Keira Knightley Says Loretta McLaughlin’s Work Inspired Her to Star in ‘Boston Strangler’

Keira Knightley has candidly opened up about playing real-life journalist Loretta McLaughlin in the upcoming crime drama The Boston Strangler.

Before the premiere, the Pirates of the Caribbean The 37-year-old actress shared that McLaughlin’s work inspired her to play her character on screen.

For the uninitiated, McLaughlin was the first journalist to connect the murders to the infamous Boston Strangler murders of the 1960s and break the story.

Knightley said it was “definitely” useful to have his written works on hand. “It was a great privilege to learn and play Loretta McLaughlin. She was an incredible journalist,” the Pride and Prejudice actress said.

“I’ve read a lot of his work, which has been very helpful to me, it’s very evocative. There’s a definite spirit, which was helpful in playing her,” Knightley noted.

THE Atonement The actress also studied interviews with McLaughlin, who worked at Boston Record American and died in November 2018.

“There was a great one where she was literally talking about the case, which was really helpful. She had a kind of steely determination that I liked,” Knightley explained.

Before concluding, Knightley shared that the upcoming film is “based on reality, it’s not a documentary”, adding that “there’s a point where you go, it’s also fiction. So, you know , you kind of have to take it and run with your own ideas as well, and it’s always a joy to do something like that.

boston strangler will be released on March 17 on Hulu.