Buzz
While Hollywood often draws inspiration from true events, historical precision rarely takes precedence. To craft a gripping narrative, filmmakers frequently take creative liberties, sometimes even inventing entirely fictionalized deaths of real-life individuals. These alterations aren’t minor inaccuracies but deliberate fabrications designed to heighten dramatic tension.
10. The Untouchables (1987)Frank Nitti
Set during the Prohibition era, federal agent Eliot Ness dedicated himself to dismantling the criminal empire of Chicago’s notorious mob boss, Al Capone. Ness formed a team of honest lawmen, famously known as “The Untouchables,” who ultimately succeeded in convicting Capone for tax evasion in 1931.
The story of The Untouchables was immortalized in a popular TV series and a celebrated 1987 film directed by Brian De Palma, with Kevin Costner portraying Ness. Among Capone’s key associates was Frank “The Enforcer” Nitti. In the movie, Nitti kills Ness’s partner, prompting Ness to confront him on the courthouse roof. As Nitti boasts about evading justice, Ness hurls him off the roof, resulting in his death on a car below.
In reality, Frank Nitti was notorious for delegating violent tasks to others rather than carrying out murders personally. He never killed any members of The Untouchables, and Ness did not retaliate by throwing an unarmed man from a rooftop.
Frank Nitti was ultimately convicted of tax evasion along with his boss, Al Capone. While Capone was sentenced to 11 years in prison, Nitti served only 18 months. Following his release, he took over as the public face of the Chicago Outfit, Capone’s organized crime network.
In 1943, several Chicago Outfit members were charged with extorting money from major Hollywood studios. On March 19, the same day an arrest warrant was issued for him, the 57-year-old Nitti was discovered dead in a railroad yard. He had taken his own life by shooting himself in the head. Due to his extreme intoxication, Nitti fired three shots before one proved fatal.
9. The Fall Of The Roman Empire (1964) & Gladiator (2000)Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aurelius is renowned as one of Rome’s most celebrated emperors and a significant philosophical figure in history. His rule spanned 19 years.
The legendary emperor has been depicted in two significant films. Alec Guinness portrayed him in the 1964 epic The Fall of the Roman Empire, while Richard Harris took on the role in the Oscar-winning 2000 movie Gladiator. In both portrayals, Marcus meets his end through assassination.
In Fall of the Roman Empire, Marcus intends to name a fictional character, Livius, as his successor but is poisoned by allies of his son, Commodus, who seek to gain power. In Gladiator, Commodus personally betrays and kills his father, who plans to pass the throne to another fictional hero, Maximus. Commodus strangles Marcus to death and seizes power.
In reality, Marcus Aurelius was never assassinated, and his death was far less theatrical. He passed away on March 17, 180, at the age of 58, likely due to smallpox.
Both Roman Empire and Gladiator depict Marcus refusing to let Commodus succeed him, leading to his murder. Historically, Marcus peacefully allowed Commodus to inherit the throne and even appointed him as co-emperor in the final years of his life. The films conclude with Commodus dying in a dramatic duel against the fictional protagonist, but in reality, he was strangled by a wrestler in an assassination plot.
8. Quills (2000)Marquis de Sade & Madeleine LeClerc
The 2000 film Quills is based on Doug Wright’s Obie Award–winning play, featuring Geoffrey Rush as the infamous Marquis de Sade.
The narrative focuses on the Marquis’s final years, spent in the Charenton asylum for his scandalous erotic writings. He persuades Madeleine LeClerc (Kate Winslet), a laundress at the asylum, to secretly publish his hidden manuscripts, which later become the renowned novel Justine. Madeleine is eventually killed by another inmate, and upon discovering that his writings inspired the murder, the Marquis takes his own life by ingesting a crucifix.
Although Marquis de Sade and Madeleine LeClerc were indeed acquainted during his time at Charenton, the film’s portrayal of their relationship and deaths is entirely fictional. LeClerc never smuggled Sade’s manuscripts, and Justine was published long before his imprisonment.
The Marquis did not take his own life; he passed away naturally on December 4, 1814, at the age of 74. The story of Madeleine LeClerc’s murder is entirely fictional, as she was alive when Sade died. Although Kate Winslet was in her mid-twenties when she portrayed LeClerc, the real Madeleine was just 18 at the time of the Marquis’s death.
In the movie, Sade expresses his love for Madeleine by abstaining from a physical relationship. However, in reality, LeClerc and the Marquis were involved in a long-term sexual relationship, which reportedly began when she was only 15.
7. Public Enemies (2009)George “Baby Face” Nelson & Homer Van Meter
The 2009 film Public Enemies, directed by Michael Mann, recounts the life of John Dillinger (Johnny Depp), the most infamous gangster of the 1930s. The plot centers on FBI agent Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale) as he tries to capture Dillinger, whose criminal spree ends when he is shot dead outside Chicago’s Biograph Theater on July 22, 1934.
Public Enemies includes several of Dillinger’s real-life accomplices, such as George “Baby Face” Nelson and Homer Van Meter. In the film, Purvis and his team locate Dillinger’s gang at the Little Bohemia Lodge in Wisconsin. While Dillinger escapes, Van Meter and Nelson are both killed in a shootout with Purvis.
Although the FBI did raid the Little Bohemia Lodge on April 20, 1934, both George “Baby Face” Nelson and Homer Van Meter escaped that night. Neither died until after Dillinger’s death, and their deaths were not at the hands of Melvin Purvis.
On August 23, Van Meter was betrayed by his mistress and ambushed by police in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he was shot and killed by four officers. On November 27, Nelson engaged in a shootout with federal agents Samuel Cowley and Herman Hollis on an Illinois highway. All three were fatally wounded, but despite being shot 17 times, Nelson fled the scene and died later that night in the presence of his wife and a priest.
6. Gunfight At The O.K. Corral (1957)Johnny Ringo
The most legendary shootout in the history of the American West is undoubtedly the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral. This historic event occurred on October 26, 1881, in Tombstone, Arizona, where lawman Wyatt Earp, his brothers, and their ally Doc Holliday faced off against the infamous outlaw gang known as “The Cowboys.”
The Gunfight at the O.K. Corral has been portrayed in many Western films, including the 1957 classic of the same name. In the movie, outlaw Johnny Ringo (John Ireland) becomes a key adversary of Doc Holliday (Kirk Douglas). During the climactic battle, all six Cowboys are killed, with Ringo fatally shot by Holliday.
In reality, only five members of the Cowboys were present during the Tombstone shootout, and just three died. Johnny Ringo was not among them, as he was not even in Tombstone at the time.
Although Ringo was linked to the Cowboys, he was visiting his sisters in California during the gunfight and survived for several more months. The feud between Ringo and Holliday didn’t begin until January 1882, when the two nearly engaged in a deadly confrontation.
A month later, Morgan Earp was assassinated, and Ringo became a suspect in the eyes of the Earp family. On July 14, Ringo was discovered dead in West Turkey Creek Valley with a gunshot wound to the head and his revolver in hand. While most believe he took his own life, some speculate that Wyatt Earp killed him in retaliation for his brother’s death.
5. Titanic (1997)William Murdoch
James Cameron’s 1997 historical epic Titanic broke box office records and held the title of the highest-grossing film for 12 years. The movie dramatized the 1912 sinking of the RMS Titanic, weaving a fictional love story amidst real-life passengers and crew members.
First Officer William Murdoch, who was on duty when the ship hit the iceberg, is one such real-life figure. In the film, Murdoch accepts a bribe from the fictional antagonist Cal Hockley for a place in a lifeboat. As chaos erupts and passengers storm the boats, Murdoch loses control, shooting two passengers before taking his own life with a gunshot to the head. His body is shown falling into the sea.
Murdoch’s death has been a subject of debate since his body was never recovered. Some survivors claimed an officer shot passengers and then himself, leading to rumors it was Murdoch. However, other officers testified that Murdoch worked tirelessly to fill the lifeboats and even threw deckchairs to struggling passengers before being swept away by the ocean.
Murdoch was celebrated as a hero for his efforts to save lives, so his portrayal in Titanic as a bribe-taking, suicidal officer angered the residents of his hometown, Dalbeattie, Scotland. In response, 20th Century Fox’s vice president visited Dalbeattie to apologize formally and donated to Murdoch’s memorial fund.
4. Gangster Squad (2013)Conwell Keeler
Set in late 1940s Los Angeles, the 2013 film Gangster Squad depicts the city under the grip of crime lord Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn). To combat Cohen, the police chief forms a covert team of officers, known as the “Gangster Squad,” who operate outside the law. Among them is Conwell Keeler, an expert in wiretapping.
In the movie, Cohen discovers the Squad’s bug in his home and sets a trap by feeding them false information. His bodyguard tracks down Keeler and strangles him to death, prompting the Squad to storm Cohen’s hotel and arrest him for murder. In reality, like Al Capone, Cohen was never charged with murder but was imprisoned for tax evasion.
Gangster Squad takes significant creative liberties, especially with Conwell Keeler’s fate. Contrary to the film, Cohen had no involvement in Keeler’s death, as Keeler was never murdered. He lived for over six more decades, nearly reaching 100 years old.
Before his passing, Keeler shared his experiences for Gangster Squad: Covert Cops, the Mob and the Battle for Los Angeles, the 2011 book that inspired the film. Having outlived Mickey Cohen, who died in 1976, Keeler holds the unique distinction of surviving the man who fictionally killed him.
3. Donnie Brasco (1997)Benjamin “Lefty” Ruggiero
The 1997 film Donnie Brasco follows FBI agent Joseph Pistone (Johnny Depp), who goes deep undercover as “Donnie Brasco” to infiltrate the Bonnano crime family. Working closely with mobsters Benjamin “Lefty” Ruggiero (Al Pacino) and Dominick “Sonny Black” Napolitano (Michael Madsen), Pistone forms a strong bond with Lefty. However, when his true identity is revealed, Lefty realizes his life is in danger for vouching for the undercover agent.
In his final scene, Lefty receives a phone call summoning him to a meeting with fellow mobsters. He leaves personal belongings for his wife before walking out, implying he will not survive the encounter.
In reality, while the mob issued a contract on Benjamin “Lefty” Ruggiero for allowing an FBI agent into their ranks, the FBI arrested him before the hit could be carried out. Ruggiero refused to cooperate with authorities, leading the mob to cancel the contract. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison and, after his release, succumbed to lung cancer on November 24, 1994.
The film leaves Dominick “Sonny Black” Napolitano’s fate ambiguous, but in real life, he met a grim end. On August 17, 1981, Napolitano left personal items with a bartender before vanishing. A year later, his body was discovered with gunshot wounds and his hands severed, a brutal punishment for allowing Pistone to infiltrate the mob.
2. The Alamo (1960)Colonel James Fannin
Starring John Wayne, Richard Widmark, and Laurence Harvey, the 1960 historical epic The Alamo dramatizes the famous battle. From February 23 to March 6, 1836, Texan and Mexican forces clashed at the Alamo Mission, culminating in the massacre of all defenders. This event became a pivotal moment in the Texas Revolution, galvanizing Texans to join the fight and ultimately shifting the conflict in their favor.
A crucial element of The Alamo revolves around Colonel James Fannin, a prominent figure in the Revolution. Although Fannin never appears onscreen, the defenders at the Alamo pin their hopes on his arrival with reinforcements. Their hopes are dashed when they learn Fannin and his men were ambushed and killed in Goliad en route to the Alamo.
The Alamo is infamous for its numerous historical inaccuracies, leading the film’s historical consultants to request their names be removed from the credits. One of the most glaring liberties involves Colonel Fannin’s death, which actually occurred three weeks after the Battle of the Alamo.
Fannin did attempt to lead reinforcements to the Alamo, but they were never ambushed. After a wagon broke down and a failed attempt to cross the Guadalupe River, Fannin and his men concluded the mission was unfeasible and returned. Fannin and his troops were later executed in Goliad on March 27.
1. Elizabeth (1998)Mary Of Guise
The 1998 historical drama Elizabeth focuses on the early reign of Queen Elizabeth I of England (Cate Blanchett), who ascended the throne in 1558. The plot revolves around various conspiracies to dethrone her, with Mary of Guise, the Queen of Scotland, emerging as one of her primary adversaries.
When Mary strengthens the French military presence in Scotland, Elizabeth perceives it as a threat and launches an invasion. After her army is defeated, Elizabeth’s advisor, Sir Francis Walsingham (Geoffrey Rush), travels to Scotland to negotiate with Mary. Initially appearing to betray Elizabeth, Walsingham’s true intentions are revealed when Mary is found dead the next day, suggesting he assassinated her under Elizabeth’s covert orders.
While Mary of Guise was indeed a rival to Queen Elizabeth, she was not assassinated, nor was she killed by Sir Francis Walsingham. In fact, it is highly unlikely that Walsingham ever encountered Mary.
Mary of Guise passed away at Edinburgh Castle on June 11, 1560, at the age of 44. Although her exact cause of death remains uncertain, it is widely believed she suffered from dropsy, a condition characterized by fluid retention. In her final months, Mary experienced severe swelling in her legs, a common symptom of dropsy, which likely led to a fatal heart attack. There was no evidence of foul play, absolving Queen Elizabeth I and Sir Francis Walsingham of any involvement in her death.
