Characters who appear in the 1997 comedy, Liar Liar.
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Reede Family
Fletcher Reede
Fletcher Reede
"I...CAN'T...LIE!"
Played By: Jim Carrey
The main character of the movie. Fletcher has made a career for himself at a Los Angeles law firm working as a lawyer who lies his way to victory. However, his career as a compulsive liar has resulted in his wife, Audrey, leaving him, and struggles to have a relationship with his son, Max. After lying about being able to make his son's birthday party, Max makes a wish on his birthday cake for just one day that his dad wouldn't be able to tell a lie, which magically comes true. As a result, Fletcher spends the day after Max's birthday unable to tell lies, and it couldn't have come at a worse time given that Fletcher has been handed to him the high-end Cole case that could finally push his career to the next level by becoming a Law Firm partner.
- Accidental Truth: After Max's wish takes effect, Fletcher is forced to say the truth even when people don't know it.
- Actually Pretty Funny: Once he's over the shock of spitting out the truth without thinking, Fletcher keeps chuckling over saying "I've had better" after sex with Miranda.
- Amoral Attorney: Fletcher, at first given that his character arc is him becoming a more truthful lawyer.
- Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: In its purest form. Fletcher and Audrey share a kiss just as Max blows out his birthday candles. They believe that Max wished for them to get back together, but it turns out that they were acting on their own free will.
- Beneath the Mask: Being forced into Brutal Honesty makes Fletcher reveal his low opinion of his own job and co-workers, as well as his distaste for the Amoral part of being an Amoral Attorney.
- Big "YES!": Fletcher belts one out after preventing the plane to Boston from taking off... followed immediately by a Big "NO!" as he crashes into a pile of traveling bags and cargo.
- Blue-and-Orange Morality: Reede, Reede, Reede. Story of his life; he finds ways to weasel out of his responsibilities and avoid punishment for his wrongdoings, and is so good at it he helps others do it for a living.Greta:
Mr. Reede, several years ago a friend of mine had a burglar on her roof —- a burglar. He fell through the kitchen skylight, landed on a cutting board, on a butcher's knife, cutting his leg. The burglar sued my friend. He sued my friend and because of guys like you, he won. My friend had to pay the burglar $6,000. Is that justice?
Fletcher: No! ...I'd have got him ten.- Remember, he can't lie. He really doesn't understand why people would be angry at him for this kind of thing; it's his job, and the courts have found no problem with it before, so why does everyone hate him? Only when he sees an innocent man lose his children to an amoral bitch does he realize that he is using the letter of the law to subvert its spirit, and breaks down.
- Brutal Honesty: Fletcher is magically bound to tell the truth, and has very little control over his tact in telling it, making him this to his clients, to total strangers, and to himself.
- Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Even when acting completely insane, Fletcher is still an exceptional attorney.
- Cannot Tell a Lie: After Fletcher didn't show up at his birthday party, Fletcher's son Max makes a wish that for just one day, Fletcher couldn't tell a lie. And the wish comes true! Not only can Fletcher not tell lies, but he must tell the absolute, brutal truth (or at least what he believes to be true or is figuratively true) at all times and is forbidden from even the tiniest form of dishonesty. He can't write down lies, lie by omission, choose to remain silent or even ask questions to his witnesses if he knows they will be answered with a lie!
- Cassandra TruthJudge Stevens: I'll have to hear good cause, counsel. What's the problem?
Fletcher: (strains) "...I! CAN'T! LIE!"
Judge: Commendable, Mr. Reede, but I'm still waiting to hear good cause; do you have one or not? - Character Development: Fletcher realizes all his mistakes and becomes more sincere and careful about his relationship with his family (especially with his son) as the movie goes on.
- Deadpan Snarker: Fletcher has many of these moments towards his colleagues.
- Did I Just Say That Out Loud?: When Miranda asks Fletcher what he thought of the sex last night, he involuntarily blurts out exactly what he was thinking. Afterwards he can hardly believe he just did that: "... I've had better??"
- Digging Yourself Deeper: This is what leads to Fletcher getting slapped in the elevator.
- Divorce Is Temporary: Fletcher and Audrey share a kiss in the final scene, at Max's sixth birthday party. They of course ask their son if he made another birthday wish to cause them to get back together - and he replies that he wished for roller blades, meaning Audrey and Fletcher's romance is rekindling on its own.
- Double Entendre: The over-the-phone excuse he provides Audrey as to why he can't come to Max's birthday party is that the boss (Miranda) is "really riding him." This implies to Audrey that Fletcher's been given a huge workload at the law firm, but unbeknownst to her, Miranda is actually sexually riding Fletcher while the call is going on.
- Drives Like Crazy: Fletcher when trying to get home after learning Audrey is going to move. "I'm an inconsiderate prick!"
- "Eureka!" Moment: Right when the case seems lost, Fletcher's client makes an off-hand remark about her age. This turns the case upside down.
- As well when Audrey tells Fletcher about what Max wished for the previous night.
- Although it doesn't work, Fletcher gets the idea to make it look like he was attacked in the bathroom (as to post-pone the trial) after banging his head on the wall too hard.
Fletcher: Owie! ... (turns to a mirror) OWIE! - Evil Hand: In the Blue Pen scene (which is not red).
- Exact Words: Fletcher can't use them, but he can be caught by anyone else using them. As it says elsewhere on this page, not only can he not lie, but he can't even evade the truth, deceive while remaining silent or choose not to answer. Several times he gets into trouble because he is asked a question which he could have given a better answer to if the other person had just happened to phrase it differently.
- Face Fault: Fletcher has many of these. Only Jim Carrey can get away with doing one in live-action and make it look funny.
- False Reassurance: Fletcher manages to pull this off once, though. In order to get an extension on the trial without lying he beats himself up in the bathroom, stumbles into the court and truthfully describes his attacker (himself).
- First Father Wins: In the end, Fletcher gets his family back together.
- Frivolous Lawsuit: Fletcher's current case isn't one (although it is fraudulent), but he isn't against taking cases like this:Greta: Mr. Reede, several years ago a friend of mine had a burglar on her roof, a burglar. He fell through the kitchen skylight, landed on a cutting board, on a butcher's knife, cutting his leg. The burglar sued my friend, he sued my friend. And because of men like you, he won. My friend had to pay the burglar $6,000. Is that justice?Fletcher: No! [Beat] I'd have got him ten.
- Gasshole: "It was me!" as Fletcher retreats from an elevator whose other passengers are holding their noses and looking daggers at him.
- Handshake Refusal: Double Subversion. When Mr. Allan offers to make Fletcher a partner at his law firm, a stunned Fletcher accepts and shakes his hand briefly, but then jerks his hand away after his Heel Realization.
- Headdesk: Fletcher ends up having this moment when it looks like he's failing to win the Cole case.
- Heel Realization: "Lemme tell you somethin'! I'm a bad father! ... I mean... I'm a bad father..."
- He actually has two of them, the first one above regarding his personal life, the second regarding his professional one when he wins the case for Mrs. Cole and realizes how horrible she truly is when she won't even let her ex-husband say goodbye to his kids. Needless to say he's rather horrified by his actions. Also, the people he was sucking up to make partners only saw the kids as legal leverage leaves him downright disgusted.
- The second one hits him really hard. At the beginning, she agreed to sharing custody with the father, saying he's a good father. Aside from her infidelity, she seems to be much more pleasant at the beginning, and Fletcher realizes the much more unpleasant Mrs. Cole at the end was at least partially his fault.
- He actually has two of them, the first one above regarding his personal life, the second regarding his professional one when he wins the case for Mrs. Cole and realizes how horrible she truly is when she won't even let her ex-husband say goodbye to his kids. Needless to say he's rather horrified by his actions. Also, the people he was sucking up to make partners only saw the kids as legal leverage leaves him downright disgusted.
- Hurricane of Euphemisms: "You slammed her! You dunked her doughnut! You gave her dog a Snausage! YOU STUFFED HER LIKE A THANKSGIVING TURKEY!" [Makes gobbling noises]
- Ignoring by Singing: Fletcher knows he is cursed to speak the truth when answering a question, but not if he can't hear the question!
- Instant Turn-Off: Saying "I've had better" was an instant turn-off for Miranda.
- Insult Backfire: Fletcher hurls a metric ton of verbal abuse at his boss who finds it hilarious. He then goes all the way and insults everyone in the room who all laugh at his insults, thinking it's a roast.
- Humiliation Conga: A passerby giving Fletcher money as he sags despondently on the courthouse steps following his self-inflicted beatdown.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: A previously unrepetant Amoral Attorney who after ruining a good man's life starts to rankle his conscience and prompts him to try and be a better father and husband, whilst giving his son a reality check that sometimes lying is necessary in the adult world.
- Kicking My Own Butt: Fletcher beats himself up in the bathroom in a last-ditch effort to get the court case postponed. He lampshades it when someone walks in on him doing the act.Fletcher Reede: I'm kicking my ass! Do you mind?!
- Large Ham: Jim Carrey, of course. The amount of over-the-top actions performed for this character is just nuts.
- Literal-Minded: Max's wish forces Fletcher to either be literal about almost everything, or specify that he's not being literal. For example, Fletcher calls his boss "a worthless steaming pile of cow dung" and has to add on the tag "figuratively speaking," and when a homeless man asks Fletcher if he can spare some change, Fletcher has to answer "Yes, I could." When the homeless man asks if he will spare some, Fletcher is able to say no.
- Long List: When Fletcher is stopped after reckless driving...Officer: You know why I pulled you over?
Fletcher: Depends on how long you were following me! [winces]
Officer: Why don't we just take it from the top?
Fletcher: [sighs] Here goes...I sped, I followed too closely, I ran a stop sign, I almost hit a Chevy, I sped some more, I failed to yield at a crosswalk, I changed lanes at the intersection, I changed lanes without signaling while running a red light and speeding!
Officer: Is that all?
Fletcher: [groaning] No... [gestures with his eyes; when the cop doesn't get it, says] I have unpaid parking tickets. [Opens his glove compartment and there are so many tickets they spill out; whimpers] Be gentle. - Loophole Abuse: The film plays with this back and forth. On the one hand, sometimes Fletcher is able to tell the truth in a roundabout way; when he beats himself up and the Judge asks who did it, Fletcher gives a physical description of himself rather than just say he did it himself. He also seems able to say things that may or may not be true, but he believes to be true. On the other hand when it comes time to rehearse Falk's testimony, he discovers he can't ask a question if he knows Falk will lie about it. During the trial he does manage to get the questions out a couple times, but can't help himself from immediately objecting to himself. Additionally, Fletcher is compelled to answer direct questions, denying the chance for him to just not give an answer, truth or lie.
- Lying by Omission: He inverts this when he becomes unable to lie at all, resulting in a large amount of traffic tickets.
- Madness Mantra: THE PEN IS BLUE. THE PEN IS BLUE! THE GODDAMN PEN IS BLUE!!
- Male Gaze: Fletcher in the elevator scene.
- Married to the Job: Fletcher towards his Law Firm.
- Meaningful Name: "Fletcher Reede". A fletcher is an arrowsmith, while a reed of course, is the wetland plant. The two play into Fletcher being a crooked lawyer as opposed to a "straight arrow".
- Motor Mouth: See Long List.
- My God, What Have I Done?: Fletcher has two. One when he realizes how he's functionally ruined his relationship with his son, and a second when he realizes that his lies from the previous day have turned Mrs. Cole into a petty, vengeful ex-wife.
- Necktie Leash: Miranda and Samantha both aggressively do this to him, the former for some hot smooching, the latter for angrily convincing him to win her the case.
- No Indoor Voice: Pretty much any of Fletcher's pronouncements after the realization sets in, but maybe most famously: STOP BREAKIN' THE LAW, ASSHOOOOOLE!
- Office Romance: A very short one with Miranda.
- Organ Autonomy: When Fletcher performs THE CLAW on Max.
- Principles Zealot: Essentially, this is the result of the wish—Fletcher is an unwilling zealot, admittedly, but his behavior matches a classic comedic Principles Zealot pretty closely.
- Punctuated! For! Emphasis!: "I! CAN'T! LIE!"
- Race for Your Love: Interesting version - it's a father's love for his son that's being raced for here.
- The Roast: Fletcher ends doing this to a room full of executives once his boss finds his insults hilarious.
- Sarcastic Confession: When forced to tell the senior partners what he really thinks of them, he saves himself from near-certain firing when the chairman thinks he's being roasted and starts laughing.
- The Scrooge: Fletcher is very stingy with money, dodging paying parking tickets, refusing to give any money to the homeless, and refusing to pay his secretary a raise just because he doesn't want to. One large sign that he's changed towards the end of the movie is that he gives the homeless man he'd mocked earlier all the money he has on him.
- Self-Deprecation / Lampshade Hanging:Max: If I keep making this face (makes a face) will it get stuck that way?
Fletcher: Not in a million years—in fact, some people make a good living that way. - Shockingly Expensive Bill: Fletcher's unpaid parking tickets come to $1654.11.
- Shut Up, Kirk!: Played for Laughs since Fletcher does this to himself!Fletcher: What's wrong with me?! (suddenly monotone) I'm getting what I deserve. I'm reaping what I sow, I—(claps both hands heavily over his mouth, while involuntarily ranting)
- Sleeping Their Way to the Top: Fletcher sleeps with Miranda, his (female, good-looking) immediate boss in the hopes that it'll help further his career to finally make partner. His son's birthday wish takes effect at exactly the wrong time...
- Sleeping with the Boss: Fletcher is sleeping with his boss — until the wish comes into effect and he makes a truthful (and uncomplimentary) comment about the sex they just had.
- Spit Take: Reede does an over-the-top one right before his That Was Objectionable moment.
- Stealth Insult: See Sarcastic Confession.
- That Was Objectionable:Fletcher: Your honor, I object!
Judge: And why is that, Mr. Reede?
Fletcher: Because it's devastating to my case!
Judge: Overruled.
Fletcher: Good call! - Tongue-Tied: Fletcher's tongue gets tied into telling the truth whenever he starts to tell a lie.
- Too Much Information: When the judge asks Fletcher how he's doing this morning, Fletcher replies with, "I'm a little upset about a bad sexual episode last night."Judge: Well, you're still young. It'll happen more and more. In the meantime, what do you say we get down to business?
- One of the reasons Fletcher doesn't want to talk to his mother on the phone:
Fletcher: (on phone) Hello? Mom! Hi! I wasn't really on vacation. (...) Because I didn't want to talk to you! (...) Because you insist on talking about Dad's bowel movements: Size, color, frequency! - Truth Serum: Unable to lie due to Max's wish.
- The Unfair Sex: Parodied. Samantha Really Gets Around, but Fletcher convinces her that she was "driven into the arms of another man." Meanwhile, Fletcher has pretty much lost his son as a result of his own infidelity.Audrey: You forget that when we were married, I wasn't having sex nearly as often as you were.
- Volleying Insults: Fletcher vs. Dana during the case.
- Wham Line: Fletcher manages the rare feat of delivering one to himself, courtesy of the truth-telling curse.Fletcher: (angry) Now you listen to me - I'm a bad father! I... I mean... (horrified) I'm a bad father...
- Women's Mysteries: Inverted - Fletcher uses men's mysteries to get a recess in the court, citing a link between a full bladder and male prostate issues and counting on the judge not knowing whether this is medically accurate or not. Played for Laughs when the judge asks if that's true (to which a bewildered - and still forced to tell the truth - Fletcher responds, "It has to be!").
- Wounded Gazelle Gambit: Fletcher beats the ever-living crap out of himself in the bathroom so that the court session could be postponed. When asked who did it, he describes the assailant-himself-as "A madman, your honor! A desperate fool on the end of his pitiful rope!" Still, Fletcher's scheme fails when he's forced to admit that he still feels physically able to continue with the case.Fletcher: About 6'2, 180 pounds, big teeth, kinda gangly. [closes mouth to cover teeth]''
Audrey Reede
Audrey Reede
Played By: Maura Tierney
Fletcher's ex-wife who divorced him after having enough with his constant lying, and for sleeping with people more often than she was. She's in a new relationship with Jerry, who wishes for Audrey to move to Boston with him as his new wife.
- Aw, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other: In its purest form. Fletcher and Audrey share a kiss just as Max blows out his birthday candles. They believe that Max wished for them to get back together, but it turns out that they were acting on their own free will.
- Divorce Is Temporary: Fletcher and Audrey share a kiss in the final scene, at Max's sixth birthday party. They of course ask their son if he made another birthday wish to cause them to get back together - and he replies that he wished for roller blades, meaning Audrey and Fletcher's romance is rekindling on its own.
- Flat Character: She's Fletcher's ex-wife, Max's mom and Jerry's fiancée. And she works as a a teacher. That's pretty much all the info we're given about her.
- Taking the Kids: Fletcher is in danger of losing his own son if Audrey decides to move to Boston with Jerry. In the end, she doesn't.
Max Reede
Max Reede
Played By: Justin Cooper
Fletcher and Audrey's son who has grown disappointed in his father for never keeping his promises to hang out with him. As a result, Max makes a wish on his birthday cake for just one day where his dad couldn't tell lies.
- Exact Words: Averted. Max's birthday wish was that Fletcher could go one day without telling a lie and the wish comes true. However, it doesn't just prevent Fletcher from being unable to lie, he must be honest at all times and can't be dishonest in any way. That includes lying by omission, choosing to remain silent when spoken to or asking rehearsed questions in court if he knows the witness' answer will be a lie.
- Kid-Appeal Character: The only main child character in the movie. This is because he does NOT have any siblings or friends from his school.
- Ship Sinking: Any possibility of his father having a relationship with Miranda was destroyed the moment Max's wish took effect. Max's wish was also what caused Fletcher to go through Character Development as a better father, which caused Jerry to let Audrey go back to her original husband.
- When You Coming Home, Dad?: Basically what pushed Max to making the birthday wish was his father being unable to attend his birthday party as promised.
Law Firm
Mr. Allen
Mr. Allen
Played By: Mitchell Ryan
A high-ranking partner at the Law Firm. Fletcher's work has gained Mr. Allen's attention recently, and watches over his performance in the Cole case to see if Fletcher is worthy to be promoted up to his level.
- Affably Evil: He's the head of a firm that encourages amoral behavior, but he has a great sense of humor and believes Fletcher's put downs to be light-hearted roasting.
- Tension-Cutting Laughter: Mr. Allen misinterprets Fletcher's Brutal Honesty as a roast.
Miranda
Miranda
Played By: Amanda Donohoe
Fletcher's immediate boss who prefers to have lawyers that will lie their way to winning. Miranda hands the Cole case over to Fletcher given his high reputation, and becomes interested in him after witnessing his skills as a compulsive liar. However, that interest turns sour the moment he speaks his first words of truth after Max's wish takes effect.
- All Girls Want Bad Boys: If her seduction of Fletcher is anything to go by, Miranda appears to have a thing for men who turn out to be really good Amoral Attorneys.
- All Women Are Lustful: She appears to get really "turned on" if a man turns out to be a really good liar. Miranda basically went from being Fletcher's professional work boss to suddenly wanting him bad after being impressed by his lying capabilities. So much so that Miranda suddenly decides to seduce Fletcher into having sex with her.
- Amoral Attorney: Miranda's Establishing Character Moment is to make it clear she prefers this from her workers — her second line of dialogue is "let the judge decide what's true or not, that's what he gets paid for; you get paid to win".
- The Antagonist: Miranda is the closest thing this film has to having an actual villain since she sets out to try to ruin Fletcher's career later on. And even then, it's only out of Revenge for the "I've had better" mishap.
- The Bad Guy Wins: In the end, Miranda got what she wanted due to Fletcher going all noble and getting himself arrested for contempt of court. It's implied pretty heavily that Fletcher's actions, refusing Mr. Allen in particular, got himself fired from the law firm, which is exactly what Miranda was going for.
- Double Entendre: After witnessing Fletcher's incredible lying capabilities, Miranda informs him that he will surely be promoted up to Partner at the law firm if he manages to win the Cole divorce case. Miranda then asks if Fletcher would like to make her his partner, which she answers for him with a Forceful Kiss.
- The Dragon: Could be viewed as such to Mr. Allen.
- Establishing Character Moment: Her first scene where she's discussing with another lawyer about telling lies in order to win the Cole case makes it quite clear that Miranda is going to be a bitch.
- Evil Plan: After overhearing Fletcher reveal to his secretary that he's unable to tell lies for 24 hours, Miranda comes up with an idea to try to get him fired out of Revenge for the "I've had better" mishap. She brings Fletcher before the head of the partnership committee, Mr. Allen, under the belief that Fletcher will be unable to hide his harsh truthful opinion towards the boss, which would get himself canned. Unfortunately for Miranda, Mr. Allen takes Fletcher's Brutal Honesty very well under the belief that he was being roasted.
- Face Framed in Shadow: As seen in her character image, Miranda's face is framed this way at the end of her first scene, which basically spells it out for the viewers that she's going to be the movie's antagonist.
- Forceful Kiss: Before Fletcher could turn down Miranda offering to become his "partner," she pulls him in for a deep make-out session to make it happen.
- Instant Seduction: One brief flirt and a Forceful Kiss was all it took for Miranda to seduce Fletcher into having sex with her.Fletcher: Oh, I don't know. I mean I should-Miranda: Mmmm.
- Instant Turn-Off: Miranda was quite clearly still lusting for Fletcher when the two of them were lying on the floor of her office Post-Sex. Once he said "I've had better," Miranda instantly throws him out.
- Insult Backfire: Backfires for Miranda. She was out for revenge after Fletcher told her, "I've had better." When she realized he was incapable of lying, she throws him in front of the committee in hopes that his Brutal Honesty would ruin him.
- Laser-Guided Karma: In return for Miranda trying to ruin his career, Fletcher gets away with calling her a "slut" in front of the committee under the belief that he was roasting her.
- Lingerie Scene: As a bit of Fanservice, Amanada Donohoe is seen wearing nothing but a lingerie dress◊ shortly after her character had sex with Fletcher.
- Lust: Very much so when Miranda decides to seduce Fletcher into having sex with her. She wanted Fletcher bad after witnessing how good of a liar he is.
- Ms. Fanservice: Samantha Cole is the more obvious example of this movie's Ms. Fanservice, but Amanda Donohoe does provide a bit of her own as Miranda. Particularly the scenes around the time that she had sex with Fletcher.
- Necktie Leash: The way she pulls Fletcher in for a deep kiss.
- Office Lady: A more older/mature version of this trope.
- Office Romance: A very short one with Fletcher. Miranda gets turned on by Fletcher's lying capabilities, she then seduces him into a make-out session that leads to the two of them having sex, but she then throws him out after he unintentionally blurts out the truth that "he's had better." All within the span of an hour or two at most.
- Out of Focus: Her importance to the story evaporates as the movie goes along. Miranda's last few scenes is basically her just remaining at Mr. Allen's side completely silent.
- Really Gets Around: Fletcher gets away with truthfully roasting her as a slut in front of the law firm committee. Given how quick she was to seduce Fletcher after witnessing his lying skills, an educated guess can be made that this is probably not the first time Miranda lusted after an Amoral Attorney.
- Refuge in Audacity: Miranda learns of Fletcher's current problem and takes him to the firm's board meeting where he regretfully tells everyone the honest truth of what he thinks of them. They end up in stitches laughing, loving the no-holds barred roasting.
- Revenge: Following Fletcher's "I've had better" comment about the sex they just had, Miranda spends the rest of the movie trying to ruin him.
- Woman Scorned: She didn't take Fletcher's "I've had better" comment after they had sex very well, and leads to her hating him throughout the rest of the movie.
Greta
Greta
Played By: Anne Haney
Fletcher's secretary who knows full well how Fletcher does his work as a compulsive liar.
- Cool Old Lady: To the point that she takes care of Max's gift for Fletcher. She also gives Fletcher the middle finger after Fletcher spills the truth that he's been cheap with her, and refused to give her a pay raise.
- Deadpan Snarker: Leaves a funny comment whenever Fletcher does or says something crazy.
- Flipping the Bird: "Here's your raise!"
Jane
Jane
Played By: Cheri Oteri
The Law Firm's receptionist who changed her hair-style recently to a rather crazy one.
- Anime Hair: Her odd hair-style.
- Nice Girl: She's simply trying to look nice to impress her coworkers.
Elevator Woman
Elevator Woman
Played By: Krista Allen
A one-scene wonder in the Law Firm elevator as Fletcher heads off to work for the Cole case.
- Buxom Beauty Standard: Being unable to lie, Fletcher can't help but talk at length about how attractive he finds her huge breasts to be.
- Fanservice Extra: Let's be honest, people mostly remember her only for being Ms. Fanservice.
- Freudian Slippery Slope:Woman: Everybody's been real nice.
Fletcher: Well, that's because you have big jugs! I mean...your boobs are huge! I mean, I want to squeeze them..... mama! (puckers up)
Cole Case
Judge Marshall Stevens
Judge Marshall Stevens
Played By: Jason Bernard
The judge who watches over the Cole case between Samantha and Richard.
- Big Good: The judge residing over the Cole case.
- No Sympathy: Despite Fletcher's pleas for Judge Stevens to reconsider his judgment given the consequence of possibly costing a loving father his children, Judge Stevens only takes offense at Fletcher challenging his legal authority, completely indifferent to or unable to even understand the trauma his actions may have indirectly caused for a family.
- Token Minority: The only black guy in the movie with a major role. The next closest was the black lawyer speaking with Miranda about the Cole case before moving on to Fletcher.
Samantha Cole
Samantha Cole
Played By: Jennifer Tilly
Fletcher's main client for the Cole divorce case. Samantha is convinced by Fletcher that she is the victim in her marriage to Richard due to him ignoring spending time with her for the sake of his work, and as a result, is the reason that she has been sleeping around with other men despite being married. For the case, Samantha goes after Richard to try to take as much as half the marital assets.
- Character Development: A minor change happens early where Fletcher's Tina Turner speech gives Samantha enough confidence to take Richard on in the Cole case. Could also argue that the speech is what really turns Samantha into a Gold Digger.
- Cheating with the Milkman: If you listen closely to the "sex tape" you can hear the man Samantha Cole is having sex with say "I have to go clean the pool."
- Diabolus ex Machina: Instigated by Fletcher himself, no less. His last-minute discovery that Mrs. Cole was underaged when she got married, invalidating her pre-nup but leaving the common-law marriage intact ends up unduly costing an innocent man half his assets.note
- Gold Digger: What Samantha turns out to be trying to win the martial assets from her husband, Richard.
- Hate Sink: She's a gold-digging bitch, who treats her children like objects and is willing to exploit them to get even more money from her ex-husband.
- The Immodest Orgasm: Mrs Cole, revealed by her "sex tape".
- Karma Houdini: Mrs. Cole has cheated on her husband several times, it's hinted that she's not completely sure both her children are her husband's, and after Fletcher convinces her she's the victim, she becomes a complete Jerkass who uses her children for emotional gain in court. And thanks to a technicality no one saw coming, she wins the case and gets the standard divorce settlement of half her husband's assets, over 10 million dollars, and decides to sue for sole custody of the kids to get even more money in child support and deny her husband the right to them. Her getting away with all this is actually a major plot point, when Fletcher realizes it's his fault she was able to do all this and succeed.
- Kick the Dog: After the judge rules in Samantha Cole's favor and grants her 11 million dollars, she then declares that she isn't going to adhere to their original deal to share custody, and instead plans to contest custody to get another $10,000 from him. She specifically says she's doing this just to hit him where it hurts.
- Leg Focus: The first moment the camera is on Samantha, she's showing off her legs.
- Ms. Fanservice: She’s played by Jennifer Tilly so this is a MAJOR given.......
- Off on a Technicality: How Fletcher wins the trial due to Samantha being underage when she became married. He even cites it.
- Really Gets Around:Fletcher: After all that, your husband wants to deny you a fair and equitable share of the marital assets based on one single act of indiscretion.
Mrs. Cole: Seven.
Fletcher: Pardon me? - Really 17 Years Old: Fletcher discovers that Mrs. Cole lied about her age when she got married, rendering the prenuptial and the original marriage contract void, but leaving her still entitled to half her (ex)husband's wealth as they had lived together long enough to be considered common-law married anyways.
- Smooch of Victory: Aggressively kisses Fletcher in the middle of court after he wins her the case
- The Sociopath: She's likely a high-functioning, non-criminal example, given how she's completely self-centered, feels no remorse about cheating on her husband numerous times, and is fine with using their kids as pawns and clearly doesn't give a damn about them. She even get's mad about Fletcher's "sudden attack of conscience".
- Taking the Kids: Samantha insists on taking the kids from their loving father not because she cares about them but because she can use them to milk him for child support payments.
Richard Cole
Richard Cole
Played By: Eric Pierpoint
Samantha's husband who is at the other end of the Cole case. Despite being on the opposing side against Fletcher, it becomes quite obvious that he was the loving member of the family.
- Flat Character: Compared to the wife he's divorcing, Samantha, not much about his character is delved into.
- Nice Guy: Honestly, Richard is everything you would want in a loving husband. His biggest flaw appears to be that he couldn't spend enough time away from work to be with his wife and kids.
Dana Appleton
Dana Appleton
Played By: Swoosie Kurtz
Richard's lawyer who serves as Fletcher's rival in the Cole case.
- Hero Antagonist: Dana Appleton and her legal team representing Mr. Cole.
- The Rival: To Fletcher as the opposing lawyer in the Cole case.
- Volleying Insults: Fletcher vs. Dana during the case.
Kenneth Falk
Kenneth Falk
Played By: Chip Mayer
One of Samantha's many partners who chooses to commit perjury with Samantha in order to help win the Cole case by lying that he's had a platonic relationship with her.
- Cheating with the Milkman: Kenneth is one of the many men that Samantha cheated on her husband with.
Others
Jerry
Jerry
Played By: Cary Elwes
Audrey's new boyfriend who is about to move to take a new job in Boston. Jerry asks for Audrey to marry him so that she and Max could follow him to Boston, which gets in the way of Fletcher attempting to reconcile with his family.
- Derailing Love Interests: Averted. Jerry is introduced as a genuinely nice and sweet man who treats Audrey and Max well, and although he doesn't care for Fletcher he's civil to him. When he realizes Fletcher still loves his family and the lengths he'll go to in order to keep them, he lets them go and just lets Audrey know he's there if she changes her mind. The only thing you could really say about him is that he's a bit of a goofball, which Audrey admits he can be sometimes.
- Disposable Fiancé: Jerry does not get the girl by the end of the movie.
- I Want My Beloved to Be Happy: Jerry lets Audrey stay in Los Angeles so Max doesn't have to be away from his father.
- Nice Guy: Apart from being a bit antagonistic towards Fletcher, which is understandable given that he's Audrey's ex-husband, Jerry really is a genuinely nice guy. He even let Audrey and Max go after seeing that Fletcher had become a changed man to be with his family again.
- Nice Guys Finish Last: Jerry, although Fletcher is somewhat redeemed in Audrey's eyes via his efforts to be a better father.
- Organ Autonomy: Jerry attempts a pretty weak version of THE CLAW on Max.
