Insignificance (film)

Insignificance is a 1985 British alternative history comedy drama film directed by Nicolas Roeg, and starring Gary Busey, Michael Emil, Theresa Russell, Tony Curtis, and Will Sampson. Adapted by Terry Johnson from his 1982 play of the same name, the film follows four famous characters who converge in a New York City hotel one night in 1954: The Ballplayer (Busey), The Professor (Emil), The Actress (Russell), and The Senator (Curtis), inspired by Joe DiMaggio, Albert Einstein, Marilyn Monroe, and Joseph McCarthy, respectively.

Johnson completed the screenplay for Insignificance in mid-1984, and the film was shot on location in New York City and at Lee Studios in Wembley, England. The film premiered at the 1985 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or and won the Technical Grand Prize. It was released theatrically in the United Kingdom by Palace Pictures on 2 August 1985. It received largely favorable reviews from film critics.