Morgan Freeman has been in several memorable films, but there is only one film where he was ready to do anything for: The Shawshank Redemption. Based on Stephen King’s 1982 novella, the film starred Freeman as a contraband smuggler, Ellis “Red” Redding. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the actor famously remarked:
The script for The Shawshank Redemption was excellent. I was willing to do anything in that movie that I was asked to do. I was very surprised when my agent said, ‘They want you to play Red.’
Despite his character being originally Irish in the book, Freeman’s portrayal was loved by fans and critics alike. Later, on the 10th anniversary of the film, the actor made a surprising connection to Clint Eastwood when he remarked he hailed Glory (1989), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), and Unforgiven (1992) as the highlights of his career.
Freeman starred in Unforgiven as Ned Logan, an old partner-in-crime of Eastwood’s William Munny. Directed and starring Eastwood, the film won four Academy Awards from nine nominations.
Morgan Freeman Believes Shawshank Redemption’s Title Made it a Flop
Morgan Freeman has time and again criticized the title of Shawshank Redemption, calling it the reason why it did not do well at the box office. He stated to The Hollywood Reporter how the studio did not want to put the whole title of the book (Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption) as the film’s title.
The title of the book was Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption. The studio decided that they couldn’t put the whole title. Well, nobody could say it. It came out Shim, Shaum, Shack, Sham. … One lady said she saw The Hudsucker Redemption. So that was a problem. I don’t care how much you advertise, word- of-mouth is what sells a movie. If they can’t say the title, you’re not going to get many people into it.
In a separate story with Vanity Fair, he again blamed the title for the film’s underwhelming performance:
Nobody could say, ‘Shawshank Redemption.’ What sells anything is word of mouth. Now, your friends say, ‘Ah, man, I saw this movie, The . . . what was it? Shank, Sham, Shim? Something like that. Anyways, terrific.’ Well, that doesn’t sell you.
Despite not getting the box office recognition it deserved, the film ended up earning seven nominations at the 1995 Academy Awards. Today, despite its hard-to-pronounce and confusing name, the film is widely hailed as one of the best films ever made.
Morgan Freeman Had a Hard Time on The Shawshank Redemption Set
Morgan Freeman considers The Shawshank Redemption as one of his best movies to date, but unfortunately, his time on set wasn’t as well as he had hoped it to be. While talking to Vanity Fair, the Academy Award winner remarked that it was the director, Frank Darabont, who was the cause of his dismay.
Most of the time, the tension was between the cast and director. I remember having a bad moment with the director, had a few of those.
Moreover, he was also asked to do several takes, which Freeman did not like.
I don’t want to be chewing the scenery. Acting itself isn’t difficult. But having to do something again and again for no discernible reason tends to be a bit debilitating to the energy.
He also did not like how Darabont initially wanted to shoot the finale, which was on Red on a bus to Mexico. While he came on board with how the film ended up getting ultimately resolved, he drew a line with the ending. During an interview with The Daily News, he remarked:
Frank thought I should be blowing that harmonica that Andy gave me, and I refused.
He later described the scene as sort of asinine, sort of cliched, sort of unnecessary, and overkill. Well, Freeman wasn’t exactly wrong, as adding another layer of sentimentality risked ruining the already sentimental end.
What are your thoughts about the film’s ending and Freeman’s portrayal? Let us know in the comments below!
The Shawshank Redemption is available for streaming on Hulu.
