I think my name is spelled wrong.
Shit.
Yeah, they don't let me change those.
Guess I should put this on.
Oh, no, no, man. You're good.
There's nobody here.
Most people attend from home.
Then why am I here?
I make minimum wage, not decisions.
- Very helpful. - Hi!
Hi. Thank you so much for coming.
- Bye. - Have a good day.
- Hi. - That is the best. I love it.
- Thank you. - Hey!
Okay. Have a blessed day.
That one's my favorite.
So when are we getting Volume 4?
Good seeing you.
Nice mask.
- Lionel, I think you owe it... - I don't owe you a damn thing.
Locked,
for your protection.
Aw, fuck!
Code Yellow.
They found three cases of something called the Irish Flu on a train this afternoon.
Mayor ordered an hour-long bio lock.
Hour?
God, I wish bio lock was the made-up future-y thing it sounds like,
instead of the everyday reality under which we now live.
Yeah, but we have orgasms in pill form now.
So win some, lose some.
Y'all got some of those pills?
Huge vintage iPhone.
How very you.
Stuck together.
Like the good old days.
They weren't all bad, Lionel.
Our senior year was one for the books.
So why haven't you written one?
Your senior year.
Which you covered, in your...
documentary.
You know, I'm the one who should be pissed.
You stole my title.
It's fair use though. You stole my life.
I come in peace.
- I know why you haven't written Volume 4. - Don't.
La Salette Place was...
a beautiful book.
It was artful and...
I'm not here signing copies of La Salette Place.
Because no one bought any. Critics hated it.
If critics had to endure criticism of their craft,
maybe they'd be better at writing it.
Will you sign this too?
The world would prefer if I just...
churned out another nostalgic fantasy of our lives
that's exactly the same as the last one.
But also totally different, like a new Cheeto flavor.
Nigga, have you had a blue Cheeto?
Volume 4 basically writes itself.
If Volume 1 was the fallout from the blackface party,
and Volume 2, the ALT IVY stuff,
and Volume 3, the Moses Brown scandal,
then Volume 4 has gotta be...
The Varsity Show.
That corny sketch thing that Pastiche and Bechet House put on?
Yeah, isn't it like SNL but written by amateurs
and still better written?
It's sketches and Broadway-style musical numbers
about Winchester life put on by students.
Guys, every year for the past 150,
Winchester culture is toured around the country.
Columbia has a Varsity Show and so does Princeton.
It's a huge cultural institution.
That's typically absent of any Black culture.
Exactly.
That publisher dropped me, Sam.
- And took back their advance. - We'll do it independently.
I still have all my footage from that year.
We'll come up with the shape of it, and then...
you'll write the book.
- Hmm. - And I'll do a TV adaptation.
Why else would you upend my life?
If it didn't get you something made.
- Because I believe in you. - Oh.
And maybe because, yes...
I am sick of doing commercials for potato chips.
Just like you gotta be sick of signing books
you wrote ten years ago.
We were never as alive as we were that year.
Back when we weren't doing it for a gold star from the public,
or the critics, or the publishers, or the studios.
It was always a piece of cake.
Remember?
There's more in us.
Come on. It could be like how Arthur C. Clarke and Stanley Kubrick
made 2001: A Space Odyssey, the movie and the book, side by side.
Now you're really pandering.
Guys, I know what you're thinking, it's the first day of my senior year too.
All of our Winchester dreams have been leading to Career Day.
Top recruiters swarming the campus.
And since white people have started caring about racism again,
we might actually be able to shame them into giving us some of what we deserve.
So why are we here?
I'm talking about more than just starting our careers.
I'm talking about building a legacy.
That's why I wanted to tell you guys first.
'Cause without your support...
I can't make this happen.
All the people in this room practically run AP House.
Except for Michael, who was just hanging out with Lionel.
And who refused to leave.
Look, it took a lot of politicking
and some friends in very high places...
...but for the first time in 50 years, Pastiche and Bechet House
are not running the Varsity Show, we are, with support from Fried Chicanery.
Can we go?
Don't you get it?
This is one of Winchester's oldest cultural institutions,
and they're letting us have it.
This thing is toured in schools across the country.
Just think of the uptick in Black student applications,
the performance, film, literary and political pipelines
that'll be created for us if we pull this off.
If we have...
a '90s musical but Black.
I hated musicals then, and I hate them now.
FYI, my adaptation will most definitely be a musical.
Are you proposing that we put on an all-Black '90s musical?
Because if so, I will spontaneously combust into glitter.
Exactly what I'm proposing.
I had some in my pocket.
So AP will produce it, led by Fried Chicanery,
- and anyone can be in it. - And if we do it well,
they might let AP do it every year.
- The House could have its own institution. - Exactly.
We got Michael.
Joelle, we need your talent.
Coco, we need the support of CORE.
Reggie, could BSU get behind this?
Sam?
I'm busy getting my life started.
Maybe I wasn't making myself clear now.
I get it, Troy, it'll look great on your résumé,
but this is a big year for all of us.
Hey.
This isn't over.
No, it's not.
'Cause you're gonna vacuum all that glitter up.
- Hey. - Hey.
Did you see that they put Dear White People
on the Winchester homepage?
What? It's my dream to be celebrated by white people while I drag them.
Oof. Is it bad if I enjoy a confluence of white guilt and Black pride?
Well, it depends.
Were you aware that racism existed before this summer,
when the cops killed Sandra Taylor in a grocery store?
I can't stop seeing her face.
It's not like Sandra was the first, and she won't be the...
- How are people not getting this? - Troy,
I know for you '90s R&B is part of an elaborate townie mating ritual,
but does anyone else our age even listen to it?
- Yes. - Or is it just 30-year-olds
who write characters in our age group for TV?
Reginelle! Hey, where y'all been? Where y'all going?
We got this Silicon Valley at Winchester thing.
- We'll see what's popping. - He's so modest.
Reggie is being scouted by some of the top tech companies.
- Hey! - That's great!
The '90s were special. I'm telling you, it's gonna work. Promise.
- You okay? - Where are you headed?
Oh, we have a Hollywood at Winchester event.
I'm gonna have interviews and Gabe's screening the film we did last year.
Necessary Exposition.
It's the film 'zine he ran last year when he was a...
S-T-U-D-E-N-T.
I'm sorry. Uh, what was that?
I dropped out of school before I learned my ABCs.
- Good to see you too, Coco. - What? Nothing. Nothing's going on.
And that response gives us no reason to suspect there is.
- Coco, did you get an e-mail? - I did!
You did!
Somebody got their Lil Dicky tickets.
Come on, Shady. We're gonna be late.
♪ Yeah ♪
You play piano?
I began my professional queer life as a gospel gay.
See, this is what I'm talking about. This music is in our DNA.
Oh.
Okay, uh, well, what song is this?
Does anyone know the words?
♪ I say nothing comes from dreamers But dreams ♪
♪ I say sittin' idle in our boat ♪
♪ While everyone else is down the stream ♪
♪ Nothing comes from talkers but sound ♪
This is why Black folks are always late.
♪ We can talk all we want to ♪
♪ But the world still goes Around and round ♪
♪ Round and round ♪
♪ We go round and round and round ♪
♪ And what we're looking for Still isn't found ♪
Remember how that felt?
Running around all year, pretending like our lives were a '90s musical.
Don't you want that feeling back?
What I want is to go home.
But...
what happens next?
You right about that.
I'm announcing it at Black Caucus. It's gonna be big, y'all.
It is love, bro. Vitamins, bro. Vitamins.
Hey, Troy. Uh, is this The Order?
We had an agreement, Lionel.
Oh, sorry.
What just happened?
I think that was Troy getting his wish.
He wants to bring the Varsity Show to AP House, but make it a '90s musical.
Whoa, '90s. Like, Pearl Jam?
Uh, more like Mint Condition, but I'm sure it'll be a mix.
Hey. You okay?
Yeah, I'm anxiously hanging all my hopes and dreams on how the next hour will go.
Healthy. But same.
Oh, I envy you, actually.
Oh, with a bit of luck and tenacity, you too can be film-school dropout.
Isn't the point of film school to get out there and make shit?
Once people see your film, you won't even need this place.
But depending on how today goes, I still have my senior thesis.
Not to mention a year of calculus, trigonometry and statistics.
I love you, but you've really been putting off those math requirements.
Will today be the day that Ava DuVernay discovers me
and saves me from the white man's arithmetic?
I know this poem.
Uh...
- Maya Angelou. - Ha.
Come on.
Your destiny awaits.
♪ Can you tell me where we're going to? ♪
The sign pointed this way.
♪ Can you tell me What it is we really wanna find? ♪
Jobs would be great.
♪ Is the truth really there Or is it right under our hair? ♪
♪ For all we know It's been there all the time ♪
Nice one, Iesha.
♪ I say nothing comes From dreamers but dreams ♪
♪ I say sittin' idle in our boat ♪
♪ While everyone else is down the stream ♪
♪ Nothing comes from talkers but sound ♪
♪ Oh, we can talk all we want to ♪
♪ But the world still goes Around and round ♪
Right?
♪ Round and round ♪
I'll show you where it is.
♪ We go round and round and round ♪
♪ And what we're looking for Still isn't found ♪
Come on. With people just bursting out into song?
You are Black and gay.
Both groups notorious for spontaneous singing.
Hi.
Okay, Samantha White.
Here's your badge.
Head right over there.
And for Gabe Mitchell...
nontraditional students are that way.
Okay.
Break a leg.
You too.
- So, what's the dream, Sam? - Honestly, I just love film.
All kinds but I've been doing a lot of doc work.
I did a documentary short on the Moses Brown scandal
that CNN bought over the summer.
I talked to my faculty advisor about maybe skipping the senior thesis stuff,
and he said that if I can turn it into something real, you know?
Maybe a series on problematic professors...
Your doc on Moses, that's like a religious thing?
Moses Brown.
He taught here.
Oh, because faith-based films are really huge right now.
What else you working on?
Well, like I was saying,
if I can spin it off into a bigger project,
then I can get credit towards my senior thesis and jump-start my career.
I've made a name for myself here,
but now I'm ready to use it to impact the real world,
especially at a time like this.
I couldn't agree more.
Hi. Um...
Is this a storage room?
Not for some time. Welcome!
Ready for your big debut?
A brother!
- Sorry, is that inappropriate? - Oh, not at all.
I am just as excited to see a sister, at White Chester, no less.
I can make that joke. I went here. My name's Jamal George.
- Samantha White. - So...
- what do you know about Interflix? - Oh, I love what you guys are doing.
The innovative combinations of streaming and theatrical releases,
lots of ambitious content.
That's right. We are giving the majors a run for their money.
Plus, we like making smart bets on, um,
up-and-coming talent.
Oh. That's great because I've made a name for myself on this campus, but...
now I'm ready to use it to impact the real world.
Do you know the scandal with Professor Moses Brown?
Oh, of course. Yo, that was crazy.
Yeah. Well, I actually made a documentary short that broke the story.
- CNN bought it. - Send it to me.
Maybe we can find some time to talk about it.
Over a drink.
- Are you grad or are you undergrad? - Under.
You wanna get a drink to talk about my documentary exposé
on sexual harassment at a university?
Not when you say it like that.
Uh, I thought there were gonna be, um, studio execs and agency reps here.
Our nontraditional students are supported by an e-mail blast
sent to all participating industry professionals with screening times.
And your screening time was five minutes ago, so...
Have a great screening.
Hi. Rebecca Clear. I love your documentary.
- Hi. Sam White. You do? - Absolutely!
When I saw it, I thought:
"Now, this is a TV show, or a movie, or anything this girl wants."
You've got real talent.
Thank you so much.
The part of the film where Candice realizes
she's both pregnant and has to drop out of school
- to support her mother's dance career... - I'm sorry. Dance career?
Didn't you make the doc on pregnant, Black, inner-city youth
striving to break into the dance world?
Krumpin' 2: Krumpin' for 2?
I did not.
- Was there a Krumpin' 1? - Okay. That's my 3:30.
I just assumed. Sorry.
- Hmm. - You made the documentary on Moses Brown.
That's right. CNN bought it.
I'm on a news-media diet.
Um, what else are you working on?
I've made a name for myself on this campus.
But now I really want to use it to impact the real world.
Especially at a time like this.
Did I miss the Q&A?
Oh. That was the first Q for me to A.
But don't worry.
Us nontraditional students will have links to our films
sent to all industry professionals via e-mail blasts.
Oh, shit. I'm sorry.
How'd your thing go? Any coattails for me to ride yet?
All I've got is another year doing a student radio show
and making a student film.
It's not bad for a student.
Oh, shit. I'm sorry, Gabe.
It's okay, Sam. You know why?
♪ When I wake up ♪
♪ Well, I know I'm gonna be ♪
♪ I'm gonna be the man Who wakes up next to you ♪
♪ When I go out ♪
♪ Yeah, I know I'm gonna be ♪
♪ I'm gonna be the man Who goes along with you ♪
We've got each other, but...
♪ When I get drunk ♪
♪ Yeah, I know I'm gonna be ♪
♪ I'm gonna be the man Who gets drunk next to you ♪
- ♪ And if I throw up ♪ - Ew!
♪ Yeah, I know I'm gonna be ♪
♪ I'm gonna be the man Who throws up next to you ♪
♪ And I would walk 500 miles ♪
♪ And I would walk 500 more ♪
♪ Just to be the man Who walks a thousand miles ♪
♪ To fall down at your door ♪
- ♪ Ba, da, da ♪ - ♪ Ba, da, da ♪
- You good? - Yeah.
It's just that I can only afford to shoot my senior thesis on campus, but...
I already did something like that.
And if the doc on Moses isn't enough for a break,
I don't know what else I have.
Career Day is infamously brutal...
but it's the beginning, it's not the end.
Like, a lot of folks wish they would have got the start you got today.
- Totally. - Reggie.
Hey, how was it? Are you okay?
He's in shock.
He got offered a six-figure deal for one of the world's biggest tech companies.
- Still can't believe it. - That's amazing.
- Coco? What's going on? Is it bad? - Oh!
Sam, I've signed a confidentiality agreement.
So I can't talk about it.
But let's say that my career aspirations are literally about to come true.
How's your Career Day?
- It's fantastic. - Bye, girl.
You're Sam White.
- Allegedly. - Iesha Vital.
New to AP, but the doc you did on the blackface party
was legendary at my high school.
You heading up BSU this year?
Uh, no, I thought I'd be too busy. I didn't run.
But, um, it's gonna be Reggie Green and he's great.
Oh. I hope I get to see you in action.
I felt like such a failure.
How?
You single-handedly changed the culture at AP House.
Multiple times.
You had already had your first documentary sold by 21.
Lionel, you either constantly win or you're a failure.
- Did you not get that memo? - I think I wrote it.
You, Reggie, Troy, and Coco.
You were like gods to me.
You didn't have any insecurities, from what I could tell.
But... then again, I might have been a little distracted.
Hey, Troy. Uh, is this The Order?
- We had an agreement, Lionel. - I'm sorry.
The timing is interesting.
- I'm almost sold. - Good.
You're writing it.
Me?
- I need someone I can trust. - You don't have anyone on staff?
I need someone I can trust.
Bro. Thank you.
I want the opening number.
Talk to the writer.
Really? You're writing this?
I don't know yet.
I need you to be more excited.
Lionel, this thing launches careers.
And it's usually so white, I never thought I'd get a chance to be a part of it.
Wouldn't that be a conflict of interest?
Mm. The writer...
and the star?
Sleeping together.
Mmm. Problematic, maybe.
But I think that, uh...
power dynamic is hot.
You won't even have time.
Well, depends on how today goes.
I'm either gonna make it into orbit,
or I'm gonna have to pick out the shrapnel.
Oh, my God.
Baby?
Uh...
These are usually half gone by now.
It's just the first week back.
Yeah, it doesn't seem to be hurting anyone else.
What the hell is Chest?
Bitch stole your title.
These are all clones of Chester but white and kind of straight.
Silly rabbit.
Gay Black men create culture.
We never get to be the center of it.
It'd be a great place for me to advertise though.
I mean, before I met you.
- We better get going. - Yeah.
Kiss?
- I love you. - I love you too.
It's almost time.
Twelve backstabbing, ambitious, fired-up Ivy Leaguers
are about to enroll in the wildest semester of their lives.
Who will win the cash prize of $500,000 and jump-start their careers?
Find out in two days on the live premiere of Big House.
You still think there's time to apply?
So what I'm getting is, your Career Day went fantastic and we're millionaires.
I performed the best thing I ever wrote.
They didn't get it.
Oh, okay.
Then you should write the Varsity Show.
I mean, I'd be in way over my head.
I've never written for the stage.
And it's your major.
Yeah, but you have a readership.
Come on. I'll tell Troy.
What if we wrote it together?
You don't think that would get...
weird or anything?
I don't know, Lionel.
Everything else we make turns out pretty great, so...
God. You're really hurt.
It's okay. Jeez.
Relax.
Okay?
I'll make it up to you.
No, no, no.
No!
- Lionel doesn't sing. - Come on.
So many '90s love ballads would be perfect.
- "I'll Make Love to You." "Freak Like Me." - I never sing.
Not in any reality. Not even a musical one.
Look, what happened between me and Michael was complicated.
If I agree to this, you don't get to cover up the hard parts with singing.
"Knockin' Da Boots" by H-Town!
No.
- This is a fucking embarrassment. - For real.
- Y'all aren't down? - Hell, no, we ain't down.
Matter of fact, neither are you.
Yo, what are y'all doing? I told you this in secret.
Don't worry.
Troy will still have his little announcement.
We will have our response. Troy doesn't get to have Black AF in his back pocket.
- Exactly. - Not anymore.
Let's go.
Stop playing with us.
Yo! What's going on?
You hear that Troy is bringing the Varsity Show to AP House?
Wow. And Black AF isn't down?
Hell, no, we ain't down.
The Varsity Show has systematically excluded Black people since its inception.
- Right. But if they're letting us have... - It's just a piece of cake.
I don't have to tell you that.
Of course. Cake. Hate it.
And not to mention the show is being held at Beckford Hall,
a building named after an infamous slave owner
that the school still refuses to change.
I didn't come to AP House to shuck and jive.
- Facts. - See you at Caucus, Sam.
If you're not too busy.
Please don't tell Troy.
♪ Can you tell me When we're gonna get to it? ♪
♪ I'm tired of foolin' around Said I wanna do it ♪
♪ I learned my lesson, y'all ♪
♪ And said if you wanna have fun ♪
♪ Go for it ♪
♪ And when you win, say I know it ♪
♪ Nothin' comes from dreamers but dreams ♪
♪ I say, sittin' idle in our boat ♪
♪ While everyone else is down the stream ♪
♪ Nothin' comes from talkers but sound ♪
♪ Oh, we can talk all we want to ♪
♪ But the world still goes Around and round ♪
♪ Round and round ♪
Is there a bigger story here?
- What do you mean? - The Varsity Show.
Is The Order involved?
You're announcing it tomorrow, right?
I wanna film it.
And everything else that happens.
I wanna make my senior thesis a documentary about the Varsity Show.
What's your angle?
You're about to attempt something that's never been done before.
It's epic.
And... I need something I can afford to shoot
that's also compelling enough to start my career once I get out of here.
Troy, you're about to make history.
Let me cement your legacy.
Door unlocked.
- Finally. - So...
we have a great start.
Are we going to finish this...
together?
You always knew when there was a story worth telling.
Locked again.
Dear white people, the Varsity Show is a week away.
Will you be there?
We've got a special treat for you today.
And, no, it's not that you can put the remix to "Ignition"
back on your playlist.
Some cancelations are permanent.
Anyway, something that will never go out of style
and never be canceled is jazz.
I'm gonna throw you some cool sounds and you can throw me your questions.