In the gripping true story behind the Netflix series Painkiller
The new Netflix drama Painkiller, which delves deeply into the opioid epidemic in the United States, premiered on Thursday, August 10.
Painkiller stars Matthew Broderick as Purdue Pharma boss Richard Sackler, while West Duchovny plays Shannon Shaeffer – one of his “Oxycontin Kittens” who sets out to sell the dangerously addictive painkillers to doctors.
What is the true story behind the new series? What caused the opioid epidemic in the series? Who are Purdue Pharma?
Read on below for all the important information you need to know about the new Netflix series Painkiller.
Painkiller stars Matthew Broderick as Purdue Pharma boss Richard Sackler. Pictured: Broderick appears in the trailer for the new series
Is Painkiller based on a true story?
The new Netflix drama explores the true story of the United States’ opioid epidemic, for which Purdue Pharma was found partly responsible, when the company misled the public about how addictive the drug OxyContin was.
The show itself focuses on the beginnings of the opioid crisis by watching Purdue Pharma and OxyContin.
Painkiller was inspired for his plot by two texts, the book Pain Killer by Barry Meier, and an article in the New Yorker by Patrick Radden Keefe entitled The Family That Build an Empire of Pain, which was published in October 2017.
As a result, Meier is credited as a consulting producer, while Keefe is listed as an executive producer.
“The crisis wasn’t something that just happened like a hurricane or a flood,” Gibey says in the show’s press notes.
βIt was something manufactured; manufactured by companies looking to make huge profits. I realized that this opioid crisis that I’ve heard so much about wasn’t just a crisis, it really was a crime,” producer Alex Gibey stated in the show’s press notes.
What Caused the Opioid Epidemic in Painkiller?
The epidemic began in the United States in the late 1990s β according to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) β when opioids were increasingly prescribed for pain management, resulting in an increase in overall opioid use in subsequent years.
The epidemic began with the over-prescribing and misuse of prescription drugs.
However, as prescription drugs began to become less accessible in 2016 in response to the CDC’s opioid prescription guidelines, there was an increase in the accessibility of cheaper, illegal alternatives to opioids such as heroin and fentanyl.
In the US, 107,622 deaths were due to drug overdose in 2021, an increase of almost 15 percent from the previous year.
Indeed, one infamous family is strongly linked to the US opioid epidemic: the Sacklers.
Richard Sackler – played by Matthew Broderick – became president of Purdue Pharma in 1991
Who are the real people behind fictional characters in Painkiller?
Richard Sackler – played by Matthew Broderick – became president of Purdue Pharma in 1991, pioneering marketing campaigns that enticed droves of medical professionals to buy Purdue’s opioid.
Born in New York on March 10, 1945, Sackler was previously married to Beth Sackler.
The couple had three children – Rebecca, Marianna and David – but are now divorced.
Uzo Aduba also stars in the new series as Edie Flowers, the lawyer who takes on Purdue Pharma.
The series goes on a journey with Edie as she tries to take on the Sackler family in the 1990s and early 2000s, before the show moves forward in time to see her giving advice to other attorneys who have their own lawsuits against Purdue. tighten pharma.
Who are Purdue Pharma and what crimes have they been convicted of?
Purdue Pharma was a pharmaceutical company founded by John Purdue Gray in New York in 1892.
The company was primarily owned by members of the Sackler family, descendants of Mortimer and Raymond Sackler.
Richard Sackler became president of Purdue Pharma in 1991 and ran pioneering marketing campaigns that enticed crowds of medical professionals to buy Purdue’s opioid.
The company was best known as the developer of the drug OxyContin, but faced several lawsuits and fines after it was linked to the opioid epidemic in the United States.
Richard became co-chair in 2003, when $1.6 billion worth of OxyContin had been sold.
His marketing plans aroused suspicion and in 2015 Richard was ousted before his company paid a $24 million settlement to the state of Kentucky.
In July 2023, it was revealed that Purdue Pharma is proceeding with a bankruptcy settlement that protects the owners of the Sackler family from lawsuits, despite a possible U.S. Supreme Court appeal in the case, following a U.S. court ruling.
Uzo Aduba also stars in the new series as Edie Flowers, the lawyer who takes on Purdue Pharma
The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals approved Purdue’s bankruptcy plan in May 2023, ruling that the company can protect its owners from opioid lawsuits in exchange for a $6 billion contribution to the company’s broader bankruptcy settlement.
Following the ruling, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) bankruptcy watchdog asked the court to suspend approval of the bankruptcy plan to allow time for a possible appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The DOJ argued that Purdue should not be allowed to proceed with its restructuring before the Supreme Court has had a chance to rule on legal protections for non-bankrupt entities, an issue that has divided bankruptcy courts across the US
The DOJ said it planned to file a petition with the Supreme Court by Monday, August 28, 2023.