Technically, Characters In Stateless Are Only Inspired By Real People

A German flight attendant, an Afghan father, a security guard, and a bureaucrat all cross paths at an Australian immigration detention centre in Stateless, which premiered on Netflix July 8. The Australian series focuses on the horrors that can occur for refugees, for immigrants, and in detention centres. While the miniseries already aired in Australia, it’s a topic that will certainly be compelling for audiences around the world now that Stateless is on Netflix.

The six-episode series, created by Cate Blanchett, Tony Ayres, and Elise McCredie, is inspired by the true story of Cornelia Rau. Rau is a German woman and Australian permanent resident who was wrongly detained at an Australian prison and a detention center for 10 months in 2004. Rau’s schizophrenia and bipolar disorder diagnoses played a role in her detainment. The character based on Rau, Sofie, is played by The Handmaid’s Tale star Yvonne Strahovski.

Even though the story is centred around Sofie, it also explores other people detained in the camp who actually are refugees. And while they may be held legally, unlike Sofie, that doesn’t make the fact that they’re detained any less harrowing. Especially through characters like a security guard and a woman running operations at the centre, viewers are left to ponder where the morals lie in the story.