HOT LIKE A SUNRISE Rhonda is being primed to play Erin Patterson in Netflix’s upcoming biopic, but where is Ketut?
BY: Kartya Vucetic
Some headlines feel just too good to be true. And while this might sound like one of them, I can promise you all that this is not clickbait. It’s happening, ladies and gentlemen. It’s actually (maybe) happening.
In the kind of casting twist no one saw coming (but everyone has immediately accepted), it looks like Australia’s favourite safe‑driving sweetheart Rhonda is trading in the Bali sunsets for a true-crime courtroom.
That’s right, rumours are circling that Mandy McElhinney, yes, the AAMI ad Rhonda, is being eyed by Netflix for the lead role in the upcoming biopic about Erin Patterson. And if you’ve somehow been living under a death cap for the past year, Patterson is the Gippsland woman found guilty of murder last week after serving up a beef Wellington laced with toxic mushrooms to her in-laws.
Erin Patterson | Image: AFP
The news first emerged via B&T, with Pedestrian quickly jumping on the bandwagon to confirm that McElhinney is being seriously considered for the part. And while no official word has come from Netflix themselves as of yet, the casting rumours has already sent the internet into a minor spiral. Because if there’s anyone who can pivot from loveable insurance queen to suspected mushroom murderer, it’s probably Rhonda.
But, naturally, the question on everyone’s lips (besides “what actually is a death cap?”) is: where is our beloved Ketut?
After all, there is no Rhonda without her Ketut
While Rhonda is out here lining up for potential Logie nominations, there’s no word on whether her former flame, played by Kadek Mahardika, is currently involved in the production (cry). I mean, you’d at least think Netflix would subtly sneak him in as a jury member or extra somehow??
The Netflix production joins a rapidly growing mushroom media multiverse: the ABC is currently working on Toxic, Stan has a docuseries called Death Cap in the works, and there’s even a book due for release in November. Everyone’s racing to the finish line to get their version of the Patterson biopic out first.
As for McElhinney, her potential casting is being taken very seriously. And while Rhonda was once the face of insurance, sun safety, and unproblematic holiday flings, it seems she’s now taking a detour into poisoned pâté and press conferences. Frankly, we love the range.
Oh, and you think we’d leave you without a little trip down memory lane? Think again.
