American Fiction

Thelonious "Monk" Ellison is a Black elite writer and professor living in Los Angeles. His novels receive academic praise but sell poorly, and his publishers reject his latest manuscript for not being "Black" enough. His college superiors place him on temporary leave due to his brashness with students over racial issues and suggest that he attend a literary seminar in his hometown of Boston. His panel at the seminar is sparsely attended, in contrast to a packed room for an interview with Sintara Golden, whose bestselling novel We's Lives in Da Ghetto shamelessly panders to Black stereotypes.
In Boston, Monk has dinner with his mother Agnes, who shows signs of Alzheimer's disease, and his sister Lisa, a physician. While having drinks with Monk, Lisa suffers a fatal heart attack. Their estranged brother Cliff, a plastic surgeon, attends Lisa's funeral. Newly divorced and out of the closet, Cliff engages in frequent drug use and casual sex. Monk meets Coraline, a lawyer living across the street from his mother's beach house and begins dating her.
Frustrated by the costs of care for his mother and resenting Sintara's success, Monk writes My Pafology, a fake memoir novel mocking the literary stereotypes expected from Black writers: melodramatic plots, deadbeat dads, gang violence, and drugs. After submitting it to publishers out of contempt, he is shocked to be offered a $750,000 advance, which he reluctantly accepts to pay for his mother's care. During a call with a prospective publisher, his agent Arthur improvises a cover story that "Stagg R. Leigh", the pseudonym Monk adopted for the novel, is a wanted fugitive. As "Stagg", Monk is offered a movie deal from film producer Wiley Valdespino. In response to patronizing comments by the publishing executives, Monk tries to sabotage the deal by demanding the title be changed to Fuck, but the publishers concede to his ultimatum. Monk is invited to help judge the New England Book Association's Literary Award as part of a "diversity push" and he reluctantly accepts. Monk is surprised to discover that Sintara is a fellow judge and that she shares many of his views.
Monk moves Agnes into an expensive assisted-living facility but she adapts poorly. Cliff briefly returns to visit, only to quickly leave when Agnes makes a homophobic remark. Fuck becomes a bestseller, much to Monk's shock and chagrin. Monk's family, friends, and the public remain unaware that he is Stagg, and the FBI contacts the publisher for information on Stagg's whereabouts.
Monk's publisher submits Fuck for the Literary Award, forcing him to judge his own novel. After learning that Coraline enjoyed reading Fuck, Monk argues with her over liking it and the two break up. The panel's white judges rave over Fuck, though Sintara deems the subject matter "pandering". Away from the other judges, Monk agrees but he argues that Sintara's book is "trauma porn" and inauthentic to her black middle-class background. Sintara counters that she researched her book by interviewing voiceless people and was giving the market what it wants.
On the wedding day of Monk's family housekeeper Lorraine, he finds Cliff living in Agnes's beach house with a pair of strange men, but Lorraine is happy to have him attend the wedding. At the reception, Monk and Cliff discuss the impact of their father's suicide, with Cliff encouraging Monk to let people love "all of him".
At the awards ceremony, Fuck is announced as the winner. Monk goes onstage and says he has a confession to make. The film cuts to black, and the events shown are revealed to have been Monk's screenplay based on his experiences, written for Wiley's production company as an alternative to the Fuck film adaptation. In reality, Monk quietly left the ceremony and is still estranged from Coraline. Wiley likes the screenplay but asks Monk to change the ambiguous ending.
Monk proposes an ending with him running away from the ceremony to apologize to Coraline, but Wiley says it feels too much like a romantic comedy. Monk then suggests one where police, believing Monk to be a wanted criminal, fatally shoot him at the ceremony. Much to Monk's dismay, Wiley loves it and the film moves into production. Monk drives away with Cliff after he and one of Wiley's actors, playing a plantation slave, acknowledge each other.