‘Masters of Sex’s Michael Sheen to Play the Green River Killer

Michael Sheen
Michael Sheen (Photo Courtesy of QC Entertainment and Dark Horse)

Masters of Sex star Michael Sheen will make his feature film directorial debut with Green River Killer, a thriller based on the true story of serial killer Gary Ridgway. Sheen will also take on the lead role and he’ll produce the crime drama along with QC Entertainment and Dark Horse Entertainment. The film’s based on Dark Horse’s graphic novel Green River Killer: A True Detective Story by Jeff Jensen, and in addition to directing, producing, and starring in the project, Sheen adapted the novel for the screen.

“Michael has written an elegant script which brings his sophisticated vision to subverting the typical serial killer movie,” said QC Principals Sean McKittrick and Ray Mansfield. “Jensen and Ridgway are terrific roles for both an actor of Michael’s caliber and the actor cast opposite him. As producers who have long championed actors making the move to directing, we couldn’t be more excited to be a part of it.”

“This is a dark story but one that ultimately finds hope and meaning in that darkness,” said Sheen. “The story of Tom and Gary, and how they are bound together in time, pulled me in from the beginning and wouldn’t let go. I hope that by now bringing it to life on screen it can make audiences feel the same way.”

Green River Killer presents the ultimate insider’s account of America’s most prolific serial killer,” added Dark Horse Entertainment President Mike Richardson. “Michael Sheen’s passion for the material was clear when he insisted on adapting the book on spec. His screenplay proves that Jeff Jensen’s Eisner Award-winning graphic novel is perfectly suited for the screen.”

The Plot: The film is the story of Tom Jensen, the man who spent twenty years looking for the ‘Green River Killer,’ and Gary Ridgway (to be played by Sheen), the man he caught. After a two-decade hunt and forty-nine official murders, the two men are forced to live and work together in a dark alliance to uncover the truth.