A true story that's much scarier than any writer could think up, the story of Dee Dee Blanchard's murder is now being turned into a TV series.
In 2015, Dee Dee was murdered by her own daughter, Gypsy Rose Blanchard, who was believed by everybody to have had severe health problems and major cognitive delay giving her the mental ability of a seven-year-old.
The mother, Dee Dee, had fooled everyone from doctors to family members that Gypsy Rose was sick, driven by Munchausen syndrome by proxy. This is a relatively rare form of child abuse where the parent or caregiver fabricates or causes the illness of their child, often a bid for attention, sympathy or financial gain.
According to Dee Dee, her daughter had chromosonal defects and leukaemia as well as epilepsy, hearing loss, sleep apnoea, asthma and muscular dystrophy. She made her daughter use a wheelchair, and shaved her head to make it appear as though she had gone through chemo.
Gypsy was also put through invasive surgical procedures that she didn't need, like having her salivary glands removed.
Gypsy was, unbeknownst to members of the community, perfectly healthy and mobile with normal mental capabilities. While desperately attempting to escape her mother's ongoing abuse, Gypsy ended up murdering Dee Dee.
The now 27-year-old was convicted to ten years in prison for second degree murder in 2016. She was spared a life sentence due to the severe abuse she suffered from her mother.
A documentary on the story brought the case to public attention in 2017, 'Mommy Dead and Dearest', delving into Gypsy's abusive childhood and teenage years.
The new TV series 'The Act' is to be released by streaming service Hulu, and will star Joey King (from The Kissing Booth) as Gypsy Rose Blanchard and Patricia Arquette as Dee Dee. It's due for release on 20th March, 2019.
Check out Joey King's post about the show below, and watch the trailer for the series above. We're not gonna lie, we're pretty interested to see this one.
