The Wronged Man (2010) (TV)

Director:

Tom McLoughlin

Writers (WGA):

Teena Booth (written by)
Andrew Corsello (magazine article)

Release Date:

17 January 2010 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama

Tagline:

Would you give up 20 years to prove a stranger's innocence?

Plot:

Janet Gregory, a single mother with a haunting past, is a paralegal struggling to overcome doubts about Calvin Willis...

Plot Keywords:

African American | Single Mother | False Accusation Of Rape | False Accusation | Rape

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Julia Ormond	...	Janet Gregory
Mahershala Ali	...	Calvin Willis (as Mahershalalhashbaz Ali)
Lisa Arrindell Anderson	...	Michelle Willis
Bruce McKinnon	...	Randy Arthur
Omar J. Dorsey	...	Leroy Matthews
Rhoda Griffis	...	Tina
Tonea Stewart	...	Ms. Newton
Lucius Baston	...	Shelton
Russell Durham Comegys	...	Wayne (as Russ Comegys)
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Avis-Marie Barnes	...	Rhonda
Michael Beasley	...	Luther
Rus Blackwell	...	Reynolds Reed
Matthew Brady	...	Search Officer
Kendrick Cross	...	David
Joe Dorgan
Djontre Driver	...	Prisoner
Michael Flippo	...	Heinz Harris
André Gordon	...	Additional voices (voice)
Brianne Gould	...	Keisha
Steven Carl Griffin	...	Prisoner
Jimmy Hager	...	Judge Clemmons
Greg Kamp	...	Ryan - Age 18-20
Karan Kendrick	...	Jo Anne
Avery Knight	...	Booji
Mike Knowles Jr.	...	Bar Patron with Girlfriend
Shayne Kohout	...	Vicky Tanner
Amir Kovacs	...	Security Guard
Matt Leili	...	Prison Guard
Lance E. Nichols	...	Judge Pifer
Timothy Douglas Perez	...	Prisoner
Ryan Puszewski	...	Ryan Gregory (age 13)
Chandler Riggs	...	Ryan Gregory (age 7)
Jimmy Shaw	...	Lawyer
Stephen Shelton	...	Prison guard
Beliria Sims	...	Keshia
Brian Stretch	...	Prison Guard
Danny Vinson	...	Graves Thomas
Kirsten Van Wagner	...	Paralegal
Lynn Cole	...	Loretta (uncredited)
Matthew Kent	...	Prison Guard (uncredited)

Directed by
Tom McLoughlin

Writing credits (WGA)
Teena Booth		(written by)
Andrew Corsello		(magazine article)

Produced by
Gale Anne Hurd	....	executive producer
Beth Tashjian	....	associate producer
Gary Ventimiglia	....	executive producer
Robert J. Wilson	....	producer

Original Music by
Stephen Endelman

Cinematography by
Shelly Johnson

Film Editing by
Charles Bornstein

Casting by
Craig Fincannon
Lisa Mae Fincannon
Laray Mayfield

Set Decoration by
Amy McGary

Costume Design by
Stephen K. Randolph

Makeup Department
Lay'Na Anderson	....	additional makeup artist
Richard Boggs	....	hair stylist
Andrea C. Brotherton	....	hair stylist
Vanessa Davis	....	key hair stylist
Vincent Gideon	....	assistant hair stylist
Charles Gregory Ross	....	department head hair
Keitric Starks	....	key makeup artist
Denise Tunnell	....	makeup artist
Dionne Wynn	....	makeup designer

Production Management
Cynthia Stegner	....	post-production executive (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Jason Altieri	....	key second assistant director
Frank Capra III	....	first assistant director

Art Department
Edward J. Borasch Jr.	....	property master
James Brothers	....	assistant prop master
Johnny Land	....	scenic artist
Eliot Levin	....	set dresser
Elizabeth Mire	....	on-set dresser
Stephanie Ryan	....	art department coordinator

Sound Department
David Barber	....	dialogue editor
David Barber	....	sound re-recording mixer
Sean Gray	....	sound designer
Sean Gray	....	sound effects editor
Mike Pipgras	....	foley editor
Mike Pipgras	....	sound effects editor
Billy Theriot	....	adr mixer

Stunts
Gus Williams	....	stunt coordinator

Camera and Electrical Department
Michael Applebaum	....	camera operator: "a" camera
Giovanni Bommarito	....	grip
Ray Brown	....	key grip
Dwight O. Campbell	....	second assistant camera
Chris Clark	....	electrician
Quantrell D. Colbert	....	still photographer
Danny Eckler	....	dolly grip: "b" camera
Mark Henderson	....	electrician
Chris Jones	....	camera operator: "b" camera
Chris Jones	....	steadicam operator
David McLean	....	gaffer
David Morenz	....	first assistant camera: A camera
Ray Myers	....	electrician
Edward Nyankori	....	electrician
Meiklejohn Pate	....	grip
Jason Petty	....	electrician
Joshua Sherrill	....	best boy electric
S. Benny Smyth	....	best boy grip
Jeff C. Sutton	....	additional electrician

Casting Department
Joe Cappelletti	....	adr voice casting
Missy Reedy	....	casting assistant (as Missy H. Reedy)

Costume and Wardrobe Department
Shayne Allen Duhon	....	set costumer
Jeannette Guillermo	....	costume supervisor

Music Department
Christopher Kennedy	....	music editor
Tyler Westen	....	scoring mixer

Transportation Department
Brandon Alford	....	picture car coordinator
Dale Combs	....	transportation captain
Donna Combs	....	dispatcher
Timothy Stephens	....	production driver

Other crew
Duffy Astriab	....	stand-in/photo double
Heather Babineaux	....	craft service assistant
Reagan Brandon	....	script supervisor
Ryan Brunner	....	additional set production assistant
Gregory Cassin	....	production assistant
Nicholas Giancola	....	assistant production coordinator
Joel Goldes	....	dialect coach
André Gordon	....	voice
Mitch Harbeson	....	location manager
Robert Hatch	....	production assistant
James Hayward	....	assistant location manager
Darnina Hodge	....	key office production assistant
Jina Kim	....	assistant production coordinator
Mela Lee	....	adr/voice talent
Amanda Mason	....	assistant to executive
Missy Reedy	....	production assistant (as Missy H. Reedy)
Alan Robbins	....	set medic
Jason Raymond Smith	....	production assistant
Karla Torres	....	production coordinator
Tim Turner	....	production accountant
Benjamin Benedetti	....	account executive (uncredited)
Sylvia Boykin	....	stand-in (uncredited)

Production Companies

• Sony Pictures Television

Distributors

• Lifetime Movie Network (2010) (USA) (TV)
• HBO Hungary (2011) (Hungary) (TV)
• RTL Entertainment (2011) (Netherlands) (TV) (RTL8)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2010) (Germany) (DVD)
• Sony Pictures Home Entertainment (2010) (USA) (DVD)

Other Companies

• Chapman/Leonard Studio Equipment  camera dollies
• EMS Payroll  extras payroll (uncredited)
• Hollywood Trucks  entertainment transportation
• Lightnin' Production Rentals  honeywagon: hair & make-up trailers

Also Known As:

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Netherlands:9 | Sweden:15 (DVD rating) | Germany:12

Company:

Sony Pictures Television

Trivia:

The bar scene was shot at Alamo Jack's in Newnan, GA. Most of the cast extras were recruited there.

Goofs:

Continuity: At the end of the film, Julia Ormond waits in the hallway for the freed Ali. She leaves her shoulder-bag on the little bench and walks with Ali towards the exit. In the next scene (in the doorway) we see the bag over her shoulder.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Discovering the Truth: The Making of 'The Wronged Man' (2010) (V)

Wrongly Condemned

**SPOILERS** The made for TV movie "The Wronged Man" starts where it ended on September 19, 2003 at Louisiana State Correctional Facility. It's then that we see 44 year-old Calvin Willis played by Mahershalalhashbaz, the longest name in the Bible, Ali getting his first breath of freedom after spending over 20 years behind bars. That's 20 years of freedom that Calvin lost, and would never get back, for a crime that he didn't commit!

Besides Calvin's wrongful incarceration we also get to see the person who did just about everything, moving heaven and earth, to prove Calvin's innocence paralegal Janet "Prissy" Gregory, Julia Ormond. Prissy almost by accident took over Calvin's case when her good friend and boss defense attorney Graves Thomas, Danny Vison, was struck down and killed by a lighting bolt while on a fishing trip!

Not at first all that convinced of Calvin's, who's serving a life sentence for the brutal rape of an 11 year old mentally challenged girl, innocence Prissy felt that if the late Graves Thomas felt that he was innocent that was good enough for her. As Prissy uncovered facts that the jury at Calvn's trail were not made aware off, by the local D.A keeping it from them, she went on what turned out to be a 20 year-for a better word-crusade in overturning his conviction. Something that at first Calvin was anything but willing to cooperate with Prissy in feeling that her only interest in his case was just an ego trip on Prissy's part. How wrong Calvin turned out to be!

Heart wrenching true story of how a totally Innocent man went through hell for over 20 years losing everything he had, his freedom family and dignity, until the DNA evidence, that wasn't available at the time of his trial and conviction, proved him innocence.

During his stay behind bars Calvin's wife Micelle, Lisa Arrindell Anderson, divorced him and remarried having a child with her new husband. This drove Calvin almost suicidal taking it out on Prissy from keeping the truth of Michelle's marriage and new born child from him. Being a convicted child rapist didn't help Calvin either making him a target or marked man for every convict in the "joint" who held him beneath contempt and wanting to do a number on him. It was later that Prissy heard about former O.J Simpson's defense team lawyer Barry Sheck's newly formed Innocence Project and finally a ray of light broke through the dark clouds that hampered her all those years in finding Calvin innocent. It was the Innocence Project that in the end convinced-through DNA evidence-the court that Calvin was in fact railroaded into prison! Still it took some two years and a $12,000.00 fee that Prissy and Calvin's family needed all the help and personal contributions, mostly from the local church, that they could get to come up with!

P.S DNA evidence which was in its pioneer stage at the time of Calvin's trial and conviction has since proved to be the ultimate evidence in finding persons unjustly convicted of crimes, like himself, innocent beyond any reasonable doubt. Calvin became the 138th person, in 2003, to be found innocent of a crime he didn't commit because of the DNA evidence that the researching Innocence Project provided for him. Many of those found Innocent through DNA evidence over the last ten years were on death row awaiting execution. We can only wonder just how many more persons who ended up losing their freedom, like Calvin Willis, as well as their lives, by being executed by the both State and Federal Government, would have been exonerated of their "crimes" and given the freedom that was taken away from them if publicly supported groups like the Innoence Project was around back then.

Since his release from prison Calvin Willis has become an major advocate for prisoners rights in him knowing that many of those, like himself, convicted by our "perfect" justice system are far less-in many cases- guilty then those overzealous and unbending enforcers of the law who sentenced them.