Logline of All About Eve: Broadway star Margo takes the seemingly naive aspiring actress Eve under her wing but before long, it becomes clear that Eve is a manipulative conniver who cold-bloodedly uses Margo and everyone around her to rise to the top of the theatrical heap. 

Writer: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Genre: American drama

Starring: Bette Davis, Anne Baxter, George Sanders, Celeste Holm, Gary Merrill, Hugh Marlowe, Thelma Ritter

Release Date: October 13, 1950 

Script Link: Script Can Be Found Here

As part of a weekly series, I’m looking at some of the WGA’s List of Top 101 Screenplays to see how everyone’s favorite screenwriting formula shows up. I neither condone nor condemn the framework. I’m just deeply curious. 

Rank on WGA List: #5

“All About Eve” Summary:

The story begins with an award ceremony, where theater critic Addison DeWitt (George Sanders) gives background about the scene and several of the characters involved, including Margo Channing (Bette Davis). Flashback to Eve Harrington (Anne Baxter), a seemingly innocent and starstruck fan, who approaches Margo (via Karen Richards, played by Celeste Holm) and expresses her admiration. Margo, touched by Eve’s apparent sincerity, takes her under her wing and offers her a job as her assistant.

As Eve becomes an integral part of Margo’s life, it becomes evident that her intentions are not as innocent as they seem. Eve is revealed to be an ambitious and cunning young woman with a relentless drive to climb the ladder of success in the theater world. She strategically positions herself to gain more prominence within Margo’s circle, winning the favor of influential figures like Karen and theater critic Addison DeWitt (George Sanders).

The plot unfolds through a series of intricately woven narratives, primarily conveyed through the sharp and insightful voiceover of Addison (as well as other characters). At the birthday party Margo throws for her boyfriend Bill Simpson (Gary Merrill), Margo begins to sense the truth about Eve’s cunning maneuvers. Eventually, Eve manages to fill in as Margo’s understudy and replaces her as a leading lady. 

Addison, while fascinated by Eve’s ruthlessness, realizes the potential danger she poses to those around her. Towards the end, he confronts her and tells her the details he’s found about her true identity. She nevertheless receives the Sarah Siddons Award and upon coming home, finds that she has a new up-and-comer named Phoebe (Barbara Bates) wanting to emulate her. The cycle begins again.

“All About Eve” Analysis:

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
1	Opening Image (page 1)	Page 1	In movie: A bouquet of roses as we are at the Sarah Siddons Award for Distinguished Achievement. Addison DeWitt, the theater critic, gives a backstory.   In script: DINING HALL – SARAH SIDDONS SOCIETY – NIGHTIt is not a large room and jammed with tables, mostly for four but some for six and eight. A long table of honor, for about thirty people, has been placed upon a dais.

The image sets the stage for what’s happening in the world and kind of leaves us hanging. Who’s winning this award? And why? Addison DeWitt gives us the background through voiceover, painting a picture of the major players involved and setting up most of the narrative as a flashback (we come back to the awards ceremony towards the end of the film). 

One of the reasons why Hollywood loves certain films is because it feels seen, and All About Eve is one of its all-time favorites. Thus, the Sarah Siddons Award could easily be a stand-in for an Oscar, Emmy, or Tony. In Addison’s authoritative tone, it seems like we’re not just about to learn about this specific group of characters in the theater but what happens behind-the-scenes among any set of power players in the entertainment industry. 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
2	Theme Stated (page 5)	Page 6	IN SCRIPT: ADDISON: Margo is a great Star. A true Star. She never was or will be anything less or anything else.(slight pause)…the part for which Eve Harrington is receiving the Sarah Siddons Awardwas intended originally for Margo Channing.  IN MOVIE:ADDISON: Margo is a great Star. A true Star. She never was or will be anything less or anything else.

There are several themes in All About Eve, but the most pronounced one is ageism, specifically how youth replaces age (and does so ruthlessly). This is a story of how an outsider found her way into the in-crowd by being humble and kind, found a way to maneuver upwards, gained power, and then double-crossed the one who helped her by disparaging her in the press. (We’ll come back to the theme a little later, but it’s interesting to note that “…the part for which Eve Harrington is receiving the Sarah Siddons Award was intended originally for Margo Channing.” was cut). 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
3	Set-Up (pages 1-10)	Pages 1-19	Six Things that Need FIxing: 1) In the present, Eve is receiving the Sarah Siddons Award, not Margo; 2) In the present, there’s clear animosity between Margo and Eve; 3) In the flashback, Eve stalks Margo; 4) In the flashback, Eve really wants to act; 5) In the flashback, Margo is a bit too big for her britches, bantering with Lloyd about her play; 6) In the flashback,  Margo refers to Eve as “the mousy one,” indicating animosity.

What’s interesting is that the Six Things that Need Fixing pertains to a group of characters, not one protagonist. That’s partially because All About Eve, set in the communal realm of the theater world, relies more on the ensemble than just one person to move the narrative forward; there seems to be an overlap of cause and effect in that one person’s actions affect others, often with unintended consequences. 

Like…

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
4	Catalyst (page 12)	Page 19	Karen opens the door to Margo’s dressing room, allowing Eve to enter. She introduces Eve to everyone, including Margo.

…Karen introducing Eve to everyone. If there existed a stasis among the group of characters, Eve represents the change that will forever alter the dynamic. 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
5	Debate (pages 12-25)	Pages 19 – 30	Eve explains her love of Margo’s work, her background working in a brewery in Wisconsin, her sob story about Eddie and

The “debate” isn’t so much of a debate as a chance for Eve to ingratiate herself into the group (perhaps Margo is wondering in the back of her head, “should I include this devoted fan into our little clique or not?” but it is never clearly stated so, again, it’s not an official debate). 

Instead, we get Eve’s unofficial audition. In retelling her sob story of her poor background, she deliberately plays upon the heartstrings of the group, especially Margo’s, when Eve says Margo’s performances gave her some rays of light and hope. Eve’s masterful manipulation is done under the guise of faux kindness and humility because it would be impossible to turn someone away who seems so…nice. 

When Birdie wryly mentions, “What a story. Everything but the bloodhounds snappin’ at her rear end,” Margo apologizes to Eve and even has Birdie apologize to her. Eve, in fact, is so confident that she’s played this group like a fiddle that she even motions to leave, which prompts Margo to invite her to stay longer. Eve’s manipulation has worked. 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
6	Break Into Two (page 25)	Page 39	MARGO: “That same night we sent for Eve’s things, her few pitiful possessions…she moved into the little guest room on the top floor (p. 39).

In becoming Margo’s assistant, Eve has left the old world of a starstruck fan and entered the new one of assistant on the rise. Now that the group has accepted Eve into it, Act Two has begun. 

While Eve is clearly playing offensive, it’s hard to call her a conventionally active protagonist because she’s not overtly aggressive. Instead, she creates the conditions for the other characters to give her opportunities to advance; for instance, Karen invites her into the dressing room (Eve doesn’t ask); and Margo allows for her to become her assistant (again, Eve doesn’t ask). 

Seen more broadly, Eve sets up situations for the others where they can’t win; saying no to her means that they appear heartless (and this group tends to value appearances), and saying yes to her means that they’re going to eventually lose power/status/standing (although they do not know that yet). 

Beneath her sweet smile and ‘aw shucks’ demeanor, Eve is a master manipulator. 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
7	B-Story (page 30)	Page 26	Bill Sampson, theater director and Margo’s boyfriend, arrives and complains that he’s going to be late for the airport

This feels like it’s arriving right on time per STC metrics. Bill and Margo are perfect for each in that they have larger-than-life personalities with illustrious careers.

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
8	Fun and Games (pages 30-55)	Pages 40 – 55	MARGO’S VOICE: The next three weeks were out of a fairy tale – and I was CInderella in the last act. Eve became my sister, lawyer, mother, friend, psychiatrist and cop. The honeymoon was on…Eve works as her assistant behind the scenes; she waits in the wings as Margo gets roaring applause from the audience. She sees Eve pretending to be accepting the applause on the stage, even wears Margo’s suit and places a call from Margo to Bill and even sends a telegram. And then, there’s the birthday. She gets drunk, plays “Liebestraum,” and tries to unload Eve on Max.

All of this shows how Eve is gradually gaining ground in a turf war for power (that, unfortunately, Margo only realizes when it’s  too late). Eve pretending to be bowing to roaring applause with Margo’s costume may look cute, but she’s really kind of trying on Margo’s skin; that later becomes apparent when she wears Margo’s suit and even goes so far as to place a call on Margo’s behalf. (I don’t know about you, but this feels very Single White Female). 

But she’s doing it with feigned kindness and professionalism, which is so manipulative. For instance, when Margo asks Birdie if she likes Eve, Birdie doesn’t hide her disdain and notes that Eve “was studyin’ you, like you were a play or a book or a set of blueprints” (p. 51). This causes Margo, who’s probably too enchanted with her own ego, to deny that there’s anything wrong with that. Eve is in the clear because she is too kind, too gracious, and too good at her job. 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
9	Midpoint (page 55)	Page 76	MARGO: “Fasten your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy night.”

The Midpoint of All About Eve is the party scene, but which moment is it? One may think it’s when Eve talks Karen into becoming Margo’s understudy, but I’d venture to guess it’s when Margo utters these indelible lines. Here, even though she’s already made a few quips to Eve at the party, she’s resolved to fight to maintain her position. 

Unfortunately, that fight is mainly against herself as she gets drunk and goes after other guests (like Miss Caswell) at the fete. In self-destructing, she loses a lot of face (and power) here, which only bolsters Eve’s goody-two-shoes standing. Eve is winning. 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
10	Bad Guys Close In (pages 55-75)	Pages 89 – 125	Addison drops the news that Eve is Margo’s new understudy and has read for the audition. Margo becomes increasingly toxic towards everyone around her. Karen hatches an “innocent” plan to strand Margo in the countryside.

Now that Eve is Margo’s understudy (and apparently doing better than Margo), she’s becoming way too close for comfort to Margo, who is clearly losing this turf war. (Again, Eve is playing it up with false humility and modesty, allowing Margo to dig herself deeper in calling Eve such sarcastic names as  “Miss Fire and Music.”)

Worse, Karen’s innocent prank to strand Margo in the countryside horrifically backfires and Eve goes on to give a superb performance; it begs the question, what kind of friend would do that? But then again, Margo is a diva and Karen perhaps believes this is the only way they can rein her in.  

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
11	All is Lost (page 75)	Page 125	Margo and Karen read Addison’s interview with Eve.  Whiff of Death: This interview throws Margo and her career under the bus.

This marks the Whiff of Death because now Eve has gone on record in Addison’s column to disparage Margo. Since Margo is the type to court public opinion, she is devastated to learn that her young protege would hit her where it hurts the most: her age. 

How is she going to recover from this?

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
12	Dark Night of the Soul (pages 75-85)	Pages 126-127	Margo cries in Bill’s arms

The B-plot intertwines with the A-plot here (he’s the only one who can truly comfort her); it sets the stage for announcing their engagement to their friends in the Stork Room a few days later. 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
13	Break Into Three (page 85)	Page 128	Lloyd wants to take “Aged in Wood” on tour, put “Footsteps on the Ceiling” in production; Bill and Margo are getting married. In the ladies’ room, Eve threatens to let the others know of Karen’s blackmail attempt if Lloyd doesn’t cast her in his new play. Back at the table, Margo says that she’s not interested in playing that role anyway.

As this is an ensemble piece, the decision to act comes from all of the characters, not just one – an interesting choice because usually it’s the protagonist who has to solve his own problem. Karen is exonerated from Margo knowing about the prank because Margo doesn’t want the role in the new play, leaving Eve to take it. 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
14	Finale (pages 85-110)	Page 151	Eve plays Cora in the new play opening in New Haven.  Eve says that Lloyd is leaving Karen for Eve; she seems to have crossed a line with Addison; they get into a fight. He reveals to her about herself. He says that he belongs to her. She gives her the award. She comes home to see Phoebe. Phoebe answers the door.

All About Eve feels like a whodunit here in that Addison tells Eve about herself; this scene pays off the dressing room scene wherein she tells a bunch of lies about her past. This may be a tad uncomfortable to watch, but it’s justice for Eve derailing Margo’s career.  We return to the Sarah Siddons Awards ceremony and, now that we know the true backstory about Eve, we know how empty the victory is. This isn’t a meritocracy at all; it’s a cut-throat system in which only the cunning and most devious survive. 

Phoebe stalking Eve represents how the cycle is repeating itself (even replicating the image of Phoebe trying on Eve’s clothes as though she were trying on a skin). 

Number	STC Element	Page(s) in Script	Event in Script
15	Final Image (page 110)	Page 180	Phone poses with the cape in the mirror.

As Phoebe tries on the clothes, we see a myriad of Phoebes reflected back among the mirrors. The visual metaphor is that this cycle of youth-will-triumph-over-age in showbiz will continue ad infinitum (although it begs the question: how exactly did Margo get her start? How did she not see Eve for what she was from the outset and protect herself?). 

In Sum:

So, does it conform to STC? Yes and no. Sure, there is an Act One (the theater characters exist with Eve as an outsider); there is an Act Two (Eve ingratiates herself into the group and gains power); and there is an Act Three (Eve gains the lead in a role only to be put under the thumb of Addison and realize that Phoebe is the next star rising). 

But the reliance on the ensemble (instead of one protagonist) and the 180-page count are the major differentiators here. That could be largely because the film is about theater people (and plays tend to be more verbose than screenplays), and All About Eve comes from another time (the 110- or 120-page page count is a relatively recent standard for script length). 

In sum, I can’t help but wonder if All About Eve isn’t the unofficial primer given by Hollywood on how to get ahead in Hollywood. In this world, work, perseverance, and talent pale in comparison to sheer cunning and deviousness. If so, then it’s a terribly cynical message hidden beneath the fun of a backstage dramedy.