The Defiant Ones

Poitier’s first collaboration with director Stanley Kramer is an action-packed thriller that transformed the actor into the first bona fide Black movie star. He plays Noah Cullen, an escaped convict in the Deep South who is handcuffed to Tony Curtis’ embittered racist. To stay alive and out of reach of the authorities, they forge an embittered friendship. As a man seething with rage from a life of indignity, Poitier is superb. It earned him a landmark first Oscar nomination for Best Actor.

Contains violence, racist language and outdated racial terms.