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The television adaptation of this international bestseller by Taylor Jenkins Reid has captivated audiences worldwide. In this guide, we will take a deep dive into Daisy Jones and the Six characters.
Here’s what you can expect to learn:
- Who are the real-life inspirations behind the characters?
- How are all the characters related to one another in the book?
- Which famous actors and actresses portrayed the characters in the Amazon Prime adaptation?
- Are there any major differences between the book’s characters and their show counterparts?
Let’s jump in.
(Note: spoilers are present)
Inspiration Behind the Characters
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Taylor Jenkins Reid revealed that her fascination with the band The Civil Wars, and her fondness for Fleetwood Mac’s former bandmates, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, inspired the characters in Daisy Jones and The Six.
The Civil Wars, an indie-folk duo, released two popular albums and won four Grammys before their sudden and mysterious split in 2014. “They wrote these incredibly romantic and intimate songs, and they would perform them so beautifully and so intensely. They’re both married to other people, and one night they just broke up [the group],” Reid told EW.
She further explained to Hello Sunshine, “When I decided to write a book about rock ‘n’ roll, I kept coming back to that moment when Lindsey watched Stevie sing ‘Landslide.’ It looked so much like two people in love. Yet, we’ll never truly know what lived between them. I wanted to write a story about that, about how the lines between real life and performance can blur, about how singing about old wounds might keep them fresh.”
Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham would later inspire the romance between Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne.
But the Fleetwood Mac inspiration doesn’t stop there. According to a Vanity Fair article, the tumultuous relationship between Graham Dunne and Karen Sirko mirrors that of the band’s bass guitarist, John McVie, and keyboardist, the late Christine McVie. They were married before joining the band but divorced eight years later.
Main Characters
Billy Dunne
Played by: Sam Claflin (Hunger Games, Enola Holmes, Me Before You)
Inspired by: Even though the author based the character Billy on Lindsay Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac, the actor revealed to Variety that he drew his inspiration from Bruce Springsteen.
Quote by Billy: “But loving somebody isn’t perfection and good times and laughing and making love. Love is forgiveness and patience and faith and every once in a while, it’s a gut punch. That’s why it’s a dangerous thing, when you go loving the wrong person. When you love somebody who doesn’t deserve it. You have to be with someone that deserves your faith and you have to be deserving of someone else’s. It’s sacred.”
Book vs TV show: While the major plot points mirror Billy from the books, the show amplifies his affair with Daisy. Contrary to the book, he doesn’t make the right decision to walk away.
Daisy Jones
Played by: Riley Keough (Magic Mike, Mad Max: Fury Road, American Honey)
Fun fact: She’s the eldest granddaughter of Elvis Presley.
Inspired by: Stevie Nicks (Fleetwood Mac)
Quote by Daisy: “I wish someone had told me that love isn’t torture. Because I thought love was this thing that was supposed to tear you in two and leave you heartbroken and make your heart race in the worst way. I thought love was bombs and tears and blood. I did not know that it was supposed to make you lighter, not heavier. I didn’t know it was supposed to take only the kind of work that makes you softer. I thought love was war.”
Book vs TV show: The musical genius and flighty, drug addict that comprise Daisy Jones are well-represented in the book. However, as previously mentioned, her relationship with Billy is more pronounced in the show, and it’s Daisy who ultimately ends things.
For more amazing quotes from the band, check out the 100 best quotes from Daisy Jones and the Six.
Camila Martinez
Played by: Camila Morrone (Bukowski, Never Goin’ Back, Death Wish)
Inspired by: There isn’t a single character that Reid used as inspiration to create Billy’s strong-willed, no-nonsense wife. However, she does embody the typical persona of a rock star’s wife who starts out soft but then comes into her own. Morrone reveals to WMagazine that she drew much of her inspiration from Ali McGraw.
Quote by Camila: “No matter who you choose to go down the road with, you’re gonna get hurt. That’s just the nature of caring about someone. No matter who you love, they will break your heart along the way.”
Book vs TV show: In the show, her name was changed to Camila Alvarez, and there were hints of her cheating on Billy with Eddie. In the book, she remains faithful. Also, in the show, she is the one responsible for the infamous Aurora album cover, not Freddie Mendoza as in the book.
Graham Dunne
Played by: Will Harrison (Madam Secretary, This Is a Film About My Mother)
Inspired by: John McVie (Fleetwood Mac)
Quote by Graham: “It’s the ones who never loved you enough that come to you when you can’t sleep. You always wonder what the future might have held and you’ll never know. Maybe you almost don’t want to know.”
Book vs TV show: The primary differences between Graham’s and Karen’s romance are the timing and the secrecy of their relationship. In the show, a secondary love interest for Graham leads to an early start of their relationship, triggered by Karen’s jealousy. They also disclose their relationship to their bandmates. In contrast, the book doesn’t introduce any additional love interests, and their relationship is only known to Camila.
Karen Sirko
Played by: Suki Waterhouse (The Divergent Series: Insurgent, Pride and Prejudice, Zombies)
Inspired by: the late Christine McVie (Fleetwood Mac). Waterhouse drew her inspiration from old interviews with McVie and from Nickey Barclay, a member of the all-female ’70s rock band Fanny, she tells TV Insider.
Quote by Karen: “I don’t believe in soul mates anymore and I’m not looking for anything. But if I did believe in them, I’d believe your soul mate was somebody who had all the things you didn’t, that needed all the things you had. Not somebody who’s suffering from the same stuff you are.”
Book vs TV show: She earns the nickname “Karen Karen” in the book due to a comedic first encounter with Graham. However, this nickname is not used in the show. Also, as mentioned above, her relationship timeline with Graham takes a few detours.
Warren Rhodes
Played by: Sebastian Chacon (The Get Down, Emergency)
Inspired by: The actor tells PopSugar that he drew inspiration from many rock ‘n’ roll era drummers for his character. He mentions Ginger Baker, Mick Fleetwood from Fleetwood Mac, Keith Moon, and John Bonham, among others.
Quote by Warren: “Let me tell you the sweet spot for being in rock ’n’ roll. People think it’s when you’re at the top but no. That’s when you’ve got the pressure and the expectations. What’s good is when everybody thinks you’re headed somewhere fast, when you’re all potential. Potential is pure fuckin’ joy.”
Book vs TV show: His character’s name in the show was changed to Warren Rojas. However, he still embodies the carefree, fun-loving drummer, who is the only one able to reflect on his time in the band without any baggage or drama.
Eddie Loving
Played by: Josh Whitehouse (Northern Soul, The Receptionist, Valley Girl, The Knight Before Christmas)
Inspired by: None.
Quote by Eddie: “There’s only so long you can live your life while it’s being dictated to you by somebody else.”
Book vs TV Show: In the show, his name was changed to Eddie Roundtree, and his jealousy of Billy extends to romantic feelings for Camila. The show even implies that they were intimate. However, in the book, his hostility towards Billy is more about feeling overlooked as a vital member of the band.
Where is Pete Loving?
Sadly, The Six’s bassist was removed from the TV show altogether.
Chuck Williams
In the book, Chuck initially served as the rhythm guitarist for The Six but later died in the Vietnam War, leading to his replacement by Eddie Loving.
In the show, the character, played by Jack Romano, is given the last name, Loving. And he is shown leaving for dental school, with Eddie Roundtree having always been a part of the group.
If learning about the characters has piqued your interest in the book, or if you’ve seen the show and are wondering if the book is worth reading, check out my full review on Daisy Jones and the Six.
Family, Friends & Partners
Parents
- Billy and Graham’s parents: Marlene Dunne & William Dunne Sr.
- Daisy’s parents: Frank Jones (British painter) & Jeanne LeFevre (French model)
Simone Jackson
Daisy’s first (and only) true friend.
Played by: Nabiyah Be (Black Panther)
Inspired by: Nabiyah tells TV Insider that she channeled the ‘big three’ – Diana Ross, Donna Summer, and Chaka Khan – for her disco-loving character.
Quote by Simone: “You can’t control another person. It doesn’t matter how much you love them. You can’t love someone back to health and you can’t hate someone back to health and no matter how right you are about something, it doesn’t mean they will change their mind.“
Book vs TV Show: She is given a more extensive storyline through a romantic interest in another woman, allowing the show to delve into the LGBTQ scene in New York during the 1970s.
Partners & Kids
DAISY JONES
Daisy had several partners as she was growing up. Some of the significant ones mentioned in the book are:
- Jim Blades – lead singer of Mi Vida
- Wyatt Stone – lead singer of The Breeze (who eventually uses her lyrics to make the hit “Tiny Love”)
- Hank Allen – her first manager
- Niccolo Argento – Daisy’s first and only husband. He’s an Italian prince whom she meets in Thailand, marries, but then later divorces. However, in the show, he’s portrayed as an Irish prince whom she meets in Greece. The character is played by Gavin Drea, with his name changed to Nicky Fitzpatrick. He’s also not as wild and feral as in the book.
In the show, she is shown to have adopted a daughter. But in the book, Daisy has two sons.
BILLY DUNNE: marries Camila Martinez and they have three children – Julia, who is the author of the oral documentary, and the twins, Susana and Maria. However, in the show, they only have one child, Julia.
GRAHAM DUNNE: After his break-up with Karen during the epic fall of the band in 1979, he moves onto to marry Jeanne Dunne and is mentioned in both the book and TV show that he has kids.
WARREN RHODES: marries Lisa Crowne from SNL and has two kids – Brandon and Rachel Rhodes. But in the show, they have two twin girls.
PETE LOVING: He has one steady girlfriend throughout the book who he later settles down with – Jenny Manes.
SIMONE JACKSON: Has one kid from an ex-husband who has followed in her footsteps – Trina Jackson. In the show, she opens up a nightclub with her partner, Bernie.
Media & Management
Teddy Price
Played by: Tom Wright (Seinfeld, Barbershop franchise, Sunshine State, Murder at 1600)
Inspired by: Wright disclosed to TV Insider that he modeled his character after real-life record producers Quincy Jones, Berry Gordy, and Al Bell.
Quote by Teddy: “Daisy, someone who insists on the perfect conditions to make art isn’t an artist. They’re an asshole.”
Book vs TV Show: The major difference is that he succumbs to a heart attack in the book, whereas in the show, he survives the heart attack.
Rod Reyes
Played by: Timothy Olyphant (The First Wives Club, Scream 2, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.)
Inspired by: None.
Quote by Teddy: “The Chosen ones never know they are chosen. They think everyone gets a gold carpet rolled out for them.”
Book vs TV Show: In the book, both he and Teddy ensure everything runs smoothly with the band. However, in the show, Rod doesn’t appear much until the end when the band goes on tour.
Others
- Rich Valentino – CEO of Runner Records
- Hank Allen – Daisy’s first manager
- Opal Cunningham – tour accountant
- Artie Synder – lead engineer for the albums: The Six, SevenEightNine, Aurora.
- Nick Harris – rock critic
- Freddie Mendoza – photographer (shot the infamous cover of the Aurora album)
- Jonah Berg – journalist from Rolling Stone (plays a hand in what led to the band breaking up)
- Lisa Crowne – SNL (ends up marrying Warren Rhodes)
- Elaine Chang – biographer, author of Daisy Jones: Wild Flower
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:
There are so many differences between the book and the TV show that they would need their own separate blog post. For a compilation of the changes, check out the articles below.
