However, in October 1940 he was revealed to be only in consideration, along with Walter Brennan and Henry Fonda. Initially, Henry Hull was sought from Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer to reprise the main role previously portrayed on Broadway. They were the main preference of the copyright holders Erskine Caldwell and Jack Kirkland, who were reluctant to sell the rights unless the film 'would be picturized honestly and fearlessly.' It was believed that Fox won due to the success of The Grapes of Wrath (1940). Eventually, 20th Century Fox gained the rights in August 1940, with RKO as its main competitor. In March 1940, Columbia Pictures showed interest, but was informed that Tobacco Road was on the list of banned titles. considered buying the rights, the first intending to assign Charles Laughton in the lead role, but were discouraged from doing so. Studios attempted to acquire the screen rights to the novel from 1933. It is Harmon who decides to give the Lesters a chance, lending them a stake for six months to try and grow a suitable crop, complete with $10 to get started. His attempt at trying to sell Dude's car fails miserably, and it seems as though they will be forced to live in the poorhouse. Jeeter plans to find a way to get the money and also marry off Ellie May. However, Bessie decides to marry Dude and uses the money to buy a new car for Dude. He plans to get a loan from the widow Sister Bessie Rice, who just received $800 from the life insurance company. Tim Harmon (whose father had kept after the Lesters to grow crops) to potentially lease the land to Jeeter for $100 a year, provided he can get a loan.

However, the bank is convinced by a friend in Capt. The family patriarch Jeeter lives with his wife Ada, his son Dude, and his single daughter Ellie May, but the Lesters are doomed to lose their land because the bank decides to take it over for more suitable farming. In Georgia is a place called Tobacco Road, where the Lester family resides. The plot was rewritten for the film by Nunnally Johnson, who had worked with Ford on The Grapes of Wrath the previous year the plot was altered to fit Production Code demands for a lighter tone while retaining plot elements. It was based on the 1932 novel of the same name by Erskine Caldwell and the 1933 Broadway play that Jack Kirkland adapted from the novel. Tobacco Road is a 1941 American comedy-drama film directed by John Ford and starring Charley Grapewin, Marjorie Rambeau, Gene Tierney and William Tracy.

Erskine tobacco road