Netflix’s Hit Man is loosely based on the life of Gary Johnson, begging the question of what happened to him after the events depicted in the film. Hit Man‘s true story inspiration is certainly an interesting one, based on a man who found himself becoming an undercover cop. Hit Man centers around Gary Johnson, an unassuming college professor who aids the New Orleans Police Department with tech issues during undercover stings. Glen Powell portrays Gary in Hit Man‘s cast of characters, bringing to life the many personas used to bait plotting murderers into confessing crimes.

The aliases of Gary Johnson in Hit Man are based on very real scenarios. Johnson was described as the Laurence Olivier of his field by Skip Hollandsworth, who first wrote the article on which Hit Man is based, thanks to the ease with which he fell into different personalities. Through this over-the-top premise, Hit Man instantly becomes one of Richard Linklater’s best movies and a breezy, deceptively dark comedy. That said, with the film being based on real events, many will be wondering how closely Hit Man follows Gary Johnson’s life, and what happened to the man behind many masks.

Gary Johnson Arrested Over 70 People As An Undercover Hit Man

Johnson’s Acting Abilities Translate To Hit Man Via His Real Accomplishments

As is displayed in the film at length, Johnson was integral in the real-life arrests of several aspiring murderers. Hit Man shows Johnson in many situations, eliciting confessions from a wide variety of people. This was one of the more truthful elements of Hit Man, with the end-credit sequence confirming that the real Gary Johnson oversaw the arrest of over 70 people during his undercover work.

Another thing that Hit Man‘s ending makes clear is that Gary Johnson did not kill anyone in real life. In the film, Gary leans too far into his persona as Ron and is complicit in the murder of two people in order to keep him and his partner, Madison, out of jail. Hit Man‘s end credits confirm that Linklater and Powell fabricated this element to add drama to the film, with the real Gary Johnson remaining untarnished as a chilled-out, unassuming man of many hidden talents.

Gary Johnson Passed Away In 2022 At Age 75

Another element of Gary Johnson’s real life that Hit Man confirms in the film’s finale is his death. Tragically, Johnson passed away in 2022 at age 75, meaning he unfortunately may not have gotten to see the raucously fun Hit Man that sensationalized his life. Despite this, Hit Man makes a note to make the film a tribute to the life of Johnson. Through the love and care placed into the production of the film, Hit Man will live on as a tribute to the outstanding figure it is based on, allowing Gary Johnson to pass into legend with some fittingly fantasized elements.