The Morning Show
Season 4 – Episode 6
Episode title: If Then
Original release date:Â October 22, 2025
Plot: Celine pushes Stella to unveil UBN’s AI program early, even though it is unfinished. Christine boycotts the unveiling event when Stella rejects her request for a better deal, leading Alex to ask Brodie to co-host. Brodie bonds with Alex at a bar, but backs out of co-hosting when Stella and Celine refuse to let him host the upcoming presidential debate. Following an argument with Miles, Stella confides to her personal AI chatbot about her insecurities around being CEO. Chip identifies the woman standing next to Kenneth as Sophia Volk, the former quality control manager at Martel Chemical Plant; Bradley contacts Sophia for more information. Cory learns from his mother that Celine’s family had paid Fred to kill the Wolf River story. Celine intimidates Cory into staying silent about her involvement. At the unveiling event, Stella’s AI chatbot accidentally reveals her personal thoughts to the audience, including her affair with Miles. Stella resigns as CEO and leaves a letter for Mia containing a flash drive, encouraging her to leverage the “power void” at UBN. Stella persuades Miles to travel with her to Naples, but he ultimately chooses to stay with Celine, forcing an emotional Stella to board her flight alone.
* * *
The Morning Show – S04E06 – If Then | Transcript
[“Nemesis” playing]
[music ends]
[Stella] There’s safety in numbers. They’re rational. They behave. Put them in order and you can write programs. You can code. But shift one element… and it all falls apart.
The AI, i-it doesn’t work.
[sighs] I’ve seen it work.
Not when it’s live.
When it’s live, it’s erratic.
It… [scoffs] It’s terrible with the talent models.
I don’t understand.
The demo of me is fine.
AI Alex, AI Chris… they on the other hand they sound like Hal in A Space Odyssey.
So, your program is a serial killer.
I’m sorry, I’ve tried everything, but it’s not gonna be ready for Paris.
Stella.
I know.
We spent $250 million.
I raised my hand for you.
I know.
So what do we do?
Take finger puppets to Paris?
We might have to.
That fucking Chris interview.
It’s all anyone’s talking about.
I thought it would kill her.
Turns out she has nine lives.
What she has is momentum.
She’s threatening to boycott the Olympics.
And Paris.
No promos. Nothing.
What about O24?
You mean the 300 members of press waiting for us to fall on our faces?
Yeah, I…
I don’t think she’s coming.
We promised Olympic talent.
We promised spectacle.
If we go out on that stage with nothing, they’ll nail us to the cross.
I’ll talk to Mia.
Stella.
We need a win.
[sighs]
[Bradley] UBN research put her photo through facial recognition.
Let me see.
I didn’t tell them anything.
[Chip] These are not her.
Great, so we’re nowhere.
[sighs] It’s just kind of crazy to me.
She should be in some database somewhere.
[sighing] Yeah.
Um, let’s go back to Cory.
What did he have to say about her?
Well, he doesn’t know anything.
He knows less than us.
Are you sure about that? ‘Cause…
I mean, his fixer smeared Stockton.
You found this photo in his emails…
Okay, what do you want me to say?
[stammers]
Can you just not film me right now?
Okay.
Please.
[beeps]
Look, I didn’t wanna bring this up, but… [sighs] What?
Look, you and Cory have a history.
So…
So what are you suggesting?
That I’m compromised?
Or that he’s lying to me and I can’t tell the difference?
When I pointblank asked him about Stockton, he didn’t even know he was dead.
And if you want to ask him yourself because you don’t believe me, that’s fine, but he’s never speaking to me again.
What happened?
It was bad. [scoffs] Wait.
It was bad.
All right. Um… you okay?
Yeah, yeah. I’m-I’m okay.
[sighs] You should’ve seen his face.
Mmm.
It just keeps playing in my mind.
He really trusted me, and I…
And then I’m going, “Why am I doing this in the first place?
What is the fucking point?
Am I trying to blow up my life?”
I just… I need this to mean something.
Hmm.
We get so few chances.
I’m with you. I’m with you.
Let’s-Let’s find this girl.
Okay. All right, let’s do it.
[sighs] Do you have any ideas?
I mean, there’s…
I have a friend at The Times.
He tracked down some poll workers for my doc.
I could call him.
How soon can you call him?
He… [sighs] He’s tricky.
Where is Earl?
[Kyle] No one’s seen him. He’s gone.
All right, what about Fred?
There’s gotta be some connection to Martel Chemical.
I thought you said this was the best security firm on the planet?
They tracked down some documents.
Financials, offshore stuff.
You’ll have something in a few days.
Did you see the new script pages?
Yeah, I saw ’em and they’re great.
And they’d be even better if I had an actor to say the words.
[inhales deeply] How’s our deal coming?
I’m working on it. They’re coming for your trailer.
That a joke?
‘Cause that trailer is the Alamo, and you’re Davy fuckin’ Crockett.
You know Team Texas didn’t fight to the last man.
The white dudes basically ran away from the Mexicans.
Huh. Didn’t know that. And not helpful.
I got you those two tickets to Merrily We Roll Along.
Third row, center. Yeah, third row’s too close.
I can’t use ’em.
You can give ’em away or burn ’em.
I don’t care.
I gotta go.
[Stella] When Cory offered me Head of News, I laughed in his face. Legacy media, a corporate tool of the white center-right. I let him pay for lunch and I walked away. But he came back, like a migraine. He said I could push the stories I cared about. Drag the doubters, kicking and screaming, into the future. He told me to burn it down. Burn anyone who got in my way.
Talent can’t have editorial control over the news.
It runs counter to our mission of objective reporting.
You know that.
Bro Hartman can say whatever he wants, whenever he wants.
His show isn’t news.
I’m sorry, it’s a nonstarter.
And as for a producing pod, we don’t have the money.
And no one has cohost approval.
Alex Levy does.
As Vice President of Talent, not as an anchor.
That’s a distinction without a difference.
Look. I understand that the response to her interview has been generally positive.
Yeah, that’s an understatement.
I get that you want a better deal.
And I’m open to it.
But not until the current deal is up.
Deal is up now.
Figure it out, or we’re gonna go somewhere else.
Would you give us a moment?
Take all the moments you need.
So, what?
Now you’re trying to leverage me?
I’m giving you a heads-up.
That’s more than you gave me.
You’re not getting this deal.
I won’t give it to you.
And once Chris realizes that…
Oh, she’s realizing things.
Like, you brought Cory Ellison back in the building.
That’s a hell of a move.
And then giving him money and saying there’s nothing left for us.
He’s making movies. It’s different.
You know, I remember when you got this job.
You said you were gonna do it differently, do it right.
And here you are, surrounded by white people and stepping on women of color to stay in that chair.
You’re not one of us.
You never were.
[Cory] What did Bradley say to you? You know I had nothing to do with this.
This is all Fred.
Mmhmm. Well for someone who claims they had nothing to do with the coverup, you doth protest a little too much.
I did not cover up anything.
I am trying to figure out what happened.
Hmm. Uh-huh.
Or are you trying to vindicate yourself so that you can get Bradley back?
Wow.
Wow.
Mmm, okay.
You tell me that’s not what you’re doing.
That’s not what I’m doing.
I don’t believe you.
[sighs] Bradley Jackson is dead to me.
If she was lying in a desert and I had ten gallons of water, I’d take a shower in front of her before she’d get a fucking sip.
Is that clear?
Yeah, that sounds like someone who doesn’t care.
Somebody is fucking with me.
Or I’m… I’m being gas lit or whatever you want to call it.
And Alex, it is driving me fucking crazy.
Yeah. Welcome to life as a woman.
[laughs]
Well, I figured there’d be more orgasms.
Ah, yes. Welcome to life as a woman.
Come on, you were around when I was hired.
Do you remember anything?
[sighs]
[sighs, stammers]
Other than Operation Bambi?
When you and Fred tried to get me out of here?
Yeah, yeah. That was…
That was a swing and a miss.
Big miss.
Alex, please.
Cory, I don’t remember.
I mean, it was a crazy time.
So much was happening so fast.
[inhales deeply, stammers]
Bethanne left. Mitch imploded.
Oh, maybe I can pin it on him.
I do remember something.
White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
A lot of network people wheeling and dealing.
Then about a week, two weeks later, Fred tells us it’s you.
Uh-huh.
And I don’t understand that because I was like, “Why is Fred making the President of Entertainment the Head of News?”
That made absolutely no sense.
I was sure you had something on Fred.
No. I… I didn’t have anything…
Nothing?
…on Fred. No, just, uh… He hated me.
I was just a hatchet man.
[knocks on door] Well, speaking of memory lane.
Why are you in the building?
Still arguing over your deal points?
I’m, uh, looking for office space.
I was thinking about posting up next to you.
Well, we’ve got rats in the basement.
That should be more comfortable for you.
[laughs] See, this is what I miss.
The banter, the camaraderie.
We need to talk.
Oh, okay.
Okay.
[sighs] Not you.
Even if we could make a new deal, it’s not happening by Thursday.
So, no Chris at O24. Great.
[sighs] We kept an international incident under wraps for a month, this can’t be what fucks us.
Well, can’t we just cancel the presentation? Or just push it?
We’re too close to the Games.
We can’t. [inhales deeply] We need someone who can stand up on stage with you at O24.
And be there in Paris.
Someone who can make people forget all about Chris.
A star, you know, with a different demographic appeal.
I agree.
And if that person existed, I’m sure we would’ve asked them by now.
Oh, I did. But you didn’t.
No. No.
Yeah.
No, really?
[host] Are we ready?
[crowd cheering] Are we ready?
[applauding, cheering] Union Square Comedy Club, it’s time for the man we’re all here to see.
The man, the myth, the legend.
America’s inner monologue.
Keep it going for Bro Hartman!
[cheering]
How we doing tonight?
I said how we doing?
Where’s my Bros at?
Whoo!
Wow. A lot of couples though tonight.
It’s our anniversary!
Holy shit. And you’re here?
[crowd laughs] How’d that go down?
“Babe, happy anniversary.”
You wanna go watch Bro’s show tonight “and see if our relationship can survive?”
I hope you got a prenup.
[crowd laughs]
You gotta have a prenup, right?
I mean, a set of expectations.
A code. Here’s mine.
One: Always be honest with me except about whether you had to finish yourself off with a vibrator while I was in the shower.
[crowd laughs] It gets better. Two:
Do not ask me about my porn. Seriously.
You will never look at Daphne and Scooby the same.
Three: My outlook on life is, um, I’d like to have one.
So, no kids.
[crowd cheers] If you feel bad about that, we can rent ’em.
Pick five TV orphans, we can feed ’em a dollar a day, and have all the guiltfree sex and travel we want.
The only child you’re gonna have to clean up after is me.
[crowd laughing, cheering]
Alex Levy, is that you?
[audience member] Oh, wow.
Hi, Bro.
[Bro] What are you doing here?
Waiting to laugh.
[all laugh]
[crowd boos]
I think, uh…
I think you’re fantasizing.
Yeah. You wish you could do what I do.
Say whatever you want, whenever you want.
But you can’t.
You made it to the top.
And then you realized it’s just round after round on the hamster wheel.
Sorry, sorry. Jokes!
[crowd] Yeah!
Right, right. All right.
[crowd cheers]
[Chip sighs]
What’s up?
What’s up?
I’m hanging out in dark alleys, questioning my life choices.
That’s what’s up.
You can come inside.
No. I gotta be quick.
What do you need?
I need a name.
Missed connection on the F train?
No, it’s a source. Maybe.
[inhales sharply] I don’t know who she is, I think she’s important.
I’m working on something, and she might be an informant.
Do me a solid, shake some trees?
Hmm. Interesting.
I can try but it won’t be easy.
Oh, it’s never easy with you.
How much you want?
A favor for a favor.
What kind of favor?
An exclusive.
Breaking news kinda shit.
Layoffs are coming and I wanna keep my job.
I mean, look, I’ll do some digging, but full disclosure, I’m not really in the news game anymore.
Dude, you’re plugged in.
Plus, you’re a sneaky fucker.
See what you can do.
Thanks, asshole. Appreciate that.
I will.
Send me the pic.
Get out of the alley, man. It stinks.
Look out for the roaches.
[phone chimes]
Oh, God. [sighs]
[“Heart of Mine” playing]
Hey, you know I don’t fuck groupies anymore.
Well, that’s good ’cause I actually need more than ten seconds of your time.
[chuckles] Really? Okay.
What does the great Alex Levy want with me?
We want you at O24.
And we want you to come to Paris.
Hard pass.
I know that you don’t wanna have anything to do with the Olympics, but just listen to me.
It will expand your audience.
And you can cover any event you want.
Come on. I mean, don’t you wanna sit court side at the all-women’s volleyball game?
Yeah, you know, I’m cutting an LP with Russell Crowe this summer and we’ve already got a bunch of songs written.
Oh, shoot. Hmm.
Maybe Russell could push to September?
Hmm. Might. Might not.
Mmhmm.
Guy’s a loose cannon.
That’s why the music works.
I see.
It was fun seeing you out there tonight.
I had to step up my game.
Oh.
So, you just made fun of me?
Come on, that’s our thing.
You poke me in the eye. I pull your hair.
And then we kiss underneath the swing.
It’s my formative sexual experience.
[sucks teeth]
That’s what you do.
What do I do?
You dance so that you don’t get hurt.
So, you tease, and you deflect, so you don’t have to say what you really want.
Interesting.
Come on. Come to Paris.
What’ll you give me?
[sighs] What do you want?
Threesome with you and my ex-wife?
[laughs] Oh, my God.
Please, hasn’t that poor woman suffered enough?
[chuckles]
Come on, there’s gotta be something.
[Bro clears throat]
[clears throat] So…
Mmhmm.
[inhales deeply]
What do you think’s gonna happen in November?
You mean the election?
Mmhmm.
Um, I’m cautiously optimistic.
That an asteroid lands on Florida?
Why are you asking?
People want fresh voices.
America likes outsiders.
I could be that.
Wha… [laughs] Oh, God. Wait, a second.
I’m sorry.
You wanna go into politics?
I’ve got a platform. I’ve got an audience.
What I need is institutional support.
I need you.
Oh.
I think you need to lay off those Bro greens.
I wanna host the UBN presidential debate.
You get me on stage, let the people see that I’m serious, that I belong up there.
You do that for me, I’ll do the Olympics for you.
I think we might need to rethink the threesome thing. [chuckles] You know, honestly…
I wouldn’t share you with anyone.
I’ll think about it.
The debate… or the kiss?
I guess you’ll just have to wait and see.
[Bro] Hmm.
[Stella] I took the job because it was impossible. I wanted the chance to fix something unfixable. Show the world that I could run the place without slitting any throats. That I could do it differently from Cory, from Paul. Then little by little, my inner straight white guy started clawing his way out… Telling me to get it done no matter what the cost. I hated that guy. So I did what he would do. I fell into bed with the one person who could blow up my life.
[Miles sighs] Mmm.
Why did you pick me?
Uh, we picked each other.
[chuckles] Infinite options, and we chose the one with no future.
So, what does that say about us?
[sighs] Well, who says there’s no future?
Your wife.
And the fact that you care about her.
Okay, you wanna go?
Let’s go.
[moans] Japan, right?
Mmhmm.
Sure.
The oppressors of my ancestors.
All right, Naples then.
Anywhere. I don’t care.
Hmm.
Yeah. I like Naples.
Okay, yeah. Naples.
Naples works.
[sighs]
Okay.
Huh. There’s an 11:45 tonight…
[inhales shakily] …out of JFK.
Layover in Rome. [exhales] Tonight?
I’m gonna get my passport.
And I can be ready in two hours.
Okay, let’s go.
Hey. Stop, stop.
Talk to me. Please.
[sighs]
I have an impossible talent problem, and fucked up AI that I’ve basically staked my career on.
And I’d like to show the world that I’m not a complete fucking fraud, but right now that’s exactly how I feel.
You don’t even want it.
You said it a hundred times.
You don’t belong in that office.
It’s a skin for you. A mask.
Why are you so afraid to take it off?
I’m afraid?
Yes, you are.
You don’t get it.
Oh. Enlighten me.
Forget it.
It doesn’t matter.
I would like to know.
Do you know what I had to do to get here?
Do you have any idea?
You don’t.
You said it yourself, you married in.
And now you get to paint in your studio and live in a town house, fuck your wife and girlfriend, and say, “let’s run away” whenever you feel like it.
And when I say okay, you say stop.
Stella, it’s not that simple.
Celine and I, it’s complicated.
She gave up a lot for me.
Yeah.
And right now, compared to her I’m easy.
But the second you leave her, the second you choose me, I become difficult. I become real.
And I’m real to you?
I’m here, work is there, your family and friends are somewhere else in a box I never get to open.
And yeah, you say you want more, but that’s just an excuse so you can blame me when you end it.
You picked me so you’d never really have to choose.
You’d never get on that plane.
You just like the idea of it.
[“Pioneer to the Falls” playing]
Don’t call me.
There you go.
Have a nice life.
[mouse clicking]
Fred fucking Micklen.
I close my eyes and I’m naked on stage.
It’s tomorrow and I got nothing.
So we give it to him.
Give Bro the debate.
[scoffs]
That would destroy our credibility.
It’ll never get that far.
The commission will shut it down.
We pledge our support, get him to O24 and Paris.
And blame the CPD when they say no.
Our hands stay clean.
Right.
We get Bro on board, and it cuts off Chris’s leverage.
Exactly.
And we save our skin.
Okay.
I’ll talk to Alex.
I’ll have Ben work out the deal.
Good.
Bro and Alex on stage tomorrow.
We’ll burn the fucking house down.
[Chip] All right, raise it up.
To the two most decorated Morning Show EPs of all time.
Who dared to cross Alex Levy and the UBN machine.
And good fucking riddance.
That’s easy for you to say.
You’re fancy and shit.
Come on, I made one movie that eight people saw.
And I have no idea what the next one is.
You’ll figure it out.
You’re smartish. [sighs] You know what sucks?
Hmm?
I kinda miss running TMS.
[both chuckle]
You don’t know how good you got it till it’s gone.
[Chip] Mmhmm.
If this Chris shit doesn’t work out, I don’t know what I’m gonna do.
Oh, come on, you’re gonna figure it out ’cause you’re actually smart.
Yeah, I’m kicking myself for bringing Bradley back.
[sighs] Stella offered her an extension.
Killed our leverage.
I wouldn’t worry about that.
The…
Bradley of it all.
Yeah? Why is that?
She may not be in it for the long haul.
I think she might leave. Go back home.
Then Stella has to bend over backwards to keep Chris on TMS.
You think?
I mean, I’m just reading the tea leaves, you know.
But, um… look, this story that Bradley and I are working on…
It’s been hard on her.
Mmm.
This wasn’t just a catchup, was it?
‘Cause you don’t do social calls and you sure as shit don’t do them with me.
So what’s up, Chip?
Mmm.
I need some dirt.
Oh, okay.
Something I can trade, okay?
And I figured, what, you got about as much loyalty to that fucking place as I do.
Right?
Mmhmm.
And maybe I can make it work for you.
[Mia] Hmm.
Maybe there’s some information that you’d like to get out there.
I can be your messenger.
Give you plausible deniability.
Yeah.
I might know a thing or two.
Well, I’m all ears.
[Stella]
There’s a network inside our brains. Electrochemical signals that organize our memories. You could convert that network into numbers, and you could turn it into code. You could make a copy of your brain. And just delete the memories you didn’t want. Because there are parts of yourself you’d like to forget. But somehow… they always show up… like a ghost in the machine.
[clicks]
[computer chimes]
Am I a good CEO?
I think so. But, you know, I’m a little biased. [Stella sighs] What makes me good?
You’ve cut costs. You’ve increased revenue. UBN stock is up 6% since you took over.
So, money.
Is there another metric?
What about company culture?
Opening doors for underrepresented groups.
Like the Iranian fencer?
No. Like our employees.
The demographic shifts at UBN have been the same for the past five years.
[chuckles]
So, Mia’s right.
I am Cory 2.0.
I’m not an ally.
Do you think you’re an ally?
I made an Asian woman lick up a martini to close a deal.
So, no.
I guess not.
I’m racist and sexist.
And I stepped on people who look like me to get to where I am.
If you didn’t do that, would you have gotten the CEO job?
Of course not.
Because equality doesn’t matter.
Fairness doesn’t matter.
It doesn’t make the stock move.
Which is why it’s only a matter of time before I get fired and replaced with a white guy, because at least he plays golf.
You suck at golf.
I fucking know that.
Am I in love with Miles?
I don’t know. I’ve never been in love, so I can’t say. I would need more data.
What would happen if I quit?
A new CEO would be installed as your replacement. They would determine the direction of the company.
And I’d have to pick a direction.
West to Tokyo. East to Naples.
[phone buzzes]
[sighs]
[Stella] You get used to being looked at. Thought of in a certain way. Smart, hardworking, steady. Someone who does the job without expecting credit, who will shrink herself when asked. Who won’t cause any trouble. Be who they want you to be until you can’t. Until you break. That’s what happened working with Paul. He hurt me. So I hurt myself. My mom came to the hospital and willed me back to life. My father never showed up. I imagined him, disappointed… “She couldn’t even do that right.”
[sighs]
Hi.
[exhales sharply]
Any word from Bro?
He’ll be here.
[Alex sighs] It just feels so wrong.
[sighs] Fucking him over like this, you know?
Is this, like, really who we wanna be?
He’ll be fine. Guys like him always are.
Okay. Um, I’m going to go say hi to Kara really quick.
I’ll be right back.
[Stella] Okay.
[sighs]
It’s funny.
I’m sorry?
How we need him.
[sighs]
I feel so close to you.
Do you?
[Celine] You have no idea.
How’s your movie?
I heard it wasn’t going well.
Who said that?
People talk. You know how they are.
Well, you can tell them not to worry.
I’m about to sign a deal with UBN.
I’ll have a whole slate of movies.
In Los Angeles?
Wherever the writers dream, Ma.
As long as there’s a tax break.
You know, I was, uh, actually thinking about my time in LA and my old life there.
If you can call it a life.
It was brutal, the way that studio fired you.
But, hey, I bounced back.
I got Head of News.
Funny, I never wondered how I got the job because, you know, I’m me.
But it is a bit curious ’cause I was a scripted guy.
You were a rising star at the company.
Mmm. Depends on who you ask.
[sighs]
[clears throat]
[clicks tongue] Mom.
Do you remember this?
Yeah. The White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
Uh, UBA had a table.
And NBN. Eagle News…
And what were you doing there?
I was invited. I’m always invited.
Uh-huh.
I’m sure I expected you to be there.
You were probably in LA, on a bender.
Oh, right. Yeah.
I was so high I forgot about the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
Did you say something to Fred Micklen to help me get my job?
You’re being ridiculous.
Am I?
Yes.
It was a party. I go to parties.
Come on, Mom. What were you doing there?
The same thing everyone was doing.
Gladhanding.
You said something to Fred Micklen.
Can you please…
You are such a shitty liar, Mom.
You always have been.
Just tell me what you fucking said.
Cory, enough.
[stammers] Look what you made me do.
[breathing heavily]
[sighs] I’ll get a paper towel. Hold on.
[breathes shakily]
[grunts]
Mom, you’re out of almost everything.
I thought the housekeeper was buying your groceries.
What’s this?
Leave it alone. It’s nothing.
{\an8}An assisted suicide clinic in Zurich is nothing?
Don’t be so dramatic.
It’s just something I was looking into.
Hey, Mom. [stammers] If you are afraid of living alone, I can hire someone.
If this is a money thing…
Cory.
I’m coming to terms with my age.
Everyone I know is thinking about this.
Well, can you stop?
You got a long way to go.
You’re fucking indestructible.
All right. If you say so.
Sorry I yelled at you in there.
Should I cook something?
You look a little thin.
Thanks. No, I gotta get back to the city.
Are you sure?
Yeah.
[clicks tongue]
Don’t kill yourself when I leave. Okay?
[clicks tongue] Okay.
Scout’s honor?
Scout’s honor.
I’ll call you.
[inhales deeply]
Cory?
I didn’t say much to Fred at that dinner.
But your friend Celine did.
I believe they came to some agreement.
Just don’t fucking do this.
Don’t fucking do this, please, Bro.
Those are two completely separate issues.
We… Just listen to me, please.
Just listen…
Alex, I’m sorry.
I’m not gonna fuck Chris over.
[Alex] Okay.
So you’re gonna fuck me over and hang me out to dry because all of a sudden you grew a fucking conscience?
Wait. You know I don’t need this place, right?
All right. Yes. It’s your world.
We’re so grateful to be in it.
You’ve made that very, very clear.
Okay, Alex.
What? It’s your thing.
It’s your very cool, macho, asshole thing.
It’s very original, by the way.
Tell me I’m gonna get the debate.
Tell me you’re actually gonna push for me and not let the commission turn me down to cover your ass.
That’s what I thought.
Bye, Alex.
[inhales deeply]
He’s not coming.
We’re screwed.
My God, that twofaced little shit.
Fuck it.
I’ll just do the talent segment myself.
Okay. But we have 300 reporters out there expecting something seismic.
We promised them a major surprise guest.
Well, what are we gonna do?
Unless you close Chris’s deal in two fucking seconds and we teleport her over here, I don’t know what to tell you.
I have an idea.
[Kara] So talk to us about leadership.
Obviously the women in the C-suite, a majority female board…
It’s unconventional.
[Stella] Well, actually, we are a coven of witches.
[Celine] Yes. We cast spells against the men who wrong us. Straight outta Salem.
[audience laughing]
No.
We knew we’d have a target on our backs.
So when we first got together, and we sat down, we asked ourselves the question, “What’s the future of event television?”
We wanted something…
[sighs] …undeniable.
So Olympics was always part of the plan?
Yeah, the Games bring people together more than anything else.
Even French people are excited.
And that’s not easy to pull off.
But seriously, Kara, it was important to land the premier global event for the premier global network.
So speaking of the Olympics, I know some folks expected to see Chris Hunter here today.
Anything you’d like to share?
[Stella] We love Chris, obviously.
She has the full support of the network.
She’s taking some time away, but we fully expect her to be back for the Games.
[Kara] So she’s not your big surprise guest we were promised?
No.
But I do have something for you, Kara.
Okay.
Something we’re featuring at the Olympics and with UBN moving forward.
[audience murmuring]
This is our live, fully interactive AI.
Yes. [chuckles]
[audience murmuring]
So, soon, every piece of UBN talent will have one.
Alex. Chris. Bro Hartman. [exhales deeply] They’ll deliver news and entertainment tailored to your individual taste, in your native language.
And you’ll be able to communicate with them from the comfort of your own home.
But for now, you’ll have to settle for me.
[audience laughs]
Hi, Stella.
Hi, Stella.
[audience member 1] Oh!
[Stella] So, what can you do for us?
I’ll do what I’ve been doing the past year. Lower operating costs, increase audience retention and engagement…
Ms. Levy?
[Alex] Yeah.
Three minutes.
Thank you.
Pick your favorite events, and I’ll queue them up for you in a daily digest. Tell me who you’re rooting for, and I’ll get you behind-the-scenes coverage.
Obviously my favorite athlete is Simone Biles.
How original. Who’s the AI here?
[audience laughs]
Okay, you’re going with basic bitch AI then.
Are you going to roll this out for Paris?
Or use it in the newsroom?
Well, why don’t we ask her?
What do you think, Stella?
How will you be useful in the newsroom?
I can fact check, I can research, I can write copy. Also, I know 100 different languages…
A question.
Actually, I’m asking the questions but if it’s a good one, go for it, dude.
Yeah. Go ahead.
No, no, no. No, no, no.
Is this a talent replacement tool or just a way to keep them in line?
I ask because I heard Chris Hunter is being denied contract parity with white anchors at UBN.
And that’s why she’s threatening to sit out the Olympics, and why she’s boycotted today’s event.
[audience murmuring]
Well… That’s… Actually…
[AI Stella] Chris is great. We love Chris. But we all know DEI is dead.
[audience member 2] Oh, my God.
Also, it doesn’t work. Maybe it never worked, and we were all just too afraid of the backlash to say it.
[audience murmuring, gasping] [scoffs] Fuck.
[Stella] It’s okay, this is just an hallucination.
Stella.
[stammers]
I need to clarify that, of course, diversity is important to us at UBN…
You mean we value diversity when we need the Black anchor to save the day after an Iranian athlete defects on your watch.
What defection? And does the IOC know?
Stella. Turn it off.
What… the fuck?
Then again, I’m racist and sexist. And I stepped over people who look like me to get to where I am. So what do I know?
Stella.
I’m racist and sexist.
Turn it off.
Am I a bad person? Can a bad person be in love?
Turn it off.
I look at Miles, and I can’t decide.
[audience clamoring]
[reporter] Are you talking about Celine’s husband?
[heartbeat thumping]
[“All Is Full of Love” playing]
♪ All is full of love ♪
♪ All is full of love
All is full of love ♪
♪ All is full of love ♪
[Celine] I’m fine. It’s fine.
Nope. She did it on her own.
Call an emergency board meeting.
Things are moving quickly.
We need to get ahead of this.
♪ All is full of love
All is full of love ♪
[gasps]
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
[pants]
♪ All is full of love ♪
♪ All is full of love ♪
[panting]
[sobbing]
Let’s go.
Let’s get on that plane.
Okay?
[staff chattering]
And in five, four, three…
Breaking news regarding our own network.
UBN CEO Stella Bak has resigned, effective immediately.
{\an8}In an email to staffers, she said, quote, {\an8}”I have cherished my five years at this company {\an8}and am proud of what we accomplished.
But given recent events, my continued presence will only be a distraction, and I feel it’s best to step aside.
I’m grateful to the thousands of dedicated employees at UBN “who made my time here so meaningful.”
Joining the company as Head of News in 2019, Bak quickly rose to the position of CEO in 2022.
[sighs]
[Alex] She made modernizing the newsroom a priority, investing heavily in new technology. However, her attempts to roll out that technology before the Paris Olympics…
[phone chimes]
…ultimately proved unsuccessful. Bak was the youngest female CEO of color in the history of the Fortune 500, successfully navigating the merger between UBA and NBN. A role model for so many, she was a pioneering figure and her legacy will be felt long after her departure. UBN will begin the search for a permanent replacement. In the interim, UBN board president, Celine Dumont, will take over as acting CEO.
[Stella] I felt it.
Walking out of that place forever. For the first time in so long, I felt free. Cory.
How you holding up?
That was quite the firework show.
And we all got burned.
Well, you wanted her out, so now she’s gone.
Strange, yes?
[grunts, sighs] To get what you want.
It never feels like you thought it would.
You knew the AI was gonna fail, didn’t you?
No. I had nothing to do with it.
Stella imploded all on her own.
Well, it’s always nice when you can get someone else to do your dirty work for you, right?
Like when you paid Fred Micklen to hire the Head of News to bury a story about a toxic chemical company.
My only question is why?
What do you want, Cory?
Where do you wanna be, the future or the past?
You can’t have it both ways.
I wanna talk to physical production about the movie, get it back up and running.
Good.
I can’t wait to see the first cut.
Sorry.
[speaking indistinctly]
Could you push the button?
Oh, yeah.
[elevator creaks]
[Celine] Make me a drink.
[sighs]
[Miles sighs]
I wish it wasn’t Stella, but I understand.
I know you think I don’t, but I do.
I felt it too.
Once.
Wanting something…
Wanting something else.
Something… easier.
When?
Before we got married.
There was another man.
A better match for me, but he didn’t have your vision… your force of will.
I love you.
[breathes shakily]
Even when it hurts me.
I can’t stop loving you.
[groans]
I accept the costs.
I accept my family’s judgements.
[exhales sharply]
I did it for you, and I’d do it again a thousand times.
[chuckles]
Now… [breathes shakily] …you have to choose like I did.
[“Moonlight Mile” playing]
[computer chimes]
There she is.
[softly] Okay.
Oh, my God.
[announcer speaking indistinctly]
[Stella] Mia, you’re stronger than I am. You were always stronger. You’ve seen the worst of this place, and you never lost sight of who you are. You never give up. And people listen to you. You’re a leader. So you have to keep fighting. Fighting for the things we wanted.
For the world we imagined. After I’m gone, there’s gonna be chaos. A power void. A chance to come back and move up. I hope you take it.
[announcer, on PA] Final boarding for Italia Air flight 518 to Naples. Please proceed to your gate immediately.
[phone buzzes]
[sobbing]
[announcer] This is the last and final boarding call for Italia Air flight 518 to Naples. Please proceed to the gate immediately.
[flight attendant]
Welcome aboard, Ms. Bak.
Buon viaggio.
[airport employees speaking indistinctly]
[announcer] Flight 470 to Mexico City…
[speaking indistinctly]
[flight taking off]
