Is Patriots Day Based On A True Story? Everything The Movie Changed

Patriots Day recreates the true story behind the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings and the subsequent terrorist manhunt that ensued. Directed by Peter Berg and starring his frequent collaborator Mark Wahlberg, the 2016 action drama relies on a fact-based approach to honor the lives that were lost and the real-life heroes who helped nab the criminals, ranging from Boston Police officials to local civilians. Some of the best Peter Berg movies, like Lone Survivor and Deepwater Horizon, dramatize real-life stories. In Patriots Day, Berg again relied on actual sources, like Watertown Sgt. Jeff Pugliese (played by J.K. Simmons), Police Commissioner Ed Davis (John Goodman), and Dun Meng (Jimmy O Yang).