The True Story That Inspired Where The Crawdads Sing Explained

Where The Crawdad Sings appears to be have been inspired by real events in the life of the author, adding another layer to the movie and book.

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Where the Crawdads Sing.

Is Where The Crawdads Sing based on a true story? The 2022 film is an adaptation of Delia Owens’ best-selling 2018 novel of the same name, where protagonist Kya (Daisy Edgar-Jones) is accused of killing her abusive ex-boyfriend, Chase Andrews. Where The Crawdads Sing may have more of a connection to Owens’ real life than it first seems.

Kya is a young girl living in the North Carolina marshland, who is forced to raise herself from a young age. Although she is completely ostracized by the town, she gains the attention of two men, Tate and Chase Andrews. After Chase dies, Kya is accused of murder, but Where The Crawdads Sing ends with Kya found not guilty by the jury. Within the final scenes of the movie, it becomes clear that she did commit the murder, but it’s hard not to root for her after everything Chase did.

Where The Crawdads Sing weaves a complicated story that may be tied to author Delia Owens’ real life. Much like Kya, Owens is an author who seemingly took a tragedy and made it into something much bigger than herself. Though not imperative to a viewing of the movie, the true story that seemingly inspired Where The Crawdads Sing does add another layer to the plot.

Is Where The Crawdads Sing Based On A True Story?

The Where The Crawdads Sing book and movie do not seem to be overtly based on true events. There does not appear to be a woman in any public records who, like the character in Where The Crawdads Sing, lived in a marsh by herself and was found not guilty of killing a man – but there are connections to Owens’ past. Before she became an author, Delia Owens and her then-husband, Mark, worked as conservationists in Africa. Delia’s stepson and Mark’s son, Chris, also lived with them in Africa. Their work focused on saving elephants from poachers in Zambia and, at the time, they were part of an ABC special documentary that followed their conservation efforts. The documentary titled Deadly Game: The Mark and Delia Owens Story, captured Mark on camera instructing scouts to shoot poachers who came into the national park.

Unfortunately, this statement soon came to be and the conservation efforts turned a documentary into a true-crime investigation when an alleged poacher was shot and killed after entering a campsite. After the episode aired, the Zambian government opened a homicide investigation that still remains open. A later investigation stated that their son, Chris, had allegedly fired two of the three shots at the presumed poacher, but the entire family denied involvement in the shooting. In fact, Delia claimed that Chris wasn’t actually in the camp at the time, but was mistaken for a cameraman of the same name, Chris Everson. Everson claims Mark had flown both himself, Chris Owens, and another scout to the site, and Mark left them. Everson claims that when the poacher arrived, Chris Owens fired a shot. Everson caught on camera the scout firing a second shot, then Owens firing a third. Footage disappeared from the tent one day, only to reappear later.

Where The Crawdads Sing Real-Life Inspiration Explained

There are elements of Where the Crawdads Sing that suggest it was inspired by the true story. In the book and movie, the audience is meant to side with Kya because of her motivations. Though not the same scenario, a nameless poacher intent on harming animals in a national park being found dead could be seen as justified by some in order to protect the animals, and if Chris did theoretically shoot the poacher, he also got away with it. Much like Kya left a note that proved her guilt, Mark also supposedly left a note in which he said, “Two poachers have been killed and one wounded… we are just getting warmed up.” Authors, like Delia Owens, often draw upon personal experiences when they write, so it is also possible that Where The Crawdads Sing draws upon the mysterious death of the poacher, whether her family was actually involved or not.