MOVIEmeter
SEE RANK
Down 4,984 this week

Sally Hemings: An American Scandal (TV 2000)

TV Movie  -   -  Biography | Drama | History  -  13 February 2000 (USA)
6.9
Your rating:
    1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 -/10 X  
Ratings: 6.9/10 from 303 users  
Reviews: 18 user | 1 critic

Epic television miniseries exploring the complicated relationship of Thomas Jefferson and slave Sally Hemings, who conducted a 38 year love affair, spanning an ocean, ultimately producing children, grandchildren, and lots of controversy.

Director:

Writer:

0Check in
0Share...

User Lists

Related lists from IMDb users

a list of 10000 titles created 2 months ago
 
a list of 246 titles created 21 Apr 2011
 
a list of 92 titles created 22 Aug 2011
 
a list of 100 titles created 9 months ago
 
a list of 88 titles created 01 Feb 2011
 

Connect with IMDb


Share this Rating

Title: Sally Hemings: An American Scandal (TV 2000)

Sally Hemings: An American Scandal (TV 2000) on IMDb 6.9/10

Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below.

Take The Quiz!

Test your knowledge of Sally Hemings: An American Scandal.
3 wins & 5 nominations. See more awards »
Edit

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
...
...
...
...
...
James Hemings
...
James Callender
...
Thomas Mann Randolph (as Zeljko Ivanek)
...
Critta Hemings
Jessica Townsend ...
Maria 'Polly' Jefferson
...
Henry Jackson (as Larry Gilliard Jr.)
...
...
Harriet Hemings
Peter Bradbury ...
Samuel Carr
Chris Stafford ...
Peter Carr
...
Lady Maria Cosway
Edit

Storyline

The story of the extraordinary, controversial thirty-eight-year relationship between Thomas Jefferson and his slave mistress, Sally Hemings. The teenage Sally begins her unexpected relationship with widower Thomas Jefferson in Paris where he is serving as the U.S. Ambassador to France. After escorting Jefferson's younger daughter on a trans-Atlantic journey to join him in Paris, Sally is soon exposed to a world quite unlike the one in which she has lived as an illiterate slave in Monticello. While Sally serves as a nanny of sorts, Jefferson provides her with an education, fine clothes and opportunities to experience cultural events. She and her brother, James, who works as Jefferson's chef and was also educated by him, delight in the fact that they are free in France-and are treated with respect. It is under these circumstances that Sally and Jefferson become acquainted with one another and begin an affair that will ultimately lead to scandal. Written by Echo Bridge Home Entertainment

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Taglines:

The true story of the controversial romance between President Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings. See more »


Certificate:

Unrated | See all certifications »
Edit

Details

Country:

Language:

|

Release Date:

13 February 2000 (USA)  »

Also Known As:

Monticello  »

Company Credits

Show detailed on  »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

| (DVD)

Sound Mix:

Color:

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1
See  »
Edit

Did You Know?

Trivia

Early in the film, when Thomas Jefferson (Sam Neill) tells Sally Hemings (Carmen Ejogo) that she looks exactly like his deceased wife, this is a reference to Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson being the half sister of Sally Hemings, sharing the same father, John Wayles. Martha was Wayles' acknowledged daughter by his first wife, Martha Eppes, and Sally was Wayles' daughter by his slave concubine, Betty Hemings (portrayed by Diahann Carroll), with whom he had six slave children. See more »

Quotes

[first lines]
Sally Hemings: I was born a slave, but destined to scandal.
See more »

Crazy Credits

ON SCREEN: Sally Hemings tended Thomas Jefferson's grave until her death in 1835. See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.

User Reviews

Carmen Ejogo made this movie worth watching!
14 February 2000 | by (Dublin, Ireland) – See all my reviews

I liked this movie, I didn't love it, however. I don't think that the relationship between Sally and Jefferson was particularly startling, I don't understand why the relationship would be a shock to anybody. Slaves are people too, so of course, people can fall in love with a slave, it's not impossible. I happen to be a black girl who likes white men, shocking? I think not. I do think that this movie did not concentrate on family, enough, I wouldn't have expected Jefferson to have long chats with his biracial children, but Sally too hardly said anything to them. And I so wish that people would quit calling Sally Hemings black, or colored. Sally was white AND black, a simple blood test would show that. Most blacks don't choose to believe that blacks should be considered less than a whole human, but they'll go for that one-drop-of-black-blood crap in a second! Carmen Ejogo didn't play Sally as well as Thandie Newton did to me, but she did a fine job!


5 of 12 people found this review helpful.  Was this review helpful to you?

Message Boards

Recent Posts
*many* departures from history Rheli
I grew up in Charlottesville.. kerrytrout
End - Sally's Freedom - Fact / Fiction LesterFester
Denise Richards? PTUTSON
Movie soundtrack lola_chic

Contribute to This Page

Create a character page for:
?