Entertainment
Is House Of Gucci based on a true story?
Lady Gaga plays Patrizia Reggiani (Picture: SplashNews.com)
Lady Gaga is making her return to the silver screen this weekend in her first role since her Oscar-nominated performance in 2018’s A Star Is Born.
She is playing Patrizia Reggiani in Ridley Scott’s new drama House Of Gucci, set in the cutthroat world of high-end fashion.
The Chromatica singer, 35, recently joined the rest of the cast – which includes Adam Driver, Salma Hayek, and Jared Leto – at the London premiere of the film wearing a stunning purple gown and platform boots.
The name Gucci is one of the most famous in fashion, leading many to wonder what truth there is behind the new film that explores the darker and murderous history behind the dynasty.
So, is the story of House Of Gucci real, or is the daring designer drama a fake?
Is House Of Gucci based on a true story?
Though House of Gucci is based on a true story, how close-to-life the movie is has been a point of debate.
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House Of Gucci charts the married life of Patrizia (played by Gaga) and her husband Maurizio Gucci (played by Driver), both of whom were real.
Reggiani herself is in fact still alive at the age of 72.
Maurizio Gucci was an Italian businessman and once head of the Gucci fashion house.
He was the son of actor Rodolfo Gucci (played in the film by Jeremy Irons), and the grandson of Giuccio Gucci, the company’s founder.
The film is based on the non-fiction book, The House of Gucci: A Sensational Story of Murder, Madness, Glamour, and Greed by Sara G. Forden, which focuses on Patrizia and Maurizio’s tumultuous marriage, leading up to Maurizio’s murder in 1995.
A highly publicised trial followed in 1998, where Reggiani was convicted of hiring a hitman to kill her ex-husband. The Italian press dubbed her the ‘Black Widow’.
The Gucci family has already expressed their disappointment in the way the film appears to depict the real-life events.
Maurizio Gucci – played by Adam Driver in the film – was murdered in 1995 (Picture: Erin Combs/Toronto Star via Getty Images)
Patricia Gucci – who is Maurizio Gucci’s first cousin – told the Associated Press, on behalf of the Gucci family, that they felt let down by the film.
‘They are stealing the identity of a family to make a profit, to increase the income of the Hollywood system’ she said.
‘Our family has an identity, privacy. We can talk about everything, but there is a borderline that cannot be crossed.’
Patricia also stated that she reached out to Ridley Scott’s wife, Giannina Facio, for clarification on what the film would include, but reports she did not receive a reply.
Facio had previously met with members of the Gucci family in the early 2000s to discuss another project that would have focused on Patrizia Gucci’s father, Paolo, and grandfather, Aldo Gucci.
The fact that the production company did not reach out for the new film ‘only heightens the family’s concerns’, she said.
When is House Of Gucci released in the UK?
House Of Gucci will be released in UK cinemas from today – November 26.
The film – which has a 15 certificate for swearing and scenes of a sexual nature – has a runtime of 158 minutes, and is Ridley Scott’s second film of the year after The Last Duel was released back in October.
MORE : Where was House of Gucci filmed?
MORE : The true story of how a shocking murder made Gucci one of fashion’s biggest names
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