Egg is a satirical drama written by Risa Mickenberg in 2018. The film stars Christina Hendricks (Mad Men), Alysia Reiner (Orange is the New Black), David Alan Basche, Anna Camp and Gbenga Akinnagbe (The Wire).
The movie portrays the interaction between two old friends, Tina (Alysia Reiner) and Karen (Christina Hendricks), who have starkly different views on motherhood during a get-together at Tina’s house. Upon Karen's arrival, Tina is surprised by how far along her friend’s pregnancy is, sparking a conversation about pregnancy and motherhood. Tina eventually reveals that she, too, is 'pregnant' but through a surrogate, which shocks her more conservative friend, Karen, and leads to a clash over what it truly means to be a mother.
While their husbands, Wayne (Gbenga Akinnagbe) and Don (David Alan Basche), leave to comfort Tina's surrogate, Kiki (Anna Camp), Tina and Karen bond over heart-to-heart conversations about their marriages. However, tensions escalate when the husbands return with Kiki, and Wayne states that the baby belongs to him and Kiki, pushing the conflict to its peak. In the end, we can safely assume that Tina did not get to be the mother of the child.
Several red flags appear when they describe Kiki, the surrogate. Kiki is Wayne’s former employee who leads a carefree and unconventional lifestyle, lacks stable income, is dependent on her boyfriend for housing, and has not had a baby before.
Kiki is very impulsive, even stating that she would abort the baby if her boyfriend would take her back. She frequently oversteps her boundaries – maintaining constant direct contact with Tina and Wayne, being flirtatious with Wayne and Don, even asking Wayne to move in with her. All of these issues ultimately led to the breaking point for Tina and Wayne, and Wayne leaving in frustration. We will not spoil what happens next, though the reader may be able to guess.
Realism in Surrogacy
We hear of surrogacy journeys like this, ones undertaken between friends without legal contracts. So as strange as the match may be and the conscious choice of the intended parents not to use lawyers, this is not unrealistic. Tina’s rant on motherhood might be uncommon among any intended parent, but the trauma she and Wayne have from their child-loss and the pressure to have children is realistic. How Karen and Don react to the surrogacy is realistic depiction of negative reactions or stereotypes people may have about surrogacy.
Legal Aspects
This is a gestational surrogacy not a traditional surrogacy, and the embryo is created from both Tina and Wayne’s gametes. New York, where this arrangement takes place, passed a law regulating gestational surrogacy in 2020. Prior to that, surrogacy was illegal in New York and the contracts were voidable. Tina explains early on that they rejected lawyers and the idea of a nuclear family: Wayne would be a parent, and confusingly, so would Kiki, and Tina’s role was meant to be determined later.
Ideally, after a medical and psychological screening, all surrogacy arrangements should go through the legal contract stage to protect the expectations of both the surrogate and the intended parents, where both parties are represented separately. The agreement typically outlines that, other than medical conditions that pose a threat to the surrogate’s life, all medical decisions regarding the baby are to be made by the intended parents.
Furthermore, such agreements clearly establish that the surrogate is only the carrier and has no parental rights. Had Tina and Wayne entered into their surrogacy arrangement with legal counsel, their lawyer would have ensured paperwork that would establish who the legal parents were, even in the event of death or divorce.
Surrogacy is a long and complex journey and many things can go wrong, even in altruistic journeys between friends and family. Lawyers are there to protect the interests of both parties. Unfortunately Tina did not use a lawyer and had to pay the ultimate price in the event of a divorce from Wayne.
Conclusion
EGG is currently streaming on Peacock. It is kind of like watching a three act play rather than a movie taking place in a single day. It’s a worthwhile watch if you are looking for a realistic surrogacy related drama at only 90 minutes long.
If you are considering surrogacy as intended parents, or a potential surrogate, consulting with a surrogacy lawyer is a good place to start. Even bohemian artists should not skip out on the legal stage.
As Fellows of the Academy of Adoption & Assisted Reproduction Attorneys (AAAA) and the Academy of California Adoption-ART Lawyers (ACAL), Tsong Law Group brings extensive expertise to the practice of surrogacy law. Our award-winning lawyers are licensed in California, New York, Illinois, Washington, Oklahoma, and Arizona.
For a free consultation in ART law, contact us now.
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