[***]
* Feel that boom, boom Bang, bang *
* Glitter over everything *
[***]
* Feel that ra ra Ratata *
* Light it up and hit the stars *
[***]
* Five, four, three two, one *
* Reach for the sun... **
That was awesome.
You are definitely Ricky Cooper's kid.
Eh, wasn't my finest moment.
I've done better.
Darn.
Oh, here.
You can have some of mine.
I'll survive.
You live on Oak, right?
I could, like, walk with you maybe,
while you ride.
Uh, I'd love to get some tips on my swing.
Your stance could use some work.
Thanks.
Thanks for walking me home.
No, thank you for the tips.
I can't believe
that's your fourth home run this season.
You're showing up a lot of guys on my team.
Pretty sure I'd show them all up.
Maybe we could work on our swings...
together?
Yeah, okay.
Sure, that'd be great.
Well, see ya at school.
Okay, bye.
He likes you.
[sighs]
* Ah, can I get a witness?
* Wow, I'm feelin' all right *
* Just like I should, should, should *
* Best day of my life *
* It feels so good, good, good *
* I'd bottle up this feeling if I could *
* Oh, yeah! *
He doesn't like you.
It's not gonna happen, Cooper.
[sidekicks, together]: Not ever.
What are you talking about?
Austin?
Hello...!
Stay away from him.
I'm not playing.
She's not playing.
Not one bit.
[school bell rings]
[blender whirring]
Hey, uh, Steph, you got a minute?
Uh, not likely.
The website is down again.
Yeah, well, I'm kind of swamped, Boss.
Can you give me a second, or ten,
or maybe come back next week?
Hey, can I get one of your Stephanie Specials, please?
Alan, it's not a good time.
I'll take a number five.
Can you make that gluten-free?
Also, I'm allergic to nuts,
except for almonds and cashews,
so can you replace the pine nuts and the walnuts?
I'd love a little ice,
a touch of cinnamon,
and blend that up with some almond milk if you could,
because I'm also lactose and soy intolerant.
You're none of those things, Alan.
Well, no, I think I might be, though.
I haven't been feeling great lately,
so I'm gonna do one of those no-gluten,
no-soy, no-lactose,
pretend-I-live-in-L.A. diets.
Later on today, I'm gonna see a Shaman.
Look, ever since we added the option
to sign up for classes online,
the site keeps crashing.
There's a lot of traffic, I guess.
Definitely.
Well, that's a good thing
People are signing up for classes! Boom!
Yeah, but Steph, we can't leave our members hanging,
and you are the gym's official website designer.
Yeah, I'm also the gym's official personal trainer,
yoga instructor,
juice blender,
and, officially
trying not to fail out of grad school.
[sighs wearily]
Wow, that's a lot.
Well, you're doing a bang-up job, Stephanie.
We all really appreciate what you do.
Thank you, Alan.
No, uh, agreed.
Thank you, Steph.
You know, it's all about time management.
You need some sort of organizational system.
Like, how do you keep track of what's work
and what's school?
I just do.
I have a system,
and don't try to lecture me on life balance.
No, no, I wasn't going to.
I will. Just for a second.
I think some mindful meditation would be the way to go.
Yeah?
Should I meditate before or after I make your juice?
He's just trying to help.
He is.
I am!
I think you should be focused and present, Stephanie.
Yeah? And I think that you should leave.
Fine.
Don't be mindful, don't be present,
see if I give a care.
I'll come back for my juice.
Okay.
Would you just look at the website?
[papers spilling]
Oh, okay, maybe not.
But you know, why don't I...
I'll make Alan's drink.
Yeah. Great idea.
O-M-G!
It finally happened.
You're amazeballs!
[laughing in triumph]
[singing together] * We did it, we did it *
* We did it, we did it... *
You're interrupting my finance homework.
I'm reading about Wall Street,
and what is going on in here?
We just reached 100,000 followers!
Well, I did,
with my account.
Why would anyone want to follow you?
Um, because she slays?
Yeah, and my health and beauty tips
are, like, super popular right now.
Sometimes...
they even give us free stuff.
And we have more offers.
I think there's even a fragrance thing going on--
I hear you.
Now, show me that profile, Mirabel.
Now you've got my attention.
Why?
Because capitalism works like this--
supply and demand.
People are demanding
that they're going to pay for you to supply.
Now let me see that profile.
[sighs warily]
[***]
What are you doing, Gigi?
I'm figuring out how to best benefit
from all this Insta-fame.
You're eight years old.
Only in years, Liam.
Somewhere in there
there's a little C.E.O.
just waiting to come out.
[blinds swish]
[mumbles groggily]
Gigi?
Sorry.
We just need to keep producing content,
or you'll lose your followers.
And why are we so interested all of a sudden?
Because the more content you produce,
the more followers you get,
the more sponsors you get.
Do you follow me?
I've always wanted fans,
but I've never thought about a sponsor.
And that's why you need a manager.
Whoa, whoa, wait, a manager?
Mirabel, I crunched the numbers,
and we can make some serious cash.
You know, Dad's gonna flip
if he finds out that we're wheeling and dealing
on the Internet.
[sighs]
'Tis better to ask for forgiveness
than permission.
I won't tell if you won't.
Deal.
Oh, and here's your new schedule.
We'll be filming the whole way through.
[sighs]
Uh, 6:00 a.m. workout video?
7:00 a.m. makeup tutorial...
8:00 a.m. spray tan?
Welcome to your new life.
[girls giggling]
I'm telling you,
she's pathetic,
and her wardrobe?
I mean, yuck.
Yuck, definitely yuck.
I don't even understand how she and her older sister
could even be related.
Totes!
I mean, Mirabel's actually pretty,
and cool, like, untouchable.
Yeah.
Why Austin likes Elisa,
a mystery.
He does not like her!
Of course, he doesn't like her.
And why would he?
She smells like gym socks!
Yeah--
Wait, worse.
Way worse.
Like a jockstrap!
[laughing]
Boom.
Jockstrap it is.
[mean laughter echoing]
[***]
Steph!
Yes, Alan?
Can I talk to you for a second?
I'm in the middle of a paper that's due in an hour,
and I am in the zone.
Right, that's what I'm here to talk about.
Your silver sneakers work-out class
starts in five minutes,
and those seniors are ready for a little Olivia Neutron Bomb,
you know what I'm saying?
Crap.
I-I totally forgot.
I can't do it, I have to finish this!
No, right, that's what I'm saying.
I'm going to teach the class for you.
I'm gonna do it.
[grunting in excitement]
* Let's get physical with those people... *
Those seniors gonna work their bodies.
For you. Wah!
Right?
Ha, ha, ha! Work it!
Let's go, people. Physical! let's do this!
[whispering, laughing]
[Principal calling] Let's go, let's go.
Come on, it's time to get to class.
Put away any cell phones.
If I see them, they are mine.
You guys get to class.
At East End Elementary,
we take bullying very seriously,
and while it upsets me,
mainly, I'm disappointed
at just how unkind my students can be.
This truly is the worst form of behavior.
The bullying needs to stop right now,
and since no one has volunteered to come forward
and tell me who vandalized the sixth-grade locker,
you can write down who you think did it
anonymously.
This is a very sad day.
[clears throat pointedly]
Come on...
you know how to be better people.
We give you her image,
non-exclusively, naturally,
and your lip gloss is seen by 100,000 teenagers
with buying power,
and probably their parents' credit cards.
That's right.
Think about it.
You have until end of business tomorrow.
Good day.
[sighs]
I got your text.
You wanted to see me?
Yes, please.
I want to talk about your part in the company.
[sighs]
Gigi, Mirabel and I are doing homework.
I don't have time.
Big mistake.
Big mistake...
What a shame.
There's my favorite web designer.
I'm your only web designer.
And a fantastic one.
Do you mind?
I don't have time to chit chat.
Yeah, I thought you'd say that,
so...
It's for your papers, your laptop,
your tablet,
and your very messy life.
[chuckles]
I love it, thank you.
Thank you,
for keeping this place running.
You do a lot,
and it's pathetic you had to remind me
in order for me to notice.
You're the best.
I couldn't do it without you.
Whoa!
Presents?
None for you.
I thought I was your favorite.
No, no, you've never been my favorite.
I'm his favorite.
Oh, okay.
Okay, okay, I'll get you a present.
What do you want?
A new Pacebit?
Yes!
Please?
The one with the bigger face.
I'll email you the link.
You got it.
Alan, thank you for earlier.
You really saved my life.
That's all right, that's what I do,
I save lives, it's cool.
[weights clanking]
Johnny, watch it!
[laughing]
[alarm rings]
[turns alarm off]
[groans]
[sighing]
What the...
What happened to all my friends?
[whispering]
Hey, Austin.
[awkwardly] Oh, hey...
Hi.
What's up?
I thought maybe we could work on our hitting?
Why would he want to do that?
It's not like you're friends or anything.
In fact,
you're not friends with anyone, are you?
[girls giggling meanly]
See ya around, jockstrap.
[school bell ringing]
Has anyone seen Elisa?
[muffled sobbing]
Elisa, honey, are you in here?
Just a minute!
Okay,
you and I both have had enough.
Do you want to wash your face?
I'm okay.
Okay.
It's okay, sweetie, I'm here with you, okay?
You just take all the time you need.
I was thinking,
now that the girls don't need me so much,
I think it's time for me to get back in the game.
Wait...
Wait, you have a degree in Psychology?
[chuckles]
Well, I really wanted to pursue that,
but then I met my first husband, and you know how that goes,
but I'm open to suggestions.
[Ricky's cell phone rings]
Oh, it's Elisa's school.
Hello.
Oh, uh, Principal Reed.
All right.
No problem, I'll be right there.
Elisa's being bullied. I gotta go.
Oh! I'm coming.
I'm so sorry,
I don't know what has gotten into Lucy lately.
My daughter is out there crying,
having her self-esteem ripped apart,
and there's no concrete action being taken
to ensure it never happens again.
Let's call Lucy in
and see if we can get to the bottom of it.
Let's do that.
Lucy?
We'd like to see you.
Come on.
Whatever I'm being accused of, I didn't do it.
We'll see about that.
What are you, the parent police?
Lucy!
Just sayin',
innocent until proven guilty.
Aw, cut the act, sweetheart.
You think I don't know girls like you?
Honey, I was a girl just like you.
The first time I was in the Principal's Office,
I cut a girl's ponytail off.
I just couldn't stop myself,
I was so angry,
and I... I just lost it.
I think you know something about that, hmm?
I didn't do anything that bad.
I just didn't like Elisa hanging out with Austin.
You mean you wanted him for yourself,
and you couldn't take it
that he was all about Elisa, right?
I try and do everything right,
but it just doesn't seem to be working.
And what do you think will happen
if you don't do everything right?
My parents are always working,
it's take-out every night,
and I'm alone eating it.
This morning, I had Chinese food for breakfast.
No one even cared.
[sniffling]
I even streaked my hair red once,
and no one even noticed!
Oh, honey, I had no idea.
[crying]
We never meant to make you feel like this.
I feel like no matter what I do,
whether I flunk or get an "A",
no one cares.
Of course we care.
Sweetheart, listen,
you cannot control how other people react,
you can only control your own behavior.
And your parents work hard for you,
and they deserve a little respect,
not this bad girl act you're putting on.
I'm sorry.
Am I grounded?
Oh, yeah, big time.
Because we care.
And I promise you,
either your dad or I will be with you
every night for dinner.
Okay?
Thank you.
It's gonna be all right.
[sniffles]
Aw...
I'm really sorry I was mean to you.
I was just feeling crappy about myself,
and I took it out on you.
Well... okay.
I'm sorry you're feeling crappy.
Everyone has their crap.
I'd really like to be friends.
Okay.
Me too.
Okay, let's go.
You know...
you were amazing back there.
Just a little tough love.
No, but it was more than that.
You were intuitive, you were insightful,
and you had this real calming presence.
I... I'd say you were a natural born mediator.
Well, thank you, that's very flattering.
Well, if she can get Lucy King to apologize,
she's a miracle worker.
Wonderful, thank you.
Come on, darling.
[text alert chimes]
"Dear, Liam,
"Cooper Management regrets to inform you
"that based upon your evaluation,
your services will no longer be needed"?
"Yours truly, Gigi Cooper,
Manager of Miracle Mirabel."
I just can't believe that I'm a real working model now.
Can you believe that--
-I'm fired? -Uh, what do you mean?
You know, I think we should have a talk
with your new manager.
You think?
She is in so much trouble.
[sighing heavily]
What a day.
With three girls, it's always going to be chaotic.
You know, sometimes, I...
I feel like I'm failing Isabella.
You know, like she's looking down at me
just shaking her head.
Our Isabella wasn't perfect.
I'm sure if she was here right now,
you'd be struggling through this together.
Thanks.
You know, if my memory serves me correctly,
Isabella had a mean girl streak.
[chuckling] I know.
I was the target.
And that's because she liked you.
[chuckling together]
Ricky, you're a good dad.
Don't beat yourself up.
Believe it.
Take Elisa home.
[sighing heavily]
I'm sorry about what you went through today.
It's okay.
No.
It's not.
Were you ever bullied?
I wasn't.
But I was the little brother, so I was teased,
a lot.
Uncle Bill and his friends used to call me "Icky Ricky."
That's bad.
Yeah.
Yeah, but who became
a professional baseball player, huh?
Daddy?
When did it stop?
When I hit my growth spurt,
and grew taller than Uncle Bill and all his buddies.
Maybe I'll be tall.
[chuckles]
Look, I want you to know
that you can come to me with anything--
I know.
Thanks, Dad.
Or should I say...
thanks, Icky Ricky?
Ooh...
watch it, watch it.
And please, do not remind your Uncle Bill.
I am so sorry,
but I'm gonna have to tell him this.
[sighing in exasperation]
You're worse than Uncle Bill with the "Icky Ricky--"
Dad!
This is so bad,
I am so sorry.
What's wrong, sweetie?
I wasn't supposed to tell you.
You know he hates when you start with that.
I decided to manage Mirabel's Instagram career,
and now the whole Internet hates her,
and is saying she's ugly,
and at first they were covering her pages with horses,
and now they're stalking her in real life.
Wait, wait, wait, horses? Stalking?
What are you talking about, Gigi?
Mirabel's getting dragged on the web.
[crying]
Mirabel?
Honey, what's going on?
[crying] It's really bad, Papi.
They're saying such mean things about me
and some of them are really inappropriate.
It's really bad.
Oh, my God.
I-I-I don't want you to read that garbage.
It-it's garbage, okay?
Don't look at it again. You got it?
It's really bad, Papi.
Some of them are asking for my address, and...
Hey, hey...
...and the school I go to.
It's okay, it's okay.
I'm going to take care of this, don't worry.
Just don't go online again.
L-Let me deal with this.
Just... just let me think.
Okay? It's okay.
I'm so sorry, Papi.
It's okay, it's okay.
Hey, it's okay.
It's over.
Now.
This whole online presence of yours, it's over.
Right now.
Stephanie...
How fast can you get to my house?
Hey, guys!
A lot of my followers write to me
bout how their favorite mattesa just totally dry out their lips.
That's because matte lipstick use more wax than oil,
and since less oil is being used,
then lips tend to dry out more quickly.
That's okay,
ecause Mirabel's got a miracleb just for you.
I shut everything down.
Her website, Instagram,
Facebook, all of it.
I disabled the comments,
and removed all her profiles.
[sighs]
Thanks for helping me.
I know you're busy.
I just didn't know who else to call.
Anytime.
Those comments were hard to read.
It brought me back to high school.
I mean, when you and I were growing up,
we could make mistakes without everyone knowing.
I mean, these kids make a mistake,
and the whole world knows.
I know, it's terrifying.
I-I feel like I'm navigating through uncharted territory.
Well, Mirabel's lucky to have a dad like you.
They all are.
I didn't feel it today.
Hey...
You may be a single dad, but...
you don't have to do this alone.
So, I saved everything to the drive.
It's a cached version only you have access to,
in case you ever want to see the videos.
No, thank you.
They're surprisingly informative.
[knocks gently]
Hey...
you okay?
Yeah.
No...
I don't know.
Does someone need help with their wing-tips?
Your eye makeup?
[laughing gently]
I'll take that as a yes.
Come with me.
Stephanie's here.
They're dealing with it.
I don't want to talk about it.
Not right now.
Okay.
Fix my eyes.
[spritzing brush]
[sighs]
I remember the first time I tried to do eyeliner...
pretty sure I gave myself Pink Eye.
[laughs] Really?
But you're so good at makeup.
I guess I'd better be.
Apparently, I need a lot of it.
Apparently, I'm a horse.
Well...
you're a really pretty horse with the best mane ever.
No.
That's you.
You have the best mane ever.
I do?
Yeah.
I would kill for your waves,
and those curls.
Thanks, Mirabel.
And I don't think you should care
what other people think.
I know.
It's hard not to.
Let's try our best not to,
okay?
Deal, hermana.
You know,
you're pretty smart for a tween.
Everyone thinks Gigi's the genius,
but... it's actually me.
Ooh, can we try a matte lip, too?
Everyone's talking about mattes.
And, uh, what exactly brought this on?
I mean, you're usually putting grease under your eyes.
Eye Black?
Can't I wear makeup, too?
That's not what I meant.
It's just, usually,
you're not really the makeup type, you know?
[quietly] Do you think I'm weird?
Elisa, no.
Of course not.
If anyone tells you different,
they're haters.
[sighing heavily]
It's just...
I feel so different from other girls.
I wanted to feel normal for once.
Let me tell you something.
There's no such thing as normal.
People can be cruel.
That doesn't mean that you have to change for them.
You're already amazing.
You know,
reading what everyone wrote about me,
complete strangers,
it made me realize something,
there's always going to be trolls in the world.
There's always going to be people
that want to bring you down.
Yeah, I know what you mean.
But when we're at our lowest point,
that's when our super powers kick in.
Super powers?
We have the power to rise above them,
you and me.
Superpower sisters.
Boom.
[laughing]
Come here.
[***]
Family communication is vital, you guys.
If something isn't going right at school,
or getting out of hand online,
I need to know about it.
But...
sometimes, it's hard to talk about.
I don't exactly want to go over the horrible day I just had
with my dad.
And sometimes, I just think
maybe you won't understand.
I'm not always going to understand everything...
you girls are into,
but I love you,
and I need to know what's going on
before it becomes much, much worse.
You need to take this seriously.
Kids have hurt themselves because of bullying and hate.
Dad's right.
When I read all those comments, I...
I just wanted the ground to swallow me up.
And that's just the beginning.
If those people who wrote those comments knew you,
they would never write those words.
It's easy to hide behind a screen.
It's cowardly.
All right, from here on out,
let's make a deal.
If someone is making us feel "less than,"
we're going to talk it out.
And if we see someone getting bullied,
we're going to do something about it.
Okay?
[gently] Poof!
[doorbell rings]
[sighs heavily]
You guys get to bed.
Oh, hey.
Alan...
Are you okay?
No, I'm, uh...
I-I'm shocked.
I'm-I'm... floored. I...
Okay.
Hey, listen, if this isn't a good time,
I'll leave these with you, you sign them later,
I'll get them tomorrow at work.
[sighs] No, no,
this is a good time.
For a drink.
Come in.
Hey.
Thanks.
I'm telling you, Alan...
the things these... people wrote
about my daughter.
It was ugly, and- and hateful, and...
[sighs in frustration]
I'm not a parent, but I can imagine.
My parents had to deal with it,
and it wasn't easy for them.
I had a rough time in high school.
A pretty bad time in middle school.
But, you know, I didn't have this thing
to remind me every single second
of every day
how unkind people are.
Yeah.
It's this constant reassurance kids need,
you know, the "likes" and "hearts,"
and that's how they measure themselves
up against their peers.
And then the comments, it's...
[sighs]
I am so happy
we didn't have the Internet when we were kids.
Yeah.
Yeah, I'm grateful for that.
To not-stupid people.
[bottles clink]
[alarm rings]
[slaps alarm off]
[inhales bravely]
[***]
Hey, Elisa.
Oh, Austin.
Hi.
Did you, uh, get my friend request?
You know,
I haven't checked.
I think I might actually stay off the grid for a while.
Listen, I'm sorry about the other day.
That wasn't cool.
At all.
I was a real jerk.
I'm so sorry.
You were.
But I get it.
It can be hard to speak up
if it's not you going through it.
Yeah, but that doesn't make it right.
I was really wrong, Elisa, I'm so sorry.
Thanks.
It's okay.
I could show you my curveball?
Maybe you'd have some tips?
You have a curveball?
Really, now?
Well, not exactly,
I'm working on one.
I'll be the judge of that.
Well, well, well...
If it isn't little Miss Manager.
Look,
I just want to apologize.
This book I was reading
just brought out the unbridled capitalist in me,
and just like the free market,
we all just need a little regulation.
I'm sorry for being such a jerk,
and, well, let's just say,
these past few days have given me a lot to think about.
[sighs meekly]
Don't sweat it.
Well, I was wondering about the best way
to get the message out to all the kids.
[Rosa] What if the message wasn't just to kids?
What if we could speak to a larger audience?
What are you thinking?
I'm thinking that I have a famous son-in-law.
I'm thinking I like what you're thinking.
Gotta go.
[call disconnects]
Ricky, it's me.
I have got a great idea.
All right, all right, can I have your attention?
Good morning, everyone.
[students, together]: Good morning, Mr. Reed.
Bullying...
you know, it's like a weed.
If you don't pull it out by the roots,
it'll come back,
and then it spreads.
And a very wise person taught me
that the best way to stop bullying
is person to person.
So now I'd like to introduce you to a person
that you thought you knew.
Lucy King.
[applause]
If you squeeze a tube of toothpaste,
the toothpaste comes out easily.
But trying to put it back in?
These are the words you've said out loud
or posted online.
Once they're out there, they're out there.
And no matter how sorry you are,
you can never take them back.
But in person,
you can apologize.
Elisa Cooper,
I am truly sorry.
And I can promise it never will happen again.
I really hope we can be friends.
And now,
a video on bullying
from The Cooper Family.
[applause]
Hi there.
For all of you who don't know me,
I'm Ricky Cooper,
professional baseball player.
[family, together]: Ex-professional
baseball player.
[laughter]
Ricky, on video]: That's true,[ but all joking aside,
we're here to talk to you about bullying,
which is no joke.
Over 70% of young people
have witnessed bullying at their school.
And 15% of students have been electronically bullied
just this past year.
And over 50% of all those bullied
identify as LGBTQ.
Many of them choose to remain silent,
but bullying can stop in ten seconds
when someone speaks up.
But cyber-bullying is different.
With cyber-bullying,
bullying doesn't end on the playground.
It follows you all the way home.
Hate mail, name-calling, physical fights,
all can have deadly consequences.
[Ricky, on video]: Persistent bullying,
whether online or in person,
can lead to feelings of despair, isolation,
anxiety, and depression.
[Mirabel] This leaves a huge impact
on your community, your friends, and...
[all together] Your family.
But it's not hopeless,
and you can make a difference.
Take it from me,
I was a bully.
But now...
we're friends.
It's not hopeless for you, or the bully.
So think before you type.
Take action over silence.
And together...
We can stop bullying...
Before it starts.
And if you or a friend are experiencing bullying,
please remember that it does get better.
[Elisa, on video] Know hat people are here for you...t
[Gigi, on video]: That you are loved...
[Rosa, on video]: You are strong...
[Ricky, on video]: And you are not alone.
For more information,
visit www.thebullyproject.com
and make a difference.
[applause]