I am Legend

anyway, right? Most people are bores,

or assholes, or creeps, or... People betray you,

people criticize you, people steal from you.

Who needs people? (laughs hard) People who

need people are the stupidest people in the world.

In the background, we hear VOICES bellowing, "Neville..."

NEVILLE (ON TAPE)

SHUT UP! SONSOFBITCHES!

He FIRES madly at the walls. HURLS the bottle, shatters it.

NEVILLE (ON TAPE)

Fuck. What'dja do that for, Bobby? That

was the last of the scotch. Stupid.

He points the gun at his own temple. Pulls the trigger. CLICK. Empty chamber. Neville breaks up with LAUGHTER. The tape is shut OFF. Neville stares at the blank screen.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - KITCHEN - NIGHT

Neville empties the bottles of liquor into the sink.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - BEDROOM - NIGHT

Neville lies in bed. Wide awake.

DISSOLVE TO:

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - GREENHOUSE - DAY

Many of the fruits and vegetables are rotting.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - KITCHEN DAY

Dirty dishes piled in the sink.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - BASEMENT DAY

The shooting range is empty. Exercise equipment unused.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - MEDIA CENTER - DAY

No wall of sound. No "normalcy."

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - BEDROOM - DAY

Neville still in bed. Empty food wrappers and water bottles litter the floor. He stares at the PHOTO of his wife and daughter. He's been staring at it for days. Finally, before he--and we--can take it no longer, he sits up...

NEVILLE

Get up, Bob. Just get up.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - KITCHEN - DAY

The VIDEO CAMERA sits before him, recording. Neville stares at the lens, words failing to come to his mouth. And then...

NEVILLE

My name is Robert Neville. I was born

in Des Moines, Iowa. I had a wife Ellen

and a daughter Grace. Since this all

happened, I've had many dogs. They're

good scouts, good sentries. They were

necessary. And disposable. But this last one,

he... He was a good dog. He seemed to...

Gracie would've liked him. It was my fault.

My own stupid fault.

EXT. GOLDEN GATE PARK - DAY

Dishevelled and depressed, Neville wanders around the park and finds himself at Portals of the Past. Somewhat dazed, he sits on his usual bench. One of his old LEAFLETS at his feet. He

smirks at his desperate plea for contact then realizes something is written on the other side...

WHERE ARE YOU ROBERT???

For a moment, he thinks he's going crazy. But no, it's there, right in front of him. And then he notices the entire bench is covered with leaflets. Crudely, quickly taped down. All bear variations of the same message...

WHERE ARE YOU?

He stands. Disbelieving. Exhilarated. Terrified. Suspicious. He rips the flyers from the bench, frantically gathering them. One which conveys a more detailed message...

I HAVE TRIED FOR DAYS TO MEET YOU. WHERE ARE YOU,

ROBERT? I AM ALONE AND NEED HELP. ARE YOU FOR REAL?

Neville feels a shiver run through his body. He searches his

pockets for something to write with and scrawls a reply...

I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I should have been here every day. I will be

here tomorrow, I will. 12 noon. When the sun is highest in the sky. I am real.

I will help. I am here.

He signs his name and tapes it to the bench.

NEVILLE

I'm here, (shouts) I'M HERE. (at the

top of his lungs) I AM HERE.

His VOICE ECHOES throughout the city.

EXT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - NIGHT

Again, the area is devoid of Hemocyte activity.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - VARIOUS - NIGHT

Like a housewife preparing for company, Neville cleans the house from top to bottom. Changes bedding, washes clothes, tends to the garden. There's a manic energy to his activity. He's not entirely "all there."

And then, when everything is clean, when the house sparkles, he turns to himself. He showers, shaves, clips his nails, washes his hair. Stares at himself in the mirror, smiling.

And the smile fades as a moment of clarity prevails.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - BASEMENT - NIGHT

Near the firing range, Neville dismantles a thick wire door used for storage. He gathers some lumber, some metal plating, and his tools.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - MEDICAL CENTER - NIGHT

Neville dumps everything from the basement into the room. Clears out a corner and gets to work.

EXT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - DAY

Wearing a fresh outfit, bulletproof padding, and heavily armed, Neville climbs into the Land Rover.

EXT. GOLDEN GATE PARK - DAY

Neville stakes out the surrounding area. Checks any place where someone might hide. Places MOTION DETECTORS in a circle about two hundred feet surrounding the bench. Doublechecks his weapons. Looks at his watch.

11:45. He waits. Not sure what to expect. He rests an ELECTRONIC DEVICE next to himself on the bench. It will alert him to anything that moves past the sensors.

11:55. The area surrounding the bench is relatively free of clutter. A waste basket, rotting garbage, newspapers, etc.

12:01. Neville looks around. Already anxious. Clutches his machine gun. He does not hear or see the pile of ROTTING GARBAGE move. He does not see a HAND. He does not see a HUMAN FIGURE emerge from a HOLE, dug into the ground behind the bench, a GUN in its hand...

However, Neville does feel the barrel press into his neck.

WOMAN'S VOICE

Don't move.

Neville does not panic. Simply does as he is told.

WOMAN'S VOICE

Now. Real slow. Put the gun down.

Neville follows orders. The gun barrel fits snugly into the base of his skull.

WOMAN'S VOICE

Well, well, well. I was beginning to think

you were a fairy tale.

She starts to move around him. The gun moves with her.

NEVILLE

Oh no. I'm real.

And with the quickness of a cat, Neville ducks and BACKHANDS her hard. She FIRES a wild shot. Neville PUNCHES. SQUEEZES her wrist until she releases her gun. Neville grabs it and PISTOL BUTTS her in the forehead, knocking her out.

He stands. Finally able to look at his attacker. She's covered in filthy rags from head to toe. Neville pulls back the cloth covering her face... Although sheathed in dirt and grime, she is beautiful. Her flesh doesn't boil and blister in the sunlight. He brushes away her long dark hair. She can't be over twenty. She's still a kid.

Neville checks the area, the sensors. No, she's alone all right. He checks the hole and finds a full BACKPACK. Grabs it, tosses it over his shoulder, lifts her in his arms, and carries her to the Land Rover.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - MEDICAL CENTER - DAY

The GIRL lies on an exam table, unconscious. Neville removes the filthy clothing, stripping her down to t-shirt and leggings. Can't let his eyes dwell on her breasts, her...

He washes her face and tends to her forehead. He prepares a syringe and when he looks for a vein, he sees TRACK MARKS running up and down each arm. He moves to her BACKPACK and dumps its contents. A few cans of food, rounds of ammunition, a flashlight, batteries, syringes and ampules of Red Cross MORPHINE. Neville shakes his head.

He takes the syringe and carefully withdraws a BLOOD SAMPLE from a vein in her hand. Despite the long, dirt-encrusted fingernails, they are beautiful hands. Exquisite. He looks away. Takes the blood sample, injects it into a test tube, and places it in the centrifuge.

EXT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - NIGHT

All is quiet. Again, the Hemocytes fail to appear.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - MEDICAL CENTER - NIGHT

Neville sits at the table, eating dinner and looking at bloodwork through a portable microscope. From the Medical Center, we hear a RATTLING. Then a TERRIBLE SCREAM. Neville expected this. He takes a plate of food from the stove.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - MEDICAL CENTER - NIGHT

Neville opens the door and we SEE the Girl is trapped inside a CAGE. Constructed last night by Neville specifically for this purpose. She is not happy. Like a rabid, feral animal, she rattles her cage and SCREAMS. He sets the plate of food on the counter and sits in a chair a few feet away from her. Calm. Cool. Waits for her to blow off steam.

NEVILLE

You hungry?

THE GIRL

LET ME OUT!!!

NEVILLE

What's your name?

THE GIRL

GO TO HELL! That's my name!

Go To Hell.

He opens his hand revealing a vial of MORPHINE- She stops.

NEVILLE

You're addicted?

THE GIRL

That's mine.

NEVILLE

Your blood's full of this shit.

THE GIRL

Give it to me.

NEVILLE

But you're not infected. AB Negative.

You're immune. Like me.

THE GIRL

I said that's mine. You have no right.

NEVILLE

That was pretty good. Your little stunt

in the park. Got the drop on me.

THE GIRL

I...

NEVILLE

Yeah?

THE GIRL

I wasn't sure. It coulda been a trick.

You coulda been one of them. When

they first get it, they can still take the sun.

That's why I'm in here, right? You weren't

sure about me, either.

NEVILLE

That's right.

THE GIRL

But... You seen my blood. You know I'm

okay, so let me out.

He grabs a sponge, soap, and a bowl of water. Places them-and the food--on the floor just outside the cage.

NEVILLE

You should eat. And wash up.

You smell pretty bad.

THE GIRL

Fuck you.

NEVILLE

(re the morphine)

Do it and you get some of this.

THE GIRL

Give it to me NOW.

NEVILLE

This isn't a negotiation.

She lifts the bowl, soap, sponge and HURLS it at Neville. He sidesteps as it shatters on the wall. She lifts the food and THROWS, SPLATTERING his shirt.

THE GIRL

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!

NEVILLE

Fine. We'll try this again a little

later when you're feeling more... civil.

THE GIRL

GOD DAMN YOU TO HELL!

OUTSIDE THE ROOM, Neville shuts the door, leans against it. Closes his eyes and covers his ears, trying not to be affected by her cries. He cannot let her see him like this. He cannot be weak. He must be in control.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - BEDROOM - NIGHT

Neville changes his shirt. For a brief moment, he's drawn to the photo of his wife. The Girl's screams have become pathetic whimpers. She's crying. In desperate need of a fix. Neville sits on the edge of his bed. Composes himself.

INT. NEVILLE'S HOUSE - MEDICAL CENTER - NIGHT

Neville steps inside. The Girl lies on the floor of the cage, sweating, shivering. Between sobs, she pleads...

THE GIRL

Please, mister. I'm sorry.

Neville prepares a morphine vial and syringe.

NEVILLE

You have to cooperate. I'll cooperate, too.

You talk to me, tell me a few things,

and I give you this.

THE GIRL

Fucking blackmail.

NEVILLE

What's your name?

No response. Just eyes on the morphine.

NEVILLE

Come on.

THE GIRL

Anna.

NEVILLE

Anna. Anna what?

ANNA

Please...

NEVILLE

Anna what?

ANNA

Anna McCauley.

NEVILLE