Filmography
In December 2006 George Clooney and Grant Heslov bought screen rights to The Innocent Man: Murder and Injustice in a Small Town. In an unusual alliance of star power Clooney, the Hollywood actor and producer, is joining forces with Grisham, the bestselling author, to create films dedicated to exposing miscarriages of justice.
Christmas with the Kranks – 2004
Book Author (Skipping Christmas)
Christmas With the Kranks revolves around Nora (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Luther Krank’s (Tim Allen) decision to put their normally fanatical enthusiasm for the holidays aside for a tropical cruise. With their daughter in Peru with the Peace Corps, the Kranks believe it just isn’t worth it; thus, no presents, Christmas trees, or decorations of any kind will adorn their house to the great consternation of their neighbor Vic (Dan Aykroyd).
Mickey – 2004
Actor (Commissioner), Producer, Screenwriter
Harry Connick Jr. stars as a widowed father in trouble with the law who runs away to Las Vegas with his 12-year-old, baseball-loving son (Shawn Salinas). They change their names in order to avoid a federal tax investigation. When the talented son starts playing Little League, the locals can’t help but notice him. Soon his talents attract unwanted national attention.
Runaway Jury – 2003
Book Author (Runaway Jury)
After a man dies in a shooting incident, his wife files a lawsuit against the gun manufacturer, with her lawyer, Wendell Rohr (Dustin Hoffman). His opponent is a “jury consultant” Rankin Fitch (Gene Hackman) who makes sure to guarantee the result of the trial. However, ther are two factors he wasn’t counting upon — Nick Easter (John Cusack), the jury member who appears to have an agenda all his own, and Marlee (Rachel Weisz), a mysterious woman who has her own plans regarding bending the jury to her will.
A Painted House – 2003, TV
Book Author (A Painted House), Narrator
A Painted House is set in the rural community of Oak Park, AR, in 1952. Ten-year-old Luke Chandler (Logan Lerman) lives and works on a rundown cotton farm with his parents (Robert Sean Leonard and Arija Bareikis) and grandparents (Scott Glenn and Melinda Dillon). It is Luke’s personal mission to earn enough money picking cotton to be able to afford a new coat of paint for the Chandler house.
The Street Lawyer – 2003, TV
Book Author (The Street Lawyer), Executive producer
The story centers on a hotshot lawyer-turned-crusader for social justice – in this case, an attorney named Michael Brock who leaves a high-powered firm to become a legal aid lawyer aiding indigent clients.
Lawyer Rick Magruder (Kenneth Branagh) has a one-night-stand affair with caterer Mallory Doss (Embeth Davidtz). He becomes hooked on her, and when he learns her nut-case father Dixon (Robert Duvall) is threatening her, he puts the weight of his law firm behind Mallory, has Dixon arrested and subpoenas her ex-husband Pete to testify against Dixon in court. Dixon is sent to an asylum, but escapes from there and the lives of many people are in danger.
The Rainmaker – 1997
Book Author (The Rainmaker)
Rudy Baylor (Matt Damon) is a young lawyer who signs on with slimy Bruiser Stone (Mickey Rourke), learns ambulance-chasing tactics from Bruiser’s leg man Deck Schifflet (Danny DeVito), and is the only hope of an elderly couple whose insurance company will not pay for an operation that could save their son’s life. Rudy learns to hate corporate America as he falls in love with a battered young married woman.
The Chamber – 1996
Book Author (The Chamber)
Adam Hall (Chris O’Donnell) is a successful attorney who takes the case of Sam Cayhall (Gene Hackman), an outspoken racist and member of the Ku Klux Klan who was convicted in the early ’60s of the murder of a Jewish civil rights lawyer and his children. When he tries to spare his life, Adam gets a more complete and disturbing picture of Cayhall’s race hatred and the terrible toll it has taken on his family and the community.
A Time to Kill – 1996
Book Author (A Time to Kill), Producer
When an innocent little African-American girl is raped and beaten by 2 beer-guzzling rednecks, the town of Clanton, Mississippi is shocked. Her father Carl Lee Hailey (Samuel L. Jackson) is outraged, decides to take justice into his own hands and kills them in the court house. Now it up to Jake Brigance (Matthew McConaughey) to get Carl Lee off the hook. He has people that help him, (Oliver Platt, Sandra Bullock, Donald Sutherland) but he is up against tough D.A. Rufus Buckley (Kevin Spacey).
Reggie Love is a recovering alcoholic who has lost custody of her own two children, as she battles to win them back, meanwhile redirecting her maternal instincts through her family law practice. Reggie is continuously taking on the most “hopeless” of cases involving children and fights for them with a vengeance while her practice suffers financial jeopardy, as a result.
The Client – 1994
Book Author (The Client), Screenwriter
Mark Sway (Brad Renfro) witnesses the suicide of a Mafia lawyer, who confesses that the Mob was behind the murder of a U.S. senator. Gangster Barry Muldano (Anthony LaPaglia) is soon on Mark’s trail, and in desperation, he arrives at the office of recovering alcoholic lawyer Reggie Love (Susan Sarandon). With the Mob after them, and a ruthless federal attorney (Tommy Lee Jones) trying to force Mark to reveal what he knows, Love battles to guarantee the safety of her client and his family.
The Pelican Brief – 1993
Book Author (The Pelican Brief), Screenwriter
Law student Darby Shaw (Julia Roberts) writes up an insightful theory about the recent murder of two Supreme Court justices. When the President (Robert Culp) convinces the FBI to hold off on investigating Darby’s theory, the resourceful student must go into hiding, stalked by relentless assassin Khamel (Stanley Tucci). Her only hope of escaping death and proving her theory lies in Washington investigative reporter Gray Grantham (Denzel Washington).
The Firm – 1993
Book Author (The Firm), Screenwriter
Mitch McDeere (Tom Cruise) is a young man with a promising future in Law. About to sit his Bar exam, he is approached by ‘The Firm’ and made an offer he doesn’t refuse. Seduced by the money, he is totally oblivious to the more sinister side of his company. Then, two Associates are murdered. The FBI contact him, asking him for information and suddenly his life is ruined. He can either work with the FBI, or stay with the Firm. Either way he will lose his life as he knows it. Mitch figures the only way out is to follow his own plan…
Awards
A Time to Kill – NAACP Image Award (1996) for the Best Motion Picture
Image Award (1996) for the Best Motion Picture The Gingerbread Man – New York Times Critic’s Pick
The Rainmaker – New York Times Critic’s Pick
TV appearances
Mississippi Rising (A concert/telethon benefiting Mississippi and Louisiana hurricane recovery funds, 2005)
“The Daily Show” (10 January 2005)
