What to Know About ‘Hillbilly Elegy,’ Based on the J.D. Vance Memoir

Before J.D. Vance became the Republican vice-presidential nominee or even ventured into politics, he was best known as the author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” a memoir about growing up in the Rust Belt and Appalachia. Published in 2016, the book became a surprise best seller, offering one kind of answer to those searching for an explanation for Donald Trump’s presidential victory and trying to understand the experience of impoverished white Americans.

The success of Vance’s book led to a movie adaptation with Imagine Entertainment winning the film rights in 2017. Netflix eventually spent a reported $45 million to finance the movie, which had a limited theatrical release in November 2020 before moving to streaming soon after. Unlike the book, the film received scathing reviews from critics.

Here’s what to know about the movie:

Who made “Hillbilly Elegy”? Who stars in it?

Directed by Ron Howard with Vance getting an executive producer credit, the film stars Gabriel Basso as Vance. Glenn Close plays his grandmother, Mamaw, a loud, gruff but caring matriarch, and Amy Adams is his mother, Bev, who grapples with mental health issues and substance abuse. The cast includes Freida Pinto as Vance’s wife, Usha.

Parts of the film were shot in Middletown, Ohio, where Vance grew up, as well as in Georgia, because of the state’s generous tax incentives.

What is “Hillbilly Elegy” about?

The film mostly follows Vance’s memoir. It begins with a younger Vance (played by Owen Asztalos) biking along a dirt path, while an older Vance narrates his love for the hill country of Jackson, Ky. Alternating between past and present, the film toggles between Vance’s unstable childhood growing up with Mamaw and a mother struggling with addiction and his adult