Truman Burbank (Jim Carrey) appears to be living a perfectly normal life on Seahaven Island. He spends his days strolling around the perfectly groomed suburbia, working at an insurance company, drinking beers with his best friend (Noah Emmerich) and spending time with his wife, Meryl (Laura Linney). Truman has lived a happy, peaceful, and ordinary life; except for the fact that he is unknowingly the star of a reality television show.
The creator and director of the show, Christof (Ed Harris), films Truman 24 hours 7 days a week. Seahaven is really the world’s largest set located in the Hollywood Hills and Truman’s family and friends are hired actors and actresses. Every aspect of Truman’s life has been filmed and broadcasted worldwide, from his birth to his bathroom routines.
For 10,908 days Truman is unsuspecting and oblivious to the reality of his life. Although minor mistakes are made, such as Truman hearing a radio transmition of his location, Christof can easily cover them. However, Truman begins to ask questions when he sees his father, who he believed had drown, walking through town. His father is quickly dragged away by townspeople. Truman begins to suspect that someone is hiding something from him. He starts testing boundaries and even attempts to leave Seahaven, only to be stopped by a “nuclear spill.”
After experimenting to see how townspeople react to spontaneous actions, Truman decides to confront Meryl. He holds a knife to her and she eventually begs for help. After this incident, Christof pulls Merly from the show to leave Truman alone in his house.
That evening, Truman pretends to sleep in his basement in order to fool the cameras. He sneaks out of his basement via a secret tunnel in hopes of leaving Seahaven to discover answers. When the crew realizes Truman is missing, Christof demands that every cast member try and hunt him down. Christof and the crew eventually locate Truman on his sailboat. Christof demands the crew to create a storm in the hopes of scaring Truman back to Seahaven.
Determined to obtain answers, Truman shows that he is willing to die instead of return to his life. Eventually the bow of Truman’s boat pierces the edge of the set. As he looks towards the large EXIT sign, Christof suddenly begins speaking to Truman over the sound system. He explains to Truman that life outside of Seahaven is no more a reality than what he has experienced for the past 30 years. After brief consideration, Truman speaks his catchphrase, “in case I don’t see you…good afternoon, good evening, and good night,” one final time.
After Truman’s exit, Christof and the crew cease transmission of their beloved show. The loyal viewers begin to celebrate and cheer Truman’s escape. Truman is able to live his life as a free man.
The Truman Show & Philosophy 