BLACK BIRD: IS THE APPLE TV SERIES BASED ON A REAL STORY?
Warning: There are Black Bird spoilers ahead.
Since there haven’t been many brand-new programs on Apple TV+ lately, this weekend’s murder drama Black Bird has true crime enthusiasts flocking to the service.
We confirm if Black Bird is based on a genuine story because it is a crime drama and viewers are naturally interested in knowing if that is the case.
Black Bird, created by Dennis Lehane for Apple TV+ and starring Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, the late Ray Liotta, and others, follows Jimmy Keene, a prisoner whose 10-year sentence is commuted in exchange for getting serial killer Larry Hall to confess.
IS THE STORY FOR BLACK BIRD AN ACCURACY?
Black Bird is, in fact, based on a genuine story.
The 2010 autobiographical novel In with the Devil: a Fallen Hero, a Serial Killer, and a Dangerous Bargain for Redemption by James Keene with Hillel Levin, which in turn is based on the actual events surrounding Keene, is actually the source material for the Apple TV+ series.
Jimmy Keene is portrayed by Egerton in the show, and the entire idea of the plot is so intimidating that it’s difficult to believe it truly occurred in real life.
“You want me to go to hell and make friends with a demon?”
JAMES “JIMMY” KEENE’S REAL STORY:
After coaching the Kankakee Eastridge High School football team in the 1990s, Keene chose to start peddling narcotics because he couldn’t get into college.
Despite the job doing him well for a while, Keene was ultimately caught during a significant narcotics operation and given a ten-year prison term.
Soon after, FBI Special Agent Ken Temples proposed to commute Keene’s sentence to life in prison provided he made friends with Larry DeWayne Hall and secured a confession from him as well as information about the whereabouts of his final victims’ bodies.
Keene asserts that Hall confessed to killing Tricia Reitler at some point during the invasion and gave an ill-defined location for the body’s burial.
Keene, who was determined to learn additional information to liberate Hall, had the good fortune to catch Hall gazing at a map with a number of dotted places. He promptly alerted the FBI.
Keene, thinking his parole was impending, unfortunately jumped the gun a little too early and later gave Hall a piece of his mind after calling the FBI. Keene was placed in solitary following his outburst, the FBI mysteriously missed his call, and the evidence was gone when he was let out.
Fortunately, Keene’s release was ultimately justified by the findings of a polygraph examination, and Larry Hall is still incarcerated and receiving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
EPISODE GUIDE AND RELEASE SCHEDULE FOR BLACK BIRD
The first two episodes of Black Bird, a six-episode short film on Apple TV+, were released simultaneously on the service on Friday, July 8, 2022.
The fact that the show is billed as a miniseries means that Season 2 is out of the question and that the story will be wrapped up in these six episodes.
To aid you in navigating your Apple TV+ binge-watch, we’ve listed a brief episode guide below, along with their respective release dates:
The pilot episode will air on Friday, July 8, 2022.
Episode 2: Father Abraham, We Are Coming—Friday, July 8, 2022
The third episode will air on Friday, July 15, 2022.
Whatshername, Season 4, Episode 4 – Friday, July 22, 2022
The Place I Lie, episode five, airs on Friday, July 29, 2022.
You Promised, episode six, airs on Friday, August 5, 2022.