Billy Bob's Filmography
A FAMILY THING (1996)
Distributor
United Artists
Director
Richard Pearce
Writers
Billy Bob Thornton and Tom Epperson
Character
He does not appear in the film.
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Movie Quote
EARL PILCHER: I used to play a little
ball. I mean, I was small. I made up for it by being
slow.
Plot
Duvall plays Earl Pilcher, a white man who learns, upon his mother's death, that he was adopted and that his birth mother
was African American. Seeking answers to the new questions in
his life, Earl looks up his mother's relatives in
Chicago. James Earl Jones plays Duvall's newfound and very reluctant
brother Ray Murdock, who isn't at all pleased to have unhappy
family secrets dredged up by the sudden appearance of a
middle-aged, white stranger from Arkansas.
What Billy Bob Gets To Do
He gets to write a wonderful role for his beloved acting mentor,
Robert Duvall.
Backstory
Released in the same year as SLING BLADE (1996), A FAMILY THING is yet another of
the Thornton-Epperson team's screenplays, one which garnered some serious critical acclaim. Billy doesn't
appear in this one, but Robert Duvall, James Earl Jones, Michael Beach (from
ONE FALSE MOVE), Grace Zabriskie
(from ARMAGEDDON), Regina Taylor, David Keith, and the delightful Irma P. Hall
(stealing the film out from under the two leading titans) do star in it, and it's worth a gander.
Awards (for A FAMILY
THING)
American Cinema Foundation (E Pluribus Unum Award, Feature) - 1997 - Winner
Chicago Film Critics Association (Best Supporting Actress, Irma
P. Hall) - 1997 - Winner
Relevant
Links
IMDb Link
Official Site
Bomis
links to several A FAMILY THING Sites
Movieweb review
MRQE
links to A FAMILY THING reviews
TV Guide review
Related Merchandise
Charles Gross' Chicago-style jazz-inflected soundtrack is available on Edel
America Records.
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