The unnamed narrator, a young man from Cleveland, drops out of college and enlists in the United States Army as a medic during the Iraq War.

[2][3] Walker had been in a federal prison in Ashland, Kentucky, for bank robbery since 2013,[4] and wrote the book on a typewriter over the course of several years.

[12] Days after publication, filmmakers Joe and Anthony Russo, through their studio AGBO, bought the production rights for $1 million then signed on to direct and produce from a screenplay by Jessica Goldberg.

[16] Ciara Bravo, Bill Skarsgård, Jack Reynor, Jeff Wahlberg, Kyle Harvey, Forrest Goodluck and Michael Gandolfini were added in October.

[citation needed] After early distribution talks with Netflix, the Russo brothers struck a deal with Apple TV+ in September 2020.