Stronger is based on a true story and revolves around the life of Jeff Bauman, one of the many people injured during the Boston Marathon bombing.
The 2017 biographical drama film Stronger is based on a true story and details the life of Jeff Bauman before and after the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013. Bauman was near the finish line when the two bombs detonated, and he recounted his experiences in his 2014 memoir Stronger, which he co-wrote with Bret Witter. The book was used as the source material for the film adaptation.
Stronger stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Bauman and Tatiana Maslany as Erin Hurley, Bauman's girlfriend. Other cast members include Miranda Richardson, Clancy Brown, Carlos Sanz, Richard Lane Jr., Lenny Clarke, Frankie Shaw, Jimmy LeBlanc, Jessica Lundy, Patty O'Neil, and Cassandra Cato-Louis. Most of the characters in Stronger are based on real people, but the story mainly focuses on Bauman, his recovery following the domestic terrorist attack, and his relationship with Erin.
The 2013 Real-Life Boston Marathon Bombing Tragedy Explained
On April 15, 2013, Dzhokhar and Tamerlan Tsarnaev placed two homemade pressure cooker bombs close to the finish line of the Boston Marathon and remotely detonated them 12 seconds apart just before 3 p.m. ET (History). The explosions killed three people, including 8-year-old Martin Richard, 23-year-old Lu Lingzi, and 29-year-old Krystle Campbell, and injured 281 more. Boston immediately went under a lockdown following the domestic terrorist attack, and an investigation led by the FBI began.
The Tsarnaev brothers, who were motivated by extremist ideas but not tied to any major terrorist organization, returned to their everyday lives and tried to evade capture for as long as possible. However, it would only be a matter of time before the FBI and other agencies caught up to the bombers. Two days after the attack, investigators identified Dzhokhar and Tamerlan in surveillance footage from the day of the bombings. The FBI subsequently released the images and descriptions of the terrorists to the public, and the Tsarnaev brothers went on the run.
After fleeing their homes on April 18, one of the two men shot and killed Sean Collier, a 27-year-old MIT police officer, while he sat inside his patrol vehicle. Dzhokhar and Tamerlan then carjacked someone. The brothers' hostage escaped when they stopped at a gas station and called 911. Local police cornered Dzhokhar and Tamerlan, and a shootout ensued. Officers were able to tackle Tamerlan, and as Dzhokhar got into the stolen car and drove away, he ran over his brother. Tamerlan later died from his injuries at the hospital, and police found and arrested Dzhokhar while he was hiding in a boat.
Jeff Bauman Lost His Legs In The Boston Marathon Bombing
Bauman was one of the 12 people who had to undergo amputations as a result of the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013. According to People, Bauman, who was 27 years old at the time of the attack, was waiting at the finish line while his girlfriend, Hurley, ran the marathon. He was cheering for Hurley alongside two of her roommates when the two bombs went off. Hurley was only a mile away from the finish line when the attack occurred, so she wasn't injured by the blast. However, Bauman's life was completely changed after the bombs detonated.
Bauman woke up on the sidewalk and initially thought that a firework had caused the explosion, but as he looked around, he quickly realized that wasn't the case. Bauman spotted one of Hurley's roommates looking at him strangely. That's when he realized the damage that had been done to his legs. After paramedics transferred Bauman to a local hospital, surgeons came to the conclusion that they had no other choice but to amputate both of his legs, which was depicted in Stronger.
Carlos Arredondo Helped Saved Jeff's Life At The Boston Marathon
While Bauman laid on the ground after the explosion, an emergency responder tended to his injuries and made a tourniquet for one of his legs. Carlos Arredondo, a peace activist, was at the marathon as a spectator and rushed to Bauman's side when he saw him on the ground. Arredondo helped the first responders transport him to an ambulance. The pictures of Bauman and Arredondo at the scene of the explosions went viral after the attack, and they are some of the most memorable photos taken from that tragic day.
The Real Jeff Bauman Was Able To Correctly Identity The Bomber
In Stronger, Gyllenhaal's Bauman informed his family that he had seen one of the terrorists before the bombs exploded. The family contacted the FBI, and Bauman gave the agents a description of the suspect that later helped the authorities catch him. This miraculous event also happened in real life.
The real Bauman noticed a peculiar man, who turned out to be Tamerlan Tsarnaev, near the finish line before the bombs went off. Tamerlan was wearing a coat, a baseball cap, and sunglasses, and Bauman immediately thought that he stuck out from the crowd. Plus, the serious way that he was acting was strange. However, when Bauman tried to get a second look at him, Tamerlan was gone, but his backpack remained. Shortly afterward, the bombs went off. Later at the hospital, Bauman recounted the story to the FBI, just like in Stronger.
Jeff Bauman Had PTSD & Was Reluctantly Paraded In The Press After The Attack
Bauman was released from the hospital four weeks after he was admitted and immediately had to face his physical and mental trauma from the Boston Marathon bombings. As anyone could imagine, he had trouble adjusting to his new reality. But while Bauman was dealing with PTSD, the world wanted to celebrate his survival story.
Just a few days after coming home from the hospital, Bauman threw out the first pitch at a Boston Red Sox game alongside Arredondo. In Stronger, Gyllenhaal's Bauman is paraded around a Boston Bruins Stanley Cup game. The trauma from the terrorist attack led to many problems for Bauman, including depression and using alcohol as a coping mechanism, which would put a strain on his relationship with Hurley.
Jeff Bauman & Erin Hurley Got Married A Year After The Attack
Although Bauman and Hurley temporarily broke up following the bombings, they later rekindled their relationship, as depicted in Stronger. Hurley got pregnant and gave birth to their daughter Nora on July 13, 2014. A few months later, Bauman and Hurley got married, and in April 2016, three years after the bombing, he was there to cheer his wife on as she finally crossed the Boston Marathon finish line. Sadly, Bauman and Hurley announced they were getting divorced in February 2017, seven months before Stronger premiered.
Sources: History and People
