Fearful for their own fate at a New England estate, six unacquainted guests investigate the murder of the seventh guest. A film by Jonathan Lynn, starring Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, Lesley Ann Warren, Colleen Camp, and Lee Ving.

In 1954, butler Wadsworth (Tim Curry) arrives at a secluded New England mansion and ensures the staff has everything ready for the dinner party before the guests arrive.

French maid Yvette (Colleen Camp) confirms that everything has been prepared as instructed.

When Wadsworth visits the kitchen to see the cook, Mrs. Ho (Kellye Nakahara) tells him that dinner will be ready at 7:30.

Soon, the guests start arriving. Wadsworth greets each one and explains that they should use only their assigned aliases, not their real names, as his employer has instructed. He escorts each guest to the library, where they’re served drinks by Yvette while waiting for everyone else to arrive. The guests include Colonel Mustard (Martin Mull), Mrs. White (Madeline Kahn), Mrs. Peacock (Eileen Brennan), Mr. Green (Michael McKean), Professor Plum (Christopher Lloyd), and Miss Scarlet (Lesley Ann Warren). Once dinner is ready, Wadsworth leads them all to the dining room.

In the dining room, Colonel Mustard spots an empty chair and asks Wadsworth if it belongs to their host. Wadsworth explains that it’s for the seventh guest, Mr. Boddy, who still hasn’t shown up. Mrs. White expresses surprise, saying she thought Mr. Boddy was their host. The other guests agree, confirming they had the same impression. When pressed about who the actual host is, Wadsworth simply chuckles and remains mysterious about the matter.

Soon, the final guest arrives. Wadsworth brings him to the dining room and introduces him as Mr. Boddy (Lee Ving). The other guests look stunned and stare at Mr. Boddy in silence as he declines to eat. Mrs. Peacock grows agitated and demands an explanation for why they’ve all been brought to this place.

Wadsworth explains that they all received a letter and begins reading from his: “It will be to your advantage to be present on this date because Mr. Boddy will bring to an end a certain long-standing, confidential, and painful financial liability.” The other guests confirm they received similar letters, though Mr. Boddy (Lee Ving) claims his letter contained a different message. Wadsworth then suggests they move to the study for coffee and brandy.

In the study, Wadsworth opens a brown envelope left by the host. He explains that he’s been instructed to reveal what they all have in common, then asks if Mr. Boddy would prefer to do the honors. Mr. Boddy becomes impatient and declares the whole thing a hoax, urging everyone to leave. However, Wadsworth tells them that escape is impossible because all the windows are barred and every door is locked. When Mr. Boddy tries to smash a window, a snarling black dog appears outside and barks ferociously. With no other choice, Mr. Boddy rejoins the group in the study.

Wadsworth eventually reveals that all of them are being blackmailed by someone, though none of them knows who is threatening to expose their secrets unless they pay up. After sharing details about each guest’s hidden past, Wadsworth identifies Mr. Boddy as their blackmailer. He explains that he has contacted the police, who will arrive within 45 minutes.

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@pradt

CLUE 🔍
Murder. Mystery. Mayhem.
—
A film by Jonathan Lynn, starring Eileen Brennan, Tim Curry, Madeline Kahn, Christopher Lloyd, Michael McKean, Martin Mull, Lesley Ann Warren, Colleen Camp, and Lee Ving.

All the guests need to do is tell the truth, and Mr. Boddy will be arrested and imprisoned. Wadsworth adds that he has collected evidence and has been recording their entire conversation.

Refusing to surrender so easily, Mr. Boddy steps out of the room and returns with his bag. He hands each guest a black box present. Mr. Boddy reveals that he too received a threatening invitation letter demanding his appearance or the evidence would go to the police, which is why he came prepared.

The six guests open their gifts and discover an item inside each box: Miss Scarlet finds a candlestick, Mrs. White finds a rope, Mr. Green finds a lead pipe, Colonel Mustard finds a wrench, Professor Plum finds a revolver, and Mrs. Peacock finds a dagger.

While everyone looks confused, Mr. Boddy points out that they’re each now holding a lethal weapon. He threatens that if they report him to the police, he’ll make sure all their secrets are revealed when he testifies against them in court. Mr. Boddy proposes that if someone kills Wadsworth, only the seven of them would know what happened, keeping their secrets buried forever.

Closing the door, he tells them that the only way to stay off the front pages is to act now. Mr. Boddy suddenly flicks the light switch off, and the room abruptly turns dark. Immediately, chaos erupts with the sound of an object thudding, a man’s groaning, a gunshot, a glass shattering, and a woman screaming.

When the lights come back on, everyone is shocked to see Mr. Boddy lying motionless face down on the floor. Professor Plum approaches the body to check for a pulse, then announces that Mr. Boddy is dead. None of the guests admits to killing him. With no visible wounds on the body, everyone is puzzled about how Mr. Boddy was murdered. Professor Plum suggests that he might have been poisoned, but this theory proves incorrect.

Eventually, they deduce that the cook might be the killer since she’s the only one not with them. They quickly race to the kitchen, only to discover Mrs. Ho’s body hidden in the storage room, stabbed to death with a dagger. Now they must figure out if the real killer is hiding somewhere in the mansion or if one of them is the murderer, while trying to stay alive until the police arrive.

Written and directed by English filmmaker Jonathan Lynn from a story he co-wrote with John Landis, Clue is a comedy mystery based upon the Parker Brothers’ board game of the same name.

The original name of the board game Clue was “Cluedo.” It was created by British board game designer Anthony E. Pratt in 1943 during World War II. The game was first manufactured by Waddingtons in the United Kingdom in 1949 under the name Cluedo, which is a combination of the word “clue” and “Ludo” (a Latin word that means “I play”). When the game was licensed for release in North America by Parker Brothers, the name was changed to “Clue.” The game was marketed as “The Great New Detective Game” in North America upon its launch. Originally, Pratt’s invention was called “Murder” before being renamed Cluedo for the UK market.

The story follows six strangers who are invited by a mysterious host, unaware that they have all been blackmailed by the same person. The mystery unfolds after they encounter the blackmailer, who is then murdered, and they must all figure out who the real killer is while viewers also try to piece together the clues to discover who the culprit is and how they committed the crime without anyone noticing.

The film is highly entertaining, featuring a stellar cast that delivers wonderfully hilarious performances. The script excels in the classic detective whodunit style, keeping viewers engaged through compelling character backstories where everyone appears to have a motive for murder. The narrative maintains a perfect balance of dark humor and mystery, never revealing the true killer’s identity or whether they acted alone, successfully keeping audiences guessing until the very end.

The final act is the film’s most memorable moment when Wadsworth frantically explains how the murders were committed. Through his rapid-fire delivery, he recounts the entire sequence of events while dramatically reenacting the crime and embodying the killer before finally revealing their identity. However, the film doesn’t stop there. It presents an alternate ending with a completely different murderer, followed by yet another twist that shows audiences what actually happened.

Clue was released in theaters across the United States on 13 December 1985. It was a unique theatrical release because the movie had three different endings, and which one you saw depended on which theater you went to.

Paramount Home Media Distribution released Clue on Blu-ray on 7 August 2012. The Blu-ray features 1080p high-definition video and English mono DTS-HD Master Audio. Viewers can choose to watch one of the three alternate endings randomly or select a specific one, or use the “View Trilogy Ending” feature that combines all three endings into one complete version. The disc also includes the original theatrical trailer.

Shout! Studios released a 4K UHD + Blu-ray Collector’s Edition of “Clue” on 12 December 2023. This special edition features a brand-new 4K remaster created from a 2023 scan of the original camera negative. Like previous releases, viewers can either let the film randomly select one of the three surprise endings or watch the trilogy ending that shows all three outcomes back-to-back. The Blu-ray disc includes several new special features: “The Perfect Motive: Directing Clue” (an interview with writer/director Jonathan Lynn), “The Scene of the Crime: Producing Clue” (an interview with associate Jeffrey Chernov), “Not Just a Game: Scoring Clue” (an interview with film music historian Daniel Schweiger discussing John Morris’s score), and the original theatrical trailer. The audio is presented in English DTS-HD Master Audio Mono.

To celebrate the film’s 40th anniversary, a limited re-release was held over three days in late August 2025, with a different ending shown on each day.

A new 4K Blu-ray SteelBook is scheduled to arrive on 7 October 2025.