#script drafts

Early screenplay draft of the 2003 film.

Although this blog is primarily dedicated to the Disney version of Captain Hook, I came across this early draft script from Spielberg’s 1991 film Hook and thought it worth sharing for anyone who might be interested. It takes itself more seriously than the final film did and the differences between this draft and the final film are interesting to note. Hook is definitely darker and in some ways more closely resembles Isaacs’ version of the character in the 2003 film. Here is where you can find Part One and Part Two.

Anybody still wishing to audition can submit readings of lines from the script. As for everyone who already has a part, start recording your lines as soon as is convenient for you. I'm going to start the storyboards tonight. 

------------- INT. PRESS ROOM - DAY CJ stands in front of a crowd of KOREAN REPORTERS AND CAMERA PEOPLE. She is talkong with a KOREAN PRESS SECRETARY, while her deputy, LISA and a TRANSLATOR stand by.  CJ And then our PResident will direct your President to sit at the chair on his right. Our President's right-- The TRANSLATOR translates. CJ This is one of the two yellow chairs by the fireplace. Not the sofa-- TOBY comes up. His face looks a little flushed. His speach is a little more rapid and abrupt than usual.  TOBY  CJ, you got a minute? CJ Not now Toby. I'm learning the Korean word for 'sofa'.  TOBY What's that? CJ Toby, in about two minutes I've gotta massive reporter pool coming in and out of the Oval Office. I've got two heads of state I need to brief-- TOBY My dinner date cancelled on me.  CJ Wait. Who was-- TOBY You want to be my date? CJ Wait, hold on, there's so much to absorb here. TOBY I'll give you a minute to think about it. (beat, looking around) This is the photo op with the Korean President? CJ Yes, but-- TOBY I should have guessed, right? Telll them we're not taking any questions about long range missiles in the north. CJ We're not? But-- TOBY Because answering questions makes an issue out of it-- and we don't want to make it an issue until China, Japan, and both Koreas agree that it should be an issue. So, what's your answer? CJ About missile testing? TOBY No, about tonight. CJ Right. Fine. First of all-- The TRANSLATOR starts to translate. CJ Wait, no-- he doesn't need to hear this. What's Korean for 'off the record'? (pulling TOBY aside) Come here. She pushes him into-- INT. BACK OFFICE - CONTINUOUS CJ (shutting the door) First of all-- you know I'm already going tonight. TOBY Yes, by yourself. I just thought we might go together, accompany each other through the receiving line-- that sort of thing. That's all I meant.  CJ Second of all-- TOBY I wasn't speaking of it as a date, per se. CJ Second of all, what's your date doing cancelling on you? TOBY I guess she found something better to do. CJ That a state dinner at the White House? TOBY Something came up. Look, forget it. It was just and idea. We should both get back to work-- CJ Who is this person Toby? TOBY You've got your Korean press pool. I've got a meeting with the Attorney General.  CJ Why have you never introduced us? Why haven't you even told us who she is? TOBY I don't want to talk about it right now.  (beat) Talking about it would make it an issue. CJ Okay. Toby, are you okay? You look flushed. There's this flu running around… TOBY I had a glass of wine at lunch CJ Oh. TOBY (imitating her) Oh. CJ No need to get snippy, it's just I've never seen you-- TOBY Excuse me. I have to go.  He opens the door abruptly and goes. ----------------------------- INT> WEST WING/OUTSIDE CJ'S OFFICE - NIGHT A VIDEO MONITOR: CJ is framed close up. CJ It's my third, but I'm enough of a Cinderella to feel a thrill when I get invited-- (listening to an off-screen question) This? This is a Donna Karan. Yes, I tend to favor American designers.  PULL BACK to reveal CJ doing a little twirl in the door of her office. She's doing an on-camera interview for TWO KOREAN REPORTERS. The rest of the office is quiet: quitting time.  TOBY watches from his desk. He's dressed crisply and formally, and listens on his cellphone to the sound of an answering machine BEEP. TOBY Hi, it's me. The guy who looks like your ex-husband's lawyer. (beat) Maybe you're screening, maybe you're not. I tried reaching you at work. They said you left early. If you want to talk… I don't know if you want to talk. (beat) I'd understand if you didn't. He lowers the phone. He looks up to see CJ approaching-- in a party mood.  CJ You look swell.  TOBY Thanks. CJ I love your collar with those little wing-tip things.  TOBY Yeah. CJ Toby? TOBY Hmm? CJ That's your cue. To return the compliment.  TOBY Oh. Yes. You look swell too.  CJ Don't I though. I tend to favor American designers, you know. Which is a hoot considering that I own a total of about two nice dresses.  TOBY Yeah.  Beat. CJ looks at him critically.  CJ Are you okay? TOBY Sure. Why do you-- CJ Because if I didn't know better-- Toby have you been drinking? TOBY I don't drink CJ, you know that. I drink more than a beer and I go all red in the face.  CJ You're looking pretty rosy there, chum.  TOBY Seriously. It makes me feel bad before I feel good.  CJ Right, and how do you feel now? Beat.  CJ Toby? TOBY Hmm? CJ Who is Ms. C. H. Bowerman? TOBY Clare. Clare Bowerman.  (beat) Of course, you're the Press Secretary-- CJ I know everything, it's true. I also know how to read a guest list. You weren't planning on hiding her all night, were you? TOBY No. No, in fact I was-- I was very proud I was getting her to appear with me in public like this for the first time. My own personal diplomatic triumph.  (beat) Clare's a medical transcriptionist, late thirties, red hair. Red-ish.  CJ Uh huh.  TOBY With a song, Cory, three years old.  CJ I see, Toby. Did she--? TOBY I try and go for a run every night, when I get home, did you know that? CJ I didn't.  TOBY Well I do. And one night, last April, I was going for a run-- and I passed a playground with a swing set. It was after dark but there was a woman there, smoking a cigarette and watching her son swing on the swing-set. By the light of a street light. Clare works an evening shift and sometimes Cory makes himself stay up late so he can have his playtime with his mom He trails off. Then glances at his watch.  TOBY And that's all you need to know.  CJ Hey.  TOBY No further questions, CJ. I'm calling a lid. Lights out-- and we have to be in the East Room in approximately five minutes.  CJ stands up. TOBY takes a few steps and then turns back.  TOBY Race you.  Before CJ can fully register her surprise, TOBY has started sprinting on ahead. ------------------------- Missing scenes which I will not type up because otherwise I'll be here all night: CJ spills stuff on her dress and is not amused.  And this next scene has no Toby in it but is priceless nonetheless/ ------------------------- INT. WEST WING OFFICES - NIGHT It's silent. In the darkened outer offices, CJ is trying to make coffee in one of the machines. She's about to insert a basket full of coffee grounds when-- JOSH (O.S.) Hey CJ Oh! Startled, she spills the basket. JOSH jumps in to help.  JOSH Sorry, I didn't mean-- CJ (bending down) It's okay, Josh, I-- JOSH (noticing) My gosh, what happened to your dress? CJ It's a combination of miso dipping sauce and club soda. Only now there's a smattering of coffee grounds. Oh… crap.  She looks around for a towel.  JOSH I'm sorry.  CJ It's okay. It's okay.  They both begin wiping up the mess.  JOSH What happened anyway? I looked up from my table and saw the entire Senior Staff gone. For a second I thought they'd found missiles in Cuba again.  CJ Toby got plastered.  JOSH That's it? CJ That's not enough? Stop laughing, it's not funny.  JOSH Toby? They great stone face? How did I miss this?  CJ Well come along to his office, the show's not over yet. Also Sam is in with Leo discussing something, I'm about to find out what. What am I missing for dinner? JOSH Well.. I'm at a table that features two Supreme Court Justices, Carol Channing, and the President and Founder of the American Tae Kwon Doe Association, Mister Haeng Ung Lee.  CJ Really? What do they find to talk about? JOSH Absolutely nothing.  CJ Well, then it's a gala evening for everyone. Now if you'll excuse me-- She gets up and starts to make her way down the hall.  --------------------------- INT. TOBY'S OFFICE - NIGHT TOBY is still stretched out on the couch. he stirs at the sound of CJ entering, carrying a paper plate with a slice of pizza.  CJ Hey, I brought you a slice of pizza. (putting it down) Why's it so cold in here? TOBY Leo opened a window. CJ Ah. You want it closed?  TOBY No, I preffer to shiver here in the dark. (beat) It's a fitting conclusion to one of the worst evenings of my life. CJ Why Toby, what a nice thing to say to a person. On our first date too. TOBY We were on a date? CJ Isn't that what you said this was? TOBY I... I don't remember. CJ That's okay. You must have been delirious from that flu. TOBY The flu. Yes.  (beat) You know-- its Leo's theory that I'm not drunk. Not completely. He says I've been faking. CJ Interesting TOBY He has another theory-- that I was behaving this way because Clare broke up with me.  CJ Is it true? TOBY No. I'm the one who broke it off. I today, in fact, just this morning before lunch.  CJ What did you say to her? TOBY We were talking about the dinner tonight and what she's wear and the people she'd meet. And it came over me-- all of a sudden. I told her this could never work. She had a son-- he didn't need another man who'd just disapear on him... CJ Toby, I'm sorry. TOBY What I didn't tell her is that I've been looking around and I can't see anyone making a go of this. Leo and Jenny split. Josh and Mandy. Sam-- CJ Oh my God.  TOBY Sam who dumped his fiance and now can only find happiness with someone-- Well, with a pro.  CJ And then there's me of course. TOBY I wasn't thinking about you. CJ You weren't? Great. Toby, again I gotta say-- you sure know how to make a gal feel special. TOBY looks at here TOBY Why didn't we ever get together? CJ Oh God, here it comes. TOBY What? CJ If you are doing a drunk act, please don't take it all the way to its bitter conclusion.  TOBY I'm not-- CJ Don't really say things you're going to regret. TOBY I'm perfectly aware of what I'm saying-- CJ Here's the thing. We already have a relationship. An all-consuming twenty-four-hour one, linked by pagers, linked by speed dial. What does it lack? TOBY Well-- CJ And the few hours we have alone at night we need sleep. So. TOBY So, yes... sleep. CJ I mean if you want, we could pretend we've already been through something and cpme out happily on the other side. We're oly flames. That's good. Old friends, warm, but cordial. I was goign to say like Josh and Mandy, but-- (beat) Toby? She looks over at him. He's breathing evenly, his eyes are closed. He's asleep. CJ leans back in her chair, wearily.  ---------------------------- INT. TOBY'S OFFICE - DAWN CJ puts down the phone. She;s changed into gym clothes. She turns to see the sunlight through the open window. TOBY stirs.  TOBY CJ? CJ You missed the excitement.  TOBY What excitement? CJ There was an incident at the siege out in Idaho. And FBI negotiator was captured but he was able to talk to some of the more rational ones, made them let him go. I guess the fight has gone out of them.  TOBY These are-- CJ The crazy sheep farmers, yes. Most of them have given themselves up. There's still a few hold outs.  TOBY Well-- What do you know.  CJ You have no idea what I'm talking about.  TOBY None. What happened last night anyway? CJ You don't remember? TOBY No. Except I may have actually said the word 'mai-tai' to a man in gold braid in the East Room of the White House. CJ You really don't remember, or you're just faking? TOBY Why would I be faking? CJ Never mind. Here. Have some ibuprofen,  She throws him a plastic bottle. The she pulls a pair of headphones over her ears.  TOBY Where are you going? CJ I had some gym clothes in my office. It's a new day. I thought I might go for a run.  She turns and leaves the office. --------------------------------- that's it.