If you’re looking for a movie to put you on the edge of your seat tonight, check out Lifetime‘s new movie Sinister Minister. The film stars Ryan Patrick Shanahan as the titular sinister minister who takes advantage of a young girl and her mother. The film debuts on Lifetime at 8:00 p.m. ET on Sunday, May 28. Read on for a preview and to check out the trailer.
Sinister Minister Teaser! Sunday 5.28 at 8pm! #ryanpatrickshanahan #nikkihoward #lifetime #lmn #sinisterminister #lifetimemovies #ontv
Sinister Minister is about a charismatic minister named DJ (Ryan Patrick Shanahan) who cons single mother Trish (Nikki Howard) into falling in love with him. She thinks that DJ can provide her and her teen daughter Siena (Angela Briones) with the stable lifestyle they’ve always wanted. But it turns out that DJ is a serial killer who murders wives! (Well, that escalated quickly.) Trish has to figure out a way to escape the situation before she becomes DJ’s next victim.
Lifetime claims this is based on a true story. There is the story of Arthur Schirmer, who was dubbed a “sinister minister” by Pennsylvania prosecutors. In 2013, he was convicted of murdering his second wife Betty, who died in a car crash in 2008. In 2014, Schirmer was sentenced to 20-40 years in prison for the 1999 murder of his first wife, Jewel. In March 2017, the Pocono Record reported that Schirmer was challenging the conviction on the 1999 murder.
Clearly, when The Los Angeles Times mentioned that the case was like the script for a made-for-TV movie, Lifetime was reading.
Sinister Minister was directed by Jose Montesinos, whose other credits include Dream House Nightmare, Nightmare Wedding and American Brawler.
This is Shanahan’s first movie role, after appearing in the 2015 mini-series Saints vs. Scoundrels. Nikki Howard also appeared in House of Darkness and an episode of American Crime Story.
Angela Briones, who plays Sienna, previously appeared in Love Land, My Haunted House and Hollywood a GoGo.
PREMIERE DATE: Sunday, May 28, 2017
TIME: 8 p.m. ET
OTHER AIRINGS:
Monday, May 29 at 12:02 a.m. ET
Saturday, June 3 at 6:00 p.m. ET
CHANNEL: Lifetime (To find out what channel Lifetime is for you, click here to go to TVGuide.com and change your provider under “TV Listings.”)
PLOT: “Based on a true story. When single mother Trish falls for charismatic minister DJ, she believes that she and her teenage daughter Siena will finally have the stable home life Trish has always wanted. But Trish doesn’t know that DJ is a serial wife killer who is already plotting to get Trish out of the way, desperate to make Siena his next wife.”
CAST:
Nikki Howard as Trish
Rachel Whittle as Detective Mann
Jeff Marchelletta as John Wells
Ryan Patrick Shanahan as DJ
Angelia Briones as Siena
Liz Fenning as Betsey
Sophia Thomas as Carol
Chelly as George
CREDITS:
Directed by Jose Montesinos
Produced by David Michael Latt
Line Producer: Kristopher Wynne