Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story (2004) on Netflix
Stan "Tookie" Williams co-founds the Crips in Los Angeles and falls into gang life. In San Quentin he writes children's books with Barbara Becnel that warn readers against gang violence.
- Netflix3.2/5
- IMDb6.3/103,329 votes
- Rotten TomatoesNot available
Plot summary
The Crips street gang takes shape in Los Angeles with Stan "Tookie" Williams as a co-founder, and his life runs from the streets to San Quentin State Prison, where he takes up work meant to reduce gang violence. He begins writing books for young children with Barbara Becnel about the dangers of gangs and how they abuse power. The first volumes appear in 1996 from a small publisher in New York, and the publicity they generate reaches Switzerland, where a member of the national parliament nominates Williams for the Nobel Prize in 2000. More nominations follow, for peace work his books are meant to encourage.
Cast
- Wes Williamsas Tony Bogard
- Barbara Barnes-Hopkinsas Mrs. Williams
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about Redemption: The Stan Tookie Williams Story (2004)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Stanley Tookie Williams's books generated enough publicity that in 2000 a member of Switzerland's national parliament nominated him for the Nobel Prize; shortly after, a biopic of Williams was pitched to FX.
- Jamie Foxx had signed on to Collateral when Redemption's schedule collided with it. He could have dropped out of Redemption, but chose to stay, and the shoot was compressed to accommodate him.
SPOILER
Redemption was shot in 2003 while Stanley Tookie Williams, the Crips co-founder whose life it dramatizes, was still imprisoned; he was executed by lethal injection on December 13, 2005.
