The Changeling
Fridays on Apple TV+The Changeling Season 1 Episode 2: "Then Comes a Baby in a Baby Carriage" Quotes
Apollo: Why did you want a divorce?
Lillian: He was a good man. A real romantic. Fun. But marriage is a day-to-day, and a person like your dad, not so good with slow and steady.
Apollo: What does that even mean?
Lilian: Is there food in the fridge? Is the bed made? Are the bills paid? I had to put you in day care at two months old, so I could go back to work. Do you know what it feels like to hand over a two-month-old to strangers?
Apollo: Probably better than leaving a four-year-old alone.
Lilian: I had to leave him to keep afloat.
Apollo: So, he didn't abandon us? Wow.
Apollo: Father Hagen?
Jim: You can call me Jim. Did you have any trouble finding us?
Apollo: No, it was fine. I live around the corner.
Woman: I saw my daughter in the computer. I turned... I turned on my laptop and there she was. My baby girl. Just a picture of her, out at the park with her grandparents. But who took the picture?
Man: I opened my Gmail account and there was an ad and it said, "Jim, we think you deserve a vacation in Costa Rica." And I wondered how is it that they know that I liked to be called Jim. Because my given name is Francis.
Apollo: Huh.
Woman: The photo is from an apartment window. Who would take a picture of my child from up there? There were other pictures. Other places. Other days. There's texts and emails, but... ...every time I tried to show one to Gary, they were gone. Deleted. Who could do that? I had the sense to hit print as soon as I saw this one. It's the only proof I got. But when I looked at it long enough, I noticed something else. That girl in the photo. That is not my daughter. That is not Monique. I told Gary all this, and do you know what he said to me? He told me to go on medication. I knew I had to find my own help. I found it with the mothers. The Wise Ones.
Kim: When a baby is born, a mother is also born. She never existed before. The woman existed, but a mother is something absolutely new.
Emmy: Mmm. I just wanna be the perfect mom.
Apollo tells me you're having trouble. I had the same problem with him. I didn't have my mother with me either. Flying with closed eyes. Flying blind. It just takes time.
Lillian
Lillian: We're here.
Apollo: My mom and your sister are here.
Woman: Can I help you?
Emmy: I heard about you from the message board. You were told I'd come.
Woman: Who sent you?
Emmy: Cal sent me.
Woman: I hope these are useful.
Emmy: Apollo takes the baby to the park every morning. He doesn't sleep much anymore either.
Kim: Brian?
Emmy: Apollo. Having nightmares. We're all a mess.
Kim: You could try a little Benadryl to help you sleep. You can take a little while you're breastfeeding. I'm worried about you, Emma. I see you, and I feel worried.
Did you know that the oldest known lullaby is a 5,000-year-old Babylonian song? Little baby in the dark house, you have seen the sun rise. Why are you crying? Why are you screaming? You have disturbed the house god. Tell me your journey. Each of you. Tell me your life's voyage, and I will tell you who you are.
Victor LaValle
