Miniseries

“Bryukhanov: I take it the safety test was a failure? Anatoly Dyatlov: We have the situation under control. Fomin: Under control? It doesn't look like it's under control. Bryukhanov: Shut up, Fomin. I have to tell the Central Committee about this. Do you realize that? I have to get on the phone and t…”

— Craig Mazin, Anatoly Dyatlov, Jared Harris, imdb.com

“Misha: [Picks up chunk of graphite from core] Vasily... Hey, Vasily, what's this? Vasily Ignatenko: I don't know, Misha. Don't fuck around with it. Hook these up, come on. [to so-and-so] Do you taste metal? Misha: Yeah, what is that? Vasily Ignatenko: I don't know. Misha: [later] No! [Screams from i…”

— Craig Mazin, Lyudmilla Ignatenko, Jessie Buckley, imdb.com

“No one leaves. We cut the phone lines. Contain the spread of misinformation. That is how we keep the people from undermining the fruits of their own labor.”

— Craig Mazin, Zharkov, Donald Sumter, imdb.com

“[Ending scene: As Legasov is driven away from Chernobyl by the KGB, his voice on tape is heard] To be a scientist is to be naive. We are so focused on our search for truth, we fail to consider how few actually want us to find it. But it is always there, whether we see it or not, whether we choose to…”

— Craig Mazin, Valery Legasov, Jared Harris, imdb.com

“[Legasov is arrested by the KGB for refusing to toe the party line and is led to a private interrogation room] Charkov: [reads file] Valery Alexeyevich Legasov, son of Alexei Legasov, Head of Ideological Compliance, Central Committee. Do you know what your father did there? Legasov: Yes. Charkov: As…”

— Craig Mazin, Valery Legasov, Jared Harris, imdb.com

“[As the courtroom is at a recess, Legasov meets with Shcherbina outside] Shcherbina: [Coughing] Do you know anything about this town, Chernobyl? Legasov: Not really, no. Shcherbina: It was mostly Jews and Poles. The Jews were killed in pogroms, and Stalin forced the Poles out. And then the Nazis cam…”

— Craig Mazin, Anatoly Dyatlov, Paul Ritter, imdb.com

“[Pripyat, April 25, 1986 - twelve hours prior to the explosion] Fomin: I hear they might promote Bryukhanov. This little problem we have with the safety test, if it's completed successfully... yes, I think promotion's very likely. Who knows? Maybe Moscow. Naturally, they'll put me in charge once he'…”

— Craig Mazin, Anatoly Dyatlov, Paul Ritter, imdb.com

“Legasov: No one in the room that night knew the shutdown button (AZ-5) could act as a detonator. They didn't know it, because it was kept from them. Kadnikov: Comrade Legasov, you're contradicting your own testimony in Vienna. Legasov: My testimony in Vienna was a lie. I lied to the world. I'm not t…”

— Craig Mazin, Valery Legasov, Jared Harris, imdb.com

“Of course I know they're listening! I want them to hear! I want them to hear it all! [from outside, where Legasov and General Tarakanov can hear] Do you know what we're doing here?! Tell those geniuses what they have done! I don't give a fuck! Tell them! Go tell them! Ryzhkov! Go tell them he's a jo…”

— Craig Mazin, Boris Shcherbina, Stellan Skarsgard, imdb.com

“[An old woman milking a cow refuses to evacuate from a village near Chernobyl] Old Woman: You know how old I am? Soldier: I don't know. Old. Old Woman: I'm 82. I've lived here my whole life. Right here, that house, this place. What do I care about ‘safe’? Soldier: I have a job. Don't cause trouble.…”

— Craig Mazin, Soldier, Josef Altin, imdb.com

“Legasov: [showing pictures of the damaged reactor] The atom is a humbling thing. General Nikolai Tarakanov: It's not humbling, it's humiliating. Why is the core still exposed to the air? Why have we not already covered it up? Legasov: We want to, but we can't get close enough. The debris on the roof…”

— Craig Mazin, Valery Legasov, Jared Harris, imdb.com

“Legasov: Are you all right? Khomyuk: They didn't hurt me. They let a pregnant woman in with—oh, it doesn't matter. They were stupid. I was stupid. Dyatlov don't talk to me. Akimov, yes, Toptunov, yes, but... Valery, Akimov... his face was gone. Legasov: You want to stop? Khomyuk: Is that a choice I…”

— Craig Mazin, Valery Legasov, Jared Harris, imdb.com

“[After a meeting with the Central Committee, Legasov confronts KGB official Aleksandr Charkov about Khomyuk's arrest] Legasov: She was arrested by the KGB. You are the first deputy chairman of the KGB. Aleksandr Charkov: [amused] I am. That's why I don't have to bother with arresting people anymore.…”

— Craig Mazin, Valery Legasov, Jared Harris, imdb.com

“[May 3, 1986: A Party official and two soldiers arrive at a coal mine in Tula, Russian SFSR] Mikhail Shchadov: Who's in charge here? Andrei Glukhov: I'm the crew chief. Shchadov: I am Shchadov, minister of coal industries. Glukhov: We know who you are. Shchadov: How many men do you have? Glukhov: On…”

— Craig Mazin, Andrei Glukhov, Alex Ferns, imdb.com

“[The Kremlin, Moscow: Legasov and Ulana Khomyuk explain the consequences of a nuclear meltdown with full water tanks] Ulana Khomyuk: When the lava enters these tanks, it will instantly superheat and vaporize approximately 7,000 cubic meters of water, causing a significant thermal explosion. Gorbache…”

— Craig Mazin, Mikhail Gorbachev, Sam Troughton, imdb.com

“[Legasov and Shcherbina faces incredulous workers as they ask for volunteers in a suicidal mission to open the sluice gate valve] You'll do it because nobody else can. And if you don't, millions will die. If you tell me that's not enough I won't believe you. This is what has always set our people ap…”

— Craig Mazin, Boris Shcherbina, Stellan Skarsgard, imdb.com

“[Polissya hotel, Pripyat: Helicopters dropping sand and boron to extinguish the fire in the Chernobyl plant] Shcherbina: It's been smooth. Twenty drops. [notices Legasov's expression] What? Legasov: There are fifty thousand people in this city. Shcherbina: Professor Ilyin, who's also on the commissi…”

— Craig Mazin, Boris Shcherbina, Stellan Skarsgard, imdb.com

“[Inside a military jeep, as Fomin and Bryukhanov prepare to meet Shcherbina...] Fomin: It's overkill. Pikalov's showing off to make us look bad. Bryukhanov: It doesn't matter how it looks. Shcherbina is a pure bureaucrat, as stupid as he is pigheaded. We'll tell him the truth in the simplest terms p…”

— Craig Mazin, Boris Shcherbina, Stellan Skarsgard, imdb.com

“[Colonel General Pikalov returns from the testing to give his report] Pikalov: It's not three roentgen. It's 15,000. Bryukhanov: Comrade Shcherbina— Shcherbina: [Turns to Legasov] What does that number mean? Legasov: It means the core is open. It means the fire we're watching with our own eyes is gi…”

— Craig Mazin, Boris Shcherbina, Stellan Skarsgard, imdb.com

“[As Valery Legasov and Boris Shcherbina make their way to Chernobyl in a helicopter...] Boris Shcherbina: How does a nuclear reactor work? Valery Legasov: What? Shcherbina: It's a simple question. Legasov: It's hardly a simple answer. Shcherbina: Of course, you presume I'm too stupid to understand.…”

— Craig Mazin, Boris Shcherbina, Stellan Skarsgard, imdb.com