  the negotiator is a 1998 action thriller film directed by f. gary gray, starring samuel l. jackson and kevin spacey. it takes place in chicago and was released on july 29, 1998. the original music score was composed by graeme revell. ==plot== lieutenant danny roman (samuel l. jackson), a top chicago police department hostage negotiator, is approached by colleague nate roenick (paul guilfoyle) who warns him that large sums of money are being embezzled from the department's disability fund, for which danny is a board member, and members of their own unit are involved. nate claims to have an informant whom he refuses to name. when danny goes to meet with him again he finds nate murdered seconds before other police arrive, pinning him as the prime suspect. things only get worse for danny when internal affairs investigator terence niebaum (j.t. walsh), whom nate's informant suspected of involvement in the embezzlement, is assigned to investigate the murder. niebaum discovers that nate was killed with a gun from a case danny had worked. he and other investigators search danny's house the following morning and claim to have found papers for an offshore bank account with a deposit equal to one of the amounts of money embezzled. danny is made to surrender his gun and badge and hardly anyone believes his protests of innocence. facing the possibility of serious charges within a day, danny storms into niebaum's office and questions niebaum about any involvement with the fund and who set him up. when niebaum refuses to answer, danny takes niebaum, his administrative assistant maggie (siobhan fallon), police commander grant frost (ron rifkin), and two-bit con man rudy timmons (paul giamatti) as hostages. with the building evacuated and placed under siege by police (including his own unit) and the fbi, danny issues his conditions, which include finding nate's informant and summoning police lt. chris sabian (kevin spacey), another top negot
1990s_crime_drama_films 1990s_crime_thriller_films 1998_films American_crime_drama_films American_crime_thriller_films English-language_films Fictional_portrayals_of_the_Chicago_Police_Department Films_directed_by_F._Gary_Gray Films_set_in_Chicago,_Illinois Films_shot_in_Chicago,_Illinois German_films Hostage_dramas Mandeville_Films_films Police_detective_films Regency_Enterprises_films Warner_Bros._films