Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers from Pain Hustlers.
Netflix’s movie Pain Hustlers tells the story of a corrupt pharmaceutical company that sells a new opioid called Lonafen, leading to a scandal in a town in Florida. The 2023 crime drama film is loosely based on a true story — one of the many opioid epidemics that the United States has faced in recent years. However, the writers did have to take creative liberty while crafting the story showcased in the movie, including the drug that is at the center of it all.
The cast of Pain Hustlers includes Emily Blunt as Liza Drake, Chris Evans as Pete Brenner, Catherine O’Hara as Jackie Drake, Andy García as Jack Neel, Jay Duplass as Brent Larkin, Brian d’Arcy James as Dr. Nathan Lydell, Chloe Coleman as Phoebe Drake, Aubrey Dollar as Andy, Amit Shah as Eric Paley, and Willie Raysor as Matt. As the film’s stars, Blunt and Evans’ characters are pharmaceutical reps whose mission is to sell their company’s new drug. Unfortunately, for many who were ultimately prescribed Lonafen, the drug had dangerous side effects.
Lonafen Is Not A Real Drug (But Is Based On Subsys)
Although the story in Pain Hustlers feels real because it is similar to many scandals that have happened in real life, the narrative is mostly fictional, including the drug, Lonafen. Lonafen is a made-up opioid that was crafted for the sake of the plot in the 2023 Netflix crime drama film and is not a drug that someone could access. The movie is inspired by true events, though, so Lonafen is based on an actual drug called Subsys.
Subsys is a liquid form of fentanyl that Insys Therapeutics, an Arizona-based pharmaceutical company, manufactured. The pain reliever was found to be highly addictive, and Insys Therapeutics bribed doctors to prescribe it to patients who did not need it. As a result, the pharmaceutical company faced multiple lawsuits. Related: Pain Hustlers Ending Explained
Lonafen’s Ingredients & Effects In Pain Hustlers Explained
As mentioned above, many aspects of the scandal surrounding Insys Therapeutics and Subsys were changed in Pain Hustlers. However, there are plenty of similarities between Subsys and Lonafen. Both drugs were created to relieve breakthrough pain for cancer patients and were a form of liquid fentanyl. Similar to Subsys, Lonafen is highly addictive and is prescribed to patients who do not necessarily need it. The pharmaceutical company in the Netflix film, Zanna, bribed medical practitioners to give Lonafen to those not suffering from end-of-life cancer pain, just like Insys Therapeutics did in real life. As a result, many became addicted to Lonafen in Pain Hustlers.
