‘Cocaine Bear’ trailer released: True story of infamous Georgia bear
Access Atlanta Staff
Yes, that’s exactly what it sounds like. “Cocaine Bear” is an upcoming action-comedy inspired by true events that took place in Blue Ridge, GA.
The movie takes viewers on a wild ride as it tells the story of a black bear who eats several packages of cocaine. The drugs were accidentally airdropped into a Georgia forest during a smuggling operation gone wrong. After consuming large amounts of the product, the bear goes on a killing spree brought on by a drug-induced rage and the desire to find more cocaine. While the bear wreaks havoc on the local population, the drug smugglers — headed up by Ray Liotta in his final role before his passing — search the forest for their missing stash, not knowing a bear hyped up on drugs waits for them on the other side.
CHECK OUT: Polaris, Atlanta’s rotating rooftop restaurant, re-opens
While the movie is modeled after a true story, of course, details were added for dramatic effect — and thankfully, the people of Blue Ridge, GA, didn’t suffer a story as gruesome, yet still wild. In 1985, millions of dollars worth of cocaine reportedly ended up in the national forest courtesy of Andrew Thornton, an American narcotics officer, lawyer, and alleged gang leader, who had picked up on a smuggling run from Columbia. The story goes that Thornton dropped the packages of drugs out of the plane and parachuted out with 77 more pounds of cocaine strapped to his body, but misjudged the weight and fell to his death – landing in the driveway of a Knoxville, Tenn., resident. Investigators searched his body and found the keys to the plane that had recently crashed into a mountain in North Carolina, and a few days later, about 30 miles south of Atlanta, they found “clothes, maps of Jamaica, and a pilot’s logbook bearing the Cessna’s (the plane’s) number.”
As the investigation continued into the failed drug smuggling operation, investigators discovered the ripped-up remains of cocaine packages in Georgia’s Chattahoochee–Oconee National Forest. They also found a large, deceased bear close by who had apparently gotten into the drugs and eaten “several million dollars worth of the cocaine.”
“The bear got to it before we could, and he tore the duffel bag open, got him some cocaine and OD’d (overdosed),” Gary Garner of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation told the Associated Press.
“Cocaine Bear” is set to be released in theaters on Feb. 24, 2023. Check out the trailer below:
Future and Friends headed to State Farm Arena for ‘One Big Party’ tour