Geena Davis to Star In and Produce HBO True Crime Drama Series DOROTHEA Based on Serial Killer Dorothea Puente
Academy Award winner Geena Davis (Thelma and Louise, Beetlejuice) has signed on to star in and executive produce the HBO true crime drama series Dorothea, based on the real-life story of Dorothea Puente, California’s most notorious female serial killer. The show is written by Joshua Michael Stern (Jobs, Swing Vote), who serves as showrunner, from a story co-written by Michael Rosenbaum and Jane Whitney.
The project originated with Smallville alum Rosenbaum who identified the idea and brought it to Bristol Circle Entertainment, the production company of former Sony Pictures Television Studios President Jeff Frost (Pluribus).
Rosenbaum and his writing partner Whitney developed the series with Stern (Graves) before Davis was attached and the package was taken out, landing at HBO.
Dorothea centers on a Sacramento woman (Davis) who ran a boarding house for the less fortunate in the 1980s, but her seemingly benevolent actions belied her sinister motives. In reality, she was murdering her boarders and continuing to cash their social security checks.
After evading suspicion for years, in part because of her disarming, matronly demeanor, Puente was ultimately arrested. After a wild trial, she was convicted for three of the murders and spent her last years in prison.
Davis is coming off the Netflix supernatural drama The Boroughs. She will next be seen in the movies The Wrong Girls and The Kellys.
via: Deadline