Happy Face: Annaleigh Ashford to star in true crime series for Paramount+

Melissa Moore’s autobiography Shattered Silence inspired the podcast Happy Face, and now the podcast is getting a Paramount+ streaming series adaptation! Annaleigh Ashford – whose credits include B Positive, American Crime Story, and Masters of Sex – has signed on to star in the series, with Michael Showalter on board to direct the first episode.

I mainly know Showalter from an actor in projects like The State and Wet Hot American Summer, but his TV directing credits include episodes of Search Party, Love, Grace and Frankie, In the Dark, The Shrink Next Door, The Dropout, and I Love That for You. He has also directed the feature films Spoiler Alert, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, The Lovebirds, The Big Sick; Hello, My Name Is Doris; and The Baxter.

Happy Face will see Ashford taking on the role of Melissa, who at age 15, discovered that her beloved father was the prolific serial killer known as “Happy Face.” As an adult, she has changed her name and guarded her secret while her father has been serving life in prison.

This series is coming our way from executive producers Robert and Michelle King, who are also behind shows like The Good Fight and Evil (both of which Ashford has appeared on). Their take on Happy Face “will use Melissa’s story as a jumping off point and explore what happens when her father contacts her to take credit for another victim and how she is pulled into an investigation of her father and his crimes. The series will follow her as she discovers the impact her father’s crimes had on the families of his victims, which ultimately leads to a reckoning with her own identity.“

This series has been in development for more than three years and was formally ordered to series way back in November of 2021. The Kings, Moore, and Showalter are executive producing alongside Liz Glotzer, Conal Byrne, Will Pearson, Jordana Mollick, and showrunner Jennifer Cacicio. The production companies involved are CBS Studios, King Size Productions, iHeartPodcasts and Simi-Formal Productions.

The first season of Happy Face will consist of eight episodes and is expected to premiere sometime in 2025. Does this show sound interesting to you? Let us know by leaving a comment below.