While The Boys in the Boat is based on real events, the film adaptation was modified extensively.
George Clooney directed and produced 2023's The Boys in the Boat, which is based on Daniel James Brown's 2013 book of the same name.
The film depicts the story of the University of Washington rowing team's journey to compete in the 1936 Summer Olympics.
However, while many fans are enjoying the film on Amazon Prime Video, not all of the events are based on facts.
The Boys Rowed More Races
In reality, the University of Washington rowing team
participated in many more races over a longer period than depicted in the film.
The real events took place over three years, while The Boys in the Boat compresses this timeline into a single year.
Producer Grant Heslov explained in an interview with RadioTimes.com that the filmmaking team had to make a few changes, later deciding that "three races would be the right amount in a two-hour film:"
"In the book, there's a lot more detail, there's a lot more races. And we obviously couldn't do all those races. So the challenging part really was trying to figure out like... we decided that three races would be the right amount in a two-hour film, and just figuring out what that was going to be like, and how we could sort of fit that into the storyline."
Many sports movies come to similar conclusions by skipping over games or events to keep the runtime appropriate.
Joe Rantz's Backstory Got Cut Down
A notable moment in Joe Rantz's life that is not included in The Boys in the Boat is the abandonment by his family when he was just 15 years old.
Book author Daniel James Brown told USA Today that the University of Washington's junior-varsity crew team's journey to victory at the Berlin Olympics spanned three years. Still, the movie compresses this into 1936, the pivotal year.
This strategy omits important details of Rantz's harsh upbringing, including his parents leaving and telling him, "We're not taking you:"
"There was a moment in high school, it was a rainy day and the car was packed up with his father, stepmother and stepkids, and they said 'We're leaving, and we're not taking you. It's a touchstone of his story, and resulted in it being hard for him to trust people."
For more context, Rantz lost his mother to cancer at age four and was disliked by his stepmother, leading to his expulsion from the family home at age 10.
This led to the family's abandonment, forcing him to survive independently through hunting, fishing, and taking odd jobs.
Berkeley Never Helped the Team Go to Berlin
In The Boys in the Boat, the University of Washington rowing team holds a fundraising drive to afford their trip to the Berlin Olympics, receiving a pivotal $300 check from the University of California, Berkeley coach, Ky Ebright.
In reality, the coach did not provide money but offered significant moral support despite their rivalry. The donation was clearly added for dramatic effect and to reinforce the idea of Berkeley looking past their rivalry.
The Movie Omitted an Attempt to Meet the President
In real life, the University of Washington rowing team attempted to meet President Roosevelt before a big race in Poughkeepsie by rowing to his Hyde Park estate.
However, this event is not included in The Boys in the Boat. Author Daniel James Brown spoke to TIME about their attempt to meet the President.
He explained that Hyde Park was near where President Roosevelt, and the team made their way "through the woods trying to find the Roosevelt estate:"
"Before a big race in Poughkeepsie, they realized that Hyde Park was just a couple miles up the river, where President Roosevelt lived a good deal of time. So they went up river and got out of the boat and tramped through the woods trying to find the Roosevelt estate.
The rowers boldly "just walked up and knocked on the door," but President Roosevelt wasn't home, so they ended up having "a nice chat about rowing" with his son:
"Finally, they did find it and just walked up and knocked on the door to see if the President was in. He was in D.C., but one of his sons invited them in, who was a rower. So they sat down in the President's sitting room at Hyde Park and had a nice chat about rowing, and then they were off again."
The Olympic Final Wasn't Determined by a Photo
In The Boys in the Boat, the 1936 Olympic rowing final depicts an extremely close finish decided by a photo, determining the U.S. victory over Italy and Germany.
The true story is that no photo was used; rather, the winners were announced after an extended judges' deliberation. In a way, it was a "photo finish," but it wasn't truly decided by using a photo.
It's clear why they chose this dramatic direction for the movie's end: to make an entertaining film.
The Boys in the Boat is now streaming on Amazon's Prime Video.
