Is the Lola 2024 movie based on a true story? Know more about the upcoming indie drama showcasing Nicola Peltz Beckham's triple-threat debut as the film's titular star, screenwriter, and director.
CONTENT WARNING: This article contains descriptions of sensitive topics about child abuse, sexual assault, and how Lola James' sex work affects her personal life.
What is the Lola Movie About?
Nicola Peltz Beckham, best known for playing Katara in the first live-action adaptation of Aang: The Last Airbender, Bradley Martin in the Bates Motel series, and as Marley Meyers in The Obituary of Tunde Johnson, is making her triple-threat debut this February.
The film revolves around a 19-year-old girl named Lola James who lives somewhere in Los Angeles suburbia. She has to survive her abusive home while dealing with the grief of suffering from sexual assault and sex work.
As the official synopsis for the Lola movie reads:
19-year-old Lola James is trying to work to save enough money to get her beloved little brother, Arlo, out of their toxic home. Until one tragic night, when her whole world gets uprooted. From that moment on, nothing will ever be the same.
Considering that the depiction of teenagers striving to leave their abusive homes is nothing new, how did Nicola create this indie film? Is it based on a true story or a book? Read on.
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Is Lola Based on a True Story? Movie Inspiration Explored
The film's main star Nicola Peltz recently told Harper's Bazaar that she made the "entire backstory" of Lola James in her journal so to put it simply, no, Lola is not based on a true story.
The entire story of Lola started as a writing exercise in Peltz's journal, something she's been keeping since she was just 15 years old.
The Lola movie is not based on real-life events, as Pelts said in the same interview, "I just sat down. I was like, 'I'm just going to try this. I'm not going to tell anyone. Just gonna do it myself.' Then, the story just kind of came."
However, she did base Lola James' younger brother on her godson and created his character named Arlo, "I wanted [the film] to feel feminine and light, [like] how Arlo looks at the world—just soft."
Nicola is well aware of the heaviness of the topic and reassured viewers that the "pastel visual style" would make the story feel "softer" and "almost calming."
"I know the context is more intense and the story is more intense, so I wanted what you were watching to be the complete opposite," Nicola added.
Nicola Peltz's Lola movie comes out on February 9 brought to us by Vertical Entertainment. You can watch the official trailer here.
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