The film takes place in the 1930s and revolves around the story of Paul Edgecomb (played by Tom Hanks), a corrections officer who works on death row, also known as the Green Mile, at a Louisiana prison. The story unfolds through the eyes of Paul, who narrates the events that took place during his time on the Green Mile. The arrival of a new prisoner, John Coffey (played by Michael Clarke Duncan), a giant of a man with supernatural healing powers, sets off a chain of events that challenges the moral fabric of the prison and its inmates.