Waco

About Waco

‘Waco’ is a critically acclaimed American miniseries that was released in 2018, which vividly portrays the infamous 51-day standoff between David Koresh's religious sect, the Branch Davidians, and the FBI, in Waco, Texas in 1993. The series presents multilayered perspectives culminating in the tragic events that unfolded, leaving an indelible impression of the historic tragedy.

Making/Production

The series was developed by Paramount Network and produced by John Erick Dowdle and Drew Dowdle. The six-part series combines damning information from David Thibodeau's book "A Place Called Waco" and Gary Noesner's book "Stalling for Time: My Life as an FBI Hostage Negotiator".

Actors

• Michael Shannon as Gary Noesner: Shannon brings to life the role of the FBI negotiator with an excellent portrayal of the struggle between maintaining peace and meeting the forceful tactics of his colleagues.
• Taylor Kitsch as David Koresh: Kitsch delivers a convincing performance as the charismatic yet controversial cult leader, David Koresh.
• Andrea Riseborough as Judy Schneider: Riseborough skillfully embodies the character of one of Koresh's wives, delivering a powerful performance.
• Rory Culkin as David Thibodeau: Culkin plays Thibodeau, the band drummer who becomes a Davidian, bringing a unique perspective to the story.

Trivia/Interesting Facts

• David Thibodeau, a real-life survivor of the Waco siege, was heavily consulted during the writing and production of the miniseries.
• Many scenes were filmed at the actual location in Texas where the real-life events unfolded.
• The series creators made the decision to integrate directly quoted dialogue from negotiation tapes and courtroom testimonies into the script to maintain authenticity.

Awards

While Waco didn't win any prestigious awards, the remarkable performances and the hard-hitting screenplay have certainly made it a fan-favorite series.

Quotes

• "Do not fight back. You will show the world that the righteousness of God is peace and the wickedness of the world is violence." - David Koresh
• "You do not ever point a gun to anyone unless you're going to shoot it!" - Gary Noesner

Music, Soundtrack

• "Negotiations" - Scored by Jon Ehrlich and Jason Derlatka
• "The Ridge" - Scored by Jon Ehrlich and Jason Derlatka
• "Revealed" - Scored by Jon Ehrlich and Jason Derlatka