"Pushed me to work extra hard": The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox star Grace Van Patten shares her feelings about taking the lead on short notice

Amanda Knox's tale has been retold in every medium imaginable, from books to documentaries. The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox set out doing something different: The show has Amanda Knox herself as an executive producer.

As Hulu's limited series dropped its first two episodes on August 20, attention has turned toward Grace Van Patten, the actress who plays Amanda Knox, and portrays the protagonist's life under the most unusual conditions. In an interview with Variety, The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox star Grace Van Patten shared her feelings about stepping in as the lead for Margaret Qualley on short notice. She said,

"I was scared about it in the moment, but I’m thankful, looking back, because if I had more time - let’s say less time was better, because it pushed me to work extra hard. "

She added,

"I had about two months that was filled with learning Italian every day, speaking to Amanda and then my own research - reading, watching and listening to everything I possibly could about her."

With just about two months to prepare for six months of shooting, the actress needed to absorb Knox's story while running against the clock. The limited time at her disposal was spent in intense research, establishing trust with Knox, and in understanding the human side of a case that had already been sensationalized globally.

Grace Van Patten's challenge in portraying Amanda Knox in The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

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Grace Van Patten became a cast member of The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox in June of 2024 after Qualley left in April because of scheduling issues. That gave Van Patten a tight window to prepare for the role before filming commenced. Preparation involved learning Italian, researching the judicial proceedings, and interacting with Knox. One of her first interactions with Knox was an informal paddle-boat session that served to break the ice.

The actress has conceded that the limited time at hand to prepare for the role demanded tireless dedication. With scarce room for errors, she had to juggle emotional sincerity with veracity as the script portrays it, aware that millions already know what had happened. Playing Amanda Knox was not merely an acting assignment, it was about walking the fine line between public opinion and the reality of Knox's life as portrayed in the show.

Staging Amanda Knox without mimicry in The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

A fundamental choice Van Patten made early on was not to impersonate Knox. She did not want to duplicate Amanda Knox's every move and speech pattern. Rather, she sought to get across the emotional depth of a person who had become embroiled in extraordinary events. From her laugh to her anxiety, Van Patten strove to capture Knox's personality without disrespect or artificiality.

The interrogation scenes underscore this strategy. By condensing lengthy, arduous hours of questioning into a single long scene, the makers made the psychological pressure that Knox faced the focal point of the sequence. For Van Patten, it was not as much about resembling Knox as it was about conveying the oppressive sense of the investigation.

Amanda Knox's response to Van Patten's performance in The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

For Van Patten, playing Amanda Knox was a dream come true. She told Variety:

"It was fascinating, seeing how much more there was to her story. She’s a pretty distinct person, Amanda, and I was at a loss for how all of this happened to her. The doc released at the time I had just started acting. I called my agents and said, “If there’s every anything made about Amanda Knox, that would be a dream part for me.” It’s a full circle moment that this job came up. It feels right."

On her part, Knox, who is an executive producer of the show, is happy with Van Patten's performance. She told Decider:

“The psychological journey that Grace has to go on to arrive where she arrives? I’m so proud of her.” She added: “Especially when so many people are resistant to that idea of how police can lie and coerce. She just got it and brought it.”

The aim and scope of The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox is an eight-episode limited series that airs on Hulu. It follows Knox's stint as an exchange student in Italy, the brutal murder of her roommate Meredith Kercher in 2007, her unjust conviction, and the decade-long judicial fight that ensued.

Unencumbered by the prior representations that drew heavily from media reporting, this production was developed with Knox being directly involved. That provided an opportunity to tell her side of the story, and for Amanda Knox to take center stage. This was a significant departure from the tabloid representations back in the day.

Critical response of The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox

With just two episodes out, and the series set for a staggered release pattern on a weekly basis till October 1, there are only early reviews available online as of now. On Rotten Tomatoes, there are only 19 early reviews so far, with an average rating of 68% at the time of writing. There is no critical consensus yet, nor is there an adequate score on Popcornmeter, which guages the audience rating of a show or movie on the website. On the website Metacritic, the show has so far scored 62 out of 100, aggregating six reviews.

Grace Van Patten's performance has been mostly liked in the early reviews. suggesting she has connected well with the reality of being Amanda Knox. The abbreviated preparation time heightened her challenge, and the actress focused on realism and compassion over replication to bring out the essence of her role.

For Amanda Knox, this series offered her a chance to tell the story of her life in the way she wanted, with sensitivity. Regardless of whether viewers accept or reject the dramatization, The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox makes certain that Knox's voice, long delayed, is prominent in the story.

Also read: The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox Episode 3: Release date news, time, streaming details and more

Edited by Vinayak Chakravorty

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