Shawshank Redemption Cast Explain What Most Fans Never Figured Out

Intriguing Facts About The Shawshank Redemption
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Intriguing Facts About The Shawshank Redemption
Jackson Sawa
| 3/2/26
Released in 1994, The Shawshank Redemption tells the story of a banker named Andy Dufresne, who is sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his wife and lover although he claims to be innocent. The film follows him over the decades, highlighting his experiences in the prison, and the relationships he builds along the way. Upon its release, the film didn't do nearly as well as expected, although it went on to be nominated for seven Academy Awards and is now regarded as one of the greatest films of all time. Check out these lesser-known facts about The Shawshank Redemption.
It's Based On A Stephen King Novella
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Although it may differ from many of King's other works, The Shawshank Redemption is actually based on King's novella, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption. The story was one of a collection of four novellas titled Different Seasons, with three of them being turned into films including The Shawshank Redemption, Apt Pupil, and The Body (Stand By Me).
King sold the film rights for his novella for $5,000 although he never cashed the check. Years after the film was released he framed it and sent the check to director Frank Darabont with the inscription, "In case you ever need bail money. Love, Steve."
See what's significant about the number 237.
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There Was Almost A Different Director
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After purchasing the rights from King, director Frank Darabont was offered $2.5 million from Rob Reiner to hand over the film's rights. Although it was a tempting offer, Darabont ultimately turned Reiner down, claiming that it was his "chance to do something really great," and he was ultimately right.
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Under Reiner, the film would have taken a totally different direction as he wanted Harrison Ford and Tom Cruise to play Red and Andy respectively. Nobody is complaining that Darabont held onto the film.
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Morgan Freeman Wasn't The Only Option For Red
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In King's novella, Red is described as a middle-aged Irishman with graying red hair. In order to fit the profile, actors such as Clint Eastwood, Paul Newman, Robert Redford, and Harrison Ford were all seriously considered for the role.
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However, Frank Darabont always saw Morgan Freeman as Red for his natural demeanor and voice and made the executive decision to hire Freeman. To honor King's original character, Darabont added "Maybe it's because I'm Irish," when Andy inquires about Red's nickname.
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The Maggot Dilemma
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In the film, the elderly man Brooks, who works in the prison library has a pet crow. Because they were working with a live animal, the scenes with the crow were heavily monitored by the American Human Association.
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In the scene when Brooks feeds his crow a maggot, the AHA stepped in claiming that it was cruel to the maggot and that they would have to use a maggot that had died of natural causes. Amazingly, the production team found a maggot that met the AHA's standards and the scene was filmed.
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The Number 237 Makes An Appearance
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If you're familiar with Stephen King's work, you know that he likes to plant Easter eggs in his writings, connecting them in one way or another. One small detail that he has sprinkled through some of his books is the number 237.
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Frank Darabont decided to include this in the film when the guards shout "Open 237!" before questioning Red about where Andy went. The number 237 is also the same number as the room in The Shining, and the amount of change the boys have in Stand By Me.
Check out whose son made a brief cameo in the film!
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Red's Past
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In the film, when Andy asks Red why he's in Shawshank, he responds by saying "I committed murder." While much of his story is left to mystery in the movie, the novella goes into much greater detail. It's explained that Ellis Boy "Red" Redding is serving three life sentences for murdering his wife, neighbor's wife, and his neighbor's son.
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Red had disconnected the brakes of his wife's car in order to collect an insurance policy, however, he didn't anticipate that his neighbor's wife and son would be riding in the vehicle.
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The Movie Helped Boost The Local Economy
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Although the film is set in Maine, it was filmed in Mansfield, Ashland, and Upper Sandusky, Ohio. The three towns shared 13 sites that were used as filming locations which have become increasingly popular tourist destinations since the film's release.
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According to the Mansfield/Richmond County Convention and Visitors Bureau, tourism has increased every year since 1994, bringing over 18,000 visitors to the area and an estimated $3 million to the local economy as of 2013.
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Not Andy's Hands
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Although Tim Robbins played Andy Dufrense, the close-up shots of his hands are not his, but rather those of director Frank Darabont. The scenes that show Dufrense's hands loading the revolver in the opening scene and carving his name into his cell wall were done in post-production and were finalized by Darabont.
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The reason that Robbins' hands weren't used was that Darabont wanted the scenes to be done in a particular way and decided he needed to do them himself to create the final product he envisioned.
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It Was Considered A Box Office Flop
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While The Shawshank Redemption may be considered a classic today, the film didn't do well at the box office upon its original release. In fact, it only initially grossed $18 million, which didn't even cover the cost of the film's production. However, after earning numerous Oscar nominations, the film made another $10 million but was still labeled as a box office flop.
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Even though the film wasn't successful in theaters, Warner Home Video shipped 320,000 rental copies across the United States. This aided the film in becoming one of the top-rented films of the year even though its distribution was considered to be risky.
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More Than One Freeman
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Unknown to most, the mugshots of a young Red attached to his parole papers isn't Morgan Freeman or anyone random. They're actually photos of Morgan Freeman's son, Alfonso Freeman.
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Alfonso even had a cameo in the film chanting "Fresh fish! Fresh fish today! We're reeling em' in!" This wouldn't be the first time Alfonso appeared in one of his father's films either. A year later, he was featured as a fingerprint technician in the film Seven.
See why they had to change the original title.
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Working With A Bird
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In the scene when Andy arrives at the library to begin his new position as Brooks' assistance, Brook's crow Jake is squawking. In order to film the scene, Robbins had to time his line, "Hey Jake, where's Brooks?" so that the bird didn't squawk while he was talking.
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Over time, Robbins became acquainted with the bird and began to pick up its squawking pattern so that it never ruined a scene, something that Darabont commended him for. if you look closely, you can see Robbins paying close attention to the bird, waiting for it to…

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