| Two Mothers for Zachary | |
|---|---|
 Promotional advertisement
| |
| Genre | Drama |
| Written by | Linda Voorhees |
| Directed by | Peter Werner |
| Starring |
Valerie Bertinelli Vanessa Redgrave |
| Theme music composer | Peter Rodgers Melnick |
| Country of origin | United States |
| Original language | English |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Cary Brokaw Randy Robinson |
| Producers | Timothy Marx Tom Kageff |
| Production locations |
Austin, Texas Georgetown, Texas Lockhart, Texas |
| Cinematography | Neil Roach |
| Editor | Martin Nicholson |
| Running time | 96 minutes |
| Production companies |
Avenue Pictures Hallmark Entertainment RHI Entertainment |
| Release | |
| Original network | ABC |
| Picture format | Color |
| Audio format | Stereo |
| Original release | September 22, 1996 |
Two Mothers for Zachary is a 1996 ABC television film directed by Peter Werner and starring Valerie Bertinelli and Vanessa Redgrave. It is a true story adaptation of the Bottoms v. Bottoms family custody battle brought by a mother who disapproves of her daughter's lesbianism and the impact on her grandchild. It premiered on 22 September 1996. It was awarded a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Made for TV Movie.
Premise
Nancy (Redgrave) disapproves of her daughter, Jody Ann's (Bertinelli) lesbianism and resolves to seek custody of her grandson, Zachary. A Virginia court grants custody of the boy to Nancy and now Jody is desperate to regain her son.
Cast
- Valerie Bertinelli as Jody Ann Shaffell
- Vanessa Redgrave as Nancy Shaffell
- Colleen Flynn as Maggie Fergus
- Brian McGuire as Dwayne
- Kim Dickens as Jan
- Marietta Marich as Melba
- Marco Perella as Reporter 2
- James Gammon as Chalmer
- Adam and Aaron Rehmann as Zachary
Production
Although the film is based on Sharon Bottoms's real-life custody battle, characters were renamed for the adaptation. Bertinelli explained, "I'm so much older than Sharon Bottoms is. But once we changed her name to Jody Ann Shaffell, it became much easier to see myself playing this role. I didn't have to play Sharon Bottoms but my interpretation of what would happen to a woman in that situation."
Bertinelli had previously learned of the Bottoms case years earlier when she appeared on the same edition of Larry King Live with Sharon Bottoms. Bottoms was appearing with her lawyer and argued her case against a Christian leader. Instead of concentrating on what she was intending to promote, Bertinelli became engaged in the previous debate and criticized the views of the religious representative.