ABC’s Body of Proof has made the rare decision to write an episode that’s inspired by news events — and the one it has planned for Jan. 3 should be a doozy.
EW has learned exclusively that the writers of the Dana Delany drama will spin their own Casey Anthony-type tale about a young woman named Hillary Stone who is acquitted for murdering her son. The action will begin on the day Hillary is released from prison — and guess who is waiting for her on the outside?
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Marcia Gay Harden has been cast as Sheila Temple, a Nancy Grace-like “journalist” who has doggedly reported the story of Hillary’s case. The show also cast Rita Wilson to play Hillary’s mom Ruth.
“This is an important case to us because we don’t do a ton of ripped of the headlines cases,” explains Executive Producer Sunil Nayar. “But it became this sensational case nationwide. There were very human elements. [In our episode] we explore what happens when the media takes over a case.”
Harden recently appeared in another ripped-from-the-headlines project — the Lifetime movie Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy. She played Amanda’s mom Edda Mellas.
Earlier this season, Wilson did stints on Law & Order: SVU and The Good Wife.
