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The D is silent, hillbilly. |
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—Django, before killing Billy Crash. | ||
Django, sometimes referred as Django Freeman is Broomhilda's husband and a former slave who was freed by King Schultz. Django is the main protagonist of Django Unchained.
Biography of Django Freeman
Unchained
While at the Carrucan Plantation, Django and Broomhilda's plantation owner taunts them for their marriage, so the couple attempted an escape, though they were eventually captured, brutally branded with the letter "r" on their cheeks (for "runaway"), and sold for different slavers. Django was sold to the Speck Brothers, Ace and Dicky at the Greenville Auction House, along with several other slaves. After marching through the country for days, the Specks and the slaves were approached by a wandering dentist, Dr. King Schultz. Schultz, truly being a bounty hunter, is looking for The Brittle Brothers, Django's former slavers, whom he could easily recognize. The Specks refuse to sell Django, then threatens Dr. Schultz as they order him to leave, Dr. Schultz Quickly draws his weapon, killing Ace and injures Dicky. He then frees Django allowing him to assist him in their adventure, he also frees the other slaves leaving them to finishing off the remaining Speck Brother. Dr. Schultz and Django take off to the Brittles' current location, Bennet Plantation, and Django is promised his freedom and payment for his service.
Searching for the Brittle Brothers
On the Bennett Plantation, Django and Schultz are confronted and harassed by the owner Spencer Bennet, because Django has privileges a white man would usually carry. When Schultz offers Bennett talks of money, Bennett cools his attitude and becomes friendly with the duo. This gives Django time to find the Brittle Brothers on the plantation. When Django first sees the Brittles about to punish a female slave for accidentally breaking a set of eggs, this gives him a flashback showing the time when they whipped Broomhilda for running away with Django, leaving Django to plead and beg for them to not punish her and punish him instead. The Brittles refuse, with Big John Brittle telling Django, "I like the way you beg, boy". He first confronts Big John and younger brother Roger "Little Raj" Brittle. When Django first confronts Raj and John, they have a look of intimidation and sudden surprise. Django suddenly walks over to John and shoots the Brittle in his heart, with a taunting intimidation similar to Brittle's quotation "I like the way you die, boy". As Raj draws his gun, he takes the whip and repeatedly whips Raj until he is weakened, then Django kills him, leaving surrounding slaves in shock. As soon as the two brothers are killed, Schultz rushes over to Django, so Django can point out the last living brother Ellis, that Schultz kills. The duo is then confronted by Spencer and an angry mob of slaves and white slavers, who demands what are they really doing there. Schultz slyly gets Django and himself out the situation giving Spencer a bounty hunter warrant for the Brittle Brothers' death. To avoid trouble, the duo are ordered to leave the plantation. Later that evening, Spencer and a mob of fellow white supremacists, learn the location of the duo and plan to kill them both. However, Schultz, knowing they would learn of their location, fled with Django and left a stack of dynamite inside their shelter. As the supremacists raid, Schultz shoot and ignites the dynamite, killing many of the raiders. This causes Spencer and a few raiders to flee in terror. While the catastrophe is going on, Django and Schultz watch on from a tree/ Schultz offers Django the chance to deliver the finishing blow to a fleeing Spencer, with Django taking the offer. Django snipes and kills the supremacist, leaving Schultz surprised and proud of Django.
Becoming a Bounty Hunter
As Django and Schultz camp on the mountains, Django tells him about how Broomhilda was born in a German slave owning family (leading her to speak the language.) This excites the German doctor to tell Django the origin of Broomhilda's name (a German myth that told the story of a princess who was kidnapped and put on upon a dragon guarded mountain, until the hero saves her). The story influences Django to save his wife. Schultz offers Django a proposition: If Django assists him in his bounty hunting adventures, after the winter season, he will assist Django in saving his wife. Django and Schultz spend the winter hunting and earning profits from their bounties. After Schultz tells Django about this he says he feels responsible for Django because he freed him which brings a bond between the two. The duo's next target is the notorious Smitty Bacal Gang. Django and Schultz find Smitty Bacal who is living peacefully with his son at his farm. Django becomes hesitant to shoot Smitty because he has a family and is living peacefully but Schultz convinces him to kill the wanted outlaw. Django then snipes Smitty, leading his first real bounty. Schultz, who is proud, tells Django to keep the wanted bounty sign, as a symbol for good luck. Schultz realizes that Django is extremely gifted in shooting. After the winter season, the duo decides to head to Mississippi. Django and Schultz are able to view the Slave Holding records where they learn that Broomhilda is being slaved by notorious Francophile slave owner, Calvin Candie, who manages mandingo fights. Schultz tells Django that in order to save his wife, he will have to take on the role of a black slaver/mandingo expert to attract Candie's attention.
Rescuing Broomhilda
Django and Schultz enter The Cleopatra Club, a club/brothel owned by Candie himself. The duo are introduced to Calvin by his close associate, Leonide Moguy. When introduced to Candie, he is in the middle of watching/betting on a Mandingo game. Django and Schultz talk negotiations of buying a Mandingo from Candie. Candie becomes very interested, by the proposition and Django's freeman status. Candie's prickish attitude towards the freeman causes Django to antagonize Candie and causing Candie's gun-totting bodyguard Butch Pooch to become weary of Django. The next day, the duo meets Candie and his gang, as they have just bought some Mandingo fighters, who are headed to Candyland, the plantation owned by Candie. Candie's gang, including Candie's man, Billy Crash, harass the Django. The other Mandingos grow both intimidated and resentful of Django - whom they believe to be a black slaver. Django bosses around the slaves and humiliates them in front of the white men, leading Schultz to inform Django that he can't act so rough with the other slaves. Along the way, the group encounter one of Candies' top Mandingos trying to run away. This act angers Django and Schultz, with Candie realizing it angers the abolitionist, Candie tricks the scared Mandingo to come down, and allows his attack dogs to viciously kill the mandingo. Soon, the group gets to Candyland. Django and Schultz are given a room to stay inside his mansion, they are introduced to the head slave, Stephen . Stephen harasses and throws rude words and slurs towards Django, knowing he is a freeman. This starts a rivalry between the two men. As Django and Schultz are about to be taken in the room, Schultz asks Candie if he can 'have some time alone' with a slave who knows the German language. Candie happily agrees and has Broomhilda sent to his room, however they are quickly informed by Stephen that while Candie was gone Broomhilda tried to escape and was caught and sent in to the hotbox. This angers Django, however they let Broomhilda out and groom her up for Schultz. When Broomhilda goes to Schultz room, he speaks to her in German, just in case Candie's people are listening. He tells her a certain friend is behind a closet and that she must not scream when she sees him. Django opens the door, saying "Hey, little troublemaker", reuniting with his wife. Because Candie is tricked into thinking she can pleasure Schultz, he has her work as a house servant for the night as they talk over negotiations at the dinner table. Stephen becomes suspicious of the way Django and Broomhilda glare at each other. When Broomhilda and Stephen enter the kitchen, he asks her if she knows the freeman, in which she answers "no". In order to anger Django, Stephen persuades Candie to ask if Schultz had pleasured Broomhilda, in which Schultz responded by saying that they only talked. This causes Stephen and Candie to show Broomhilda's whipped body to Schultz. Stephen demands to talk to Candie, persuading him that Broomhilda and Django knows each other. Candie becomes angered, and threats to kill Broomhilda if Django and Schultz don't give Candie $12,000. This angers the duo, however they are being threatened by the gun-toting Butch. The duo give up the money causing Candie to give her freedom papers. While Candie is writing out the papers, Schultz becomes angered by Candie's cruel actions towards slaves. Feeling pressured by Marshall who is gunning down Django, Hilda, and Schultz, Schultz ask to talk to Candie. Schultz begins to humiliate Candie among his knowledge of the French, to which Candie gets angry. He finishes signing her papers, he demands that Schultz shake his hand. Candie really has a trick up his sleeve, but so does Schultz. Schultz agrees to shake it, but as he walks over to Candie he draws his hidden Derringer and shoots Candie in the heart. This makes Stephen deeply saddened and angered that Candie is dead, so Stephen is crying and hugging the dead Candie. Schultz then lets Butch kill him, angering Django to rush over and take Butch's gun, murdering him. Django takes some guns and massacres all of Candie's men by himself. The whole house is left in blood with Django left, until Billy Crash and a couple other men come in and order Django to stop, and if he doesn't, it leads to the death of a hostaged Broomhilda. Django surrenders and is tortured in a slave barn. Billy Crash attempts to "snip" Django with a heated knife, until Stephen stops him and tells him that Ms. Laura Candie, Candy's sister, would rather have Django be sent to the LeQuient-Dickey Mining Facility, a mining factory where slaves would mine until they eventually die of exhaustion. Billy leaves, giving Stephen time to interrogate and warn Django of the troubles ahead.
Escape from Candyland
As Django (and a few Mandingo's) are being driven trough the desert to the mining facility by a few Australian slavers, Django realizes that he can use his bounty hunting status as a way to get free. He tells the slavers that he was hunting down the Bacall gang and says that he will give them half of their profits if they let Django free. They assist Django by giving him a few weapons and a horse. Django tricks the slavers, then kills all three of them. He frees the intimidated Mandingos and rides off to get his revenge and to free Broomhilda. When he goes Candie's stables to retrieve his clothes he finds Shultz' dead body and retrieves Broomhilda's freedom papers from his pocket then bids his fallen friend "auf wiedersehen". As the remaining members of the Candie Family and a very small number of Candies men are mourning at Calvin's funeral, Django kills the remaining amount of Candie's associates and frees Broomhilda. Django sneaks in the Candyland Mansion and wires it with dynamite. As the remaining Candies' walk in the mansion, they are shocked to see a smiling Django on the balcony. As Billy and his men arm themselves to kill Django, Django quickly murders them first, sparring Billy. He then states to Billy that, "last time, his hands were on his..." and angrily shoots Crash's crotch. This angers a wounded and very damaged Billy. Billy soon yells in pain "Duh-Jangoooooo", when Django taunts "The D is silent, hillbilly" then shoots Billy dead. Laura, Stephen, Sheeba, and Cora are left. Django recommends that all of the black people separate and leave from the white people. This confuses the two slaves, however, Stephen tries to leave, when Django orders him to stay. Django commands the two slaves to tell Ms. Laura "goodbye". Confused, the slaves do what they are told and Laura is shot. He frees the two slaves and orders them to leave. The only ones in the house are a vengeance filled Django and a nervous Stephen. Stephen taunts Django by saying "I counted 6 shots, nigga" with Django replying "I count two guns, nigga". Django shoots Stephen's kneecaps, injuring him badly. Django starts to laugh as Stephen curses Django. Django lights a cigarette on the stick of dynamite and bravely walks out the mansion, killing Stephen and destroying most of Candyland. A now free Django and Broomhilda happily ride their horses into the moonlight.
Trivia
- Though never confirmed, it's estimated that Django is around to 25-27 years of age.
- As revealed by Quentin Tarantino during the 2012 Comic-Con panel, Django and Broomhilda are both the great-great-great-great grandparents of John Shaft, from the Shaft movie series.
- The following actors were considered for the role of Django: Will Smith, Idris Elba, Denzel Washington and Chris Tucker.
- Django's name is based on the name of the famous 1966 spahgetti western, Django, starring Franco Nero (who had a small cameo in the film).
- The horse (Tony) that Django rides in the movie is in fact Jamie Foxx's own horse.
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