Is Lifetime’s As Luck Would Have It: Murder for Sale Based on a True Story?

‘As Luck Would Have It: Murder for Sale’ is a mystery thriller series that centers upon Gabbi (Jackée Harry), a retired criminology professor who uses her classroom smarts in order to help her detective daughter Lisa (Mea Wilkerson) solve some complicated cases. In this episode, Kimberley Stark (Helene Udy), Gabbi’s longtime friend, finally makes the decision to put her property for sale after many years of residing in it. However, her broker is found dead in the hallway of her house after the very first open house. Well aware of the fact that Gabbi has the skills to crack the case, Kimberley turns to her for help.

Initially, there were only limited leads and pieces of evidence, which made the authorities presume that it was the case of a burglary gone wrong. But Gabbi smells something fishy and realizes that all is not what it seems. She then points her daughter Lisa and her partner Rick (Doug Rogers) in another direction so as to help them get to the bottom of the case. Helmed by David DeCoteau, the Lifetime production touches upon the realistic themes of murder and detectives investigating the case, which happens ever so often in real life. Thus, it is natural for you to pose the question — Is ‘As Luck Would Have It: Murder for Sale’ rooted in reality or not? Well, let’s explore the same in detail together, shall we?

Is As Luck Would Have It: Murder for Sale a True Story?

No, ‘As Luck Would Have It: Murder for Sale’ is not based on a true story. The credit for the engaging storyline goes to the highly experienced screenwriter, Robert Dean Klein, who has previously worked on several other thrillers, including ‘To Kill a Stepfather,’ ‘The Wrong High School Sweetheart,’ ‘The Killer in My Backyard,’ ‘The Wrong Mommy,’ and ‘A Good Night to Die,’ to name a few. Apart from his experience, he made the most of his creative mind and excellent penmanship to come up with a seemingly realistic yet enthralling screenplay for the episode ‘Murder for Sale’ of the Lifetime series.

Since murders and the investigation that follows them are quite common occurrences in real life, many of you get the impression that it might be based on true events as well. However, what makes the episode seem so familiar is the fact that these themes and elements have been the subject of many movies and TV shows over the years, such as ‘Knives Out,’ ‘Death on the Nile,’ ‘Amsterdam,’ and ‘The Ritual Killer.’ However, one of the most suitable examples has to be that of John Hoffman and Steve Martin‘s creation ‘Only Murders in the Building.’

The mystery comedy-drama series features Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez as Charles-Haden Savage, Oliver Putnam, and Mabel Mora who come together and become friends due to their shared interests in true crime podcasts. Coincidentally, they live in the same affluent Upper West Side apartment building, where some suspicious deaths start taking place. So, much like the trio of Gabbi, Lisa, and Rick in Lifetime’s ‘As Luck Would Have It: Murder for Sale,’ Charles, Oliver, and Mabel investigate the murders on their own while covering the cases on their podcast. So, all in all, it would be fair to conclude that despite having some true-to-life themes and elements, ‘As Luck Would Have It: Murder for Sale’ is nothing but a work of fiction.