Thing is, Samantha, we don’t care whether it’s exactly accurate. Many of the characters' backgrounds reflect the backgrounds of the people on which they're based. In total, there were four victims working with police. Their accomplices, Marsi Rosen and Karina Pascucci, both pleaded guilty to conspiracy and grand larceny and were each sentenced to weekends in jail for four months as well as five years’ probation in January 2016. Rosen and Pascucci were sentenced to weekends in jail for four months and five years probation. In 2017, Barbash was sentenced to five years probation after pleading guilty to conspiracy, assault, and grand larceny, as reported by Page Six. In real life, when Keo took the deal, Barbash found out and, according to Pressler's story, texted her, "We heard you took a deal. By Kate Hudson | Film | September 17, 2019 | By Kate Hudson | Film | September 17, 2019 | Hustlers was the number one movie in America this past weekend, and for good reason too because it is very good, and also, J.Lo nailed it in every possible way in her role. “Not taking away from Jennifer,” she says. It also grasps some fundamental realities about our work that so few other depictions get right: that sex work is really hard, and half the job is making it seem like you’re not working at all. Sit back, put on some “Criminal,” and let’s all revel in Ramona Vega once more: Ramona, Dorothy, Mercedes, and Annabelle Aren’t Their Real Names. Per the article above, the real people the characters are based on don’t align with the character names given to them. How much I want a filmmaker to get it right for … Keo turned the con into an organized enterprise, keeping track of each target and how much they took. All rights reserved. Starring Jennifer Lopez, Constance Wu, and so many more famous faces, the movie tells the story of a group of savvy exotic dancers who hoodwink wealthy men to make money, and some viewers may be surprised to hear the movie is actually inspired by a true story. “We’re putting a stop to it because she’s actually misrepresenting me,” Barbash said about J. Lo to the New York Post. They’d freely use their credit cards and rack up tens of thousands of charges. She called it fishing. “I am nothing like that in person,” she says. “Did I drug anyone? In the early days of the con, Barbash would go through her contact list and send men pictures of two of her friends, Marsi Rosen and Karina Pascucci. Eventually, Keo stopped dancing. But when it comes to how accurate Hustlers is compared to the real-life events it's based on, the major points are all very real. Regardless of how closely (or not) the movie portrays what happened in real life, not everyone is thrilled about Hustlers. In April 2017, Barbash pleaded guilty to assault, conspiracy, and grand larceny in exchange for five years' probation. Pascucci and Rosen would also look for targets in bars. Though Keo later went back on what she said in her interview with Pressler, telling a fact-checker that she had made everything in the article up, Pressler confirmed the story had been "corroborated by multiple indictments and interviews.". While. The film stars Constance Wu, Jennifer Lopez, Julia Stiles, Keke Palmer, Lili Reinhart, Lizzo, and Cardi B. Culture 7 Historically Accurate Moments In 'Once Upon A Time In Hollywood' 1 / 0. One hundred percent. To label the women strippers would be a reduction of what was, At last, in 2015, the scheme got an appropriately glossy magazine treatment when journalist Jessica Pressler, Destiny's grandmother (Wai Ching Ho) has a major part in. So, how accurate is Hustlers? So if you're dying to know more about these women, definitely check out the piece that inspired it. In the movie, Destiny agrees to a deal when they are first arrested and tells Ramona outside of the police precinct. According to Pressler's article, the women would pick wealthy guys and arrange for someone in their group to meet up with them and to get them drunk, often allegedly involving drugs as well. The movie also reportedly nailed how the actual scheme went down. If the men were interested, they’d take the women out for an evening. Music megastars Cardi B, Lizzo, and Usher all make appearances as well, but it's not clear if their characters directly correlate with anyone from the true story. You can follow her on Twitter. Barbash, who worked as a hostess at Scores gentlemen’s club in Chelsea, said the team behind the flick failed to get permission to use her life rights. Barbash, however, seems to have gotten on board the Hustlers train since the NY Post article publication in April, recently posting pictures on Instagram embracing her ties to the movie: #samanthabarbash#underscore#hustlersmovie #queenofwallstreet#hustlers @fashionnova #novababe, A post shared by Samantha Barbash ™️ (@iam_missfoxita) on Sep 7, 2019 at 4:13pm PDT. Keo remembers buying her first pair of Louboutins. Hustlers is a 2019 American crime drama film written and directed by Lorene Scafaria, based on New York magazine's 2015 article "The Hustlers at Scores" by Jessica Pressler. So, how accurate is Hustlers? Fact Checking the Real 'Hustlers': How Accurate Were Jennifer Lopez and Constance Wu’s Portrayals? Hustlers is another one of those stories that are so outrageous, you’d think they were made up. How'd they do it? They, along with the HBO show. Never in my life. Namely, when Destiny took the plea deal in the movie, it happened right after they were arrested, and she told Ramona in person. They really hired sex workers from Craigslist to help them run the scheme and really took them shopping for new clothes. In fact, Barbas was, How True Is Hustlers? via GIPHY. Censorship and invisibility online forces the most vulnerable of us back into exploitative clubs, working outside or left with little choice but to take a call from a client that might be dangerous. Samantha Barbash, the real-life inspiration for Jennifer Lopez’s savvy, scammy character Ramona in Hustlers, doesn’t think the movie is that impressive. As Pressler noted, "Her story is corroborated by multiple indictments and many interviews.". Understandable, because some of the women mentioned don’t want to be associated with the film (in particular, the woman Mercedes is based on.) We first meet Destiny in 2007, when she’s still going by Dorothy and has only recently started dancing in the big city to help supplement her grandmother’s income. When she reconnected with Barbash in 2013, the fishing scheme had begun. When we talk about the concept of karma, we often think of it very simply: what we sow, As observed by her filmography, Allison Williams sure has a taste for starring in films that will make people scream, and her newest project is no differen, This story contains spoilers for The Forty-Year-Old Version, streaming on Netflix October 9. Like, if you told me the bill was $40,000, I knew exactly what cut went to what,”. It can also be assumed many of the movie's smaller beats and much of the character dialogue was not what was said in real life verbatim. However, according to Pressler's story, when Keo took the plea deal, Ramona simply texted her saying, "We heard you took a deal. So while it's hard to say exactly which tiny moments occurred in real life, it appears the movie remains quite faithful to Pressler's article. It sounds like there are some major parallels between fact and fiction. The two women really did point at each other when they were asked after their arrest which one was the ringleader. In fact, she thinks Cardi B would have played her better. But then Hustlers begins, and something feels different. Rosie, in particular, viewed Samantha as what not to become. As in the movie, Keo and Barbash also hired sex workers from Craigslist and Backdoor, and brought them in on the spoils. Men who would drop thousands at a strip club in a night years before were suddenly more fiscally restrained. Doug (played by Steven Boyer) racks up a disastrous amount of money on his corporate card. Hustlers was the number one movie in America this past weekend, and for good reason too because it is very good, and also, J.Lo nailed it in every possible way in her role. According to the New York Times, the way they were busted in the film also lines up with the real-life story, in that multiple men sparked investigations by coming forward with complaints about sky-high credit card bills from nights they didn't remember. The true story behind Hustlers is just about as surprising and fascinating as the film itself. Then, amid all the festivities, either Rosen or Pascucci would spike the man’s drink with a blend of MDMA and ketamine. All the names are changed; Keo is Destiny and Barbash is Ramona. Elena Nicolaou. The movie, which debuted on Sept. 13, is based on the 2015 New York magazine article by Jessica Pressler called "The Hustlers at Scores." Hopefully these projects helps fans see how multiple sides of the story come together to form a more complete picture of this wild con. Keo took a plea deal in 2016, admitting to grand larceny and attempted assault, and also got five years probation. Outside of the overall plot about the scam, there are many specific moments that are true to life, according to Keo. One of those women really did end up helping the police bust them. At least they are according to what the women behind the film's two main characters said in the New York Magazine story on which the film is based. Hustlers: Real-life woman portrayed by Jennifer Lopez says star 'betrayed' her in 'inaccurate' movie. Barbash is the inspiration behind Ramona, one of the film's protagonists It's true that Keo's parents left and she lived with her grandparents. Clearly, the less-than-dramatic exchange had to be swapped out for a more emotional moment between the two women. Both women have very emotional reactions that reflect the bond the two characters share throughout the movie. Barbash sent her a text: Plus, the real women weren’t stripping when they started fishing. So in the movie, a few men — not just one — tip off the police to the women’s crimes. By Kate Hudson | Film | September 17, 2019 | By Kate Hudson | Film | September 17, 2019 | Hustlers was the number one movie in America this past weekend, and for good reason too because it is very good, and also, J.Lo nailed it in every possible way in her role.