Cool and deadly NYPD detective John Shaft arrests Walter Wade, Jr. in a racially-motivated slaying. The eye witness disappears, Wade jumps bail for Switzerland, and Shaft is livid. Two years later, Wade returns to face trial, confident his father's money and influence (and racial politics) guarantee an innocent verdict. Shaft looks hard for the witness, so Wade wants someone to kill her. He turns to a ghetto drug king, Peoples Hernandez, who's willing to kill for money, use Wade as a route to rich drug customers, and shaft Shaft. Can Shaft find the witness, convince her to testify, and shepherd her through the hail of bullets that Peoples is sure to let fly?

Isaac Hayes, the composer of the Shaft theme song, Gordon Parks, the director of the original Shaft (1971), and John Singleton, director of this version, all have cameos.

John Shaft:
It's Giuliani time!

Continuity: During the courtroom scene, the judge's nameplate changes from Justice "Kimball" to Justice "Bradford".

Written, Performed and Produced by Isaac Hayes
Courtesy of ILH Entertainment, Inc.
By Arrangement with Virgin Records America, Inc.