M. Night Shyamalan is no newcomer to sophisticated thrillers. His latest film, Catchtakes a The Silence of the Lambs-inspired approach in an unusual location: a sold-out concert by pop star Lady Raven (played by Saleka, the director’s daughter). Cooper (Josh Hartnett) is a seemingly normal suburban dad who takes his daughter to see her favorite artist. While striking up a conversation with a vendor at the venue, he finds out that the show is actually a trap: The FBI has a plan to catch a serial killer known as “The Butcher” after learning he would be in attendance. But as shown in the trailer, Cooper Is The butcher must find a way to escape.

Although the plot may sound far-fetched, it is partly based on a true story. Shyamalan shared that Catch was inspired by the real-life Operation Flagship. “I heard about it as a child and thought it was completely absurd that something like that actually happened,” the filmmaker told BBC News. “A lot was going through my head when it happened.”

“(The authorities) used the absurdity against them because they let their guard down, which I thought was pretty genius,” he added to the outlet. “So it just stuck in my mind, and I guess when Saleka and I were thinking about a movie at a concert, I was wondering why this person couldn’t get out and how could I keep them there?”

In the December 1985 operation organized by the United States Marshals and the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C., over 100 wanted fugitives were lured to the Washington Convention Center with the promise of free tickets to a Washington Redskins (now the Washington Commanders) game against the Cincinnati Bengals, as well as a chance to win tickets to the 1986 Super Bowl. The operation was reportedly part of a special event celebrating the launch of a new sports television network in D.C. called Flagship International Sports Television Inc. (the acronym is the same as the U.S. Marshals Service’s Fugitive Investigative Strike Team). To collect their tickets, the “winners” were told to show up at a brunch several hours before the game.

Upon arrival, the fugitives were divided into small groups and taken to “party rooms” where snacks and signs reading “Let’s party!” were provided. Marshals and police officers posed as event staff, and policewomen dressed as cheerleaders hugged guests to check them for weapons. The men were also given balloons sorted by color; violent criminals received red balloons.

Louie McKinney, the head of the U.S. Marshals’ enforcement division, acted as emcee and gave a speech to those in attendance before they received their awards. As soon as McKinney said he had a “big surprise,” the marshals entered the room to arrest the delinquents, repeating the same process with each group. It became one of the most successful mass arrests of fugitives in American history.

“It was hilarious. The cops were literally cheerleaders and mascots,” Shyamalan said to Rich Magazine in July. “And (the criminals) were all caught. It was so twisted and funny.”

Instead of using a popular football game (at the time of Operation Flagship, Redskins tickets were a particularly coveted commodity), Shyamalan decided to place the trap in a concert the size of a Taylor Swift Eras tour show. “I staged an entire concert,” the filmmaker said Rich“And it wasn’t just a thing in the background. It’s just as important. There’s no fake concert. I love the idea of ​​the cinema as a window within windows. One of the reasons to see the film in the cinema is because there’s literally a real concert that you can’t see anywhere else but in this film.”

Retired federal agent Tobias Roche, who was involved in Operation Flagship, checked the facts to British GQ how well thought out Shyamalan’s film was. In CatchA SWAT team waits outside the venue, and police officers can be seen questioning concertgoers inside. Roche argued that officers should have been more discreet. He explained that Operation Flagship was planned to avoid suspicion and distract criminals, and that was why it was successful. “We were afraid that some (of the escapees) would recognize each other because they might be in prison together or involved in criminal activities together,” Roche said.

In the film, a talkative salesman reveals the scheme. Roche told GQ that in this type of operation, everyone has to keep the plan secret for it to work. He recalled that a lawyer representing a local company that owned exclusive rights to the Redskins games showed up at the convention center and explained that the inaugural event of the – unknown to him – fake broadcast company Flagship International Sports Television was illegal. The man was taken aside and told what was really going on; he kept it secret. “He did a really good job of it,” Roche said. “He watched the whole thing with us from the control room.” But if the lawyer blew his cover, the operation would be over.