'Cocaine Bear': Everything to know about the absurdist horror-comedy movie
What's the story
"A bear did cocaine." No matter how absurd that sounds, this is the main highlight of the horror-comedy movie Cocaine Bear. Based on Georgia's most infamous bruin, the true-crime saga by filmmaker Elizabeth Banks hit theaters on February 24 and blew past box office projections. The movie earned $23M from 3,500 North American theaters in its opening weekend. Here's everything about Cocaine Bear.
Inspiration
The movie is inspired by a bear that ingested cocaine
Writer Jimmy Warden was inspired by a true incident that took place in 1985 when a black bear was found in the forests of Georgia surrounded by 40 opened containers of cocaine. The drugs were traced back to a convicted drug smuggler, whose aircraft, loaded with illegal drugs crashed. Drug smuggler Andrew Thornton was found dead and believed to have jumped, wearing a parachute.
Cast
Meet the cast of 'Cocaine Bear'
The movie is believed to have caught the attention of audiences due to its ensemble cast that included The American actors Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, and Margo Martindale. It even features Star Wars: A Solo Story's Alden Ehrenreich. Even with oozing star power, the filmmakers believed that the main star of the film was Cokey the Cocaine Bear, who became the ultimate poster girl.
Twitter Post
Check out a clip from the movie
real movie. inspired by real events. so real. pic.twitter.com/p1tRSWjUvF
— Cocaine Bear (@cocainebear) February 25, 2023
Box office
'Cocaine Bear,' a low-budget, shiny win at the box office
The movie roared at the box office this weekend. To note, with a production cost of just $30M, the film opened to a thunderous response at the box office. It successfully outpaced Marvel's Ant-Man 3, which saw a massive drop at the box office. The film also became a viral sensation online due to its trailer, which received over 18M views on YouTube.
Fiction
A drug-fueled animal killing, an absurdist entertainment
The movie showcased a drug-fueled animal that is on a spree to kill people. The violence and rampage by the bear portrayed in the movie are largely fictional. In real life, the wild animal, affectionately named Pablo Eskobear, did not kill anyone. However, the movie wastes no time in establishing that the animal is a threat to humans, which marks the biggest difference.
Did you know
This is what happened to the real bear post drugs
Films that are inspired by real incidents are highly popular and frequently sought-after by studios. However, the difference between real and reel life is quite vast. The true story of Cocaine Bear reveals that the bear reportedly died post taking drugs, setting a different fate than what is shown in the movie. Reportedly, the animal had passed due to an overdose in its system.