American Fiction

Movie Details:

Cast & Characters:

• Jeffrey Wright as Dr. Thelonious “Monk” Ellison, a writer and professor of literature, as well as brother to Lisa and Cliff. Monk has mild success as a writer until he satirically writes Fuck under the alias “Stagg R. Leigh.”
• Tracee Ellis Ross as Dr. Lisa Ellison, a divorced medical doctor and sister to Monk and Cliff
• Issa Rae as Sintara Golden, a black author who has achieved popularity for her new book, We’s Lives In Da Ghetto
• Sterling K. Brown as Dr. Clifford “Cliff” Ellison, a plastic surgeon and brother to Monk and Lisa, who is recently uncloseted as a homosexual
• John Ortiz as Arthur, Monk’s agent
• Erika Alexander as Coraline, a public defender who is Agnes’s neighbor and Monk’s eventual girlfriend
• Leslie Uggams as Agnes Ellison, mother to Monk, Lisa, and Cliff, who begins to suffer from Alzheimer’s
• Adam Brody as Wiley Valdespino, a movie producer interested in Fuck
• Keith David as Willy the Wonker, an imaginary character that Monk uses to visualize his dialogue for Fuck
• Okieriete Onaodowan as Van Go Jenkins, an imaginary character that Monk uses to visualize his dialogue for Fuck
• Myra Lucretia Taylor as Lorraine, family friend and caretaker for the Ellisons
• Raymond Anthony Thomas as Maynard, a security guard who strikes up a romance with Lorraine
• Miriam Shor as Paula Baderman
• Michael Cyril Creighton as John Bosco
• Patrick Fischler as Mandel
• Neal Lerner as Wilson Harnet
• J. C. MacKenzie as Carl Brunt
• Jenn Harris as Aileen Hoover
• Bates Wilder as Jon Daniel Sigmarsen
• Ryan Richard Doyle as Ned
• Skyler Wright as Brittany

Storyline:

Cord Jefferson’s hilarious directorial debut confronts our culture’s obsession with reducing people to outrageous stereotypes. Jeffrey Wright stars as Monk, a frustrated novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment that relies on tired and offensive tropes. To prove his point, Monk uses a pen name to write his own outlandish “Black” book–that propels him into the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.

About Movie:

American Fiction is an American comedy-drama film marking the feature directorial debut of Cord Jefferson. The film is adapted from Percival Everett’s 2001 novel Erasure and centers on a disillusioned novelist and professor who, in frustration, pens a satirical piece mocking the stereotypes found in so-called “Black” literature. However, the satire is mistakenly taken as a serious work, leading to unexpected commercial success and critical acclaim. The cast includes Jeffrey Wright, Tracee Ellis Ross, Issa Rae, Sterling K. Brown, John Ortiz, Erika Alexander, Leslie Uggams, Adam Brody, and Keith David.

The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2023, where it won the prestigious People’s Choice Award. Following its festival success, American Fiction was given a limited theatrical release by Amazon MGM Studios on December 15, 2023, with a wider expansion on December 22, 2023.

The film grossed $23 million and received numerous accolades. It was named one of the top 10 films of 2023 by the American Film Institute. It also received five nominations at the 96th Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Wright, with Jefferson winning Best Adapted Screenplay.

Budget & Box Office Collection: