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The Shawshank Redemptiondirector, Frank Darabont, bought the rights to Stephen King’sRita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemptionfor $5000 in 1987. It was technically their second collaboration after Darabont adapted King’sThe Woman in the Roominto a short film. Interestingly, King did not see the vision of the director with the film, as the author felt that his 96-page novella was not a cinematic work likeCarrieorThe Shining.
However, King was proved wrong as Darabont created one of the most critically acclaimed movies ever. King did see his vision eventually as he assured the director of one scene in the climax that concerned him.
Stephen King Assured A Worried Director of One Scene FromThe Shawshank Redemption
Frank Darabontbought the rights to multipleStephen Kingworks at the time and intended to doThe Mistfirst. However, he settled forThe Shawshank Redemptionas he had a particular vision of how to bring it to the screen. King gave the director his blessings for the film, but the author was skeptical about how Darabont would adapt the“textured and novelistic”work onto the screen.
“This one is about a true, deep friendship that lasts”: Shawshank Redemption Star on the Real Reason Movie Became a Cult-Hit Will Make You Watch it Once More
During the 20th anniversary of the film’s release in 2014, King wrote a piece for Oscars.org where he mentioned how his impressions changed after seeing the film. When King finally saw what Darabont had created, he knew that it was not only the best adaptation of his work but also a“potential movie classic.”
King revealed thatThe Majesticdirector worked up to the time when the film was released and he fretted over even the minute details. King recalled that Darabont was upset about howTim Robbin’s makeup looked too liquidduring a major scene in the climax. He wanted to fix the scene, but King assured that people weren’t going to notice the makeup as they would be busy crying over the emotional climax. King wrote in his piece forOscars.org:
“‘I hate Tim [Robbins’s] makeup,’ he fretted as we watched the last scene. ‘It looks too liquid, or something. I need to fix that.’ ‘Frank,’ I said, ‘People aren’t going to notice the makeup, because they’ll be crying.'”
King was right this time about the movie as people were largely impacted by the climax sequence of the movie. King further noted in his piece that the film was“an American icon”and that he was delighted to have been a part of it.
Why DidThe Shawshank RedemptionWork Despite Its Novelistic Structure?
Stephen King was not wrong in being skeptical about this cinematic adaptation of his work. UnlikeCarrieorThe Shining,Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemptionwas a heavily narrative tale that was quiet and meditative. There were no ‘protagonists drenched in pig blood’ or ‘two terrifying little girls in the hallway’ to make it a dramatic tale.
However, Frank Darabont pulled the impossible with the help of strong performances fromTim RobbinsandMorgan Freeman.Freeman’s narration became a positive aspectof the film but the film’s visual storytelling also did most of the narrative work.
The film also managed to give us immense satisfaction with several sequences in the climax, be it the villainous prison warden and captain getting their comeuppance, Andy Dufresne enjoying his freedom in the rain, or Red and Andy finally meeting at the Zihuatanejo beach.
“My daughter years from now will still be getting checks”: Shawshank Redemption Cast Has Made Millions Decades After the Movie Was Released Thanks to Residual Checks
Interestingly, King was always happy with Darabont’s adaptations, also includingThe MistandThe Green Mile. While the director changed some elements of King’s story, the author did not have creative differences with Darabont as he did withStanley Kubrick.
The Shawshank Redemptionis now available for rent on AppleTV+.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3017
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
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Frank DarabontMorgan FreemanStephen King
