Reality is a 2023 American crime drama film directed by Tina Satter from a screenplay by Satter and James Paul Dallas. It is based on the FBI interrogation transcript of American intelligence leaker Reality Winner, which Satter previously staged as the play Is This a Room. It stars Sydney Sweeney as Winner, with Josh Hamilton and Marchánt Davis in supporting roles.
Reality premiered at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival on February 18, 2023, and was released on May 29, 2023, by HBO Films. The film received critical acclaim, with praise for Satter's direction and Sweeney's performance. The film received a 2023 Peabody Award.
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Plot
On May 9, 2017, Reality Winner watches Fox News coverage on the firing of James Comey by President Donald Trump on the TV at her office. Twenty-five days later, on June 3, Winner returns home from grocery shopping, where she is confronted by FBI agents Taylor and Garrick, who explain they have a warrant to search her house and her belongings. As a team of agents arrive and begin searching the house, Winner engages in casual conversation with the agents, all of which is picked up by recording device, the transcript of which forms the basis of the film's dialogue. During the early portion of the recording, Winner expresses concern for her dog's and cat's safety during the search.
