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Lifetime's upcoming thriller 12 Desperate Hours is all set to premiere on February 25, 2023, bringing to life the chilling tale of a criminal and a mother's battle to save her family. Coming from actor Gina Gershon, who is making her directorial debut with this one, the upcoming film will star Samantha Mathis as the lead, with Harrison Thomas and David Conrad sharing duties for other prominent roles.
The synopsis for 12 Desperate Hours as released by Lifetime reads:
"Adapted from Ann Rule’s Last Chance, Last Dance true crime collection, this Lifetime original follows Val (Samantha Mathis), a mother who finds herself and her young children held hostage by Denny (Harrison Thomas) when he forces his way into her house after committing murder earlier that day."
As the upcoming film's events are adapted from popular true crime writer Rule's anthology Last Dance, Last Chance and Other True Cases: Crime Files Vol. 8, it is indeed based on true events, though the featured names and characters have been changed significantly.
Which criminal is 12 Desperate Hours based on?
12 Desperate Hours will follow an armed criminal who manages to hold a family hostage and force the mother to chauffeur him on a night of brutal violence and dreadful plans. This tale resembles the exploits of Gary Lee Quinlivan, who was eventually convicted of murder in the second degree, murder in the first degree, and kidnapping in the first degree.
His crimes started back in Washington state in 1963 when Joan Marlatt ended things with then-boyfriend Quinlivan, who did not take it in a good way. During his attempts to reach his former partner, who was living with her mother, he enlisted the help of a friend, Fritz Donahue. As per reports, Quinlivan killed his associate by mistake when he allegedly slipped in the mud and his gun went off.
This is what the autopsy revealed:
"[Donahue] died of a gunshot wound in the head, with the wound in horizontal plane facts which are consistent with the gun being held at shoulder level and directly fired at the victim."
Following this, Quinlivan ran into the woods and reached the outside of Patricia Jean Jaque's home, whom he forced to drive him around. This inspired the 12 Desperate Hours' story. A relevant part of the movie's synopsis reads:
"In order to save them and her husband Mark (David Conrad), who was due home at any moment, Val offers to drive Denny wherever he wants and becomes his unwilling accomplice as he goes on a rampage of destruction. Despite the traumatic events, Val builds a rapport with her captor and uses the relationship to help save the lives of bystanders, herself and even the life of her captor (2023)."
This incident was also chillingly covered in Last Dance, Last Chance, and Other True Cases: Crime Files Vol. 8.
Speaking about the same to KTLA 5, Gina Gershon said:
"It moved me,... I’m just so sick of looking at the paper and reading about another mass shooting. I’m so disheartened to feel like these kids go to school and they may never get out of school. It’s just horrible, we’ve failed as a society in America and it’s just not getting better."
12 Desperate Hours will premiere on Lifetime on February 25, 2023, at 8.00 pm EST. It will also be available for streaming from the next day onwards.
