Hope is a 1997 American historical drama television film directed by Goldie Hawn. The film stars Christine Lahti, Jena Malone, Catherine O'Hara, Jeffrey D. Sams, and J. T. Walsh. It is set amid the early 1960s paranoia manufactured by the Cuban Missile Crisis and the growing restlessness of the Civil Rights Movement. The film received positive reviews from critics, with Malone and Walsh being nominated for a Golden Globe Award and a Primetime Emmy Award, respectively, for their performances. Plot Kate is a young intelligent girl, living in dreary small town in the early 1960s. She lives an ordinary life with her mother, a stroke victim, and her Uncle Ray, who owns a theater. Everything changes when a 8 year old black boy dies in a fire in Uncle Ray's theater. Cast Alissa Alban as Mrs. Schifflett Rodger Boyce as Judge Patterson Brady Coleman as Cecil Thompson Connie Cooper as Mrs. Tabor Haylie Duff as Martha Jean Pruitt Lauryn Pithey-Petrie as Talitha DuPree Gil Glasgow as Sheriff Nik Hagler as Fire Marshal Tabor Ira "Bud" Haynie as Bailiff Christine Lahti as Emma Percy Chris Lane as Sylvester Potter Linda Longserre as Mother At Theater Jena Malone as Lilly Kate Burns Alex Morris as Porter Johnson Mozelle Moses-Felder as Josephine Lee Norris as Billy October Catherine O'Hara as Muriel MacSwain J. Suzanne Rampe as Emma Stunt Double Jeffrey D. Sams as Jediah Walker Charles Sanders as Emery Gill Hope Shiver as Mrs. Monroe Joe Stevens as Flint Harold Suggs as Old Man Scruggs Mary Ellen Trainor as Maize Burns J. T. Walsh as Ray Percy Eric Bennett Weems as Lonnie Tabor Brandi Werlinger as Talitha's Friend Bill Wise as Deputy Sheriff Kevin Jamal Woods as Cleavell Monroe Filming Principal photography on the film began in June 1997. The story is set in a fictional Mississippi town, but was filmed in three towns in Texas. Release The film premiered on TNT on October 19, 1997. It was released on VHS by Warner Home Video. Reception Critical response The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Goldie Hawn's direction and the performances of the cast. Ray Richmond of Variety wrote that Hawn "embodies a surprising maturity and assurance directing this tearjerker" and "also benefits in Hope from some terrific acting support via principals Jena Malone, Christine Lahti, Jeffrey D. Sams, J. T. Walsh and Catherine O'Hara; all are at the top