As far as souvenirs from movie sets go, a jar filled with rocks may sound considerably less cool than a lightsaber or a suit of armor straight from Middle-earth. But for Tim Robbins, it’s a prized possession — one that was gifted to him a quarter-century ago after filming wrapped on The Shawshank Redemption. And it’s a present that perfectly complements the character he portrays in Frank Darabont’s beloved 1994 adaptation of the Stephen King novella. Sentenced to life in the titular prison for killing his wife and her lover, Robbins’s Andy Dufresne tunnels his way to freedom through the crumbling walls over the course of many years. He hides the evidence under the noses of Shawshank’s staff by dumping the rocks from that tunnel in the yard. And every day he’s reminded of that experience. “In my office, I have a jar of rocks from that yard that the extras gave me,” Robbins reveals in Yahoo Entertainment’s latest Role Recall. (Watch our interview above.)

A rock-filled jar is only one of the invaluable mementos that the Oscar-winning actor and director took away from his Shawshank experience. Robbins also carries with him a lifelong bond with Morgan Freeman, who plays Andy’s friend and prison mentor, Red. “We would have nice barbecues, and discover rural Ohio [together]. I always respected him as an actor. As a child I saw him in The Electric Company, so I was like, ‘Dude, you don’t know how good that was!’ And he was like, ‘Yes, I do.’”

Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman in 'The Shawshank Redemption' (Photo: Columbia/courtesy Everett Collection) More

Shawshank has also brought Robbins instant recognition around the world. “I find it really inspiring: a movie that was essentially ignored by audiences when it came out became such a popular film,” he says. “I’m in a film that is considered by many to be their favorite film ever, and that is so rare. Wherever I go, people stop and thank me for that film. They thank me because it touched something in them, and it changed something in them.” That reaction, in turn, motivates Robbins to continue his efforts to improve America’s criminal justice system, a task he’s pursued both through real-world activism as well as directorial efforts like his 1996 film, Dead Man Walking, and the new documentary 45 Seconds of Laughter, which recently screened at the 57th New York Film Festival. “The fact that [Shawshank] is so successful gives me great hope for us making a great difference in reforming the criminal justice system.”

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