What's the Difference between Hidden Figures the Book and Hidden Figures the Movie?
| In the Book |
In the Movie |
Dorothy Vaughan
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Dorothy Vaughan
Portrayed by: Octavia Spencer
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Katherine Johnson
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Katherine Johnson
Portrayed by: Taraji P. Henson
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Mary Jackson
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Mary Jackson
Portrayed by: Janelle Monae
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This Character does not appear.
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Al Harrison
Portrayed by: Kevin Costner
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This Character does not appear.
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Vivian Mitchell
Portrayed by: Kirsten Dunst
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Paul Stafford
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Paul Stafford
Portrayed by: Jim Parsons
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John Glenn
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John Glenn
Portrayed by: Glen Powell
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jim
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jim
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Hidden Figures Book vs Movie
| In the Book |
In the Movie |
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There are many people named in the book along with descriptions of their backgrounds that do not appear in the movie. |
The four characters of the book that appear using the same names are Johnson, Vaughan, Jackson and Glenn. The characters portrayed by Costner, Dunst, and Parsons are composites. The character of Karl Zielinski might be based on Kazimierz Czarnecki |
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The book mainly covers the period from 1943 to 1962. There is background on the early lives of the people in the book plus additional info of the period after the Mercury Program. |
The movie is set from 1961 to 1962 with a small part showing Katherine Johnson's early life.
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Katherine Graduates from high school at age 14. There is much detail on her further education in college. |
Katherine is shown as a gifted young girl who skips some grades in school. |
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Eunice Smith was Katherine Johnson's companion and confidante (and carpool) while working for NASA. Nothing about interacting with the police on the road. |
Dorothy Vanghan, Mary Jackson and Katherine Johnson are shown carpooling to work in 1961; the car has stopped running and they are parked on the side of the road. A white police officer stops to check their ID and while initially suspicious is delighted to hear that they are involved in the space program. He escorts them to work after Dorothy gets the car started. Eunice Smith is not in the movie.
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In 1945 there were 25 black women computors supervised by 3 black shift supervisors and two white head computors. (Computor is an obsolete term for a person who computes) Dorothy Vanghan becomes acting head of West Computing in April 1949. Promoted to full section head in 1951. |
Dorothy Vaughan is shown as the acting supervisor of the West (black) computing area in 1961. She is not paid as the real supervisor. |