Cillian Murphy's new film Steve, which previously premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival, has now landed on Netflix.
Taking place in the mid-1990s, the film follows headmaster Steve and his students at a struggling reform school. While battling to keep the school from shutting down, Steve faces his own mental health challenges as he works to guide and support the at-risk youth under his supervision.
The raw realism and heartfelt performances throughout the movie might have viewers wondering if the story is based on real events.
Here’s everything you need to know about the inspiration behind the film.
Is Cillian Murphy's Steve based on a true story?
Although the story isn’t based on one particular true event, Steve is an adaptation of Max Porter's Sunday Times bestselling novel, Shy, which explores real and meaningful themes.
"It is a book about 1995, that works as a book about now, I hope," Porter told Esquire. "I wrote it from a position of absolute horror at the political present.
"Anybody reading this book now, who is awake, will see what the consequences of a place like Last Chance closing is. When you close youth clubs and social support systems in inner cities, what happens when you strip the welfare state of funding? These things are obvious and terrifying. Where are we? Where are we going?"
Murphy, who plays the title character, also had a personal connection to the story, growing up in a family of teachers - including parents, a grandfather who was a headmaster, and several aunts and uncles.
Speaking about this role, he told Deadline: "This is a more extreme world, clearly, because you’re dealing with these very volatile and unpredictable and damaged kids. But having said that, I kind of knew it, but I couldn’t have done it without knowing the people like the way I know these guys so well and trust them so much, because there was really no acting involved."
Similarly Tim Mielants, who directed the film drew on his personal experience and expertise.
On how Steve was adapted from the book, Mielants told Tudum: "Around that period, I was going through videos I had shot in the ’90s, because my father got Alzheimer's and I wanted to get back to who he was, who we used to be, because he's not that person anymore that I used to know. And I wanted to get back there. I also lost a brother, and I want to see him again in my grandparents again.
"In the ’90s, I was shooting constantly, and I was going back through these tapes and I felt some kind of emotional gravity there, which I felt could be the heart of the movie."
Taking inspiration from his documentary filmmaking experience, Mielants focused on creating authentic, interview-style scenes for the boys during casting. This approach allowed the camera to act as a quiet observer, capturing the raw energy and internal mindset of the characters as they navigated their emotions and youthful intensity.
Steve is available to stream on Netflix.
