Shooting of movie begins next week in Lexington area, then Harlan

Shooting of the movie Above Suspicion is scheduled to start Tuesday in Lexington, and the production is looking for paid extras.

“We’re looking for all ages 18 and up, all ethnicities,” said Taylor Woodell, the extras casting director who has an office in Harlan. “We’re especially looking for any law enforcement or FBI background” because the story is based on a true story about an FBI agent and his informant/girlfriend.

Woodell said she could not identify specific shooting locations, but she said “we’re about to go to Lexington for the next few weeks. We’ll be filming in a few areas around Lexington, such as Paris and Cynthiana, and then we’ll come back down to Harlan for three weeks after that. We’ll have just as much time in Harlan as we will in Lexington.”

The movie tells the story of Mark Putnam, who became the first ever FBI agent convicted of a homicide when he pleaded guilty in June 1990 to strangling his informant/lover, Susan Daniels Smith, the previous year.

Putnam, who was married, had been transferred from Pikeville to an assignment in Miami in 1989 when Smith, 27, called and told him she was pregnant. When he returned to Kentucky to testify in a case, she confronted him at a Pikeville hotel.

Putnam said he choked Smith to death when she started slapping him and threatening to expose their affair. A year later, Putnam led authorities to the body in a Pike County ravine. He pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in exchange for a 16-year sentence. He was released from prison in 2000 after serving 10 years.

Emilia Clarke (Game of Thrones, Terminator Genisys) along with Jack Huston (The Longest Ride, Boardwalk Empire) have signed on to play the leading roles.

If you are interested in becoming a paid extra for Above Suspicion, email a recent photo of yourself, along with your age, height, weight, wardrobe sizes, a description of any tattoos and your location to abovesuspicionextras@gmail.com.

Woodell said she has had many emails already, and asked that fans check a Facebook page, TW Casting, to stay informed about specific casting calls.

“Once one goes up you will be able to submit for specific extras position/role,” she wrote on the page. “By sending in a initial submission you have allowed me to sort and have your information on file. That way if I ever have specific needs and am struggling to find them I can search through those general submissions and see who fits what I am looking for.”

The moviemakers are also looking for cars made between 1970 and 1985.

This story was originally published May 17, 2016 at 3:17 PM with the headline "Shooting of movie begins next week in Lexington area, then Harlan."