Under The Bridge Episode 4 Fact-Check: 7 Biggest True Story Changes & Inaccuracies

This article contains spoilers for Under the Bridge and the story that inspired it. It also includes discussions of sexual abuse, mental abuse, and graphic descriptions of physical abuse.

Summary Under the Bridge episode 4 fictionalizes events to create a truer emotional story, even if less factually accurate.

Some details in the show, like Josephine stealing Reena's mom's earrings, aren't supported by evidence.

The show portrays severe accusations against Reena's dad, but real-life allegations were even more brutal.

Hulu's Under the Bridge episode 4 includes many factual inaccuracies and changes to the true story that benefit the narrative of Hulu's miniseries. The true crime TV show depicts the attack and murder of Reena Virk at the hands of other teenagers. This true story is stranger than fiction, displaying the brutality of teenagers who look innocent. However, the creative team had to fictionalize some aspects and cut out other events. After all, the story spans seven years and involves over a dozen different real-life teenagers but was condensed into just eight hours.

While changes in a true story are often viewed negatively, factual changes in Under the Bridge episode 3 show that sometimes omissions and additions can create a truer story at its emotional core, even if this makes the events less factually accurate. This continues in Under the Bridge episode 4, which changes information and fabricates details in order to get to the heart of the characters.

Related When Under The Bridge's Finale Releases & How Many Episodes Are Left Hulu's critically acclaimed true crime drama miniseries Under the Bridge only has a few more episodes remaining before the finale's premiere.

7 Josephine Didn't Steal Reena's Mom's Earrings

This Under The Bridge Story Addition Shows A Real Characteristic Of Josephine

During Under the Bridge episode 4, Josephine, Kelly, and Dusty go to Reena's house for dinner. Before the food is ready, they sneak into Reena's mom's closet, where Josephine finds a pair of earrings. Her mom catches them and explains that the earrings were a family heirloom that was passed down in their family and would eventually go to Reena. At the end of Under the Bridge episode 4, she realizes that the earrings are gone, blaming Josephine for stealing them. Unlike what's depicted in the show, there's no evidence that Josephine ever stole a pair of Suman Virk's earrings.

The most obvious evidence of this is the fact that the only mention of earrings in Rebecca Godfrey's book is when Anya describes to a detective a movie killer's mistake of leaving an earring at a crime scene. Additionally, the book specified the items Josephine had in her stolen collection. The only two items that Josephine herself stole were a pair of Chanel mascara and a pair of Calvin Klein jeans. The rest of the items – none of which were earrings – came from her minions. If Josephine stole a pair of earrings, there would be a record of this somewhere.

6 It's Unknown If Josephine Convinced Reena To Falsely Report Her Dad

Hulu's Under the Bridge Uses The Virks' Assertions For The Story

After the dinner with Reena's family in Under the Bridge, Josephine convinces Reena to falsely report her dad of sexual assault. This could be true, or it could be false. However, the truth of the situation is unknown. The idea that Reena's friends convinced her to make the report comes directly from the Virks. In MSNBC's special, Bloodlust Under the Bridge, Suman and Manjit Virk assert that her friends convinced her to falsely report her dad by telling her that foster care was a teen paradise filled with freedom, lack of supervision, and spending money.

Despite this assertion, none of the teenagers ever admitted involvement in this accusation. Additionally, there's no evidence corroborating the claim. While it would make sense for them to be part of the cause, there's also the possibility that she wanted to get out of the house by any means necessary, including making a false report. In Rebecca Godfrey's book Under the Bridge, her uncle makes it known that Reena ran away from her home on other occasions because of her oppressive Jehovah's Witnesses home. This would indicate that she at least wanted to leave the house of her own volition.

5 Reena's Allegations Against Manjit Were Worse In Real Life

Manjit Virk Was Accused Of Severe Physical, Mental, And Sexual Crimes

The specific physical abuse accusations somehow turn an already horrifying allegation into something much more sinister and cruel.

Reena Virk makes false allegations against her dad, Manjit, in Under the Bridge episode 4, resulting in his arrest and her removal from the household. When he's taken by the police, they reveal she accused him of molestation. This plot, planned up by Josephine in the series, reflects the real-life report that she made against her father. Molestation is no minor situation, but somehow the actual accusations were significantly more brutal. According to a CBC article from 2006, in addition to molestation accusations, she also accused him of severely mentally and physically abusing her.

The physical violence detailed in CBC included stories of him tying him to a chair, hitting her with a hammer, and threatening to brand her with a hot barbecue tool. The specific physical abuse accusations somehow turn an already horrifying allegation into something much more sinister and cruel. Additionally, it points to the youthful ignorance of Reena Virk, serving as a reminder that she was murdered at just 14 years old. An older teen or adult would better understand the long-term ramifications of being found guilty of those crimes and think twice about making those false allegations.

Related Under The Bridge Episode 3 Ending Explained: Who Really Killed Reena & What Their Motivation Was Episode 3 of Hulu's miniseries Under the Bridge includes information on who really killed Reena Virk and hints about their motivations.

4 Manjit Didn't Want To Work In The Indian Army

Manjit Had An Extensive Literature Education Before Meeting Suman

During a flashback of Manjit and Suman in Under the Bridge, the pair discuss their differences in religion and life. After discussing Manjit's beard and Sikh faith, Suman says that he feels like trouble. He replies that he is trouble, explaining that he wanted to jump out of airplanes as a paratrooper in the Indian army. This backstory for Manjit is a major divergence from his background detailed in Rebecca Godfrey's Under the Bridge. Prior to visiting Canada and meeting Suman, Manjit Virk studied for his master's degree in English literature with a specialization in Shakespearean drama at Punjab University.

Manjit Virk was quite passionate about the field of study, liking Shakespearean tragedies best. When he settled in Canada, he tried to pursue teaching as a professor. This is a far cry from dreaming of being a paratrooper. This change was likely made to increase the conflict surrounding the couple. It's easier to imagine Suman's family disapproving of the couple when he's reckless and irresponsible in their eyes. In reality, their disapproval came from the fact that the marriage wasn't arranged. While this makes sense culturally, it might not resonate with the larger Under the Bridge audience.

The June 2019 paperback reissue of Under the Bridge includes a forward from novelist Mary Gaitskill and an afterward from Rebecca Godfrey.

3 Reena Didn't Live At Seven Oaks Youth Home

Under The Bridge Combined Real-Life Group Homes

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Rather than include them individually, Under the Bridge simplifies the narrative by combining all the foster homes into one.

Throughout Under the Bridge, the Seven Oaks teens and Reena spend time away from adults at the foster home. After falsely reporting her father for sexually abusing her, Manjit is arrested while Reena is shown to her room at Seven Oaks Youth Home. There she lives alongside Josephine and Dusty. Despite what the series shows, Reena never lived at Seven Oaks. According to Godfrey's book, Reena lived in a foster home called Kiwanis immediately after she was removed from her home. Part of this is caused by a simplification of the truth, rather than a fabrication.

The book explains that Reena and Josephine both lived at Kiwanis together. However, the children in the foster care system are moved from one temporary home to the next temporary home because none would let them stay long-term. Rather than include them individually, Under the Bridge simplifies the narrative by combining all the foster homes into one. Since Josephine and Dusty lived at Seven Oaks when arrested, it made sense to name the composite after that group home. However, a minor fabrication kept Reena at the group home when she only stayed there for a few days before living with her grandparents.

2 Josephine Had A Relationship With Her Mother

Under The Bridge Episode 4 Erases Josephine's Relationship With Her Mother

At the dinner in Under the Bridge episode 4, Manjit Virk tries to bond with Josephine over having an absent parent. However, she lashes out at him, saying that her mom begged her to stay and she left. This makes it seem like her mother was super caring despite Josephine cutting off contact. In reality, neither the absentee parent nor the doting mother is accurate to real life, based on the chapter "The Conversation" in Rebecca Godfrey's Under the Bridge. The relationship depicted in the book between Josephine and her mother seemed strained and difficult but still caring.

Josephine's mom, Elaine, wouldn't let her daughter into the house when she said she had a headache, felt sick, or felt tired. Her daughter wasn't given a key. She only allowed her inside to get food when she was hungry. Still, she expressed concern for her daughter about the fact that she missed mealtimes at Seven Oaks. She was also willing to call her daughter out of school. It's unclear whether Josephine was intentionally lying in Hulu's Under the Bridge – a very real possibility – or if they changed the character's relationship with her mother to influence the characterization.

1 Kelly And Dusty Didn't Go Over To Reena's House

Suman Only Reported Meeting Josephine At Her Home, Not Kelly And Dusty

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The fictionalized event allows for further exploration of Reena's three friends.

The entirety of Under the Bridge episode 4 flips back and forth between flashbacks of Reena's parents as young adults and Reena's friends having dinner at Reena's house. However, the entire dinner seems to be a fabrication inserted for character development and narrative purposes. According to Godfrey's Under the Bridge, Suman only met Josephine once, at her house, prior to Reena's death. She didn't mention Dusty being there when Josephine came to the house, although the family knew of her friendship with Reena. Additionally, Manjit and Suman don't seem to have met Kelly Ellard prior to her arrest.

Based on these facts, it's reasonable to conclude that the dinner never happened in real life. Instead, the fictionalized event allows for further exploration of Reena's three friends. Dusty's interaction with Suman shows her softer and more innocent side. Josephine put on a tough front with Reena's parents, reaffirming her defiance of authority shown throughout and towards the end of Under the Bridge episode 2. Lastly, Kelly has a haunting scene in Under the Bridge with Reena's bird, Smooch, that hints at her lack of empathy for other living beings – foreshadowing the real-life way she spoke about Reena Virk's murder.

Sources: Under the Bridge by Rebecca Godfrey, MSNBC, CBC