It's Florida, Man. (2024) s01e01 Episode Script
Toes
1
NARRATOR:
What you're about to see
may be dangerous,
illegal, unethical,
petty, misguided, immoral,
and most definitely stupid.
But it's also all true.
Hmm. Sort of.
(EERIE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(METALLIC SWISHING)
(INSECTS RUSTLING, BUZZING)
(BREATHES HEAVILY, WHIMPERS)
-(KNIFE SWISHING)
-Oh. Oh, God.
(BREATHES HEAVILY, WHIMPERS)
(MUTTERING, WHIMPERING)
(CONTINUES MUTTERING)
(WHIMPERING)
PHIL: I'm gripping the knife.
I've never been more
in the zone.
My pupils are ginormous.
(BREATHES HEAVILY)
PHIL: I lift my hand up.
-(WHIMPERS) Come on!
-PHIL: And I go, "One"
I am completely locked in.
-"Two."
-(SCREAMS)
PHIL: I see dollar signs
in my eyes. "Three"
-(SCREAMS)
-(MUSIC STOPS ABRUPTLY) ♪
I wasn't even thinking.
Like, that really wasn't me.
I was-- I guess, like a murderer
in that point or a butcher.
I was just--
"This toe needs to come off.
I need to eat it.
I need my 4,000 dollars."
(EERIE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
My name is Phillip.
I was born and raised
in Orlando, Florida.
And I'm currently a cast member
at Walt Disney World.
(UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(ZIPPER OPENING)
PHIL: This story begins
to take its shape
in the summer of 2019.
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: At that time in my life,
me and my friends
-were huge Bassnectar fans.
-(AUDIENCE CHEERING)
PHIL: We formed this, like,
traveling circus
of Bassnectar fans.
I saw him 33 times
in three years.
-(MUSIC STOPS) ♪
-(SERENE OPERATIC SINGING) ♪
PHIL: We worshipped him.
It didn't really matter
where the show was.
(SINGING CONTINUES) ♪
We were gonna figure out a way
to be there.
(PHONE CHIMES)
(SINGING CONCLUDES) ♪
PHIL: Bassnectar
was gonna be playing
a three-day concert in Colorado.
I was like, "I gotta go."
But I was hurting for cash.
And so, that's when
I kinda switched
into the mode of,
"I need money,
I need money now."
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: Whenever I need
to get money quickly,
I hop on America's best website.
PHIL:
Craigslist has not failed me.
So I made a post just saying
-(KEYBOARD KEYS CLACKING)
-"I need money now.
Willing to do anything."
"Within reason."
Typically, when you put
"I need money" offer out,
you get the creeps
saying, like
I'm like, "No,
I don't have that, I'm sorry."
-No
-(KEYBOARD KEYS CLACKING)
I don't have that.
I'm sorry.
"No, I'm sorry."
Sorry, I don't wanna do that.
I don't want to fuck anything.
I just wanna work.
-(MUSIC STOPS) ♪
-(COMPUTER CHIMES)
PHIL: But then,
Steve messaged me.
(UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: It was pretty intriguing.
It's pretty intriguing.
PHIL:
So I responded back saying,
"I'm your guy,
what's your fantasy?"
(CELL PHONE RINGING, BUZZING)
-Hello?
-Hello?
(UNSETTLING MUSIC CONTINUES) ♪
This is Steve.
PHIL: He was very blunt
and to the point.
He says, "I want you
to cut off three of my toes
cook them"
Eat them
and I wanna watch. (LAUGHS)
(CONTINUES LAUGHING)
In that moment, I was just like,
"Damn,
I really wish it was sexual."
(LAUGHS)
It'll be a blast.
I'd like to believe
I'm a pretty smart person,
but my brain just
was not computing the idea
that someone wanted
his toes cut off
and eaten by a stranger
from the internet.
Like, there's
there's just no way.
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
Hi, Phil.
(ECHOING)
I've been watching you.
Don't be shy now.
Cut those fucking toes off,
bitch,
and come to me.
I was like, "You know what?
How bad could it be?"
How bad could it be?
-(CACKLES)
-(MUSIC FADES) ♪
-All right, I'm in.
-(WHIMSICAL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
I cut some toes.
I eat them. I go see Bassnectar.
I wanna see Bassnectar.
Everything's good.
Yeah! (LAUGHS)
Yeah, listen. I said, well
PHIL:
I'm a people person at my core.
You know, the customer
is always right.
Was like, "Fuck it."
I I gotta go.
You know what I mean?
Like, I've already told the man
I'm coming.
It's his biggest fantasy.
I can't let him down.
-(INTRIGUING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
-LUCIA GABRIELLA: Mm, yeah.
Oh, yes.
I'm going to eat you alive.
Every person has a fantasy.
There's nothing wrong
with fantasies.
I am Lucia Gabriella.
I'm an intimacy expert
in Sarasota, Florida.
Unfortunately, people think
that you have to be crazy
to engage in these practices.
But hearing people's fantasies
without judgment, without shame,
it creates a sacred, safe space
for people
to really express themselves.
You know, one of the things
about people
who are into, like,
very hardcore fetishes,
like cannibalism,
where the fantasy is about,
"I want to be eaten."
The whole desire
of someone really eat them up.
Someone wants me so much
that I am part of them.
(PAN HISSING)
LUCIA: Steve, at a deeper level,
is longing so much
to feel connection
and love, unconditional love.
(WHIMSICAL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: Once we agreed
that we were gonna do it,
he's like,
"Oh, do you have a friend
that you could bring with you
to make me feel
more comfortable?
And I prefer
if it was a female."
Can you bring a friend? Female.
PHIL: And so, now
my mind's thinking, you know,
"Who is, one, free
on like a Thursday,
and two, is down to
witness cannibalism."
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
I'll be honest,
I tried really hard
not to think of this story
for a very long time.
I don't tell this story
to anyone.
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING OVER STEREO) ♪
(INTRIGUING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: We had been friends
since our sophomore year
in high school.
I had nothing to do.
Absolutely nothing
for two years of my life.
I was in a boot,
uh, due to an Achilles
rupture injury
that I had while dancing
for Orlando Magic.
And then,
Phil reaches out to me.
It was from left field.
I give her a call, and I'm like,
"Carolyn,
you're not going to believe
what I'm getting ready
to tell you."
He then lets me know that,
"Look, someone has asked me
to do something very bizarre."
"Uh, he wants me
to cut his toe off."
You can see she's visibly,
like, distraught.
She's like, "What?"
I think that because
of our relationship previously,
we just always established
that nothing was off the table.
I think Phil knew in asking me,
specifically,
that I genuinely
would not judge him.
So, I was really worried on,
like, a legal level
(CHUCKLES) right,
of the legalities of this.
Because worst case scenario
in my mind
is that this goes
horribly wrong.
(YELLS)
And then, we get questioned
by the cops or otherwise.
(POLICE SIREN WAILING)
CAROLYN:
Like, "What were you all
even doing here
and how do you know each other?"
We're here to cut
Steve's toes off and eat them.
We're high school friends.
-(CRICKETS CHIRPING)
-(INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER)
And she was like, "Are you
actually gonna do this?"
And I was like,
"I think I have to."
You know what I mean?
It's his biggest fantasy.
I kind of want to help him out.
I was honestly
(CHUCKLES) in a weird way,
honored more than anything
that he had reached out to me
for this odd job, so to speak.
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: On the drive over,
it's like I'm on a drug.
Except it's not a drug.
It's an idea.
The drug is the idea
of being in Colorado
with my best friends,
listening to Bassnectar.
Come to me.
(DISTORTED VOICE) Come to me.
Bass! Bass! Bass! Bass!
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
CAROLYN: So, when we get there,
to Steve's house,
we see that
there's only one way in
and really one way out.
We're walking in
with zero understanding.
We haven't even seen a picture
of Steve at that point.
PHIL: You know,
this is the kind of stuff
your parents say don't do.
-Don't talk to strangers
on the internet.
-(KNOCKING ON DOOR)
PHIL:
Don't take your best friend
to their house at night.
That was textbook
stranger danger.
I was just breaking
all the rules.
CAROLYN: I think I imagine Steve
being like a recluse
and like a hoarder,
like in his mother's basement
or something,
like playing video games
with, like, a bag of Funyuns.
(CREEPY STEVE WHISTLES)
PHIL: Maybe he just likes feet
and he wants, like,
a feet act done.
(CHUCKLES)
-So hot.
-PHIL: Maybe he's a maniac.
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(KNOCKING ON DOOR)
(CREEPY STEVE WHISTLES)
(KNOCKING ON DOOR)
It's them.
-(MUSIC STOPS ABRUPTLY) ♪
-(CRICKETS CHIRPING)
-Hi.
-(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: He's very friendly,
middle-aged guy.
I'm a very friendly,
middle-aged guy. Come on in.
Welcome. (CHUCKLES)
Uh, make yourself at home.
Steve seemed to have
a pretty good life for himself.
He had a nice townhouse.
He had nice furniture, big TV.
He was so normal.
He's so normal.
I am so normal.
Thank you for mentioning that.
(CHUCKLES)
-(SIGHS)
-Oh.
PHIL: He offered me a beer,
which I accepted.
I believe
it was a Stella Artois,
which is uh, you know.
But I accepted the offer.
Cheers.
Just a really weird setting
to, like, do cannibalism.
-And that's
when I see his setup.
-(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: He had, like,
a sterile pad on the ground,
a cutting board, large knives,
but they were kitchen knives,
which I thought was a bit weird.
It wasn't, like,
a medical-grade knife.
CAROLYN: We could really
do some damage here
and we are, in no way,
medical professionals.
I was starting to get, like,
a bit nervous,
but then I remembered
why I was here.
BASSNECTAR:
(DISTORTED VOICE) Come to me.
PHIL: Sometimes in life
we do things
that we don't really wanna do
for a greater cause.
BASSNECTAR: Yeah.
And this is one
of those moments.
He showed us a contract
for 2,000 dollars.
The light bulb
in my head goes off,
and I remember I'm a vegetarian.
I don't even eat chicken.
I'm about to eat a guy's toe.
So I bumped it up
to 4,000 dollars.
-(ECHOING CLANG)
-PHIL: And he agreed.
STEVE: Ready?
-Yep.
-All right.
PHIL: He told me which toes
he exactly wanted cut off.
I had Carolyn draw out
where on the toes
I needed to cut to get,
like, a clean chop.
And then, the arched part
on the side
of the foot cut off and eaten.
We've established,
"Hey, there's no artery here,
like, we're gonna be okay."
She also took
some of that ointment
and put it all over his foot.
We established I was gonna go,
one, two, three,
knife onto foot.
The cut is happening.
We also established a safe word,
which was gonna be
"Connecticut."
WHISPERING VOICE: Connecticut.
PHIL: 'Cause that's where Steve
was born and raised.
And now, it's showtime.
(UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: I'm ready to go.
I've never been more
in the zone.
I can feel the excitement
of knowing
that I'm gonna have the money
to see Bassnectar
building in my body.
(CROWD CHEERING,
APPLAUDING OVER TV)
PHIL:
Carolyn's holding his hand.
He was sweating.
He was a nervous wreck.
All right.
PHIL: The NBA playoffs
are in the background.
COMMENTATOR: This is what it all
comes down to, folks,
the moment of truth.
He gives me a thumbs-up.
Let's fucking do this.
CAROLYN: Having the knife
on the toe,
really, I think,
put it into perspective,
the gravity
of what we're gonna do,
and it was petrifying.
It was kind of
this joined energy,
like a trance almost.
We weren't worried
about the score (CHUCKLES)
of the playoffs anymore.
It was really this moment
of like,
"Okay, we're going to do it."
(TENSE ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: I'm laser-focused,
I'm, like, talking to myself
in my mind,
kind of like, you know,
the angel and the devil.
You know, you shouldn't do this,
but the devil's like
This is your moment right now.
You want the money.
You want the bass.
Do this.
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
And so, I was like, "I'm riding
with the devil tonight."
Let's fucking do this.
PHIL: So, I go
-(DISTORTED VOICE) One
-(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
two
three.
"Three." Knife onto the foot.
I lift my hand up.
Let's fucking do this.
-(GASPS) Connecticut!
-Ooh!
Fuck! "Connecticut"?
-Sorry. Sorry.
-What's up, bud?
I'm like, "What's wrong?
What's the issue?"
And that's when he reveals to me
that he is a karate teacher.
(SERENE OPERATIC SINGING) ♪
PHIL: Now, he's not sure
how he's gonna be able
to teach karate
-without his toes.
-(BONES CRACK)
PHIL: And this is when I start
to get the idea
(SINGING STOPS ABRUPTLY) ♪
that maybe he doesn't have
much of this planned out.
Hey, I'm gonna show my feet
to my students,
and-- and they're gonna be
freaked out.
Oh.
I reiterate to him
that "This is your dream.
This is what you want.
You dragged me out here
on a Thursday night,
so we're gonna do it."
There's no backing out now.
-Yeah.
-Yeah, okay, okay, I'm good.
We were trying
to convince Steve,
more than anything,
to go through with it.
He couldn't really take looking
at the situation
while it was happening,
so we decided to do it
on his stomach.
Yeah, 'cause I could see him
raising it.
You don't wanna see it.
-Good idea, yeah.
-You don't wanna see that.
-STEVE: Thank you.
-Yeah. Okay.
Okay.
(EXHALES)
Let's try again.
(UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(DISTORTED VOICE) One.
I am so ready.
Two.
(ECHOING)
Give me a fucking toe, bitch.
I want blood.
Three.
I can feel it on my lips.
Connecticut, Connecticut.
-Connecticut.
-Oh, come on.
Fucking "Connecticut!"
Fuck you!
-Sorry.
-Ooh.
-(SOFT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
-PHIL: He goes
into another spiel
about how he's gonna see
all his friends and family
and he's not sure
how to explain to them
why he's missing
half of his foot.
So I was like,
"Well, Steve, that's something
that you probably
should've thought about."
And now, I'm starting
to get a little pissed off,
'cause I'm like,
"Is this man gonna pussy out
over his fantasy?"
Pussy.
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
(ECHOING WHOOSH)
Let me just put myself
on his shoes.
(BREATHES DEEPLY)
Mm.
Mm. (CLICKS TONGUE)
The turn-on is when it stays
in the fantasy world.
Mm, these are so yummy. Ready?
Once the idea becoming real,
they just get repulsed by it.
Like, they just get, like,
not about that.
PHIL: So, here we are.
Round three.
I think there's a little bit
of anger in my hand
with the knife now.
I'm like,
"This toe's gotta come off."
-(METALLIC SWISH)
-(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: I see dollar signs
in my eyes
and the man
who dragged me out here
is getting in the way
of me getting that money.
I wasn't even thinking,
like, that really wasn't me.
I was, I guess, like a murderer
in that point, or a butcher.
I was just,
this toe needs to come off.
I need to eat it.
I need my 4,000 dollars.
We've come so close.
And I go, "One
-two
-(EXHALES)
PHIL: three."
Connecticut! Connecticut,
Connecticut.
-God!
-I can't. I can't, I'm so sorry.
He goes, "No, I can't,
I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.
I I just can't.
I'm really sorry
I wasted your guys' time.
I just don't think
I'm ready yet."
(SOFT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: I come to a stop
and, like, a rush comes over me.
And
it dies.
("CAROLYN" SIGHS)
CAROLYN:
We just finished our beers
and watched the last little clip
of the playoffs.
COMMENTATOR:
Nail-biter here tonight.
Wow, what a great game.
(CROWD CHEERING OVER TV)
And kind of seemed like
a bad first date.
I mean,
it was just really awkward
-and hard to pull away from.
-(MUSIC FADES) ♪
That's a great game, huh?
-Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
-Mm. Yeah.
PHIL: And then,
he surprised me saying that
I was going to be paid
simply for showing up.
-(CELL PHONE CHIMES)
-(UPLIFTING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: He sends me the money.
-Thank you. Well
-STEVE: All right.
PHIL: And Carolyn and I
go about our way.
-Thank you.
-"PHIL": Mm-hmm.
PHIL: We get into the car,
and we kind of just sit
in silence for a while,
'cause we can't really believe
that, like, that happened.
I can't really believe
that happened.
I looked at her
and I was like,
"What do you wanna do now?"
And she was like,
"Oh, do you wanna
go grab a drink?"
And I'm like, "That seems like
the only decent thing
we can do right now."
-(WHIMSICAL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
-(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(LAUGHS)
(BOTH LAUGH)
So then, we just start drinking
straight tequila.
CAROLYN: I think
that we did everything we could
to possibly just push it
to the back of our minds.
(CHUCKLES)
So, the bar was closing.
I was like,
"You know, I don't think
I really wanna go home."
I don't think I wanna go home.
(BOTH LAUGH)
PHIL: So we go back
to her house.
Believe we have a bottle
of wine.
(LAUGHS)
CAROLYN:
We just kind of, like, cuddled.
(MUMBLES, LAUGHS)
PHIL: This new form of bond
now existed
between me and Carolyn,
where I was like,
"I think I love this girl."
(SERENE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
(RECORD SCRATCHING)
BASSNECTAR: Oh, yeah.
Holy crap.
Oh, yeah, oh, yeah, oh, yeah!
(SERENE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
PHIL: I've always found her
to be attractive.
This really brought us together,
'cause, like, two peas in a pod.
CAROLYN: Phil has one
of the best personalities
that I've ever met.
I appreciate the fact
that he has this boldness in him
and the capability to be bold.
I got one
of the most important people
back in my life.
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: So, everything's good.
I got money. I flew to Colorado.
When I finally landed in Denver,
my friends picked me up.
We get some beers,
we go to a brewery.
All I wanted to do
was hear some music.
As we are headed to the venue,
we see that the show
has been canceled.
A lawsuit filed
against Bassnectar
claims that the electronic
dance music DJ
sexually abused two women.
REPORTER: Ashton has called
the claims untrue.
(PENSIVE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: So, my heart dropped.
I was so furious.
I flew across the country,
I almost ate a toe.
I had a very
traumatic experience
to get to this point.
The times were good,
but I feel like
I can't support, um,
something like that.
And that's when
I really started
to kind of change my perspective
in what's really important.
(ETHEREAL CHORAL MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: Inside of me,
there's two of me.
There's "Fuck It Phil"
and "Responsible Phil."
And for much
of my early twenties,
"Fuck It Phil" ran the show.
I'm happy that I've grown.
I don't get myself
in these kind of situations
still to this day.
I would not do this today.
I'd like to think I wouldn't.
PHIL: He could have died.
We didn't have proper
medical stuff there.
He could have bled out.
Now, I'm charged with,
maybe, like, a manslaughter
because I wanted to go
to a concert.
Who was I?
And what was going on
with my head?
I don't think now
I would ever do it.
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
But there are moments
where I will post on Craigslist
looking to make
a quick buck or two.
-(ELECTRONIC MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
-PHIL: And I'll get
a message saying
"Hey, do you think
you could help me
with my biggest fantasy?"
And I just know,
based on the wording,
that it's Steve.
And every now and then,
I'll respond back
and being like,
"Hey, Steve,
do you remember me?"
He goes, "Oh, yeah.
Hey, how's it going?"
"Are you willing
to give another try?"
I'm like, "Sorry, Steve,
I can't go back.
I can't do this again."
(ECHOING SLAM)
Random question.
What if one day
I'm, like, trying to get a job
and they're like,
"Aren't you that toe guy?"
PRODUCER:
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
(LAUGHS)
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
NARRATOR:
What you're about to see
may be dangerous,
illegal, unethical,
petty, misguided, immoral,
and most definitely stupid.
But it's also all true.
Hmm. Sort of.
(EERIE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(METALLIC SWISHING)
(INSECTS RUSTLING, BUZZING)
(BREATHES HEAVILY, WHIMPERS)
-(KNIFE SWISHING)
-Oh. Oh, God.
(BREATHES HEAVILY, WHIMPERS)
(MUTTERING, WHIMPERING)
(CONTINUES MUTTERING)
(WHIMPERING)
PHIL: I'm gripping the knife.
I've never been more
in the zone.
My pupils are ginormous.
(BREATHES HEAVILY)
PHIL: I lift my hand up.
-(WHIMPERS) Come on!
-PHIL: And I go, "One"
I am completely locked in.
-"Two."
-(SCREAMS)
PHIL: I see dollar signs
in my eyes. "Three"
-(SCREAMS)
-(MUSIC STOPS ABRUPTLY) ♪
I wasn't even thinking.
Like, that really wasn't me.
I was-- I guess, like a murderer
in that point or a butcher.
I was just--
"This toe needs to come off.
I need to eat it.
I need my 4,000 dollars."
(EERIE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
My name is Phillip.
I was born and raised
in Orlando, Florida.
And I'm currently a cast member
at Walt Disney World.
(UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(ZIPPER OPENING)
PHIL: This story begins
to take its shape
in the summer of 2019.
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: At that time in my life,
me and my friends
-were huge Bassnectar fans.
-(AUDIENCE CHEERING)
PHIL: We formed this, like,
traveling circus
of Bassnectar fans.
I saw him 33 times
in three years.
-(MUSIC STOPS) ♪
-(SERENE OPERATIC SINGING) ♪
PHIL: We worshipped him.
It didn't really matter
where the show was.
(SINGING CONTINUES) ♪
We were gonna figure out a way
to be there.
(PHONE CHIMES)
(SINGING CONCLUDES) ♪
PHIL: Bassnectar
was gonna be playing
a three-day concert in Colorado.
I was like, "I gotta go."
But I was hurting for cash.
And so, that's when
I kinda switched
into the mode of,
"I need money,
I need money now."
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: Whenever I need
to get money quickly,
I hop on America's best website.
PHIL:
Craigslist has not failed me.
So I made a post just saying
-(KEYBOARD KEYS CLACKING)
-"I need money now.
Willing to do anything."
"Within reason."
Typically, when you put
"I need money" offer out,
you get the creeps
saying, like
I'm like, "No,
I don't have that, I'm sorry."
-No
-(KEYBOARD KEYS CLACKING)
I don't have that.
I'm sorry.
"No, I'm sorry."
Sorry, I don't wanna do that.
I don't want to fuck anything.
I just wanna work.
-(MUSIC STOPS) ♪
-(COMPUTER CHIMES)
PHIL: But then,
Steve messaged me.
(UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: It was pretty intriguing.
It's pretty intriguing.
PHIL:
So I responded back saying,
"I'm your guy,
what's your fantasy?"
(CELL PHONE RINGING, BUZZING)
-Hello?
-Hello?
(UNSETTLING MUSIC CONTINUES) ♪
This is Steve.
PHIL: He was very blunt
and to the point.
He says, "I want you
to cut off three of my toes
cook them"
Eat them
and I wanna watch. (LAUGHS)
(CONTINUES LAUGHING)
In that moment, I was just like,
"Damn,
I really wish it was sexual."
(LAUGHS)
It'll be a blast.
I'd like to believe
I'm a pretty smart person,
but my brain just
was not computing the idea
that someone wanted
his toes cut off
and eaten by a stranger
from the internet.
Like, there's
there's just no way.
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
Hi, Phil.
(ECHOING)
I've been watching you.
Don't be shy now.
Cut those fucking toes off,
bitch,
and come to me.
I was like, "You know what?
How bad could it be?"
How bad could it be?
-(CACKLES)
-(MUSIC FADES) ♪
-All right, I'm in.
-(WHIMSICAL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
I cut some toes.
I eat them. I go see Bassnectar.
I wanna see Bassnectar.
Everything's good.
Yeah! (LAUGHS)
Yeah, listen. I said, well
PHIL:
I'm a people person at my core.
You know, the customer
is always right.
Was like, "Fuck it."
I I gotta go.
You know what I mean?
Like, I've already told the man
I'm coming.
It's his biggest fantasy.
I can't let him down.
-(INTRIGUING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
-LUCIA GABRIELLA: Mm, yeah.
Oh, yes.
I'm going to eat you alive.
Every person has a fantasy.
There's nothing wrong
with fantasies.
I am Lucia Gabriella.
I'm an intimacy expert
in Sarasota, Florida.
Unfortunately, people think
that you have to be crazy
to engage in these practices.
But hearing people's fantasies
without judgment, without shame,
it creates a sacred, safe space
for people
to really express themselves.
You know, one of the things
about people
who are into, like,
very hardcore fetishes,
like cannibalism,
where the fantasy is about,
"I want to be eaten."
The whole desire
of someone really eat them up.
Someone wants me so much
that I am part of them.
(PAN HISSING)
LUCIA: Steve, at a deeper level,
is longing so much
to feel connection
and love, unconditional love.
(WHIMSICAL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: Once we agreed
that we were gonna do it,
he's like,
"Oh, do you have a friend
that you could bring with you
to make me feel
more comfortable?
And I prefer
if it was a female."
Can you bring a friend? Female.
PHIL: And so, now
my mind's thinking, you know,
"Who is, one, free
on like a Thursday,
and two, is down to
witness cannibalism."
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
I'll be honest,
I tried really hard
not to think of this story
for a very long time.
I don't tell this story
to anyone.
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING OVER STEREO) ♪
(INTRIGUING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: We had been friends
since our sophomore year
in high school.
I had nothing to do.
Absolutely nothing
for two years of my life.
I was in a boot,
uh, due to an Achilles
rupture injury
that I had while dancing
for Orlando Magic.
And then,
Phil reaches out to me.
It was from left field.
I give her a call, and I'm like,
"Carolyn,
you're not going to believe
what I'm getting ready
to tell you."
He then lets me know that,
"Look, someone has asked me
to do something very bizarre."
"Uh, he wants me
to cut his toe off."
You can see she's visibly,
like, distraught.
She's like, "What?"
I think that because
of our relationship previously,
we just always established
that nothing was off the table.
I think Phil knew in asking me,
specifically,
that I genuinely
would not judge him.
So, I was really worried on,
like, a legal level
(CHUCKLES) right,
of the legalities of this.
Because worst case scenario
in my mind
is that this goes
horribly wrong.
(YELLS)
And then, we get questioned
by the cops or otherwise.
(POLICE SIREN WAILING)
CAROLYN:
Like, "What were you all
even doing here
and how do you know each other?"
We're here to cut
Steve's toes off and eat them.
We're high school friends.
-(CRICKETS CHIRPING)
-(INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER)
And she was like, "Are you
actually gonna do this?"
And I was like,
"I think I have to."
You know what I mean?
It's his biggest fantasy.
I kind of want to help him out.
I was honestly
(CHUCKLES) in a weird way,
honored more than anything
that he had reached out to me
for this odd job, so to speak.
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: On the drive over,
it's like I'm on a drug.
Except it's not a drug.
It's an idea.
The drug is the idea
of being in Colorado
with my best friends,
listening to Bassnectar.
Come to me.
(DISTORTED VOICE) Come to me.
Bass! Bass! Bass! Bass!
(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
CAROLYN: So, when we get there,
to Steve's house,
we see that
there's only one way in
and really one way out.
We're walking in
with zero understanding.
We haven't even seen a picture
of Steve at that point.
PHIL: You know,
this is the kind of stuff
your parents say don't do.
-Don't talk to strangers
on the internet.
-(KNOCKING ON DOOR)
PHIL:
Don't take your best friend
to their house at night.
That was textbook
stranger danger.
I was just breaking
all the rules.
CAROLYN: I think I imagine Steve
being like a recluse
and like a hoarder,
like in his mother's basement
or something,
like playing video games
with, like, a bag of Funyuns.
(CREEPY STEVE WHISTLES)
PHIL: Maybe he just likes feet
and he wants, like,
a feet act done.
(CHUCKLES)
-So hot.
-PHIL: Maybe he's a maniac.
(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(KNOCKING ON DOOR)
(CREEPY STEVE WHISTLES)
(KNOCKING ON DOOR)
It's them.
-(MUSIC STOPS ABRUPTLY) ♪
-(CRICKETS CHIRPING)
-Hi.
-(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: He's very friendly,
middle-aged guy.
I'm a very friendly,
middle-aged guy. Come on in.
Welcome. (CHUCKLES)
Uh, make yourself at home.
Steve seemed to have
a pretty good life for himself.
He had a nice townhouse.
He had nice furniture, big TV.
He was so normal.
He's so normal.
I am so normal.
Thank you for mentioning that.
(CHUCKLES)
-(SIGHS)
-Oh.
PHIL: He offered me a beer,
which I accepted.
I believe
it was a Stella Artois,
which is uh, you know.
But I accepted the offer.
Cheers.
Just a really weird setting
to, like, do cannibalism.
-And that's
when I see his setup.
-(TENSE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: He had, like,
a sterile pad on the ground,
a cutting board, large knives,
but they were kitchen knives,
which I thought was a bit weird.
It wasn't, like,
a medical-grade knife.
CAROLYN: We could really
do some damage here
and we are, in no way,
medical professionals.
I was starting to get, like,
a bit nervous,
but then I remembered
why I was here.
BASSNECTAR:
(DISTORTED VOICE) Come to me.
PHIL: Sometimes in life
we do things
that we don't really wanna do
for a greater cause.
BASSNECTAR: Yeah.
And this is one
of those moments.
He showed us a contract
for 2,000 dollars.
The light bulb
in my head goes off,
and I remember I'm a vegetarian.
I don't even eat chicken.
I'm about to eat a guy's toe.
So I bumped it up
to 4,000 dollars.
-(ECHOING CLANG)
-PHIL: And he agreed.
STEVE: Ready?
-Yep.
-All right.
PHIL: He told me which toes
he exactly wanted cut off.
I had Carolyn draw out
where on the toes
I needed to cut to get,
like, a clean chop.
And then, the arched part
on the side
of the foot cut off and eaten.
We've established,
"Hey, there's no artery here,
like, we're gonna be okay."
She also took
some of that ointment
and put it all over his foot.
We established I was gonna go,
one, two, three,
knife onto foot.
The cut is happening.
We also established a safe word,
which was gonna be
"Connecticut."
WHISPERING VOICE: Connecticut.
PHIL: 'Cause that's where Steve
was born and raised.
And now, it's showtime.
(UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: I'm ready to go.
I've never been more
in the zone.
I can feel the excitement
of knowing
that I'm gonna have the money
to see Bassnectar
building in my body.
(CROWD CHEERING,
APPLAUDING OVER TV)
PHIL:
Carolyn's holding his hand.
He was sweating.
He was a nervous wreck.
All right.
PHIL: The NBA playoffs
are in the background.
COMMENTATOR: This is what it all
comes down to, folks,
the moment of truth.
He gives me a thumbs-up.
Let's fucking do this.
CAROLYN: Having the knife
on the toe,
really, I think,
put it into perspective,
the gravity
of what we're gonna do,
and it was petrifying.
It was kind of
this joined energy,
like a trance almost.
We weren't worried
about the score (CHUCKLES)
of the playoffs anymore.
It was really this moment
of like,
"Okay, we're going to do it."
(TENSE ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: I'm laser-focused,
I'm, like, talking to myself
in my mind,
kind of like, you know,
the angel and the devil.
You know, you shouldn't do this,
but the devil's like
This is your moment right now.
You want the money.
You want the bass.
Do this.
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
And so, I was like, "I'm riding
with the devil tonight."
Let's fucking do this.
PHIL: So, I go
-(DISTORTED VOICE) One
-(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
two
three.
"Three." Knife onto the foot.
I lift my hand up.
Let's fucking do this.
-(GASPS) Connecticut!
-Ooh!
Fuck! "Connecticut"?
-Sorry. Sorry.
-What's up, bud?
I'm like, "What's wrong?
What's the issue?"
And that's when he reveals to me
that he is a karate teacher.
(SERENE OPERATIC SINGING) ♪
PHIL: Now, he's not sure
how he's gonna be able
to teach karate
-without his toes.
-(BONES CRACK)
PHIL: And this is when I start
to get the idea
(SINGING STOPS ABRUPTLY) ♪
that maybe he doesn't have
much of this planned out.
Hey, I'm gonna show my feet
to my students,
and-- and they're gonna be
freaked out.
Oh.
I reiterate to him
that "This is your dream.
This is what you want.
You dragged me out here
on a Thursday night,
so we're gonna do it."
There's no backing out now.
-Yeah.
-Yeah, okay, okay, I'm good.
We were trying
to convince Steve,
more than anything,
to go through with it.
He couldn't really take looking
at the situation
while it was happening,
so we decided to do it
on his stomach.
Yeah, 'cause I could see him
raising it.
You don't wanna see it.
-Good idea, yeah.
-You don't wanna see that.
-STEVE: Thank you.
-Yeah. Okay.
Okay.
(EXHALES)
Let's try again.
(UNSETTLING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(DISTORTED VOICE) One.
I am so ready.
Two.
(ECHOING)
Give me a fucking toe, bitch.
I want blood.
Three.
I can feel it on my lips.
Connecticut, Connecticut.
-Connecticut.
-Oh, come on.
Fucking "Connecticut!"
Fuck you!
-Sorry.
-Ooh.
-(SOFT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
-PHIL: He goes
into another spiel
about how he's gonna see
all his friends and family
and he's not sure
how to explain to them
why he's missing
half of his foot.
So I was like,
"Well, Steve, that's something
that you probably
should've thought about."
And now, I'm starting
to get a little pissed off,
'cause I'm like,
"Is this man gonna pussy out
over his fantasy?"
Pussy.
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
(ECHOING WHOOSH)
Let me just put myself
on his shoes.
(BREATHES DEEPLY)
Mm.
Mm. (CLICKS TONGUE)
The turn-on is when it stays
in the fantasy world.
Mm, these are so yummy. Ready?
Once the idea becoming real,
they just get repulsed by it.
Like, they just get, like,
not about that.
PHIL: So, here we are.
Round three.
I think there's a little bit
of anger in my hand
with the knife now.
I'm like,
"This toe's gotta come off."
-(METALLIC SWISH)
-(SUSPENSEFUL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: I see dollar signs
in my eyes
and the man
who dragged me out here
is getting in the way
of me getting that money.
I wasn't even thinking,
like, that really wasn't me.
I was, I guess, like a murderer
in that point, or a butcher.
I was just,
this toe needs to come off.
I need to eat it.
I need my 4,000 dollars.
We've come so close.
And I go, "One
-two
-(EXHALES)
PHIL: three."
Connecticut! Connecticut,
Connecticut.
-God!
-I can't. I can't, I'm so sorry.
He goes, "No, I can't,
I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.
I I just can't.
I'm really sorry
I wasted your guys' time.
I just don't think
I'm ready yet."
(SOFT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: I come to a stop
and, like, a rush comes over me.
And
it dies.
("CAROLYN" SIGHS)
CAROLYN:
We just finished our beers
and watched the last little clip
of the playoffs.
COMMENTATOR:
Nail-biter here tonight.
Wow, what a great game.
(CROWD CHEERING OVER TV)
And kind of seemed like
a bad first date.
I mean,
it was just really awkward
-and hard to pull away from.
-(MUSIC FADES) ♪
That's a great game, huh?
-Mm-hmm, mm-hmm.
-Mm. Yeah.
PHIL: And then,
he surprised me saying that
I was going to be paid
simply for showing up.
-(CELL PHONE CHIMES)
-(UPLIFTING MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: He sends me the money.
-Thank you. Well
-STEVE: All right.
PHIL: And Carolyn and I
go about our way.
-Thank you.
-"PHIL": Mm-hmm.
PHIL: We get into the car,
and we kind of just sit
in silence for a while,
'cause we can't really believe
that, like, that happened.
I can't really believe
that happened.
I looked at her
and I was like,
"What do you wanna do now?"
And she was like,
"Oh, do you wanna
go grab a drink?"
And I'm like, "That seems like
the only decent thing
we can do right now."
-(WHIMSICAL MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
-(INDISTINCT CHATTER)
(LAUGHS)
(BOTH LAUGH)
So then, we just start drinking
straight tequila.
CAROLYN: I think
that we did everything we could
to possibly just push it
to the back of our minds.
(CHUCKLES)
So, the bar was closing.
I was like,
"You know, I don't think
I really wanna go home."
I don't think I wanna go home.
(BOTH LAUGH)
PHIL: So we go back
to her house.
Believe we have a bottle
of wine.
(LAUGHS)
CAROLYN:
We just kind of, like, cuddled.
(MUMBLES, LAUGHS)
PHIL: This new form of bond
now existed
between me and Carolyn,
where I was like,
"I think I love this girl."
(SERENE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
(RECORD SCRATCHING)
BASSNECTAR: Oh, yeah.
Holy crap.
Oh, yeah, oh, yeah, oh, yeah!
(SERENE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
(BIRDS CHIRPING)
PHIL: I've always found her
to be attractive.
This really brought us together,
'cause, like, two peas in a pod.
CAROLYN: Phil has one
of the best personalities
that I've ever met.
I appreciate the fact
that he has this boldness in him
and the capability to be bold.
I got one
of the most important people
back in my life.
(UPBEAT MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: So, everything's good.
I got money. I flew to Colorado.
When I finally landed in Denver,
my friends picked me up.
We get some beers,
we go to a brewery.
All I wanted to do
was hear some music.
As we are headed to the venue,
we see that the show
has been canceled.
A lawsuit filed
against Bassnectar
claims that the electronic
dance music DJ
sexually abused two women.
REPORTER: Ashton has called
the claims untrue.
(PENSIVE MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: So, my heart dropped.
I was so furious.
I flew across the country,
I almost ate a toe.
I had a very
traumatic experience
to get to this point.
The times were good,
but I feel like
I can't support, um,
something like that.
And that's when
I really started
to kind of change my perspective
in what's really important.
(ETHEREAL CHORAL MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
PHIL: Inside of me,
there's two of me.
There's "Fuck It Phil"
and "Responsible Phil."
And for much
of my early twenties,
"Fuck It Phil" ran the show.
I'm happy that I've grown.
I don't get myself
in these kind of situations
still to this day.
I would not do this today.
I'd like to think I wouldn't.
PHIL: He could have died.
We didn't have proper
medical stuff there.
He could have bled out.
Now, I'm charged with,
maybe, like, a manslaughter
because I wanted to go
to a concert.
Who was I?
And what was going on
with my head?
I don't think now
I would ever do it.
(MUSIC FADES) ♪
But there are moments
where I will post on Craigslist
looking to make
a quick buck or two.
-(ELECTRONIC MUSIC PLAYING) ♪
-PHIL: And I'll get
a message saying
"Hey, do you think
you could help me
with my biggest fantasy?"
And I just know,
based on the wording,
that it's Steve.
And every now and then,
I'll respond back
and being like,
"Hey, Steve,
do you remember me?"
He goes, "Oh, yeah.
Hey, how's it going?"
"Are you willing
to give another try?"
I'm like, "Sorry, Steve,
I can't go back.
I can't do this again."
(ECHOING SLAM)
Random question.
What if one day
I'm, like, trying to get a job
and they're like,
"Aren't you that toe guy?"
PRODUCER:
(UPBEAT ELECTRONIC MUSIC
PLAYING) ♪
(LAUGHS)
(MUSIC FADES) ♪