Movies and TV shows based on stories by Detroit’s Elmore Leonard [PHOTOS]

The Moonshine War (1970)

Directed by Richard Quine. Written by Elmore Leonard. Produced by Martin Ransohoff.
Based on Leonard’s seventh novel, published in 1969, the story is set in Prohibition-era Kentucky and stars Patrick McGoohan, Richard Widmark, Alan Alda, and Will Geer. The film received generally negative reviews, and Leonard also reportedly did not like it.

3:10 to Yuma (1957)

Directed by Delmer Daves. Written by Halsted Welles. Produced by David Heilweil.
Based on a 1953 short story by Leonard about an impoverished rancher who takes on a risky job escorting a notorious outlaw to justice, the film was selected in 2012 for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

The Tall T (1957)

Directed by Budd Boetticher. Written by Burt Kennedy. Produced by Harry Joe Brown.
Based on Leonard’s 1955 short story The Captives, the film stars Randolph Scott, Richard Boone, and Maureen O’Sullivan, and tells the story of a former ranch foreman who is kidnapped along with an heiress, held for ransom by three outlaws. In 2000, it was selected for the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.”

Hombre (1967)

Directed by Martin Ritt. Written by Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr. Produced by Martin Ritt and Irving Ravetch.
Based on the fifth and final novel of Leonard’s early Western phase, published in 1961, the film stars Paul Newman as John Russell, a white man raised by Indigenous American who experiences racism because of his background. It received generally favorable reviews, thanks to portraying Indigenous Americans in a more positive light than typically seen in Westerns.

The Big Bounce (1969)

Directed by Alex March. Written by Robert Dozier. Produced by William Dozier.
As Westerns faded from popularity, after an eight-year hiatus Leonard pivoted to a new style of crime stories. The Big Bounce, Leonard’s sixth novel, tells the story of Jack Ryan, a drifter and delinquent who has an affair with his boss’s girlfriend and must choose between a life of crime or an honest living. While the novel was set in Michigan’s Thumb, the film was set in and shot in California. It received generally bad reviews.

Valdez is Coming (1971)

Directed by Edwin Sherin. Written by Roland Kibbee and David Rayfiel. Produced by Ira Steiner.
Based on Leonard’s eighth novel, published in 1970, which marked a return to Westerns, the film stars Burt Lancaster, Susan Clark, Richard Jordan, and Jon Cypher. It tells the story of local constable Bob Valdez, who is tricked into killing an innocent Black man by the powerful rancher Frank Tanner and vows to get revenge. The film received generally negative reviews.

Joe Kidd (1972)

Directed by John Sturges. Written by Elmore Leonard. Produced by Sidney Beckerman and Robert Daley.
This film was actually not based on a previously published story by Leonard and was instead the first he wrote as a screenplay. It stars Clint Eastwood as an ex-bounty hunter hired by a wealthy landowner to track down Mexican revolutionary leader Luis Chama. While it earned mixed reviews from critics, it was one of the highest-grossing Westerns that year, pulling in $6.3 million.

Mr. Majestyk (1974)

Directed by Richard Fleischer. Written by Elmore Leonard. Produced by Walter Mirisch.
Another Leonard screenplay that was not based on a previously published story, although a character with the name “Mr. Majestyk” first appeared in The Big Bounce. Starring Charles Bronson as a melon farmer and Vietnam War veteran who comes into conflict with gangsters, the film received generally positive reviews.

High Noon Part II: The Return of Will Kane (1980)

Directed by Jerry Jameson. Written by Elmore Leonard. Produced by Edward J Montagne.
This made for TV Western is a sequel to the classic 1952 film High Noon, based on a screenplay by Leonard that was not previously published as a story. (Leonard reportedly considered the original to be one of his favorite films, and the plot of 3:10 to Yuma seems clearly inspired by it.) It stars Lee Majors, David Carradine, and Pernell Roberts and first aired on CBS on November 15, 1980, in a two-hour time-slot.

The Ambassador (1984)

Directed by J. Lee Thompson. Written by Max Jack. Produced by Yoram Goblus and Menahem Golan.
Only very loosely based on Leonard’s 1974 crime novel 52 Pick-Up, his first set in Detroit, the setting in this adaptation was changed to Tel Aviv and stars Robert Mitchum as the U.S. Ambassador to Israel, whose wife is caught on film having an affair with a member of the Palestinian Liberation Organization. It received generally negative reviews.

Stick (1985)

Directed by Burt Reynolds. Written by Elmore Leonard and Joseph Stinson. Produced by Jennings Lang and Robert Daley.
Based on Leonard’s 1983 novel, his 21st, the film stars Burt Reynolds as Ernest “Stick” Stickley, a former car thief who gets caught up in a drug deal gone wrong in Florida and first appeared in Loeanard’s 1976 novel Swag. “I wanted to make that movie as soon as I read the book,” Reynolds once said. “I respected Leonard’s work. I felt I knew that Florida way of life, having been raised in the state. And I was that guy!” The film received generally negative reviews from critics, with Loenard saying he believed it deviated too much from his story. It was a box-office flop, grossing just $8.5 million against a $22 million budget.

Fifty-Two Pickup (1986)

Written by John Steppling. Produced by Yoram Goblus and Menahem Golan.
This second adaptation of 52 Pick-Up changes the Detroit setting to Los Angeles but is otherwise a more faithful adaptation of the novel, about a businessman who is caught having an affair and is blackmailed. It stars Roy Scheider, Ann-Margret, and the Canadian singer and model Vanity. Like its previous adaptation, this version also received negative reviews, although the novel is considered an important milestone in Leonard’s style.

The Rosary Murders (1987)

Directed by Fred Walton. Written by Elmore Leonard and Fred Walton. Produced by Robert G Laurel.
While Leonard helped write the screenplay, the source material is a 1978 novel written by former Detroit Catholic priest and journalist William X Kienzle, making this the only instance of Leonard adapting someone else’s work to the screen. Starring Donald Sutherland, the story is also set in Detroit, involving a series of murders in a Roman Catholic parish with the killer leaving a black rosary in each victim’s hand. (Fun fact: A young, pre-fame Jack White makes an uncredited appearance as an altar boy.)

Desperado (1987)

Directed by Virgl W Vogel. Written by Elmore Leonard. Produced by Walter Mirisch and Charles E. Sellier Jr.
The last script Leonard wrote that was not based on one of his novels, this TV movie was intended to be a pilot for a series. Its plot centers around Duell McCall, a cowboy played by Alex McArthur. While the television series never materialized, four sequels were made, though Leonard had nothing to do with them.

Glitz (1988)

Directed by Sandor Stern. Written by Stephen Zito. Produced by Steve McGlothen.
Originally a screenplay Leonard was commissioned to write as a sequel to 1967’s In the Heat of the Night, Leonard decided instead to write it as a book. The 1985 novel became a commercial and critical hit, with a plot involving a detective who is stalked by a serial rapist he put behind bars. This low-budget made for TV adaptation stars Jimmy Smits, John Diehl, and Markie Post and was largely ignored.

Cat Chaser (1989)

Directed by Abel Ferrara. Written by Elmore Leonard and James Borelli. Produced by Peter S. Davis and William Panzer.
Based on the 20th novel written by Leonard, published in 1982, this is another story that takes place in Florida and concerns a mafia mistress. The film stars Peter Weller and Kelly McGillis and received mixed reviews.

Border Shootout (1990)

Directed and written by Chris McIntyre. Produced by Chris McIntyre and Grant Johnson.
A Western loosely inspired by Lenoard’s second novel, 1955’s The Law at Randado, which retains the characters of Kirby Frye and Phil Sundeen and the city of Randado as a location, it is generally regarded as a bad movie.

Split Images (1992)

Directed by Sheldon Larry. Written by Pete Hammill and Vera Appleyard. Produced by Richard Borchiver and Ken Gord.
Based on the 19th novel written by Elmore Leonard, published in 1981, the story is set in Detroit and concerns a trigger-happy multimillionaire who guns down a Haitian refugee who broke into his Palm Beach mansion. The TV movie stars Gregory Harrison, Robert Collins, and Rebecca Jenkins.

Get Shorty (1995)

Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld. Written by Scott Frank. Produced by Danny DeVito, Michael Shamberg, and Stacey Sher.
Quite possibly the best film based on Leonard’s work, Get Shorty was praised for its star-studded cast (featuring John Travolta, Gene Hackman, Rene Russo, Delroy Lindo, James Gandolfini, Dennis Farina, and Danny DeVito) and its searing postmodern satire of show business. It was based on Loenard’s 1990 novel, his 28th, about Ernest “Chili” Palmer, a real-life Miami loan shark played by Travolta who earned a Golden Globe (Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical) for his performance.

Last Stand at Saber River (1997)

Written by Ronald M. Cohen. Produced by Michael Brandman and Tom Selleck.
The fourth novel written by Leonard, published in 1959, the film stars Tom Selleck, Suzy Amis, Haley Joel Osment, Keith Carradine, David Carradine, Tracey Needham, David Dukes, and Harry Carey Jr., and tells the story about a Civil War Confederate veteran fighting a new battle on the frontier against Union sympathizers to protect his homestead and family. The made for TV movie received the Western Heritage Awards Bronze Wrangler for a Television Feature Film.