Is ‘Boots’ on Netflix Based on a True Story?

Netflix‘s new series Boots tells the story of a sweet teen who joins the United States Marine Corps in the hopes that it will help him become a totally different, far more masculine, person. Cameron Cope (Miles Heizer) just so happens to be in the closet in 1990, a time of rampant homophobia when being gay in the military was literally illegal. Nevertheless, Cameron heads off to boot camp with best friend Ray (Liam Oh).

Besides dealing with the insane physical and psychological challenges of USMC training, Cameron has to battle himself. Can he keep his true nature hidden? Can he accept who he truly is? And can Boots possibly be based on a true story???

Were there really gay men enlisted in the Marines at a time when it could mean expulsion or worse? Is Marine training really that grueling? How much of Netflix’s new show Boots is real and how much of it is pure fiction?

Here’s everything you need to know about the true story and real life Marine culture that inspired Boots…

Is Boots on Netflix Based on a True Story?

So, it turns out that the new show Boots is very much based on a true story! Netflix’s Boots is inspired by The Pink Marine by Greg Cope White. That memoir deals with Cope White’s experiences as a closeted gay USMC recruit in the early ’90s.

Cameron Cope is a character roughly based on the real Greg Cope White. Like the author, Cameron enters the Marine Corp with his straight best friend, with whom he has a devoted, yet platonic, friendship.

“The first thing that grabbed my attention about the pilot when I got the script was this really nuanced and tender and deep love that exists between these two men,” Boots star Liam Oh said. “But there’s not this, like, coded longing that I think we’re very used to in these types of relationships in most films and TV.”

“I think ultimately that lends a depth to the relationship because they’re able to explore that love, they’re able to grow up together.”

Greg Cope White’s best friend in real life and his book is named Dale, not Ray, but the relationship is similar. One of complete platonic devotion.

Other storylines in Boots were created in the writers’ room, but inspired by the real stories of the project’s many military advisors, some of whom were writers. For instance, the character of Sullivan (Max Parker), the drill instructor hiding his own secret, is not in The Pink Marine. However, he is indicative of the many heroic servicemen and women who were forced to hide their homosexuality to serve in the military.

As for the grueling training that Cameron, Ray, and their pals undertake, it’s very accurate to what ’90s USMC training really was, from the pugil sticks to confidence course and beyond.

Boots Season 1 is now streaming on Netflix.