The eight-part series stars Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina, while Tom Bateman, Priscilla Quintana, Liana Liberato and Natalia Dyer take on key supporting roles.<\/p>\n
However, given that<\/em> title and the way events unfold, viewers might be wondering whether the series is entirely fictional, or whether it is based on stranger-than-fiction real events.<\/p>\n Read on for everything you need to know about whether Based on a True Story is really<\/em> based on a true story.<\/p>\n The series is described as being a \u201cdark comedic thriller\u201d which is about \u201ca realtor, a former tennis star and a plumber who seize a unique opportunity to capitalise on America\u2019s obsession with true crime\u201d.<\/p>\n Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina play Ava and Nathan, a couple struggling to make ends meet just as they have a baby on the way.<\/p>\n However, when Ava uncovers the identity of a serial killer who lives in their neighbourhood, dubbed by the press as the West Side Ripper, the couple decide to start up a true crime podcast, bringing the killer himself in on the action.<\/p>\n The comedy thriller series is actually not<\/em> based on a true story, although it is very loosely inspired by some real events.<\/p>\n When the show was first announced<\/a>, Beatrice Springborn, president of Universal Content Productions, the studio behind the series, said: \u201cThere are some true stories that are stranger than fiction as is the case for the events that inspire this show.\u201d<\/p>\n However, the show\u2019s creator Craig Rosenberg later clarified its origins<\/a>, saying: \u201cOver the last decade, a true crime phenomenon has swept over America. Podcasts, documentaries, fictional shows based on true stories \u2013 they dominate the culture. Murderers have become celebrities, and celebrities have become murderers, which inspired me to create this show.<\/p> \u201cI became fascinated with the idea of a relatable married couple whose youthful dreams hadn\u2019t come to fruition and who saw the true crime tidal wave as an opportunity to change their lives and save their marriage. Our Los Angeles setting \u2013 the city where everybody wants to be famous \u2013 became a vivid backdrop to our story of fame, ambition, aspiration and murder.<\/p>\n \u201cPlease sit back and join Ava and Nathan as they try to navigate the dangerous proposal they make.\u201d<\/p>\n This means that, while the series is inspired by real-life true crime podcasts and America\u2019s fascination with them, the specific podcast in the series and the serial killer it details, the West Side Ripper, are both entirely fictional.<\/p>\n [squirrel-affiliate-playlist squirrel_playlist_id=\u201d610\u2033 \/]<\/p>\n Based on a True Story is available to stream in full on Sky and <\/strong>NOW<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0\u2013 find out more about\u00a0<\/strong>how to sign up for Sky TV<\/strong><\/a>. Check out more of our Comedy<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0coverage or visit our\u00a0<\/strong>TV Guide<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0to see what\u2019s on tonight.<\/strong><\/p>\n Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only \u00a310 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>subscribe now<\/strong><\/a>. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to\u00a0<\/strong>The Radio Times Podcast<\/strong><\/a>.<\/strong><\/p> <\/body><\/html>\n The comedy thriller series tells a tale of a serial killer and a couple looking to profit from him \u2013 but is it actually based on real events? <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":43114,"template":"","categories":[1,5],"acf":[],"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/is-based-on-a-true-story-based-on-a-true-story-scaled.jpg",2560,1707,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/is-based-on-a-true-story-based-on-a-true-story-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/is-based-on-a-true-story-based-on-a-true-story-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/is-based-on-a-true-story-based-on-a-true-story-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/is-based-on-a-true-story-based-on-a-true-story-1024x683.jpg",800,534,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/is-based-on-a-true-story-based-on-a-true-story-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/uploads\/sites\/56\/2024\/01\/is-based-on-a-true-story-based-on-a-true-story-2048x1365.jpg",2048,1365,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"importmanagerhub@sprylab.com","author_link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/author\/importmanagerhubsprylab-com\/"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"The comedy thriller series tells a tale of a serial killer and a couple looking to profit from him \u2013 but is it actually based on real events?","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed\/43113"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/rss_feed"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/rss_feed"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/24"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43114"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43113"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/radiotimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43113"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What is Based on a True Story about?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"Kaley](\"https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2024\/01\/0404BasedOnATrueStory-1-9a2a720.jpeg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413\" "\\"Based")
\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>Is Based on a True Story based on a true story?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
![\"Kaley](\"https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2024\/01\/0103BasedOnATrueStory-1-162d10f.jpg?quality=90&resize=619%2C413\" "\\"01_03_BasedOnATrueStory")
\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"