Hayden Panettiere to play convicted murderer Amanda Knox

New York (ANI): 'Heroes' actress Hayden Panettiere is set to play Amanda Knox, the American exchange student convicted of murdering her roommate in Italy, in a Lifetime movie. The film will air in 2011 on the women"s cable network, according to Deadline.

Knox, 23, and her Italian boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito, were found guilty last year of killing 21-year -old British student Meredith Kercher by slashing her throat with a knife during a violent, drug-fueled sex game, reports the New York Post.

Prosecutors called Knox a 'coiled spring filled with vengeance because her 'prissy roommate' had criticized her grooming and sexual habits. After an 11-month trial, Knox was convicted of murder, sexual assault and other charges in Italy and sentenced to 26 years in prison.