Exclusive: FX’s Atlanta Child Murders drama not happening

Regina King’s project never made it to series
Wayne Williams in prison in 1991. CREDIT: AJC file photo

Credit: HANDOUT

Credit: HANDOUT

Wayne Williams in prison in 1991. CREDIT: AJC file photo

Originally posted Tuesday, July 3, 2018 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

An FX drama announced last year about the Atlanta child murders isn't happening.

Emmy-winning actress Regina King was supposed to star.

Originally called "No Place Safe," the series would have been based on a memoir of the same name by Kim Reid.

The series was going to be a co-production between King and John Ridley ("American Crime").

An FX spokeswoman today confirmed it never made it to series.

The Atlanta child murders happened almost four decades ago where dozens of young African-American children and teens were murdered, causing a national uproar and massive hunt for a serial killer. Many murders were attached to Wayne Williams, but he was ultimately placed into prison for murders of adults.

The series would have told the story through the eyes of a 13-year-old Reid whose mother was an investigator in the case.

King happens to be back in Atlanta right now shooting an HBO pilot about superheroes called "Watchmen," which also stars Louis Gossett Jr., Don Johnson, Jeremy Irons, Tom Mison ("Sleepy Hollow") and Adelaide Clemens ("Rectify"). Her series "Seven Seconds" on Netflix was cancelled after one season this past spring.

WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA - DECEMBER 08: Regina King attends the Vulture Awards Season Party at Sunset Tower Hotel on December 8, 2016 in West Hollywood, California. (Photo by Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for New York Magazine)

Credit: Rodney Ho

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Credit: Rodney Ho

Earlier this year, HowStuffWorks and film-maker Payne Lindsey worked together for a 10-part podcast on the murders called "Atlanta Monster."