PhiloIn the Heat of the Night (1988)
Bias Rating
Analyzing...
Progressive
Viewer Rating
Rating: 6.4
Overview
In the Heat of the Night is an American television series based on the motion picture and novel of the same name starring Carroll O'Connor as the white police chief William Gillespie, and Howard Rollins as the African-American police detective Virgil Tibbs. It was broadcast on NBC from 1988 until 1992, and then on CBS until 1995. Its executive producers were Fred Silverman, Juanita Bartlett and Carroll O'Connor. TGG Direct released the first season of the series to DVD on August 28, 2012.
Starring Cast
Where to watch
Philo
YouTube
Apple TVBias Dimensions
Political: Strong Left
Diversity: High
LGBTQ: Negative
Christianity: Positive
Overview
In the Heat of the Night is an American television series based on the motion picture and novel of the same name starring Carroll O'Connor as the white police chief William Gillespie, and Howard Rollins as the African-American police detective Virgil Tibbs. It was broadcast on NBC from 1988 until 1992, and then on CBS until 1995. Its executive producers were Fred Silverman, Juanita Bartlett and Carroll O'Connor. TGG Direct released the first season of the series to DVD on August 28, 2012.
Starring Cast
Where to watch
PhiloYouTubeApple TVDetailed Bias Analysis
Analyzing...
Progressive
Primary
The film's central thesis explicitly promotes progressive ideology by unequivocally critiquing systemic racism and championing racial equality and justice through the triumph of competence and moral integrity over deeply ingrained prejudice.
The movie features a Black protagonist in a lead detective role, a significant and intentional casting choice for its time that challenged traditional norms. Its narrative explicitly confronts racial prejudice, portraying traditional white identities critically and making the themes of racial injustice and the competence of the Black lead central to the story.
Secondary
The film features Lloyd Purdy, a minor character whose effeminate demeanor is coded as queer. He is subjected to mockery and violence by the police, who treat his 'otherness' with contempt. This portrayal contributes to a negative depiction of non-normative gender expression, lacking counterbalance or critique.
The film subtly critiques the hypocrisy of characters who claim Christian values while perpetuating racism and bigotry in the American South. By exposing this moral disconnect and condemning the prejudice, the narrative implicitly affirms a higher standard of justice and morality, rather than attacking the faith itself.
The movie does not contain any action or adventure elements.
The television series "In the Heat of the Night" (1988–1995) adapted characters from the original novel and 1967 film. All major characters retained their established genders from the source material, with no instances of a character canonically established as one gender being portrayed as a different gender in the show.
The television series "In the Heat of the Night" (1988–1995) faithfully adapted the core characters, Virgil Tibbs and Bill Gillespie, maintaining their established races from the original novel and 1967 film. No race swaps occurred for these or other significant legacy characters.
Viewer Rating Breakdown
6.4
Viewer Rating
Combines user and critic ratings from four sources
User Ratings
7.6
7.5
Critic Ratings
N/A
4.2
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