A silent film where a woman becomes the most feared slave-ship captain? Belle Bennett said 'gender roles are for landlubbers.'
The Devil's Skipper was based on Demetrios Contos, a seafaring yarn by Jack London. Effectively cast against type, Belle Bennett plays a wronged woman who becomes the most brutal and feared slave-ship captain on the Seven Seas.
Acting
Belle Bennett's against-type villainy is reportedly unhinged.
Production
Jack London adaptation with actual ship footage, allegedly.
Director
John G. Adolfi
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Belle Bennett was primarily known for maternal melodramas like Stella Dallas; this was her villain era.
Jack London's original 1905 story was already controversial for its unflinching depiction of Pacific slave trading; the 1928 adaptation arriving pre-Code let Bennett go full monstrous.
US
