Melissa Leo is set to track down serial killers in her latest project. The “I’m Dying Up Here” alumna has played characters on both sides of the law, including her Oscar-nominated portrayal of a desperate mother of two who resorts to smuggling in “Frozen River” and her five-season run as a detective on “Homicide: Life on the Street.” Now Deadline reports that she’s signed on to topline “Blood Relative,” a Fox pilot that sees her playing an authority in genetic genealogy who uses her expertise to support law enforcement.
Based on James Renner’s 2018 article “Beyond the Jungle of Bad: The True Story of Two Women from California Who Are Solving All the Mysteries,” a look inside how Dr. Colleen Fitzpatrick and Dr. Margaret Press “combined their genealogy expertise to push the boundaries of forensic science and help law enforcement identify Joe and Jane Does and track down serial killers,” “Blood Relative” tells the story of Lou Kelly (Leo), who has a reputation for being as brilliant as she is “impossible to deal with.”
The source summarizes, “Lou wrote the book on genetic genealogy and can trace anyone if she has a viable tissue sample to play with – John and Jane Does, errant husbands, long-lost children, murderers in hiding, anyone with a secret life. But Lou has a habit of burning bridges as she goes. Sarcastic, sardonic, irritable, and confrontational, she’s the smartest person in the room with no time to explain her methods to average folks. Except her little brother, John. It’s through working with her brother to solve the toughest of cases that secrets from their past will start to bubble to the surface. Threatening their relationship and their father’s legacy as a respected lieutenant, community leader, and all around good guy. And maybe that’s exactly what will set Lou free.”
Leo won an Oscar for her supporting role in “The Fighter.” Her upcoming slate includes “I Know This Much Is True,” an HBO limited series based on Wally Lamb’s novel of the same name, and “Coast,” a drama about a 16-year-old girl whose life changes when a rock band gets stuck in her hometown.
