The ''Shaft'' franchise is a series of five
action
Action may refer to:
* Action (narrative), a literary mode
* Action fiction, a type of genre fiction
* Action game, a genre of video game
Film
* Action film, a genre of film
* ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford
* ''Action'' (1980 fil ...
-
crime
In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...
feature films and seven
television film
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
s, centered on a family of
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...
police detectives all sharing the name
John Shaft
John Shaft is a fictional character created by author/screenwriter Ernest Tidyman for the 1970 novel of the same name. He was portrayed by Richard Roundtree in the original 1971 film and in its four sequels, ''Shaft's Big Score!'' (1972), ''Shaf ...
. The first three features may be described as
blaxploitation
Blaxploitation is an ethnic subgenre of the exploitation film that emerged in the United States during the early 1970s. The term, a portmanteau of the words "black" and "exploitation", was coined in August 1972 by Junius Griffin, the president o ...
films, the
television film
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
s are
mysteries, and the fourth feature installment is a
crime thriller
Crime fiction, detective story, murder mystery, mystery novel, and police novel are terms used to describe narratives that centre on criminal acts and especially on the investigation, either by an amateur or a professional detective, of a crime, ...
. By contrast the fifth film installment, released to
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
, is a
satirical
Satire is a genre of the visual, literary, and performing arts, usually in the form of fiction and less frequently non-fiction, in which vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, often with the intent of shaming or e ...
buddy-cop comedy
Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
.
Background
John Shaft
Feature films
''Shaft'' (1971)
John Shaft is a classy and suave African-American detective. Successfully, he fights local crime, in the leader of the black crime mob named Bumpy and his gang, and black nationals. The conflicting characters have to put aside their differences when they must defeat the white mafia, who kidnapped Bumpy's daughter in attempts to blackmail him.
''Shaft's Big Score!'' (1972)
When John Shaft finds out that a dead friend ran an illegal money laundering scheme out of the former's legitimate business and left $200,000 unaccounted for, he discovers the reason why he had suddenly found himself in the middle of a war between rival gangs. The thugs begin a war of taking over the territory that belonged to the deceased, as well as to get their hands on the missing two hundred grand. Shaft has all he can handle trying to track down the money and, at the same time, keep his friend's sister from the clutches of these dangerous groups.
''Shaft in Africa'' (1973)
John Shaft is persuaded to take on the faux identity of a native-speaking worker in Africa by threats of violence, the enticings of money, and the lure of a potential love interest in his tutor. While undercover he must help in completing a coup on a business that is smuggling immigrants into Europe, and then exploiting them. The villains, unfortunately for him, know he is coming.
''Shaft'' (2000)
New York City Police Detective John Shaft II, son of the 1970s cop, is the lead detective on a sensitive case when a young African-American is viciously beaten to death. After learning there was an eye-witness and upon further investigation, the man's friends lead Shaft on the trail of a man who was known to have racial prejudice, prior to the attack. The titular character confronts him and learns that he's Walter Wade Jr., the son of a wealthy real estate tycoon. He finds evidence that the perpetrator was at the location of the crime. The suspect is released on bail because of 'excessive force' from Shaft during his arrest, and flees the country. Two years later, Wade returns to the U.S. where Shaft arrests him for evading law enforcement. After the judge grants him bail, Shaft questions the magistrate's motives and intentions. He resigns from the police force and sets out to lock Wade away permanently. At the same time Wade fears that Shaft may find the witness before he does and hires a drug lord to find and kill her.
''Shaft'' (2019)
John Shaft III, also known as JJ, is a cyber security expert for the FBI who seeks out a different kind of expertise from his absentee father John Shaft II (and ultimately, grandfather John Shaft I) after his best friend's untimely death.
In discussing the film, director Tim Story stated, "...We’re going to definitely make sure the stakes in the world are real, and then you’ve got these characters who are dealing with kind of a father/son situation, we’re going to see them put a family back together."
Television films
Following the box office failure of ''Shaft in Africa'', the studio moved the franchise to the small screen in 1973. A collection of
television film
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
s ordered as a television series, the films were released on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
network television. While attempting to build crossovers with another crime-drama, ''
Hawkins'', the series never garnered much success. Each film features a different case and a different crime for the titular character to solve. The series was cancelled after one season, due to poor ratings. Richard Roundtree, who reprised his role from the theatrical feature films, has since expressed his distaste for the television films and their contrasting message compared to the feature films.
''Shaft and the Enforcers'' (1973)
The first film, ''The Enforcers'', aired on CBS on October 9, 1973.
''Shaft and the Killing'' (1973)
The second film, ''The Killing'', aired on CBS on October 30, 1973.
''Shaft and the Hit-Run'' (1973)
The third film, ''Hit-Run'', aired on CBS on November 20, 1973.
''Shaft and the Kidnapping'' (1973)
The fourth film, ''The Kidnapping'', aired on CBS on December 11, 1973.
''Shaft and the Cop Killer'' (1974)
The fifth film, ''Cop Killer'', aired on CBS on January 1, 1974.
''Shaft and the Capricorn Murders'' (1974)
The sixth film, ''The Capricorn Murders'', aired on CBS on January 29, 1974.
''Shaft and the Murder Machine'' (1974)
The seventh and final television film, ''The Murder Machine'', aired on CBS on February 19, 1974.
Cast and crew
Cast
The film series contains four main stars, with various key characters appearing in each individual movie. The following chart organizes the films' stars, arranged by film.
Crew
Reception
Box office performance
Critical and public response
See also
A future descendant of John Shaft appears in the ''
Cowboy Bebop'' episode "
Mushroom Samba", voiced by
Hōchū Ōtsuka
is a Japanese voice actor and narrator affiliated with the talent management firm Crazy Box.
He is best known for his roles as the voices of Kyao Mirao in ''Heavy Metal L-Gaim''; Mont Blanc Noland in ''One Piece''; Yazan Gable in ''Mobile Suit ...
in the 1999 Japanese version and by
Beau Billingslea
John "Beau" Billingslea (born 1944) is an American actor, known as the voice of Jet Black in the critically acclaimed anime '' Cowboy Bebop'', Ogremon in ''Digimon'' and Homura and Ay, the Fourth Raikage in ''Naruto Shippuden''. In addition to ...
in the 2001 English dub. According to writer/director
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, Black comedy, dark humor, Nonlinear narrative, non-lin ...
, the characters Broomhilda "Hildi" von Schaft and her husband
Django Freeman in his 2012 film ''
Django Unchained
''Django Unchained'' () is a 2012 American revisionist Western film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kerry Washington, and Samuel L. Jackson, with Walton Goggins, Dennis Chri ...
'' were written as the progenitors to the Shaft family line and direct ancestors of John Shaft. Tarantino stated that while the film isn't an official prequel to the series, his intention was that the characters have familial ties.
Further reading
*
Notes
References
{{John Shaft, state=expanded
Film series introduced in 1971
Action film franchises
American film series
Shaft (franchise)
Works about African-American organized crime