The screenplay was written by Stirling Silliphant. It stars Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger, and was produced by Walter Mirisch. It is based on John Ball's 1965 novel of the same name and tells the story of Virgil Tibbs, a black police detective from Philadelphia, who becomes involved in a murder investigation in a small town in Mississippi. In the Heat of the Night is a 1967 American mystery drama film directed by Norman Jewison.
