Elizabeth Olsen To Star In ‘Love And Death’ HBO Max True Crime Limited Series From David E. Kelley, Nicole Kidman, Lesli Linka Glatter & Lionsgate TV

HBO Max has greenlighted Love and Death, a limited series about the true story of Wylie, TX, housewife Candy Montgomery’s murder of Betty Gore in 1980. Elizabeth Olsen (WandaVision) will star as Montgomery in the series, from the Big Little Lies and The Undoing duo of David E. Kelley and Nicole Kidman and Lionsgate Television.

Written by Kelley and directed by Homeland‘s Lesli Linka Glatter, Love and Death is inspired by the book Evidence of Love: A True Story of Passion and Death in the Suburbs and a collection of articles from Texas Monthly (Love & Death In Silicon Prairie, Part I & II).

The series revolves around two church going couples, enjoying small town family life in Texas, until somebody picks up an axe.

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Kelley executive produces via his David E. Kelley Productions, with Kidman and Per Saari via Blossom Films; Glatter; Scott Brown and Megan Creydt through Texas Monthly; Matthew Tinker; Michael Klick and Helen Verno. Lionsgate TV is the studio.

Hot coming off her starring role in Disney+’s breakout hit Marvel’s WandaVision, which recently wrapped its first season on the streaming platform, Olsen was pursued for several high-profile series from top auspices, ultimately choosing Life and Death.

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“This is a gripping story about the frustrations and desires of two women in a small town that culminates in a terrible act of violence,” said Sarah Aubrey, Head of Original Content, HBO Max. “We are thrilled to be partnering with David, Lesli, Nicole, and Per and incredibly fortunate to have Elizabeth at the center of our story to bring out all the layers of Candy that make this story so unforgettable.”

This marks the latest series at HBO Max for Lionsgate TV, joining Love Life and the upcoming Julia and Minx.

“We cannot imagine a more perfect artist to play the leading role of Candy than Elizabeth Olsen,” said Kevin Beggs, Chairman, Lionsgate Television Group. “Her talent, charisma and energy can bewitch audiences like no other. We’re proud to be collaborating with a world-class creative team of Lesli, David and Nicole on this thrilling and intriguing series and to bring another exciting premium property to our partners at HBO Max.”

Olsen will next be seen reprising her role as the Scarlet Witch in MCU sequel Doctor Strange In the Multiverse of Madness, directed by Sam Raimi. She recently starred as the character in Avengers: Endgame and Avengers: Infinity War.

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Multiple Emmy-winning writer-producer Kelley, creator of The Practice, Picket Fences and Ally McBeal, has been on a roll with a string of hits,The Undoing and Big Little Lies on HBO, along with Big Sky on ABC. His latest series, Big Shot, just debuted on Disney+.

Multiple DGA Award-winning director Glatter has directed numerous notable television series including the Emmy-winning series Homeland and Lionsgate’s Emmy-winning series Mad Men. Glatter is the recipient of the Women in Film Dorothy Arzner Directing Award and the American Film Institute Honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts.

Blossom Films is in pre-production on the television series adaptation of Janice Lee’s best-seller The Expatriates, with Lulu Wang directing all episodes for Amazon, and Roar, an eight-part anthology series for Apple, based on the book of the same name by Cecelia Ahern. Blossom recently wrapped production on the TV adaptation of Liane Moriarty’s latest best-selling novel Nine Perfect Strangers for Hulu.

Olsen is repped by Gersh, Brillstein Entertainment Partners, and Sloane, Offer, Weber & Dern. Kelley is represented by CAA and Attorney Michael Gendler. Kidman is represented by CAA, Media Talent Group and Jackoway Austen Tyerman. Glatter is represented by CAA, Anonymous Content and Lichter, Grossman, Nichols, Adler, Feldman and Clark. Texas Monthly is represented by CAA.

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