10 lifetime movies that were based on a true story, ranked by how accurate they are

Lifetime is known for making low-budget films that are extremely captivating and some are even true. Here are some of their most true-to-life stories.

The Lifetime channel is known for making low-budget films that are extremely captivating and emotional. A good number of these films tend to be based on true stories. And not just any true stories, but the most shocking. There is no bias towards viral stories, even smaller stories are given attention.

But how accurate are these movies? Do they portray what exactly happened or do they tweak the truth for the purposes of entertainment? Here is a ranking of some of the more popular Lifetime movies based on their accuracy.

10 Oscar Pistorius: Blade Runner Killer

Sports stars are normally portrayed positively in biopics but Oscar Pistroisous got the opposite treatment. The famous paralympic athlete was charged with killing his girlfriend on Valentine’s Day, 2013. Despite Pistorious claiming it was an accidental killing, he was found guilty. Surprisingly, he was given a controversial sentence of seven years.

Events in the film were highly disputed. Carl Pistorius — the athlete’s brother — strongly condemned the film, terming it a “gross distortion of the findings of the court” and “not an accurate portrayal of events.” Steenkamp’s family also said it was not consulted during the making of the film and therefore did not endorse it.

9 Girl In The Box

Girl In The Box tells the story of a 22-year-old woman named Colleen Stan, who was kidnaped in 1977 by a young couple while hitchhiking. Stan was held captive for seven years and during this lengthy period, she was tortured and kept in a box.

Accurate? Not really! For example, in the film, the husband refused to give the wife a child unless she went along with the kidnapping. But according to real accounts, the couple already had a childwhen they kidnapped Stan The film also states that Colleen negotiated to be allowed to go see her parents shortly before she was released. But real-life accounts state that this happened about three years before she was finally released.

8 Betty And Coretta (2013)

The movie tells the story of Betty Shabazz, the wife of Malcolm X, and Coretta Scott King, the wife of Martin Luther King, Jr. Despite their husbands rarely seeing eye to eye due to conflicting ideologies, Betty and Coretta became close after their husbands were assassinated.

Betty’s daughter was not impressed with the manner in which her mother was portrayed. She stated that Betty was shown to be a little timid yet she was fierce. She also stated that her mother never tied a scarf to her head as portrayed in the movie. On the contrary, she rebelled against the dress code rules that the Nation Of Islam had imposed.

7 Chris Watts: Confessions Of A Killer

This chilling true crime movie tells the story of oil rig worker Chris Watts, who murdered his pregnant wife Shannan and their two children. A number of real-life events are recreated accurately in the movie, including Shannan’s pregnancy announcement on Facebook.

However, the plot heavily favors Chris and portrays him as an abused husband who did what he did because he was tired of being mistreated. However, only the account of Chris’ parents was taken. Shannan’s parents and siblings have stated that they were never consulted.

6 The Pregnancy Pact

Teenagers can be bad influences on each other and that’s what allegedly happened here. Apparently, in 2008, a group of 18 teenage girls made a pact to all become pregnant at the same time. And so they began having regular sex and taking regular pregnancy tests to the point where medics were alarmed.

The media soon ran away with the pregnancy pact story. But is it true? A good number of the girls refused to be interviewed,s but those that did deny there ever being a pact. The parents of the girls also disputed this theory. So, who is really telling the truth?

5 Britney Ever After

The movie chronicles the rise and fall of controversial pop star Britney Spears. There’s everything we’ve known about Britney.

While the movie was in production, Britney’s team gave Us Weekly the following statement: “Britney Spears will not be contributing in any way, shape or form to the Lifetime biopic, nor does it have her blessing.’ After the movie came out, none of the people portrayed had any objections, so its safe to conclude that it was mostly factual.

4 Harry And Meghan: A Royal Romance

Not many people are aware that there is a movie about the world’s most popular couple. It depicts the events that occurred in the years before the controversial lovebirds tied the knot. Both Harry and Markle’s journeys from childhood to adulthood are covered.

The film sticks to Markle and Harry’s own accounts, which they gave during a BBC interview after their engagement. Even the kitchen proposal is recreated in the same manner that Markle described it. Unless either of them was lying, the film can be termed as mostly true.

3 A Tale Of Two Coreys

The Lifetime drama touches on the story of popular 80s teen actors Corey Haim and Corey Feldman. The two became famous after appearing in a number of hit films but their time at the top was marred by drug abuse. The two were allegedly also sexually abused by some Hollywood executives.

Apparently, the film is not only accurate but it also had too many tales to cover that some details had to be left out. This is according to Corey Feldman, who also served as an executive producer.

2 Flint (2017)

Flint told the story of three women who sought to expose the local government for supplying lead-laden water to residents. The incident gave birth to a national movement that campaigned for clean and safe drinking water.

Water activist Melissa Mays, who is portrayed in the film as one of the main characters, said the film brought out the “Flint Crisis” quite well. Flint was highly praised by critics, too. It was nominated for an Emmy in the category of “Outstanding Television Movie.”

1 Cocaine Godmother

Cocaine Godmother tells the story of a Colombian woman named Griselda Blanco who moved to Miami at the age of 17 and got into the world of drug trafficking. She soon grew her empire and became one of the most wanted traffickers in the world.

Blanco was known as “The Black Widow.” She earned this nickname after she allegedly killed her husband with whom she shared three children. Most events in the film align with published stories about Blanco’s life, hence it qualifies as mostly true. No one has disputed the film’s narrative either.