'Shawshank' stars' reunion

When "Shawshank Redemption" premiered in September 1994, it wasn't an immediate hit. Its box office wasn't impressive, and although critics praised it the movie, lost out on all seven of its Oscar nominations. But 20 years later, the film is an indisputable classic. In honor of the 20th anniversary, we look at where the cast was when they starred in the film and where they are now.

Then: When Morgan Freeman signed up to play Red, the prison contraband smuggler who befriends Tim Robbins' falsely accused Andy, he was stunned that he landed the part. When he was set to audition, called his agent "and said, 'It doesn't matter which part it is; I want to be in it,' " Freeman recalled to The Hollywood Reporter. "He said, 'Well, I think they want you to do Red.' And I thought, Wow, I control the movie! I was flabbergasted by that." The role earned Freeman his third Oscar nomination.

Now: Freeman's star had taken off by the time he was cast in "The Shawshank Redemption," but it's definitely one of the roles that defined the actor's career. He has kept busy with a variety of different genres; in 2015, he'll appear in the comedy "Ted 2" as well as the thriller "London Has Fallen."

Then: Robbins was riding high off roles in 1988's "Bull Durham" and 1992's "The Player" when he joined "Shawshank" as the film's protagonist, Andy Dufresne. Still, he wasn't the only actor in line for the role: Tom Hanks, Kevin Costner and Tom Cruise were also desired for the job, but all three passed.

Now: Like his co-star Freeman, Robbins followed up "Shawshank" with steady work, including movies like "High Fidelity" and "Mystic River." He's recently returned to a few TV roles, including the TV miniseries "The Spoils of Babylon" and a TV comedy called "The Brink."

Then: Bob Gunton was known for his TV work when he was cast as the religious Warden Norton.

Now: Since starring in "Shawshank," Gunton has continued to work mostly on the small screen. He's been in everything from "Judging Amy" to "Nip/Tuck" to "24." At the moment, Gunton is filming Marvel's new Netflix original series, "Daredevil."

Then: By the time William Sadler joined "The Shawshank Redemption" as convict Heywood, he'd starred in movies like "Die Hard 2" and TV shows like "Roseanne" and "In the Heat of the Night."

Now: After "Shawshank," Sadler went on to star in another prison movie helmed by Frank Darabont, "The Green Mile." These days, Sadler can be found on CBS's crime drama "Hawaii Five-O."

Then: Clancy Brown, right, perhaps best known up till then as the villainous Kurgan in "Highlander," gave moviegoers a character to passionately root against with his sadistic prison guard, Capt. William Hadley.

Now: The very busy Brown has done plenty of voice work in the 20 years since "Shawshank's" release, including voicing Mr. Krabs in Nickelodeon's "SpongeBob SquarePants." He'll provide the crustacean's voice once again in 2015's "The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water."

Then: Gil Bellows, center, was one of the lesser-known actors on "The Shawshank Redemption" set. Before landing the role of a convict named Tommy, Bellows had earned just four other credits for TV roles.

Now: Bellows has been busy ever since, following up "Shawshank" with a role on projects like "Ally McBeal" in the late '90s. If you're a CSI fan, you'll next see Bellows in the latest spinoff, "CSI: Cyber."

Then: Mark Rolston was unbelievable as the violent convict and head of "The Sisters," Bogs Diamond. He filmed that job while also appearing on "Murder, She Wrote."

Now: Since his villainous role in "Shawshank," Rolston has bounced around between movies and TV, including appearances on TV shows like "The Closer" and "NCIS."

Then: As a theater actor, Jeffrey DeMunn wasn't limited to the screen, but he made an impression as the prosecutor in "Shawshank Redemption."

Now: DeMunn is one of Frank Darabont's frequent collaborators, going on to appear in three more of the filmmaker's movies, including "The Green Mile" and "The Mist." DeMunn also worked with Darabont on the small screen with a part in "The Walking Dead," which Darabont executive produced for a time, as well as 2013's short-lived "Mob City."

Then: James Whitmore was already a legend when he joined "The Shawshank Redemption" as prison librarian and convict Brooks Hatlen, having already won a Tony, a Grammy and a Golden Globe.

Now: Whitmore slowed down a bit after "The Shawshank Redemption," with his longest project being a role on "The Practice" in the late '90s. Whitmore died of lung cancer in 2009.

Then: When Frank Darabont took on "The Shawshank Redemption" in 1994, he did it out of love. He'd already turned one of Stephen King's stories into a short film, "The Woman in the Room," and as an avid fan was eager to bring this piece of King's to life on screen. It would mark Darabont's debut feature film.

Now: Darabont has left his mark all over Hollywood, cranking out three additional feature films and taking on plenty of writing and producing projects. He's currently at work on "The Huntsman," the 2016 sequel to 2012's live-action spin on Snow White, "Snow White and the Huntsman."

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• "Shawshank" stars Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins reunited Tuesday


• It's been 20 years since the two actors starred in the beloved movie


• "Shawshank" had a rough start but is now considered a standout

(CNN) -- Believe it or not, it's been 20 years since Morgan Freeman and Tim Robbins had that epic reunion in "The Shawshank Redemption."

On Tuesday, the two actors came together once again to celebrate the movie's 20th anniversary with writer/director Frank Darabont, who adapted "Shawshank" from a Stephen King short story.

The movie's tale of two prisoners trying to survive and hold on to hope while serving life sentences in a '40s-era prison is now considered a cinematic classic, but "Shawshank" actually had a rougher start when it was released in September 1994.

The movie didn't perform well at the box office and barely made back its production budget of $25 million. It had critical acclaim but not the trophies to prove it, as the Academy Awards left "Shawshank" out in the cold. The period drama was nominated for seven Oscars and went home without winning a single one.

Cut to two decades later, and "Shawshank" is now known as the movie that everyone can love.

"I really cling to the letters from people for whom the movie really meant something," Darabont told the audience at Tuesday's reunion, which was hosted by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. "It stopped somebody from committing suicide, or at least they credit it for it having saved their lives that day. Whatever someone needed to hear that day to reinforce them as a human being, the movie gave it to them. It's only then you realize you've made something more than just a two-hour movie."

Both Robbins and Freeman said they knew they were on board as soon as they read Darabont's script.

At the time, Freeman hadn't even been told which part to read for, but "after I read the script, I called my agent, and I said, 'Whatever.' It didn't really matter to me which part," Freeman recalled, according to IndieWire. "But then my agent told me they wanted me to play Red, and what I did know after finding that out was that I was going to own it."

"Frank wrote a beautiful, truly extraordinary script," Robbins added. "I suggest anyone who is trying to write screenplays to read that script. It's so beautifully constructed."

Darabont also gave plenty of credit to King for dreaming up a story with universal impact, and the writer/director revealed that he initially was going to end the movie in the same way King ended his version.

"The movie ended in my original script with Red on the bus going off to this uncertain and hopeful future, which is how the novella ends," Darabont said. "But the folks at (production company) Castle Rock thought after putting the audience through two-plus hours of hell, we might owe them a union at the end."

That ending is just one of the reasons "Shawshank" is still beloved all these years later. "About everywhere you go, people say, 'The Shawshank Redemption -- greatest movie I ever saw,' " Freeman told Vanity Fair this year.

Robbins agreed, swearing that wherever he goes, "all over the world, there are people who say, 'That movie changed my life.' ... When I met (Nelson Mandela), he talked about loving 'Shawshank.' "