Photo: Courtesy of Netflix

Kaleidoscope. (L to R) Paz Vega as Ava Mercer, Giancarlo Esposito as Leo Pap, Peter Mark Kendall as Stan Loomis in episode “White” of Kaleidoscope.

The series — which stars Giancarlo Esposito, Paz Vega, Rufus Sewell, Tati Gabrielle, Peter Mark Kendall, Rosaline Elbay, Jai Courtney, Niousha Noor, Jordan Mendoza, Soojeong Son and Hemky Madera — follows a group of thieves who attempt an epic heist worth $7 billion.

Spanning from 24 years before the heist occurred to 6 months after, the show allows audiences to fill in the gaps of the mystery as they watch.

So, how exactly did creator Eric Garcia come up with the idea for the show? Though the actual heist and characters are fictional, a real-life event in N.Y.C. duringHurricane Sandywas the inspiration for the show’s central plot.

Read ahead to learn more about the true story behind the show.

What is the true story behindKaleidoscope?

David Scott Holloway/Netflix

Kaleidoscope. (L to R) Bubba Weiler as Toby, Niousha Noor as Nazan Abassi in episode “White” of Kaleidoscope.

What happened during the real-life event?

Courtesy of Netflix

Kaleidoscope. (L to R) Paz Vega as Ava Mercer, Giancarlo Esposito as Leo Pap, Jai Courtney as Bob Goodwin, Peter Mark Kendall as Stan Loomis in episode “White” of Kaleidoscope.

According to theNew York Post, in 2012,Hurricane Sandy flooded a 10,000-square-foot underground vaultat 55 Water St., “soaking 1.3 million bond and stock certificates — including bearer bonds that function like cash.”

The publication reported that some of the notes were “drenched in diesel- and sewage-tinged water,” though many sources wouldn’t discuss the actual damage.

“It’s nobody’s business,” a contractor said at the time. “The public doesn’t need to know what’s in that vault. It’s between them and their customers.”

How much money was in the vault?

Kaleidoscope. (L to R) Giancarlo Esposito as Leo Pap, Tati Gabrielle as Hannah Kim in episode “Yellow” of Kaleidoscope.

At the time, theNew York Postdubbed the eventthe “biggest mystery on Wall Street” as the actual value of the notes remained relatively unknown, except to the “innermost circle of Wall Street bankers.”

The Depository Trust and Clearing Corp. also wouldn’t confirm what was in the vaults and who owned what, but a source told theNew York Postthat “$70 billion in bearer bonds were in jeopardy.”

According to theNew York Post, DTCC records showed that in 1990 two-thirds of the 32 million notes in the vault were bearer bonds. By late 2003, the vault was said to have held up to 5.4 million bearer bonds.

What happened to the bearer bonds in the vault?

Clifton Prescod/Netflix

Kaleidoscope. (L to R) Niousha Noor as Nazan Abassi, Bubba Weiler as Toby in episode “Pink” of Kaleidoscope.

It’s still unclear what exactly happened to the bearer bonds in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. At the time, a worker on site told theNew York Postthat there were three vaults and “they were all under water,” adding that “billions of dollars' worth [were] soaked.”

source: people.com