TNT and Cadence13 Announce ROOT OF EVIL

TNT and Cadence13, a leading podcast media company, today announced a ground-breaking eight-part podcast documentary series, Root of Evil: The True Story of the Hodel Family and the Black Dahlia, a companion to TNT's six-episode suspense drama I Am the Night. The podcast series will premiere Wednesday, February 13 and joins Turner Podcast Network's portfolio of podcasts available on Apple Podcasts and many other podcast platforms. I Am the Night, from director Patty Jenkins and writer Sam Sheridan, starring Chris Pine, is slated to premiere on Monday, January 28, at 9 p.m. (ET/PT) on TNT.

Root of Evil, executive produced by Emmy(R) award-winner Zak Levitt, EVP of Documentary Content at Cadence13, is the Hodel family's story in their own words, a behind-the-scenes revelation of their family's crimes, SECRETS and multi-generational struggles carrying the Hodel name. Family members will open up and share their own psychological traumas and perspectives on their ties to Hollywood's notorious Black Dahlia murder.

Yvette Gentile and Rasha Pecoraro, daughters of Fauna Hodel, host the podcast series in first-person, telling their family's sprawling story together with other Hodel brothers, sisters, aunts and uncles. This is the first time they have opened up to publicly share their experiences of the family's dark history with a story that spans generations, including their connection to the infamous Black Dahlia murder.

"I Am the Night marks another bold step forward in TNT's foray into premium suspense. Patty Jenkins and Sam Sheridan have already delivered riveting television. Our goal for the podcast is to further deepen fan engagement by extending the storytelling experience through a companion series that delves more comprehensively into the mythology of the Black Dahlia," said Michael Engleman, chief marketing officer, TNT/TBS. "Root of Evil will satisfy as a stand-alone piece of suspenseful entertainment and, for those who both watch and listen, also provide a whole new level of real-life, nail-biting mystery."

"This is a story more than 70 years in the making. The Black Dahlia has generated incredible interest and attention through the years, but nothing has gotten to the heart of the incredibly painful, and ultimately triumphant story of THE FAMILY that has had to carry the Hodel name - a name synonymous with the most brutal unsolved murder in American history," said Zak Levitt, EVP of Documentary Content at Cadence13. "Through fresh interviews with the Hodel family, and a trove of never before-heard archival audio, we hope Root of Evil will be the most three-dimensional Black Dahlia story yet."

Inspired by true events, I Am the Night tells the gripping story of Fauna Hodel (India Eisley), a teenage girl who is given away at birth, and grows up outside of Reno, Nevada. Fauna lives more-or-less comfortably with the mysteries of her origin, until one day she makes a discovery that leads her to question everything. As Fauna begins to investigate the SECRETS of her past, she meets a ruined reporter (Pine), haunted by the case that undid him. Together they follow a sinister trail that swirls ever closer to an infamous Los Angeles gynecologist, Dr. George Hodel (Jefferson Mays), a man involved in some of Hollywood's darkest debauchery, and possibly, its MOST INFAMOUS unsolved crime.

"This is a one-of-a-kind opportunity to collaborate on such an in-depth and innovative project with TNT. Root of Evil is an important story that we believe needs to be told," said Chris Corcoran, Chief Content Officer of Cadence13. "The podcast is a testament to the cathartic power of storytelling. For the first time, the Hodel family has come together to provide an unflinching, first-hand account of their family's history."

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