SeanPaulMurphyVille: Script Completed: FINAL TABLE

Monday, February 20, 2023

Script Completed: FINAL TABLE

I am pleased to announce that I recently completed a new spec script with my wife Deborah.

Deb and I long desired to collaborate on a script together. Years ago, we decided to write a script about a shared passion: Poker. We were members of a (free) poker league called World Tavern Poker. In those games, we honed our knowledge of the game and noted the behavior of fellow players. With all of the research, writing the script was a snap. It was a typical two week writing job. We wrote the first act in a week five years ago, and recently wrote the rest of the script in about a week. So it only took about two weeks, over the course of five years.

Here's the logline:

Nine strangers awaken to find themselves at the Final Table of a deadly Texas Hold 'Em tournament presided over by a wry but mysterious dealer. They don't know where they are or how they got there, but they know losing means death.

This is a very contained horror mystery with a limited cast. Ninety-percent of the action takes place at the poker table. We only leave the table for a couple of brief flashbacks. This is a script written to sell. It was actually requested by a few producers within days after its completion.

Here's the synopsis:

Nine strangers awaken to find themselves at the final table of a deadly Texas Hold 'Em poker tournament presided over by a wry but mysterious dealer.

None of the participants know where they are or how they got there. Their memories are vague at best. Initially, they only remember basic information about themselves like their names, where they lived and their occupations. However, as the game continues, they all become haunted by visions seemingly of their own deaths.

Our hero is Gary Pentz, a Chicago police detective. As he plays, he realizes that he was a corrupt cop. He comes to believe he was killed by a drug dealer who refused to pay him protection money. He suspects that everyone at the table is dead, and he struggles to understand the meaning of the game.

Gary's chief ally is Brittany Brindle. She's a housewife with visions of bleeding out as she crawls across a floor. She seems out of place with the rough crowd at the table. Gary tries to protect her, but she proves wilier than he can imagine.

Ryan DiNunzio, funny but ruthless, feels most comfortable at the table. A professional poker player, Ryan leaves the metaphysics to the others. He knows losing means death so he intends to win at any cost.

The players wrestle with the dynamics of the situation while trying to beat the others. Are they dead? Are they simply A-I simulations? Or are they entertaining rich decadents watching remotely? And what will the winner receive, aside from a stack of chips?

The clock is running and the blinds are rising. Will anyone survive long enough to get the answers?

This is a tight horror film. I really hope it will get made. I've seen my name on the big screen a few times. Now it's Deborah's turn!

Deborah wins another tournament

You can read the script on InkTip.

Here are some of my other scripts currently available on Inktip:

You can read a number of my scripts on Coverfly.

My novel Chapel Street is now available! You can buy the Kindle and paperback at Amazon and the Nook, paperback and hardcover at Barnes & Noble. Chapel Street is the tale of a young man battling a demonic entity that has driven members of his family to suicide for generations. It was inspired by an actual haunting.

Learn more about the book, click Here.

Listen to me read some chapters here:

Chapel Street - Prologue - My Mother

Chapel Street - Chapter 1 - RestingPlace.com

Chapel Street - Chapter 2 - Elisabetta

Chapel Street - Chapter 3 - The Upload

Chapel Street - Chapter 4 - The Kobayashi Maru

Read about the true haunting that inspired the novel here: