Is HBO’s Reality based on a true story?
By Sabrina Reed
Reality, an HBO film that debuts on the network Sunday, May 29 at 10:05 p.m. ET, stars Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria) in the titular role of Reality Winner. In the movie, the 25 year old intelligence specialist returns home from grocery shopping to find two FBI agents waiting for her in her driveway.
They repeatedly tell her that they have a warrant to search her and her residence while they question her on an event that they don’t immediately reveal to her. Over the course of the less than 90 minute film, Winner is asked if she ever took classified documents outside of our place of work. The main question is that if she did, why would she share national secrets?
The movie is at times uncomfortable and awkward, zeroing in on Winner’s afternoon being interrogated and surrounded by an all-male team of agents. Taking place on June 3, 2017, and revolving around events before and after the 2016 presidential election, the film takes a direct look at Winner’s motivation and a decision she made that changed her life.
Does Reality draw from real life events? Here’s what we know.
Is Reality based on a true story?
Yes, the film is based on events surrounding the real life Reality Winner’s interrogation and arrest. The dialogue was taken from the actual recording of the former specialist’s questioning. The HBO original movie is an adaptation of the play “Is This A Room” written by Tina Satter who also directed and wrote the film.
Winner leaked a report to The Intercept that confirmed the NSA had looked into Russian interference into the election and concluded that the Russian General Staff Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) ran an email phishing scam, a cyber attack attack sent to over 100 local election officials. This was done ahead of election day in November 2016, and the intent was to interfere with the voter registration process and voter rolls.
She was arrested, later convicted under the Espionage Act, and sentenced to 5 years and three months in prison. For an update on the real Air Force veteran’s life in 2023, click through to the next page.
Next. Where is Reality Winner now?. dark
Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more HBO and Max news and coverage. We’ll keep you up to date on what’s coming to the network and its streaming arm throughout the year. You can learn about Reality‘s cast, here.