The Muse 1999

After winning a lifetime achievement award, esteemed screenwriter Steven Phillips experiences a rude awakening. Believing the honor has no real meaning, he learns that it signals the end of his career. His studio refuses to renew his contract, branding him as having “lost his edge.” Over a lunch with junior executive Josh Martin, he’s told bluntly that his latest script is dull and that he’ll be off the lot by five.

Desperate to revive his momentum, he seeks counsel from a very successful writer named Jack, who sets up an introduction to Sarah, a modern-day muse who can supposedly spark creativity in anyone. Sarah arrives with lavish demands—expensive hotel rooms and Tiffany’s gifts—that grate on his wife, Laura, who worries about the cost and the fantasy she’s stepping into.

Steven isn’t sure if Sarah is genuine or a charlatan. The two head to Long Beach, where they unexpectedly run into writer-director Rob Reiner, whom Sarah clearly knows well. The encounter sparks an idea for a movie set in an aquarium, with Jim Carrey cast as the lead, a concept that excites Steven as a possible comeback.

As Sarah’s needs grow more extravagant, Laura’s skepticism gives way to curiosity and then to support. Laura even discovers a burgeoning passion of her own, deciding to bake and sell cookies, a venture that finds surprising traction and success.

To cut costs, Sarah moves into the couple’s home. Steven grows frustrated as Sarah keeps busy helping other Hollywood figures—like James Cameron and Martin Scorsese—who arrive at their house to consult with her. He even relinquishes his own bedroom, sleeping in the guest house while she takes up residence in the main space.

When Steven asks for a satisfying ending to his aquarium idea, Sarah steers him toward inspiration, giving him the spark he’s been missing. His agent Hal is thrilled and pushes him to finish the script quickly, which he does.

The next morning, two doctors from a mental clinic arrive with startling news: Sarah is an escaped psychiatric patient from their asylum, suffering from multiple personality disorder. They find the whole “muse” concept amusing and, when they try to locate her, discover she has escaped again and choose not to pursue her, since she can come and go as she pleases.

Josh loves the finished script but reveals a painful twist: the project is already in production at another studio—by Rob Reiner. A dejected Steven heads back to his wife’s cookie venture, wondering what the future holds.

Yet opportunity returns when the agent calls to say the Reiner project collapsed and the studio wants to buy Steven’s version, contingent on a few changes. He speeds to the studio, only to find a secretary explaining that Josh was fired for stealing and a new boss, Christine, has taken charge. The shock hits hard when Steven discovers that Christine is actually Sarah in a black wig. She soon takes his arm, insisting they discuss the changes over an expensive lunch, and Steven realizes he’s entangled in a far stranger arrangement than he anticipated.