SCENES
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Scene Map 60
# PG SLUGLINE
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INT EXT INT/EXT hover for full slug
Scene Map
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# PG SLUGLINE
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AMERICAN FICTION Written for the Screen by Cord Jefferson Based upon the novel 'Erasure' by Percival Everett OVER BLACK
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INT. CONFERENCE ROOM - DAY Monk is sitting before a tribunal of sorts. At a long table in front of him are three other professors: GILDA (white, 50s), MANDEL (white, 60s), and LEO (white, 50s), the chair of the English department.
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EXT. HOTEL - LATE AFTERNOON Monk is exiting a hotel with a Dunkin' Donuts iced coffee. After a few steps, his phone buzzes in his pocket. It's his agent, ARTHUR (50s, gregarious). MONK
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INT. HOTEL EVENT ROOM - DAY Monk is at the front with TWO OTHER AUTHORS and a MODERATOR. A placard on an easel next to them reads, "REVITALIZING ANCIENT LITERATURE FOR THE MODERN AUDIENCE." One of the other authors is finishing a thought.
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INT. HOTEL EVENT ROOM - DAY INSERT - We're extremely close on a book poster. The book's title -- "We's Lives in Da Ghetto" -- is written in big font and accompanied by a stereotypical illustration.
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INT. PLANNED PARENTHOOD RECEPTION - CONTINUOUS Monk approaches a desk where a RECEPTIONIST sits. MONK Hi, I'm here to see Lisa Ellison. RECEPTIONIST
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EXT. MONK'S CHILDHOOD HOME - DUSK Lisa pulls her car into the driveway out front. LISA (V.O.) Welcome home, baby! INT. MONK'S CHILDHOOD HOME - MOMENTS LATER
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INT. RESTAURANT - NIGHT Monk and Lisa are at a table in a bustling Cambridge restaurant. Their mother's chair is empty, and they're trying to speak quickly and quietly before she returns. MONK
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INT. HOTEL ROOM - NIGHT Monk lays atop his hotel bed wearing only his underwear. He’s watching Get Rich or Die Tryin’ (2005) on the hotel TV, specifically the scene in which MAJESTIC (Adewale Akinnuoye- Agbaje) explains the “house rules” of crack dealing to some
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INT. BOOKSTORE - MOMENTS LATER Ned has walked Monk to a section called "African-American Studies." NED Here you go.
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EXT. BAR - BACKYARD - AFTERNOON Lisa and Monk are seated at a small café table. Other PATRONS dot the area. Lisa has a cocktail while Monk sips a glass of wine. LISA
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INT. HOSPITAL HALLWAY - AFTERNOON Monk watches through a window as a MEDICAL TEAM works on Lisa. The window is narrow, allowing him a limited view of his sister. After a while, he sees the doctors and nurses start to recognize that their efforts aren't working -- Lisa
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INT. BEACH HOUSE - KITCHEN - AFTERNOON Monk comes inside to find Cliff sitting alone and having a glass of wine, the bottle open on the coffee table. MONK Where is everybody?
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INT. BEACH HOUSE - SECOND FLOOR BATHROOM - MOMENTS LATER There's water coming from under the bathroom door. Monk knocks but nobody answers. MONK Mother?
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EXT. CORALINE'S HOUSE - EVENING The house is aglow with light from inside. CORALINE (PRE-LAP) I'm very sorry to hear that. INT. CORALINE'S HOUSE - KITCHEN - EVENING
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EXT. CORALINE'S HOUSE - DUSK As Monk makes his way down Coraline's front steps, we can hear Jelani's laughter coming from the house. EXT. BEACH HOUSE - MORNING Monk and Cliff are packing up the car -- Lisa's old car -- as
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INT. DOCTOR'S OFFICE - WAITING ROOM - DAY Monk is sitting in a chair reading a copy of The Atlantic. He finishes an article and flips to the next page, where he finds a picture of...Sintara Golden. The article is a rave review of her book. We can tell it's a rave via closeups of
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INT. MONK'S CHILDHOOD HOME - STUDY - NIGHT Monk sits at his father’s old desk in front of his laptop, on which there’s a blank Word document. Next to Monk is his copy of The Atlantic, folded open to the Sintara Golden review. The cursor on the empty page blinks mockingly at Monk. After
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INT. MONK'S CHILDHOOD HOME - BEDROOM - DAY Monk watches TV in bed. The channel announces an upcoming "Black Stories Month." It shows clips of the movies being honored: gang violence in Baby Boy, slaves lined up in Antebellum, a teen mother in Precious, police brutality in
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EXT. ICE CREAM SHOP - AFTERNOON Monk and Coraline are eating ice cream cones as they walk down a path cutting through some tall grass. MONK I'm surprised you reached out. I
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INT. CORALINE'S HOUSE - BEDROOM - SUNSET The sun is setting outside the window as Monk puts his clothes back on in Coraline's bedroom. Coraline enters, wearing only a robe, from an adjoining bathroom. MONK
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INT. CLIFF'S HOME - KITCHEN - AFTERNOON Cliff is in trousers and an unbuttoned shirt eating fast food. Lines of cocaine are in front of him on a small mirror. A French pop song from the 1980s is blasting in the background. Cliff does a line.
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INT. ARTHUR’S OFFICE - DAY Arthur is pacing around in silence when Monk walks in. ARTHUR There you are. MONK
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INT. ARTHUR'S OFFICE - MOMENTS LATER Monk and Arthur clink their glasses and drink. A bottle of Johnnie Walker Red sits between them. They’re both looking at Arthur’s office phone, which is ringing on speaker as they try to contact PAULA BADERMAN (white, 50s).
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EXT. BEACH HOUSE - AFTERNOON Monk’s unpacking the car by himself when a security guard pulls up in one of those quasi-cop cars. This security guard is MAYNARD (black, late 60s). MAYNARD
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INT. BEACH HOUSE - FRONT DOOR - AFTERNOON It’s golden hour. There’s a knock on the door. MONK (from the living room) There she is. Behave yourself.
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INT. CORALINE’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT Monk and Coraline sip nightcaps on the sofa as the sun sets. MONK ...yeah, it was pretty funny. I think you remind her of my sister.
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EXT. BEACH - NIGHT Monk runs down the beach with his flashlight looking for Agnes. MONK Mother! Mother!
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INT. SUNRISE ELDER CARE HOME - LIBRARY - DAY Monk and Agnes walk with LUZ BORQUEZ (40s, Latina, pantsuit), who’s showing them the facilities. It’s cozy and dignified, not clinical or sparse like some retirement homes. A couple RETIREES read in chairs dotting the space.
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INT. CARL BRUNT’S OFFICE - SAME TIME It’s a small office laden with books of all shapes and sizes. CARL BRUNT (60s, white, patrician) is professorially stuffy. CARL Hello, Thelonious. My name is Carl
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INT. MONK’S CHILDHOOD HOME - FORMAL LIVING ROOM - DAY Monk is lying on the couch reading when Lorraine enters, carrying a tray of food and a beverage. LORRAINE I brought you lunch, Mr. Monk.
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INT. ARTHUR’S OFFICE - DAY Monk and Agnes enter Arthur’s office, where Arthur sits with an assistant, LAYNE (20s). ARTHUR The guests of honor!
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INT. SOUTH END RESTAURANT - DAY Monk gets into character as he enters the restaurant. He approaches a booth in a corner of the main room, where WILEY (white, 50s, bro-ey) sits. Wiley stands to greet Monk. WILEY
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INT. BUILDING STAIRWELL - MOMENTS LATER Monk is sprinting up the flights of stairs to Arthur’s office, on the seventh floor. MONK Mother! Mother!
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INT. MONK’S CHILDHOOD HOME - STUDY - DAY Monk sits in front of his laptop with a cup of coffee. He’s on a Zoom call with the other NBA judges: WILSON HARNET (white, 60s), AILENE HOOVER (white, 50s), DANIEL SIGMARSEN (white, 50s, grumpy cowboy), and Sintara Golden.
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INT. SUNRISE ELDER CARE HOME - AGNES’ ROOM - DAY Monk, Coraline, and Lorraine are helping Agnes settle in to her room at the home. Coraline is going through boxes as Monk hangs a landscape painting. Lorraine and Agnes are seated at the room’s small dining table.
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INT. THOMPSON-WATT - PAULA BADERMAN'S OFFICE - SAME TIME Paula’s office is the same, but now she’s sitting with JOHN BOSCO (white, 30s, gay). PAULA John Bosco is the head of the
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INT. MONK’S CHILDHOOD HOME - NIGHT Monk and Coraline have just gotten home. They make their way to the kitchen. CORALINE I’m exhausted.
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EXT. MONK’S CHILDHOOD HOME - BOCCE COURT - LATER Coraline and Cliff toss bocce balls and drink wine as Monk watches at the edge. Monk’s in a bathrobe, Cliff in basketball shorts and nothing else. Coraline’s in her clothes from before.
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EXT. SUNRISE ELDER CARE HOME - COURTYARD - DAY Monk, Coraline, and Cliff are walking through the courtyard carrying some banker’s boxes. They’re filled with things for Agnes, including a stereo and some vinyl records. Cliff looks admiringly at the grounds.
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INT. SUNRISE ELDER CARE HOME - HALLWAY - MOMENTS LATER Cliff assembles a CD player and speakers for Agnes as Monk talks with a DOCTOR in hushed tones at Agnes’ door. DOCTOR We had to sedate her after she
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EXT. MONK’S CHILDHOOD HOME - PORCH - AFTERNOON Monk, Coraline, and Cliff are sitting on the front porch in total silence. Cliff, who’s clutching a suitcase, is standoffish now, different from the unguarded man we saw briefly in the previous scenes. An Uber pulls up and the trio
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INT. ARTHUR’S OFFICE - SAME TIME ARTHUR Get this: The FBI called Thompson- Watt today to try to get Stagg R. Leigh’s identity.
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INT. CORALINE’S HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - NIGHT Monk and Coraline are having pasta for dinner. Monk is clearly aggravated, eating in silence. CORALINE Is everything alright?
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INT. MONK’S CHILDHOOD HOME - FOYER - DAY Monk helps Lorraine, Maynard, and Maynard’s sons, BURT and JEFF (both black and in their 40s), move the last of Lorraine’s things into a moving truck out front. Lorraine enters from the kitchen carrying a SodaStream.
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INT. WILSON’S OFFICE - DAY WILSON Thompson-Watt apparently raced to publish it. INT. AILENE’S OFFICE - DAY
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INT. SINTARA’S OFFICE - DAY SINTARA Can we not have this conversation now, please? Daniel and Ailene calm down.
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INT. SUNRISE ELDER CARE HOME - AGNES' BEDROOM - DAY Monk, who’s wearing a suit and tie, enters to find Agnes applying the finishing touches to her makeup. Monk beams a genuine smile when he sees her. AGNES
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INT. BEACH HOUSE - LIVING ROOM - CONTINUOUS Monk and Cliff are now face to face. CLIFF Shit. The wedding. MONK
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EXT. BEACH HOUSE - AFTERNOON Monk, Agnes, Cliff, Burt, Jeff, Kenny, and Alvin are gathered behind the house with a small coterie of OTHERS as Lorraine and Maynard are married by a PASTOR beneath a small arbor decorated with flowers.
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INT. HOTEL CONFERENCE ROOM - DAY Monk and the NBA judges discuss their choices for the Book Award finalists. A list of titles are up on a white board, ranked from 10 to 4. The top three spots are empty. DANIEL
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INT. HOTEL CONFERENCE ROOM - LATER Monk enters carrying a salad in a plastic clamshell container. He’s surprised to find Sintara eating sushi by herself and reading. MONK
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EXT. HOTEL STAIRWELL - DAY Monk is sitting on the top step. After a few beats of contemplation, he pulls out his phone and goes to his text thread with Coraline. He composes a message: “I’m sorry. I’d like to tell you some things. Would you be my date to the
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EXT. SUNRISE ELDER CARE HOME - AGNES' ROOM - DAY Monk sits at Agnes’ bedside as Agnes stares off into the distance. They’re both silent for a few beats. MONK Mother.
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INT. BANQUET HALL - NIGHT Monk, his fellow judges, and DOZENS OF GUESTS in black tie are gathered at the awards gala. It’s not incredibly glamorous -- this is a book award, after all. Monk, dateless, sits at a circular table of OLD WHITE PEOPLE picking at
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INT. BANQUET HALL - MONK’S TABLE - SAME TIME Monk thinks for a beat, then stands, and buttons his tuxedo jacket. INT. BANQUET HALL - STAGE - SAME TIME Carl squints and looks out over the ballroom.
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INT. “PLANTATION ANNIHILATION SET” - DAY The filmmaking detritus and garish branding on the backs of some directors’ chairs let us know we’re on the set of Wiley Valdespino’s latest film. Wiley is reading Monk’s script as Monk sits beside him.
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INT. BANQUET HALL - STAGE - NIGHT Carl repeats his line. CARL This year’s Literary Award goes to - - Stagg R. Leigh, ”Fuck”!
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INT. BANQUET HALL - STAGE - NIGHT Monk is back onstage with Carl, who repeats his line. CARL (covering mic, to Monk) Hey, what’s going on?
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EXT. STUDIO BACKLOT Monk, a bit defeated, steps out of a building onto the backlot of some nameless studio, carrying his script. It’s a beautiful day in L.A. and PEOPLE run to and fro. But Monk is only looking for one person: Cliff, who’s waiting for him in
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American Fiction

A renowned but reclusive author grapples with his identity, family, and the literary industry's expectations as he navigates the aftermath of his sister's death.

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Overview

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Unique Selling Point

This screenplay stands out for its incisive critique of the literary world, particularly regarding the expectations placed on black authors. It combines humor with serious themes, making it both entertaining and thought-provoking, appealing to audiences interested in social commentary and character-driven stories.

AI Verdict

Model upgrade — Mar 31, 2026: Analysis is from our newer, stronger readers. Scores aren't directly comparable to pre-upgrade analyses.
Claude
 Consider
Gemini
 Recommend
GPT4
 Recommend
See Details in P/C/R/HR Section
Story Facts
Genres:
Drama 55% Comedy 30% Romance 15%

Setting: Contemporary, Various locations including USC, Boston, a beach house, and a Sunrise Elder Care Home

Themes: Artistic Integrity vs. Commercial Success, Racial Identity and Representation in Literature, Family Dynamics and Mortality, Finding Love and Connection, The Absurdity of the Literary World

Conflict & Stakes: Monk's struggle with racial identity, family responsibilities, and the pressures of the publishing industry, with personal relationships and his career at stake.

Mood: A mix of tension, introspection, and dark humor.

Standout Features:

  • Unique Hook: The protagonist's journey as a black professor navigating the complexities of race and identity in academia.
  • Plot Twist: The unexpected confrontation with the police during the awards ceremony, leading to a tragic climax.
  • Innovative Ideas: The screenplay challenges traditional narratives around race and representation in literature.
  • Distinctive Settings: The contrast between academic settings, family homes, and care facilities highlights the protagonist's multifaceted life.

Comparable Scripts: The Sellout by Paul Beatty, Dear White People (TV Series), The Last Black Man in San Francisco, The Help by Kathryn Stockett, The Good Place (TV Series), The Color Purple by Alice Walker, The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (TV Series), The Autobiography of Malcolm X

Script Level Analysis

Writer Exec

This section delivers a top-level assessment of the screenplay’s strengths and weaknesses — covering overall quality (P/C/R/HR), character development, emotional impact, thematic depth, narrative inconsistencies, and the story’s core philosophical conflict. It helps identify what’s resonating, what needs refinement, and how the script aligns with professional standards.

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Overall Score: 7.80
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Goals and Philosophical Conflict
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Themes
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Logic & Inconsistencies
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Scene Analysis

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Other Analyses

Writer Exec

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Unique Voice
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Memorable Lines
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Correlations
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Loglines
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