On September 23rd, 1994, "The Shawshank Redemption" was released to U.S. theaters. Directed by Frank Darabont, the film was based on the Stephen King novel, "Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption". The film starred Tim Robbins as Andy Dufresne, and Morgan Freeman as Red. Although Darabont purchased the rights to the novel in 1987, development did not begin until 5 years later when he wrote the script over eight weeks. Although "The Shawshank Redemption" received critical acclaim during its initial release, the film was a box-office flop, grossing only $16 million on a $25 million budget. Many attribute the film's failure to fierce competition from "Pulp Fiction" and "Forrest Gump", the general unpopularity of prison films, and the title which could be confusing to audiences. The film, though, became a cult classic film in the later years after its release, and eventually grossed $73.3 million through re-releases and international takings.
