Vera Farmiga Tapped To Star In A&E’s ‘Bates Motel’


Vera Farmiga is set to star in the upcoming A&E drama Bates Motel, a series which explores the events leading up to director Alfred Hitchcock’s classic thriller Psycho. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Farmiga, who starred in Up in the Air with George Clooney, will portray Norma Louise Bates, mother of shower stabber and frequent cross-dresser Norman Bates.

“We are delighted to welcome Vera Farmiga to Bates Motel,” explained co-creator Carlton Cuse. “She is a phenomenal talent who has demonstrated incredible range and intelligence in a number of landmark film roles, and we couldn’t be more excited to have her join our project.”

THR describesBates Motel as being a cross between Twin Peaks and Smallville. The program will be the first project Cuse has tackled since ending his stint on the ABC drama Lost.

According to Coming Soon, the series is officially described as “an intimate understanding of how Norman Bates’ psyche developed from his childhood through his teen years. Fans will have access to the dark, twisted backstory and learn first hand how his mother, Norma, and her love damaged Norman, helped forge the most well-known serial killing motel owner in history.”

In Hitchcock’s Psycho, Norma Bates was voiced by three different individuals; Virginia Gregg, Jeanette Nolan, and Paul Jasmin all loaned their talents to the character, though Gregg would be the only one to return for Psycho II, Psycho III, and Psycho IV: The Beginning. Olivia Hussey, who starred in the 1968 version of Romeo and Juliet, was the first actress to portray the character on-screen.

As of this writing, Vera Farmiga is the only cast member announced for A&E’s Bates Motel. It will be interesting to see who, exactly, the network taps to portray Norman Bates. The series, which is being produced by Universal Television, is expected to air sometime next year.

Share this article: Vera Farmiga Tapped To Star In A&E’s ‘Bates Motel’
More from Inquisitr