Another apocalyptic political thriller from Netflix is taking over the watercooler conversation this week. This time, it\u2019s A House of Dynamite<\/a><\/em>, the newest film from director Kathryn Bigelow<\/a> and screenwriter Noah Oppenheim that explores the moments after a missile is launched against the United States with unknown origins, and the Missile Defense Agency must scramble to determine who is responsible and how to respond to it.<\/p>\n The events of the film are told from three different perspectives: Capt. Olivia Walker (Rebecca Ferguson<\/a>), a senior officer in the White House\u2019s Situation Room, STRATCOM\u2019s Maj. Daniel Gonzales (Anthony Ramos<\/a>), and the president (Idris Elba<\/a>).<\/p>\n Bigelow is, of course, no stranger to creating disturbing films that are based on real-life accounts (see also The Hurt Locker<\/a><\/em> and Zero Dark Thirty<\/a><\/em>), so fans of the movie may be wondering whether A House of Dynamite<\/em> is a true story.<\/p>\n Not exactly. The event at the center of the action \u2014 a nuclear launch \u2014 has not happened, and all of the characters are fiction. However, Bigelow did rely on some true-to-life elements, such as the location of the missile defense system in Fort Greely, Alaska, and certain reported response methods.<\/p>\n Eros Hoagland \/ Netflix<\/p>\n<\/div>\n As Bigelow explained to Netflix\u2019s Tudum<\/a>, \u201cFor me, film is an opportunity to explore worlds few people know anything about. It\u2019s a journalistic approach to filmmaking, where the distinction between entertainment and information is fused and fluid.\u201d Meanwhile, Oppenheim explained, \u201cWe did an extraordinary amount of research when we were preparing this film. I spoke to as many people as I could who\u2019ve worked in these rooms, who\u2019ve had these jobs.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramos, who plays the officer in charge of the 59th Missile Battalion, said<\/a> he worked with real STRATCOM officials in the making of the movie, and added, \u201cOnce we\u2019d shown them the finished film, when they saw our scene, one of them got emotional. They haven\u2019t been in a position where this has happened, but they said that it has come close a few times.\u201d Indeed, the film\u2019s technical advisor, Dan Karlber, previously served as chief of staff in STRATCOM and got the writer and director into<\/a> the Nebraska-based Strategic Command headquarters as part of their research process.<\/p>\n Headlines, puzzles and death notices from the Valley delivered to your inbox 7 a.m. daily.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n In other words, while the plot points and characters of the film are fictionalized, the writer and director aimed to make the actions taken in this hypothetical scenario as true-to-reality as possible, based on their research.<\/p>\nIs A House of Dynamite<\/em> based on a true story?<\/h2>\n
![\"Yakima](\"https:\/\/bloximages.newyork1.vip.townnews.com\/yakimaherald.com\/content\/tncms\/assets\/v3\/media\/c\/dd\/cdd57909-b8ee-4649-87f4-790f25659475\/68d45f9ca2a47.image.jpg\")
\n <\/div>\nWhat is the government saying about A House of Dynamite<\/em>?<\/h2>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.tvinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Idris-Elba-in-A-House-of-Dynamite-855x570.jpg\")
<\/p>\n