What's the real-life inspiration behind Netflix's Nyad? The truth, or lack thereof, is complicated.
The Big Picture With their first narrative feature, documentary filmmakers Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin take viewers into the life of one of America's most well-known swimmers with Nyad. Based on the 2015 memoir Find a Way, the film stars Annette Bening as Diana Nyad and depicts her highly-publicized 2013 swim from Cuba to the United States.
Diana Nyad Started Swimming Again in Her 60s Decades after embarking on a new path, Diana Nyad once again took to the water, hoping to accomplish a challenge that had escaped her: swimming from Cuba to Florida. Reflecting on her decision to make another attempt, she told The Guardian, "I kept on thinking about all the things in my life I could have done differently. My mother had died at 82 and I realized I might only have 22 years left and I just wanted to make sure I really lived them.
In hindsight, perhaps her most damning statement came in a 1976 interview when she told The Village Voice, "It’s true I used to lie. Only to impress myself. I would tell a cab driver a lie—anybody. I don't have to do that anymore." Daniel Slosberg's website reveals a slew of false claims, which he compiled and examined with a level of thoroughness and detail on par with a forensics team.
Diana Nyad's 2013 Swim Drew Controversy Among Peers As soon as she emerged on a Florida beach in September 2013, prominent people familiar with and connected to the swimming community voiced skepticism about the legitimacy of Diana Nyad's major feat due to her past record of dishonesty. She maintained she was the first person to accomplish the monumental swim from Cuba, but according to Deflector, that distinction belongs to Walter Poenisch, an Ohio native who completed the trek in 1978.
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Annette Bening ‘Nyad’ Review: Swimming Biopic Is Too One-Note to EnjoyThere’s ostensibly a fascinating story to tell about Diana Nyad, whose legendary swim from Cuba to Florida at age 64 is rife with controversy. This heart-tugging biopic isn’t it.
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