The arrest of the accused Gilgo Beach serial killer has grabbed international attention. Now Lifetime plans to re-broadcast its true-crime movie on the case with new details from the investigation, the network announced Thursday.
Previously titled The Long Island Serial Killer: A Mother’s Hunt for Justice, the 2021 film has been renamed The Gilgo Beach Killer and will air on Aug. 6.
The movie is based on the search for justice by Mari Gilbert, whose daughter Shannan Gilbert disappeared on Long Island’s South Shore in 2010.
“The movie follows a mother’s relentless pursuit of justice after her daughter Shannan’s disappearance. Mari’s fight for answers led investigators to the discovery of the bodies of numerous women on Long Island, believed to have fallen prey to a serial killer,” according to the official description.
The film stars Emmy Award-winning actress Kim Delaney (NYPD Blue).
In real life, the police search for Shannan led to the discovery of the remains of 10 other people. Shannan’s death was ruled accidental, but her family hired a private pathologist who determined she died of strangulation or asphyxiation.
Shannan and most of the other victims were sex workers who advertised their services on Craigslist.
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After over a decade, authorities announced on July 14 that they had arrested Rex Heuermann, 59, in Manhattan.
CNN reported investigators cracked the case using cell phone data, credit card bills and DNA evidence.
Heuermann, a New York City architect, has been charged with three of the killings. He pleaded not guilty in the case.
Lifetime says the film will include new details provided by executive producer and Emmy Award-winning journalist Deborah Norville.
Peabody Award winner Elizabeth Stephen is also an executive producer. The script is written by John Pielmeier (Agnes of God, The Capture of the Green River Killer).
The Gilgo Beach Killer (aka The Long Island Serial Killer: A Mother’s Hunt for Justice) airs Sunday, Aug. 6 at 8/7c.
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Lifetime to Re-Air Gilgo Beach Serial Killer Movie With New Details on Case