Elle Fanning spends plenty of time running on a treadmill in the trailer for The Girl From Plainville, but she can’t run from the law. The 20th Century Women actress stars in the Hulu limited series as Michelle Carter, the Massachusetts teen who was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for using text messages to encourage her boyfriend Conrad Roy III to die by suicide.
Across eight episodes, the show follows Carter through her relationship with Roy, its shocking end, and her 2017 trial. Written by Liz Hannah and Patrick Macmanus, who also served as co-showrunners and executive producers, The Girl From Plainville is based on the Esquire article by Jesse Barron that went in-depth on the now-infamous “texting suicide” case. Various details from the piece can be spotted in the trailer, such as Michelle’s interest in softball, and an exchange the couple had about becoming Romeo and Juliet.
Alongside Fanning, The Girl From Plainville also features Chloë Sevigny (We Are Who We Are) as Lynn Roy, Colton Ryan (Dear Evan Hansen) as Conrad Roy III, Cara Buono (Stranger Things) as Gail Carter, Kai Lennox (Green Room) as David Carter, and Norbert Leo Butz (Fosse/Verdon) as Conrad Roy II.
Hulu subscribers who are accustomed to seeing Fanning tossing out “Huzzah”s in full Russian empress regalia as Catherine on The Great will be surprised to see the actress’s very different look for The Girl From Plainville, featuring dramatic eyebrows and a forehead prosthetic. The streamer also recently made headlines for Lily James’s remarkable transformation into Pamela Anderson for the limited series Pam & Tommy.
The Girl From Plainville will have its world premiere at SXSW before releasing the first three episodes on March 29. The remaining episodes will be available on Hulu weekly.
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