Interview: The Cast and Creators of ‘Happy Face’ on a Different Take on True Crime

In Happy Face, Melissa Reed (Annaleigh Ashford) decides to go that the man known as the Happy Face Killer (Dennis Quaid), currently in prison, is her father, in an effort to get him to provide crucial details about his victims. Working with Ivy (Tamera Tomakili), a producer on the daytime talk show where Melissa works as a makeup artist, Melissa begins a more dangerous life that puts strain on her family, her husband Ben (James Wolk) and children Hazel (Khiyla Aynne) and Max (Benjamin Mackey).

Awards Buzz spoke with the cast about what drew them to this dark show and how they were able to find light in the process of making it. Watch the videos above to hear from showrunner Jennifer Cacicio and Melissa G. Moore, the inspiration for Ashford’s character, about turning a true story into a compelling fresh take on true crime.

The first two episodes of Happy Face are now available to stream on Paramount+, with new episodes debuting weekly on Thursday through the finale on May 1^st.