In the Hollywood blockbuster 'American Made', Tom Cruise stars as legendary 80s drug smuggler Barry Seal. This is the real story. Subscribe to Our History: https://bit.ly/3v5mKBG

In the movie, the CIA recruit Seal to fly clandestine reconnaissance missions in Central America - but the truth is that Seal never worked for the CIA. In the Real Story, Seal, a prolific drug smuggler for the Medellín Cartel flips as a DEA agent after being caught in an elaborate sting. Seal leads the DEA directly to Pablo Escobar - but his mission is sunk when clandestine photos he takes of Escobar loading cocaine are leaked to the press. Seal's identity was revealed to the world and he is abandoned by the system to the cartel's wrath. Inevitably Barry Seal is killed in a hail of bullets.

This film was first broadcast: 2017

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