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Is 2017 Film Megan Leavey Based on True Events? Real Story Behind Marine Corps Dog Handler Unveiled
Megan Leavey on Netflix tells the true story of US Marine Corps dog handler Megan Leavey or does it?. Starring Kate Mara, it earned $14.5 million globally. Know more about the 'debated' true story!
The movie Megan Leavey, now streaming on Netflix, was billed as a true story but it's yet to confirm how much of that is real. In 2017, US Marine Corps dog handler Megan Leavey's story was adapted into a movie starring Fantastic Four's Kate Mara as the lead. With an 'A' CinemaScore and 86% from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, the military drama was a big hit. At the box office, it brought in $14.5 million worldwide.
Megan Leavey’s Reel and Real Purpose to Join the Marines
After losing both her best friend and her job, Megan Leavey joins the Marine Corps to escape her life. In real life, however, Leavey cited the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center (9/11) as her main reason for joining the military.
Leavey told the National Purple Heart Honor Mission she couldn't just watch the "fight for freedom" from the sidelines. "I just couldn’t sit on the sidelines watching the fight for freedom unfold on television... If I’m determined to join the service, I’m going to aim for the highest and the best: the Marine Corps," she said.
Megan and Rex’s First Meet
She met Rex when she joined the K-9 Unit at Camp Pendleton. This was not when she worked clean-up duty at a kennel as punishment, as shown in the movie. Task and Purpose quoted several members of Leavey's unit who questioned many aspects of the movie. Like how did the vet get paired with Rex and make it to the K-9 Unit?
After completing the Military Working Dog Basic Handler Course in San Antonio, Texas, Leavey was simply assigned to the unit through official orders, like everybody else. This was another one of the few complaints from the Marines.
Unlike in the movie Megan Leavey where she got her job as a dog handler after proving she could shoot, exceeding Marine Corps fitness standards and wearing bite-proof gear.
Rex was Definitely Not Like That or Was He?
In a second talk with Task and Purpose, Joe Kang, Rex's former handler before Leavey, insists he wasn't bitten by the dog as the movie portrays. He calls the movie "full of sh*t" and says it makes Rex "look like a piece of sh*t."
According to Kang, Rex on-screen might have been inspired by another dog named Kevin who bit handlers who were described as "f***ing nuts," "beast" and "land shark."
According to Mike Dowling, another former handler of Rex, the famous dog had a good temperament. He can be aggressive when necessary and appropriate, such as in combat, but Dowling says it's "always safe to have (Rex) off the leash." "It was always safe to keep him off leash as long as he was around handlers or Marines who knew enough to leave him alone,” he said.
Megan Leavey's Struggles were Not Just Hers
Members of Megan Leavey's unit claim parts of the script take events that happened to others in the same kennel and "claim them as hers." Leavey's trainer Jason Wood said there are so many discrepancies in the movie. "I couldn't believe the discrepancies. This script took events that happened to others in our kennel and claimed they were hers."
On September 4, 2006, Megan Leavey and Rex got injured during their second tour of Iraq. But her on-screen 'apparent true story' shows a firefight following Leavey's recovery from explosive injuries.
The National Purple Heart Honor Mission triggered the explosion, which sent Leavey and Rex flying. She was bleeding from her ears and had a severe concussion. It resulted in hearing loss, brain trauma and PTSD, while Rex suffered shoulder and neurological damage.
The medal citation for Leavey's Purple Heart honour after her injury was provided to Task and Purpose. It notes how she was " knocked unconscious by an IED but refused to return to base and wanted to continue the mission."
This led some to question whether the firefight that ensued after Leavey's injury in the movie took place as no such encounter was mentioned in the citation, although it was made clear she continued with the mission.
A film crew member initially "questioned" the story of her firefight after the explosion, but ultimately decided to include it since it would make for a "better story," as per reports.
As part of the film business, he explained, the goal is to "put people in the seats" which requires deviations from the norm at times to make things "more interesting."
"The thing is, you need to make a good movie to get people in the seats. So we're going to deviate at times and say that it'd be more interesting if we went with A instead of B, or C instead of D. We didn't look into the truth and we didn't have to but we thought it was a better story if we changed it a bit," the crew member went on to say.
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