Penitentiary is a 1979 American blaxploitation drama film written, produced, and directed by Jamaa Fanaka, and starring Leon Isaac Kennedy as Martel "Too Sweet" Gordone, a man who deals with the wrongful imprisonment of a black youth. The film was released on November 21, 1979. The first sequel, Penitentiary II, was released in 1982. It was a direct sequel that followed the exploits of "Too Sweet" Gordone shortly after his release from prison. It was notable for the early casting of Mr. T as Gordone's trainer, Glynn Turman as his brother-in-law, and Ernie Hudson recast in the villainous role of "Half Dead." The second sequel, Penitentiary III, was released in 1987. The plot centers on "Too Sweet" Gordone's time in prison, where he is sent after beating another boxer to death in a performance enhancing drug-fueled fugue state.
Combined theatrical financials and commercial performance across all 3 installments.
Total Worldwide Gross
$3M
Cumulative box office receipts
Total Production Budget
$365K
Combined studio investments
Average Gross / Film
$1M
Average theatrical return
Commercial Multiple
8.22x
Worldwide Gross vs Budget
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A hitchhiker named Martel Gordone gets in a fight with two bikers over a prostitute, and one of the bikers is killed. Gordone is arrested and sent to prison, where he joins the prison's boxing team in an effort to secure an early parole and to establish his dominance over the prison's toughest gang.
An ex-con, on parole and trying to straighten his life out, decides to resume his boxing career when one of his prison enemies escapes and kills his girlfriend.
A man is framed for murder and sent to prison. He is beaten and tortured, then forced to fight the prison's worst killer, a martial-arts fighting midget called Thud.