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{"ab":false,"abStatus":null,"abTestId":null,"abVariation":false,"abVariationAutomated":false,"absoluteUrl":"https://www.frontrowinsurance.com/articles/whats-a-macguffin","afterPostBody":null,"aifeatures":null,"allowedSlugConflict":false,"analytics":null,"analyticsPageId":"6744485994","analyticsPageType":"blog-post","approvalStatus":null,"archived":false,"archivedAt":0,"archivedInDashboard":false,"areCommentsAllowed":true,"attachedStylesheets":[],"audienceAccess":"PUBLIC","author":null,"authorName":null,"authorUsername":null,"blogAuthor":{"avatar":"","bio":"","cdnPurgeEmbargoTime":null,"cosObjectType":"BLOG_AUTHOR","created":1540402219890,"deletedAt":0,"displayName":"Casey Budden","email":"","facebook":"","fullName":"Casey Budden","gravatarUrl":null,"hasSocialProfiles":false,"id":6384527471,"label":"Casey Budden","language":null,"linkedin":"","name":"Casey Budden","portalId":61352,"slug":"casey-budden","translatedFromId":null,"translations":{},"twitter":"","twitterUsername":"","updated":1540402219890,"userId":null,"username":null,"website":""},"blogAuthorId":6384527471,"blogPostAuthor":{"avatar":"","bio":"","cdnPurgeEmbargoTime":null,"cosObjectType":"BLOG_AUTHOR","created":1540402219890,"deletedAt":0,"displayName":"Casey Budden","email":"","facebook":"","fullName":"Casey Budden","gravatarUrl":null,"hasSocialProfiles":false,"id":6384527471,"label":"Casey Budden","language":null,"linkedin":"","name":"Casey Budden","portalId":61352,"slug":"casey-budden","translatedFromId":null,"translations":{},"twitter":"","twitterUsername":"","updated":1540402219890,"userId":null,"username":null,"website":""},"blogPostScheduleTaskUid":null,"blogPublishInstantEmailCampaignId":null,"blogPublishInstantEmailRetryCount":null,"blogPublishInstantEmailTaskUid":"DONE","blogPublishToSocialMediaTask":"DONE","blueprintTypeId":0,"businessUnitId":null,"campaign":"2338d37d-5cfd-4c6f-a30b-851e02933b68","campaignName":"Film Insurance","campaignUtm":"Film%20Insurance","category":3,"categoryId":3,"cdnPurgeEmbargoTime":null,"checkPostLevelAudienceAccessFirst":true,"clonedFrom":null,"composeBody":null,"compositionId":428422,"contentAccessRuleIds":[],"contentAccessRuleTypes":[],"contentGroup":952267656,"contentGroupId":952267656,"contentTypeCategory":3,"contentTypeCategoryId":3,"contentTypeId":null,"created":1544473697496,"createdByAgent":null,"createdById":6181944,"createdTime":1544473697496,"crmObjectId":null,"css":{},"cssText":"","ctaClicks":null,"ctaViews":null,"currentState":"PUBLISHED","currentlyPublished":true,"deletedAt":0,"deletedBy":null,"deletedByEmail":null,"deletedById":null,"domain":"","dynamicPageDataSourceId":null,"dynamicPageDataSourceType":null,"dynamicPageHubDbTableId":null,"enableDomainStylesheets":null,"enableGoogleAmpOutputOverride":false,"enableLayoutStylesheets":null,"errors":[],"featuredImage":"","featuredImageAltText":"","featuredImageHeight":0,"featuredImageLength":0,"featuredImageWidth":0,"flexAreas":{},"folderId":null,"footerHtml":null,"freezeDate":1544474897000,"generateJsonLdEnabledOverride":true,"hasContentAccessRules":false,"hasUserChanges":true,"headHtml":null,"header":null,"htmlTitle":"What’s a “MacGuffin?”","id":6744485994,"includeDefaultCustomCss":null,"isCaptchaRequired":true,"isCrawlableByBots":false,"isDraft":false,"isInstanceLayoutPage":false,"isInstantEmailEnabled":true,"isPublished":true,"isSocialPublishingEnabled":false,"keywords":[],"label":"<span id=\"hs_cos_wrapper_name\" class=\"hs_cos_wrapper hs_cos_wrapper_meta_field hs_cos_wrapper_type_text\" style=\"\" data-hs-cos-general-type=\"meta_field\" data-hs-cos-type=\"text\" >What’s a “MacGuffin?”</span>","language":"en","lastEditSessionId":null,"lastEditUpdateId":null,"layoutSections":{},"legacyBlogTabid":null,"legacyId":null,"legacyPostGuid":null,"linkRelCanonicalUrl":"","listTemplate":"prox_frontrow/templates/blog/blog-listing.html","liveDomain":"www.frontrowinsurance.com","mab":false,"mabExperimentId":null,"mabMaster":false,"mabVariant":false,"meta":{"public_access_rules":[],"public_access_rules_enabled":false,"html_title":"What’s a “MacGuffin?”","enable_google_amp_output_override":false,"generate_json_ld_enabled":true,"composition_id":428422,"is_crawlable_by_bots":false,"use_featured_image":false,"post_body":"<span id=\"hs_cos_wrapper_post_body\" class=\"hs_cos_wrapper hs_cos_wrapper_meta_field hs_cos_wrapper_type_rich_text\" style=\"\" data-hs-cos-general-type=\"meta_field\" data-hs-cos-type=\"rich_text\" ><h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n<!--more-->\n<p>“It might be a Scottish name, taken from a story about two men on a train. One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh, that's a MacGuffin'. The first one asks, 'What's a MacGuffin?' 'Well,' the other man says, 'it's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers, 'Well then, that's no MacGuffin!' So you see that a MacGuffin is actually nothing at all.”</p>\n<p>In the film <a href=\"https://geni.us/aB37\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Ronin</em></a> (1998; Amazon Affiliate Link)<em>, </em>for example, the MacGuffin was a metal briefcase whose contents were never revealed, but which all the characters in the film were desperate to obtain. The audience does not know, and arguably does not <span style=\"font-style: italic;\">need</span> to know, what is inside the briefcase; the MacGuffin is charged with such importance that its significance does not even need to be explained to propel the narrative forward.</p>\n<h2>Examples of famous “Macguffins” in movies / <span>macguffin examples</span>:</h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The Maltese Falcon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/FwD45\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Maltese Falcon</a>, </em>1941, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Holy Grail (<a href=\"https://geni.us/VA1Nf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Monty Python and the Holy Grail</em></a>, 1975, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Rosebud sled (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/WzEKcn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Citizen Kane</a></em><span style=\"font-style: normal;\">, 1941, Amazon Affiliate Link</span>)</li>\n<li>Marcellus Wallace’s case (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/oPXI\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Pulp Fiction</a>, </em>1994, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The One Ring <em>(<a href=\"https://geni.us/EYpOL\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Lord of the Rings Trilogy</a>, </em>2001-03, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Necronomicon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/g2vJn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Army of Darkness</a>, </em>1992, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Ark (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/9INCig\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Raiders of the Lost Ark</a>, </em>1981, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n</ul>\n<p><strong>Get the eBook!</strong> <a href=\"/en/film-insurance-101\" rel=\" noopener\" style=\"font-style: italic;\">Film Insurance 101</a></p>\n<div>\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px;\"><strong><i>Amazon Associates Disclosure</i></strong><i>: Front Row Insurance is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This post may contain affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you.</i></p>\n</div></span>","rss_summary":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n","rss_body":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n<!--more-->\n<p>“It might be a Scottish name, taken from a story about two men on a train. One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh, that's a MacGuffin'. The first one asks, 'What's a MacGuffin?' 'Well,' the other man says, 'it's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers, 'Well then, that's no MacGuffin!' So you see that a MacGuffin is actually nothing at all.”</p>\n<p>In the film <a href=\"https://geni.us/aB37\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Ronin</em></a> (1998; Amazon Affiliate Link)<em>, </em>for example, the MacGuffin was a metal briefcase whose contents were never revealed, but which all the characters in the film were desperate to obtain. The audience does not know, and arguably does not <span style=\"font-style: italic;\">need</span> to know, what is inside the briefcase; the MacGuffin is charged with such importance that its significance does not even need to be explained to propel the narrative forward.</p>\n<h2>Examples of famous “Macguffins” in movies / <span>macguffin examples</span>:</h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The Maltese Falcon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/FwD45\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Maltese Falcon</a>, </em>1941, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Holy Grail (<a href=\"https://geni.us/VA1Nf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Monty Python and the Holy Grail</em></a>, 1975, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Rosebud sled (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/WzEKcn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Citizen Kane</a></em><span style=\"font-style: normal;\">, 1941, Amazon Affiliate Link</span>)</li>\n<li>Marcellus Wallace’s case (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/oPXI\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Pulp Fiction</a>, </em>1994, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The One Ring <em>(<a href=\"https://geni.us/EYpOL\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Lord of the Rings Trilogy</a>, </em>2001-03, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Necronomicon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/g2vJn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Army of Darkness</a>, </em>1992, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Ark (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/9INCig\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Raiders of the Lost Ark</a>, </em>1981, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n</ul>\n<p><strong>Get the eBook!</strong> <a href=\"/en/film-insurance-101\" rel=\" noopener\" style=\"font-style: italic;\">Film Insurance 101</a></p>\n<div>\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px;\"><strong><i>Amazon Associates Disclosure</i></strong><i>: Front Row Insurance is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This post may contain affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you.</i></p>\n</div>","tag_ids":[949708814],"topic_ids":[949708814],"post_summary":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n","blog_post_schedule_task_uid":null,"blog_publish_to_social_media_task":"DONE","blog_publish_instant_email_task_uid":"DONE","blog_publish_instant_email_campaign_id":null,"blog_publish_instant_email_retry_count":null,"keywords":[],"meta_description":"MacGuffin (sometimes McGuffin)? 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What does that have to do with insurance for movies? Insurance for movie productions - read on. 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One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh, that's a MacGuffin'. The first one asks, 'What's a MacGuffin?' 'Well,' the other man says, 'it's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers, 'Well then, that's no MacGuffin!' So you see that a MacGuffin is actually nothing at all.”</p>\n<p>In the film <a href=\"https://geni.us/aB37\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Ronin</em></a> (1998; Amazon Affiliate Link)<em>, </em>for example, the MacGuffin was a metal briefcase whose contents were never revealed, but which all the characters in the film were desperate to obtain. The audience does not know, and arguably does not <span style=\"font-style: italic;\">need</span> to know, what is inside the briefcase; the MacGuffin is charged with such importance that its significance does not even need to be explained to propel the narrative forward.</p>\n<h2>Examples of famous “Macguffins” in movies / <span>macguffin examples</span>:</h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The Maltese Falcon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/FwD45\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Maltese Falcon</a>, </em>1941, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Holy Grail (<a href=\"https://geni.us/VA1Nf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Monty Python and the Holy Grail</em></a>, 1975, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Rosebud sled (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/WzEKcn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Citizen Kane</a></em><span style=\"font-style: normal;\">, 1941, Amazon Affiliate Link</span>)</li>\n<li>Marcellus Wallace’s case (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/oPXI\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Pulp Fiction</a>, </em>1994, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The One Ring <em>(<a href=\"https://geni.us/EYpOL\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Lord of the Rings Trilogy</a>, </em>2001-03, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Necronomicon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/g2vJn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Army of Darkness</a>, </em>1992, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Ark (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/9INCig\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Raiders of the Lost Ark</a>, </em>1981, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n</ul>\n<p><strong>Get the eBook!</strong> <a href=\"/en/film-insurance-101\" rel=\" noopener\" style=\"font-style: italic;\">Film Insurance 101</a></p>\n<div>\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px;\"><strong><i>Amazon Associates Disclosure</i></strong><i>: Front Row Insurance is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This post may contain affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you.</i></p>\n</div></span>","postBodyRss":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n<!--more-->\n<p>“It might be a Scottish name, taken from a story about two men on a train. One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh, that's a MacGuffin'. The first one asks, 'What's a MacGuffin?' 'Well,' the other man says, 'it's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers, 'Well then, that's no MacGuffin!' So you see that a MacGuffin is actually nothing at all.”</p>\n<p>In the film <a href=\"https://geni.us/aB37\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Ronin</em></a> (1998; Amazon Affiliate Link)<em>, </em>for example, the MacGuffin was a metal briefcase whose contents were never revealed, but which all the characters in the film were desperate to obtain. The audience does not know, and arguably does not <span style=\"font-style: italic;\">need</span> to know, what is inside the briefcase; the MacGuffin is charged with such importance that its significance does not even need to be explained to propel the narrative forward.</p>\n<h2>Examples of famous “Macguffins” in movies / <span>macguffin examples</span>:</h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The Maltese Falcon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/FwD45\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Maltese Falcon</a>, </em>1941, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Holy Grail (<a href=\"https://geni.us/VA1Nf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Monty Python and the Holy Grail</em></a>, 1975, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Rosebud sled (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/WzEKcn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Citizen Kane</a></em><span style=\"font-style: normal;\">, 1941, Amazon Affiliate Link</span>)</li>\n<li>Marcellus Wallace’s case (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/oPXI\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Pulp Fiction</a>, </em>1994, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The One Ring <em>(<a href=\"https://geni.us/EYpOL\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Lord of the Rings Trilogy</a>, </em>2001-03, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Necronomicon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/g2vJn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Army of Darkness</a>, </em>1992, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Ark (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/9INCig\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Raiders of the Lost Ark</a>, </em>1981, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n</ul>\n<p><strong>Get the eBook!</strong> <a href=\"/en/film-insurance-101\" rel=\" noopener\" style=\"font-style: italic;\">Film Insurance 101</a></p>\n<div>\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px;\"><strong><i>Amazon Associates Disclosure</i></strong><i>: Front Row Insurance is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This post may contain affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you.</i></p>\n</div>","postEmailContent":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n","postFeaturedImageIfEnabled":"","postListContent":"<span id=\"hs_cos_wrapper_post_body\" class=\"hs_cos_wrapper hs_cos_wrapper_meta_field hs_cos_wrapper_type_rich_text\" style=\"\" data-hs-cos-general-type=\"meta_field\" data-hs-cos-type=\"rich_text\" ><h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n<!--more-->\n<p>“It might be a Scottish name, taken from a story about two men on a train. One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh, that's a MacGuffin'. The first one asks, 'What's a MacGuffin?' 'Well,' the other man says, 'it's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers, 'Well then, that's no MacGuffin!' So you see that a MacGuffin is actually nothing at all.”</p>\n<p>In the film <a href=\"https://geni.us/aB37\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Ronin</em></a> (1998; Amazon Affiliate Link)<em>, </em>for example, the MacGuffin was a metal briefcase whose contents were never revealed, but which all the characters in the film were desperate to obtain. The audience does not know, and arguably does not <span style=\"font-style: italic;\">need</span> to know, what is inside the briefcase; the MacGuffin is charged with such importance that its significance does not even need to be explained to propel the narrative forward.</p>\n<h2>Examples of famous “Macguffins” in movies / <span>macguffin examples</span>:</h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The Maltese Falcon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/FwD45\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Maltese Falcon</a>, </em>1941, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Holy Grail (<a href=\"https://geni.us/VA1Nf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Monty Python and the Holy Grail</em></a>, 1975, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Rosebud sled (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/WzEKcn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Citizen Kane</a></em><span style=\"font-style: normal;\">, 1941, Amazon Affiliate Link</span>)</li>\n<li>Marcellus Wallace’s case (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/oPXI\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Pulp Fiction</a>, </em>1994, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The One Ring <em>(<a href=\"https://geni.us/EYpOL\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Lord of the Rings Trilogy</a>, </em>2001-03, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Necronomicon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/g2vJn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Army of Darkness</a>, </em>1992, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Ark (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/9INCig\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Raiders of the Lost Ark</a>, </em>1981, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n</ul>\n<p><strong>Get the eBook!</strong> <a href=\"/en/film-insurance-101\" rel=\" noopener\" style=\"font-style: italic;\">Film Insurance 101</a></p>\n<div>\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px;\"><strong><i>Amazon Associates Disclosure</i></strong><i>: Front Row Insurance is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This post may contain affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you.</i></p>\n</div></span>","postListSummaryFeaturedImage":"","postRssContent":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n","postRssSummaryFeaturedImage":"","postSummary":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n","postSummaryRss":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n","postTemplate":"prox_frontrow/templates/blog/blog-post.html","previewImageSrc":null,"previewKey":"upcxfRaQ","previousPostFeaturedImage":"https://61352.fs1.hubspotusercontent-na1.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_92423836.jpg","previousPostFeaturedImageAltText":"Tiger on film set: animal insurance in movies","previousPostName":"Insurance for filming animals | animals on set and film insurance","previousPostSlug":"articles/insurance-for-filming-animals","processingStatus":"PUBLISHED","propertyForDynamicPageCanonicalUrl":null,"propertyForDynamicPageFeaturedImage":null,"propertyForDynamicPageMetaDescription":null,"propertyForDynamicPageSlug":null,"propertyForDynamicPageTitle":null,"publicAccessRules":[],"publicAccessRulesEnabled":false,"publishDate":1544474897000,"publishDateLocalTime":1544474897000,"publishDateLocalized":{"date":1544474897000,"format":"medium","language":"en_US"},"publishImmediately":true,"publishTimezoneOffset":null,"publishedAt":1652278110799,"publishedByEmail":null,"publishedById":7915797,"publishedByName":null,"publishedUrl":"https://www.frontrowinsurance.com/articles/whats-a-macguffin","resolvedDomain":"www.frontrowinsurance.com","resolvedLanguage":null,"rssBody":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n<!--more-->\n<p>“It might be a Scottish name, taken from a story about two men on a train. One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh, that's a MacGuffin'. The first one asks, 'What's a MacGuffin?' 'Well,' the other man says, 'it's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers, 'Well then, that's no MacGuffin!' So you see that a MacGuffin is actually nothing at all.”</p>\n<p>In the film <a href=\"https://geni.us/aB37\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Ronin</em></a> (1998; Amazon Affiliate Link)<em>, </em>for example, the MacGuffin was a metal briefcase whose contents were never revealed, but which all the characters in the film were desperate to obtain. The audience does not know, and arguably does not <span style=\"font-style: italic;\">need</span> to know, what is inside the briefcase; the MacGuffin is charged with such importance that its significance does not even need to be explained to propel the narrative forward.</p>\n<h2>Examples of famous “Macguffins” in movies / <span>macguffin examples</span>:</h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The Maltese Falcon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/FwD45\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Maltese Falcon</a>, </em>1941, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Holy Grail (<a href=\"https://geni.us/VA1Nf\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>Monty Python and the Holy Grail</em></a>, 1975, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Rosebud sled (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/WzEKcn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Citizen Kane</a></em><span style=\"font-style: normal;\">, 1941, Amazon Affiliate Link</span>)</li>\n<li>Marcellus Wallace’s case (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/oPXI\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Pulp Fiction</a>, </em>1994, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The One Ring <em>(<a href=\"https://geni.us/EYpOL\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Lord of the Rings Trilogy</a>, </em>2001-03, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Necronomicon (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/g2vJn\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Army of Darkness</a>, </em>1992, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n<li>The Ark (<em><a href=\"https://geni.us/9INCig\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Raiders of the Lost Ark</a>, </em>1981, Amazon Affiliate Link)</li>\n</ul>\n<p><strong>Get the eBook!</strong> <a href=\"/en/film-insurance-101\" rel=\" noopener\" style=\"font-style: italic;\">Film Insurance 101</a></p>\n<div>\n<p style=\"font-size: 14px;\"><strong><i>Amazon Associates Disclosure</i></strong><i>: Front Row Insurance is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This post may contain affiliate links. There is no additional cost to you.</i></p>\n</div>","rssSummary":"<h2>What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin</h2>\n<div><img src=\"https://cdn2.hubspot.net/hubfs/61352/shutterstock_1144818344.jpg\" alt=\"Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.\" style=\"width: 600px; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;\" width=\"600\"></div>\n<p><br>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Hitchcock\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Alfred Hitchcock</a> is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define 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auto;\"></div>\n<p>Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. Alfred Hitchcock is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:</p>\n<!--more-->\n<p>“It might be a Scottish name, taken from a story about two men on a train. One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh, that's a MacGuffin'. The first one asks, 'What's a MacGuffin?' 'Well,' the other man says, 'it's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers, 'Well then, that's no MacGuffin!' So you see that a MacGuffin is actually nothing at all.”</p>\n<p>In the film <em>Ronin, </em>for example, the MacGuffin was a metal briefcase whose contents were never revealed, but which all the characters in the film were desperate to obtain. The audience does not know, and does not need to know, what is inside the briefcase; the MacGuffin is charged with such importance that its significance does not need to be explained to serve its narrative purpose.</p>\n<h2>Examples of famous “Macguffins”:</h2>\n<ul>\n<li>The Maltese Falcon (<em>The Maltese Falcon, </em>1941)</li>\n<li>The Holy Grail (<em>Monty Python and the Holy Grail</em>, 1975)</li>\n<li>“ROSEBUD” (<em>Citizen Kane, 1941</em>)</li>\n<li>Marcellus Wallace’s case (<em>Pulp Fiction, </em>1994)</li>\n<li>The One Ring <em>(The Lord of the Rings Trilogy, </em>2001-2003)</li>\n<li>The Necronomicon (<em>Army of Darkness, </em>1992)</li>\n<li>The Ark (<em>Raiders of the Lost Ark, </em>1981)</li>\n</ul>\n<p><strong>Get the eBook!</strong> <a href=\"/en/film-insurance-101\" rel=\" noopener\" style=\"font-style: italic;\">Film Insurance 101</a></p>"},"deleted_at":1613675196058,"id":"post_body","label":"Blog Content","name":"post_body","type":"rich_text"}}}

What’s a “MacGuffin?”

December 10, 2018 • Casey Budden

What is a MacGuffin? / MacGuffin meaning / Hitchcock MacGuffin

Lady eating popcorn, watching movie.


Sometimes derisively referred to as a “plot coupon,” a MacGuffin is a device in scriptwriting, a “thing” which the protagonist pursues, often loosely defined, which serves as their primary motivation and goal in the film. Alfred Hitchcock is often credited with coining the term; in a 1939 lecture at Columbia University in New York, he attempted to define it:

“It might be a Scottish name, taken from a story about two men on a train. One man says, 'What's that package up there in the baggage rack?' And the other answers, 'Oh, that's a MacGuffin'. The first one asks, 'What's a MacGuffin?' 'Well,' the other man says, 'it's an apparatus for trapping lions in the Scottish Highlands.' The first man says, 'But there are no lions in the Scottish Highlands,' and the other one answers, 'Well then, that's no MacGuffin!' So you see that a MacGuffin is actually nothing at all.”

In the film Ronin (1998; Amazon Affiliate Link), for example, the MacGuffin was a metal briefcase whose contents were never revealed, but which all the characters in the film were desperate to obtain. The audience does not know, and arguably does not need to know, what is inside the briefcase; the MacGuffin is charged with such importance that its significance does not even need to be explained to propel the narrative forward.

Examples of famous “Macguffins” in movies / macguffin examples:

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