The Last Tycoon S01E02 "Nobody Recasts Like Monroe" Recap

We flashback to right after Monroe Stahr lost his wife in a tragic accident. Pat Brady's wife Rose comes to check in on him, and their affair begins. Returning to 1936, the main time setting of the show's plot, Monroe is having dinner with his new love interest Kathleen. She came to the States to pursue an acting career but hated the person she was becoming in doing so. She works as a waitress but it's an honest living and allows her to keep her self-interest. Monroe still believes she could be an actress though.

Monroe is still working hard at the studio to get his film made and Celia asks him to ensure that she be taken seriously as a producer or else she will not get the respect from the writers as she deserves. He apologises for treating her like a kid and goes on about his business. Max Miner begins his work at the studio lot and remains determined to be able to get enough money to get his younger siblings out of the park they've been living in and into a proper place of residence instead. When some drivers are attacked, they all gather with some other studio employees to discuss forming a union and Celia attends too, shocked and horrified by the poor working conditions they face. Their peaceful meeting is attacked by some thugs and Celia stares in horror when a fight breaks out between an employee and one lone thug that was smashing up cars with the others that got away in time.

Pat Brady's latest project has a poor opening which means that many steps will have to be taken to try to salvage the film. He fires some people working on Pat's project, orders a title change, recasts, and many other changes. The no-nonsense display makes Kathleen uneasy, as it's playing on her insecurities that she is too ordinary for Monroe and that she is merely there to be a replacement of Minna, the Irish wife he loved and lost.

Celia begins asking her father questions about the treatment of its workers, wanting to know that people will be treated fairly. He implores her to find another business to get into but she tells him there is no other business. He is understanding of her passion for filmmaking.

Rose pays a visit to Monroe, trying to proposition him once more but he turns her down and insists that their affair is finishes, as he is now in love with Kathleen. He later pays a visit to Kathleen, kisses her, and implores her to believe that he cares for her and to let them embark on a relationship. She agrees.

Celia visits the wardrobe department and asks an older woman working in there if she can help with the workload, as she wants to work there (without pay) to become better educated on the inner mechanisms of the studio. The woman agrees to let her do so and Celia then meets Max Miner, who has come in to ask for a work uniform. He is unaware of the fact that she is Pat Brady's daughter.

The bank funding the studio has closed so now they must increase their cash flow from the Germans if they are to continue affording their films. Monroe instead decides to pay a visit to Louis B. Mayer, the head of another studio, to ask for a loan. Mayer had hoped that Monroe would finally agree to work for his studio instead but the prospect of being in a position of power to lend them money still intrigues him.

The Last Tycoon is available for streaming on Amazon Prime.