The Paperboy

The Paperboy is a 2012 American crime drama film co-written and directed by Lee Daniels and based on Pete Dexter's 1995 novel of the same name. The novel was inspired by a true story. It follows Miami reporter Ward Jansen who returns to his hometown in Florida to investigate a murder case involving a death row inmate. The film stars Matthew McConaughey, Zac Efron, Nicole Kidman, David Oyelowo, John Cusack and Macy Gray. The film was produced by Daniels, Hilary Shor, Avi Lerner, Ed Cathell III, and Cassian Elwes. It premiered at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival on May 24, 2012 and October 5, 2012 worldwide. It grossed $102,706 in its opening weekend and $3.8 million worldwide, against a budget of $12.5 million, making it a box office bomb. Despite its mixed reviews, Kidman's performance drew Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations. Plot Anita, the former maid of the Jansen family, recounts the events of the summer of 1969 when Ward Jansen, an idealistic reporter, returned to his hometown of Lately, Florida, to investigate the events surrounding the 1965 murder of a violent local sheriff. Hillary Van Wetter, a swamp-dwelling alligator hunter and small-time criminal, is on death row for the murder. Ward and his colleague, Englishman Yardley Acheman, investigative reporters with The Miami Times, plan to help exonerate him. Some evidence against Van Wetter was "lost", which Ward and Yardley plan to expose as redneck injustice. Alabamian Charlotte Bless had fallen in love with Van Wetter, though they have not met, only exchanging correspondence. She arrives in Lately, determined to prove his innocence so they could marry. Charlotte requested the help of Ward and Yardley who then hired Jack, Ward's younger brother, as their driver.