Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest is a 1975 American drama film directed by Milos Forman and based on the 1962 novel of the same name by Ken Kesey. The film follows Randle McMurphy, a criminal who feigns insanity to serve his sentence in a mental institution instead of a prison. The film stars Jack Nicholson as McMurphy and Louise Fletcher as Nurse Ratched, and won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Actress.