The Turncoat - When Hate Is Skin Deep
MYSTERY SUSPENSE / THRILLER CRIME DRAMA HISTORICAL FICTION DETECTIVE DRAMA SUSPENSE/THRILLER CRIME DETECTIVE HISTORICAL FICTION
1920s & '30s
Renney Senn
Logline
In 1928 Alabama, Jed Haiger, a white racist, is mysteriously transformed into a black man where his knowledge of horrific KKK crimes becomes a death trap until a blockbuster federal trial transforms him into an enigmatic national hero with a deadly secret that, when revealed, stuns the nation.
Genre
Mystery, Suspense / Thriller, Crime, Drama, Historical Fiction, Detective,,Drama,Suspense/Thriller,Crime,Detective,Historical Fiction
Short Summary
After accidentally killing a black co-worker, white racist Jed Haiger, flees from the law. Haunted by losing his job and being punished, he descends into a deep depression that leads to a bizarre metamorphosis where he becomes the heart of his hatred—a black man.
As the story heads toward its bizarre conclusion, explosive federal and state trials bring the Alabama Klan down at the hands of a lone black man who is mysteriously aware of ghastly Klan crimes and the identities of the powerful people who committed them. Bloody revenge looms.
Setting
Central Alabama
Based on a True Story
No
Plot - Premise
Internal Journey/Rebirth,,Overcoming Monster/Villain
Plot - Other Elements
Twist, Philosophical Questions,,Philosophical Questions
Mature Audience Themes
Language/Profanity, Extreme Violence
Main Character Details
Name: Jed Haiger
Age: 38
Gender: Male
Role: Protagonist
Key Traits: Insecure, Uneducated, Aggressive, Desperate,Desperate,Uneducated
Additional Character Details
Name: Anna Haiger
Age: 36
Gender: Female
Role: Protagonist
Key Traits: Strong Moral Code, Adventurous, Charming, Complex, Skillful, Sophisticated, Beautiful, Extraordinary Powers and Abilities, Honorable, Perseverance, Confident, Educated, Engaging, Heroic, Leader,Charming,Complex,Decisive,Engaging,Heroic,Educated,Leader,Skillful,Visionary,Faithful,Honorable,Outspoken,Romantic
Additional Character Details
Name: Fess Tilner
Age: 59
Gender: Male
Role: mentor
Key Traits: Complex, Confident, Leader, Skillful, Strong Moral Code, Decisive, Educated, Honorable, Patriotic,Empathetic,Engaging,Faithful,Gracious,Educated,Honorable,Skillful,Sophisticated,Strong Moral Code
Additional Character Details
Name: Enis Gatlin
Age: 52
Gender: Male
Role: antagonist
Key Traits: Strong Moral Code, Faithful, Empathetic, Engaging, Honorable, Patriotic, Sophisticated, Educated,Aggressive,Criminal,Desperate,Insecure,Masculine,Villainous,Uneducated
Development Pitch
A white racist, Jed Haiger accidentally kills a black co-worker in 1928 semi-rural Alabama. Terrified and hunted by the law, he enters his own hell when he metamorphoses into a black man. Unaware of her brother's crime and new identity as Bob Brown, his younger sister, Anna, is coincidentally reconnected with him by Fess Tilner, the former head of a powerful Boston civil rights law firm who has returned to his ancestral Alabama as the regional DA to fight racism at its roots. Unfamiliar with Fess, the local sheriff wants to eliminate Bob Brown who has revealed knowledge of too many Klan crimes, and assumes a compliant DA will give him easy legal cover. The ruse makes Fess immediately take Brown into his custody. Unaware that the white Anna he has recently met and the black Bob Brown are siblings, Fess coincidentally introduces them. Her extraordinary sleuthing and Tilner's powerful federal connections result in a federal civil rights trial that makes a lone black man threaten the Alabama Klan's existence. Seeking revenge, the state fabricates a sham trial accusing the federal trial's star witness, Bob Brown, of premeditated murder. By now a national obsession, the fraudulent trial explodes when it is dramatically demonstrated that the supposed murderer is also the victim, leaving what remains of the Klan hell-bent on revenge. In a murderous late-night massacre, it seeks retribution for so many powerful Klan leaders being sent to prison as it enters its death throes.