The Night of the Hunter is a 1955 American film noir thriller directed by Charles Laughton and starring Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters and Lillian Gish. The screenplay by James Agee was based on the 1953 novel of the same title by Davis Grubb. The plot focuses on a corrupt faux minister serial killer who charms an unsuspecting widow in order to get his hands on $10,000 in stolen bank loot hidden by her executed husband. The novel and film draw on the true story of Harry Powers, who was hanged i