Grace Van Patten opened up about meeting, collaborating with, and ultimately becoming the titular character in Hulu’s “The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox” following a screening of the series’ final episode on Sept. 29. Van Patten sat down with Variety‘s Selome Hailu to talk about her relationship with the complicated real-world figure and how this version of her notorious story stands out.
“It’s her version. I think that’s what sets it apart,” says Van Patten, “She was finally given the opportunity to help tell her own story, and beyond the show, beyond the acting, it feels really important to be a part of helping somebody do that.”
As the show chronicles, Amanda Knox became the suspect in a murder case when her roommate was found dead while they were studying abroad in Italy in 2007. Knox was convicted and served four years of a 26-year sentence in an Italian prison before the verdict was overturned. The case was the subject of many news stories, as Knox became a sensationalized figure in the public eye.
Van Patten says that she has wanted to play Knox ever since she saw the Netflix doc, “Amanda Knox.” “This is a crazy full circle moment for me. I remember watching the Netflix documentary in 2016 and being so fascinated by this story and so fascinated by her and could not believe that she had not had the opportunity to tell her own story,” Van Patten said, “So when this came around, I felt extremely passionate about it.”
Despite her passion for the character and real-world figure, Van Patten admitted that she didn’t know much about the case before watching the documentary. Instead, Van Patten had the unique opportunity to hear the story through Knox’s eyes while preparing for the character.
“I’m really thankful that I went into it not knowing too much because this is such a polarizing case,” Van Patten said. “People have very strong opinions about it and I’m very thankful that I was able to approach it objectively and kind of form my own opinion through speaking to Amanda and through doing the proper research and reading as much as I could and watching as much as I could. It felt really good to approach it with fresh eyes and not have any preconceived beliefs.”
The actress did her due diligence in objective research on the project, though. “I was definitely researching and reading and watching as much as I could,” she said, “But as soon as I understood that [Knox] was willing to have this be a full collaboration, I really focused on that and I focused on getting to know her and understand her as best as possible because at the core of this, this is a human story. It’s a story we all know about, but it’s about this young girl who went through this unimaginable thing. That’s the story that I was focused on telling.”
She said that the first time she met Knox over Zoom, “I felt like I blacked out. I was so nervous and I couldn’t think of any questions,” but when the two met up subsequently in person, they got to know each other by sharing a swan paddle boat in Los Angeles’ Echo Park. “We pedaled around for an hour, [which is] really tiring by the way. I was out of breath asking her questions for an hour and tried to ease into it. Her kids were there, her two kids and her husband, and I really got to know her as a mom and as a wife and as just like a young woman in the world. That was so important to me to just understand her as much as possible so that hopefully the audience can too.”
After getting to know Knox, Van Patten said that she was most struck by her vivacity, and that she tried channeling that into her performance. “What made me feel the most in her body was trying to get in touch with the little kid in myself or something. She’s very childlike and very unselfconscious, and even in the midst of being so scrutinized for who she was, she never changed who she was. I find that so inspiring.”
Knox ended up being a true collaborator on the project, providing a compass for Van Patten and even making appearances on set to ensure that key scenes were portrayed sincerely. The series as a whole spans the four years of Knox’s case, and in the finale, Van Patten plays a modern Amanda Knox, still grappling with the legacy of her unfortunate situation.
Despite most of the world remembering Knox as a young college-aged student, Van Patten said that the finale version was “the Amanda I know and have met and have spoken to, so that version of her felt the most familiar to me.” She added, “I guess there was less pressure because I was able to speak to that version of Amanda and understand her a little bit more than what she just tells me about how she was like in the past. But I really enjoyed shooting this last episode, and I think it really shows who Amanda is and how open and willing to forgive she is.”
