The teaser trailer for Happy Face has been released with Dennis Quaid playing the role of the Happy Face Killer, aka Keith Hunter Jesperson. The upcoming Paramount+ serial killer drama series is one of the most anticipated shows. “Every violent act is a rock dropped in water,” Ashford says in the trailer. “If you stay silent, the ripples of trauma just keep pulling everyone they touch underneath.”
The 8-episode series will premiere on March 20 with just two episodes, and with weekly drops thereafter. The season is highly inspired by the true story of Melissa G. Moore, who at the age of 15 found out that her father was the infamous Happy Face Killer. As an adult, Melissa decided to change her name and guard her secret while her father currently serves a life sentence in prison.
In the trailer, viewers can see the Happy Face Killer finding his way to force himself back into his daughter’s life. In a race against time, Melissa, played by Tony winner Annaleigh Ashford, is forced to find out whether an innocent person will get the death penalty for a crime that her father has committed. In the thriller series, “she discovers the impact her father had on his victims’ families and must face a reckoning of her own identity.”
Inspired by the podcast, ‘Happy Face’ stars Annaleigh Ashford & Dennis Quaid as a woman and her serial killer father. @ParamountPlus #ParamountPlus #HappyFace pic.twitter.com/qKc4h0ZVWO
— Movieweb (@movieweb) January 27, 2025
Jesperson, who is now serving life without parole at an Oregon penitentiary, has reportedly murdered at least eight women in the United States during the 1990s. Many of Jesperson’s victims were prostitutes and transients who had no relation to him.
His preferred method of murdering was strangulation. It was also the same method he often used to kill animals when he was a child. The Happy Face killer’s last murder was the crime that finally led to his capture. While Jesperson claims to have killed as many as 160 people, only 8 murders have been confirmed so far. He was popularly called the Happy Face Killer because he drew smiley faces on the many letters to the media and authorities.
Don’t forget to check out the conclusion of our series on Keith Jesperson, the Happy Face Killer. Available now.#cooldownbeers #podcast pic.twitter.com/NBAsttbqRo
— Necronomipod (@necronomipod) November 6, 2024
Benjamin Mackey, Khiyla Aynne, Tamera Tomakili, and James Wolk also star in Happy Face which is based on Mellisa Moore’s autobiography and podcast Shattered Silence, which is co-written with M. Bridget Cook.
The series is produced by CBS Studios in association with HeartPodcasts, King Size Productions, and Semi-Formal Productions. Jennifer Cacicio who is known for “Your Honor” and “Shooter” serves as the showrunner for the series and the executive producer along with Robert and Michelle King, Jordana Mollick, Michael Showalter, Conal Byrne, Will Pearson, Moore, and Liz Glotzer.
Showalter, of The Dropout and The Eyes of Tammy Faye fame, has also directed the first episode of the series.
Happy Face is officially being distributed by Paramount Global Content
