Even three decades after its release, Frank Darabont’s The Shawshank Redemption remains the highest-rated film on IMDb and arguably the best Stephen King movie adaptation to date. While it failed to make it big at the box office upon its release, following the stiff competition and the general attitude of the public towards prison films, the time has been kind to this acclaimed drama.
Apart from Darabont and his brilliance as a filmmaker, we’ve also the late Allen Greene to thank for this impeccable adaptation, as without Greene, the end product would’ve been drastically different.
Allen Greene Helped Frank Darabont Land The Shawshank Redemption
In the ’80s, Frank Darabont started out as a set dresser on low-budget films. While he had dreams of making it big as a writer, having an agent believe in him at that level was almost impossible. But then came Allen Greene into the picture, Darabont’s first-ever agent and their bond wasn’t just limited to business, as the former The Walking Dead showrunner would find a great friend in him.
While Darabont would eventually start landing gigs as a screenwriter shortly after, The Shawshank Redemption would get him his big break. In order to ensure that the filmmaker was able to adapt the acclaimed novel, Greene fought tooth and nail to land his client the director’s gig.
Unfortunately, before the film was even released, Greene sadly passed away following his battle with AIDS, and shaken by this tragedy, Darabont dedicated the film to his former friend and ally.
“I wanted to acknowledge not just his significance to my career, but also that he was an incredibly decent, much-loved, and much-missed person in the lives of those who knew him.”
Thanks to Greene, not only were we able to witness one of the best films the medium has to offer, but Darabont too would continue to deliver several renowned projects over the years.
Stephen King Returned Frank Darabont the Royalty Fees for The Shawshank Redemption
While a plethora of filmmakers have adapted Stephen King‘s acclaimed works over the years, the author hasn’t always been a fan of them. Fortunately, this wasn’t the case with Darabont, who initially adapted King’s The Woman In the Room, whose rights the author sold to the young director for a mere $1.
For The Shawshank Redemption, King sold the rights to the director for $5000, which he never cashed. He would eventually frame the $5000 and send it back to Darabont as a gift, with a note reading:
“In case you ever need bail money, Love Steve.”
This wasn’t the end of it, as the director would go on to adapt more of Stephen King’s works, which involved the acclaimed crime fantasy, The Green Mile.
The Shawshank Redemption is available to stream on Max.
