Claim: Jennifer Garner appeared on film.

Catch Me If You Can is a 2002 American biographical crime film based on the life of Frank Abagnale , who , before his 19th birthday , successfully performed cons worth millions of dollars by posing as a Pan American World Airways pilot , a Georgia doctor , and a Louisiana parish prosecutor . His primary crime was check fraud ; he became so experienced that the FBI eventually turned to him for help in catching other check forgers . The film was directed by Steven Spielberg and stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks , with Christopher Walken , Martin Sheen , and Nathalie Baye in supporting roles .   Development for the film started in 1980 , but did not progress until 1997 , when the film rights to Abagnale 's book were sold to Spielberg 's DreamWorks . David Fincher , Gore Verbinski , Lasse Hallström , Miloš Forman , and Cameron Crowe had all been possible candidates for director before Spielberg decided to direct . Filming took place from February to May 2002 . The film was a financial and critical success , and the real Abagnale reacted positively to it .