Plenty of films are based on surprising true stories—but few are quite as unbelievable as the actual crime saga that inspired Roofman. The new film stars Channing Tatum as Jeffrey Manchester, a convicted thief who makes a daring escape from prison, then spends about six months surreptitiously living inside a Toys “R” Us. While hiding out in the store, he falls in love with sales associate Leigh (Kirsten Dunst), a recent divorcée who has no idea she’s dating an escaped convict.
The real Manchester actually did escape from prison in 2004 after being caught for burglarizing dozens of fast food restaurants—burrowing in through their roofs, which is how he got the sobriquet that titles the film. As the movie shows, he really was known for being surprisingly considerate, always saying “please” and “thank you” as he politely locked employees in walk-in coolers.
Director Derek Cianfrance spent several years talking to Manchester—currently serving time in a maximum-security prison in Raleigh, North Carolina—about his story. Perhaps more importantly, he also spent time with Leigh Moore (then Leigh Wainscott), who fell for Manchester while he was on the run.
Though several people have approached Moore about telling her story, she never said yes until she met with Cianfrance. “I entrusted my story to them, knowing that some liberties would be taken. It’s not a documentary; it’s a feature film,” she tells Vanity Fair. “I had hoped that I was just portrayed as a hardworking mom, and a good-hearted person that just got swept up.”
Then and now, Moore doesn’t resent Manchester for hiding the truth about his situation. “I just understood for some reason. I knew that he didn’t mean for that to happen,” she says. Other members of her church community felt the same way—an unpredictable turn that helped Cianfrance find the heart of the story. “He was quite surprised that we all spoke so kindly of him. He wasn’t expecting that. And that moment when he learned how we truly felt about him was the guiding light that kind of changed the tone of the movie,” she says.
While hiding out in the Toys “R” Us, Manchester met Moore while visiting a nearby church. He started attending regularly, and before long, Moore found herself falling for the charming, intelligent thief. “I thought he was very handsome, and he always dressed well, and he smelled well,” says Moore. “He was just so polite, and you don’t see that every day. So it was very refreshing to see such a nice young gentleman coming into church.”
Though Tatum and Dunst skillfully capture the pair’s chemistry onscreen, Moore says their actual courtship lasted a little longer than it’s depicted in the movie. The most notable change, though, is that Dunst’s character works at the Toys ”R” Us where Tatum’s character is hiding; in real life, Moore never worked at the toy store.
While Moore counted herself as a fan of Dunst’s before production began, she didn’t meet the actor until Roofman was shooting. Her family and friends who have seen the film are impressed with Dunst’s work, as is Moore: “Kirsten did a phenomenal job portraying that sweet, honest, charming young lady who is just trying to raise her kids and pay the bills,” she says. “I have not had one negative feedback. They’re all truly touched.”
Moore wound up visiting the set several times and has a cameo in the film, briefly appearing as a crossing guard. Many of the film’s young background actors were excited to meet her once they realized who she was: “They got all giddy and had me take photos with them,” she says.
For Moore, the toughest scene in Roofman comes toward the end, when Leigh discovers who Jeffrey is—and helps the police apprehend him. That part, too, is true to life. Just like in the film, she was sitting in a nearby police car when Manchester was apprehended for a second time, and could hear his arrest unfolding over the police radio. “That was truly the hardest part, because I wasn’t going to get to see him again,” she says. “That was pretty rough. Every time that happened in the movie, it made me cry.”
In real life, Moore has remarried. She’s also kept in touch with Manchester and visited him before the movie came out. Because he’s still in prison, he has not yet seen Roofman—but Moore told him all about it. “It’s been a rollercoaster, but it’s been really fun at the same time,” she says. “I’m glad that I feel so good talking about it and that I have no ill feelings toward anyone, and only wish the best for Jeffrey.”
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The post How the Real-Life ‘Roofman’ Charmed a Small-Town Churchgoer: “He Was Just So Polite” appeared first on Vanity Fair.
