The Hudsucker Proxy (1994)

The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) Full Recap

In December 1958, a young man named Norville arrives in New York City and starts looking around for a job. Norville is a recent graduate from the Muncie College of Business Administration, and he's trying to find a decent job to begin his career. After taking a look at the options on a job board, Norville notices that all of them require experience, which he doesn't have. He looks disappointed by this and heads to a nearby coffee shop to think about what to do next.

While he's there, he goes through some adverts in a newspaper but notices that experience is still very important in getting any of the available jobs. As he looks dejected, he stands up and pays for his coffee before leaving. Almost immediately, the coffee shop owner removes Norville's cup from the newspaper, and it turns out that the cup was covering an opening at a manufacturing company named Hudsucker Industries. Interestingly, the wind blows the newspaper out of the coffee shop, and the part with the advert makes its way toward Norville.

When Norville sees the newspaper, he spots the advert and decides to try his luck, even though the job involves long hours and low pay. Elsewhere, at Hudsucker Industries, the members of the board have a meeting to discuss their revenue. During the meeting, the company's founder and president, Waring Hudsucker, seems distracted and stares outside the window opposite his seat. Almost immediately, he stands on the table and continues looking at the window.

As the other board members look shocked, Waring runs toward the window and jumps out of it just as Norville enters the building. Waring dies in the process, and the board members don't seem to understand what just happened. A ruthless member of the board, Mussburger, looks out the broken window before going back to the table to complain that Waring wasted the cigar he left on the table. The other board members then talk about what happened, and one of them seems really sad as he asks why Waring would do something like that.

Mussburger says he has no idea, and that he's not a therapist. He adds that there's a possibility that Waring was unhappy with his life. One of the board members says Waring didn't look unhappy, but another one mentions that the dead man was never an easy man to figure out. Mussburger doesn't care much about this, and he says that the company now has a problem because the president and owner of 87 percent of the company stock is dead.

He then asks the company's financial expert about the deposition of Waring's stock. The expert then mentions that Waring left no will and no family, and that based on the company's bylaws, Waring's entire portfolio will be converted into common stock and will be sold over the counter. Mussburger asks for a simpler explanation, and the expert says that Waring's stock and control of the company will be made available to the public on January 1st. Mussburger doesn't like this, and he asks if just anyone would be able to buy Hudsucker stock.

The expert confirms this, but one of the board members laments that they shouldn't be discussing Waring's stocks when he only just died. Mussburger tells the man to quit crying, and that they all have to accept that Waring is gone. He adds that the only concern now is to try to stop the public from buying Waring's shares. One of the board members then mentions that they can't afford to buy a controlling interest, but Mussburger says they won't do that while the stock is still strong.

Some of the board members start suggesting ways to depress the stock to a point where they'll be able to buy up to 50 percent of it. Mussburger then says that what they truly need is a new president who will inspire panic in the stockholders. The other board members agree, and Mussburger says they need a pawn that can be pushed around easily. Elsewhere, Norville begins his job at Hudsucker Industries as a mailroom clerk.

One of the senior employees shows Norville around and gives him some instructions on things he shouldn't do if he doesn't want the company to fire him. Interestingly, there happens to be a lot of rules, and Norville seems overwhelmed as he listens to all of them. Shortly after, he heads over to drop off some mail, and while he's at it, he sees a locker that is too small to fit an envelope. He then asks an older colleague for advice, and the man warns him not to fold the envelope or he'll be fired.

Norville eventually finds a way around it and tries to strike up a conversation with his old colleague. He says it's just his first day, but that he's not really worried about his current position because he has big plans. He then brings out a sheet of paper from his pocket and shows his colleague the circle he drew on it. Norville says he developed it himself, and that the invention is his ticket upstairs.

The man looks confused because he doesn't understand what the invention is, but Norville implies that it's not hard to figure it out, and that it's for kids. The man just continues his work, and Norville says he won't be working in the mail room for long. He then asks how long the old man has been with the company, and he says it's already forty-eight years. Norville looks surprised, but the old man says he'll probably get moved up to parcels next year if he's lucky.

Shortly after, someone makes an announcement to the workers, informing them about Waring's death. They're told to observe a moment of silence, and as they do this, the announcer mentions that the moment they took off work has been duly noted on their timecards and will be deducted from their pay. The workers don't complain about this, and as they continue their jobs, an alarm suddenly starts ringing to indicate that a blue letter is coming. All the workers start running away to hide, but Norville doesn't understand this.

Suddenly, a strange man shows up with a blue letter and says that Norville is the one who will deliver it. He says that the letter was sent by Waring shortly before his death, and it is addressed to his right-hand man, Mussburger. The man says it's a top-secret letter, which means that Norville must deliver it directly to Mussburger. After Norville receives the letter, he leaves the mailroom and enters the elevator to head up to Mussburger's office.

An elevator operator named Buzz greets Norville and tries to strike up a conversation with him. Buzz seems to be a talkative person, and he greets everyone who enters the elevator and jokes with them. Suddenly, he notices that Norville is holding a blue letter, and since he knows that it's top secret, he says he'll be dropping Norville off first. When the elevator reaches the last floor, Norville walks out of it and sees a janitor named Aloysius cleaning Waring's name from the door leading to the President's office.

Aloysius doesn't look friendly, and as Norville asks for Mussburger's office, he just points to the next door. When Norville gets there, Mussburger's secretaries look at him strangely, and one of them asks if he has an appointment. Norville says he doesn't, and that he came to deliver the blue letter. As one of them sees it, she screams and passes out.

Norville looks confused, but the other secretary directs him to Mussburger's office. When he gets there, he hears Mussburger arguing on the phone with someone about the candidates who might be able to replace Waring. After he ends the call, he tells Norville that he hopes he brought in good news because he's not in a pleasant mood. Norville then puts the letter in his pocket and shows Mussburger the circle he drew on a sheet of paper.

He says he has been working on it for two or three years, and that the invention is for kids. Mussburger looks confused because he doesn't understand the drawing, and he starts wondering if Norville will look good as president of the company. Mussburger gives Norville a cigar and tells him to sit down and place his legs on the table. Norville does as he's told, and Mussburger says he can tell that Norville didn't have much education.

Norville says he's actually a college graduate, and Mussburger implies that he probably didn't excel at his studies. Norville says he made the Dean's list, and Mussburger asks if his friends often call him names to insult him. Norville doesn't get this, and he says that his classmates voted him most likely to succeed. Mussburger seems pissed because Norville is probably too smart for the role.

He then snatches the cigar from Norville and fires him out of anger. Norville looks shocked, but Mussburger accidentally drops the cigar on a contract he was about to read. Norville tries to help him kill the fire, but as he breaks the window in the process, some other documents fly outside. Mussburger gets carried away and accidentally climbs out the window to grab the documents, but Norville quickly holds his legs so that he won't fall to the ground like Waring.

As Norville tells Mussburger not to worry much because he's got hold of him by his pants, Mussburger immediately remembers telling his tailor to use a single stitch. Interestingly, the tailor still used a double stitch on the pants out of kindness, and this saves Mussburger from falling as Norville holds him. Mussburger then realizes that Norville is the best candidate for his plan with the other members of the board. Almost immediately, Norville is made the new President of Hudsucker Industries, and the news is reported around New York.

Days later, at work, Norville asks Mussburger if they shouldn't be concerned about the way the company's stocks are failing. Mussburger says it's nothing to worry about, and that it's normal for it to happen during a period of transition. Norville then asks if Mussburger can remember the invention he talked about on the day he was promoted. He says it requires only a small capital investment but has the potential to bring in a lot of profit.

He asks if he can tell some of the other board members about it, and Mussburger says he can. He adds that he would like to hear about it later. Elsewhere, at a newspaper company, the owner, Lou, laments that his reporters haven't been able to get him a story about the new president of Hudsucker Industries, who everyone is calling an idea man. As he scolds them, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter named Amy enters his office and brags about being capable of taking on the case to find out what kind of person Norville is.

Later that day, while Norville is at a bar, Amy tries to find ways to talk to him, but he just ignores her antics. As she pretends like she's hurt, she gets his attention, and he decides to take her to his office. When they get there, Amy talks a lot about her education and how she hasn't gotten a job. As she figures out that he graduated from Muncie, she says she went there too.

Norville looks really excited to meet another person from Muncie, and Amy pretends to know a lot about the school. Norville then offers her a job as his secretary. Amy says he doesn't have to do that, but he insists. The next day, at the newspaper company, Amy types her story about Norville being an imbecile.

She also tells one of her colleagues that she thinks the Hudsucker board is up to something, and even Norville has no idea about it. After this, the story gets published in the newspaper, and as Norville reads it, he seems disgusted and calls Amy to his office. Interestingly, he doesn't know she's the one who wrote the story because she gave him another name, and he tells her to help him draft a letter which he wants to send to the reporter. In the letter, he calls out Amy's professionalism and says she doesn't have the guts to meet him one-on-one for an interview, and that's why she wrote a terrible story even though she has no idea who he really is.

Suddenly, Norville rethinks his decision to send the letter, and he asks Amy if she thinks he's an imbecile. Before she responds, he says she'll probably be biased because she's a fellow Muncian. He then shows her his circle drawing and says that an imbecile cannot come up with something like that. Amy doesn't understand what she's looking at, but Norville says she should know that it's for kids.

Amy still looks confused, and she says she'll head to her table to type the letter. Norville then tells her to forget about it, and that the reporter is probably not worth it. He says she's probably one of those fast-talking career girls who thinks she's one of the boys. Amy looks confused, but Norville says the reporter is most definitely unattractive and bitter about it.

He adds that she probably wears men's clothing, and that he's pretty sure she's ugly because she didn't even put her picture next to her column. Amy says the reporter probably puts her work ahead of her personal appearance, and Norville says that's the kind of thing the person probably tells herself. As he asks if Amy would like to grab dinner with him later tonight, she seems offended by all the things he said earlier, and she slaps him. Norville looks confused, but Amy says he knows nothing about the reporter, and that he shouldn't talk about things he knows nothing about.

Later that night, Amy sneaks back into Norville's office after closing hours to see if he's hiding anything. She checks his wardrobe and sees his mailroom apron inside. As she also realizes that his desk is empty, she looks around and spots a room meant for authorized personnel only. Amy immediately goes through the door and sees the giant machines meant for the building's tower clock.

She also sees a door leading to Mussburger's office, and as she peeks through the keyhole, a man named Moses spots her and asks what she's doing. Moses recognizes her as a newspaper reporter, and she asks how he knows her. Moses says he knows a lot of things, especially about Hudsucker. Amy asks what he does at the company, and he says he keeps the tower clock running.

Amy then asks if he'll tell anyone about her, but he says he won't do that as long as they don't ask. Amy looks relieved and asks why he thinks the board hired an imbecile to be president. Moses doesn't think Norville is an imbecile, and he says that he was initially surprised by the board's decision until he figured out that they're only trying to inspire panic and make the stock cheap so they can snatch it up for themselves. He adds that he's sure Norville has some tricks up his sleeve because he's smart.

Amy doesn't believe this, and Moses says it's clear that she doesn't really know Norville any better than the board does. As Amy still seems pissed at Norville, Moses asks why she's acting like an arrogant lady. He says it will never make her happy, but Amy says she's happy enough. Moses finds this funny and walks away, and Amy wonders if he's right.

The next day, Amy tells Lou about the board's plan to make the stock cheap, but he refuses to publish the story because he thinks it's only speculation. Amy isn't happy about this, but Lou insists that he can't risk publishing such a story. The next day, at a company event, Mussburger introduces Norville to some of the company's biggest shareholders. They don't seem really happy about the falling stock, and one of them punches Norville out of anger.

While Norville is standing alone, Amy goes to console him. She also feels sorry for him and says she wants to tell him something. Norville asks what it is, and Amy says she's not really a secretary. Norville says he knows, and Amy looks surprised. Norville then mentions that he knows she's not skilled at being a secretary, just like he's not a good president.

Amy says she believes in him, and she warns him not to trust anyone at Hudsucker. As they then talk about their favorite bars, Amy tells Norville about a beatnik bar she has been going to recently. She invites him to come with her one day, and he says he'll think about it. Interestingly, they both seem attracted to each other, and they continue talking about their feelings.

The next day, Norville shows the members of the board the prototype of his invention. As he shows them how it can be used, Mussburger and the others think it's a failure, but since it can help them depress the stock further, they approve the invention. Following this, the invention is mass-produced by the company and named the Hula-Hoop. Days after it gets produced, no one buys it from the store it was delivered to, and the owner is forced to reduce the price many times before he throws out some of them.

One day after school, a young boy sees the hula-hoop on the ground and looks amazed. As he plays with it, some other kids see him and look impressed. They all head back to the store to buy theirs, and the seller quickly increases the price. The hula-hoop immediately becomes a popular invention that makes everyone hail Norville as an idea man.

His success also helps the stock improve significantly, and reporters start asking for his next idea. Norville then talks about the improvements that will be made to the hula-hoop, and some reporters also start rumors about him dating a model named Za-za. Amy sees this in a newspaper while on her way home, and she doesn't look happy because she likes Norville. Elsewhere, some of the board members don't seem happy that Mussburger sold all their stocks a few weeks earlier to cause panic and further depress the stock.

One of them says he would've become a millionaire at the current price, and Mussburger says they'd have all been millionaires. He then tells his colleagues not to worry about Norville because he’s sure they can deal with him. He says they made Norville who he is, and they can also break him. The next day, Amy visits Norville and asks if he knows that the board wants to fire about 80 percent of the workers at Hudsucker Industries.

Norville says he knows, and that he approved the plan because they're getting rid of dead wood. Amy cannot believe this, and she scolds him for being an uncaring and arrogant boss. She also complains that he hasn't spoken to her in days, and that she always thought he was a good guy with a lot of ideas in his head. She says he's now chasing money and trying to earn the respect of the board members, who don't really care about him.

Norville seems disappointed in himself, and as Amy says she used to love him, she slaps him and leaves his office. The next day, at work, Buzz interrupts Norville's nap to show him a drawing of a circle on a sheet of paper. He says he has his own idea, which is bendy straws. Norville doesn't like it, and he insults Buzz for coming up with a useless idea.

He also fires Buzz out of anger, and Buzz quickly pleads for his job back, saying he needs it. However, Norville doesn't care about this, and he sends Buzz out of his office. Later that night, Mussburger gets a file showing that Amy is actually a reporter who worked undercover to get close to Norville. He then says the file will be very useful in destroying Norville.

Days later, Norville returns to work after a golf game and meets Mussburger in the boardroom. Mussburger then mentions that they currently have a security problem at Hudsucker. He says it concerns Norville, and that Buzz claims Norville stole the hula-hoop idea from him. Norville looks confused and says he was probably too hard on Buzz when he fired him.

Mussburger says he doesn't really care, and that Norville can fire anyone he wants. He says the only thing he's worried about is the person Norville hired. As he shows Norville the file about Amy being a reporter, he says the board won't like to see that. Norville cannot believe that Amy is really a reporter, and Mussburger says that when the board meets after the new year, they'll reconsider Norville’s position as president.

He adds that business is cruel and it gives no second chances. Norville looks disappointed, and Mussburger says his time at Hudsucker is definitely over, and that Amy has ruined him. On New Year's Eve, Amy confronts Lou when she sees a story in the newspaper about Norville stealing the hula-hoop idea from Buzz. Amy says it's a lie, but Lou seems sure that it's true.

He adds that one of Amy's colleagues, Smitty, has a source at Hudsucker that confirmed it. Amy says she's sure the source is Mussburger, and that it's definitely a fake story. However, Lou implies that Amy is just annoyed because she couldn't come up with a big story regarding the case. Amy seems pissed and insults Lou and Smitty before quitting her job.

Elsewhere, the board members hire a doctor who informs them that Norville is suffering from severe depression. Mussburger believes Norville is nuts, and he asks the doctor what they can do next. The doctor then suggests sending Norville to a psychiatric hospital where he can be monitored. Meanwhile, Norville gets drunk and goes to the beatnik bar Amy suggested the other day.

She eventually meets him there, and he says that he already knows who she is. Amy apologizes and says she wanted to tell him many times. She begs him to give her another chance, but he refuses to do this. He also leaves her at the bar and sees a boy selling a newspaper with the top story being that he's a mental case.

As he looks sad and walks on the road, he suddenly bumps into Buzz, who is now with Za-za. Buzz says Mussburger has told him to come back for his job, and that he's not wicked like Norville. He also mentions that Mussburger told him that Norville stole his idea. Norville tries to explain that it's a mix-up, but Buzz doesn't care.

Za-za also tells Buzz to punch Norville, and he does this. As Norville falls to the ground, he gets surrounded by a few people who recognize him as the person who was just exposed as a fraud at Hudsucker. Norville quickly runs away before they can beat him up, and he finds his way back to the company. When he gets there, he sees Aloysius writing Mussburger's name on the door as the new president.

The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) Ending Explained

He just ignores Aloysius and heads into the office to grab his mailroom apron. After he puts it on, he climbs out the window and considers jumping down. He eventually changes his mind, but as he's about to go back inside, Aloysius locks the window. Norville looks shocked and immediately loses balance.

As he falls toward the ground, time suddenly freezes, and he looks confused. Interestingly, it turns out that Moses has stopped the clock, and as Aloysius figures this out, he heads to the clock room. Meanwhile, Waring suddenly appears before Norville as an angel. He says he can see that Mussburger and the board members have been a bit tough on Norville.

He also talks about Mussburger being a strict businessman who can do anything just to get what he wants. Norville still doesn't understand what's happening, but Waring asks why he didn't deliver the blue letter. Norville says he probably misplaced it, but Waring says it's inside the apron. As Norville finds it there, Waring tells him to read it.

Norville then reads the first paragraph in which Waring talks about missing out on being with a woman he loved. Waring gets emotional and tells Norville to skip that part. Norville then reads the next paragraph, and in that part, Waring tells Mussburger that he wants the next president to have freedom to experiment and fail because that's what business is about. He also mentions that he wants all his shares to be transferred to his immediate successor.

He says he expects it to be Mussburger, and that he sees the shares as a second chance for anyone who gets elected to become the new president. Elsewhere, Aloysius and Moses fight in the clock room. Moses eventually beats up Aloysius and removes the stick he used to freeze time. Before Norville falls to the ground, Aloysius’ fake teeth slows down the clock, and Waring tells Norville to deliver the letter tomorrow.

As the clock starts running again, Norville lands gently on the ground, and he looks excited because he now owns Waring's shares and has total control over the company. He then runs back to the beatnik bar to share the good news with Amy, who looks very happy. The next day, when the letter is delivered to Mussburger, he tries to jump down from the building, but as he hesitates, he is saved and taken to a psychiatric hospital. Much later, Norville comes up with a new invention and unveils it to the board members, who look amazed when they see a Frisbee.

After Norville moves to New York City in search of a job, he eventually lands one as a mailroom clerk at a company that has just lost its president and majority shareholder. To prevent the late president’s shares from being bought by the public, the board members decide to cause panic by appointing Norville as the new president, with the hope of depressing the stock and snatching it for themselves. Their plan eventually backfires when Norville turns out to be competent, and a letter from the former president also grants him full control of the company.