Strange Bedfellows: Hayden Panettiere Cast as Amanda Knox in Lifetime Original Movie

In December 2009, UW honor student Amanda Knox was convicted of murder and sexual assault in Perugia, Italy. The case has been at the center of a media circus since it took place, back in 2007, because it is simply too juicy to resist. Both Knox and the victim, British student Meredith Kercher, were young and attractive; rumors of sex and drugs abounded; and the Italian judicial system leaks like a chicken-wire canoe. Who could resist?

Certainly not Seattle-based writer Candace Dempsey, or any of the other half-dozen writers to publish books on the case. The UK’s Channel 4, CBS’s “48 Hours,” and “Dateline NBC” have aired documentaries.  Magazines ranging from Newsweek to Vanity Fair have profiled the young woman dubbed “Angel Face,” “Foxy Knoxy,” and “Luciferina.” And yet, there is no general consensus on whether or not she dunnit. Not even close.

Enter geekalicious pin-up Hayden Panettiere, a former soap-opera child actress whose wholesome blonde goodness on the TV show Heroes has lured a portion the science fiction fandom contingent away from reigning queen Summer Glau. Panettiere seems an odd choice for the role of Amanda Knox. Or, rather, the role seems an odd choice for Panettiere, whose star has only been rising over the past four years. Lifetime original movies are not exactly known for their power to vault actors to the pinnacles of celebrity, so why sign?

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The answer is the usual: typecasting. Panettiere, who is currently filming Scream 4, has let it be known that she feels trapped as “the blonde” and “the cheerleader,” and wants to break out of her Bring It On (3: All or Nothing) mold. Undoubtedly, she will darken her hair for the role, and perhaps don a pair of glasses to give her character that “serious” look, but will it be enough to break out of the casting box?

In large part, that depends on which way Lifetime goes with the script for The Amanda Knox Story. Knox’s case is up for appeal next month, so her conviction could still be overturned. Is Knox a good girl, falsely convicted by a corrupt legal system (the head prosecutor for her case, Guiliano Mignini, has been convicted of “abuse of office” and sentenced to 16 months in prison by a Florence court), or is she a cold-blooded, hashish-smoking murderer who happens to really like the Beatles? Panettiere is betting a promising career on the outcome.