Katy Mixon is unrecognizable as Betsy Faria onset of Renee Zelwegger crime drama

Mike & Molly star Katy Mixon looked unrecognizable as she stepped out on set of The Thing About Pam on Wednesday in New Orleans.

The 40-year-old actress – also known for starring in HBO’s Eastbound & Down – showed off a nasty cut on her arm as she was seen wearing a bald cap while playing the cancer-stricken character. 

She is playing the role of slain Elizabeth ‘Betsy’ Faria who was stabbed 55 times in 2011,  allegedly by her friend Pam Hupp who is being portrayed by Oscar-winner Renee Zellweger in the upcoming six-episode NBC drama. 

Betsy only had months to live when she was murdered, as she was dying of breast cancer that had spread to her liver. 

Shock: Katy Mixon is unrecognizable as she transforms into slain Betsy Faria onset of Renee Zellweger crime drama about convicted killer Pam Hupp on Wednesday in New Orleans

The mother-of-two was in her Troy, Missouri home when she was fatally stabbed. According to reports at the time, first responders noticed lacerations to Faria’s head, face, neck, torso and arms. 

In July this year, Pam Hupp – who is already serving a life sentence for shooting a disabled man dead – plead not guilty to the 2011 murder of her friend Faria.

Prosecutors have alleged that Hupp killed Faria four days after persuading her to switch a $150,000 life insurance policy to her, and was accused of trying to frame Faria’s husband Russell. 

Tragic: Betsy only had months to live when she was murdered, as she was dying of breast cancer that had spread to her liver (pictured with her husband Russell Faria) 

Grim role: The mother-of-two was in her Troy, Missouri home when she was fatally stabbed

Unrecognizable: Fans of Katy Mixon will have been forgiven for not noticing the actress while on set 

Shock: Katy Mixon is unrecognizable as she transforms into slain Betsy Faria onset of Renee Zellweger crime drama about convicted killer Pam Hupp on Wednesday in New Orleans

62-year-old Hupp is charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action for her Faria’s slaying back on December 27 2011. 

Hupp was sentenced to life without the possibility for parole in 2019 for luring Louis Gumpenberger, 33, to her home claiming to be a producer for Dateline before shooting him dead in an elaborate plot to divert attention from herself in the Faria case.

Speculation has also swirled that she was responsible for her own mother’s fatal fall in 2013.

Injuries: According to reports at the time, first responders noticed lacerations to Faria’s head, face, neck, torso and arms

Best known: Fans of Mike & Molly may not recognise Katy, who is known for playing Melissa McCarthy’s sister Victoria Flynn on the hit show

To take on the role of Hupp – Zellweger was seen earlier this week shooting in New Orleans while wearing what is commonly referred to as a fat suit. 

The use of a ‘fat suit’ in Hollywood has become a controversial option for actors recently, with both Gwyneth Paltrow and Sarah Paulson saying they regret wearing one for their respective roles, amid cries of fat-phobia. 

Last year, Paltrow admitted her regret over the choice to wear one in the movie Shallow Hall, calling it a ‘disaster’ and felt ‘humiliated’ when wearing it in public. 

Putting it on: Renee was pictured wearing a ‘fat suit’ to play the role of Pam Hupp this week

Costume: The suit was later seen being carried around by the wardrobe department 

Whereas Paulson, 46, caught controversy for wearing the device on the FX series Impeachment: American Crime Story, leading to an apology from the actress. 

Killer role: Zellweger is playing Pam Hupp, 62, pictured above – who is alleged to have killed her friend Betsy Faria 

‘There’s a lot of controversy around actors and fat suits, and I think that controversy is a legitimate one,’ she told the Los Angeles Times. ‘I think fat phobia is real. I think to pretend otherwise causes further harm.’ 

However, Zellweger – who is known for her ultra-slim frame in Hollywood – decided against using a fatsuit for her Oscar-nominated turn as Bridget Jones on 2001, though she admitted the transformation left her feeling ‘whacked.’ 

The slender actress famously embarked on a 4,000 calorie-a-day diet to load on 20lbs in just a few months to play Bridget Jones (twice) — then, as swiftly as she gained the curves, her weight plummeted to a sinewy size zero.

In 2007, she addressed the health implications of her yo-yo dieting for the role, admitting: ‘Can I just tell you my body is whacked by the time we finish one of those.’

‘It doesn’t know what has happened because it thinks there’s supposed to be a baby and there’s no christening.’ 

Pam Hupp: The ‘serial killer’ serving life without parole after slaying a disabled man and her own friend 

This year, convicted killer Pam Hupp was finally charged with the 2011 murder of her friend who she is accused of stabbing 55 times, before smearing the woman’s blood around her home in a plot to frame the victim’s husband. 

Hupp, who is already serving a life sentence for shooting a disabled man dead in 2016, appeared in court in Lincoln County, Missouri, in July for the first time over the murder of Elizabeth ‘Betsy’ Faria. 

The 62-year-old is charged with first-degree murder and armed criminal action for Faria’s slaying back on December 27 2011.

Convicted killer Pam Hupp appeared in court in Lincoln County, Missouri, Tuesday morning for the 2011 murder of her friend Elizabeth ‘Betsy’ Faria 

Prosecutors say Hupp killed Faria four days after persuading her to switch a $150,000 life insurance policy to Hupp. 

She then allegedly tried to stage the scene to make it appear that Faria’s husband Russell Faria killed her.

Russell was initially convicted of his wife’s murder in 2013 and sentenced to life in prison. His conviction was overturned in 2015 before he was found not guilty in a retrial where prosecutors argued Hupp was responsible.

Hupp was sentenced to life without the possibility for parole in 2019 for luring Louis Gumpenberger, 33, to her home claiming to be a producer for Dateline before shooting him dead in an elaborate plot to divert attention from herself in the Faria case.

Speculation has also swirled that she was responsible for her own mother’s fatal fall in 2013.

Elizabeth ‘Betsy’ Faria and husband Russell Faria. Russell was wrongly convicted of his wife’s murder in 2013 

The convicted killer is accused of murdering Faria, her friend and coworker at State Farm, to get her hands on her $150,000 life insurance. 

Prosecutors said Hupp was the last person to see Faria alive and knew her friend’s husband was out with friends at the time of the killing.  

Faria was suffering from cancer at the time of her murder and was undergoing chemotherapy. 

Prosecutors say Hupp gave Faria a ride home from her chemotherapy treatments on December 27 2011, knowing she would be weak and lethargic.

Hupp (left) is already serving a life sentence for shooting Louis Gumpenberger, 33, (right) dead to divert attention from herself in the Faria case

Hupp is seen in a police interview just hours after her friend Faria’s murder

She then allegedly stabbed Faria 55 times as she lay on a couch under a blanket. 

Then, Hupp dipped the victim’s socks in her own blood and spread it around the house to frame Russell for killing her her in a domestic assault, prosecutors say.

Russell came home to find his wife’s body lying in a pool of blood and called 911, telling the dispatcher ‘my wife killed herself’ after she had spoken of suicide amid her terminal cancer battle. 

The investigation quickly focused in on Russell despite him having an alibi for her murder.

He was charged and, at his murder trial, Hupp became a star witness who helped secure his conviction.  

Investigators have since been accused of mishandling the initial investigation and the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department last year reached a $2 million settlement with Russell for his wrongful conviction.  

 

 

She added: ‘Did you see that movie about fast food, Supersize Me? I had a panic attack with all the specialists talking about how bad this is for you, long term, putting on that much weight in short periods of time and they’re all saying, “You must stop this now or you’re going to die’.”

‘It sounds like heaven,’ Zellweger said about putting on weight for the film to play Bridget. ‘For two days it’s bliss and then you’re full, OK? And you can then indulge all your fantasies about over-eating.’

‘Fantasies about non-stop chocolate consumption or your fantasies about ordering the pizza and the spaghetti and the garlic bread.

‘Then after a week your glucose levels are going crazy. You’re up and down and all over the place. It doesn’t feel good, and no one wants to hear that, but it’s the truth.’

By the time of the third outing of the film – Bridget Jones’s Baby in 2016 – Zellweger said in interviews that director Sharon Maguire wanted Bridget to be in a place in life where she had achieved her ‘ideal weight.’

‘I put on a few pounds. I also put on some breasts and a baby bump,’ she told Vogue at the time, adding that ‘Bridget is a perfectly normal weight and I’ve never understood why it matters so much. No male actor would get such scrutiny if he did the same thing for a role.’