Just Mercy
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''Just Mercy'' is a 2019 American
biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...
legal drama Legal drama, also called courtroom drama, is a genre of film and television that generally focuses on narratives regarding legal practice and the justice system. The American Film Institute (AFI) defines "courtroom drama" as a genre of film in wh ...
film co-written and directed by
Destin Daniel Cretton Destin Yori Daniel Cretton is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the drama films ''Short Term 12'' (2013), ''The Glass Castle (2017 film), The Glass Castle'' (2017), ''Just Mercy'' (2019) as well as the Marvel Studios film ''S ...
and starring Michael B. Jordan as
Bryan Stevenson Bryan Stevenson (born November 14, 1959) is an American lawyer, social justice activist, and law professor at New York University School of Law, and the founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative. Based in Montgomery, Alabam ...
,
Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. Known for his work in both the screen and music industries, his accolades include an Academy Award, a Grammy Award ...
as Walter McMillian, Rob Morgan,
Tim Blake Nelson Timothy Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American actor, writer, and director. Described as a "modern character actor", his roles include Delmar O'Donnell in ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2000), Gideon in ''Minority Report (film), Minori ...
, Rafe Spall, and
Brie Larson Brianne Sidonie Desaulniers (born October 1, 1989), known professionally as Brie Larson, is an American actress. She played supporting roles in comedies as a teenager, and has since expanded to leading roles in independent films and Blockbuste ...
. It explores the work of young defense attorney Bryan Stevenson who represents poor people on death row in the
South South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþa ...
. Featured is his work with Walter McMillian, who had been wrongfully convicted of the murder of a young woman. The film is based on Stevenson's 2014 same-titled memoir, in which he explored his journey to making his life's work the defense of African American prisoners. ''Just Mercy'', which had its world premiere at the
Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
on September 6, 2019, was theatrically released by
Warner Bros. Pictures Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film studio and distribution arm of the Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group division of Warner Bros., both of which are owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex ...
on December 25, 2019. The film received positive reviews from critics and grossed $50 million. Foxx was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role at the 26th Screen Actors Guild Awards. Both he and Michael B. Jordan won
NAACP Image Awards The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. The over 40 ...
for their respective roles.


Plot

In 1989, Harvard law graduate
Bryan Stevenson Bryan Stevenson (born November 14, 1959) is an American lawyer, social justice activist, and law professor at New York University School of Law, and the founder and executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative. Based in Montgomery, Alabam ...
travels to
Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...
, intending to help defend poor people who cannot afford proper legal representation. Teaming with Eva Ansley, he forms the
Equal Justice Initiative The Equal Justice Initiative (EJI) is a non-profit organization, based in Montgomery, Alabama, that provides legal representation to prisoners who may have been wrongly convicted of crimes, poor prisoners without effective representation, and ot ...
in the state capital, Montgomery. He embarks on trying to combat social injustices in criminal law and practice, which have resulted in a high rate of African Americans convicted and incarcerated in the state and nationwide. Stevenson goes to a state prison to meet inmates who are on
death row Death row, also known as condemned row, is a place in a prison that houses inmates awaiting execution after being convicted of a capital crime and sentenced to death. The term is also used figuratively to describe the state of awaiting executio ...
and who are seeking appeals of their convictions or sentences. Among these is Walter "Johnny D." McMillian, an African-American man who was convicted of the 1986 murder of Ronda Morrison, an 18-year-old white girl. McMillian has maintained his innocence. When Stevenson reviews the evidence in the case, he learns that it hinges entirely on the testimony of convicted felon Ralph Myers. The convict had provided highly contradictory testimony to the prosecution in exchange for a plea deal and lighter sentence in his own pending trial. Given these issues, Stevenson appeals to the current prosecutor, Tommy Chapman, for aid; he dismisses him without looking at his notes. Stevenson learns that, at the time of the murder, McMillian's family friend Darnell Houston was elsewhere with a witness who had subsequently falsely corroborated Myers' testimony. This evidence would cause the prosecution's case to fall apart, so Stevenson asks Houston to testify to his account. When Stevenson submits his testimony, police arrest Houston for
perjury Perjury (also known as forswearing) is the intentional act of swearing a false oath or falsifying an affirmation to tell the truth, whether spoken or in writing, concerning matters material to an official proceeding."Perjury The act or an insta ...
. Although Stevenson gets the perjury charges dismissed, Houston is intimidated, so he refuses to testify in court. Shortly afterward, Stevenson is threatened by two sheriff deputies, who force him from his car at gunpoint and illegally search the car. They refuse to tell him why he was pulled over, but release him. During this period, Stevenson had a case on appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of another death row inmate, Herbert Lee Richardson; the court denied the appeal. Convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend’s niece with a bomb on her porch, Richardson had been sentenced to death by electric chair. Unable to get it overturned, Stevenson promises to be with Richardson in his final moments, and witnesses the execution. On behalf of McMillian, Stevenson directly confronts Myers. He admits that police coerced his testimony by threatening him with a death sentence. Stevenson appeals to the local court to grant McMillian a retrial and successfully convinces Myers to recant his testimony on the stand, but the judge refuses to grant it. Stevenson appears on ''
60 Minutes ''60 Minutes'' is an American television news magazine broadcast on the CBS television network. Debuting in 1968, the program was created by Don Hewitt and Bill Leonard, who distinguished it from other news programs by using a unique style o ...
'' to rally public support in favor of McMillian, and appeals the court's decision to the
Supreme Court of Alabama The Supreme Court of Alabama is the highest court in the U.S. state, state of Alabama. The court consists of a Chief Justice, chief justice and eight Associate Justice, associate justices. Each justice is elected in partisan elections for stagge ...
. The Supreme Court overturns the circuit court's decision, and grants McMillian a retrial. Stevenson tries to have the charges dismissed entirely. He confronts Chapman at home and tries to convince him to join in this motion; Chapman forces him to leave. On the day of the motion, Stevenson appeals to the judge. That day, Chapman joins him in the motion, the judge dismisses the charges, and McMillian is finally released from prison and reunited with his family. An epilogue notes that Stevenson and Ansley continue their fight for justice. McMillian remained friends with Stevenson until his natural death in 2013. A follow-up investigation into Morrison's 1986 murder confirmed McMillian's innocence. Evidence suggested that a white man was likely responsible, but the case has never been officially solved. McMillian's former cellmate, Anthony Ray Hinton, remained on death row for 28 years. Stevenson handled his defense and was eventually able to get all the charges dropped. Hinton was released in 2015.


Cast


Production

Development on the film began in 2015, when Broad Green Pictures hired
Destin Daniel Cretton Destin Yori Daniel Cretton is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the drama films ''Short Term 12'' (2013), ''The Glass Castle (2017 film), The Glass Castle'' (2017), ''Just Mercy'' (2019) as well as the Marvel Studios film ''S ...
to direct, with Michael B. Jordan set to star. In December 2017,
Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...
acquired the distribution rights for the film, after Broad Green Pictures had entered bankruptcy. In July 2018,
Jamie Foxx Eric Marlon Bishop (born December 13, 1967), known professionally as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, comedian, and singer. Known for his work in both the screen and music industries, his accolades include an Academy Award, a Grammy Award ...
was set to co-star. In August 2018,
Brie Larson Brianne Sidonie Desaulniers (born October 1, 1989), known professionally as Brie Larson, is an American actress. She played supporting roles in comedies as a teenager, and has since expanded to leading roles in independent films and Blockbuste ...
, O'Shea Jackson Jr. and
Tim Blake Nelson Timothy Blake Nelson (born May 11, 1964) is an American actor, writer, and director. Described as a "modern character actor", his roles include Delmar O'Donnell in ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2000), Gideon in ''Minority Report (film), Minori ...
also joined the cast, and filming started in
Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama. Named for Continental Army major general Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River on the Gulf Coastal Plain. The population was 2 ...
, by August 30. Filming in
Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, began in September. In October 2018, actors Dominic Bogart, Hayes Mercure and Karan Kendrick were added as well.


Release

The film had its world premiere at the
Toronto International Film Festival The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF, often stylized as tiff) is one of the most prestigious and largest publicly attended film festivals in the world. Founded in 1976, the festival takes place every year in early September. The organi ...
on September 6, 2019. It received an awards-qualifying limited release on December 25, 2019. Originally set to expand to a wide release on January 17, 2020, the film's expanded distribution was moved up to January 10, 2020, when it opened in 2,375 theaters. In response to the
murder of George Floyd On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black American man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old White police officer. Floyd had been arrested after a store clerk reported that he made a purchase using a c ...
, Warner Bros. Pictures made the film free on various streaming platforms during June 2020 to educate the public about
systemic racism Institutional racism, also known as systemic racism, is a form of institutional discrimination based on race or ethnic group and can include policies and practices that exist throughout a whole society or organization that result in and suppor ...
. On June 19, 2020, TBS,
TNT Troponin T (shortened TnT or TropT) is a part of the troponin complex, which are proteins integral to the contraction of skeletal and heart muscles. They are expressed in skeletal and cardiac myocytes. Troponin T binds to tropomyosin and helps ...
, and
truTV TruTV (stylized as truTV) is an American basic cable Television channel, channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel primarily broadcasts reruns of Television comedy, comedy, Reality television, docusoaps and reality shows, with a rec ...
aired the film, along with the 2018 superhero film ''
Black Panther A black panther is the Melanism, melanistic colour variant of the leopard (''Panthera pardus'') and the jaguar (''Panthera onca''). Black panthers of both species have excess black pigments, but their typical Rosette (zoology), rosettes are al ...
'', in which Jordan also starred, to support social justice in celebration of
Juneteenth Juneteenth is a federal holiday in the United States, federal holiday in the United States. It is celebrated annually on June 19 to commemorate the End of slavery in the United States, ending of slavery in the United States. The holiday's n ...
. The broadcast was presented by
Anthony Anderson Anthony Anderson (born August 15, 1970) is an American actor, comedian, and television host. He is known for his leading roles in television shows such as Andre "Dre" Johnson on the comedy series ''Black-ish'' (2014–2022), Marlin Boulet on the ...
and featured interviews with Bryan Stevenson, along with U.S. Senator
Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...
and comic and TV host
W. Kamau Bell Walter Kamau Bell (born January 26, 1973) is an American stand-up comic and television host. He has hosted the CNN series '' United Shades of America'' since 2016, and hosted FXX television series '' Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell'' from 20 ...
.


Reception


Critical response

The
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...
website
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
reports approval rating based on reviews, with an average rating of . The site's critics consensus reads: "''Just Mercy'' dramatizes a real-life injustice with solid performances, a steady directorial hand, and enough urgency to overcome a certain degree of earnest advocacy." On
Metacritic Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, the film has a weighted average score of 68 out of 100 based on 50 critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews. Audiences polled by
CinemaScore CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data. Background Ed Mintz, who ...
gave the film a rare average grade of "A+" on an A+ to F scale, and PostTrak reported it received an average 4.5 out of 5 stars, with 73% of people saying they would definitely recommend it.


Box office

''Just Mercy'' grossed $36 million in the United States and Canada, and $14.4 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $50.4 million. On its first day of limited release, the film made $81,072 from four theaters. ''Just Mercy'' made $105,000 in its opening weekend, December 27–29, for a five-day total of $228,072. The film grossed $425,862 over the 15 days of limited release. It took in $3.7 million on the first day of wide release, including $800,000 from Thursday night previews. The film made a total of $10 million over the weekend, finishing fourth at the box office. ''Just Mercy'' grossed $5.8 million over its second weekend of wide release, and $7.5 million over the full four-day
Martin Luther King Jr. Day Martin Luther King Jr. Day (officially Birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., and often referred to shorthand as MLK Day) is a federal holiday in the United States observed on the third Monday of January each year. King was the chief spokespers ...
holiday, finishing seventh.


Accolades


Legacy

In 2024, ''Just Mercy'' was used in a psychology study by
Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...
. The researchers concluded that, after watching the film, the study's participants had an increased empathic understanding of formerly incarcerated people.


See also

* List of black films of the 2010s


References


External links

* * {{NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Motion Picture 2019 films 2019 drama films 2019 biographical drama films 2010s American films 2010s English-language films 2010s legal drama films African-American films American biographical drama films American legal drama films English-language biographical drama films Films about miscarriage of justice Films about capital punishment Films directed by Destin Daniel Cretton Films scored by Joel P. West Films set in 1989 Films set in Alabama Films shot in Alabama Films shot in Atlanta Films with screenplays by Destin Daniel Cretton Films with screenplays by Andrew Lanham Warner Bros. films