Samuel L. Jackson's First Major Movie As A Lead Was A Box Office Bomb

Samuel L. Jackson had to pay his dues and then some before he got his first true starring role. He slugged it out for over a decade in small supporting roles, then broke out in a big way as the crack-addicted Gator Purify in Spike Lee's "Jungle Fever." He was so spectacular in that movie that the Cannes Film Festival brought back its Best Supporting Actor award to honor him. Three years later, he blew moviegoers away with his thundering recitation of Ezekiel 25:17 as hitman Jules Winnfield in "Pulp Fiction," and Jackson was off to the races — so long as he was a co-lead or part of an ensemble.

It wouldn't be until 1997 that Jackson got his richly deserved shot at being the sole lead of a movie. He probably could've played it safe and sought out an action flick, but he zeroed in on a hot-button thriller about a San Fernando Valley high school teacher who finds himself aggressively victimized by students belonging to a Chicano gang. The film, "One Eight Seven," was written by former substitute teacher Scott Yagemann, who claimed that 90% of his script was drawn from personal experience. Most notably, it was directed by Kevin Reynolds, who was best known for helming two massive Kevin Costner movies, "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves" and "Waterworld." With its $20 million budget this was, for Reynolds at least, a small-scale production.

Alas, "One Eight Seven" grossed a paltry $5.7 million at the domestic box office, which wasn't entirely the film's fault. It's a very effective thriller bolstered by two superb performances from Jackson and Clifton Collins, but Warner Bros. handled it poorly. Had the studio taken greater care in the release of the movie, they might've had a smallish hit on their hands.

In "One Eight Seven," Jackson plays Trevor Garfield, a well-meaning Brooklyn high school teacher who transfers to San Fernando after getting stabbed by one of his students. He soon finds himself contending with an unruly gang led by César "Kartoon" Sánchez (Collins Jr.). Trevor tries to make peace with the gang, but they refuse his olive branch. Tensions escalate to the point where the bookish Trevor is forced to respond in violent kind. This leads to a shocking climax and a sobering epilogue that makes it clear the victimization of teachers is a problem that isn't going away.

According to a 2024 National Institute of Justice study, only 17% of teachers surveyed reported no victimization by students. So, "One Eight Seven" is not pure propaganda. It is, however, a "Death Wish"-level exploitation flick that eschews nuance in favor of lurid thrills, and I was worried at the time that it would have a chilling effect on inner city schools' teacher recruitment efforts. Once I saw the movie's opening weekend numbers, that concern vanished.

Commercially, I think WB erred by releasing "One Eight Seven" during the 1997 summer movie season. This is the kind of movie you release in September or January, when people have seen all the major seasonal tentpoles and are in the mood for straight-up exploitation fare. This movie may not be subtle, but it works. Then again, it received a C+ Cinemascore grade, so maybe I'm in the minority here.

Though Jackson considers "One Eight Seven" his most underrated film, the mostly negative reviews killed whatever Oscar potential it had. It quickly vanished, while its star immediately bounced back with stellar performances in "Eve's Bayou" and "Jackie Brown." That's the great thing about Jackson: he's too damn good to be down for long.