Netflix’s Triptych is rocketing up the charts globally, currently the #1 non-English series on the entire platform worldwide after only one week of release, with more than 50 million hours streamed. The separated-at-birth triplet series, of course, begs a big question: Did this really happen? Here’s what we know.
Episode 1 starts with proof that there is some truth somewhere in here, with “This story is inspired by actual events” popping up at the opening of the installment.
Of course, unlike other things that are more clearly based on a real life story, in which we often see real footage or photos of the real people, there’s nothing to be found in the entirety of Triptych from start to finish.
Watch the series here, by the way.
The true story behind Triptych
So what exactly is the truth here, exactly? Well, it appears it’s a loose, extremely fictionalized version of a true story that you may actually be familiar with.
The true story is actually the basis of an extremely good documentary, the 2018 film Three Identical Strangers, which follows the true story of Eddy Galland, David Kellman and Bobby Shafran, who were triplets separated at birth who met entirely by concidence when they became adults.
Later, the siblings found that their crazy true story was actually much darker than they thought. This was no accidental separation at birth–they had been separated on purpose.
Why were they separated? It was actually part of a social experiment to see what would happen to them, one that had no consideration for the extreme trauma this would cause the three of them.
The documentary starts fun and gets very dark by the end, with no happy endings to be found for the trio.
How is Triptych different from the true story it’s based on?
Triptych, of course, has an equally dark turn, following a forensic agent who finds a dying stranger who looks exactly like her.
Here’s what happens in Triptych, according to Netflix:
“When a woman named Aleida takes her doctor hostage and is subsequently shot by police, forensics agent Rebecca is surprised when she shows up on the scene. Aleida looks identical to her — and knows her name. They even have the same birthday. As Rebecca investigates her twin, she soon discovers the pair also share all of their DNA with a third sibling. Over time, Rebecca’s research reveals terrifying results about the trio that endanger everyone around them,” says Tadum.
Three Identical Strangers: Where to watch the real story behind Triptych
Want to see the real story? You can see the whole thing on Netflix, depending on your territory. Check here. Rent or buy it on Apple TV here. Rent it on Amazon here. OR find the full film for free here.