Warren Maxwell, the owner of a run-down plantation, pressures his son, Hammond, to marry and produce an heir to inherit the plantation. Hammond settles on his own cousin, Blanche, but purchases a sex slave when he returns from the honeymoon. He also buys his father a new Mandingo slave named Mede to breed and train as a prize-fighter.
Acting
James Mason's decaying patriarch chews scenery like it's his last meal.
Production
They built a functioning plantation; the authenticity makes it worse.
Director
Richard Fleischer
Perry King
Hammond Maxwell
James Mason
Warren Maxwell
Susan George
Blanche Woodford Maxwell
Ken Norton
Mede (Ganymede)
Richard Ward
Agamemnon
Brenda Sykes
Ellen
Lillian Hayman
Lucrezia Borgia
Roy Poole
Doc Redfield
Ji-Tu Cumbuka
Cicero
Paul Benedict
Brownlee
Ben Masters
Charles Woodford
Louis Turenne
De Veve
Earl Maynard
Babouin
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Based on a bestselling novel by a white author, this was Paramount's attempt to cash in on Blaxploitation while maintaining 'prestige' credibility—the result horrified pretty much everyone.
Boxer Ken Norton got the role of Mede after nearly beating Muhammad Ali; he broke his hand punching a wall for his big scene. The cast and crew allegedly walked on eggshells around the racial dynamics, with some Black actors later expressing regret.
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