Snitch
Construction company owner John Matthews learns that his estranged son, Jason, has been arrested for drug trafficking. Facing an unjust prison sentence for a first time offender courtesy of mandatory minimum sentence laws, Jason has nothing to offer for leniency in good conscience. Desperately, John convinces the DEA and the opportunistic DA Joanne Keeghan to let him go undercover to help make arrests big enough to free his son in return. With the unwitting help of an ex-con employee, John enters the narcotics underworld where every move could be his last in an operation that will demand all his resources, wits and courage to survive.
Working with a respectable budget of $35.0M, the film achieved a modest success with $42.9M in global revenue (+23% profit margin).
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Snitch (2013) demonstrates meticulously timed story structure, characteristic of Ric Roman Waugh's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 52 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.2, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Characters
Cast & narrative archetypes
John Matthews
Daniel James
Joanne Keeghan
Agent Cooper
Jason Collins
Malik
Juan Carlos "El Topo" Pintera
Main Cast & Characters
John Matthews
Played by Dwayne Johnson
A successful businessman who goes undercover for the DEA to reduce his son's drug trafficking sentence.
Daniel James
Played by Rafi Gavron
John's teenage son who is arrested for drug possession and faces a mandatory minimum sentence.
Joanne Keeghan
Played by Susan Sarandon
An ambitious federal prosecutor who enforces mandatory minimum sentences to advance her career.
Agent Cooper
Played by Barry Pepper
A pragmatic DEA agent who runs John's undercover operation and balances enforcement with humanity.
Jason Collins
Played by Jon Bernthal
A former employee with a criminal record who reluctantly helps John infiltrate the drug world.
Malik
Played by Michael Kenneth Williams
A mid-level drug dealer who becomes John's target in the undercover operation.
Juan Carlos "El Topo" Pintera
Played by Benjamin Bratt
A dangerous cartel leader who represents the film's primary criminal threat.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes John Matthews is shown as a successful businessman running a construction and trucking company. He's remarried with a young daughter, living a comfortable upper-middle-class life, though estranged from his son Jason from his first marriage.. Significantly, this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 13 minutes when Jason is arrested in a DEA sting after accepting an overnight package containing MDMA from a friend who set him up. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years unless he informs on others—but he knows no one.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 28 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 25% of the runtime. This demonstrates the protagonist's commitment to John makes the irreversible choice to become an undercover informant for the DEA. Despite having no criminal connections or experience, he convinces Agent Cooper to give him a chance—crossing from his safe world into the dangerous criminal underworld., moving from reaction to action.
At 56 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Structural examination shows that this crucial beat John successfully completes a major drug delivery, proving himself to the cartel and securing enough evidence for multiple arrests. It appears his mission will succeed—a false victory. However, the cartel now wants him for bigger operations, and the DEA raises the bar: they want the cartel kingpin, Malik., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 84 minutes (75% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Daniel is murdered by the cartel when they discover he's been helping John. His death—leaving behind a wife and son—represents the ultimate cost of John's mission and the "whiff of death" that haunts John. His family is now directly threatened, and John faces the consequences of dragging an innocent man into his desperate plan., reveals the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 90 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 80% of the runtime. John commits to the final mission: driving a truck loaded with $100 million in cartel money while Malik rides along—giving the DEA the evidence to take down the entire operation. He synthesizes his trucking expertise with his newfound understanding of the criminal world, transforming from victim to agent of justice., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Snitch's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs a 15-point narrative structure framework that maps key story moments. By mapping Snitch against these established plot points, we can identify how Ric Roman Waugh utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Snitch within the thriller genre.
Ric Roman Waugh's Structural Approach
Among the 3 Ric Roman Waugh films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 7.3, reflecting strong command of classical structure. Snitch takes a more unconventional approach compared to the director's typical style. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Ric Roman Waugh filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional thriller films include The Warriors, Thunderball and Rustom. For more Ric Roman Waugh analyses, see Greenland, Angel Has Fallen.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
John Matthews is shown as a successful businessman running a construction and trucking company. He's remarried with a young daughter, living a comfortable upper-middle-class life, though estranged from his son Jason from his first marriage.
Theme
The theme of parental sacrifice is introduced when John's ex-wife confronts him about their son, establishing that a father must do whatever it takes to protect his child—even when that child has made terrible mistakes.
Worldbuilding
The world is established showing John's business success, his fractured relationship with Jason, his current family with wife Analisa and daughter, and Jason's naïve decision to accept a drug package from a friend—setting up the cruel reality of mandatory minimum sentencing laws.
Disruption
Jason is arrested in a DEA sting after accepting an overnight package containing MDMA from a friend who set him up. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years unless he informs on others—but he knows no one.
Resistance
John desperately seeks a way to help his son. He meets with lawyers, visits Jason in prison where he sees his son brutally beaten, and learns about the unjust mandatory minimum system. He approaches U.S. Attorney Joanne Keeghan with an unprecedented offer: he'll work as an informant himself to reduce Jason's sentence.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
John makes the irreversible choice to become an undercover informant for the DEA. Despite having no criminal connections or experience, he convinces Agent Cooper to give him a chance—crossing from his safe world into the dangerous criminal underworld.
Mirror World
John recruits Daniel James, an ex-convict employee trying to go straight for his wife and young son. Daniel reluctantly agrees to introduce John to his old cartel connections. Daniel mirrors John's paternal sacrifice—he too is risking everything for his family's future.
Premise
John enters the drug world as an unlikely criminal. Using his trucking company as cover, he makes increasingly dangerous drug runs. The tension escalates as this ordinary businessman navigates cartel dynamics, earns trust, and works toward getting enough arrests to free his son—while his family remains unaware of the danger.
Midpoint
John successfully completes a major drug delivery, proving himself to the cartel and securing enough evidence for multiple arrests. It appears his mission will succeed—a false victory. However, the cartel now wants him for bigger operations, and the DEA raises the bar: they want the cartel kingpin, Malik.
Opposition
The cartel tightens its grip on John and Daniel. Suspicions arise. John's wife discovers his activities and is terrified. The DEA pushes for a bigger target. Daniel's past catches up with him as cartel enforcers grow suspicious. The walls close in from both sides—law enforcement demands more while the cartel becomes more dangerous.
Collapse
Daniel is murdered by the cartel when they discover he's been helping John. His death—leaving behind a wife and son—represents the ultimate cost of John's mission and the "whiff of death" that haunts John. His family is now directly threatened, and John faces the consequences of dragging an innocent man into his desperate plan.
Crisis
John is consumed by guilt over Daniel's death. With the cartel hunting him and his family in danger, he must decide: flee to safety and abandon his son, or commit to one final, incredibly dangerous mission to take down Malik and end this. The dark night of the soul forces him to confront what he's become and what he's willing to sacrifice.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
John commits to the final mission: driving a truck loaded with $100 million in cartel money while Malik rides along—giving the DEA the evidence to take down the entire operation. He synthesizes his trucking expertise with his newfound understanding of the criminal world, transforming from victim to agent of justice.
Synthesis
The explosive finale unfolds as John drives the semi-truck through a gauntlet of cartel assassins trying to kill him before the DEA can capture Malik. Using his trucking skills and courage, John outmaneuvers the attackers in a climactic highway chase. The DEA takes down Malik and the cartel leadership. Jason's sentence is reduced as promised.
Transformation
Jason is released from prison and reunited with his father. John, wounded but victorious, has proven his love through sacrifice. The family is together—John has redeemed himself as a father to both Jason and his younger daughter, having risked everything to make things right.