American Fiction

In a 2023 interview with Esquire, Cord Jefferson explained his approach to a key scene in the film and how the actors elevated it in unexpected ways: "We've all seen that scene of the writer pounding the keyboard frantically, then taking a big sip of coffee and getting back to it. That's how you depict somebody intensely writing. But I thought, 'We can't have that. It's tropey and silly, and it doesn't get the audience's minds going.' So why not have these characters manifest in front of him? When I wrote that scene, I wrote the language to be very silly. It had to be ridiculous so that everybody could see how stupid this book is and what a sham it is. Then we got Keith David and Okieriete Onaodowan, who are both such tremendous actors. All of the sudden, it wasn't silly anymore. They made it seem like the book might be good. I love what the scene became in their hands: suddenly you're questioning whether or not the book is good, which is evidence that something as ridiculous as this book could become a hit."

At the movie's beginning, Monk walks out of a building while being on the phone and holding a coffee cup with a vertical print of Dunkin Donuts, and with a lid on it. Seconds later, when he gets into a car, the logo on the cup is horizontally printed and it has no lid, while he is still holding the phone to his head with the other hand.

Featured in 2024 EE BAFTA Film Awards (2024)