‘The Gabby Petito Story’: Lifetime Taps Thora Birch to Unpack Harrowing Social Media Phenomenon

After the harrowing story of Gabby Petito went viral on TikTok, Lifetime has opted to examine her disappearance and murder in a longer form. In her directorial debut, American Beauty’s Thora Birch will helm and star in The Gabby Petito Story, which is part of Lifetime’s Stop Violence Against Women public affairs initiative.

Last fall, Petito made headlines after she disappeared while on a cross-country road trip with her fiancé Brian Laundrie. The 22-year-old went missing in September, and not long after, a flurry of social media attention followed, with folks all over the nation trying to figure out Petito’s whereabouts. In October, Petito's body was found and her case was ruled a homicide after a coroner determined that she had been strangled to death.

Petito’s case had a particular draw on TikTok, where amateur sleuths took credit for solving details in the van-life influencer’s murder. The posts, which ranged from folks who had actually encountered Laundrie to conspiracy theorists, could’ve spawned enough true crime content for an entire series.

Which is nearly the case with The Gabby Petito Story, a made-for-TV film set to explore Petito and Laundrie’s complicated relationship that spiraled out of control during their cross-country trek. The movie is set to film in Utah and premiere later this year, close to the anniversary of Petito’s disappearance and death.

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Birch will play Petito’s mom, Nichole Schmidt, with additional casting still under wraps. At this time, none of Petito’s family members or friends are involved with the project, which could create issues for Lifetime. The network has previously faced backlash for its occasionally ill-timed, exploitative true-crime programming, and without any support from Petito’s relations, the same critical firestorm could be heading its way.

Still, Lifetime has hatched a plan to halt the backlash. The network will roll out a new PSA to debut during the movie’s premiere, providing resources for women living in abusive and violent situations. Lifetime also plans to spotlight more stories centering on violence against women with lesser-known stories, including those of Carlesha Freeland-Gaither, Adriane Fields, and Beatrice Weston.

This is far from the first zeitgeisty true crime story to earn an adaptation. Serial, a podcast by the creators of This American Life, has been picked up by HBO; Michelle McNamara’s book I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, about the Golden State Killer, also landed an HBO saga; and HBO is currently adapting Netflix’s docuseries The Staircase into a miniseries starring Colin Firth. As trolls continue to spin Petito’s murder into a joke, our biggest hope is that Birch and Lifetime are able to handle her story with a bit of grace.

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