The real Gardner did not mind it because he understood why it needed to be done. This was done so that the interaction between the father and son seemed more meaningful in the movie. Gardner’s son was two years old at the particular stage of their life depicted in the film, where Christopher Jr. Gardner was still married to Sherry when he began an affair with Jackie, with whom he had both his children. In real life, Gardner has a son Christopher Gardner Jr. Linda is a composite character of the two women in the real-life Gardner’s life, his first wife, Sherry, and the mother of his children, Jackie Medina.

There is no mention of such an event in any of the interviews by the real Chris Gardner, nor does it feature in his 2006 memoir.Īnother deviation from reality is Linda’s character. This means that the intense scene where Gardner gets hit by a car because he is chasing after the person who steals the scanner may also be a fictional event created for the sake of the film. Conrad added the part where Gardner put his life savings into buying the portable bone-density scanners. It is true that Gardner used to sell medical supplies, but it was not limited to just scanners, as is shown in the film. One of the biggest differences between reality and the film is Gardner’s job before joining the training program. However, the scriptwriter, Steven Conrad, has taken some creative liberties as far Gardner’s life is concerned. The film revolves around the difficult period in the real Chris Gardner’s life as he spent it in uncertainty, not knowing where the next meal would come from or where he and his son would stay the night. Yes, ‘The Pursuit of Happiness’ is based on a true story. You can check out a comprehensive rundown of all the major differences between Gardner’s story and the movie here.Is The Pursuit of Happyness a True Story?

It was named Gardner Rich & Co, with Rich in reference to Marc Rich, whom Gardner considered to be “one of the most successful futures traders in the world,” as he told CNN.Īt the age of 34, he made $1 million in the space of a single year, and celebrated by buying a customized Ferrari from Michael Jordan. In 1987, Gardner opened his own brokerage firm with just $10,000 of capital and a wooden desk. Gardner makes a cameo appearance at the end of the movie: as Smith’s character walks along the street with his son, he passes by, and the pair acknowledge each other.

The pursuit of happyness real story