The Emmy-nominated New Zealand actor will play notorious mushroom murderer Erin Patterson in a new series which she is also to executive produce.

RNZ Online

29 October 2026

3 min read

New Zealand actress Melanie Lynskey arrives at Showtime's 'Yellowjackets' Season 3 Emmy FYC (For Your Consideration) Event held at the Wolf Theatre at the Saban Media Center at the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences on April 10, 2025 i

RNZ Online

29 October 2026

3 min read

Caption:New Zealand actress Melanie Lynskey.Photo credit:Xavier Collin / Image Press Agency / NurPhoto via AFP

Emmy-nominated New Zealand actor Melanie Lynskey will play the role of Australian triple murderer Erin Patterson in a new limited series, Mushroom Murders: There’s More to Unearth.

Lynskey is also executive producer of the series, which will dramatise the notorious Australian case.

“I’m very excited to be playing Erin Patterson in the new drama series Mushroom Murders, it offers a unique and compelling perspective on the events that made headlines around the world. It’s really good,” Lynskey said announcing the project in Melbourne.

“Because behind those headlines there is still so much to unearth.”

Convicted killer Erin Patterson (L) leaves the Supreme Court of Victoria in Melbourne on September 8, 2025. An Australian judge sentenced Patterson on September 8 to life in prison with parole after 33 years for killing three people with to

Convicted killer Erin Patterson (L) leaves the Supreme Court of Victoria in Melbourne on September 8, 2025.

AFP / WILLIAM WEST

In July 2025 Patterson was convicted of triple murder for serving Beef Wellingtons laced with poisonous death cap mushrooms to her estranged husband's family at her home in Leongatha, Victoria, in 2023.

The meal killed her husband’s parents, Don and Gail Patterson, and his aunt Heather Wilkinson, leading to Patterson’s eventual conviction.

Patterson was also found guilty of attempting to murder Heather's husband Ian - the sole survivor of the deadly lunch.

The case made headlines around the world, spawning podcasts, books and TV series.

Lynskey is best known for her roles in Two and a Half Men, The Last of Us, Yellowjackets and But I’m a Cheerleader.

The show is written by Anya Beyersdorf, with all six episodes to be directed by Daina Reid for Soapbox Pictures. Beyersdorf, Reid, Lynskey and Deb Balderstone are listed as executive producers, The Guardian reports. It will premiere on Paramount+ in 2027.

It’s the second dramatisation of the true crime case, following a 2025 ABC announcement of Toxic, created by Elise McCredieand Tony Ayres. A release date for Toxic is yet to be confirmed.

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Source: RNZ

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Topic
World
Country
🇳🇿 NZ
Publisher language
EN
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