‘Girl in Room 13’ Was ‘Personal’ for Anne Heche, Director Says

Anne Heche leads the cast of the 2022 Lifetime Movie Girl in Room 13. (Credit: Lifetime)

The Lifetime movie Girl in Room 13 brings a harrowing story of addiction and human trafficking to the screen.

The film stars the late Anne Heche as a concerned mother and Larissa Dias as her daughter Grace, who becomes the victim of a heinous crime.

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The movie was one of Heche’s final projects before she died last month.

Director Elisabeth Röhm said the story “really was personal” for Heche because it centers on violence against women.

“She had been through a lot of abuse in her childhood, and stopping violence against women was really important for her to participate in,” Röhm told Extra in an interview published earlier this week.

Röhm added that the team behind the film is “reeling”from Heche’s death.

“We shared a very special journey with Anne telling this important film,” she said.

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Girl in Room 13 is inspired by real events, Lifetime said in a recent press release. The film explores how Grace became addicted to opioids after her doctor prescribed them for a sports injury at a very young age. She begins to turn her life around and takes a job at her family’s restaurant. But her past catches up to her when a friend convinces her to meet with a former love interest and drug dealer named Richie (Max Montesi). Grace soon finds herself imprisoned in a motel room and learns she’s the victim of an elaborate plot to sell her into sex trafficking.

The film also stars Matt Hamilton, Erika Bruci, Brian Cyburt, and Sarah Peguero.

Röhm directed the project from a script written by Maria Nation. The movie is produced for by Motel Productions Inc for Lifetime. Tim Johnson, Stacy Mandelberg and Yvonne Chotzen serve as executive producers.

Girl in Room 13 premieres tonight on Lifetime at 8 p.m. ET/PT.