Reese Witherspoon to Play Victim's Mother in Film on ‘West Memphis Three’ Murder Case

Reese Witherspoon, of Water for Elephants and Legally Blonde fame, will star in Atom Egoyan's forthcoming film Devil Knot. The film is based on a real-life crime story - the West Memphis Three - one of the film's producers told TheWrap. The film will also be based on the famous novel of the same name, written by journalist Mara Leveritt; she argues the suspects were wrongly convicted.

The West Memphis Three refers to a murder investigation of three men convicted of what were described as satanic killings - of three 8-year-old boys - in an Arkansas town in 1993. They served 18 years in prison before being released in August 2011.

Witherspoon will play Pamela Hobbs, the mother of one of the victims - Stevie Edwards.

Over the year, several books and films have documented the case, including Blood of Innocents by Guy Reel, The Last Pentacle of the Sun: Writings in Support of the West Memphis Three edited by Brett Alexander and M.W. Anderson and Devil's Knot.

In addition, Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky made three documentaries - Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills and sequels Paradise Lost 2: Revelations and Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory- raising questions abiout the case.

Witherspoon has often showcased her acting abilities in almost all genres of cinema. After drama and comedy in previous films, she is all set to feature in a real-life murder story.