Sleepy Hollow Shooting Script
His Father’s eyes begin to glow like live coals as Ichabod cowers away from him.
ICHABOD’S DREAM-ICHABOD’S HOUSE-NIGHT
Ichabod’s eyes are spying… through a crack in the kitchen door.
When we see him properly, he is wearing a nightshirt. Then we see his POV, into the kitchen.
ICHABOD’S DREAM-YOUNG ICHABOD’S KITCHEN-NIGHT
Mother is seated, her head down. Father paces, chastising Mother angrily, his fist balled up in rage.
Father continues berating Mother. He picks up his Bible off the table, waving it, then grabs Mother by the shoulders, forcing her to the floor…
Father forces Mother to her knees. Mother is afraid, clasping her hands in front of her as Father forces her to pray. Father starts reading from the Bible. In Ichabod’s dream, this is the same Bible from Baltus’s house.
ICHABOD’S DREAM-YOUNG ICHABOD’S STAIRWELL-NIGHT
Ichabod watches, afraid. He backs away, returning upstairs.
ICHABOD’S DREAM-YOUNG ICHABOD’S BEDROOM-NIGHT
A window is thrown CRASHING open, THUNDER BOOMING… Young Ichabod sits up in his bed. He goes to close the window, RAIN pouring in. He looks down…
ICHABOD’S DREAM-EXT. YOUNG ICHABOD’S HOUSE-NIGHT
Below, in front of the home, a MAN drags Mother toward a COACH. TWO MEN stand watching, faces hidden under hat brims. Mother looks back, eyes pleading, struggling…
Mother looks up to Young Ichabod.
The TWO MEN looks up to Young Ichabod: one is Father, and the THIRD MAN is a Cotton Mather-ish man with a villainous face.
Young Ichabod reaches helplessly toward Mother.
Mother is forced into the coach.
The Third Man speaks to Father, then walks to the coach. He gets onto the coach as the coach starts away.
Father watches, rain flowing down his stony features. LIGHTING FLASHES… And we see the family Cat watching with glowing eyes.
INT. VAN TASSEL HOUSE-DAY
Ichabod’s eyes as he opens them. He wakes, breathing heavily.
After a beat, he flings back the bedclothes and springs out of bed, energized by a new determination.
INT. VAN TASSEL HOUSE, DOWNSTAIRS-DAY
Baltus, Steenwyck, Doctor Lancaster and Notary Hardenbrook are having another meeting, this time with Lady Van Tassel and Katrina on hand with the drinks.
BALTUS Right-this time I’ll go to New York myself and I won’t be fobbled off with an amateur deductor.
HARDENBROOK (correcting him) Detector.
STEENWYCK (correcting) Deductive.
DOCTOR LANCASTER (doubting) No… no…
BALTUS (rising above it) An amateur sleuth! This time it’s a magistrate that’s dead, and- The door is flung open without ceremony.
It’s Ichabod ready for action, transformed, raring to go-with Young Masbath round-eyed just behind him.
ICHABOD Gentlemen! -I need able men, to go with me to the Western Woods. Who will be the first to volunteer?
BALTUS You… ? We thought you’d shot your bolt…
ICHABOD A setback, merely. And yet, a step forward too-we now know who has done these terrible- STEENWYCK You now know, we already knew- ICHABOD (high on it) Quite so-and now it seems fate has chosen me to make my name in a case without parallel in the annals of crime-in short, to pit myself against a murdering ghost.
KATRINA (fearful for him) No, Ichabod-Constable- LADY VAN TASSEL (smiles) Do you intend to arrest him? Or impound his horse… ?
The Men chuckle indulgently.
ICHABOD Neither. To put an end to the killing. To discover the cause and remove it. Who’s with me?
No one.
EXT. WESTERN WOODS-DAY
No one, indeed… Ichabod and Young Masbath ride alone… their horses loaded up for the expedition.
Dark, gnarled and creepy woods. Ichabod and Young Masbath move through. SOUND OF BIRDS etc.
ICHABOD The Van Garretts, the Widow Winship … your father, Jonathan Masbath… and now Philipse… Something must connect them. Can you think?
YOUNG MASBATH (shakes his head) We had no dealings with the magistrate that I know of…
ICHABOD And the widow? Your father knew her?
YOUNG MASBATH (shrugs) Everyone knew Widow Winship.
ICHABOD In a manner of speaking, I trust.
YOUNG MASBATH She would bring old Mr. Van Garrett a basket of eggs many a day.
ICHABOD Did your father have dealings with the Van Garretts?
YOUNG MASBATH (surprised) He worked for them, we lived in the coach house.
Ichabod halts his horse, surprised.
YOUNG MASBATH (CONT’D) It’s nothing-there were many servants… all dismissed now, of course. (beat-they ride on) But there was something happened one night, a week before the murder. An argument upstairs between father and son, and my father was later sent for by Mr. Van Garrett.
ICHABOD An argument between father and son? (to himself, thoughtfully) After which, the elder Van Garrett summoned his servant, Masbath…
Young Masbath halts his horse and looks around.
YOUNG MASBATH Listen.
ICHABOD I hear nothing.
YOUNG MASBATH Nor I-no birds-no crickets- Everything has gone quiet.
YOUNG MASBATH (CONT’D) -it’s all gone so quiet…
Ichabod notes this nervously.
ICHABOD You’re right!
He gees up the horses. They break into a gallop. A MOVING POV watches them gallop by.
EXT. WESTERN WOODS AND CAVE ENTRANCE-DAY
Ichabod and Masbath reach a hill crest. They stop, uneasy.
BELOW, there is a CAVE with a rock archway. An ill-fitting DOOR covers the mouth. The chimney spews smoke.
Ichabod and Masbath share a fearful look.
ELSEWHERE, SOMEONE WATCHES… A MOVING POV WATCHES Ichabod and Masbath as they ride to the cave, FOLLOWING…
Ichabod and Young Masbath dismount, tying their horses, then heading to the cave. They arrive at the cave door. Ichabod hesitantly KNOCKS.
INT. CAVE HOME-DAY
The door is ajar… Ichabod and Young Masbath step in… Walls are hung with SKINS and SKELETONS. Across the cave, a CRONE sits facing away, motionless.
Ichabod and Young Masbath look to each other, fearful.
ICHABOD Pardon my intrusion…
The Crone, with gray hair and gray features, sits disinterested. Behind, Ichabod edges slowly forward…
CRONE You are from the Hollow?
ICHABOD In a way, yes. I, um…
Ichabod is distracted by gourd BOWLS of DEAD INSECTS, LEAVES and ACORNS… KNIVES, SCISSORS and YELLOWED BONES.
ICHABOD (CONT’D) I should like to say… um… I make no assumptions about your occupation, no, your ways, witch- which-which are nothing to me… um… whatever you are, each to his own-um- The Crone places something on a table beside her… a DEAD BIRD, a bright red cardinal.
Ichabod backs away, but Masbath comes to stand beside him.
YOUNG MASBATH Do you know of the Horseman, ma’am… ? The Hessian.
The Crone draws her finger across her neck.
YOUNG MASBATH (CONT’D) That’ll be him, miss.
Around her neck is a cord on which is threaded a carved stone, a mystic bauble. Ichabod notices it. The Crone stands, faces them, tall … points to Ichabod.
CRONE You, follow with me. (to young Masbath) Go out, child. Keep away. No matter what you hear, keep away.
She takes a candle and heads deeper into the cave…
INT. CAVE HOME, LOWER CAVE-DAY
The Crone enters through a passage, Ichabod follows, terrified, bent under the low ceiling.
ICHABOD Um… what might he hear that he must keep away from… ?
CRONE Sit there.
Ichabod sits on a crooked stool. The Crone kneels with her back to him, grasps two METAL CUFFS with chains attached, slides these onto her wrists, testing them…
CRONE (CONT’D) He rides, to the Hollow and back. I hear him. I smell the blood on him.
ICHABOD Do… do you? Well… I’m here to find him and… er… make him stop…
CRONE You want to see into the netherworld … I can show you…
