37 MINUTES

Alternate Title: RESOLUTE

Written by
Tracy Coyle

ACT I

INT. OVAL OFFICE – DAY (ADMINISTRATION #1)

A muted crisis briefing. A television on mute shows headlines: IRAN EXPELS INSPECTORS.

PRESIDENT #1

We’ve got enough on our plate right now without adding to it.

Advisers exchange looks. No one contradicts him.

INT. PENTAGON – SENIOR OFFICER'S OFFICE – DAY

A SENIOR OFFICER (GENERAL OR ADMIRAL) reviews a draft operational plan with a SENIOR STAFFER. A codename is circled — Korean lore.

SENIOR OFFICER

It’s a clean plan. It’s also a plan we’ll never be allowed to run.

SENIOR STAFFER

The name’s wrong for the theater.

SENIOR OFFICER

Names travel. Intentions don’t.

INT. OVAL OFFICE – DAY (ADMINISTRATION #1)

PRESIDENT #1 with VICE PRESIDENT #1 and MILITARY ADVISERS. Iran on the screen.

PRESIDENT #1

We’ve at least got them talking. Let’s proceed with that before considering any military options.

MONTAGE – NEWS / TIME PASSING

Inspection disputes. Statements. Sanctions. Iran advances. The world keeps moving.

INT. PENTAGON – SENIOR OFFICER'S OFFICE – DAY (LATER)

Same SENIOR OFFICER. A different STAFFER. A new plan: NORTH KOREA. The codename this time is Iranian lore.

STAFFER #2

Iranian myth for a Korean missile program. That’s… new.

SENIOR OFFICER

We’re consistent if nothing else.

A small, tired laugh. It dies quickly.

INT. OVAL OFFICE – DAY (ADMINISTRATION #2)

A DIFFERENT PRESIDENT with the SAME MILITARY ADVISERS. Footage of a NORTH KOREAN TEST LAUNCH. It fails — but reaches farther.

PRESIDENT #2

We meet with China in two months. Let’s make sure to bring it up.

The advisers nod. The missiles keep coming.

MONTAGE – TIME PASSING / ESCALATION

More tests. More headlines. Enrichment. A world accustomed to warnings.

EXT. CAMPAIGN RALLY – DAY

A NOMINEE (the future PRESIDENT) speaks to a crowd.

NOMINEE

We’ve been dealing with these rogue nations forever with no real change. That has to change.

EXT. U.S. CAPITOL – DAY

INAUGURATION. The oath. Cameras. Applause. The transfer of authority is clean.

ACT I ENDS.

ACT II

INT. OVAL OFFICE – DAY

The new PRESIDENT meets MILITARY ADVISERS. Another North Korean launch. Longer range. Failure — but not reassuring.

MILITARY ADVISER

Their envelope expands even when they miss.

PRESIDENT

We need a better response than talking to China. Something more direct.

INT. OVAL OFFICE – NIGHT

PRESIDENT and VICE PRESIDENT alone. No staff. No cameras.

PRESIDENT

We need concrete plans.

VICE PRESIDENT

When do we move ahead?

PRESIDENT

Let’s see what they come up with.

MONTAGE – MIDDLE EAST / BACKGROUND HEAT

Carrier decks. Drone feeds. Proxy skirmishes. Briefings. Nothing decisive. Everything accumulating.

INT. INTELLIGENCE BRIEFING ROOM – DAY

A quiet brief. Analysts show converging signals: Iranian channels and North Korean logistics—an emerging pattern, not yet proof.

ANALYST

We can’t confirm cooperation. But we can’t deny it anymore.

PRESIDENT

Keep it tight. No leaks. No assumptions.

EXT. TEXAS SPACE FACILITY – DAY

A public-facing visit. Engineers. Families. A launch program with a Mars flyby profile. Hope without politics.

The PRESIDENT is there. In the wrong place for what comes next.

ACT II ENDS.

ACT III

EXT. TEXAS SPACE FACILITY – DAY

Launch control energy. Monitors. Applause. Then—an interruption. Confusion. A shock wave of silence.

The PRESIDENT watches the world change from the wrong room.

INT. AIR FORCE ONE – DAY

Fragmented reports. The VICE PRESIDENT beside him. They say little. Information arrives slower than it should.

The PRESIDENT closes his eyes once. Opens them. Nothing is different.

INT. WHITE HOUSE – WEST WING CORRIDOR – DAY

They move fast but not chaotically. A STAFF AIDE hands the PRESIDENT one sheet of paper as he walks.

He reads. Stops. Reads again. We do not see it.

INT. OVAL OFFICE – DAY

The VICE PRESIDENT follows him in, taking a precise position away from the Desk. She does not move.

The PRESIDENT looks at the Resolute Desk. Sits. Places the paper squarely in front of him.

A long beat.

PRESIDENT

No more.

Another beat.

PRESIDENT

I want the Ambassadors here.

SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

Execute stand up?

PRESIDENT turns to the Vice President

Now.

To the SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

Execute.

The VICE PRESIDENT nods once and leaves with the Secretary.

MONTAGE – DAYS PASSING

Staff coming and going. Secure lines. Files moved, logged, acted upon.

The PRESIDENT alone: head in hands, staring at the ceiling. Change of clothes. The desk lamp burning in the dark.

A REPORT appears on a secure screen—no dialogue, no narration. Only the weight of numbers.

The paper is gone, three replace it.

INT. OVAL OFFICE – NIGHT (BROADCAST SETUP)

[All furniture except the Resolute Desk has been removed. No paintings. No busts. No flags on display.

The CAMERA CREW, mostly military, sets quietly. A C-SPAN producer, WILLIAM PORTER, watches the monitor.]

VOICE (O.S.)

Are we ready?

STAFF (O.S.)

Yes, Mr. President. One minute.

[On the Desk: a phone. Three pieces of paper]

STAFF (O.S.)

Thirty seconds, sir.

STAFF (O.S.)

Ten seconds. Five, four—

INT. OVAL OFFICE – CONTINUOUS (LIVE)

PRESIDENT

When I last spoke to you three days ago, I said that when I knew more, I would tell you, the American people, everything I knew, as soon as I knew it. The investigations will continue for months, probably years, but we know more, and I am going to share it with you and then tell you what I am going to do about it.

[pressing a button on the phone]

Send in the Secretary.

[Secretary of Defense walks in and up to the Desk]

The President

Please report Mr. Secretary.

Secretary of Defense

Yes sir. Estimates of the crowd prior to launch were in the area of 25,000. We will never know for sure. There were just 87 survivors within 10 miles of the Launch Pad, all have since died.”

We still don’t have a full count, but right now, 37 thousand, four hundred and sixty-three are permanently blind, another 22 thousand are currently blind but may regain some or all of their sight.

We expect that the 14 thousand survivors from 10 to 15 miles from the Pad will mostly survive but the injuries are all very serious and the doctors are refusing to give us survival estimates. Anyone 20 miles or more away from the Launch Pad will probably survive and anyone 35 miles or more should be relatively safe.”

We are estimating the dead at 141,250. Seriously injured and not expected to survive at 17,475. Injured but expected to live at 81,900. That is just over 250,000 dead or seriously injured. In terms of property damage, the Cape is a total loss. All facilities not outright destroyed are unusable for tens or even hundreds of years. Interstate 95 and Florida Highway 1 are closed from Sebastian on the south to Oak Hill on the north. Highway 528 is closed east of State Road 520. Titusville, Cocoa and Melbourne are gone as are most of the communities in the closed zone. Department of Homeland Security and FEMA estimate the property loss will approach one trillion dollars, but that is just a guess at this point.

Sir that concludes the injury and damage assessment.

The President

Mr. Secretary, you have informed me of the tactical situation. Please report exactly what you have told me.

The Secretary

[Franklin swallowed hard]

Sir. [He paused and swallowed again]

Analysis of the debris has found two different materials. There may have been some attempt to mix materials in an attempt to hide the sources, but it is clear that the material had two separate and distinct origins. We have shared the data with three other nations and they confirm our analysis. The device was a small rocket similar to those used in the Middle East for short range targets, 30 to 45 miles. We believe it was launched from a tanker truck that had been fitted with a launch cradle and driven to a point on or near the Turtle Creek Golf Club south of Rockledge. Travel time was less than 60 seconds from launch to detonation, which occurred approximately 300 feet above and 1000 feet from the Launch Pad. The estimated yield was 37 kilotons.

PRESIDENT

The source of the material Mr. Secretary.

The Secretary of Defense

Iran and North Korea, sir.

PRESIDENT

That sounds convenient, Mr. Secretary.

The Secretary of Defense

Yes sir. However, the UN confirmed the signatures on the Iranian material and the North Korean material was a match for the Syrian material found by Israel in 07 and a ship detained two months ago coming out of North Korea.

PRESIDENT

And how did that material and the rocket get into the United States?

The Secretary of Defense

Bows head: We don’t know. Sir.

PRESIDENT

[stabbed the phone button hard enough to make the phone jump on the desk.]

Send them in.

[Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, Harold Holebrook, Michael Penn, National Security Advisor, William Prindle, Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Karen Demitrov, Director of FEMA enter. They stop in front of the Desk and face the President]

PRESIDENT

I have only one question for the CIA and the FBI, can you confirm the findings of the Defense Department?

CIA: Holebrook

Sir, the CIA can confirm the source materials. We are still trying to determine the method of getting the materials and equipment into the United States.

FBI: Prindle

Sir, we are working on locating the people and methods used to get the weapon into place.

PRESIDENT

That was not my question. Can you confirm the Department of Defenses’ findings?

FBI: Prindle

No sir. But we concur in their assessment.

PRESIDENT

Thank you. Please stand over there. Director Demitrov. Do you need anything you are not getting?

FEMA: Demitrov

No sir. We have eighty crews of 100 per shift, working twenty-four seven looking for survivors. Seventeen field hospitals are up and running and we have 41 morgues trying to establish identities. Hurricane season has been relatively quiet, and I have been told it will continue to be so for the next 10 days or so.

PRESIDENT

Good. Mr. Penn.

Penn

Sir.

PRESIDENT

Are they here?

Penn

Yes sir.

PRESIDENT

Bring them in.

Penn

[Penn turns, walks to the door, and opens it]

Bring them in.

[The VICE PRESIDENT leads a Marine in combat gear, followed by two men. Three more equally dressed Marines into the Office. The VICE PRESIDENT returns to her position]

PRESIDENT

The men that have been escorted in are Ambassador to the United Nations for North Korea, Kim Yung and the Ambassador to the United Nations for Iran, Alhemed Fara-Said.

[Yung is held by the arm and led to the front of the Desk]

Yung

I must pro…

PRESIDENT

SHUT UP! I don’t give a damn.

[He reaches down and picks up the first of the three pieces of paper]

This document voids your diplomatic credentials.

Yung

You can’t do…

PRESIDENT

SHUT UP! Marine, if he opens his mouth again, shoot him.

[The Ambassador from Iran stirs and is quickly ‘steadied’ by two of the Marines]

PRESIDENT

When you leave this room, you will be taken to a detention facility where you will be held indefinitely pending negotiations for your release. Step back.

[The Marine guided the man back into the middle of the detail. A nod from the President and the two Marines holding the Iranian moved him forward]

[The President lifted an eyebrow in question. The Iranian made no comment but continues to stare back]

Very well.

[Picking up the second piece of paper]

This document voids your diplomatic credentials and is an order for your arrest to stand charges in a military court. I have sufficient evidence to implicate you directly and I intend for everyone to see it.

[PRESIDENT turns to the camera]

Over the last two days, sufficient evidence has been presented to implicate the governments of Iran and North Korea, as well as several other organizations in a plan to detonate a nuclear device on American soil so as to cause significant damage and casualties. That information is being provided to the UN Security Council and our Allies right now.

Mr. Penn.

Penn

Sir.

PRESIDENT

Execute Scimitar.

Penn

Yes sir. If I may?

[Penn walks to the Desk and presses a button]

Execute scimitar on Presidential Orders.

Yung

No wait, you can’t…

[Iranian was looking at the North Korean with fear and, sympathy? He turned back to the President and saw the stare]

Fara-Said

NO.

PRESIDENT

Captain?

[Iranian is grabbed by both arms and stood against the wall. The Captains takes out his sidearm and placed the barrel on the Iranian’s forehead. The North Korean didn’t understand; he kept looking at the Iranian and back to the President]

Penn

Four minutes Mr. President.

PRESIDENT

Very good.

[PRESIDENT faces the camera]

We wait for four minutes before proceeding.

[A noise came from the back, and the strong smell of urine filled the room]

[He smiles]

Every action has a consequence Mr, Ambassador.

Minutes passed.

[The phone chimes once and the President nods. Penn picked up the phone and after 10 seconds put it back down without saying anything]

Penn

Thirty-three minutes sir.

PRESIDENT

Very good.

Execute Pesh-kabz.

[The Iranian’s eyes went wide and as his mouth formed the scream, the Marines’ gun discharged. Only the Marines and the President stayed standing. The camera jerked and everyone turned first to the Iranian who was slumping to the floor and then back to the President]

[The VICE PRESIDENT looks at the body. No smile. A single nod. She looks to the Desk]

VICE PRESIDENT

That brings it home.

PRESIDENT

Mr. Penn?

Penn

Yes, sir, sorry sir.

[Penn stands and reaches for the phone. Depressing the button he spoke]

Execute pesh-kabz, on Presidential orders.

It will take about three minutes sir.

[Less than a minute later, the phone chimes and Penn picks up the handset. A single nod and he returned the handset]

Scimitar one has detonated sir. Pesh-kabz has crossed the border.

PRESIDENT

[The President nodded and turned to the camera]

When I spoke to you two days ago, I promised swift retaliation against those responsible. A few minutes ago, 63 cruise missiles from ships in the Pacific were launched. Each missile carries two tactical nuclear warheads, and they are striking North Korean military targets all along the DMZ. Over the next 31 minutes, three cities in North Korea will also be attacked. Sunch’on, Kanggye and Namp.

[The North Korean’s eyes went wide, and he collapsed in a heap. The President stared at him for a few seconds then nodded to the Marines. They carefully lifted the unconscious man, and the VICE PRESIDENT led them out, leaving the body of the Iranian against the wall]

The towns I mentioned are locations for Presidential Palaces, but maybe the North Koreans didn’t think we knew about them. The North Koreans apparently believed that their ability to launch against the South Koreans would stay our hand indefinitely. That, or the prospect of war with China. Those threats are soon to be rendered, meaningless.

[Penn looked at his watch and nodded to the President]

At the same time, the Iranians have spent the last several years feeling threatened, and threatening. That ends tonight also. Seventeen American bombers are over Iran, I am sure, based on expected responses, that the Iranians have begun to lock down their nuclear facilities. We will see soon if they were very good or not. In any case, Tehran and Qom will shortly cease to exist.

The governments of Russia and China have been politely warned to stand down from any response. If all goes as planned, this will be over in 37 minutes, or about 28 minutes from now. After which all of our forces will stand down and withdraw.

Over the next several days, reports will come in concerning the damage and death tolls from my orders. They will be at least a magnitude greater than we have suffered. Many innocent civilians will die, are dying. I do not ask for forgiveness nor offer an apology. For too many years we have tried to be polite neighbors to countries that consider that politeness a weakness. The attack of June 22^nd will not go unanswered, nor un-avenged. We lost thousands of people, but I can’t help but think of those 8 astronauts on that Launch Pad and what they represented to the world. They were the target. The hope they represented was the target.

[Door opens and the VICE PRESIDENT returns with the Marines who pick up the body, the Captain escorts them to the door and closes it, remaining in the room]

PRESIDENT

Madam Vice President?

VICE PRESIDENT

Sir, the Russians and Chinese have agreed and the Chief Justice is ready.

[The phone chimes and with a look, Penn picks up the handset. He nodded several times]

Penn

Keep us informed

Sir. The Norks…sorry, the North Koreans got off two missiles but both failed to detonate on impact. The South Korean military is dealing with them. All other scimitar operations are proceeding as expected. The Iranians got off three missiles, we intercepted one, the Israelis’ got the other two. All three were destroyed without detonations. Pesh-kabz one, three, four and five have already completed, two and…

[The phone chimed and Penn picked it up immediately and then realizing what he had done, looked at the President]

Ok.

[Penn hangs up the phone]

Two, six, seven and eight have all executed as planned.

PRESIDENT

My first responsibility is to the protection of the people of the United States. We failed…I failed and we have suffered for it. I take responsibility because I was one of those that thought we were stronger for working with all countries, the good and the bad, the friends and those that we wanted as friends.

[He turns to the Vice President and nods. She turned, and nodded to the Marine Captain who opened the door and admitted the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. They both approached the desk. The President reached down and picked up the third piece of paper.]

Chief Justice Roberts, this is my resignation.

He handed the page to the Justice who read the short paragraphs. He turned to the Vice President.

Chief Justice

Madam Vice President, do you concur with the President?

VICE PRESIDENT

I do not. I think we need him now more than ever. But I understand why and I accept that.

Chief Justice

Very well

[The President came out from behind the desk and headed for the door. The Captain turned and opened the door preceding the President through but just as he got to the door, his sidearm was pulled from the holster from behind, he turned quickly but the President had planned this and practiced it for hours, the gun went off with the Captain’s hand still reaching. The President fell backwards and the gun fell from his hands]

The room was silent. No one moved. The Captain finally bend down over the President and knew before trying that it was useless, the pool of blood forming behind the President’s head was enormous. But he checked and found no pulse.

Thirty-seven minutes after the camera went on, it went dark.

INT. ROOSEVELT ROOM – DAY (MONTHS LATER)

The VICE PRESIDENT is now PRESIDENT. She meets an AMBASSADOR outside the Oval Office.

AMBASSADOR

Will you ever use the Oval Office?

PRESIDENT

No.

It’s occupied.

INT. OVAL OFFICE – FINAL IMAGE

Empty. The Resolute Desk untouched. Waiting.