Black Snake Moan is a 2006 American black comedy drama film written and directed by Craig Brewer and starring Christina Ricci, Samuel L. Jackson, and Justin Timberlake. The film focuses on a Mississippi bluesman who holds a troubled local woman captive in his house in an attempt to cure her of nymphomania after finding her severely beaten on the side of a road. The title of the film derives from the 1927 Blind Lemon Jefferson song. The film draws numerous references to the Mississippi Blues movement, particularly in its title and soundtrack. Black Snake Moan garnered mixed to positive reviews from critics, and was a box-office bomb, grossing only $10.9 million against a $15 million budget.