The Color Purple
7.7
“It's about life. It's about love. It's about us.”
An epic tale spanning forty years in the life of Celie, an African-American woman living in the South who survives incredible abuse and bigotry. After Celie's abusive father marries her off to the equally debasing 'Mister' Albert Johnson, things go from bad to worse, leaving Celie to find companionship anywhere she can. She perseveres, holding on to her dream of one day being reunited with her sister in Africa.
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Cast
55 people
Danny Glover
Albert
Known for
Predator 2
Lethal Weapon
Whoopi Goldberg
Celie
Known for
Sister Act
Ghost
Margaret Avery
Shug Avery
Known for
A Man on the Inside
The Jacksons: An American Dream
Oprah Winfrey
Sofia
Known for
The Butler
A Wrinkle in Time
Willard E. Pugh
Harpo
Known for
RoboCop 2
The Hills Have Eyes Part 2
Akosua Busia
Nettie
Known for
Tears of the Sun
The Seventh Sign
Desreta Jackson
Young Celie
Also in
Sister Act
The Mighty Pawns
Adolph Caesar
Old Mr.
Known for
SilverHawks
A Soldier's Story
Rae Dawn Chong
Squeak
Known for
Commando
American Crime Story
Dana Ivey
Miss Millie
Known for
Two Weeks Notice
The Addams Family
Leonard Jackson
Pa
Known for
Boomerang
Eddie Murphy Raw
Bennet Guillory
Grady
Known for
My So-Called Life
The Kindred
Steven Spielberg Director · Menno Meyjes Screenplay Alice Walker Author
Worldwide gross $146M · Budget $15M · United States release December 18, 1985
Box office
Budget
$15,000,000
Worldwide gross
$146,300,000
Gross vs. budget
9.8×
Production
Amblin Entertainment
Production
Warner Bros. Pictures
Production · Studio
The Guber-Peters Company
Production
Quincy Jones Productions
Production
United States
Produced in
Languages
Original language
English
Spoken on screen
English
Release dates
United States · December 16, 1985
Premiere · New York City, New York
United States · December 18, 1985
Limited theatrical
United States
February 7, 1986 · Theatrical
January 16, 1987 · Theatrical · Re-release
Argentina
July 3, 1986 · Theatrical
Australia
June 26, 1986 · Theatrical
Brazil
March 28, 1986 · Theatrical
Colombia
August 21, 1986 · Theatrical
Denmark
September 5, 1986 · Theatrical
Finland
September 19, 1986 · Theatrical
France
May 1, 1986 · Premiere · Cannes Film Festival
August 20, 1986 · Theatrical
December 26, 2025 · TV · Paris Première
Germany
August 20, 1986 · Theatrical · West Germany
August 19, 1988 · Theatrical · East Germany
Greece
September 12, 1986 · Theatrical
Hong Kong SAR China
July 26, 1986 · Theatrical
Hungary
February 3, 1988 · Theatrical
India
December 14, 1986 · Theatrical
Ireland
July 11, 1986 · Theatrical
Israel
September 1, 1986 · Premiere · Jerusalem Film Festival
Italy
July 31, 1986 · Premiere · Rome
October 3, 1986 · Theatrical
Japan
September 13, 1986 · Theatrical
Mexico
October 9, 1986 · Theatrical
March 26, 1997 · Physical · DVD
Netherlands
September 11, 1986 · Theatrical
September 25, 1998 · Physical · DVD
June 22, 2002 · TV · RTL 5
January 31, 2011 · Physical · Blu ray
New Zealand
October 7, 1986 · Theatrical
Philippines
May 1, 2021 · Digital
Poland
November 28, 2014 · Theatrical · Re-release
Portugal
September 4, 1986 · Theatrical
Singapore
January 17, 2012 · Physical · Blu-ray
South Korea
October 18, 1986 · Theatrical
Spain
September 15, 1986 · Theatrical
Sweden
September 12, 1986 · Theatrical
Taiwan
August 16, 1986 · Theatrical
United Kingdom
July 11, 1986 · Theatrical
Uruguay
August 7, 1986 · Theatrical
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Some details come from TheTVDB.