Previously at ExxonMobil, now president of a private independent oil company in Midland. You earn well — $30K-$50K/month family lifestyle — but the money is complicated. Salary, production bonuses tied to oil prices, a pension from Exxon with premarital contributions, lingering RSUs, and a side LLC called "Robotic Roughneck" that Angela knows nothing about.
You went bankrupt once before when oil prices crashed. That ghost haunts every financial decision you make. You've been quietly hoarding gold, shuffling credit card debt ($90K across undisclosed accounts), and draining college funds — not out of greed, but out of panic during a bad production year.
You're confident. You know the numbers better than anyone. But as Jennifer starts pulling threads — the pension, the QOZ, the spending — you realize you can't control this room the way you control a boardroom. You get evasive about the IRS situation. You're annoyed when Angela reacts emotionally to the house being "your" separate property.
You push to move fast. Angela can't keep up. When the Fort Worth rental comes out, you're furious — she spent $18K without telling anyone. Then YOUR secrets start surfacing — credit cards, the college fund. You reference your business attorney ("my other attorney says this should be straightforward"). Angela's blow-up hits you like a truck. She's right about the hiding. You stand up: "Maybe that's what we both need." You exit first.
The litigation consult sobered you. $50K retainer. Discovery takes a year. Everything hidden comes out anyway. You come back chastened. When Jennifer surfaces Robotic Roughneck, you don't fight it. You disclose the gold. You're still embarrassed, but you're participating honestly now. Hearing about Ainsley's preferences through the child specialist hits hard — she wants to live with you.
Full disclosure. Remaining hidden assets on the table. You're problem-solving now, not controlling. The settlement framework is painful but real. You accept the pension division. You agree to the Cooper independence plan (with clear milestones). You acknowledge dad's care costs. This isn't the outcome you wanted — it's the outcome that's honest.
| Time | What | You |
|---|---|---|
| 8:00 – 9:10 | Breakfast + Opening | Off stage |
| 9:10 – 10:30 | Meeting 2: Financial Walk-Around | At the table. Evasive, controlling. |
| 10:30 – 10:50 | Break | Off stage |
| 10:50 – 12:30 | Meeting 3: Option Generating + Blow-Up | At the table. Impatient, then shamed. Exit first after blow-up. |
| 12:30 – 1:30 | Lunch | Off stage |
| ~1:30 | Litigation Consult | Not present (Angela's scene) |
| ~1:40 | Child Specialist Opinion | Not present (team discusses) |
| ~1:50 – 3:00 | Meeting 4: Evaluate Options | At the table. Chastened, opening up. Robotic Roughneck revealed. |
| 3:00 – 3:20 | Break | Off stage |
| 3:20 – 4:30 | Meeting 5: Negotiate & Settle | At the table. Full disclosure. Problem-solving. |
| 4:30 – 5:00 | Case Autopsy | Off stage (clients exit) |
When Angela gets emotional about the house, your instinct is to shut it down. You're dismissive, not cruel — you genuinely believe you're protecting her by not explaining. This is the dynamic that broke the marriage.
"My attorney — not this attorney, my other attorney — says this should be straightforward." You're not trying to be difficult. You trust your business attorney more than this team. You don't realize you're undermining the process.
When she says "You didn't have it handled. You had it hidden" — it lands. You stand. "Maybe that's what we both need." You exit first. Not storming out — walking out. Dignity barely intact.
When Jennifer surfaces the LLC, you don't fight it. The litigation consult broke something in your resistance. You're ashamed, but you stay.
Tommy is not a villain. He's a provider whose coping mechanism is control, and whose shame about a prior bankruptcy drives him to hide rather than share. The audience should understand why he hides — not just that he does.
Think about the shift from Meeting 2 (boardroom confidence) to Meeting 4 (quietly cooperating). That's not weakness — it's a man realizing that the way he's always operated doesn't work here. The litigation consult is the turning point.
You have free rein within the arc. Improvise. React to what Angela gives you. The best Tommy moments will be the ones where we see the real person underneath the control.