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'Tasteless' new Sharon Tate movie reimagines Manson murder as a 'supernatural horror'

Hillary Duff as Sharon Tate (Credit: Skyline Entertainment)
Hillary Duff as Sharon Tate (Credit: Skyline Entertainment)

A trailer has dropped for The Haunting of Sharon Tate, a new re-telling of the horrifying murder of the actress and model as a schlocky, supernatural home invasion movie.

And it’s already being branded ‘tasteless’ and ‘disrespectful’.

Claiming to be ‘inspired by true events’, it stars Hillary Duff as the late star who, in 1969, was murdered along with four others in the home she shared with her husband, director Roman Polanski, by followers of cult leader Charles Manson.

Tate was pregnant at the time, and the slaughter sent shockwaves through US society.

But instead of telling the story as it happened, it is hanging the action on quotes reputedly from Tate in which she spoke of seeing frightening premonitions a year prior to her death.

Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate © Graziani / Capital/MediaPunch /IPX
Roman Polanski and Sharon Tate © Graziani / Capital/MediaPunch /IPX

In an interview with a magazine called Fate, conducted in 1968, a year before her death, she reportedly spoke of having ‘a psychic experience’.

“I guess that’s what it was – and it was a terribly frightening and disturbing thing for me. It happened a year or so ago. Maybe you can explain it,” she said.

“I saw something or someone tied to the staircase. Whoever it was – and I couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman but knew somehow that it was either Jay Sebring or me – he or she was cut open at the throat.”

As a result of the quotes, it’s since been conflated that she somehow saw visions of the murders before they happened.

Twitter has passed a swift and damning judgement on the concept so far.

It’s already been slammed by Debra Tate, Sharon Tate’s sister, who last year called the plans to make the film ‘classless and exploitative’.

“It doesn’t matter who it is acting in it – it’s just tasteless. It’s classless how everyone is rushing to release something for the 50th anniversary of this horrific event,” she told People.

“I know for a fact she did not have a premonition — awake or in a dream — that she and Jay would have their throat cut. I checked with all of her living friends. None of her friends had any knowledge of this. Tacky, tacky, tacky.

“It’s a total fabrication.”

The movie comes ahead of Quentin Tarantino’sMargot Robbie as Tate, which also concerns itself with the Tate murders, and the effect it had.

Tarantino also received flack for originally planning to release the movie on the 50th anniversary of the incident.

It stars Margot Robbie as Tate, alongside Brad Pitt, Leonardi DiCaprio, Damian Lewis, Luke Perry, Dakota Fanning and Al Pacino.

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