Film About McDonald’s Bandit Who Hid in a Toy Store Bridges Decades-Old Rifts Between Real-Life Subjects

Jeffrey Manchester’s Unbelievable True Story

November 18, 2025—The release of Channing Tatum’s new crime dramedy, Roofman, which tells the unbelievable true story of escaped convict Jeffrey Manchester (the “Rooftop Robber”), has done more than just entertain audiences—it has sparked emotional real-life reunions among the people involved in the extraordinary 2004 incident.

Roofman chronicles the period when Manchester, an escaped former Army Ranger who robbed dozens of McDonald’s restaurants, evaded police by secretly living for months inside a Toys “R” Us store in Charlotte, North Carolina. While hiding, he adopted an alias, “John Zorn,” and started a relationship with a local single mother and Toys “R” Us employee, Leigh Wainscott (played in the film by Kirsten Dunst).

The Power of the Film’s Reimagining

Director Derek Cianfrance and his co-writer deeply researched Manchester’s exploits, speaking not only to the robber (who is still in prison) but also to Leigh Wainscott, the sergeant who arrested him, and the pastor of the church Manchester briefly attended.

The director’s commitment to accurately portraying the complex emotions and humanity in the story—which frames Manchester as a devoted, if misguided, father figure—has led to some unexpected healing.

Cianfrance explained that the film prompted the real-life subjects to “reconnect with the people they had disconnected from 20 years ago.” The director stated that the shared experience of seeing their story on the big screen encouraged figures like Leigh Wainscott and others to re-establish contact with one another.

The Real-Life Impact

The movie, which was released in October, is reported to have provided a kind of closure for the real people involved, who found themselves at the center of a national media sensation two decades ago.

Leigh Wainscott, who ultimately helped the FBI capture Manchester once she realized he was on “America’s Most Wanted,” publicly admitted that the film captured the complex dynamic of her relationship with the charming fugitive.

The final credits of the film even include a postscript revealing that Wainscott, who has since remarried, visited Manchester in prison after decades of silence.

The movie’s ability to resurrect and gently reinterpret a strange chapter of local history has not only been a critical success but also a surprising catalyst for human reconciliation.