A streaming movie about a man who takes on small town corruption has roots in real life. The legal nightmare of civil forfeiture isn't fiction for some Americans.

Before Aaron Pierre was cast as Terry in Netflix's Rebel Ridge, John Boyega was set to play the former marine. So why did he leave the project?

Netflix’s ‘Rebel Ridge’ follows the story of a man named Terry Richmond, who gets caught up in the corruption in the eponymous town. A complete stranger to the locale, he comes there to bail out his cousin.

While the story is set in a fictional town called Shelby Springs, star Aaron Pierre tells PEOPLE the movie was filmed in New Orleans and Leesville, La.