THE AGE OF DISCOVERY

Screenplay by
Ryan Wise

Based on real people and their real journeys

A Hansen Productions film.

INT. DARK ROOM - DAY

Were in a DARK ROOM. Everything is QUIET. We stay here,
still, for a while.
After a couple seconds the lights FLASH on.
In the center of the room is a MAN tied to a chair. Rope
surrounds his torso, arms, and legs, making it impossible
for him to move. The Man is tall, appears to be strong, has
long white hair (not fitting of how old he appears to be),
and has a beard to match. He SQUINTS at the light and looks
up to see two LARGE MEN walking in the door way. They LIFT
up his chair as he STRUGGLES in his seat.
MAN
(confused, angry)
Hey! Hey! Let me out of these
restraints! Where are you taking
me?!?! Put me down!!!
The two Large Men look at each other, smile DEVIOUSLY, and
set the Man down. The Man is SURPRISED.
MAN
Well, uh...I didnt expect
that...Thank y-OOH!!!
His words are INTERRUPTED by one of the Large Mens fist
COLLIDING with the Mans stomach. The Man bends over in
pain. The other Large Man GRABS the Man by the neck and sits
him up straight in his chair. He pulls back his FIST and
RAPIDLY moves it towards the Mans face. Right before the
Large Mans fist CONNECTS with the Mans jaw we, SLAM to
Black.
FADE TO:
EXT. SHIP DECK - DAY
The man wakes up. He lies face down on the deck of a ship.
His eyes open and he jumps up to his feet swiftly. He looks
around. The two Large Men are gone, but there are still
people around him. Many people around him actually. All of
them lying on the ground in the same way he was a couple
seconds earlier. He counts eleven men. The man begins to
pace back and forth.
MAN
Okay okay. Settle down Christopher,
settle down. It is alright, y-you
will be fine just, breath.
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

2.

MAN (contd)
Inhale...exhale...inhale...exhale...Alright!
Better. Now who are these men. Why
are they all asleep and Im the
only one whos awake? I know I am
special, but not in that way. Oh
dear!!! Pull it TOGETHER
Christopher!!! No I cant ! I can;t
take it!!! YES YOU CAN!!!
No-no-no-no-no!! You can dMALE VOICE (O.S)
May I ask what you are doing?
Christopher stops pacing and turns around to see a man
standing right there. The man is at least six feet tall, has
dark brown hair, rolled back and tied. His countenance was
of decisive and imposing, yet still seemed like a nice
gentlemen. If there were ladies on the boat theyd all be on
his sides at the moment.
CHRISTOPHER
Ummm, haha, yes uh...Ciao...My name
is Christopher Columbus.
MAN (MALE VOICE)
Italian I see. Pleasure to meet you
signor Columbus. My name is James
Cook.
The two shake hands. Columbus does so awkwardly, as if he
doesnt want to touch Cooks hand.
COOK
So clearly this isnt your vessel
is it?
COLUMBUS
Oh no! Most definitely not. I have
no idea where I am.
MALE VOICE 2 (O.S.)
Moi aussi.
Cook and Columbus turn to see some of the men on the deck
beginning to rise up. Only one is fully up, and that is the
one who just spoke.
COLUMBUS
And your name is?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

3.
CARTIER (MALE VOICE 2)
Bonjour. My name is Jacques
Cartier. I am an explorer from
Brittany, but hired by France, to
find a Western passage to Asia.
COLUMBUS
(to himself)
A fellow explorer huh?
(out loud)
So why the life story?
CARTIER
Well I was hoping that you could
redirect me to where my crew
resides, or at least point me West.
COOK
Im afraid were all just as
confused as you Monsieur Cartier.
CARTIER
Zut alors!

Cartier walks away. By this time all of the men are awake.
Theyre obviously confused. Some going crazy, some have an
extremely puzzled look on their face, others are asking
everybody they see where they are. All except for one man.
He sits calmly on a crate with his feet laying on a barrel
in front of him. As a man sporting a swanky goatee runs up
to Columbus, with a teenager by his side, Cook goes over to
the man on the crate.
COOK
Excuse me.
The Man On The Crates looks up at Cook. He then looks back
down.
MAN ON THE CRATES
(dry, sarcastic)
How could I be of service?
COOK
Do you mind telling me your name?
MAN ON THE CRATES
...I dont know...maybe
COOK
Well maybe Ill ask you anyway.
The Man On The Crates smiles, slightly.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

4.
DA GAMA (MAN ON THE CRATES)
My name is Vasco Da Gama. Bom dia.
COOK
Sorry to intrude on your...whatever
youre choosing to spend your time
doing...but you stuck out in the
crowd.
DA GAMA
I apologize for not going
completely demente.
COOK
No, no please. No apology needed. I
admired it.

Da Gama looks at Cook weirdly. As if Cook was trying to come

on to him.
COOK (CONTD)
I did not intend for you to take
what you took out of it.
DA GAMA
Well I did, and it will be hard to
convince me you didnt. On a boat
with nothing but men for so long, a
Captain can forget the beauty of a
woman.
Cook shakes his head and walks away, when he stops. He looks
curious and turns around. He walks back over to Da Gama.
COOK
How did you know I was a Captain?
DA GAMA
Everyone on here is some type of
sailor. Most claim to run their
vessels. The others havent said if
they do or dont.
COOK
So youve been listening.
DA GAMA
Precisely.
COOK
Is that your strategy?
Da Gama gives him the same look as before.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

5.

COOK (CONTD)
Trying to figure out everybody by
observing from a far?
DA GAMA
Do you have a concern with my
methods?
COOK
Not at all. I almost began to do it
myself, but I decided to try a
different approach.
DA GAMA
By talking to each one
specifically. Figuring out who they
are face to face.
COOK
It gains trust, versus being the
suspicious man in the corner.
DA GAMA
I feel like my methods are more
effective.
COOK
How so? Youre the mysterious man
away from everyone else. You appear
to be up to something thats not
too good.
DA GAMA
They dont know me. They dont know
how I act, who I am, what I do, or
how I do it.
COOK
Correct.
DA GAMA
That means they dont understand.
Man is most afraid of what it
doesnt understand.
COOK
You want the to fear you?
DA GAMA
Yes. Itll be easier to take
control. Not get mutinied.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

6.

COOK
I beg to differ.
DA GAMA
Why would they not listen to
someone theyre scared of?
COOK
Ruling by fear is not a smart
decision. THAT is what leads to
mutinies.
DA GAMA
I wont be ruling by fear. Once my
crew sees my true colors, theyll
know that the fear was just a way
of getting their attention. Then
theyll see how smart of a plan
that is and theyll get behind me
even more.
COOK
What if your plan doesnt work?
DA GAMA
I will.
COOK
Why do you assume that? No one has
assigned you captain of this
vessel.
DA GAMA
Neither has anyone assigned you.
COOK
Did I ever say someone did?
DA GAMA
...
COOK (CONTD)
Now can you answer my question
please.
DA GAMA
What question?
COOK
Why do you assume that your plan
will work?

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

7.

DA GAMA
Im seeing the affects right now.
COOK
What?
DA GAMA
Youre challenging my position as
leader, before I even take the
position. You clearly want to take
charge of this vessel, and now
youre afraid that you wont and I
will. Should I repeat? You are
AFRAID James Cook.
Cook is surprised. He never said his name!
DA GAMA
I told you I listen.
COOK
If youll excuse me, Im going to
address the men of the ship.
Da Gama outstretches his arm.
DA GAMA
By all means!
Cook turns around and walks away as Da Gama chuckles to
himself.
CUT TO:
EXT. SHIP POOP DECK - DAY
Cook walks up the stairs to the poop deck, above everyone
else. He walks to the railing and grasps it with both hands.
He stands up straight, tall, poised, and powerful. He takes
a deep breath in and shouts
COOK
(loud but not screaming)
Everyone settle down!!!
Every one stops to look at Cook. Cook scans the crowd. 2
guys brawling over here, 4 guys talking over there, 3 guys
trying to break in to the lower part of the ship, Da Gama
sitting on the crates and Columbus, walking up the steps of
the poop deck to join Cook. Cook ignores Columbus and looks
out over the entire crowd.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

8.

COOK (CONTD)
Gentlemen. I know there has been a
lot of confusion going around as of
late. I know that you all are
unhappy with the circumstance we
are now in. Frankly, I am too. My
name is Captain James Cook.
MALE VOICE 3 (O.S.)
Who would name their child Captain?
The men laugh at the joke, excluding Da Gama who laughs at
Cook not being able to take full control. Columbus begins to
laugh but realizes he is right next to Cook so regains
control.
MALE VOICE 4 (O.S.)
Ey you cant talk! Who would name
their child Amerigo!!!
The crowd laughs even harder. We cut to a view of Male Voice
4 and Amerigo.
AMERIGO
You can laugh all you want, but one
day the utterance of my name will
strike fear in to some, desire in
to others, maybe even envy, but I
do know that EVERYONE in the world
will know my name John Cabot! Or
should I say Giovanni Caboto!!!
CABOT (MALE VOICE 4)
I should slit your tongue out of
your throat!
AMERIGO
Try!!!
COOK
(loud, but not screaming)
GENTLEMEN! You are acting like
children! Put a stop to your
fighting at once!
The men get silent.
COOK (CONTD)
Now. Chaos doesnt cure confusion.
If you dont understand something
get to the bottom of it, dont
lower yourself to the bottom. Ive
learned this through experience...
(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

9.

Its quiet.
COLUMBUS
(whisper)
...Tell them about the exCOOK
(angry whisper)
Im getting there!
(back to the loud not
screaming thing)
Many of you probably know of the
disease of the sea called scurvy.
The explorers cringe at the mention of the sickness.
COOK (CONTD)
I was curious as to why scurvy
happened to us sailors and how it
could be stopped. So, I solved the
problem. It began with stockpiling
our ships with fruits and
vegetables when we stopped on the
shores of places that had those
naturally growing. Those would go
bad to fast though. So I brought
sauerkraut on to the ship.
Sauerkraut isnt...the best tasting
food in the world, but it would
cure scurvy. Despite this fact my
men wouldnt eat it. So I only gave
the sauerkraut to the officers. The
rest of the crew wouldnt get any.
By telling them that they couldnt
have any, I made them want it more.
Not one of my crew members died of
scurvy.
Some of the sailors are impressed, but its gonna take some
more to win them all over.
COOK (CONTD)
If I wouldve given up, my crew
members wouldnt have made it. I
might not have made it. Thats why
I have a plan.
DA GAMA
WHO MADE YOU IN CHARGE?!?!?!
The men agree.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

10.

EXPLORERS
YEAH!
MALE VOICE 5 (O.S.)
I bet were all just as qualified
as the next!!1
EXPLORERS
...no...
AMERIGO
I the best discoverer the New World
has ever seen!!!
MALE VOICE 6 (VO)
FAKER!!!
Amerigo breaths heavily as if he was mad.
AMERIGO
I swear. And I told Europe that
youHe points straight to Columbus.
AMERIGO (CONTD)
-were wrong!!!
COLUMBUS
About what?
AMERIGO
You didnt find India, China or
Japan!!! You found a whole new
continent.
COLUMBUS
(whisper)
And they say Im crazy
(loud, and hes screaming)
Im still the best explorer on this
ship! I found a shorter way to
Asia, China, and Japan!!! If this
idiota was right, which he is not,
that means I was the FIRST to find
the New World. I am
truly...AMAZING!
A man raises his hand in the air.
DIAS (MAN RAISING HAND)
I...Bartolomeu Dias was the FIRST
to sail around the Southern tip of
(MORE)
(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

11.

DIAS (MAN RAISING HAND) (contd)

Africa. And discovered it was
possible to sail to the Indian
Ocean! Without me Europe wouldve
had to gone through the Ottomans to
get there spices from Asia.
CABRAL
That might be true, but I claimed
land for Portugal. You just stayed
in the water for us. I built our
empire!!!
DIAS
Dont speak to me like that Pedro
Cabral!!!
A man pushes in between them.
MAN WHO PUSHED THEM
Haha! You make me laugh. I am the
greatest Portuguese explorer to
ever live!!!
DIAS
You didnt even explore for us!!!
CABRAL
Yeah Ferdinand!!! You explored for
those pesky neighbors SPAIN!!!
MAGELLAN (MAN WHO PUSHED THEM)
Dont refer to me by my first name.
It is senhor Magellan to you!!!
Dias and Cabral walk away in shame. Cabot walks over to
Magellan .
CABOT
What makes you so special?
MAGELLAN
I was the first to circumnavigate
the globe.
CABOT
I heard your CREW was. And that YOU
got mutinied.
Magellan pouts and walks away like a 3 year old. A bearded
man comes up to Cabot and taps him on he shoulder.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

12.

BEARDED MAN
What makes you so great like Drake.
He points to himself on Drake.
CABOT
First European to step foot on
North AmeriHe looks over at Amerigo.
CABOT (CONTD)
Foot on...the land of the new
world. I made the smart decision of
leaving from higher altitudes. This
shortens the trip because, due to
the spherical shape of the earth,
its smaller up top and down below.
DRAKE (BEARDED MAN)
Im Francis Drake. First Englishmen
to circumnavigate the globe, I
sailed the west coast of the
northern part of the new world, and
even pirated some Spanish ships. If
we needed some supplies I could
easily take some from another boat
we find along the way.
CABOT
Were not guaranteed to find other
boats.
DRAKE
...Well...if we DID, Id be
helpful.
The man with the teenager with him stands up form sitting
criss cross apple sauce on the floor.
HUDSON (MAN WITH TEEN)
Well Im Henry Hudson, this is my
son John, and IJOHN HUDSON
Dad...dont. Your storys
embarrassing enough.
HUDSON
But our story is really cool!!!

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

13.

JOHN HUDSON
You got us mutinied in your own
bay!!!
HUDSON
(salty)
...dont remind me...
JOHN HUDSON
You didnt accomplish anything no
ones never done before either.
COLUMBUS
(whispering to Cook)
I know whos not becoming the
leader.
(loud, and hes screaming)
HOW DID YOU GET MUTINIED?
HUDSON
WellJOHN HUDSON (INTERRUPTING)
Lets just say there was a boat
involved.
Columbus looks directly to the camera and winks. By this
point all of the men are on the deck in an almost circular
shape. Each one would naturally step in to the center to
challenge the other explorer.
CABOT
I still dont think any of you can
hold a candle to me, the
astonishingCABOT (CONTD)
-John Cabot.

AMERIGO
(annoyed)
Giovanni Caboto.

Cabot and Amerigo give each other a death stare.

MALE VOICE 7 (O.S.)
Honestly, I think I am the truly
great Giovanni on board this ship.
CABOT
And what did you do, Giovanni....?
VERRAZANO (MALE VOICE 7)
Verrazano, Giovanni Verrazano.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

14.

CABOT
And you did what?
VERRAZANO
Explored the eastern part of the
New World and found a river!
CABOT
Oh yeah. Youre definitely the best
out of all of us.
The men begin to laugh. Verrazano walks away in shame.
CARTIER
I sailed with Verrazano, and trust
me, hes not qualified. I on the
other hand am! I went INLAND on the
New Worlds surface, mapped a
river, named a mass of French land
in the New World, and I fortified
the land France claimed in to...a
"new France" if you will.
A man with a "dope" mustache and goatee walks in to the
center of the circle.
DOPE GOATEE GUY
Listen listen. I think you guys are
great, but Im real quality for a
leader. I mean look at yourselves.
So conceited and self righteous. I
explored lands and was the first to
sight Anthony van Diemens Land.
Thats right. I am humble enough to
name a land I found, after my
benefactors. The rest of you take
your financial aid for granted.
COLUMBUS
(to Cook)
Im actually pretty loyal to
Ferdinand and Isabella.
COOK
You should be. They trusted a
lunatic like you with some money, a
map, and a boat. You should be
there slave form this day forth.
COLUMBUS
(taken aback)
...RUDE!!!

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

15.

CARTIER
Uh, I named my land after a word in
the language of the natives of my
land. I was very respectful to the
life in the new land. You all acted
like it was yours.
VERRAZANO
Were you not just bragging about
how you killed a bunch of birds
with your crew? Just for the fun of
it?
CARTIER
Theyre birds not people.
VERRAZANO
You said the LIFE. Not people. How
can we trust a LYING Captain?
All of the men get in to an uproar except for Da Gama and
Cook. The two look at each other from opposite sides of the
boat. They meet each other halfway, standing outside of the
ruckus.
DA GAMA
Looks like your plan didnt work.
COOK
Really?
DA GAMA
Look what you caused Cook.
Cook looks over to the commotion and back to Da Gama.
DA GAMA (CONTD)
YOU CAUSED THIS HULLABALOO.
We cut to Columbus, who hides behind a crate eavesdropping
on the conversation. He mouths "hullabaloo" almost like
"WTF(reak)".
Da Gama turns to the men.
DA GAMA
(powerful, commanding, bad
asteroids)
DO YOU SEE WHAT HE HAS DONE TO YOU?
The men stop and look at Da Gama.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

16.
DA GAMA (CONTD)
Cook has turned you against each
other, so he could rise up in the
chaos and take us over as our
leader. Now will we let that
happen?
OTHER 9 EXPLORERS
NO!!!
DA GAMA
Exactly. We are explorers men, and
he is too.

Da Gama points back at Cook with an outstretched arm. He

doesnt move his head away from the men.
DA GAMA (CONTD)
Lets send him on an expedition to
uncharted lands boys...the bottom
of the sea.
CUT TO:
EXT. SHIP POOP DECK - DAY
Cook is being tied up to the pole of a sail by Hudson and
his son.
HUDSON
Sorry I had to do this, but I cant
let you take over the boat!
JOHN HUDSON
(to Hudson)
Dont say youre sorry. Youre not
sorry.
(to Cook)
Hes not sorry.
COOK
You will be sorry when hes ruling
you.
HUDSON
I beg your pardon?
COOK
You cant see it. Look at him.
We get a view of Da Gama standing on top of crates speaking
to the explorers below him.

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

17.
COOK
He accused me of trying to lead,
because I said I had a plan and got
your attention by standing above
you all. Hes giving you all orders
and youre following them. Hes
already the Captain of this ship.
There goes your chances.
JOHN HUDSON
(ala Robin)
Holy scurvy....hes right Dad!!!
HUDSON
Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!!!
COOK
You should go tell them that HES
the traitor.

John and Henry Hudson dash over to the other explorers.

THE HUDSONS
LIAR!!! LIAR!!! LIAR!!!!
Cook smiles as there screams fade in to the background.
Columbus pops out of nowhere. Hes holding a dagger.
COLUMBUS
Hold still, Im going to let you
out!
COOK
Christopher...
Columbus cuts him loose.
COLUMBUS
Yeah?
COOK
Where did you get that dagger?
COLUMBUS
That crate of swords and daggers
right there.
Columbus points to an open crate of swords and daggers.
COOK
Convenient...
CUT TO:

18.

EXT. SHIP DECK - DAY

The men are questioning Da Gama.
CARTIER
I knew we couldnt trust such a
mysterious figure such as yourself!
DA GAMA
Are all of you blind? Do you not
see hes trying to manipulate you.
COOK (O.S.)
No youre manipulating them.
Theyre smarter than that.
Cook approaches them, cutlass in hand. Columbus is behind
him with two daggers. He looks a little too happy to have
those daggers.
COOK (CONTD)
Your plan didnt work Da Gama. Just
face it.
DA GAMA
Cook, the fact that you think you
can beat me makes me laugh.
COOK
Well Im the one holding the sword.
Da Gama outstretches his hand and a sword appears in it.
DA GAMA
So you want to fight for the role
of captain.
COOK
No. YOU do. I want to fight to get
rid of this self proclaimed Captain
so that we can decide a suitable
Captain!!!
The men charge at each other and right before their swords
clash we,
CUT TO:

19.
INT. CHILDS BEDROOM - EVENING
Cut to a childs bedroom. The kid who sleeps here is clearly
obsessed with the sea. His walls are mural of the ocean with
boats sailing out on the waters. The ceiling the color of
the sky with the sun in the middle. In the middle of the sun
is a compass.
Instead of posters there are inaccurate maps hanging up. The
camera focuses on each one for a couple of seconds. Zooming
in on the faces of Ptolemys map.
The bed is in the shape of a boat. The sheets have an ocean
design covering them. Many toy, antique, and Lego ships sit
on top of bookshelves, the childs desk, and the dresser.
In the center of the room is a boy, around 8 or 9, who has
sitting in front of him a large Lego ship with 12 men on it.
Hes holding two, each has a sword in there hand. They
almost collide when,
FEMALE VOICE
CUUUURRRRTTTT!!!! Dinners
reeaaadddddyyyy!!!!!
Curt drops the Lego men, crosses his arms, and pouts.
CURT
B...but....but MOOOOOOOMMM!!!
CURTS MOTHER
Curt!!! Get DOOOWWWNN
HEEEEEERRREEE!!!!
CURT
But Da Gama and Cook are about to
fight!!!! Then Cook is of course
oging to outsmart the inferior but
cocky and arrogant Da Gama who gets
thrown off of the boat. Then the
crew makes Cook king and they
figure out that all of them were
taken out of place and time for
this thing called POOCURTS MOTHER
They can wait!!!
CURT
Hmph!!! All of that dialogue, set
up, and unrealistic exposition for
NOTHING!
Curt stands up and marches out of the room.
(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

20.
CUT TO:

INT. KITCHEN - EVENING

Curt walks in to the kitchen. His mom sets down a plate of
anchor and boat shaped chicken nuggets, apple slices, and a
cup full of water with boats on it.
CURTS MOTHER
Now eat your dinner. Its your
favorite.
Curt sits down in his chair when he feels something poke his
butt. He jumps up.
CURT
Ow!!!
Curt looks down and sees his Lego Llama lying standing on
his chair.
CURTS MOTHER
You need to stop leaving those
action figures everywhere.
CURT
Its not an action figure.
He takes a bite of a chicken nugget.
CURT (CONTD)
(chewing chicken)
Its a part of the limited edition
Lego World History: Columbian
Exchange set.
CURTS MOTHER
Why is there a lama?
CURT
So many plants, animals, and even
diseases switched back and forth
between the old and new world.
Dogs, llamas, horses, donkeys,
pigs, cows, goats, sheep, corn,
potatoes, peanuts, rice, rye,
cabbage, avoCURTS MOTHER
Okay dear. I see your
point.

CURT
-cado. Even diseases were
brought back and forth from
the-

(CONTINUED)

CONTINUED:

21.

CURTS MOTHER (INTERRUPTING)

Curt! Thats enough history for one
minute. Eat your food.
Curt shrugs and eats his food. Curts mother walks to the
other side of the kitchen.
CURTS MOTHER
(to herself)
Gosh how did I have such a weird
son? 9 year old obsessed with the
age of exploration and the
columbian exchange.
Curts mother shakes her head. She looks over at Curt.
CURTS MOTHER (THOUGHTS)
(smiling)
I still love him though.
The End