Sherri Shepherd is set to lead the cast and executive produce a new Lifetime movie on Genelle Guzman, a New York City transit worker who was the last survivor pulled from the rubble at Ground Zero after the September 11 attacks.
The film titled Angel in the Rubble comes from journalist Robin Roberts’ production banner Rock’n Robin, Lifetime announced earlier today.
The movie recounts how Guzman (Shepherd) was buried alive when the Twin Towers collapsed shortly after terrorists flew hijacked passenger planes into each of the towers at the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001. A third plane crashed into the Pentagon in Virginia, and a fourth plummeted into a Pennsylvania field when passengers fought back.
At Ground Zero, Guzman leaned on her faith while trapped under the twisted metal and concrete. She prayed to return to her family and reflected on her childhood in her native Trinidad.
In a 2021 interview with People magazine, Guzman admitted she did not think she would survive. “I knew I wasn’t going to get out. I’m preparing myself to die,” she said.
“But then I decided to pray. I just knew that I wanted to live because I wanted to see my daughter, Kimberly. She was 12 at the time. I just keep begging and praying, just asking God to show me a miracle,” she recalled.
After 27 hours under the debris, a man named “Paul” located her and stayed by her side until rescuers pulled her to safety.
“When Genelle later searched for Paul to thank him, no one could confirm he was ever there, leading her to believe he was an angel sent to save her and guide her toward the renewed life she had promised while buried beneath the rubble,” according to the official description for the movie.
The film is based on Genelle Guzman-McMillan’s bestselling memoir Angel in the Rubble, and will premiere some time in September to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.
Robin Roberts, Linda Berman, Anne Carlucci and Sherri Shepherd serve as executive producers alongside Jameson Parker, Gemma Martini, Richard Foster, and Chet Fenster.
This is the fourth project Roberts has produced for for Lifetime. The other movies include I Will Survive: The Gloria Gaynor Story starring Joaquina Kalukang and Lance Gross; Stolen By My Mother: The Kamiyah Mobley Story starring Niecy Nash; and the biopic Mahalia starring Danielle Brooks.
The main image shows Sherri Shepherd and Genelle Guzman-McMillan and is courtesy of Shutterstock and Simon & Schuster.
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