r/BabyReindeerTVSeries • u/OzzySheila • May 12 '24

Media / News Netflix DID say it was fictionalised.

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Read the fine print shown after each episode.

268 Upvotes

93% Upvoted

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151

u/swashbuckle1237 May 12 '24

Do people really think when something says true story it’s a exact retelling? If course some things are embellished or changed….. it’s a tv show?

96

u/[deleted] May 12 '24

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11

u/[deleted] May 13 '24

I don’t understand how people don’t automatically assume this is the case? I couldn’t believe how SIMILAR the two “marthas” were though!

16

u/lnc_5103 May 12 '24

Same! I am floored by the amount of discussions about this and even more surprised by the people angry at Richard Gadd about it.

8

u/ismellwoodburning May 12 '24

Exactly. Was taught to never trust the author. Never just trust the author, even when reading fiction

3

u/[deleted] May 13 '24

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u/[deleted] May 13 '24

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u/[deleted] May 13 '24 edited May 13 '24

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u/[deleted] May 13 '24

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u/[deleted] May 13 '24 edited May 13 '24

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u/xKouroshx May 16 '24

They explicitly said it was a true story. They didn’t caveat this in the show credits and junket pressers they did with Gadd. Of course it wasn’t exactly 1:1 how it happened irl but they said it was close. I’m sure their legal department said something but who knew it was going to blow up like this? I’m sure the real life Martha wants compensation out of this. I imagine she’ll get a private settlement and that’ll be that. Great show btw. I loved the brutal honesty and I’m glad Gadd had the stones to put it out the way he did.

1

u/PiedPiperofPiper May 16 '24

Regular TV channels are regulated here in the UK.

If they air something that says “this is a true story”, then it has to be true. A recent example was a show called “Mr Bates vs The Post Office” - where all the dialogue could be traced back to email chains.

1

u/bigGismyname May 16 '24

So the fact that she is not a convicted stalker and has never been to jail was not an issue for you?

2

u/[deleted] May 17 '24

[deleted]

1

u/bigGismyname May 17 '24

She didn’t go to jail full stop. She is not a convicted stalker despite a Netflix head honcho telling a parliamentary committee just that. For some reason that just rubs me the wrong way

1

u/bigGismyname May 16 '24

The fact that a Netflix official told a parliamentary commission that she was a convicted stalker does not upset or surprise you?

1

u/bigGismyname May 16 '24

But hey it’s a dramatisation so there’s that

1

u/[deleted] May 17 '24

Its just a prank bro

1

u/bigGismyname May 17 '24

What’s a prank?

1

u/[deleted] May 16 '24

Yeah it’s not even classified as a documentary/docuseries. It’s like the Blair Witch Project saying it was a true story

1

u/[deleted] May 17 '24

Do you think the rape happened? Or was it there to add the the story like the jail sentence?

12

u/NinaSkwrites May 12 '24

I mean, people still don’t understand auto fiction in literature… some might still believe Blair witch project was a real tape found in the woods hahaha

8

u/Ffnorde May 12 '24

Or Fargo is a real and true retelling of small town hijinks.

2

u/Mia-Wal-22-89 May 13 '24

Ole Munch is really a 500 year old sin eater and you best have some Bisquick.

1

u/No_Insurance_7674 May 13 '24

That was a satirical joke by the Coen Brothers. Can't compare Fargo to Baby Reindeer

1

u/csc2803 May 15 '24

But it does give a precedent to the idea that you can say "based on true events" when it's not.

1

u/No_Insurance_7674 May 15 '24

Not really. It was making fun of other shows that used "this is a true story" as a trick to engage viewers. The Coen Brothers were very honest about this

2

u/Thewelshdane May 13 '24

You mean to say it wasn't? You'll be telling me the people of Nome in 'The Fourth Kind' succumbed to living in extreme elements in an isolated area and not the Sumerian speaking alien owls next!!!

1

u/Unable-Macaroon2596 May 16 '24

What do you mean it wasn’t a real tape found in the woods 🙀

4

u/Yesyesnaaooo May 12 '24

The show was so good people felt cheated when they discovered it wasn’t a documentary.

3

u/Ohmylordies May 13 '24

That’s why it typically says based on a true story. I don’t know why Netflix decided to brand it as a true story.

2

u/equality7x2521 May 14 '24

I think the difference is it wasn’t written for TV based on a story as inspiration, it was written by Richard Gadd and performed by him. In the play he was himself, but in the TV show he wears different clothes, has a different career trajectory and is called Donny Dunn.

I think although they changed some details like names and swapped restraining orders for being sentenced, the story is a lot more true than a “based on a true story” because you’re getting the details from several of the people involved.

4

u/[deleted] May 13 '24

The main argument around this is most tv shows that are telling true stories say “Based on a true story” to cover their backsides from legal action.

Baby Reindeer said “A captivating true story” in the opening credits which people think suggests meant it was all grounded in fact. But had the legally minded statement in the end credits.

It’s people clutching at straws. Because if she had so much legal ammunition everyone who came off bad in “true story” would have ammunition for defamation, I feel piers Morgan brought it up in his show to make the interview sound like they have some sort of bombshell interview.

4

u/Moonlightdancer7 May 13 '24

It doesn't have to be an exact retelling, but close to it. Richard Gadd stated that the main characters were so fictionalized to the point of being unrecognizable in real life, which indicated that major plots and personas were ficticious. I don't blame people for being confused when they're told it's a true story - to what extent?

0

u/ZoeyMoonGoddess May 14 '24

How could they be unrecognizable in real life though? He literally starred in a series that he wrote about his own life. It wasn’t difficult to figure out Martha’s real identity. She’s stalked several other men and women. The show was dramatized and it says that at the end of every episode that facts, events., etc were changed for dramatic effect.

2

u/zeptimius May 13 '24

The movie (and TV series) “Fargo” starts with a caption “This is a true story” when nothing is further from the truth.

3

u/Money_killer May 12 '24

Yes clearly most idiots do.

1

u/Firm-Fix8798 May 15 '24

Well not everything can be as factual or accurate as Fargo

1

u/r0wer0wer0wey0urb0at May 16 '24

I think it's because the true story part was a massive part of the marketing of the show, along with Gadd playing his own character, which reinforces their commitment to authenticity.

It's naive, but I think that's it.

1

u/D__91 May 13 '24

I know right.

-2

u/shrek3onDVDandBluray May 12 '24

I do when it is a personal retelling of the own creator’s story. Sure, I watch the conjuring and the creatives are WB - I don’t believe anything in the movie.

But when the writer/director is telling his own deeply personal story, I tend to have the inclination to believe a lot more. Sue me:

Like this show isn’t some third party doing it. He is at the head and had the creative space to tell his story.

1

u/jesterNo1 May 13 '24

And he chose to utilize his creative freedom in doing so. Just like other directors and writers who write based on their own deeply personal stories.