Netflix's Painkiller explores some of the origins and consequences of America's opioid crisis with a fictional retelling of events, following the perpetrators, victims and truth-seekers whose lives were changed by the invention of OxyContin. story. While researching the limited series, executive producer Alex Gibney discovered videotapes of sales representatives from the drug's manufacturer, Purdue Pharma, using Isley The Isley Brothers' "Shout" tune sells OxyContin. "The pride that goes into selling all these opioids so greedily to so many people is astounding," he said in a promotional interview. To portray this side of the story, the team created Shannon Shafer (West) Duchovny), a former college athlete and new member of Purdue University's sales team.
"Shannon is representative of many victims who have never taken OxyContin, and I think that's an important story to tell," executive producer Eric Newman explains. "To truly understand the destructive power of opioids, you can't just look at the death toll. Not only do you have to imagine all those lives whose lives have been affected by these deaths, but you also have to imagine the many unwitting actors involved in the opioid machine, and you have to imagine Live with this.”
Although Shannon initially finds ways to justify her increasingly lucrative job at Purdue Pharma, her conscience eventually takes over and she turns to attorney Edie Flowers (Uzo Aduba) Evidence was provided. "I think Shannon is a very relatable character and I see a lot of myself in her," added West, whose parents are actors David Duchovny and Tea Leoni . "I think her theme is a recognition of success and just trying to do good, grappling with the pressure of money and how the pressure of money changes you, but ultimately really wanting to do good and make a difference in the world."
Although Duchovny's character is fictional, there were several real-life whistleblowers. For example, Steven May started working as a sales representative for Purdue Pharma in 1999 and later accused Purdue of fraud in a whistleblower lawsuit. “At the time, we felt like we were doing a righteous thing,” May shared in Patrick Radden Keefe ’s 2017 New Yorker article “Families Building Empires of Pain,” part of the Netflix series Based on the article, adding that he often told himself, "There are millions of people in pain, and we have a solution." Years after he left the company, May launched a whistleblower lawsuit that was dismissed on procedural grounds.
Another former Purdue Pharma employee, Carol Panara, also claimed to CBS News in 2018 that she was trained to warn patients by suggesting they might be experiencing "pseudonymia." Addiction” to address doctors’ concerns about addiction, meaning the person may only appear to be addicted if: in fact they are just miserable. “We didn’t do any research,” Panala, who joined the company in 2008, claimed. "It's disturbing that we have no research to show doctors."
If you or someone you know is seeking help with substance abuse, call the SAMHSA National Helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
