It wasn't his first film, but 1996's John Grisham adaptation A Time To Kill was a part of Matthew McConaughey's breakout. Now he's ready to revisit it, on the small screen, as he's locking down a deal to star in HBO's version of A Time For Mercy.
If you've never seen it, or need a refresher, Kill, directed by Joel Schumacher, was set in Clanton, MS, and followed a fearless young lawyer named Jake Brigance as he defends a Black man accused of murdering two white men who raped his 10-year-old daughter. The case turns the small town into a boilerplate of tension that includes inciting violent retribution and revenge from the Ku Klux Klan. McConaughey was the surprise choice to star, and the film became a hit.
In A Time for Mercy, Brigance finds himself embroiled in a deeply divisive trial when the court appoints him attorney for Drew Gamble, a timid 16-year-old boy accused of murdering a local deputy. Many in Clanton want a swift trial and the death penalty, but Brigance digs in and discovers that there is more to the story than meets the eye. Brigance’s fierce commitment to saving Drew from the gas chamber puts his career and the safety of his family on the line. The plan for the show is for eight to 10 episodes, with Lorenzo di Bonaventura, who was an executive at Warners and oversaw the original film, as producer.