Guess Who's Coming to Dinner

Two wealthy liberal parents in 1960s San Francisco face a reality check when their daughter brings home a fiance who is black. Matt Drayton, a successful newspaper publisher, and his wife Christina pride themselves on open mindedness, yet the news unsettles them in unexpected ways. John Prentice, a physician and the fiance, carries dignity and intelligence, challenging the couple to confront the prejudice they deny they harbor. As a dinner with the family unfolds, every comment becomes a test, revealing hard truths about privilege, fear, and the limits of tolerance. The dialogue crackles with wit and moral heat, balancing warmth and anxiety without tipping into melodrama while keeping the focus on a fragile, hopeful question. It becomes a cultural touchstone.

Directed by Stanley Kramer and adapted from William Rose's stage play, the film represents a deliberate social dramatization of race in 1960s America. The production centers on three nuanced performances and restrained, discussion driven scenes that sparked conversation and debate.

The movie was produced with a $4 million budget and went on to earn about $56.7 million worldwide, a strong return for a prestige drama of its era and a sign of its broad appeal, with returns across major markets.

Its release heated public conversations about interracial marriage and civil rights, earning attention for its mature, unvarnished treatment of prejudice. The film helped normalize discussion of race within family life on a mainstream screen and remains a reference point for 1960s debates. Its legacy endures in classrooms and retrospectives today.

Critics praised the film for its sharp performances by Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn, and Sidney Poitier, and for handling a volatile topic with restraint. The drama centers on reconciliation between personal affection and public prejudice, highlighting generational fault lines and the uneasy balance between progress and comfort, and moral responsibility.