There are some movie characters that are so over-the-top that it would seem impossible
for them to be based on a real person.
Since one of the most common devices for writers is to write what you know, it makes sense
that there are so many film characters inspired by stories of real people and true events.
Here are 10 Crazy Movie Characters You Didn’t Know Were Based on Real People.
Ben from 21 21 is a 2008 film about a group of MIT students
who use their genius math skills to win an excessive amount of cash from casinos in Las
Vegas.
Jim Sturgess plays the leader of the gang of brilliant mathematicians, Ben Campbell,
who begins counting cards as a way to pay his tuition.
Jeff Ma was the real life inspiration for Ben.
Jeff along with his number-crunching peers were the subject of the book Bringing Down
the House in which 21 is based.
While there was controversy surrounding the casting of the film which consisted of a mostly
white cast portraying people who were Asian in real life, the film was a success
Nacho Libre The 2006 comedy, Nacho Libre stars Jack Black
as a monk turned Mexican wrestler.
The film is wacky and directed by Jared Hess who also made the oddball comedy, Napoleon
Dynamite.
If the story sounds just silly enough to be a film starring Jack Black, audiences may
be surprised to find that it is based on a real life Catholic priest named Sergio Gutiérrez
Benítez who went by the wrestling name, Fray Tormenta.
He spent 23 years as the masked wrestler as a way to make money for the orphanage he directed.
The priest gained overwhelming support and popularity in real life.
He ended his wrestling career in 2000 but dons the mask every once in a while just to
entertain the children in his church.
Rocky Rocky Balboa is everybody’s favorite underdog
from Philly.
The film about a regular Joe who pushes himself to fight the biggest names in boxing is one
of the most successful franchises in film history.
Writer, Director and star, Sylvester Stallone based Rocky on real life boxer Chuck Wepner
after watching Wepner go fifteen rounds with Muhammad Ali in 1975.
Later when Wepner tried to sue for a portion of the money made from the Rocky movies, Stallone
stated that Wepner was not the inspiration for Rocky.
So while there were many differences between the character and Wepner, like Wepner being
from New Jersey rather than Philadelphia, the many similarities suggest Chuck Wepner
did serve as the basis for the Italian Stallion.
Frank Costello, The Departed The character of Frank Costello in Martin
Scorsese’s ensemble crime drama, The Departed seems somewhat unrealistic.
How did a guy manage to groom a young man to become a mole for the Boston Police department?
How did he not get arrested after years of dirty dealing?
Even more unbelievable is that he was an informant for the FBI the entire time?
That could never happen, but it did.
At least most of it did to a man named Whitey Bulger.
Bulger was an Irish mob boss in Boston and managed to get away with a whole lot of criminal
activities for many years.
He really did have a mole in the police department and was an FBI informant to keep himself out
of prison.
Bulger has such an interesting history that he was also the subject of the 2015 film,
Black Mass.
Dirty Harry The character of Dirty Harry Callahan is an
intimidating police inspector for the San Francisco Police Department.
Clint Eastwood’s iconic portrayal of the character exemplifies cool as he goes on the
hunt for psychopathic serial killer who goes by the name of Scorpio.
Scorpio is based on the similarly named Zodiac Killer who terrorized the streets of San Francisco
in the 1960s and early 70s.
Dirty Harry is based on the real life detective Dave Toschi who was a bit of a loose cannon
for the San Francisco police department.
His unorthodox behavior helped create not only Harry Callahan but even inspired Steve
McQueen’s character in Bullitt.
However, it was Tocshi's role in the Zodiac killer case that inspired one of the coolest
characters in cinematic history.
Regan from The Exorcist Films about demonic possession have become
commonplace but back in 1973, The Exorcist introduced audiences to the absolutely horrifying
tale of a little girl named Regan who was possessed by a demon after playing with a
Ouija board.
The book and film are based on the exorcism of Roland Doe.
Doe was a young boy living in Maryland in the 1930s.
He spent his time playing with his spiritualist aunt who introduced him to a Ouija board.
The result was a claimed possession which caused a priest to perform an exorcism on
the boy and record the events.
In the 1990s, a book was released stating that Roland was not actually possessed by
anything supernatural but was most likely just a disturbed boy who had suffered from
abuse.
The truth will never fully be known but the story of possession sure made for one terrifying
classic film.
Rocky Dennis, Mask The 1985 tearjerker, Mask in which Eric Stoltz
plays a teenage boy named Rocky Dennis who suffers from Lionitis is based on a real life
boy by the same name and disorder.
While the character may not be considered crazy, the emotional appeal of the film proves
that reality is stranger and more compelling than fiction.
Rocky’s deforming disorder also known as CDD, made his life extremely difficult and
it was nearly impossible to read or do basic activities but he pushed through tasks and
proved his teachers wrong.
The film’s heartbreaking conclusion shows Rocky’s mom, Rusty, enter teenage Rocky's
room to find that he has passed on.
In real life, Rusty donated her son’s body to the UCLA medical center.
Norman Bates, Psycho Norman Bates from Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960
classic Psycho, is one of the most famous killers in cinematic history.
The voyeuristic mama’s boy may best be remembered by the final sinister stare which closes the
film.
The movie was based on a book by the same name, but the character was based on killer
and all around psycho, Ed Gein.
Gein has inspired many movie maniacs including Leather face from Texas Chainsaw Massacre
and Buffalo Bill from The Silence of the Lambs.
While there was only proof that Gein killed two people, he spent a lot of time grave robbing
and dismembering the corpses to make furniture.
He also stalked local women in town.
Just like Bates, Gein was dedicated to pleasing his mother and even created a shrine for her
in her room after she died.
After all, a boy’s best friend is his mother.
The Dude, The Big Lebowski Since its release in 1998, The Big Lebowski
has grown a cult following thanks to its endless quotable dialogue and Jeff Bridges flawless
performance as Jeff Lebowski.
Lebowski, or as he likes to be called, the Dude, is just an easygoing stoner who wants
to clear up the confusion of sharing the name with a wanted man.
While the premise of the film is completely made up by The Coen Brothers, the character
of The Dude is based on a real person, Jeff Dowd.
Dowd is a film producer and the Coen brothers met him while promoting their 1984 film Blood
Simple.
His appearance, style of dress, and general mannerisms fascinated the filmmakers enough
that they just had to base a film character on him.
Even the nickname was real, something Dowd picked up in the 6th grade that stuck with
him through his entire life.
Lucy from 50 First Dates, Adam Sandler comedies rarely strive for realism
but the film 50 First Dates managed a semblance of reality.
The seemingly contrived plot revolves around Adam Sandler falling in love with a woman,
played by Drew Barrymore, who suffers from short term memory loss.
As the film progresses, the characters fall in love, marry, and have a child.
All while she wakes up each morning forgetting the day before.
The story is more than just a wacky comedy premise, it is actually based on a real woman
named Michelle Philpots who suffered from two separate head injuries resulting in irreparable
brain damage causing short term memory loss.
Just like Barrymore’s character, Philpots has woken up each morning for the past twenty
years with no memory of the day before.
Her husband helps her each day but luckily she does recognize him as he was around before
the accident.
What do you think of our list?
Did we forget your favorite crazy character based on a real person?
Let us know in the comments.
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