News broke late last night that an Italian criminal court overturned Amanda Knox's acquittal for the murder of Meredith Kercher.
Knox and Kercher were both studying abroad in Perugia, Italy in 2007, when Kercher was found dead, her throat slit, in the apartment she shared with Knox.
Knox and her then-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, were tried and convicted for the murder. Both of their convictions were ultimately overturned — but yesterday, the court reverse that decision. Knox and Sollecito will now be re-tried for the murder.
We know what you're thinking: WHAT does this mean for the Amanda Knox-related entertainment properties — the multi-million dollar book deal, the Diane Swayer interview, the Lifetime movie (already once given an alternate ending to accomodate news of Knox's acquittal)?!
The Book
Reached today, a spokesperson for Harper Collins said that the book would be released on schedule. Tina Andreadis, director of publicity, said, "As planned, HarperCollins will publish Amanda Knox's book, Waiting to Be Heard, on April 30, 2013, and will move forward with the interviews that we have scheduled."
Harper Collins announced it had acquired the rights to Knox's memoir in February 2012. Knox reportedly pocketed $4 million from the deal.
Drawing on the journals she kept while imprisoned Knox's memoir, as described by Harpers "will reveal never before-told details surrounding her case, and describe how she used her inner strength and strong family ties to cope with the most challenging time of her young life."
Back in November, the publisher debuted the book's title and cover image, and announced it's release date, April 30. At the time, the Associated Press said the date was changed "out of deference to the court in Italy that scheduled a March 25 hearing for the prosecution's appeal."
Andreadis would not say whether or not the Harpers had a plan in case the court overturned the decision.
The TV Interview
In February, ABC News announced it had booked the first interview with Knox, scheduled to air on the day the book was released. ABC News confirmed today that the interview is set to go forward as planned —with Diane Sawyer to interview Knox — and it will air on April 30 at 10pm.
It's good because ABC has big plans for the footage — in addition to airing on an ABC News Primetime Special, segments of the interview were also slated to appear on World News with Diane Sawyer, Good Morning America, Nightline, ABCNews.com, Yahoo!, ABC's radio properties and local TV affiliates.
The Movie
Lifetime, first to cash in on the public interest in Knox, may be most affected by the decision today. Amanda Knox: Murder on Trial in Italy starring Hayden Panettiere, which premiered on the network on February 21, 2011, chronicles Knox's trial — and ends with her conviction for murder.
The production was put on TV so quickly that when Knox was acquitted on appeal nine months after its debut, in in October 2011, the network was forced to hastily add an epilogue detailing the turn of events when the film aired the next day.
Will Lifetime be forced to add an epilogue to the epilogue? Or to remove it entirely? There are no plans at the moment, Les Eisner, VP of Publicity at Lifetime, said today. In fact, Eisner said, "There are no plans to air the movie in the immediate near future."