AMANDA Knox has responded to backlash against her Fringe show after the sister of Meredith Kercher said the show by Knox, who was convicted of her murder and later cleared, “normalises and trivialises violence against women”.
British foreign exchange student Miss Kercher was killed in Perugia in 2007, and her American roommate Knox was arrested and later convicted of murder and sexual assault in 2009 alongside her then-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito.
The couple maintained their innocence and, after years of legal battles, were acquitted of sexual assault and murder by Italy’s highest court in 2015.
Knox will now perform the show, named Cartwheel, which references a story that claimed she did cartwheels in the police station after her friend’s death, at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe.
Stephanie Kercher told BBC Breakfast: “It’s left a massive void in our lives, and Amanda is naturally free to continue with her life as she wishes, but I think the problem with this particular project is that it is comedy.
“And whilst I appreciate comedy is there to push the boundaries… it very much normalises and trivialises violence against women and Meredith in particular.
“I think in this case it’s a position where it’s not a generic topic, it’s targeting an individual traumatic case and an individual person and family, and I feel very strongly that Meredith wouldn’t agree with that.
“And obviously, I have read certain comments that she’s made that Meredith would have found it funny, and Meredith absolutely wouldn’t find these topics of any comedy value.”
Responding to the comments, Knox said: "The interesting irony of that is that my daughter is a huge motivation for me doing this show.
"It's about how the world is unsafe and unfair towards women and what it means to raise a daughter in that world, knowing how bad it can be.
"If they [Kercher's family] saw my show, they would recognise that."
A petition to cancel the show has also been launched, to which Knox said “neither the author of this petition nor anyone who signed it has seen Cartwheel” and added that the petition “contains many false assumptions and completely mischaracterises the show” in a statement posted to Instagram.
Knox further added: "I hope people will honestly engage in my work and recognise the deep heart and sensitivity that I bring to it as I tell a very personal story."
She also explained that the cartwheel becomes a metaphor throughout the show.
"It is about acknowledging that bad things happen in life which will turn you upside down," Knox said.
"But it's also about not letting that arrest your momentum because the only way you can land on your feet is through those difficult experiences."
Knox added she would love to have an open and honest conversation with Kercher's family but claimed she has never had the opportunity.
"It would be incredible for them to see me for who I really am instead of the idea that was delivered to them by people in bad hands," she said.
Knox has previously said she would be willing to speak to Miss Kercher’s family about the show, which she claims does not “joke about Meredith’s death”.
She has previously shared her story in documentaries, an eight-part TV drama she produced with Monica Lewinsky, and books.
Rudy Hermann Guede was convicted of Miss Kercher’s murder in 2008. He was released from prison in 2021 after serving 13 years of a 16-year term.
