Every once in a while, you'll see a scene that has you totally captivated — even though it is a 100% talking heads scene. That's right, not one bit of action, but the level of drama is so high that you are engrossed.

How can that be? What is it that is so special about two people talking that have us so emotionally evolved?

I've already covered a solid strategy for improving talking heads scenes (and others) in my articles, Situations That Sell Your Screenplay, Parts 1 and 2. Today, I'd like to take a look at how a talking heads scene might work by creating deeper meaning in the dialogue.

I'll give you the punchline in advance. The key to your success when writing a talking heads scene is to deliver meaning, emotion, and entertainment — not exposition.

Keep reminding yourself that every scene in a script MUST entertain the audience in some way. So, if 95% of the scene consists of dialogue, that dialogue has to be entertaining, emotional, and deliver some powerful meaning.

To illustrate this, I'd like to use the famous "You had me at hello" scene from the movie JERRY MAGUIRE. In it, you'll see that many different skills have been used to turn a talking heads scene into a total tear jerker.

To set this scene up…

We're at the very end of the movie. Jerry has achieved his external goal of having his only client succeed. But there is an internal question about whether he can love anyone or not.

Setup: Dorothy has been married to Jerry, but didn't feel love. She finally has joined her sister's divorce group. Jerry is on his way over to see Dorothy.

>From JERRY MAGUIRE

INT. DOROTHY'S LIVING ROOM — NIGHT

The Divorced Women's Group in session. Laurel stands near the doorway, blowing cigarette smoke into the night. Dorothy is now a part of this group.

NOTE: Here's the perfect setting for Jerry to face his fear. It is a room full of unhappy women who all want revenge on a man. But there are some who just want to be loved — and that is a greater fear for Jerry.

DOROTHY

I've listened to you all tell a thousand sob stories, and I have been very judgmental. Frankly, I think you've all been waaaay too comfortable with your pain. Plus, Jan, you always spill your red wine on the couch.

(off Jan's guilty look)

I've not been fair to you. Women need to stick together, and not depend on the affections of a man to "fix" their lives. Maybe you're all correct. Men are the enemy.

Murmurs of agreement.

NOTE: The first thing this has accomplished is to set up the problem that Jerry will face. From a structural perspective, it has started the HOPE/FEAR pattern that is used all throughout this script.

In the previous scene, we saw Jerry finally get the success and recognition he has wanted. That gave us hope. Now, we see his wife, Dorothy, becomes part of a group that sees men as the enemy. That causes us to fear for Jerry…and Dorothy.

DOROTHY

(continuing)

But I still love the enemy.

Murmurs of disappointment.

NOTE: Here's hope again. Dorothy still cares about him, even though she identified him as the enemy, which keeps us in doubt.

The emotional roller-coaster is going. Hope, fear, hope…and it will continue. The writer is doing an amazing job of toying with our emotions…and we love this story because of it.

EXT. DOROTHY'S HOUSE — NIGHT

Jerry exits cab, holding hang-up bag. Looks at the house.

On the other side of that window is a world he hopes he's still a part of.

INT. LIVING ROOM — NIGHT

Jerry enters. Dorothy is seated toward the back.

JERRY

Hello. I'm looking for my wife.

NOTE: These are words Jerry didn't normally say… especially since they are getting a divorce.

But there's another reason…

Early in the movie, they played a video of his old girlfriends, who all agreed that Jerry was incapable of love. So he's facing a physical manifestation of his fear — the women — and his own internal battle — his inability to express love to a woman.

Dorothy looks up, robbed of words. Stunned, she does not move.

JERRY

(continuing)

Alright. If this is where it has to
happen, then this is where it has to
happen.

Dorothy says nothing.

NOTE: Back to fear. Jerry is talking to a room that is absolutely committed to his failure. His wife hasn't done anything to encourage him. He's all alone.

JERRY

(continuing)

I'm not letting you get rid of me.
How about that?

He shares a look with some of the other women. She's not going to say a word. Neither do they.

NOTE: Hope. He's just said more than he's ever said before. He's put his ass on the line. So he's taken a big risk here…and no one responded.

What a nightmare! We're back to fear.

Before we go any further, notice the things that the writer has done to make a talking heads scene powerful:

1. The setup — divorce, Jerry can't love, women in support of Dorothy, Jerry's success felt meaningless — all prepare us for this important moment in both their lives.
2. The stakes — if Jerry fails at this moment, their love and marriage is over.
3. The setting is tailor-designed to increase the tension.
4. The emotional roller-coaster of hope/fear/hope/fear build our emotional evolvement and cause us to live the same emotions the characters are experiencing.

Those four components give this scene the kind of drama that caused the line "You had me at hello" to become one of the most memorable lines of that year.

But let's continue with the scene and you'll see how the rest of this plays out.

JERRY

(continuing)

This used to be my specialty. I was good in a living room. Send me in there, I'll do it alone. And now I just… I don't know… but on what was supposed to be the happiest night of my business life, it wasn't complete, wasn't nearly close to being in the same vicinity as complete, because I couldn't share it with you. I couldn't hear your voice, or laugh about it with you. I missed my wife.

NOTE: Now, we're getting close to his character arc being completed. He just said he missed her. But is this enough? The writer has done a great job of setting up the need for the words "I love you."

JERRY

We live in a cynical world, and we
work in a business of tough
competitors, so try not to laugh —

(directly)

I love you. You complete me.

NOTE: Wow! He finally said it. Not only did he say it, but he added three more words that were well set up. The first time that Dorothy took a risk on Jerry and left her job, there were two deaf people in the elevator who were obviously in love. They signed the words "You complete me."

So all six words have deep meaning. But this also completes the character arc. The guy who couldn't express love privately has now done it publicly.

DOROTHY

Aw, shut up.

NOTE: Wait! After all of that, she tells him to shut up? He finally has become the man she wanted and that is her response?

Yes.

Because this is a very emotional moment and the audience is sitting on the edge of their seats, hoping these two will get together. So this line has added to the emotional roller-coaster.

But then she says…

DOROTHY

You had me at hello.

NOTE: There it is — the most famous line of the whole movie. Why? Because it is a beautiful response to everything that has come before it.

Notice that she didn't say "Aw, shut up. I love you, too." That's what she means, but that line would have died. "You had me at hello" says so much more. It says that she has loved him this whole time. It also says that she made him go through this whole speech, knowing she was going to take him back.

Why would she do that? Possibly because she needed to hear it. Maybe it was she felt that he needed to show that he was totally committed to her. Or it could have been that she wanted her sister and the other women to believe in her choice of a husband.

So this line had four things going for it:

1. It delivered multiple meanings.
2. It was said at the peak of an emotional scene.
3. It had been set up powerfully.
4. It was the answer we were hoping for.

So it joins lines like "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn" and others that will stay in our memory and bring back an entire movie with a single sentence.

He moves to her. They embrace. Ray watches in b.g. Jerry has given this room hope. It's on their faces. At last, even Laurel gets off on her sister's happiness, as she shares a look with Chad.

NOTE: And there's the final payoff — Dorothy's sister is finally happy for her.

Now, you've seen what really goes into a great talking heads scene. Keep in mind that all of this didn't happen in a single draft. Most likely, there were many rewrites that contributed to the quality of this scene.

Next time you want to write an emotional dialogue scene, review this article and use the setup, stakes, setting and emotional roller-coaster to deliver the kind of depth and entertainment that will have us sitting on the edge of our seats. You can also check out our next Pushing The Envelope Screenwriting Class to learn how to add scenes like this and more to your script.

You can do it!