Is ‘Eric’ Based on a True Story? What To Know About The Netflix Hit Show’s Inspirations

Netflix had an unexpected sensation this spring with their drama series Eric, starring Benedict Cumberbatch as Vincent, a troubled puppeteer searching for his lost son. The entire series was released to Netflix on May 30, 2024, and quickly became a streaming hit.

With each of the six episodes written by Abi Morgan and directed by Lucy Forbes, the 1985-set show is part drama, part thriller, and part dark comedy; the title character is actually a puppet, designed by Vincent’s son Edgar. Vincent spends a lot of time talking to an imaginary version of Eric, seeking his help as he battles his addiction issues and struggles to figure out what happened to Edgar.

Critics were mixed on the virtues of the show. While some admired it for its originality and Cumberbatch’s magnetic and multifaceted performance (he also supplies the voice for Eric), it was also criticized for its wandering focus and repetitive writing. Variety called it “outstanding,” while IGN described its treatment of various issues as “superficial.”

But with its gritty New York City period detail and clear real-life inspiration of Sesame Street, it would be fair to ask if Eric is somehow based on a true story, despite its stranger elements. Here’s all the background you need to know about the Netflix drama series.

Is Eric Based on a True Story?

Writer Abi Morgan has taken inspiration directly from real life before. After getting her start as a playwright, Morgan wrote for both television and movies. Several of her screenplays are based on real people and events; she wrote The Iron Lady, a Margaret Thatcher biopic for which Meryl Streep won an Oscar as the British Prime Minister, and Suffragette, also with Streep, about the fight for women’s suffrage in the United Kingdom.

Eric seems like it could have similar real-world ties. Good Day, Sunshine!, the children’s program that Vincent has co-created, is obviously modeled after Sesame Street, the educational public television program that’s been a New York institution since 1969. The story also ties into social and racial issues that were (and are) very much a part of New York City life.

But while there are certainly elements of Eric based on reality, the story and characters themselves are created entirely for television. There isn’t a real Vincent; in fact, the figure he most superficially resembles (in terms of making and working on a beloved puppet-centric television program) is Jim Henson, and a recent documentary on Henson shows that while he may have led a complicated life, he wasn’t nearly as tortured or prickly as the Cumberbatch character. (Even Frank Oz, generally considered one of the pricklier Muppeteers in real life, seems significantly friendlier than Vincent.) The missing-person cases that the show details are also not taken directly from true stories.

So if the show feels surprisingly real for a story about a grown man talking to an imaginary puppet, just chalk that up to Morgan’s eye for historical detail, or maybe Cumberbatch’s convincingly sour performance.

All episodes of Eric are currently streaming on Netflix.

Jesse Hassenger (@rockmarooned) is a writer living in Brooklyn. He’s a regular contributor to The A.V. Club, Polygon, and The Week, among others. He podcasts at www.sportsalcohol.com, too.