Girl Taken has aired, featuring Alfie Allen's impactful and antagonistic role. The story holds a scary premise: a teenage girl is abducted by a depraved man who hid behind his reputation as a trusted teacher. View this post on Instagram Instagram PostMany have wondered whether the tale is inspired by true events. The show appears to be highly relatable due to its premise and the chillingly scary story that unfolds. Yet, to answer in short, the show has not been inspired by true events; rather, it adapts author Hollie Horton's novel, Baby Doll.Where does the Girl Taken storyline draw inspiration from?The Girl Taken quickly made an impact among viewers with its tense narrative and emotional storytelling. The show also features powerful acting performances by the ensemble cast that includes Alfie Allen, who acts as Rick, Jill Halfpenny, who features as Eve, and Tallulah Evans, who plays Lilly Riser.Girl Taken (Image via YouTube/Paramount+)The plot is taken from Hollie Horton's 2026 novel Baby Doll, and the show is written for Paramount+ by David Turpin, Suzanne Cowie, and Nessa Muthy. Horton's novel was a Sunday Times bestseller and hence popular.Modern television has seen many shows that chronicle on-screen real events. Peacock's A Friend of the Family tells the story of real and repeated abductions, while Netflix's movie Believe Me: The Abduction of Lisa McVey deals with the true abduction story of Lisa McVey.Even though Girl Taken focuses on an abduction story, the source is purely fictional. The central character, Lily, gets abducted by a trusted community figure and teacher, Mr. Rick.What spirals is a trail of depravity and abuse, and a young girl's will to survive it all and escape eventually. This premise alone is scary and highly emotional for viewers. The show does not stop at that; it also scrutinizes the cost borne by the family and the victim.Even when the victim returns to the normal world, the return to normalcy is anything but easy. The psychologically complex portrayal by Alfie Allen, who portrays the chillingly antagonistic character with strong realism, makes one stop and think.The book bears imprints of Horton's own lifeEven though the show's inspiration does not take from any real abduction event, the book by Horton bears some personal experiences of the author herself. Hollie Horton had spoken (Manchester Evening News) during the Bath Novel Award about how her life unfolded in Chicago, Illinois."An identical twin, I was born in Chicago, Illinois, and adopted at six days old, along with my identical twin sister, Heather, and carried home in matching red Christmas stockings."Horton further said,"My father was a member of the Overton Gang and spent several years in prison for manslaughter...Unfortunately, he found family life overwhelming. His addictions began to consume him, leading to my parents' divorce. My mother relocated my sister and I to her hometown of Kingsville, Texas."The author also added about her relationship with her twin sister. Notably, the lead of the show, Lily, also has a twin. Her sister is named Abby, played by Delphi Evans.The author explained,"The book is about the bond between twins, the beauty and the ugliness that exists in that relationship."Hollie Horton also discussed the moment when she first perceived this book and the idea. She stressed what makes the plot of Girl Taken different, clarifying that the difference lies in the intent of the story."That was my jumping off point for writing Baby Doll . And I knew from the start that this wasn't a captivity story. It was about the aftermath."The show, even though fictional, has already bagged an IMDb rating of 6.1 out of 10, as taken by 128 reviewers. Girl Taken is streaming on Paramount+