20 most jaw-dropping plot twists in Legal dramas

Legal dramas or legal thrillers are some of the most intense and gripping genres. The back-and-forth arguments by the lawyers and the research done by the legal team to prepare for a case provide a thrill. Over the years, there have been various well-made legal movies and shows that have left audiences stunned with their jaw-dropping plot twists. Here are 20 such times when this happened. Please note that this entire article is based on the writer's opinion and also contains various spoilers for the shows mentioned. Reader's discretion is advised.

1. Primal Fear

Directed by Gregory Hoblit and starring Richard Gere, this legal drama revolves around a defense attorney (Gere), who defends an altar boy, who is accused of murdering a Catholic Bishop. The tense movie’s biggest plot twist occurs at the end when Gere’s character gets to know that the humble persona of the altar boy was a falsehood and he faked dissociative identity disorder to manipulate the legal system. The movie is based on a novel by William Diehl.

2. Witness for the Prosecution

Starring Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power, and others, this legal mystery thriller directed by Billy Wilder revolves around a man, Leonard (Power), who is accused of killing a rich widow, who had named him as her beneficiary and his troubles increase when his wife testifies against him. The acclaimed movie features a plot twist where Leonard’s wife gives false testimony only to get him acquitted but Leonard actually confesses his crime. The movie is based on a story by Agatha Christie.

3. A Few Good Men

Directed by Rob Reiner and starring Jack Nicholson and Tom Cruise, this military legal drama based on a play by Aaron Sorkin revolves around two US Marines who are charged with the murder of a colleague. In one of the most impactful court scenes, Lieutenant Daniel (Cruise), who is the defense lawyer, infuriates the head, Colonel Jessup (Nicholson), to such a degree that he ends up admitting that he is the one behind the murder.

4. The Lincoln Lawyer

Directed by Brad Furman and starring Matthew McConaughey, this legal thriller is based on a novel by Michael Connelly and centers around a defense lawyer Haller (Matthew), who defends the son of a wealthy businesswoman. But the twist occurs when Haller realizes that his client has committed murder in a previous case and must introspect about his ethical dilemmas to bring justice.

5. Presumed Innocent

Based on a novel by Scott Turow and directed by Alan J. Pakula, this legal drama features Harrison Ford and revolves around a prosecutor Rusty (Ford), who is accused of killing his colleague, who was his secret lover. The critically and commercially successful movie features a known plot twist where Rusty comes to know towards the end that it was his wife who committed the murder because she came to know about his affair.

6. The Verdict

Directed by Sidney Lumet and based on a novel by Barry Reed, this legal drama features Paul Newman who is an alcoholic lawyer and takes on a case about medical malpractice, which sends him down a hole of conspiracies. The twist occurs when an important witness changes their testimony and Newman’s character realizes that they have been bribed to affect his case. The movie is a well-acclaimed movie.

7. Fracture

Starring Anthony Hopkins and Ryan Gosling, this psychological legal thriller directed by Gregory Hoblit revolves around a man (Hopkins) who is accused of murdering his wife and plays psychological games on a young district attorney (Gosling). The clever movie features a twist whereby Hopkins’ character manipulates the legal system to exploit double jeopardy, which makes it impossible to convict him.

8. Anatomy of a Murder

Directed by Otto Preminger, this legal drama is based on a novel by John D. Voelker and stars James Stewart. The film revolves around an attorney Paul (Stewart), who defends a man claiming insanity for murdering his wife’s rapist. But the acclaimed film features a twist whereby it is suggested that the wife might have faked the rape in the first place.

9. Michael Clayton

Starring George Clooney and directed by Tony Gilroy, this legal thriller revolves around a lawyer Michael (Clooney), who investigates a conspiracy within his law firm. The twist in the movie reveals that one of the clients of the firm is selling a carcinogenic product, which causes moral and legal dilemmas. The movie was a critical and commercial success and is a biting thriller.

10. The Life of David Gale

Directed by Alan Parker and starring Kevin Spacey, Kate Winslet, and others, this legal and crime thriller revolves around a man David (Spacey), who is a professor and an activist against capital punishment. But things get complex when he is sentenced to death for the murder of a fellow anti-death penalty opponent. The film’s major twist reveals that David and the victim orchestrated the crime to lay bare the flaws of the judicial system.

11. Runaway Jury

Starring John Cusack and Rachel Weisz, this legal thriller is based on a novel by John Grisham and is directed by Gary Fleder. The movie is about a lawyer who competes against a shady jury consultant while juror Nicholas (Cusack) and his girlfriend (Weisz) influence the jury in a case against a gun manufacturer. The twist in the movie reveals that Nicholas and his partner are seeking justice for a personal tragedy that was caused by the gun manufacturer.

12. The Whole Truth

Directed by Courtney Hunt and starring Keanu Reeves and Renée Zellweger, this legal drama focuses on a defense attorney who takes on a case about a teenager who is accused of murdering his father. The twist in the movie comes towards the end when it is revealed that the murder was actually committed by the mother of the boy and the son confessed falsely to protect her.

13. High Crimes

Based on a novel by Joseph Finder and directed by Carl Franklin, this legal thriller stars Morgan Freeman and Ashley Judd. The film centers around a defense attorney Claire (Judd) and her partner, a senior military attorney (Freeman), who defend Claire’s husband against the accusation of committing war crimes. But the twist in the plot reveals that Claire’s husband is actually guilty of murdering civilians in El Salvador and lives under a false identity.

14. Jagged Edge

Starring Glen Close and Jeff Bridges and directed by Richard Marquand, this acclaimed neo-noir legal and crime thriller revolves around an attorney Teddy(Close), who takes up a case about a man Jack (Bridges) who is accused of murdering his wife but remains in constant doubt over his claimed innocence. The movie’s end reveals that her inhibitions were right all along as Jack did kill his wife and faked an affair with Teddy to sway her emotionally.

15. How to Get Away with Murder

Starring Viola Davis, this legal drama series is produced by Shonda Rhimes and revolves around the complicated personal and professional life of law professor, Annalise Keating (Davis) and her group of students who get embroiled in a murder plot. In the first season, the acclaimed show revolved around who killed Sam, Annalise’s husband. In a major twist, it is revealed that Wes, Annalise’s favorite student and the son of her lover, is the killer.

16. The Undoing

Based on a novel by Jean Hanff Korelitz, this legal thriller stars Nicole Kidman and Hugh Grant and revolves around a woman Grace (Kidman) who spends the entire series trying to protect her husband (Grant) against a murder accusation. But the twist occurs when she ultimately gets to know that her husband is the killer all along and has many lies. The series was a commercial and critical success.

17. The Client

Directed by Joel Schumacher and starring Susan Sarandon and Tommy Lee Jones, this legal thriller is based on a novel by John Grisham and revolves around a lawyer Reggie (Susan) who protects a young boy from a mob as he knows their secrets. But the twist in the movie reveals that the boy is not as meek as he seems to be and has used clever manipulations to protect himself.

18. The Rainmaker

Based on a novel by John Grisham and starring Matt Damon, this legal drama is directed by Francis Ford Coppola and centers around a novice attorney Rudy (Matt) who takes on a case against a corrupt insurance company. But the gripping tale has a maze of twists and turns and reveals that the company has extreme corruption to depths that Rudy did not imagine. The film is a comment on the failures of the justice system.

19. Philadelphia

Starring Tom Hanks and Denzel Washington, this legal drama directed by Jonathan Demme revolves around an attorney Andrew (Hanks), who wants help from an injury attorney Joe (Washington) so that he can sue his former employer who fired Andrew after learning that he is gay and has AIDS. The pathbreaking movie is one of the first few movies to address the topic of LGBTQ+ and discrimination and has various twists revealing the prejudices within the legal community.

20. Suits

Starring Gabriel Macht and Patrick J. Adams, this legal drama series revolves around a genius college dropout Mike (Adams) who works for the charismatic attorney Harvey (Macht) and solves cases while keeping the truth about his qualifications hidden. But in one of the most important scenes in season 5, Mike is standing on trial about his non-existent lawyer’s license and surprises everyone when he decides to tell the truth in the closing argument and wins over the jury.