I can't wait for Paramount Plus' new true crime series after seeing a creepy Dennis Quaid in the trailer for Happy Face

Dennis Quaid as the Happy Face Killer wearing a red jumpsuit

(Image credit: Paramount Plus)

Dennis Quaid is playing The Happy Face Killer in a new series
It will premiere on Paramount Plus on March 20
The series is adapted from a podcast and autobiography written by the killer's daughter, Melissa Moore

Paramount Plus has a lot of great true crime and after seeing the new trailer for Happy Face, it has the potential to add another one to our list of the best Paramount Plus shows. I'm so excited to stream this series, especially since it has the talented Dennis Quaid in the titular role of the Happy Face Killer. We saw him recently in The Substance, which we crowned the best body horror of 2024, and recently got nominated for Best Picture 2025, so we know he's got a knack for playing a creepier role.

While real-life men in powerful positions inspired his performance in The Substance, this time, Quaid is stepping into the shoes of a very specific person: Keith Hunter Jesperson, a serial killer who became known for sending letters featuring smiley faces to the authorities, hence his name. The series follows his crimes as well as his daughter, Melissa, who ended up caught in the middle of it all.

Take a look at the trailer ahead of its release on March 20.

What else do we know about Happy Face?

Dennis Quaid and Annaleigh Ashford sit opposite each other in an interrogation room in Happy Face — (Image credit: Paramount Plus)

Annaleigh Ashford stars alongside Dennis Quaid as Melissa Moore, the killer's daughter, so the series will focus primarily on these two roles. Inspiration from the series came from the iHeartPodcasts true-crime podcast Happy Face by Moore, as well as her autobiography Shattered Silence, co-written with M. Bridget Cook. So a lot of this has come from material she produced herself, giving viewers a first-hand look at what happened.

The official synopsis teases: "After decades of no contact, he finally finds a way to force himself back into his daughter’s life. In a race against the clock, Melissa must find out if an innocent man is going to be put to death for a crime her father committed. Throughout, she discovers the impact her father had on his victims’ families and must face a reckoning of her own identity."

Lucy is a long-time movie and television lover who is an approved critic on Rotten Tomatoes. She has written several reviews in her time, starting with a small self-ran blog called Lucy Goes to Hollywood before moving onto bigger websites such as What's on TV and What to Watch, with TechRadar being her most recent venture. Her interests primarily lie within horror and thriller, loving nothing more than a chilling story that keeps her thinking moments after the credits have rolled. Many of these creepy tales can be found on the streaming services she covers regularly.

When she’s not scaring herself half to death with the various shows and movies she watches, she likes to unwind by playing video games on Easy Mode and has no shame in admitting she’s terrible at them. She also quotes The Simpsons religiously and has a Blinky the Fish tattoo, solidifying her position as a complete nerd.