Is Cop Out Based on a True Story?

‘Cop Out’ follows two NYPD Detectives, Paul Hodges (Tracy Morgan) and James “Jimmy” Monroe (Bruce Willis), who are suspended by Captain Romans (Sean Cullen) for failing to fulfill their duties. Paul believes that his wife is cheating on him while Jimmy is worried about arranging money for his daughter’s expensive wedding. Since he is suspended without pay, Jimmy decides to sell his rare baseball card, but the dealer who is buying it gets robbed.

It turns out that the burglars are involved with running drugs, and the detective duo may have a chance at redeeming themselves. The comical story of the NYPD Detectives trying to get their lives on track and deal with their personal problems can entertain anyone. Some viewers may be curious to know its origins, so let’s explore if ‘Cop Out’ is rooted in reality or not.

Is Cop Out Based on a True Story?

No, ‘Cop Out’ is not based on a true story. The movie is written by the Cullen brothers (Robb and Mark Cullen), who together came up with the script for the entire film. They have never claimed that the brilliant idea for the cop movie is inspired by a real-life story, nor did anyone else involved in the film, so it’s safe to assume that the plot is entirely the work of the Cullen brothers. The brothers wanted to write a script for a movie that their late father would watch. Since he liked comedy and some action, they came up with something that would be an amalgamation of both genres.

Out of this desire, the script for ‘Cop Out’ was born. Kevin Smith, who was directing a film that he did not write for the first time in his life, invited the screenwriters on to the set. Talking about it to the Wall Street Journal, Cullen said,” He told us, this is the first film I’m directing that I didn’t write, so I want you two to be near the production.” It appears that Smith wanted the film as authentic to the script as possible and therefore invited the Cullen brothers to ensure that the story was executed as they had imagined it.

While talking about the lack of interest to portray ‘Cop Out’ as an interracial buddy-cop movie, the screenwriter Robb Cullen in an interview with New York Times, said,” We never came at it as, this is a black-and-white movie.” His brother Mark Cullen added,” The way we looked at it, we were just writing a romantic comedy for two guys.” Bruce Willis, while discussing what stood out for him in the film, expressed that it was the script that really impressed him and made him laugh out loud. In fact, the actor read it thrice.

Tracy Morgan and Bruce have an amazing on-screen bromance, and while talking about it, the former explained that they had a few talks before they actually began shooting for the film, which helped them bring the best in each other on-screen. Since the script is not based on a true story, it offered the actors to experiment, and they even improvised some of the scenes. So, the film is not in the slightest inspired by a real-life detective cop story and, in fact, takes little inspiration from real-life events.

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