The Good Father: The Martin MacNeill Story
Premieres October 2 at 8/7c
Based on actual events, The Good Father tells the story of Dr. MacNeill (Tom Everett Scott) and the incredible life he led with his former beauty queen wife, Michele (Charisma Carpenter) and their eight children. A pillar of the community, he was respected and loved by all especially by his daughter Alexis (Anwen O’Driscoll) who adored him and even wanted to follow in his footsteps to become a doctor. But everything soon changes after Dr. MacNeill convinces Michele to have plastic surgery, ultimately leading to her drowning while on prescription medication. Just a few short weeks after his wife’s suspicious death, Dr. MacNeill brings home Gypsy Willis, a new live-in “nanny” for his children but who is in actuality his mistress. Shocked by her father’s actions, Alexis begins to question everything she has known about him and discovers the depth of his lies, including his bogus medical credentials, falsified military records, and that the man and good doctor she once revered, was capable of murder.
The Good Father: The Martin MacNeill Story is produced by Good Doctor Films Inc. for Lifetime. Nancy Grace and bestselling author Josh Sabarra executive produce alongside Howard Braunstein. Annie Bradley directs from a script written by John Fasano and Abdi Nazemian
Dying to Belong
Premieres October 9 at 8/7c
A remake of the classic 1997 film, Dying to Belong tells the story of journalism major Olivia (Favour Onwuka) meets Riley (Jenika Rose), a shy freshman who suffers from anxiety, they become fast friends. Riley, whose mother Katherine (Shannen Doherty) was a legacy Pi Gamma Beta, decides to rush in hopes of following Katherine’s footsteps and is ecstatic when Olivia joins her. Sensing the opportunity to go undercover to write a story about hazing practices, Olivia soon discovers there are deadly secrets involved in being part of the “sisterhood.”
Dying to Belong is produced by Pink Buffalo Films and Wishing Floor Films with Danielle von Zerneck (The Christmas Set Up) executive producing, Gail Harvey (Gone Mom: The Disappearance of Jennifer Dulos) directs from a script from Caitlin D. Freyers (Wynona Earp). Shawn Angelski (Story of a Girl) also serves as executive producer.
| List of a Lifetime Premieres October 10 at 8/7c List of a Lifetime follows Brenda Lee (Kelly Hu) who is diagnosed with breast cancer, is prompted to look for the daughter she gave up for adoption decades ago. After finding Talia (Sylvia Kwan) and sharing her devasting news, Talia convinces Brenda to make a bucket list of everything she wants to do, promising to help her complete everything on the list. While keeping Brenda a secret from her adoptive parents Diana (Shannen Doherty) and Marty (Jamie Kahler, How I Met Your Mother), Talia grows closer to the mother she never knew. Meanwhile, Brenda discovers a meaningful relationship with Talia she didn’t know she needed, and a reason to fight for her life. Patricia Velasquez stars as Brenda’s best friend, Meg while Jane Sibbett stars as Brenda’s oncologist, Dr. Elizabeth Boyer. Jim Klock (Underground Railroad) also appears in the film as Brenda’s supervisor, Kevin and Chad Lindberg (The Fast and the Furious) plays Brenda’s boyfriend, Mike. The movie is produced by Ninth House Films and MarVista Entertainment and is directed by Roxy Shih and written by Jessica Landry. Producers for The Ninth House are Autumn Federici and Jake Helgren while Marianne C. Wunch, Hannah Pillemer and Fernando Szew executive produce for MarVista Entertainment. The film also included a diverse predominately female crew with Daphne Wu as the director of photography, Hanuel Kim as the gaffer and many others. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff is about Kristine Carlson (Heather Locklear) and her husband Dr. Richard Carlson (Jason MacDonald) had an amazing life with their two daughters. But when Richard tragically passes away, Kristine is knocked off balance. Comfortable with living in Richard’s shadow, she is now forced to navigate the unchartered territory of becoming a single mom while dealing with pressure to become the new face and voice of the Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff brand. Looking deep inside herself, Kristine comes to understand the true essence of emotional authenticity and not sweating the small stuff, which leads to the resilience and confidence needed to carry on the legacy of the beloved brand. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff is produced for Lifetime by The Johnson Production Group and Teitelbaum Artists. Maura Dunbar (The American Bible Challenge, What Should You Do?), Mark Teitelbaum (Superior Donuts, The Crazy Ones) and Meghan McCain (The View, Moms) are executive producers. Ellen S. Pressman will direct from a script written by Shannon Bradley-Colleary. Switched Before Birth Switched Before Birth follows Olivia Crawford (Skyler Samuels) and her husband Brian (Bo Yokely), who after multiple miscarriages, numerous failed IVF trials and stretching themselves to the limit financially, finally receive the joyous news that she’s pregnant with twins. While going through her latest round of IVF, Oliva meets and becomes fast friends with Anna Ramirez (Justina Machado), who is struggling to have a child after years of focusing on her successful restaurants. When Anna becomes pregnant as well, the ladies celebrate and begin to prepare for their babies. Olivia is also there for Anna when she suffers a devastating miscarriage and struggles to move forward while her marriage to restaurateur Gabe Ramirez (Yancey Arias) crumbles. When Olivia and Brian finally welcome their twins Olivia’s life feels complete, but the happy couple’s world is turned upside down when they discover that not only are the babies not twins, but one of the babies is also biologically Anna and Gabe’s that was implanted into Olivia by mistake. Now pitted against each other, Olivia will do anything to keep the baby that she carried, while Anna will stop at nothing to bring her son home. Switched Before Birth is produced by Big Dreams Entertainment and Swirl for Lifetime. Leslie Greif, Laurie Pozmantier and Stacy Mandelberg serve as executive producers and Elisabeth Rohm directs a script from Kelly Fullerton. Eric Tomosunas also serves as executive producer and Alex Kerr and Ron Robinson serve as producers. |
| Torn From Her Arms Premieres October 30 at 8/7c Torn From Her Arms is based on a true story, originally covered by the OZY editorial team. Amidst the ongoing crisis at the U.S. border, the timely film depicts the harrowing true story of a mother and daughter who must find their way back to each other after being separated. Judy Reyes (Devious Maids, Claws) takes on the role of Thelma Garcia, a Texas Immigration lawyer who works tirelessly to reunite the pair, and Gloria Reuben (Mr. Robot, ER) portrays Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist ProPublica reporter, Ginger Thompson, who broke the story. The movie follows Cindy Madrid (Fátima Molina, Who Killed Sara?) and her six-year-old daughter, Ximena (Camila Nuñez), who fled violence in El Salvador for safety in the U.S., only to be separated at the border as a part of the Administration’s Zero Tolerance Policy. Detained in detention centers in different states, Cindy and Ximena endured inhumane living conditions and inadequate medical care, but that was nothing compared to the emotional toll of being apart. Their story would gain national attention when a whistleblower leaked a gut-wrenching audiotape of six-year-old Ximena crying for her mother. The onslaught of media attention incited by Ginger’s story alerted the nation to the cruelties being committed against undocumented immigrant families at the border. Torn From Her Arms is produced by OZY Media and Motion Picture Corporation of America. Executive producers are Brad Krevoy, Linda Berman, Carlos Watson, Lindsay Rodger, Amanda Phillips, Eric Jarboe and Steve McGlothen. Alan Jonsson Gavica directs from a script written by Tawnya Bhattacharya and Ali Laventhol. Originally covered by Ozy’s reporting arm, Torn From Her Arms marks Ozy’s first foray into scripted programming and an expansion of its television catalog. |
