Once Upon a Time in Hollywood: Former Manson Family member responds to portrayal in Tarantino film
Dianne Lake is one of several members portrayed in Tarantino's movie
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A former Manson Family member has responded to her portrayal in Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, saying seeing herself in Quentin Tarantino's film was “a trip”.
Dianne “Snake” Lake, played on the screen by Sydney Sweeney, was 14 years old when she joined Charles Manson’s cult. She eventually served as a key witness for the prosecution that resulted in Manson’s life sentence.
Snake is seen in Once Upon a Time.... in Hollywood when Brad Pitt’s character, Cliff Booth, visits the Manson ranch.
She doesn’t feature extremely prominently but is seen several times interacting with Dakota Fanning’s Squeaky, who tells her to guard the door as Booth approaches.
Asked by The Daily Beast to give her impressions about the film, Lake said: “That was a trip! It was like, ‘Snake! See who’s coming’ or ‘Snake! Be the lookout.’ I can’t remember exactly what she said.
“I actually had said something to Jim [her husband] at the moment they said Snake. So, I need to watch it again.”
Lake recounted staying in the cinema after the film and watching the credits to find out the name of the actress who portrays her.
“We waited and watched the credits so I could see her name. That was cool,” she added.
“There were not many people who were actually named. Most of the girls were a kind of composite.”
Overall, Lake found Tarantino’s depiction of the ranch where the Manson Family lived “pretty accurate”.
Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood is out in the US now and will be released in the UK on 14 August.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments