History Trivia / Chernobyl

* FilmingLocationCameo: The show was filmed in Lithuania due to the existence of a working nuclear power plant that still resembled [[UsefulNotes/{{Chernobyl}} the titular one]].

* FilmingLocationCameo: The show was filmed in Lithuania due to the existence of a working nuclear power plant that still resembled the titular one how it was in 1986. As a nod to that, the CompositeCharacter scientist Khomyuk is Lithuanian, and her first scene has her detecting suspicious levels of radiation in Lithuania.

* CreatorsOddball: Creator/CraigMazin had previously written comedies such as ''Film/ScaryMovie3'', ''Film/SuperheroMovie'', ''Film/IdentityThief'' and the two sequels to ''Film/TheHangover'', with another oddball ''Film/TheHuntsmanWintersWar''.

** Creator Example - Creator/CraigMazin's previous work consisted of extremely lowbrow comedies such as the ''Film/ScaryMovie'' series and its spiritual successor ''Film/SuperheroMovie'', ''Film/TheHangover'' sequels, and ''Film/IdentityThief''. Here, he has made a serious drama about the real-life nuclear disaster.
** Even director Johan Renck qualifies: While he's directed some TV episodes in the latter years (for shows like ''Series/BreakingBad'' and ''Series/{{Vikings}}'', for example), most of his resume consists of directing music videos.

** The popularity of the series (including among Russian citizens) led to it being harshly criticized by the [[UsefulNotes/TheNewRussia Russian government]], who, in a very [[NeverMyFault Dyatlovesque move]], insisted that the ([[ShownTheirWork scrupulously researched]] and praised for its accuracy even by [[ApprovalOfGod actual Chernobyl survivors]]) series was a work of "Western propaganda" and immediately set about commissioning their own Chernobyl series showing the "truth" that the reactor was actually [[BlatantLies sabotaged by]] [[NeverMyFault the CIA]]. Which basically just goes to [[NotHelpingYourCase prove Mazin's point]]. Nothing has come out of it, although a film (''Film/ChernobylAbyss'') did come out and shifted focus away from the administration and political failures, denials and cover-ups and towards the liquidators' heroism (and even there, the creators praised the HBO show and acknowledged its significance).

* FakeRussian: None of the main cast is actually from the former Soviet Union. They're mostly natives of the UK and Ireland, with a couple of Swedes in the midst (Stellan Skarsgard, David Dencik, Fares Fares) who speak [[TheQueensLatin in a variety of British accents]]. Many of the extras are Lithuanian.

** The series is mainly shot at the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant in UsefulNotes/{{Lithuania}}, a decommissioned RBMK plant very similar to the one in Chernobyl[[note]]In fact, an incident at Ignalina in 1983 led to the specific RBMK design flaw which led to the Chernobyl disaster -- power surges caused by the graphite tips on the control rods -- being discovered (and covered up) by the Soviets for the first time.[[/note]]. Many of the Lithuanian crewmembers were old enough to remember life in the Soviet era and helped make sure that they got the little details right.

* CreatorsOddball: Craig Mazin had previously written comedies such as ''Film/ScaryMovie3'', ''Film/SuperheroMovie'', ''Film/IdentityThief'' and the two sequels to ''Film/TheHangover'', with another oddball ''Film/TheHuntsmanWintersWar''.

** Jared Harris was 56 when he portrayed Valery Legasov, who was 49 when the Chernobyl disaster happened and 51 when he hung himself.

** When she finally watched the series for herself, she criticised it for "a lot of unfair, incorrect sequences." In particular, she objected to the scene were Vasily is shown screaming in agony as the effects of the ARS take hold. Lyudmila described Vasily as "calm, patient, measured" throughout the ordeal.

* HistoryRepeats: In an effort to avert this trope, US Navy nuclear operators are specifically trained to refuse bad orders from supervisors, to the point where they have gained a reputation for insubordination and poor military bearing among the rest of the navy. Every enlisted nuclear operator has the unspoken duty to keep their officers humble. So far it's been effective.

** Creator Example - Craig Mazin's previous work consisted of extremely lowbrow comedies such as the ''Film/ScaryMovie'' series and its spiritual successor ''Film/SuperheroMovie'', ''Film/TheHangover'' sequels, and ''Film/IdentityThief''. Here, he has made a serious drama about the real-life nuclear disaster.

* ColbertBump:
** Tourist demands to visit Pripyat and the safe parts of Chernobyl increased by 30% in the months that followed the broadcasting of the series.
** Ditto with the Lithuanian sites used as stand-ins for Ukrainian cities and Chernobyl, the Ignalina nuclear power plant especially.

** As a result of the series' broadcast the in 2019, with the inevitable upsurge in interest in matters related to the the disaster, Lyudmila found herself bombarded with journalists' requests for interviews. The invasion of her privacy became so bad that she was forced to leave Kiev and live with her mother in the countryside.

* FakeRussian: None of the main cast is actually Eastern European. They're mostly natives of the UK and Ireland, with a couple of Swedes in the midst (Stellan Skarsgard, David Dencik, Fares Fares) who speak [[TheQueensLatin in a variety of British accents]]. Many of the extras are Lithuanian, however.

** The popularity of the series (including among Russian citizens) led to it being harshly criticized by the Russian government, who, in a very [[NeverMyFault Dyatlovesque move]], insisted that the ([[ShownTheirWork scrupulously researched]] and praised for its accuracy even by [[ApprovalOfGod actual Chernobyl survivors]]) series was a work of "Western propaganda" and immediately set about commissioning their own Chernobyl series showing the "truth" that the reactor was actually [[BlatantLies sabotaged by]] [[NeverMyFault the CIA]]. Which basically just goes to [[NotHelpingYourCase prove Mazin's point]].

* OrphanedReference:
** Dyatlov's claim to "have seen worse" in the early minutes of the disaster was originally {{foreshadowing}} the reveal of his {{backstory}} as a radiation poisoning survivor from another incident, twenty years prior. However, all other references to his backstory were cut from the final show.
** In "Please Remain Calm", Shcherbina mentions to Formin that while he doesn't know about graphite (which should be ''in the reactor'', not outside it, therefore it did explode), he knows about concrete. There was no inclusion of his past working with his father in the construction business, therefore had experience with concrete.

** Creator Example - Craig Mazin's previous works included ''Film/ScaryMovie'' series and its spiritual successor ''Film/SuperheroMovie'', ''Film/TheHangover'' sequels, and ''Film/IdentityThief''. Here, he has made a serious drama about the real-life nuclear disaster.

** Became literally true with the TropeNamer, after Chinese citizens began noting the similarities between the USSR's response to Chernobyl, and the Chinese government's response to the Coronavirus.

* UnderageCasting: David Dencik was only 43 when he played Mikhail Gorbachev, who was 55 during the Chernobyl disaster.

** In "Please Remain Calm", Shcherbina mentions to Formin that while he doesn't know about graphite (which should be ''in the reactor'', not outside it, therefore it did exploded), he knows about concrete. There was no inclusion of his past working with his father in the construction business, therefore had experience with concrete.

** Even director Johan Renck qualifies: While he's directed some TV episodes in the latter years (for shows like ''Series/BreakingBad'' and ''Series/Vikings'', for example), most of his resume consists of directing music videos.

* BannedInChina: Rather predictably, the series was criticized in Russia for being anti-Russian propaganda, and the Communists of Russia[[note]]Confusingly enough, this is a separate political party from the better-known Communist Party of the Russian Federation, which is a direct continuation of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.[[/note]] launched a lawsuit against the creators. Though it’s still reportedly very popular among the country’s citizenry.

* DisownedAdaptation: The RealLife Lyudmila Ignatenko [[note]] note that her name is generally spelt differently in RealLife to how it is the shows’ material and credits [[/note]] [[https://youtu.be/aRFkmFLl4zA gave an interview to the BBC in late 2019]] saying she feels "hurt and uneasy" with the HBO miniseries and its depiction of events.
** According to Lyudmila, an unnamed HBO representative had been in touch with her whilst the miniseries was in development seeking her input, which came to nothing. Lyudmila only found out more about the series when advertisements started appearing as it was about to air. In particular, she was completely unaware that she was to be one of the main characters.
** As a result of the series' broadcast the in 2019, with the inevitable upsurge in interest in matters related to the the disaster, Lyudmila found herself bombarded with journalists' requests for interviews. The invasion of her privacy became so bad that she was forced to leave Kiev and live with her mother in the countryside.
** When she finally watched the series for herself, she criticised it for "a lot of unfair, incorrect sequences." In particular, she objected to the scene were Vasily is shown screaming in agony as the effects of the ARS take hold. Lyudmila described Vasily as "calm, patient, measured" throughout the ordeal.

** The popularity of the series (including among Russian citizens) led to it being harshly criticized by the Russian government, who, in a very [[NeverMyFault Dyatlovesque move]], insisted that the ([[ShownTheirWork scrupulously researched]] and praised for its accuracy even by [[ApprovalOfGod actual Chernobyl survivors]]) series was a work of "Western propaganda" and immediately set about commissioning their own Chernobyl series showing the "truth" that the reactor was actually [[BlatantLies sabotaged by]] [[NeverMyFault the CIA]]. Which basically just goes to [[NotHelpingYourCase prove Mazin's point.]]
** One month after the series concluded, a massive fire took place in a power plant of Moscow. And two months later, it was announced that a radiation leak detected over Europe in 2017 had been identified as originating from Mayak (where a nuclear incident larger and deadlier than Chernobyl already took place in 1957, but the Soviet Union managed to keep secret for decades). Then the state-owned corporation Rosatom denied these findings...
* NewbieBoom: See TheRedStapler entry below. Chernobyl and the Exclusion Zone already had a fairly decent base of enthusiasts and tourists that witnessed a significant increase in numbers after the series aired.
* OrphanedReference: Dyatlov's claim to "have seen worse" in the early minutes of the disaster was originally {{foreshadowing}} the reveal of his {{backstory}} as a radiation poisoning survivor from another incident, twenty years prior. However, all other references to his backstory were cut from the final show.

** The script also goes further into Zinchenko's fate. While in the show she is last seen next to Vasily while futilely trying to object to the hospital's evacuation, in the script she is treating Mikhail and Oksana's children when the evacuation begins, and almost gets in a fight due to her refusal to evacuate. Later, she begins blistering from her reddened hand, like Misha, and vomits on a street bin as she heads for the evacuation bus. A scene in the final episode, also scripted but not included in the show, counts her among the victims of ARS.

** The script for Episode 5 would have featured Fomin's suicide attempt prior to the trial. This also would have lead to a scene featuring Shcherbina's family while he discusses the situation with Legasov.

** Sam Troughton was 41 when he played the 33-year old Aleksandr Akimov.

* DisownedAdaptation: The RealLife Lyudmila Ignatenko [[note]] note that her name is generally spelt differently in RealLife to how it is the shows’ material and credits [[/note]] [[https://youtu.be/aRFkmFLl4zA gave an interview to the BBC in late 2019]] saying she feels "hurt and uneasy" with the HBO miniseries and its' depiction of events.

* ApprovalOfGod: Many survivors of Chernobyl approved the series's portrayal of the disaster, including [[https://youtu.be/6p9LR3gxBm0?t=155 General Nikolai Tarakanov]], who commanded the liquidators on the roof, and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jo2X-zRmiEU some of the surviving Russian miners]] from the digging operation beneath Reactor #4. The primary people who didn't like it were ([[LifeImitatesArt naturally]]) the Russian government and their mouthpieces.

** Even director Johan Renck qualifies: While he's directed some TV episodes in the latter years (for shows like ''Series/BreakingBad'', for example), most of his resume consists of directing music videos.

** In the beginning, actors were going to speak English with a [[JustAStupidAccent vague Eastern]] [[VampireVords European accent]], but this was changed when the creators realized that they got too distracted acting their accents to act their characters properly, and the result sounded [[{{Narm}} inappropriately comical]] - hence Russian, Belarusian, and Ukrainian characters [[NotEvenBotheringWithTheAccent speaking with a variety of Western European accents]].