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TL;DR: 

  • Anne Heche’s last movie, Girl In Room 13 premieres on Lifetime on September 17. 
  • In her final role, the actor plays the mother of a recovering addict whose ex (and former dealer) kidnaps her with the intention of selling her to human traffickers.
  • Heche, who died on August 12 from injuries she sustained in a car crash on August 5, had previously spoken about the abuse she experienced as a child.

Anne Heche’s final movie is coming to Lifetime later this month. Girl In Room 13 premieres September 17. It stars Heche – who died on August 12 from injuries sustained in a car crash – as a mother fighting to rescue her daughter from human traffickers. 

‘Girl In Room 13’ premieres September 17 on Lifetime 

In Girl In Room 13, Heche plays Janie, the mother of Grace (Larissa Dias). Grace became addicted to opioids at a young age after she was prescribed the drugs following a sports injury. After three stays in rehab, she’s finally on the verge of turning her life around. She takes a job at her family’s restaurant, but her past comes back to haunt her when her former love interest (and one-time drug dealer) Richie (Max Montesi) reappears. 

After meeting with Richie, Grace finds herself trapped in a hotel room with no way to escape. Richie repeatedly violates her while also feeding her drugs and alcohol and denying her food. His goal is to break her down and sell her to human traffickers. Though Grace’s father and the police think she’s fallen back into her old habits, Janie refuses to believe that her daughter has vanished of her own accord. She starts searching for Grace, which leads her to discover the shocking truth about human trafficking and its victims.  

Girl In Room 13 premiers Saturday, September 17 at 8 p.m. ET on Lifetime. It will be available to stream the next day on Lifetime. The movie, which is directed by Elisabeth Röhm, is inspired by actual events.

Director Elisabeth Röhm says Heche gave a ‘tour de force’ performance

Anne Heche and Matt Hamilton, both looking concerned, in the Lifetime movie 'Girl in Room 13'
Anne Heche and Matt Hamilton in ‘Girl in Room 13’ | Lifetime

Rohm, who directed Heche in her final on-screen performance, has called the actor a “tour de force” and a “good friend.” The Men in Trees star saw the Lifetime movie as a way to educate people about abuse, Röhm told People. 

“Every single morning, she would come to set and she said, ‘We will not stand for abuse!’ And she would pump her fist and have this just beautiful, bright smile. She was so committed to making an incredibly deep, profound, important performance,” Röhm said.

“Anne was very open about the abuse she sustained in her childhood,” she added. “And I believe that she was committed her whole life to making an impact and protecting women and being a voice against abuse.”

Heche spoke out about the abuse she experienced as a child 

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Before her death at age 53, Heche spoke openly about her traumatic childhood. In a 2001 interview with 20/20’s Barbara Walters (via ABC News), she revealed that her father had sexually abused her, starting when she was a toddler. Her father died of AIDS in 1983. Years, later, she confronted her deeply religious mother about her memories of being abused. However, her surviving parent refused to accept the truth.  

“I think it’s always hard for children to talk about abuse because it is only memory,” she told Walters. “I didn’t carry around a tape recorder … I didn’t chisel anything in stone … Anybody can look and say, ‘Well how do you know for sure?’ And that’s one of the most painful things about it. You don’t.”

How to get help: If you or someone you know has been sexually abused, text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 for free and confidential support.

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