//stake
in Southern Wind.
You see that block trade
last//Thursday come out of
Merrill?
Yeah. That was Fortress
cashing out their shorts before
the merger.
Wasn't it?
Trade was at 1252,
when//everyone was at lunch,
which tells me they wanted it
to be missed.
You guys caught it, which//is
something, I guess.
But you're looking at it
backward.
Electric Sun's offer was just a
ploy
to temporarily prop up
Lumetherm.
Typical Kazawitz play to
bail//on a loser. He's an
animal.
The block trade was
Kazawitz//getting out of
Southern Wind,
getting out of Lumetherm.
He rode the story, now he's
out,
which means you need to be
out.
In fact, short.
It'll slide to $32 and//change
after word breaks.
Wow.
That's a good catch, Axe.
My cholesterol's high enough.
Don't butter my ass,//Danzig.
Just get smarter.
Your read was good with//the
information you had.
You're new. You'll figure it out.
Or you'll be gone.

Jesus Christ.
Yeah. And he went to Hofstra.
This is big. It's criminal.
And I want to be a part//of
treeing Bobby Axelrod.
Hey, I want to be an
astronaut,
but, uh, you know, I
get//airsick in choppy weather.
Your burden of proof is lower.
They'll talk to you because
they're//happy to pay a fine
and move on.
I'm at the coalface.
And I really don't
appreciate//you strolling in
here
and telling me how to deploy
my resources
because you can't build//your
own fucking case.
I get it. You guys are rock
stars.
Yeah, we get it. You want to be
one, too.
None of that matters.
Uh, Spyros, if you've
locked//on to some trail of
bread crumbs
that leads to Bobby Axelrod,
that could be a win for
everyone.
So, leave your stuff, we'll take
a look,
and we'll let you know//if it
rises to the level
that we can prosecute,
one that won't be reversed on
appeal.
You know, I understand
the//source of your reluctance.
- Mm-hmm.//- I have a wife,
too.
But it's your job...
Hey, you got your answer.
We're done.
[door opens, closes]
[sighs]
BOBBY I loved and remember
each//and every one of your
fathers,

so I'm proud of all of you

who are ready to head//off to
school in the fall.
26 of ours put through college
by the Memorial Foundation
so far.
And this year's group...//so
let's bring them up,
and let's give them a round
of//applause for their
achievement.
Freddie Aquafino, off to Duke.
[cheers and applause]
Freddie, Freddie.
I traded shoulder to//shoulder
with your father.
He'd be so proud of you today.
First year's tuition and board.
All right, come here.
[applause]
That's what this is all about,
guys.
Not only how our firm survived
9/11,
but how we didn't give up.
How we committed to
each//other, to our family.
And I am so moved by
how//we've all flourished
together.
Some flourishing more than
others.
[all murmuring]
It's just wrong that you're//the
one standing there.
All right, that's enough.
No, no. It's okay. June...
I'd feel the same way.
I get it.
You got to be thinking, "Why
was he spared?
Why is my husband gone?"
For months after the planes
hit,
all I could do was ask myself
why.
Why was I the only surviving
partner?
Why wasn't I there?
Could... could I have done
something?

Why was I the only one out of

the office
on meetings that morning?
We'll never know.
So I made up my own "why."
Because of you.
You put it all on your back,
Bobby.
[applause]
Am I the greatest guy in the
world?
Hell, no.
I just did what I knew
the//partners and friends I'd
lost
would've done for my family.
What your husband would've
done, June.
And you know I'm sorry.
'Cause I miss Rake every day...
...just as my beautiful wife,
Lara,
misses her heroic brother
Dean.
Bobby axelrod is Mike Tyson in
his prime.
And you do not want//Mike
Tyson in his prime.
Remember what happened
to//the guys who fought him
then?
Yeah, they got their faces
pushed in.
But eventually he got beat.
Buster Douglas knocked him
on his ass.
- Right.//- Ketchup?
"Eventually" is the key word.
When Tyson was ready to go.
Since my appointment,
this office is undefeated//in
financial prosecutions...
81 and 0.
And that's because I
know//when the time is right.
I get it, but... this would be a
big one.
Bryan, what do you
think//happened here this
morning?
We got significant information.

Maybe. Or maybe it
was//Spyros setting us up.
Now, we go in first and//lose in
the criminal action,
spyros in the S.E.C. can//still
get him civilly.
Now, we win, Spyros wins. We
lose...
Spyros still fucking wins.
Damn. The ketchup's empty.
We've got to be
playing//three-dimensional
chess.
Axe is a folk hero in this town.
The guy gave the New
York//City Firefighter's
Foundation
$100 million last year.
Police gave him a plaque at
Ground Zero
with his goddamn name on it.
Spitzer's name was on all//the
highway signs, too.
Signs come down.
That's why I love you, man.
But a good matador
doesn't//try to kill a fresh bull.
You wait until he's been stuck
a few times.
We need an opening, however
small.
Then we get the guy
the//moment that he's
gettable,
just like the others.
But not if there's a chance we
lose.
What about... the other issue?
The one spyros mentioned...
home?
Was he right about that?
No.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry.
I-I don't... [sighs]
- You know what, it's a tough
day//- I don't know what...
for everyone.
- Oh!//- Just...
I just had to sell the Oceanis.
[sighs]
Rake just loved that boat.

I am sure that's why it upset

you.
You know, me, I never set foot
on a yacht
until I started dating Bobby.
In Inwood, growing up,
the only boating we ever
did//was the Staten Island
Ferry.
[chuckles]
Big Irish family. Five sibs.
Close, though.
Firemen, cops, nurses.
Then, when I moved up here,
this world, I saw
how//everyone looked at me.
I never judged.
Of course not.
So I got my act together.
And I'm comfortable in this
life.
But certain things you learn in
Inwood,
they never leave you...//you
know, like the idea
that if someone has a problem
with you
and they come to you in
person,
you do what you can to take
care of it.
But if they take that beef
public,
the ground just falls out
from//beneath them where I'm
from.
You find yourself all alone.
Are you threatening me?
[scoffs]
You're fucking right I am.
It's how I grew up.
[siren wails]
Excuse me, sir?
Yes?
I may be speaking out of
turn...
I probably shouldn't//have
even been in the room
where Axelrod was
discussed...

but you know the

Norton//place out at the
beach?
- Why would we?//- Not you.
The U.S. Attorney.
His father's house is around
the jetty.
Yes, I know the house. What?
I just heard Bobby Axelrod//is
trying to buy it.

Where did you hear that?

Court clerk's cousin works
for//the realtor and mentioned
it.
- How much?//- $83 million.
Really?
That would be widely
reported.
Widely.
People hate guys who buy
things like that.
[scoffs]
I just lost my
mojo//somewhere along the
line.
It's fucking gone.
And you're Mrs. Mojo, so//I
booked the appointment.
It's Dr. Mojo.
Right.
I hear it happens to guys my
age.
Maybe I'm depressed.
Maybe I should try some
Prozac, Effexor...
Uh-huh. We'll get to that.
Now, have you been
eating,//sleeping, exercising?
Yeah, more or less.
Maybe not so much with the
sleeping.
And things with your wife?
Okay, mostly.
Sex?
Normal.
I've been married 10 years,
so...
So down to just once a day.
So, it's really just the book?
I'm down 4%...

year to date.
[sighs]
Everyone else is up double
digits.
I'm down.
- I'm fucked.//- You don't need
meds.
You're just listening to the
wrong voice.
You're tuned into the one
yelling at you
over the loudspeaker//that
you're fucking stupid
and your performance blows.
And you're ignoring the quiet
one inside
telling you where the alpha is.
Now, that's the voice that got
you here.
And it's still there if//you're
willing to listen.
What's that voice telling you?
That even though I've stiffed a
few
that I'm pretty damn good.
Unh-unh.
Stand up.
Stand up.
What'd you take down last
year?
$7.2 million.
$7.2 million.
$7.2 mill... feel that.
$7.2 million.
Bring it close.
[louder] $7.2 million.
So, what's it saying?
- That I'm awesome.//- There
you go.
And what does it have to say
back
to that loud, critical voice?
It's saying, "Fuck you."
Good!
Sit down.
Now, I want you to go//back to
your Bloomberg
and cut bait on your//losers...
you know the ones.
The ones you've been
defending,

hoping they'll come 'round,

but, secretly, you know never
will.
I want you to just commit
that you're in it for the long
haul,
that you will succeed.
And once you do that, the new
ideas,
the winners, will present
themselves
because you are a winner.
You're in the Special Forces
here.
You are a Navy SEAL.
And there's a reason for that.
Did the S.E.A.L.s make//a
mistake signing you up?
[chuckling] No. They did not.
The S.E.A.L.s don't make
mistakes.
[sighs]
So get out there and do//what
needs to be done.
We have to stop here.
Hello, guys.
- Daddy!//- Oh, how are you?
Hm?
How was school? What'd you
get up to?
- It was boring.//- It was
boring.
Boring. Fantastic. Money well
spent.
- [both giggle]//- Those go off
after dinner, okay?
Okay!
Hey, babe.
Hi, honey.
What are you working on?
Just session notes.
[chuckles] Oh.
Wall-to-wall oedipal
complexes//making them all
go limp?
Pfft!
You have an
amazing//understanding of
people.
What are we drinking, here?
- The usual.//- Mmm.

How's crime fighting?

The usual.
Mm.
[keys clacking]
You good with your situation?
I know you said you
might've//been feeling bored a
while back.
That's not exactly what I said.
Hmm.
You said, uh, you weren't//sure
if you were still growing.
What's this about?
I was talking to the head
counsel of G.E.,
and they're looking for a new
head of H.R.
I can put in the word if you
want it.
Uh...
Is there s...
is there some reason I//can't
keep doing my job?
No. What do you mean?
I heard about a position,//so I
presented it.
Don't you get enough of
moving the pieces
around the board at work?
Okay. You don't want to
hear//about opportunities,
fine.
Are you prosecuting
somebody at Axe?
What's going on, Chuck?
First off, no.
And second, you know
that//we don't discuss that.
So quit your fucking job.
Hey, Kev, will you take//your
sister upstairs
and, uh, start the bath?
I'll be up in a minute, okay?
Thank you.
Take it easy, okay?
I'm the goddamn U.S.
Attorney, Wendy.
So? I've been working
there//since before we were
married

and long before you were in

office.
Look, not that we're there,
but we did always
discuss//that the day might
come
when there was a conflict.
That was before I was
making//eight times what you
make.
And before you started
making//Chuck Sr. plays like
this.
Leave him out of it. Okay?
And who makes more money?
Really?
Is this, uh, what we're
teaching the kids?
Oh, are we teaching them that
Daddy's job
is always more important that
Mommy's?
I work for the public good.
No, you work for the good of
Chuck Rhoades.
Maybe sometimes they
intersect.
Oh, my God.
Would you turn off
your//fucking shrink switch?
[sighs]
Mm-hmm.
Let's take this down a notch.
Yeah.
I just... I don't know where//all
this is coming from,
and you know I don't//like to
be manipulated.
I'm not manipulating.
Not that that's what you were
doing,
but that's what I felt like.
And of course your job's
important.
You're a superhero.
And I'm super proud of you.
But my thing matters to me,
too.
Of course.
You're killing it.
[dog barking]

Whoa! Whoa, whoa! Watch it,

there, Elmo!
No! Get down, boy!
- Easy, big guy.//- [dog
barking]
BOBBY Ah, let him be. Hey, let
him be.
Let him be. It's okay. Let him
go free.
[Elmo barking, whining]
- He's a live wire, that one.//Ooh, yeah. He chewed up a
custom sofa.
We've got to calm him down.
Send him to obedience school.
He's going to the vet to get
fixed.
Ooh.
Enjoy, guys.
All right, boys. What//do we
say to Chef Ryan?
BOTH Thank you!
Boys, boys, look. Look. Look at
this.
Look, look. He's marking his
territory.
He's peeing on the furniture.
Yeah. Yeah, but he's//showing
Ryan who's boss.
That's why it's called a pissing
contest
when two men try and stake
out their turf.
I don't love it when men do
that, either.
WOMAN Elmo, outside now!
Come on. Poor guy.
Dean, seventh
president.//Hint... two after
Monroe.
Jackson. Andrew Jackson.
Gordie, where was he from?
Let's talk Yankees.
'Cause you don't know.//Don't
switch the subject.
I do know.
Prove it.
Seattle?
There was no Seattle back
then, idiot.

I bet I'll get it on the next

guess.
- Bet you don't.//- How much?
10 push-ups.
Deal.
Border areas near the
Carolinas.
[Bobby and Lara laugh]
You can't fall for that every
time, Dean.
See, he knows his
customer,//and he sets you
up.
He's willing to look
foolish//short-term to win
long-term.
You got to remember that.
And, Gordie, don't sucker your
brother.
All right, come on. Pay your
bet.
We don't welsh.
[sighs]
See what you got.
ALL One. Two.
Lower.
Three.

[cellphone chimes]
[sniffs]
[clears throat]
[telephone rings]
KIM Sir? The
leniency//conference starts in
10 minutes.
Afternoon.
Thank you for agreeing to see
us.
What the fuck are you doing
here, Dad?
Trying to get me disbarred?
Christ. You're more//dramatic
than your mother.
ATTORNEY We are not
breaking//any rules or
regulations.
Mr. Rhoades is not
being//compensated to appear
here.
Oh, I know how careful he is...
and why you brought him.

But believe me, it's already

backfired.
Hear us out.
Skip knows that he did wrong.
Now that he's been, uh,
convicted, sure.
But when he had a chance to
plead out...
That's the past.
Right now, we are trying//to
set something up
that will allow Skip to//show
his rehabilitation
and for him to contribute to
society.
By what? Oh, I know.
Uh, paying a bigger fine
in exchange for reduced jail
time?
What are we talking about, uh,
$5 million?
We were going to suggest $10
million
in exchange for house arrest.
Which represents a far
more//reasonable settlement
than...
Mm-hmm. Yeah. So, that way,
instead of worrying
about//actually going to
prison,
you can get right to doing
charitable works
and warning your buddies
about//the pitfalls of being a
bad actor.
- Exactly.//- Yeah.
This is Skip.
And it is a fair offer.
Yeah, it sounds reasonable.
And it's the type of deal
that has been made in
this//library... countless
times...
...by my predecessors,
but not by me.
You don't buy your way out of
justice here.
You thought, because of
our//history, bringing my
father,

this would afford you

some//kind of a fucking
courtesy?
No. He volunteered.
Well, you all miscalculated...
badly.
You know, instead of using my
father,
you should've emulated him
and built your fortune//without
crossing the line.
You didn't.
So now your cronies are
gonna see
that they better not//trade on
inside information
or abuse their positions,
or//they're gonna end up like
you.
Broke, humiliated, and
incarcerated...
as per the law.
I am not prepared for this.
I... I can't.
Please.
Chuck...
you know I am not a bad man.
I can't.
This was to be about//leniency.
Have some mercy.
[laughs]
My father always told me//that
"mercy" was a word
that pussies used when//they
couldn't take the pain.
I love you, Dad.
But if you walk into my office
and try to use your influence
again,
you are gonna walk out//of
here in handcuffs.
[sighs]
Mr. Wolkowska...
Skip.
I've known you since I was a
boy.
I remember you and my dad
exchanging sets
on the tennis court out East.
I never wanted to see you like
this.

I never wanted you to.

Yeah, but here we are.
So please hear this.
I know that you have
the//strength to get through
it...
and come out the other side a
better man.
I wish you well.
[sighs]
[door opens, closes]
[whistle blows]
[crowd cheering, clapping]
Hey.
Yo, Axe.
- [whistle blows]//- Really?
Here?
They were gonna
obliterate//each other on
Superior Auto.
Has to be your call.
We've got to stay long,
superior.
We should increase our
position, I think.
You think?
Aluminum wheels for
cars//and light-duty trucks
have totally replaced steel.
And the numbers out of the
factory
are telling me Superior
is//producing the shit out of
them.
"Dollar" Bill...
What does the cheapest//man
in America think?
That "The Pouch" is wrong.
Numbers out of the factory tell
me
that they over-produced this
quarter.
They're stuck with merch they
can't move,
and the stock's gonna dip.
Short.
What's your level of certainty?
I am not uncertain.
We're done here.
Why didn't you tell me you
were certain?

Why would I?
Do your own fucking work.
Okay, come on!
Any time you can disrupt//a
criminal enterprise,
that's a good result, and//that
is what happened here.
Once again, over 400 kilos of
cocaine,
dozens of weapons seized.
$2.8 million off the//streets in
this takedown.
All defendants have been
indicted
and are also off the streets.
[reporters clamoring] Mr.
Rhoades!
All right. Thanks, guys.
MAN You're proud
about//small-time convictions
- of small-time players...//Hey, hey. That's enough.
...uneducated minorities//with
limited options.
- That's enough.//- What about
the hundreds of millions...
billions... in fraudulent//gains
in the financial sector?
Why aren't you
prosecuting//the investment
banks
and hedge funds for insider
trading?
You're bragging about netting
minnows,
but you won't touch a//firm
like Axe Capital.
[camera shutters clicking]
My office is soft on financial
crime.
Go ask the 81
convicted//felons of financial
crimes
currently serving time.
But you have a very//specific
conflict of interest
right in your own home.
Growing up, I saw firsthand
the corrosive power that//big
business can have,

and I am determined to check

that.
Take Skip Wolkowska.
Now, he has many influential
friends,
but their entreaties on
his//behalf were not
entertained.
As your own paper reported,
Mr. Wolkowska will serve his
full sentence,
effective immediately.
That's all the time I really
have. Thanks.
Who let The fucking Journal
in//with the blindsided
questions?
He was not supposed to...
That guy you know over
at//Skadden on Axe's team...
Yeah, Orrin Bach. He was my
law professor.
Yeah. Get with him.
And tell him to tell Axe//not to
buy that house.
Not to buy...?
Nice.
I need Spyros at the S.E.C.
[cellphone ringing]
- Spyros.//- Do you know the
story
about the mouse that//starts
roaring like a lion?
No.
Yeah. It doesn't end well//for
the goddamn mouse.
Do the people you work
with//pretend they're
impressed
when you speak in riddles
like some kung-fu//instructor
from the movies?
Well, let me be direct.
I know you sent that
reporter//in to ask about Axe
Capital.
Why would I do that?
We're on the same side.
You're on your side. I'm on
mine.
Well, we can both benefit.

And besides, it's the right

thing to do.
Spyros, you wouldn't//know
the right thing to do
if it kneeled down and//sucked
your tiny goddamn cock!
You pull any shit like that
again
and I will loose holy fucking
hell on you!
[cellphone clatters]

[man singing in Italian]

So, this is how a man with//no
conscience spends his time.
It's how a grown-up does.
You know, I remember
when//you were my professor,
you told us a lawyer's
calling//was beyond mere
recompense.
It was to serve the spirit//of
the law regardless of gain.
Yeah. It is.
Until it's not.
What?
You'll see.
Once you sell out and//play for
the defense, too.
Nah, I've found my calling.
Okay, Claude Dancer.
One day you'll be coming//to
me just like this,
asking for a job.
The good news is this...//when
you get out of there,
you're starting at $1.4, easy.
Nail a few headline cases...
$1.7.
Better news?
I'll hire you.
I'm staying.
No, you're not.
Hey, speaking of headlines,
is this shit we're
hearing//about the beach
house real?
'Cause that's a headline you
don't want.
Since when's a rich
guy//buying a house illegal?

There's the way things//look

and the way things are.
You taught me that.
It's like he's slapping my
guy//in the face with a white
glove.
You know what happens next.
If there were any doubt,//we'd
tie him to his chair.
World's full of snipers.
But Bobby runs a clean shop.
So he just keeps a top
defense//firm on retainer at
$800 an hour
because he loves lawyers?
Must be.
And we're $1,000 an hour.
There's nothing there.
Like Warren Buffett says,
you put a police car
on//anyone's tail for 500
miles,
he's gonna get a ticket.
Hey. Come in.
Bite?
Oh, God, no.
I'm glad you came in.
I was gonna come see you.
About?
A purchase I'm considering.
An impulse purchase?
Naturally.
Sizeable?
I'm guessing it's something
you//may not even particularly
need.
People are saying if I do,//it'll
unleash the hounds...
which makes me want it even
more.
That's good.
Back when we started, you
wouldn't have//been able to
recognize the motivation
until long after you bought it.
Well, back when we started,
I//was just rich, not super-rich.
You know, being a billionaire...
I never get to talk about this
with anyone

'cause who's gonna give a

shit?
But being a billionaire,//when
you walk into a room,
it's like being a woman//with a
perfect set of tits.
Or great legs.
Or eyes like yours.
You know exactly
what//everyone's looking at,
and you know exactly what
they want.
You know what that's like.
Okay, player.
Identifying the fact that
buying//can be a surrogate for
power
and that outside
authority//isn't something you
do well,
this is progress.
You've come a long way since
we started.
I guess...
considering when we started//I
was staggering around crying
along with the half of us still
breathing.
But knowing isn't enough.
You've got to exercise control.
Don't get into a bitch fight
over nothing.
Don't buy it.
[knock on door]
You nailed Lumetherm Power.
Deal crumbled.
I covered at $31.19.
Nice.
You said $32-ish, but I saw//it
was going even further,
so I waited. Whoa, living
dangerously.
All right. Good job.
You just made us another $18
million.
Yeah.
Thanks.
We got sidetracked.
You came to me.
You're thinking about leaving.

Uh, well, it's... crossed my

mind.
Is this about comp?
No.
God, no. You've...
you've//always made that
clear.
I'm better paid than
anyone//in my med-school
class
except the guy who
invented//the synthetic
bladder.
[chuckles] I'll short his
company,
give some speeches, chop him
down to size.
It's not about comp.
[sighs] But it is about value...
mine...
and growth, as in//whether I'm
still growing.
I love this place,
but I do miss seeing more
than//a handful of other
patients.
At-risk adolescents, women in
crisis.
You know, using those other
muscles.
Where's this coming from?
It's been on my mind.
Your value to the firm is
absolute.
You just saved me
from//making a huge mistake
for dick-measuring purposes.
So let's do this.
Spend as much time
away//from here as you want.
See other patients outside.
But stick with me.
[exhales sharply]
Thank you.
[sighs]
- Hi, Mom.//- Hello, dear.
I hear you've been very busy.
Yeah.
- He's in the den.//- Okay.
[knock on door]
What the hell was that stunt?

Skip Wolkowska's an old

friend.
He asked for help. I didn't
want to refuse.
But I was 90% sure
you'd//react the way you did.
It's a win any way you look at
it.
How is that a win?
I knew that Skip's lawyer
would spread it,
and it'd land in the news.
And if you treat me that//way,
they'll all fear you.
That's what you need right
now.
You'll be seen as tough on
Wall Street.
Hmm.
Some audible to call.
You're welcome.
Now, listen.
You didn't smile enough
during the presser.
You let them get to you.
You're right.
And I didn't like that//question
about Axe Capital.
- What prompted that?//Spyros planted it.
S.E.C. wants me to move on
Axe.
It's difficult to convict a
popular man.
Yes, I know.
Well, if you move on//him and
take that risk,
you have to get the reward.
You can let the S.E.C. do the
mopping up,
collect their fines, but
they//can't be seen as leading
it.
- [scoffs]//- A lot of people
have Axelrod's back in this
city.
He's made them a lot of
money.
And you know the line//if
you're gonna strike
against the king.

The King is house shopping

right now.
Prime beachfront, heritage.
Hasn't even come on market
yet.
That's a mistake.
A conspicuous buy like that in
the news?
He goes from a
billionaire//that you can pull
for
to just another rich asshole.
If he turns the populous
against him,
he gives his edge to you.
I passed word that,//uh, he
shouldn't buy it.
If he's innocent, he passes,
because he's a disciplined
player
and he knows that's the
disciplined move.
But a guilty man, he buys that
house
to show me he's got nothing
to hide.
Smart.
Maybe I can have a friend
make a bid,
get the competitive juices
flowing.
I like that.
Roger could always use a new
house.
[chuckles]
And I know Denny Dantone//is
actively looking.
[knock on door]
You guys know I only//drag
food into this room
for the Super Bowl.
Come on, Charles. I made the
pot pies.
I should have some time with
my son.
We'll be right there.
Your mother.
That's a loyal woman.
Don't.
I'm just saying that your
mother

would never let her job interf...

She never left the kitchen,
Dad.
That's what you wanted in a
wife, not me.
Still, Wendy's making//things
difficult for you.
Why is she still working?
We started to discuss it.
Legally, there's no conflict yet.
She'll do the right thing.
Better hope so, son.
Danny fucking Margolis.//What
brings you back?
When I saw you at Sun Valley,
you said you were happy as//a
clam in shit at Century.
Well, I am.
I was.
You know how it is.
Things are good there.
I like Jerry, but I miss the
family.
Well, you had to go it on your
own
with a bigger chunk of the pie.
Yeah, true. [chuckles]
Place looks great, by the way.
Is that your rolling art out
front?
The Lambo?
No.
I like to sit tall in the seat.
Look, um, I have some ideas,
and I'd love to share them
with you.
I'd love to hear them.//Come
to the next dinner.
We'll bang some steaks, talk
some concepts.
Yeah, okay. But I was
just//hoping that maybe, you
know...
No, I know what you were
hoping.
Door's always open.
Yeah. Yeah, that's cool, Bobby.
I-I will.
Uh, take care.
[keypad beeps]
[car alarm chirps]

Hall. I need to see you.

This is cozy.
It's secure.
I checked with my sources in
Washington.
There's no case file against
you,
but Dan Margolis was
arrested.
He was released on
his//lawyer's recognizance,
and his arraignment's
currently on hold.
Which tells you what?
That he's cooperating.
Did you hear it okay?
How the hell did you know?
He was making too much eye
contact.
Barely blinked.
And his pulse was
hammering//like he was
running a marathon.
You were smart to stay quiet.
Look, the S.E.C. isn't the thing.
Fines are a part of life.
The attack you have to
worry//about is the U.S.
Attorney's.
Now, here's what you're
gonna do.
One... that reporter//from The
Journal,
the one that was asking
about//you, he needs to be
handled.
I would do it myself, but//then
he's out of the game.
No value added.
Better if you make him your
best friend.
And two... remember, you
don't//have to outswim the
shark.
You just have to outswim
the//guy you're scuba diving
with.
You want me to do that?
You remember that night in
Reykjavik?
Wish I didn't, but I do.

You said there was only

one//thing you were afraid of.
Windbreakers.
Guys in windbreakers
walking//in your office saying,
"Step away from the
computer."
And you told me you'd
make//sure it wouldn't
happen.
So, let me make sure.
Look there.
Steven Birch?
It's either him or you.
- Memorize that.//- _
Well, if it's gonna be
someone,//it may as well be
that fraud.
We're sharing the stage
at the Delivering
Alpha//Conference this week.
He acts like he's my best
friend
despite short squeezing//me
on HMOs last year.
So do it.
Hall.
Wendy Rhoades tried to quit
today.
We've been fighting back-toback//in the trenches for 15
years.
But today she tried to quit.
Still trust her?
I want to.
I didn't know this//place was
open for lunch.
It's not.
- Thanks, Tony.//- My pleasure,
Mr. Axelrod.
We're off the record.
If you fuck me, I never talk to
you again.
Got it.
Good. If you ever want
to//come here, just call me.
Now, why was my name
coming out of//your mouth at
a press conference?
Hey, that was before you
asked me to lunch.

Jump in.
Let's talk about those
kids//you put through college.
That's the one question
gets//me walking away from
the table.
That's between them and me.
I don't//talk about it with
anyone else.
[clears throat]
Bon apptit.
What's next?
Softball. Underhand.
Give me some insight
into//how you process
information.
The press acts
like//information's a dirty
word.
Everyone has access to the
information.
We just know how to analyze
it better.
You answer me one.
When did it become a
crime//to succeed in this
country?
America used to salute//the
guy in the limousine.
They wanted to be the guy in
the limousine.
They still want to.
But now they throw eggs at it.
I only ever went egging once.
Biggest house in the
neighborhood,
and they never gave out
any//candy, so they deserved
it.
We destroyed that place.
Once? You're an altar boy.
That was every Halloween for
me.
You're from around here,
right?
Yeah, Grand Concourse. Then
White Plains.
Yeah, me too. Well,
Yonkers,//but it wasn't nice
back then.

Hey, man, Yonkers used to be

a place
where you could really get
your ass kicked.
[chuckles]
You're a good kid for a fucking
hack.
And you're a good guy for a
bankster.
All right, fuck it.
I wasn't gonna give you this,
but you're here for a
story//and now I like you, so...
- ...Steven Birch.//- Piedmont
Capital.
Yeah.
That swap deal he did//on
Arcadian Rail Road...
the timing is very curious.
What kind of swap?
I'm not gonna write the article
for you.
Do an autopsy on the deal,
you'll find yourself a//Pulitzer
in the carcass.
Here's my cell.
Don't call until the market
closes.
No voicemail.
- No E-mail.//- Understood.
Enjoy your lunch.
DAVID How do you respond
to//the criticism that hedge
funds
are the scavengers of the
financial sector
and that a select few
have//undue influence on the
markets?
Any public statement
you//make or position you
take
can send a stock soaring or
falling.
We're not scavengers.
We're white blood
cells//scrubbing out bad
companies,
earning for our
investors,//preventing
bubbles.

Excuse me.
A hedge fund like mine//is a
market regulator.
I want people like
Bobby//Axelrod on that wall.
I need them on that wall.
Axe makes my life easier
by//shouting if he sees
something.
The moment I let someone in
a boardroom...
...or a government office
tell//me what I can or cannot
buy,
I may as well close the
shop,//and I'm not closing the
shop.
Let's touch on the role//of the
activist investor
in today's market.
I'm not just playing for myself.
I'm playing for all
shareholders,
like my good friend Steven
Birch here.
Bobby Axelrod, Steven//Birch,
thanks to you both.
[applause]
Um, that, uh, thing we were
talking about,
they are levered four to one.
When their accounting comes
out,
it's not gonna look pretty,
right?
Those fucking guys. I wasn't
told.
I don't know why
Brooks//saved those seats for
them.
I'm gonna find him and skin
his ass.
Enough.
I'm gonna get me that scalp.
You crushed it. Crushed.
Let's get out of this ratfuck.
Watch out. He may buy the
building.
It's an A-minus building.
Needs overhaul.

He doesn't consider//anything
less than triple-A.
- Yet he hired you.//- Easy,
Bryan.
Learn anything from my talk?
Volumes. You staying for
mine?
I know your act.
[laughs]
You sending me messages?
'Cause I'm here.
Well, the kids in my office
really thought you might buy
that house.
I told them you got big balls,
but not that big.
Yeah, right. I'll probably pass.
It's so nice, though, you know.
Feels like you're part//of the
beach and ocean.
And all that air out there...
shit, you know about it.
Your daddy's got a little place
out there.
He must let you use a
bedroom//some weekends if
you say please.
Walk away.
I should.
But then again, what's
the//point of having "fuck you"
money
if you never say "fuck you"?
You're a smart man.
So you know when I bring an
action,
not some county or even
state,
it's the United States versus.
Don't give me a reason.
Oh, I know who brings an
action.
And I know what you
feel//about your perfect
record, too.
You can't afford a mark in the
loss column.
There's a saying in baseball.
Towns fire managers.
Owners just give them the bad
news.

You're the only one

running//the big money they
cheer for.
But that's because
you//worked that 9/11 shit
for all it's worth.
Fuck yourself.
I have never sent out//a single
press release,
given one interview.
I lost every one of my friends
that day.
And you've managed to//make
some new ones since.
But like I said, they may be
cheering now,
but believe me, they are dying
to boo.
MODERATOR And now from
the other side,
the man whose job is to
ride//herd over the bulls and
bears,
Chuck Rhoades.
[applause]
[cellphone vibrating]
Yeah.
Denny Dantone's coming in
with an offer
on the Norton house... $62
million.
Prepared to close in//less than
a week, I hear.
How the fuck did he see it?
He didn't. He knew the house.
Been to parties there.
Son of a bitch.
Hey, babe.
Hey, babe.
What the hell's wrong with
Elmo?
He went to the vet to get
fixed, remember?
The house, I want it.
Okay, let's take a
beat.//People are gonna say
that...
They might.
Offer $63 million cash.
Take it or leave it on the call.
Wire goes out first thing.

[cellphone ringing]
Yeah.
Mike Dimonda from The
Journal.
Sorry to wake you.
I was up.
I'm calling for comment.
On?
Skip Wolkowska, your
father's//friend, committed
suicide.
No comment.
[indistinct conversations]
Shh, shh.
Rough morning.
But a reminder like this is
useful.
What we do has
consequences,
intended and, uh...
unintended.
The decisions we make,//the
actions we bring,

have weight.
I'll have to carry this one.
So...
would I have given a//break to
some drug dealer?
No.
So, why would I give one to a
businessman?
None of this should change
your mission.
Come to work every day//and
be just and strong
in the actions you bring, and
don't waver.
All right, that's it. Back to
work.
This'll cheer you up.
Front fucking age of the Post.
_
It's like he's daring you.

BOBBY Gotcha!
[children laughing]

[sighs]
You like it?
I love it.
[door slams]
Hey!
[cellphone vibrating]
Hall. What do you got?
There's movement.
It's likely they've//opened a
case file on you.
You know what?
I'm ready.
They could be coming after
you.
Fuck 'em.
You waited up.
I made sure the kids were
asleep.
I wanted to see you.
Me too.
That hurts.
I'll bet it does.