Everything to Know About Elizabeth Olsen’s New HBO Max Series ‘Love and Death’

Credit: Jake Giles Netter/HBO Max

Everything to Know About Elizabeth Olsen's New HBO Max Series 'Love and Death'

Murder in the heartland. Elizabeth Olsen plays a Texas housewife with a very dark secret in HBO Max's new series Love & Death. The show is based on the true story of Candy Montgomery, who was accused in 1980 of brutally murdering her best friend Betty Gore. Candy, then 30, was married to an electrical engineer named Pat Montgomery, while Betty was married to Allan Gore. At the time, Candy was having affair with Allan. Candy claimed that Betty attacked her with an axe after discovering the infidelity, but she managed to take control of the weapon and strike Betty. She pleaded self-defense and was ultimately found not guilty, though she admitted to slashing Betty with the axe 41 times. If this story sounds familiar, it might be because there was already a TV show about it. In May 2022, Jessica Biel starred as the titular Candy in the Hulu limited series Candy, which featured Melanie Lynskey as Betty. That version's cast also included Pablo Schreiber, Timothy Simons and Raúl Esparza, with cameo appearances by Biel and Lynskey's respective husbands, Justin Timberlake and Jason Ritter. While the two series have already drawn comparisons, Olsen said that Biel reached out to her to discuss their experiences playing the same character. “It actually was something that connected us. She’s a very impressive and sweet and talented woman,” the WandaVision actress told WSJ. Magazine of the Sinner alum in April 2023. “I was terrified at first of having the same shows seemingly come out around the same time, and she really made that feel like not such a big deal.” Biel, for her part, has expressed support for Love & Death via social media, sharing Instagram photos of herself and Olsen in character in February 2023. "The METAVERSE IS REAL😅 ," the Valentine's Day star joked at the time. "Can’t wait to watch #ElizabethOlsen KILL in this role. Go rewatch @candyonhulu as we wait for Love & Death on @hbomax!!" Ahead of Love & Death's premiere, Olsen made it clear that she doesn't plan to compare her version of the tale to Biel's. "There's no need to have competition," the Martha Marcy May Marlene actress told Entertainment Tonight in April 2023. "Stories that are interesting deserve to be told and every way you're going to tell it, it's gonna be different. It's impossible for it to be the same." Keep scrolling for everything to know about Love & Death:

Credit: Jake Giles Netter/HBO Max

Everything to Know About Elizabeth Olsen's New HBO Max Series 'Love and Death'

Murder in the heartland. Elizabeth Olsen plays a Texas housewife with a very dark secret in HBO Max's new series Love & Death. The show is based on the true story of Candy Montgomery, who was accused in 1980 of brutally murdering her best friend Betty Gore. Candy, then 30, was married to an electrical engineer named Pat Montgomery, while Betty was married to Allan Gore. At the time, Candy was having affair with Allan. Candy claimed that Betty attacked her with an axe after discovering the infidelity, but she managed to take control of the weapon and strike Betty. She pleaded self-defense and was ultimately found not guilty, though she admitted to slashing Betty with the axe 41 times. If this story sounds familiar, it might be because there was already a TV show about it. In May 2022, Jessica Biel starred as the titular Candy in the Hulu limited series Candy, which featured Melanie Lynskey as Betty. That version's cast also included Pablo Schreiber, Timothy Simons and Raúl Esparza, with cameo appearances by Biel and Lynskey's respective husbands, Justin Timberlake and Jason Ritter. While the two series have already drawn comparisons, Olsen said that Biel reached out to her to discuss their experiences playing the same character. “It actually was something that connected us. She’s a very impressive and sweet and talented woman,” the WandaVision actress told WSJ. Magazine of the Sinner alum in April 2023. “I was terrified at first of having the same shows seemingly come out around the same time, and she really made that feel like not such a big deal.” Biel, for her part, has expressed support for Love & Death via social media, sharing Instagram photos of herself and Olsen in character in February 2023. "The METAVERSE IS REAL😅 ," the Valentine's Day star joked at the time. "Can’t wait to watch #ElizabethOlsen KILL in this role. Go rewatch @candyonhulu as we wait for Love & Death on @hbomax!!" Ahead of Love & Death's premiere, Olsen made it clear that she doesn't plan to compare her version of the tale to Biel's. "There's no need to have competition," the Martha Marcy May Marlene actress told Entertainment Tonight in April 2023. "Stories that are interesting deserve to be told and every way you're going to tell it, it's gonna be different. It's impossible for it to be the same." Keep scrolling for everything to know about Love & Death:

Credit: Jake Giles Netter/HBO Max

What Is 'Love & Death' About?

Love & Death tells the story of Candy Montgomery, a Texas middle school teacher who was accused in 1980 of murdering her best friend Betty Gore after having an affair with Betty's husband, Allan Gore. At her trial, Candy admitted to slashing Betty with an axe, but she pleaded self-defense and was ultimately found not guilty.

Credit: Jake Giles Netter/HBO Max

Who's in the 'Love & Death' Cast?

Olsen plays Candy, while Lily Rabe stars as Betty. Patrick Fugit and Jesse Plemons play Candy and Betty's husbands, Pat and Allan, respectively. Other cast members include Krysten Ritter, Brian d'Arcy James, Mackenzie Astin, Beth Broderick, Elizabeth Marvel and Tom Pelphrey.  

Credit: Jake Giles Netter/HBO Max

When Does 'Love & Death' Premiere?

The first episode of Love & Death premieres on HBO Max Thursday, April 27.

Credit: Jake Giles Netter/HBO Max

What Have the Cast and Crew Said About 'Candy'?

Love & Death is based on the same true story that inspired Hulu's Candy, but the cast and crew aren't worried about comparisons to the other series. Director Lesli Linka Glatter claimed that Love & Death was already two months into filming when Candy went into production. "That was a big shock to all of us that there was another show being made when we were already filming. But there's nothing you can do about it," the Emmy nominee told Entertainment Tonight in April 2023. "So, I just thought, 'OK, this is what's happening and we're going to tell our story the way we want to tell it.'"

Olsen, for her part, has said that she and Biel have discussed the fact that they both ended up playing the same person. "I think it was more just kind of like, 'Oh, great. This is nice that we are both acknowledging this thing because we were filming simultaneously,'" the Marvel star told ET, adding that her counterpart "didn't wanna hide from the idea that there would be comparisons."