The iHeartMedia podcast Happy Face is coming to television. Paramount+, the streaming service from ViacomCBS, has greenlit an adaptation of the true crime podcast based on the book Shattered Silence written by Melissa Jesperson-Moore with M. Bridget Cook.
The Happy Face podcast told the story of how, at age 15, Jesperson-Moore discovered her father, whom she loved dearly, was the prolific serial killer known as “Happy Face.” As an adult, she changed her name, guarded her secret, and cut off all ties to her father, who is currently serving life in prison.
Jumping off from Jesperson-Moore’s true-life story, in the television series her father contacts her to take credit for another victim, and his daughter gets pulled into an investigation of her father and his crimes. The series follows her as she discovers the impact her father’s crimes had on the families of his victims, which ultimately leads to a reckoning of her own identity.
“Melissa’s experience – and her bravery in sharing it with the world – was one of the most remarkable partnerships we’ve been able to support here at iHeart,” said Conal Byrne, CEO of iHeartMedia’s Digital Audio Group. “And we know that audiences will be just as moved by the on-screen adaptation of Happy Face as they were with the hugely successful podcast.”
The TV show will be executive produced by Robert and Michelle King, who already helm “The Good Fight” and “Evil” series on Paramount+. “We’re obsessed with true-crime podcasts, and ‘Happy Face is the best we’ve heard – Melissa’s story screams out to be dramatized,” they said in a joint statement. Happy Face will become the third series from Robert and Michelle King to land at Paramount+.
The TV show will be written and executive produced by Jennifer Cacicio, with executive producer credits also going to King Size Productions’ Liz Glotzer, Melissa Jesperson-Moore, iHeartMedia CEO Bob Pittman and Byrne.
“It’s been an incredible journey that I couldn’t have ever foreseen – how I’ve transcended being raised by a serial killer and now am helping survivors tell their stories,” said Jesperson-Moore, who today is the CEO of Redletter Media. “Happy Face gives me the chance to share the intense internal conflict, fear and peril felt by those affected by true crime. It also inspires me to share the strength that has allowed me to step up in front of the camera so that other survivors will not feel alone in their experience.”
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