During the early ’70s, studios realized that black actors could become movie superstars. Very quickly a new group of actors became as big of a draw. Audience packed theaters in the cities and even drive-ins to watch films starring Pam Grier, former football superstar Fred Wiliamson and singing sensation Issac Hayes. Not only did they see the movies, but they also bought the soul and funk filled soundtracks. They were a complete experience. Now Blaxploitation Classics Vol. 1 brings six of the top films to 4K UHD. Across 110th Street features a mafia joint getting hit by a gang that includes Antonio Fargas (Huggy Bear on Starsky and Hutch). While the mobsters are tracking them down, so are the cops including Anthony Quinn and Yaphet Kotto. Bobby Womack’s theme song is great. Black Caesar and Hell Up In Harlem charts the rise of a mobster played by Fred Williamson. Pam Grier gets a double feature with Coffy and Sheba, Baby. She doesn’t take anything from anyone as she dishes out revenge. Finally we get Truck Turner starring Issac Hayes (singer of the theme to Shaft). This is most notable for Nichelle Nichols (Star Trek) cussing up a storm when Truck Turner tries to shut down her business. This is a bonanza of urban action goodness in the blaxploitation Classics Vol. 1. And it’s good to know that a second volume is coming. Here’s the press release from Shout! Studios:
| SHOUT! STUDIOS AND SHOUT! SELECT PRESENTS BLAXPLOITATION CLASSICS VOL. 1 |
| THE EXPLOSIVE GENRE COLLECTION MAKES ITS 4K DEBUT IN A MUST-HAVE 4K UHD + BLU-RAY™ 12-DISC SET |
| HITS HOME ENTERTAINMENT SHELVES MAY 20, 2025 NOW AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER THE SIX-FILM COLLECTION FEATURES NEWLY RESTORED ‘70S CLASSICS WITH STARS INCLUDING PAM GRIER, FRED WILLIAMSON AND MORE A SECOND VOLUME COLLECTION TO ENTERTAIN THIS SUMMER 2025 |
| Los Angeles, CA – Over 50 years since the Blaxploitation subgenre dominated ‘70s film culture, Shout! Studios is excited to bring forth an incredible collection of culturally rich legacy films in Blaxploitation Classics Vol. 1, available on May 20, 2025 as part of the Shout! Select line. This first volume of films includes Across 110th Street, Black Ceasar, Hell Up in Harlem, Coffy, Sheba, Baby and Truck Turner, presenting the genre’s most treasured stars such as Pam Grier, Fred Williamson, Isaac Hayes, and Yaphet Kotto in all their heroic action on Blu-ray ™ as well as on 4K Ultra High Definition for the first time worldwide. The fabulous collection of Blaxploitation Classics Vol. 1 will treat fans to a 12-disc set, of which boasts newly restored 4K scans from the original camera negatives and a wealth of bonus features including the new “It’s Where The Action Is” The Blaxploitation Films of A.I.P, Part One, an in-depth documentary with new and archival interviews from filmmakers, authors and film historians including a brand new exchange from Director Jack Hill (Coffy). Film collectors can pre-order their set now on ShoutFactory.com. Fans of the subgenre can look forward to Shout! Select celebrating even more of the film era that brought Black filmmakers, stories, fashion and star-studded prowess to action-hero spotlights and can anticipate Blaxploitation Classics Vol. 2 to release later this summer. Blaxploitation Classics Vol. 1 | Synopsis From the drive-in to 4K and Blu-ray, the heavy-duty action of the ’70s subgenre known as “Blaxploitation” has thrilled and captivated audiences for decades. Shout! Select is proud to present an explosive six-film collection of some of the coolest movies to ever hit the streets. Featuring genre legends Pam Grier, Fred Williamson, Isaac Hayes, and Yaphet Kotto, these tough-as-nails and unbelievably hip classics of the subgenre — presented here on both Blu-ray and 4K Ultra High Definition — are a tremendous entry point into the world of Blaxploitation for newcomers as well as must-haves for discerning fans of genre cinema. ACROSS 110TH STREET If you steal $300,000 from the mob, it’s not robbery … it’s suicide. Anthony Quinn (Zorba The Greek) and Yaphet Kotto (Alien) lead a double-barreled cop thriller with style and violence to spare in Barry Shear’s Across 110th Street. When a crowd of gun-toting gangsters take on the Mafia, the bullets start flying … and cops start dying. In order to bring justice to the streets, two of New York’s finest (Quinn and Kotto) are forced to team up in an unlikely pairing. With the gangsters, the mob, and The Man involved in a three-way dance, one thing’s for sure – the only guaranteed way Across 110th Street … is in a body bag. DISC 1 – Across 110th Street Presented In Dolby Vision DISC 2 – Across 110th Street NEW “It’s Where The Action Is” The Blaxploitation Films Of A.I.P., Part One – An In-Depth Documentary Featuring New And Archival Interviews With Filmmakers, Authors, And Film Historians, Including A Brand-New Exchange With Director Jack Hill Trailer BLACK CAESAR Hail Caesar! Godfather of Harlem … the cat with the .45-caliber claws! Fred Williamson stars in his signature role of Tommy Gibbs in the action classic Black Caesar! Growing up on the streets and trying to make his mother proud, Gibbs resorts to running “errands” for The Man. But when a crooked cop beats him up, Tommy realizes there’s a better way to live his American dream: by making The Man deliver for him! Infiltrating – and then destroying – an infamous mob family, Gibbs takes over Manhattan … and tragically loses his hold on the most important things in his life, making him vulnerable to every cutthroat gangster who ever dreamt of ruling an empire! With Williamson’s powerhouse performance and gritty direction by cult movie legend Larry Cohen (It’s Alive, Q: The Winged Serpent, Original Gangstas), it’s little wonder that Black Caesar stands tall among the best the Blaxploitation genre has to offer. DISC 3 – Black Caesar Presented In Dolby Vision Audio Commentary With Director Larry Cohen DISC 4 – Black Caesar Audio Commentary With Director Larry Cohen Trailer HELL UP IN HARLEM He may never get to Heaven — but he’s raising Hell Up In Harlem. The Black Godfather, Tommy Gibbs (Fred Williamson) is back in this explosive sequel to Black Caesar! When Gibbs steals a ledger with the name of every crooked cop and politician on the mob’s payroll, he becomes the most wanted man in the city. Enlisting the aid of his father and an army of Harlem hoods, Gibbs goes from defense to offense, launching a deadly attack on his enemies that sets off a violent chain reaction from Harlem all the way to the Caribbean, climaxing in one of the most mayhem-filled turf war battles in history. DISC 5 – Hell Up In Harlem Presented In Dolby Vision Audio Commentary With Director Larry Cohen DISC 6 – Hell Up In Harlem Audio Commentary With Director Larry CohenTrailer COFFY They call her Coffy – and she’ll cream ya! The great Pam Grier (Jackie Brown) is a one-woman instrument of justice in the no-holds-barred revenge thriller Coffy. A nurse by day and avenging angel by night, Coffy (Grier) turns up the heat when she discovers that her little sister has been doped up by a greedy drug pusher. Vowing to not only put the pusher down for good but also to follow his trail of corruption up to the top – the very top – Coffy is unaware that all is not what it seems … and that the pipeline of drugs just may lead to someone she knows! Directed by Jack Hill (Foxy Brown, Switchblade Sisters) and featuring Sid Haig (House Of 1000 Corpses, The Devil’s Rejects), Coffy is a thrilling action flick and a showcase for the unique talents of Pam Grier. DISC 7 – Coffy· Presented In Dolby Vision· Audio Commentary With Writer/Director Jack Hill DISC 8 – Coffy· Interview With Director Jack Hill· Interview With Actor Pam Grier· Audio Commentary With Writer/Director Jack Hill· Trailer SHEBA, BABY Pam Grier (Foxy Brown) is hotter than dynamite and just as deadly in this hard-hitting thriller that leaps from one death-defying scene to the next. Sheba Shayne (Grier) is a private eye summoned to her old stomping grounds to help her father keep the mob from moving in on his business. But she gets too close to the fire, narrowly escaping the blast of a car bomb. Gunning for justice, Sheba vows to take revenge. Packing a .44 Magnum, a machine gun, and a few extra surprises to blow the bad guys away, Sheba leaves a blazing trail of blood in her wake, putting the mob on the defensive … until she’s lured into a plot that could flatten her curves once and for all. DISC 9 – Sheba, Baby Presented In Dolby Vision Commentary With Screenwriter David Sheldon DISC 10 – Sheba, BabyInterview With Screenwriter David Sheldon Audio Commentary With Screenwriter David Sheldon Trailer TRUCK TURNER He’s a skip tracer, the last of the bounty hunters, living on blood money and borrowed time. Isaac Hayes (Escape From New York, South Park) is Truck Turner – a football star turned bounty hunter who’s tracking a sadistic pimp on the mean streets of Los Angeles. But when a tragic accident changes all the rules, suddenly the hunter finds himself being hunted by the city’s deadliest hired killers! Truck strikes back in a series of wild car chases, shootouts, and bone-crushing fistfights, knowing that the battles can lead to only one place: an intense struggle to the death against the brutal leader of L.A.’s crime syndicate, Harvard Blue (Yaphet Kotto, Live And Let Die). Featuring an outstanding score by Hayes, riveting performances by Nichelle Nichols (Star Trek) and Scatman Crothers (The Shining), and direction by Jonathan Kaplan (Over The Edge, Unlawful Entry), Truck Turner is an explosive force that can’t be stopped! DISC 11 – Truck Turner Presented In Dolby Vision Audio Commentary With Director Jonathan Kaplan DISC 12 – Truck Turner Audio Commentary With Director Jonathan Kaplan Trailer |
