Freeway

Her life is no fairy tale.

6.419961h 44mReleased

Comedy

Crime

Thriller

Drama

Overview

Following the arrest of her mother, Ramona, young Vanessa Lutz decides to go in search of her estranged grandmother. On the way, she is given a ride by school counselor Bob Wolverton. During the journey, Lutz begins to realize that Bob is the notorious I-5 Killer and manages to escape by shooting him several times. Wounded but still very much alive, Bob pursues Lutz across the state in this modern retelling of Little Red Riding Hood.

StatusReleased

Release Date1996-08-23

Runtime1h 44m

LanguagesEnglish

CountriesUnited States of AmericaFrance

Budget$3,100,000

Revenue$295,493

Freeway Collection

2 Films

View Full Collection

Freeway is a 1996 American dark comedy crime film written and directed by Matthew Bright and starring Kiefer Sutherland, Reese Witherspoon and Brooke Shields. This was followed by a sequel in 1996 entitled Freeway II: Confessions of a Trickbaby. The sequel stars Natasha Lyonne as Crystal "White Girl" Van Meter and María Celedonio as Angela "Cyclona" Garcia. While the first film was partly inspired by "Little Red Riding Hood," the second film is somewhat based on "Hansel and Gretel."

Freeway

1996

Freeway II: Confessions of a Trickbaby

2000

Videos

7 total

Trailer

Official Trailer #3

Stream

Night Flight Plus

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US data via JustWatch

Cast & Crew

Kiefer Sutherland

as Bob Wolverton

Reese Witherspoon

as Vanessa Lutz

Wolfgang Bodison

as Detective Breer

Dan Hedaya

as Detective Wallace

Amanda Plummer

as Ramona Lutz

Brooke Shields

as Mrs. Wolverton

Michael T. Weiss

as Larry

Bokeem Woodbine

as Chopper

Guillermo Díaz

as Flacco

Brittany Murphy

as Rhonda

Reviews

Wuchak

Mar 4, 2026

2/10

**_Vulgar, violent, darkly satirical updating of Lil’ Red Riding Hood_** I’ve seen two of writer/director Matthew Bright’s movies before seeing this: The enlightening and moving “Dark Angel: The Ascent” from two years earlier and the well-done “Ted Bundy” from six years later. (He wrote the former and wrote/directed the latter). With “Freeway” …

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