Is Thomas a Conman? Who is Medusa in The Hustle?

Starring Anne Hathaway and Rebel Wilson, ‘The Hustle’ follows the story of two conwomen who compete to con a tech billionaire named Thomas. It’s a bet where the winner will cede the territory of the French Riviera to the other, permanently walking away from it. While Hathaway’s Jo uses her beauty and charm to seduce the young man, Wilson’s Penny uses her humor and wit to befriend Thomas and make him sympathize with her enough to get her whatever she wants. As the women go neck to neck, the competition gets heated, but it’s the outcome that shocks them to their core. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Thomas Uses Jo and Penny’s Own Playbook Against Them

Jo and Penny’s fight begins with the desire to claim their territory and prove themselves better than the other. As they scan the surroundings to choose the mark, their eyes are set on Thomas, who is revealed to be the creator of an app called YaBurnt. The women think that they have chosen Thomas, but it turns out that it was he who chose them. In hindsight, his plan appears much clearer. One of the rules in Jo and Penny’s con playbook was to capture the mark’s attention and give them something to sympathize with. Jo thought that appearing as a beautiful, helpless woman would do the trick, but she never stopped to consider that a man could try it too. While Jo and Penny argue, Thomas catches their attention by falling into the pool and fumbling about, so that he looks like he doesn’t know what he is doing.

Another thing that Jo believes works in their favor as con-women is that men tend to underestimate them because they are women. Their marks usually believe that they are smarter and never stop to consider that a woman might dupe them. This overconfidence leads to their downfall, which leads Jo to become overconfident in her abilities. She takes one look at Thomas and believes she can easily seduce and con him, never considering the need to look into him a bit more to find out exactly who he is. Penny, meanwhile, gains sympathy points with Thomas by pretending to be blind. She thinks her plan is working because he sympathizes with and offers to pay for her treatment.

What she doesn’t realise is that he uses the same trick on her when he tells her about his grandmother, and how he isn’t actually a billionaire. He tells her that he is using his own money, part of which he will borrow from his grandmother, to pay for Penny’s treatment. This moves her to the extent that she decides to stop the con and asks Jo to pick another mark. While the women become blinded by their rivalry and focus only on defeating one another, Thomas uses all their tricks of manipulation to get both of them to give him $500,000, and walks away with a million dollars. It takes the women some time to figure this out, but by then it’s too late.

Thomas’ Secret Identity Answers a Major Mystery in The Hustle

At the beginning of the film, when Jo and Penny talk about being conwomen, Penny mentions Medusa, a legendary conwoman who is believed to be so great at her job that she can steal money out of rich people by simply staring into their eyes. She is even more of a legend because no one knows who she is or where she is from. There is no name or face attached to her, which makes her myth even more effective. When Jo cons Penny, the latter believes she has finally found the mythical con artist. As much as Jo takes it as a compliment, she refuses the title, revealing that she is not Medusa. As they develop a complicated work relationship, the thoughts of Medusa disappear from their minds, and they are only reminded of the legend when they discover that Thomas has conned them.

He flies away with their money, but he doesn’t leave them hanging. He sends Penny a message, explaining how he chose them as his victims, because his grandmother taught him that other con people make the best marks. His message explains that he learned everything about being a con artist from his grandmother, and it is her legacy that he carries forward in his work. At the end of the message, the screen flashes with the word Medusa, suggesting that Thomas’ grandmother is the legendary Medusa that Jo and Penny had been talking about. It seems that his grandma pulled some elaborate cons in her day, but now she has given up that lifestyle in favor of a quiet life. Her grandson has taken up her mantle, which includes taking up her name, Medusa. So now, Thomas is Medusa, and considering how easily he cons Jo and Penny, he is clearly living up to the name.

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