Nothing is worse than when crime doesn’t pay off, especially when that crime is murder.
On Saturday, March 6, Lifetime continues its Ripped from the Headlines series with Circle of Deception. It’s an Ann Rule inspired thriller starring none other than Law & Order: SVU‘s finest, Diane Neal.
It also serves as the directorial debut of Lifetime veteran actress Ashley Williams. Lifetime is always a network whose focus is on uplifting women and giving them opportunities.
During this Women’s History Month, it’s lovely to see that they’re as passionate about helping women expand their worlds beyond the camera as they are in front of it.
If you previously missed the Circe of Deception Promo, then you should know that this is a wonderfully twisted true-crime tale of a scandalous murder that takes place in a small Rhode Island community that changed everything.
Neal stars as a former Beauty Queen, Peggy Sue, the financially strapped best friend of Breanna (Jill Morrison), a battered wife who left her abusive husband, Russel ( Paul McGillion).
Breanna is struggling financially in the aftermath of her pending divorce from Russel. She confides in Peggy Sue about all of her issues.
When Russel mysteriously is murdered, it prompts a murder investigation filled with twists and turns.
Lifetime granted TV Fanatic with an exclusive sneak peek clip of the film.
In the exclusive clip, it’s some time after Russel’s death, and the investigation into his death is underway.
It’s difficult to tell how much Breanna even knows about her husband’s murder, but Peggy Sue has some concerns and appears frazzled when she calls Breanna to ask her a question.
The police have reached out to Peggy Sue, and you can see she’s visibly shaken and behaving a bit squirrely when she asks her friend if she was the one who told the police to contact her.
Breanna waves it off as the cops likely getting Peggy Sue’s phone number from Russel’s contact list and making the rounds.
But Breanna has more important news to share. The insurance company released one of the life policies.
Good news, yes? Breanna appears to deliver this news while movers are transporting boxes into a new home.
Peggy Sue is relieved at the reasonable explanation for the police phone call, but she’s happy to hear about the insurance policy.
“Oh my God! That’s great,” she exclaims. “You can buy my house!”
Except hold your horses, Peggy Sue. Breanna has another bomb to drop on you!
Peggy Sue may soon discover that possibly plotting and maybe even executing the death of your best friend’s ex-husband for some cash may not work out after all.
Circle of Deception airs Saturday, March. 6 at 8/7c on Lifetime.
And for more on the story that inspired the film, you can check out Beyond the Headlines: Beauty Queens Gone Bad following the movie premiere, at 10/9c.
Check out the exclusive clip below, and hit the comments with your thoughts and reactions. Will you be tuning in?
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.