How to Lose Friends & Alienate People

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Based upon British writer Toby Young's 2001 memoir, also called How to Lose Friends and Alienate People. The film will follow a similar storyline, about his five year struggle to make it in the United States after employment at Vanity Fair magazine — though the names of the magazine and people Young came into contact with during the time were changed for the film adaptation. The film version is a highly fictionalized account, and differs greatly from the work it was built upon.

Plot
How To Lose Friends & Alienate People tracks the outrageous escapade of Sydney Young (Simon Pegg), a smalltime, bumbling, British celebrity journalist who is hired by an upscale magazine in New York City. After disrupting one black-tie event by allowing a wild pig to run rampant, Sydney catches the attention of Clayton Harding (Jeff Bridges), editor of Sharps magazine, and accepts a job with the magazine in New York City. Clayton warns Sydney that he'd better charm everyone he can, if he wants to succeed. Instead, Sydney instantly insults and annoys fellow writer Alison Olsen (Kirsten Dunst). He dares to target the star clients of power publicist Eleanor Johnson (Gillian Anderson). He upsets his direct boss Lawrence Maddox (Danny Huston), and tries to make amends by hiring a stripper to dance for Lawrence during a staff meeting. Sydney, of course, doesn't stop there, finding creative ways to annoy nearly everyone. His saving grace: a rising, sexy starlet Sophie Maes (Megan Fox) who develops an odd affection for him, and in time, Alison's friendship might be the only thing saving Sydney from torpedoing his career.

Cast
Simon Pegg as Sidney Young
Kirsten Dunst as Alison Olsen
Jeff Bridges as Clayton Harding
Danny Huston as Lawrence Maddox
Gillian Anderson as Eleanor Johnson
Megan Fox as Sophie Maes

Detail Info
Directed by Robert B. Weide
Produced by Stephen Woolley, Elizabeth Karlsen
Written by Peter Straughan, Toby Young (memoir)
Cinematography Oliver Stapleton
Editing by David Freeman
Distributed by

• Channel Four Films (UK)
• Paramount Pictures (UK)
• Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (US)

Country United Kingdom
Language English
Budget $28 million