Lifetime may no longer get a lot of attention as a cable channel — what non-news cable channel does, these days? — but it lives on culturally through its deal with Netflix, which streams batches of various Lifetime Original Movies, sometimes to surprisingly strong numbers. (Maybe some of those cord-cutters secretly miss cable after all!) For example, Kidnapped in Her Own Home: The Martha Carelli Story is a recent Lifetime movie starring ex-Castle lead Stana Katic that’s been one of Netflix’s most-watched movies this week. It’s also left viewers wondering more about this reality-based case, specifically about the fate of kidnapper Michael Anderson.

Anderson was one of a group of prisoners who planned and executed an escape in Washington state. As in the movie, he broke into a home and keeps a family — led by Martha Carelli (Stana Katic) — at gunpoint. He claimed to have an accomplice on the premises to ensure their compliance, and eventually left with Martha as a hostage. Martha and her family did all ultimately survive the ordeal, though she was seriously injured and experienced PTSD after it was over.

Now, the principal change that Kidnapped in Her Own Home makes is the setting of this incident. It actually happened nearly 50 years ago, in 1978, which probably helps to explain why it was able to carry on as long as it did — less advanced home security, no cell phones, less location-tracking tech, and so on. Presumably for budgetary and/or relatability reasons, the Lifetime movie transposes the setting to what looks like the present day. It also ends, naturally, with Anderson’s capture, Carelli’s return home, and a brief postscript. It doesn’t really get into Anderson’s future, which makes sense; this is clearly a fictionalized version mining the true-life situation that inspired it for Lifetime-ready drama, not a documentary.

In fact, it’s not clear whether Michael Anderson is even the criminal’s actual name. Martha Carelli is a pseudonym, taken from the 2007 book Smoke, Mirrors, and Murder and Other True Cases: Crime Files Vol. 12, by Ann Rule. Specifically, the film is based on “The Painter’s Wife,” a (nonfiction) story from that book. While there would probably be less concern about protecting Anderson’s identity, wholesale name changes in true-crime stories like that one aren’t unusual. In any event, Michael Anderson is a real person, even if that’s not his real name. So what happens after the movie?

What Happened to Michael Anderson?

According to another legacy cable channel, A&E, following his capture Anderson pled guilty to charges of kidnapping, robbery, and assault. Obviously trying to beat the charges legally was not really his strategy; rather, he attempted to escape prison twice more while awaiting trial for his new charges. This probably contributed to him receiving multiple life sentences. Because this actually happened over half a century ago, it’s entirely possible that Anderson has since passed away in prison. But he was 24 at the time of the initial escape, so it’s also possible that he’s still serving out his sentence.

Jesse Hassenger (@rockmarooned) is a writer living in Brooklyn. He’s a regular contributor to The A.V. Club, Polygon, and The Week, among others. He podcasts at www.sportsalcohol.com, too.

Stream Kidnapped in Her Own Home: The Martha Carelli Story on Netflix