Lifetime's "Doomsday Mom: The Lori Vallow Story" Unveils A Shocking Tale of Brainwashing

quotI actually wasn39t familiar with the casequot Lee Smith admitted recently while promoting the project with Blucas below right quotIt was at a time when we were all in fullblown lockdown COVID craziness I was in Toronto with my young daughter trying to sort of keep sane and there was no TV around Our director Bradley Walsh brought the project to my attention a couple of weeks before shooting began We were catching up and he asked what I39d like to do next I was looking for a challenge and something to sink my teeth into One thing led to another then I found out I39d be doing this with him What surprised me the most about it was the initial reaction of finding out about the story in general finding out exactly who this woman is and what had happenedquotquotI had known about it in a very peripheral kind of wayquot Blucas added quotIt had been a year since everything had happened so the first thing I did was get on the internet Boom Type these two names in and the first thing that came up was mug shots Two things came to mind right away when I saw them that really attracted me to the project at first glance Lori is very attractive Chad maybe not so much which sounds shallow But in his mug shot I saw remorse I didn39t see that in hers It really felt like we have a lot here only we don39t have all the answersquotChad started taking Lori down a very committed path and at some point in their journey it39s almost like she leapfrogs him in the power dynamics or in the commitment of their beliefsquot he continued quotI thought that was a fascinating study not only as an actor but as a singular characterquotAccording to both actors connecting with their characters was not easy quotAt the end of the day these are not great peoplequot Blucas shared quotIt39s our jobs as actors to find how we can like them and portray something threedimensional and real I39m a very committed and passionate person but about different things than I think Chad was committed and passionate about or what he tried doing in bringing people together as a leader You can39t question the fact that they had a conviction of what they believed and I may not be in the same category with what they believed but I could relate to having that kind of conviction and start therequotquotThat39s really sort of all you can doquot concurred Lee Smith quotWith these characters you find exactly that then try to find the little moments you can show a sort of humanity I39m a mother so it was finding those moments where you could see her love for her son and daughter JJ and Tylee then really infusing that as much as possiblequotFor reallife couple Duffy above left and Purl above right who don39t share any scenes with the film39s leads but are an integral part of the storyline connecting to their characters as crusaders for justice was easy quotI was in the Grand Canyon with my son who was then about eight years old and I lost him for the ten longest minutes of my lifequot Purl revealed quotIt39s an outofbody electric shock experience that I wouldn39t wish on anyone So I was able to conjure that up when our characters were looking for justice and the kids You do drop to your knees grateful that your family is safe It highlights gratitude in our lives when you walk down even for a few minutes the road of these people who have lost so much I have no idea how you recover from thatquotThe film also provided Duffy and Purl with their first opportunity to work together quotWe were driving to Colorado from California when the phone rangquot Duffy recalled quotI think Linda39s name might have been mentioned first in terms of this when I look at the conversations that your people have when you39re doing these things But it was our first chance to actually play a husband and wife and our first time as actors we39ve ever walked to the set holding hands with the person that you39re withquotquotIt felt weirdquot Purl laughed quotBut yeah I guess it39s okay At the end of a scene Patrick patted me on the bottom and said 39Nice job honey39 I thought 39Well that39s the first time that39s ever happened39 It was funquotDoomsday Mom The Lori Vallow Story is telecast Saturday June 26 at 8 pm on Lifetime as a part of the network39s Summer of Secrets programming eventClick the social buttons to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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Lifetime's "Doomsday Mom: The Lori Vallow Story" Unveils A Shocking Tale of Brainwashing

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Steve Gidlow

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Lifetime's "Doomsday Mom: The Lori Vallow Story" Unveils A Shocking Tale of Brainwashing

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