Ocean’s Eleven is one of the most iconic casino movies of all time. In fact, the Ocean’s Eleven story is so good, Hollywood has told it twice – once in the 1960 version of the movie starring the Rat Pack and again in 2001 with George Clooney, Matt Damon, and Brad Pitt.
There’s something irresistible about heist movies and the better the movie, the more likely it is that it’ll leave you wondering if something like that could happen in real life. Perhaps you could pull off your own smash and grab and never get caught….
Let’s take a look at whether the antics of Danny Ocean and his crew are based on a true story, whether anyone has tried to copy the Ocean’s Eleven heist in real life, or if it’s all just glorious, glamorous fiction.
Examples of Ocean’s Eleven-style heists
In the Ocean’s Eleven movie, the aim of the gang is to rob three of Las Vegas’ biggest casinos at exactly the same time.
nobody has ever attempted a series of simultaneous heists in Vegas
The simple truth is that nobody has ever attempted a series of simultaneous heists in Vegas before or since the movie came out. But that doesn’t mean copycat criminals haven’t been having a go at pulling off different parts of the heist…
Here are just a few examples of crimes from around the world that share some startling similarities to the Ocean’s Eleven plot:
The suited robbers
In 2017, a group of men dressed in tuxedos and animal fancy dress masks used sledgehammers to break the glass shopfront of the Rolex store inside the Bellagio casino, Las Vegas.
The gang tried to make a break for it with bags full of expensive watches and jewelry but when they got to their vehicle, which was parked in the casino’s carpark, their car wouldn’t start.
they even tried to carjack a civilian car at traffic lights
The suspects continued on foot and while being pursued by the Metro Police, they even tried to carjack a civilian car at traffic lights, but they failed. All of the men were caught.
The $32m insider job
No casino heist is complete without an insider who works for the casino joining the criminal gang. That’s exactly what happened In Melbourne, Australia in March 2013.
Two conmen passed themselves off as high-rollers at the Crown Casino in Melbourne, getting to know their VIP host extremely well. After being paid off, the VIP Host gave the conmen access to the casino’s security cameras.
The criminals took their seats at a high-stakes VIP poker game, while a third member of their team watched the hacked CCTV footage from her hotel room and told the players what cards their opponents had.
This tactic worked well for several hours, until the constant winning raised alarm bells and the casino brought in an expert to analyze the winning streak. It then became apparent that the VIP poker room’s CCTV had been accessed by an ‘unauthorized person.’
proceeded to remove the conmen and their families from the casino’s hotel
Casino staff proceeded to remove the conmen and their families from the casino’s hotel, where they were staying, in the middle of the night.
It remains unclear why the casino let the conmen go without confiscating their winnings.
The cash van driver
Heather Tallchief was 21 years old when she left home in San Francisco and headed to Las Vegas to start up a new life for herself. She quickly met ex-convict Roberto Solis, 48, at a Vegas bar and the two soon became lovers.
Solis and Tallchief then hatched a plan to steal millions from the casinos. It started with Solis recommending Tallchief for a job as an armored vehicle driver. Tallchief was attractive and friendly and although she had no prior experience, her criminal record check came back clear – she was hired by Loomis Armored Inc as a driver straight away.
she would transport a van load of unmarked bank notes to the ATMs
In the beginning, Tallchief was tasked with supplying the casinos’ house cash. That meant every note was marked and traceable. A few months later she was promoted to doing the cash machine refills. Every day she would transport a van load of unmarked bank notes to the ATMs along The Strip.
One day, while her two colleagues were inside one casino filling up ATMs, Tallchief made a break for it and drove off with the van still full of bank notes meant for other ATMs. She drove the van full of cash to a garage where Solis was waiting. The pair then boarded a private jet disguised as an elderly gambler in a wheelchair and his nurse.
Police never found Tallchief but she did turn herself in in 2005, telling authorities that Solis made her commit the crime, that he ran off with all their money and kidnapped their child.
The verdict – is Ocean’s Eleven fact or fiction?
The Ocean’s Eleven movie is well and truly in Hollywood fiction territory.
Although some aspects of the famous movie heist have been attempted in real life, the truth is that performing such an elaborate swindle across multiple locations at exactly the same time, would be nearly impossible.
So, what heist movies are based on real life?
- 2008’s The Bank Job starring Jason Statham is based on the true story of the famous Baker Street Robbery in 1971 which was covered up by MI5.
- Dog Day Afternoon is a classic movie from the 1970s starring Al Pacino and it’s based on the Chase Manhattan Bank robbery.
- Stander is a 2003 movie based on the real life of Andre Stander, a policeman in South Africa who became a bank robber.
2018’s King of Thieves tells the real-life story of the group of pensioners who drilled through the basement wall of jewelry store, made off with millions and then went on the run for months before being caught.
