this is "nightline." tonight, mystery in the air. what caused the nearly brand new boeing 737 to fall out of the sky? investigators searching for answers in the lion air crash that killed all 189 people on board. with one black box recovered, will investigators be able to uncover what happened to flight 610? plus, steve carell's new movie about drug addiction, "beautiful boy", already garnering oscar buzz. >> it's something i thought people needed to see. >> this is me, dad. >> one father's nearly decade-long battle to save his son from drug addiction.

plus, alec baldwin's turf war. but first, the "nightline" five. >> keep it clean with the roomba vacuum. only roomba uses two multi-surface brushes. roomba finds dirt throughout your home. if it's not from irobot, it's not a roomba. >> take mucinex dm. >> one pill lasts 12 hours, so. >> looks like i'm good all night. >> mucinex dm lasts 12 hours, not four. let's

good evening. thanks for joining us. tonight we're getting more clues from the pieces of wreckage recovered from the nearly brand-new 737 that plunged into

the sea. investigators diving in to the black box from the downed lion airplane as they search for answers. tonight as the search continues for clues in the mystery of what happened to lion air flight 610, a new development. indonesian authorities confirming that the black box retrieved yesterday is in fact the flight data recorder from the missing flight that killed all 189 souls on board. as divers work to locate the second black box, investigators hoping the black box they do have will provide answer. >> the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder, once they're read out and examined, that provides all the information necessary to putne . >> the tragedyunfolding monday morning, a little aera. local t. the pilot radioed the tower shortly after takeoff to request to return to the airport. but just shortly after takeoff,

the doomed airliner loses contact, plunging into the java sea, killing everyone on board, including two infants. this shows the flight path. it stopped sending locating signals. >> it was straight level at 5,000 feet for almost eight or nine minutes. all of a sudden there was a quick descent and it disappears off radar. >> reporter: search crews have found scattered personal effects, ids, shoes and life vests. some up to two miles away from the crash site. pieces of the brand-new 737 pulled from the waters off indonesia. in the aftermath of the crash. famili to learn news about their loved ones' fate. this chilling video shot by a passenger just as he was boarding lion air 610. a glimpse of the boarding pass and a glimpse of the plane itself about an hour before it

went down. this woman told my colleague bob woodruff she is praying he will be found. he met family members still hoping for a miracle. this twman's twin was on that flight. he says he and two others took a different plane, while the three in the middle, he fears were lost on flight 610. earlier this week, disturbing allegations about technical problems with that same plane the day before its final flight. today indonesia's national safety committee says they've already interviewed the pilots from that flight. there were reports of technical problems on the new boeing 737 but said they had been resolved prior to the fateful flight. the indonesian investigators appear to be focussing on the technical issue on the flight the day before the crash and whether or not it he ma hamay h a contributing factor.

but this isn't the first time a lion air flight has come into question. one overshot the airport and went into the sea. and another one crashed into a cemetery, killing 25. indonesian airlines were not allowed to fly in the u.s. because they did not meet international safety standards from april of 2007 until the ban was lifted in august 2016. >> airlines in this world do not ve the stellar reputation in terms of safety. they're working on it. >> reporter: the brand-new 737 had been delivered to the low-cost indonesian airline in august. >> when you have an eraircraft this new, it's curious, it makes you wonder, is it a one-of event? or is this an event that occurred because of something that happened after the airplane was delivered. >> reporter: one of the most

recent versions of the 737, the max 8 is the fastest selling. both southwest and american airlines have the same plane in their fleets. boeing stock dropped7% after news of the crash. the aircraft manufacturer issuing a statement saying the boeing company is deeply saddened by the loss of lion air flight 610, adding that the company is providing technical assistance at the request and under the direction of government authorities investigating the accident. >> it has over 400 channels of information about flight controls and what the airplane was doing and the cockpit voice recorder. >> reporter: so why did the nearly brand-new 737 crash into the sea? this chunk of orange-painted metal may have the answer. as my colleague david kerley

learned at the ntsb in washington, putting that part of the box in water is standard procedure. >> you want it in water. >> right, we want it in water. when we recover it, we will submerge it in water to keep the electronics from essentially oxidizing or rusting and we flush it with freshwater. >> but even the saltwater, if it's gotten to it, you can still recover data? >> sure. we've been very successful. >> it's heavy. >> because it's such a thick-walled structure. >> that's right. because it needs to be able to sustain incredible impact loads. >> that with the pinger attached is the most important part. it's put on a host chassis so the data can be read out. >> as basic as they lreot of da sne these? >> we almost always get data. they're incredible the way they survive an accident.

we're almost always successful in retrieving the data. >> in the tragic german wings crash the battered black box revealed the haunting truth. that tragedy, which killed all 150 passengers on board was apparently no accident. recovered data shows when the pilot left the cockpit, the co-pilot deliberately crashed the plane into the mountains as an act of suicide. and in 2009, air france 447 departed rio de janeiro but the plane never made it, losing touch three and a half hours into the flight. after searching for two years, and investing $50 million, french veinvestigators called me purcell and his team who deployed their robot into the atlantic. >> we knew immediately that we had found the airplane.

>> reporter: the robot returned with these photos. parts of the plane fuselage, other small parts and the galley. they also came back with something else. >> some human remains, definitely put the focus on that this was a real tragedy and a lot of people had lost their lives. >> reporter: purcell's team also found the black boxes still pinging and able to reveal pilot error as the reason behind the crash after two years in the water. less than a week after the indonesia crash, investigators are still looking for the second black box, hoping it, too, will lead them to more answers. up next, "beautiful boy." the story of a father's fight to keep his son alive in the face of drug addiction. g addiction. opd treatment. ♪ trelegy. the power of 1-2-3 ♪ trelegy 1-2-3 trelegy

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♪ you know, substance abuse is a modern-day plague killi killing 72,000 americans a year. "beautiful boy" is one of the most searing femmes of the year. at its core, it's a love story between a father and his son, torn apart bit ravages of drug addiction. >> hi, my son has gone missing, and i wanted to check to see if maybe he had been brought in. >> reporter: it's a scene played out in homes across the country. a terrified parent desperate to track down his drug-addicted child. >> there's no one by the name, sir. >> thank you. >> reporter: in the movie "beautiful boy", steve carell

plays a father whose son is addicted to crystal meth and he will stop at nothing to get him help. >> this isn't us. this isn't who we are. >> i'm really sorry, dad. >> nick, what you have, you're going to find it again. you're going to get it back. >> you watch your kids go through something like this and spiral out of control and to be completely helpless. that's the part of it that is the scariest. >> reporter: the addiction nearly destroys his seemingly perfect family. >> the whole point of the movie is to exemplify to people this can happen to anyone, and not to terrify or scare, but it's redemptive. >> reporter: the movie is a painfully true story, based on the memoirs of david and nick sheff. >> it opened the door to so many

people who were experiencing similar things. because it was considered shameful, they were suffering in silence. and it opened the door to communication. and the idea of having the movie is bigger. >> one day i woke um p in the hospital and somebody asked me, what's your problem? and i said i'm an alcoholic and addict. >> reporter: "beautiful boy" puts a face on the epidemic ravage being the nati ravaging the nation. in 2017, an estimated 72,000 people died from drug overdoses. >> i would never wish these hellish experi anybody. but sometimes people get sick. >> reporter: at nick's lowest point, he was living on the streets, willing to do anything to feed his addiction. >> the thing i regret the most is, you know, stealing the money from my little brother. i don't remember a lot of things

from that time. but i remember so clearly waking up and jasper was asking where his money went, and i don't remember taking it, but i knew you know, that i'd taken it. i was hijacked by the drugs, and i didn't want to be acting the way i was acting, but i couldn't stop. >> i didn't know where he was when he was on the streets. there were nights i didn't sleep. one time he called, so i was relieved to know three was okat okay, that he was alive. >> reporter: that phone call led to this san francisco diner, their reunion painfully recreated in the film. >> where does this end? >> it became clear at one point, that it was not about reconnecting, it was not about going to treatment. it was because he needed money and wanted money. >> you're just embarrassed because i was like, i was this amazing thing, like your special

creation or something and you don't like who i am now. >> who are you, nick? >> this is me, this is who i am. >> it was an overwhelming time in my life, and it was overwhelming to watch the movie recreate it, because it was so realistic, and you see that in the movie. you see steve carell's face and that he is so sad and broken. >> i want you to be proud of me. >> reporter: the emotional days on set took a toll on the actors. >> i would go home at the end of the days and want to call dad and just say i love you. and be grateful that we have one another. >> reporter: carell says coming home to his wife of 23 years, nancy, made it easier. >> every day, i'd sit with my wife, and i would tell her about what we felt during that day. it was good to talk about it. because it does get inside of you. and especially a topic like this, when you're looking at your kids when you come home, and you just love them so much. and you pray that nothing bad ever happens to them.

>> reporter: "beautiful boy" is the latest dramatic role for carell who became famous for "the office". and is known for his comedic movies like ""anchor man" and te 40-year-old virgin. what drew you to this role, steve? >> it's something that i felt people needed to see. it's a national epidemic and tragedy. >> reporter: as for shal may, he auditioned before the performance in "call me by your name." >> i auditioned many times for this. i really didn't have any sort of career when i was going up for this. it was still very much a job of like trying to keep your cool on set. >> reporter: "beautiful boy" is generating oscar buzz for both carell and shal may.

their portrayals so realistic, it was difficult for david and nick to watch. >> it's heart breaking to watch their performances, because it feels, they capture the emotion in a way that is eerie, it's so real and haunting. watching it broke my heart. >> even though it was so painful, horrifying to watch because it felt so real, it also made me feel so grateful for, i mean, the fact that i'm alive. for the fact that i get to be here sitting next to my dad. >> reporter: for the sheffs, this movie is a stark reminder of how far they've come. >> there's absolutely no reason that i survived when other people didn't. but i guess the thing is, is that as long as there is life, that's when there's always hope. >> reporter: after years of relapsing and going in and out of treatment, nick has been sober for eight years. >> my life has gotten so much better since getting sober. and, you know, i've seen it with so many friends and people i

work with, that when they get sober, they get the lives that they've always wanted. but your life can really just blossom and get so much bigger than it ever had been. >> reporter: a life leading others towards the light. >> people tell me that they do get solace when they've seen the movie. maybe it's because there is a recognition for how hard it is to face this disease. there's a sense of, you know we're not alone. >> reporter: for "nightline," paula farris in new york. >> "beautiful boy" is in theaters everywhere. up next, how is alec baldwin's day? paparazzi, the police, and a reported punch. rted punch. abc news "nightline," sponsored by mucinex. mucinex. this winter, a hero will fight... superhero: [coughs] his cold. what do ya think? sidekick material? eh?

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> you m heard alec baldwin got into a heated parking dispute. here's gio benitez.

>> reporter: tonight, actor alec bald went baldwin in trouble with the law. he punched a man who allegedly took his parking spot. he's been seen in the past in heated confrontations with photographers right outside his home. baldwin's portrayal of the president on "saturday night live" has made headlines and often led to verbal jabs wit wit trump. the president asked about his arrest. >> i wish him luck. >> reporter: baldwin also has a new talk show. the network saying it will air it as scheduled this sunday night. and those charges are considered misdemeanors. he will go to court at the end of the month to respond. >> and baldwin is now flatly denying the incident on twitter. quote, the assertion that i punched anyone over a parking

spot is false. and finally tonight, a program note about the midterm elections. early voting is already setting records as we enter the file push. we hope you'll join us here tuesday night for the epic results. i'm be joining george stephanopoulos and our team starting 8:00 p.m. here. i'll be in tennessee covering the senate race in solid trump country where the taylor swift factor may other may not get the youth vote. have a great weekend. at weekend. here are the facts.leading attacks against prop c. the city's chief economist says prop c will "reduce homelessness" by creating affordable housing, expanding mental-health services, and providing clean restrooms and safe shelters with independent oversight, open books, and strict accountability measures to make sure every penny goes to solving our homeless crisis. vote yes on c. endorsed by the democratic party,

nancy pelosi, and dianne feinstein.