FAQ for
The Green Mile (1999) Plus avec IMDbPro »

The following FAQ entries may contain spoilers. Only the biggest ones (if any) will be covered with spoiler tags. Spoiler tags have been used sparingly in order to make the page more readable.

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for The Green Mile can be found here.

Yes; this movie is based on the serial novel of the same name. It was written by Stephen King.

Like Alfred Hitchcock, Stephen King occasionally has a cameo in the movies based on his stories, but he does not appear in The Green Mile.

This is not fully explained in either the movie or the novel. Think of it as the physical manifestation of whatever disease or sickness John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan) "sucked" out of those he helped. In the short story The Little Sisters of Eluria, King describes "Doctor Bugs", which are parasitic organisms that first heal people so that they might feed on them slowly. It's been tossed around that Coffee's "bugs" may or may not be the same kind of organism, though there's no confirmation one way or the other or even that they are bugs.

Water, particularly salt water, is a good conductor of electricity. Having the brine-soaked sponge causes the electricity to move in a more efficient line thus killing the prisoner faster. Without the sponge, the body would cook, and death would be much more agonizing, as seen during Del (Michael Jeter)'s execution.

At the time of their murder, there was no link between the girls and Wild Bill Wharton (Sam Rockwell). He was simply a drifter who worked for food and a place to sleep, and he had moved on by the time the girls went missing. When they were found in the arms of John Coffey, a poor, simple-minded, imposing black man who was saying, "I tried to take it back, but it was too late," that was proof enough to everyone that Coffey was guilty.

Paul Edgecomb (Tom Hanks) had no physical evidence to prove that John was innocent. Just saying that John showed him what really happened through a psychic link wouldn't exactly go over well. Then, Percy (Doug Hutchison) shooting and killing Wild Bill ruined any chance of him ever admitting to the crime.

Because of the accidental "gift" John Coffey transferred to the mouse while bringing him back to life in as much as he did the same while curing Pauls urinary infection. However, there is no indication that Mr Jingles will live "as long as" Paul Edgecomb, only that they both will have extended lifespans.

Their fates are not apparent in the movie. In the novel, Dean (Barry Pepper) got stabbed in the throat four months after John Coffey's execution. Years later, Brutal (David Morse) had a heart attack while eating a fish sandwich.