The real story behind Fellow Travelers: Is the CANAL+ series with Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey adapted from real people?

Before it was a TV series, Fellow Travelers is a book written by Thomas Malone that depicts the “Purple Scare” – the kidnapping of homosexuals – in the United States in the 1950s. In this context of fear and oppression, led by politician Joseph McCarthy, two men experience romantic passion in the greatest illegality, at the risk of losing everything.

Historical facts, but fictional characters

So well documented, it’s legitimate to wonder if the stories of these two heroes were inspired by people who really existed. In fact, the characters of Hawkins and Tim are purely fictional, as are Marcus and Frank – who don’t even appear in the book.

However, a large part of the series is based on historical facts. Creator and writer Ron Niswaner spent months in research. The author, accompanied by two assistants, dug through archives and trial recordings, as he told AlloCiné:Everything characters say in public, from Joseph McCarthy to Roy Cohn, they actually said.”

“Everyone was immersed in research”

“If you watch McCarthy’s auditions for the military in episode 5 and you go on YouTube, you’re like, wowhe specifies. Our cinematographers, our sets, were all immersed in research.” This definition also applies to the lie detector scene. All the questions were really asked at this point.

The character of Marcus, played by Jelani Aladdin, is also inspired by someone who really existed: Simeon Booker, the first black journalist to be hired The Washington Post. “He wasn’t gay, but as in the show, Simeon Booker had to use a separate toilet” – adds Ron Niswaner. After more than 65 years in journalism, Simeon Booker has retired The Washington Post In 2007, he died ten years later, in 2017.

Comments collected by Thomas Desroches on December 28, 2023.

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