Hostages (1992): Cast & Plot
Hostages is a 1992 drama directed by David Wheatley, starring Colin Firth as John McCarthy, Ciarán Hinds and Natasha Richardson. It runs 1 hour 36 minutes.
- Released
- Runtime
- 1h 36m (96 min)
- Director
- David Wheatley
- Genre
- Drama
- Original language
-
English - After the credits
- No No extra scene
What Is Hostages About?
The premise of Hostages without spoilers. The whole story is in the plot summary further down.
True account of the six men held hostage by religious extremists in Beirut during the Reagan-Bush era.
Hostages Themes & Keywords
· 50 tags- hostage
- kidnapping
- beirut lebanon
- traumatized man
- blindfold
- friendship between men
- journalist
- hezbollah
- lebanon
- telephone call
- news footage
- beating
+38 more Show fewer
- hood over head
- man in a car trunk
- violence
- brutality
- undressing someone
- male nudity
- chained ankles
- slapped in the face
- threatened with a gun
- isolation
- cruelty
- cockroach
- terrorist
- gun
- black eye
- urination
- reference to treasure island
- kicking
- beard
- irish
- chained
- crying man
- hostage taker hostage relationship
- candle
- hugging
- british
- wrapped in duct tape
- hidden in truck
- cigarette smoking
- reference to albert einstein
- truck
- prayer
- banging head against door
- self harm
- blood on forehead
- christmas
- singing
- jingle bells
Hostages Cast & Characters
Colin Firth leads the cast as John McCarthy, with Ciarán Hinds as Brian Keenan and Natasha Richardson as Jill Morrell. Directed by David Wheatley; 31 actors are credited in all.
- Director David Wheatley
-
Colin Firth as John McCarthy -
Ciarán Hinds as Brian Keenan -
Natasha Richardson as Jill Morrell -
Jay O. Sanders as Terry Anderson
Also Starring in Hostages
· 27 more- Michael Morgan American Soldier Checkpoint Charlie(uncredited)
- Harry Dean Stanton Frank Reed
- Josef Sommer Tom Sutherland
- Kathy Bates Peggy Say
- Conrad Asquith Terry Waite
- Stephen Dillane Chris Pearson
- Tony Doyle Badraig Murphy
- Colin Stinton Mike Mulholland
- Ruth McCabe Elaine Spence
- Harry Ditson David Say
- Rolf Saxon Plaskett
- Juliano Mer-Khamis Ali
- Rosaleen Linehan Brenda Gilham
- Brian McGrath Connor
- Raad Rawi Moussavlan
- Colum Convey Art Agnew
Show all 31 cast members Show fewer cast members
- Dan Turgeman Mahmoud
- Sami Samir Ahmad
- Patrick Pearson Lowther
- Amir M. Korangy Ghassemmi
- Colin Bruce Robie Burke
- Gooey Law Newsman
- John Pickles Pat McCarthy
- Rasan Abbas Head Kidnapper
- Gabrielle O'Brien Belfast Woman
- Paul Jaynes Newsman
- Mozaffar Shafeie Translator
More from David Wheatley
One more film directed by David Wheatley: The Magic Toyshop.
Hostages Plot Summary
What happens in Hostages from start to finish, spoilers included, with a timeline of 13 key events. The opening is below; the full summary is a 3-minute read.
Spoilers ahead
Set against the Beirut hostage crisis, this drama blends real-world news footage with deeply human moments inside a brutal captivity. It begins with reporter John McCarthy, Colin Firth, finishing a story on Brian Keenan, Ciarán Hinds, and soon finds him swept into the same nightmare when his car is hijacked and he is stripped, blindfolded, and locked away. The film quickly shifts to the home front, where Jill Morrell, Natasha Richardson, a devoted girlfriend, seeks guidance from local officials who insist there will be no negotiations to secure his release. The same callous stance is felt by Keenan’s family in Belfast, who watch the crisis unfold with mounting fear and frustration as authorities refrain from intervention.
Full summary
The whole story of Hostages, scene by scene
How Well Do You Know Hostages?
10 questions about the story, each with a hint if you get stuck. Pick an answer to see whether you were right.
Question 1 of 10
- Question 1: not answered
- Question 2: not answered
- Question 3: not answered
- Question 4: not answered
- Question 5: not answered
- Question 6: not answered
- Question 7: not answered
- Question 8: not answered
- Question 9: not answered
- Question 10: not answered
Which actor portrays reporter John McCarthy, whose car is hijacked at the start of the film?
Hostages Also Known As
Also known as “Заложники”.
- Also known as
-
- Заложники
Seen Hostages?
Movies Like Hostages
Films with a similar story, tone or audience, including Beirut, The Hostage Takers and Hostage.
Hostages FAQ: Cast, Runtime & Release Date
Runtime, release date, director, cast and post-credit scenes of Hostages, each answered in a sentence.
How long is Hostages?
Hostages runs 1 hour 36 minutes (96 minutes).
When was Hostages released?
Hostages was released on September 23, 1992.
Who directed Hostages?
Hostages was directed by David Wheatley.
More films by David Wheatley Who is in the cast of Hostages?
Hostages stars Colin Firth as John McCarthy, Ciarán Hinds as Brian Keenan and Natasha Richardson as Jill Morrell, among 31 credited actors.
Does Hostages have a post-credit scene?
No. Hostages has no extra scene during or after the credits.
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