Emmy winner Sarah Paulson has been cast as the late Gwen Shamblin Lara, the diet-guru turned cult-like figure, in HBO Max‘s scripted adaptation of its own hit docuseries, The Way Down: God, Greed, and the Cult of Gwen Shamblin.
The original five-part docuseries, which premiered in 2021, explored the Tennessee-based eccentric leader’s legacy and her Remnant Fellowship Church. Shamblin Lara, as well as the church, have been accused of emotional, psychological, and physical abuse, as well as the use of “cult-like” practices.
Michelle Dean, co-creator of the 2019 Hulu limited series The Act, will serve as showrunner of the scripted adaptation.
This marks another “big wig” real-life portrayal for the American Horror Story star, who previously played Linda Tripp for Impeachment: American Crime Story, which earned her an Emmy nomination. Paulson is also known for her portrayal of prosecutor Marcia Clark in The People v. O.J. Simpson, which cinched her Outstanding Lead Actress In A Limited Series Or Movie award in 2016.
In May 2021, Shamblin and six church leaders, including her husband Joe and son-in-law Brandon Hannah, died when their private jet crashed into Percy Priest Lake near Smyrna, Tennessee, on its way to Florida. This happened during post production of the docuseries, of which the family declined to take part in. However, after the crash, several people previously unwilling to speak on Shamblin, the church, or its practices, came forward to director Marina Zenovich with their experiences with her and The Remnant Fellowship. As a result, the five-episode docuseries was forced to air its first three episodes on HBO Max on September 30, 2021 and left the last two episodes to premiere the following year on April 28.
