Genelle Guzman-McMillan's story of survival and faith is now reaching a national audience beyond her own retelling - "Angel in the Rubble: The Genelle Guzman Story" premiered Saturday on Lifetime, dramatizing the 27 hours she spent trapped beneath the World Trade Center's North Tower on 9/11.
Sherri Shepherd stars as Guzman-McMillan and also executive produced the film alongside Robin Roberts, part of the "Robin Roberts Presents" banner and Lifetime's "Strength of a Lifetime" movie series marking the anniversary. Dondré Whitfield co-stars as Guzman-McMillan's partner. The film is based on her 2011 memoir of the same name and was written by Robert Eisele.
Lifetime's official synopsis keeps the focus on the spiritual turning point at the center of her story: "As she fought to stay alive, Genelle reflected on her life and the faith she had left behind, praying for deliverance and promising to change if given another chance." The film also revisits the mysterious rescuer she remembers only as "Paul" - a man whose hand she says held hers in the darkness, but whose identity was never confirmed among the rescue teams on site.
Shepherd, stepping into one of her first major dramatic roles since her talk show ended earlier this year, said she was drawn to a story built on documented survival rather than loose dramatization.
"Angel in the Rubble" premiered Saturday, September 12, at 8/7c and is available to stream the next day. Viewers can also access it through Hulu + Live TV, DIRECTV Stream, Sling TV, Philo, or Frndly TV.
For Guzman-McMillan, seeing her testimony reach a wider audience is another chapter in a promise she made in the dark 25 years ago - to tell her story so it might change someone else's.
Related Article: Genelle Guzman-McMillan: What Really Happened to the Last Person Rescued From the 9/11 Rubble?
