Heartbreaking True Story Behind Netflix’s Don’t Say Good Luck Revealed as Film Climbs UK Chart

A deeply personal experience involving a high-school musical and a family facing devastating circumstances provided the inspiration for Netflix’s new coming-of-age drama Don’t Say Good Luck.

The film has quickly connected with viewers since arriving on the streaming platform earlier this month. At the time of writing, it sits at No. 2 among Netflix’s most-watched titles in the UK, behind the sci-fi mystery The Last House.

At the centre of the story is Sophie Birenbaum, a teenager who unexpectedly lands the leading role in her secondary school musical. While the opportunity should be one of the most exciting moments of her young life, events unfolding within her family make everything happening on stage feel very different.

Sunny Sandler takes the leading role

Sophie is played by Sunny Sandler, the daughter of comedian and actor Adam Sandler. Having previously appeared in several of her father’s films while growing up, Sunny has received considerable praise for what has become a major role for the young actress.

Adam Sandler serves as a producer on the project and has also highlighted the emotional reaction the movie has received. He shared a social media video showing several viewers in tears after watching it, captioned: “POV you just watched Don’t Say Good Luck.”

The screenplay was written by director Julia Hart alongside Laura Hankin, but much of its emotional foundation comes directly from Hankin’s adolescence.

Warning: Minor spoilers for Don’t Say Good Luck follow.

Laura Hankin drew on her own family tragedy

Like Sophie, Hankin secured the lead in a school production while her family was dealing with an extraordinarily difficult period: her mother’s cancer had returned.

Explaining the inspiration behind the screenplay on Instagram, Hankin said she wanted to celebrate the theatre friends who brought happiness into her life during that period while also honoring the mother she “loved more than words can say.”

Elements of those memories were subsequently woven into Sophie’s story.

Hankin recalled considering whether to withdraw from the production and finding it difficult to enjoy rehearsals knowing what was happening at home. The question of whether her mother would be able to see her perform also became part of the film’s emotional core.

In real life, Hankin and her father remember the exact circumstances slightly differently. Her mother either attended a dress rehearsal or the actual performance.

She died only weeks later.

A letter from her mother remained with her

Another important memory involves a letter Hankin’s mother wrote before her death, which Hankin has continued to read.

In it, her mother recalled crying at a concert when her daughter was younger because she realized Hankin had discovered something she truly loved.

That memory also bears similarities to an emotional element incorporated into the film.

Not everything, however, was recreated exactly as it happened.

Hankin’s real school production was Moby Dick! The Musical. Rather than being a conventional adaptation of Herman Melville’s novel, the relatively obscure show uses a play-within-a-play premise involving a Catholic girls’ school attempting to transform Moby-Dick into a musical.

For Don’t Say Good Luck, Hankin needed something that connected more naturally with the themes she wanted the movie to explore.

Why Waitress replaced her real school musical

Hankin eventually discovered Waitress and repeatedly listened to its soundtrack before deciding it provided the right thematic fit.

The musical revolves around a female protagonist carrying much of the story and includes a major solo performance. More importantly for Hankin, its themes offered parallels with the relationship at the heart of her screenplay.

Speaking to the You’ve Got Mail Substack, she explained that Waitress brought together themes involving “mothers and daughters” and confronting experiences that feel almost impossible to handle.

The change was one of several creative liberties taken when transforming Hankin’s memories into a feature film.

She has acknowledged adding another brother to the fictional family, changing their hometown and altering the type of business they run. Those modifications allowed the filmmakers to shape a coherent cinematic story without presenting every element as a literal recreation of Hankin’s life.

There is, however, another personal connection hidden inside the finished movie.

Hankin herself makes a tiny cameo. Her face does not appear, but according to the writer, viewers can briefly see her shoulder and hear her voice as an English teacher.

For audiences moved by Sophie’s experiences, knowing how closely the film’s central emotional journey connects to Hankin’s relationship with her mother adds another layer to a story that has already left some viewers in tears.

Don’t Say Good Luck is streaming on Netflix.