How does the movie Killers of the Flower Moon differ from the book?

If you are a fan of the book Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann, you might be wondering how the movie adaptation by Martin Scorsese compares to the source material.

The movie, which stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, and Lily Gladstone, tells the true story of the Osage murders, a series of crimes that targeted the members of the Osage Nation in Oklahoma in the 1920s for their oil wealth.

The movie focuses more on the relationship between Mollie Burkhart (Gladstone), an Osage woman whose family was killed, and her husband Ernest Burkhart (DiCaprio), who was involved in the conspiracy along with his uncle William Hale (De Niro).

Conversely, the book gives more attention to the investigation led by FBI agent Tom White (Jesse Plemons) and the historical context of the Osage Nation and the FBI.

The movie portrays Hale and Ernest as clearly evil from the start, openly plotting more murders for money, adding to the unsettling nature of the film. The book reveals their involvement gradually, as White and his team uncover the evidence.

The movie changes some details of the events and characters for dramatic purposes. For example, in the movie, Ernest shoots Mollie’s sister Anna in a field after she discovers his affair with another woman. In reality, Anna was killed by a bomb planted in her house by Hale’s men.

Another example is that in the movie, White is shown as a young and inexperienced agent assigned to the case by J. Edgar Hoover (Christopher Denham). In reality, White was a seasoned former Texas Ranger whom Hoover handpicked for his skills.