FAQ

When Judge Rozat 'Rusty' Sabich (Bill Pullman) finds his wife Barbara (Marcia Gay Harden) dead in their bed, it appears to be a case of a heart attack. That is, until Jimmy Brand (Tahmoh Penikett), assistant to Chief Prosecuting Attorney Tommy Molto (Richard Schiff), dredges up enough dirt on Rusty to warrant a toxicology screen on Barbara's blood. The screening shows four times the normal level of phenelzine, an antidepressant, and Judge Rusty finds himself back in court, this time as a defendant charged with poisoning his wife.

Innocent is based on a 2011 novel by American author and practicing lawyer Scott Turow. The novel is a sequel to Turow's Presumed Innocent (1987), which was also made into a movie, Présumé innocent (1990) (1990). The screenplay for Innocent was written by Mike Robe, who also directed and co-produced the made-for-TV movie as part of TNT's Mystery Movie Night series in December 2011.

It's been 20 years since Kindle County prosecuting attorney, now Judge, Rusty Sabich was acquitted in the murder of his former lover and colleague Carolyn Polhemus.

It's not necessary, but it is strongly advised. The relationship between Tommy Molto, Sandy Stern, and Rusty Sabich, for example, has a much deeper history than the simple relationship shown in Innocent. One particularly important plot point revolving around Rusty's wife in the first movie was omitted from Innocent, and several viewers have mentioned that it would be difficult to understand the undercurrents in this movie without having that piece of information.

When Tommy Molto finds out that it was Jimmy Brand who programmed the card into Rusty's unwrapped computer the night before the trial, he has Rusty released from prison. Rusty is met at the gate by his son Nat (Callard Harris) and Nat's girlfriend Anna (Mariana Klaveno). While Nat is away getting the car, Anna assures Rusty that Nat doesn't know about them and that she really is mdly in love with Nat. The final scene takes place some days later. Rusty is preparing to go fishing with Lorna, and Nat asks him for the truth about Barbara. Rusty explains that, the day of his birthday party, he had been working in the garden and his knees were killing him, so Barbara brought him four Advil. Rusty recognized that they were actually phenelzine and realized that Barbara was trying to kill him, so he called her on it. In spite, Barbara downed the phenelzine herself. The next morning, she was dead. Rusty explains how Barbara must have used gloves to handle the phenelzine bottle, gone into his computer to erase all evidence of his affair, and left the divorce lawyer's receipt on the night table as a suicide note. 'I still feel llike there's something you're not telling me,' Nat says, but Rusty's only reply is, 'I love you, Nat.' Resolved that he's not going to get any more out of Rusty, Nat assures his dad that he loves him, too, and leaves for the office.