Is 'Devil All the Time' a true story? Here's All you need to know about the film

Netflix released its latest thriller film starring Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson, The Devil All the Time, on September 11, 2020. The film is based on author Donald Ray Pollock's book which goes by the same name and has been co-produced by the popular American actor Jake Gyllenhaal. Netflix subscribers seem to be thoroughly enjoying the new film since its release. Many fans took to Twitter to praise the brilliant acting by the films ensemble star cast. Read on to know, “Is Devil All the Time a true story?”

Read | Re-imagining 'The Devil All The Time' cast in Bollywood, can you see Ishaan in Tom's role?

Is 'Devil All the Time' a true story?

The straight forward answer to this question is, No, The Devil All the Time is not based on a true story. However, the dark and complicated characters of the film are based on real people that the book’s author Donald Ray Pollock, met in his real life. In fact, all of Pollock’s story is rooted in personal experience to some degree.

Read | Tom Holland responds to all the love his fans have given to 'The Devil All The Time'

Willard’s character

Netflix’s The Devil All the Time starts with a scene in which Arvin Eugene Russell (Tom Holland) and his father, Willard (Bill Skarsgård) are kneeling to pray in the woods. Within a few seconds, two hunters can be heard in the distance making obscene comments about Willard’s wife, but he ignores them.

Arvin initially perceives this as weakness, but a few days later Willard pulls up to the hunter duo and beats them into submission in front of his 9-year-old son Arvin. When Willard gets back into the car, he teaches his son the most important lesson of his life, to always get revenge, but also wait for the right moment to do so. 

Source: The Devil All the Time (Instagram)

Read | Sebastian Stan replaced Chris Evans in 'The Devil All The Time'; here's why

In an interview with NPR magazine, Pollock revealed that he had witnessed men getting beaten in the same way when he was only 10 and almost had a nervous breakdown. Willard’s violence in the film is not just extended to the hunters but also his own son when he forces Arvin to pray for his mother's health after she is diagnosed with cancer. Willard even deliriously kills his son’s dog and only companion, as an offering to God in order to save his wife Charlotte’s life.

In his interview, Pollock revealed that Willard’s character was not based on his own father but on the drunkard, hellraiser and irresponsible fathers he had seen growing up. The author said that he had seen many fathers who never took the responsibilities of their families. Moreover, Willard’s profession of being a meatpacker is based on Pollock’s real-life experience when he worked in a meatpacking plant.

Read | The Devil All The Time Cast: List of all actors in the 2020 Netflix release

Carl and Sandy: The husband and wife serial killers

Source: The Devil All the Time (Instagram)

Donald Ray Pollock who is also playing the narrator in the film stated that the husband and wife serial killer characters (Carl and Sandy) were not based on any real persons he had met in his life. Instead, the duo stemmed from Pollock’s deep interest in serial killer fiction. Pollock revealed in the same interview that he writes a lot about violence because he had seen a lot of it growing up. He revealed that as a kid he had witnessed many stabbings and quite a few fistfights, along with men abusing women.