Murder Mystery is a 2019 American comedy mystery film directed by Kyle Newacheck and written by James Vanderbilt. The film stars Adam Sandler, Jennifer Aniston, and Luke Evans, and follows a married couple who are caught up in a murder investigation on a billionaire's yacht. It was released on June 14, 2019, by Netflix. It received mixed reviews from critics. A sequel was released by Netflix on March 31, 2023.
Plot
Nick Spitz is an NYPD officer married to Audrey, a hairdresser. She wants to visit Europe, as he had promised at their wedding, but thinks they never will. After their 15th-anniversary dinner, Audrey confronts Nick, who lies that he has in fact booked the trip, and they set off to Europe. On the plane, Nick and Audrey meet billionaire Charles Cavendish, who invites them to join him on his family yacht for a party celebrating his elderly uncle's wedding to Charles's former fiancée.
Aboard the yacht, Nick and Audrey meet Cavendish's ex-fiancée Suzi Nakamura, Quince's son Tobey, actress Grace Ballard, Colonel Ulenga, his bodyguard Sergei, Maharajah Vikram, and race car driver Juan Carlos, and, later that night, their host Malcolm Quince, Cavendish's uncle, arrives. Quince announces that Suzi will be his sole heir. Before he can sign his new will, the lights go out, and when they are back on, they find Quince stabbed through his heart.
Nick, who has lied to Audrey about recently becoming a detective, orders the room locked, and the guests return to their rooms. Later that night, Tobey is found dead from apparent suicide. Upon arriving in Monte Carlo, everyone is questioned by Inspector Delacroix, who believes that "the Americans" committed the murders.
At the Monaco Grand Prix, Nick and Audrey question the guests. That night, Sergei summons them to his room and reveals Quince had married the Colonel's fiancée while he was in a coma after saving Quince's life, which ended with her dying while giving birth. The couple hide when someone knocks, and come out to find Sergei has been shot. They climb out the window and edge along the ledge. In the process, they see the Colonel flossing his teeth, and the Maharajah and Grace kissing in his room, so the couple rules them out as suspects. Audrey is furious to learn from the broadcast that Nick is not actually a detective and that he lied about booking the trip in advance, and she leaves with Cavendish.
All of them move to Lake Como, where Nick and Audrey realize Cavendish and Suzi are still in love and perhaps the murderers planning to split the inheritance. The couple are forced to flee from a hidden gunman and run into Carlos. They soon are confronted by Suzi, who is killed by a masked person with a blow dart. Nick and Carlos try to chase the killer, but they fail. Nick and Audrey go to Quince's mansion to confront Cavendish, but find him dead by poison.
The couple summons Delacroix and the remaining guests, who all have alibis. Nick and Audrey deduce that Grace is the murderer; she convinced Tobey to kill his father, before killing him and has been picking off the other heirs. Grace reveals that she is actually Quince and the Colonel wife's child but due to Quince's sexism, he disowned her and pretended that she is dead. She states that his money truly belongs to her and is shot by Nick in the arm while trying to escape.
While celebrating, Nick and Audrey realise Grace's alibi still stands after Vikram points out that he and Grace were having drinks during the time Sergei was killed, so there must be another conspirator who could have killed Sergei. They deduce that Carlos is the second murderer, who was avenging his father who had lost both of his legs because of Quince. Holding Delacroix hostage, he leads Nick and Audrey in a car chase, but they force them to crash and rescue Delacroix. Carlos holds them all at gunpoint, but is run over by Nick and Audrey's chaotic tour bus that they never boarded.
Delacroix thanks the couple and offers to help get Nick promoted to detective back home. Nick and Audrey continue their vacation aboard the fabled Orient Express courtesy of Interpol.