Houseguests 2020

Kevin Franklin is a Pittsburgh native who grows up in an orphanage with grand fantasies of wealth and the dream of cruising in a Porsche. Fast-forward twenty-five years, and he’s still chasing luck, now driving a rusted MG Midget and clinging to a string of ill-fated get-rich-quick schemes. A handshake loan of $5,000 to the local loan sharks slowly spirals into a debt of $50,000, and the pressure pushes him toward a desperate plan: slip away from the city’s gaze at Pittsburgh International Airport.

One day, Kevin overhears a tense exchange between a lawyer named Gary Young and his children as they wait for one of Derek Bond’s old friends to show up. Derek Bond, once a childhood companion, has become a successful, strict, vegetarian dentist who hasn’t laid eyes on Kevin in twenty-five years. Seizing a crucial moment, Kevin passes himself off as Derek by swapping a baseball cap with the real Derek’s, fooling two dim-witted mobsters who are tailing him. The Youngs, a wealthy, refined family, invite this unexpected guest into their home in Sewickley, leaving Kevin to improvise his cover as the real Derek Bond.

Despite knowing little about dentistry, Kevin’s easygoing charm and warm, affable manner quickly win over Gary’s circle of well-heeled acquaintances. He finds himself navigating a world of polished manners and social gatherings, all while keeping up the ruse that he is Derek Bond. The tension of the deception is softened by Kevin’s ability to get along with everyone, even as it clashes with Gary’s demanding job and the friction with his hard-nosed boss at the law firm. Meanwhile, Emily, Gary’s wife, runs a successful chain of frozen yogurt shops, a detail that underscores a growing rift in the family as Gary’s personal and professional worlds collide. Their clients include a rival yogurt company, adding a competitive edge to Gary’s professional life and amplifying the strain on his personal relationships.

As Kevin settles into the Youngs’ life, he forms unexpected bonds with family members who had previously felt distant. He supports Gary’s Goth daughter, Brooke, and helps her stand up to her untrustworthy boyfriend, while also sharing moments with Gary’s young son, Jason, who dreams of playing professional basketball. In a pivotal turn, Gary finds the courage to stand up to his stern boss and quits the firm, choosing to prioritize his family over a career that had chipped away at their closeness. Kevin’s presence becomes the catalyst for this shift, even as the danger of his true identity continues to loom.

The danger intensifies when Kevin’s best friend, Larry, is coerced by mobsters into revealing Kevin’s whereabouts. Kevin urges Larry to pick him up, and a tense confrontation over friendship and loyalty forces Kevin to confront a deeper truth: Gary has quietly been his ally all along. When Kevin returns to the Youngs’ home, he discovers that the mobsters have taken the family hostage, and the truth about his disguise is exposed when the real Derek Bond arrives on the scene.

Captured by the criminals, Kevin makes a narrow escape and vanishes into a charity marathon, where fate brings him back into Gary’s orbit. Gary, moved by the series of events and the undeniable bond they’ve formed, decides to help Kevin mend the broken pieces of his life in exchange for Kevin’s help in rebuilding his own fractured family. In a twist of luck, Kevin reveals he possesses an instant lottery ticket with a shot at a $1 million prize on a Saturday-night TV show. He ultimately relinquishes the ticket to the mobsters as a gesture of debt forgiveness and a chance to start anew.

Winter arrives, and Kevin, now in a brighter stride, parks a gleaming red Porsche in front of the Youngs’ house with Larry in tow. He’s there for a promotional party celebrating his new best-seller, Handbook for Houseguests, a memoir drawn from his tumultuous encounters with the Youngs. The crowd gathers to watch as the mobsters spin the show’s wheel, hoping for a life-changing jackpot. The wheel initially lands on the coveted $1,000,000, but then slides to a more modest $5,000, much to the mafia don’s dismay and Kevin’s relieved delight.

As the credits roll, Gary and Kevin share a lighthearted moment, performing a cheerful medley of food-themed parodies of classic Christmas tunes. They cook a barbecue in the Youngs’ backyard, a warm, closing scene that underscores the film’s themes of friendship, forgiveness, and the possibility of a second chance.