The family of Meredith Kercher isn’t laughing about Amanda Knox’s comedy show | CNN

A new comedy show by Amanda Knox is hurtful rather than funny, the sister of the British student whose murder the American performer was convicted but later acquitted of told CNN ahead of its scheduled opening Friday at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

A new comedy show by Amanda Knox is hurtful rather than funny, the sister of the British student whose murder the American performer was convicted but later acquitted of told CNN ahead of its scheduled opening Friday at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Knox, who shared the apartment where Meredith Kercher was murdered in Italy in 2007, maintains her solo comedy act is meant to “honor” Kercher’s memory. But Kercher’s sister does not see it that way.

“For a lot of people, Meredith’s murder is a part of cult history, something that happened decades ago,” Stephanie Kercher told CNN. “For her family and friends, the pain is part of every single day. And there is nothing funny about any of it.”

The show is called “Cartwheel,” a reference to the claim that Knox performed cartwheels in the police station after Kercher’s murder – and uses comedy as a way “to call out the violence that was done to her and to me,” Knox wrote on social media ahead of the show’s 11-night run. Knox spent nearly four years in prison before being released after an appeal in 2011.

It is her take at “approaching forty, juggling motherhood and finally getting around to being furious about the whole wrongful-imprisonment thing. Especially when half the world is telling her to get over it, while the other half still thinks she’s guilty.”

For many, the show is in poor taste. More than 9,500 people had signed an online petition as of Friday to try to get the venue to cancel the show.

“Together, we can uphold the values of empathy and respect, ensuring that tragedy is not trivialized in the name of entertainment,” the petition founder, described as a friend of Meredith’s sister, writes. “Support Meredith’s family, honor her memory, and protect the dignity of all victims who have suffered from similar horrific acts of violence. Let us unite in saying no to ‘Cartwheel.’”

In a statement, the venue, Gilded Balloon, described the festival as “open-access.”

“As a Fringe venue, we provide a platform for a wide range of voices, in line with the Fringe’s long-standing commitment to freedom of expression (within the confines of the law) and ensure our audiences can make informed choices,” it said, adding: “Artists and companies choose to participate at our venue and take on the financial and creative responsibility for their work. Amanda’s show is a one-woman piece exploring themes of motherhood, presented independently by her.”

Knox, now a mother of two, was convicted of Kercher’s murder along with her former Italian boyfriend Rafaelle Sollecito in 2009 but ultimately acquitted by Italy’s highest court in 2015 after several appellate trials. She remains convicted of slander for falsely accusing her then-boss at a pub where she worked of Kercher’s murder.

Some have accused Knox of profiting from the tragedy. She has earned substantial money through media projects, including writing two books, hosting a popular podcast, and being an executive producer on the biographical drama series “The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox.” In one episode, she returns to Perugia, the central Italian city where the murder took place, to confront the prosecutor who won the original conviction against her, but she ultimately failed to convince him of her innocence, he told CNN after they met.

A third person, Rudy Guede, was convicted of Kercher’s murder during a fast-track trial in 2008. He was sentenced to 16 years in prison but released in 2021 after serving 13 years.