Watch The Associate

This 1996 film was directed by Donald Petrie and stars Whoppi Goldberg as Laurel. She learns that it's nearly impossible to succeed in the business world without a male mentor. Although an expert Wall Street financial analyst, she routinely gets ignored when it comes to raises and promotions. She's sure that nobody takes her seriously since she's a black female.

She quits her job out of disgust when a white male gets a promotion ahead of her. She then opens her own business in her Brooklyn apartment. Laurel invents her white male mentor and names him Cutty. He quickly becomes a well respected Wall Street advisor who fools even veteran investors. People want to meet or interview him, but he's continually unavailable, in meetings, or is otherwise engaged because he's completely fictitious. It soon becomes imperative that people see Cutty, so Laurel enlists the help of a friend who is a celebrity impersonator. Laurel begins appearing in public as the white male Cutty.