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12 Famous Films Based on Real Crimes You Probably Didn’t Know
Are you in the mood to watch a crime film with a true twist? Well, you're in luck, as there are thousands of films that are made by drawing inspiration from true crimes.
If we tried to list all of them, we'd be here forever. Instead, we chose some of the most popular true crime films to showcase. We also tried to diversify the types of films and crimes. Although some are serial killer films, others are about fraud!
Click through the slideshow for famous films based on real crimes. Do you recognize any?
"Zodiac" (2007)
- Director: David Fincher
- Starring: Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo, and Robert Downey Jr., Anthony Edwards, Brian Cox, Elias Koteas, Donal Logue, John Carroll Lynch, Chloë Sevigny, Philip Baker Hall, and Dermot Mulroney
- Release Date: March 2, 2007
- Running Time: 157 minutes
"The Alphabet Killer" (2008)
- Director: Rob Schmidt
- Starring: Eliza Dushku, Cary Elwes, Michael Ironside, Bill Moseley and Timothy Hutton
- Release Date: November7,2008
- Running Time: 100 minutes
"Dear Mr. Gacy" (2010)
- Director: Svetozar Ristovski
- Starring: Jesse Moss, William Forsythe, Emma Lahana, Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman, and Patrick Gilmore
- Release Date: May 11, 2010
- Running Time: 103 minutes
"The Wolf of Wall Street" (2013)
- Director: Martin Scorsese
- Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie, Matthew McConaughey, and Kyle Chandler
- Release Date: December 25, 2013
- Running Time: 180 minutes
"My Friend Dahmer" (2017)
- Director: Marc Meyers
- Starring: Ross Lynch, Anne Heche, Alex Wolff, Dallas Roberts, Tommy Nelson, and Vincent Kartheiser
- Release Date: November 3, 2017
- Running Time: 107 minutes
"American Hustle" (2013)
- Director: David O. Russell
- Starring: Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, and Jennifer Lawrence
- Release Date: December 13, 2013
- Running Time: 138 minutes
"I, Tonya" (2017)
- Director: Craig Gillespie
- Starring: Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Julianne Nicholson, Bobby Cannavale, and Allison Janney
- Release Date: December 8, 2017
- Running Time: 120 minutes
"Heavenly Creatures" (1994)
- Director: Peter Jackson
- Starring: Melanie Lynskey, Kate Winslet, Sarah Peirse, Diana Kent, Clive Merrison, and Simon O'Connor
- Release Date: October 14, 1994
- Running Time: 99 minutes
"Can You Ever Forgive Me?" (2018)
- Director: Marielle Heller
- Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Richard E. Grant, Dolly Wells, Jane Curtin, Anna Deavere Smith, Stephen Spinella, and Ben Falcone
- Release Date: October 19, 2018
- Running Time: 107 minutes
"I Love You Phillip Morris" (2009)
- Director: John Requa and Glenn Ficarra
- Starring: Jim Carrey, Ewan McGregor, Rodrigo Santoro, Antoni Corone, and Leslie Mann
- Release Date: January 18, 2009
- Running Time: 93 minutes
"Catch Me If You Can" (2002)
- Director: Steven Spielberg
- Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen, Nathalie Baye, Amy Adams, and James Brolin
- Release Date: December 25, 2002
- Running Time: 141 minutes
"The Bling Ring" (2013)
- Director: Sofia Coppola
- Starring: Emma Watson, Katie Chang, Israel Broussard, Taissa Farmiga, Claire Julien, Georgia Rock and Leslie Mann
- Release Date: June 14, 2013
- Running Time: 90 minutes