Mary Jo Buttafuoco to narrate Lifetime movie about her

Lifetime will air a ripped-from-the-headlines — old headlines to be sure — biopic on Mary Jo Buttafuoco, which will once again recap her 1992 shooting by Amy Fisher and her later recovery, the network announced Thursday. "I Am Mary Jo Buttafuoco," which will air Jan. 17, will star Chloe Lanier and feature narration by Buttafuoco.

"It’s been 33 years since I was thrust into the true crime spotlight after surviving a near-fatal gunshot wound to the head at the hands of my husband’s teenage lover," Buttafuoco, 70, said in a statement. "In the years that followed, I endured extreme public scrutiny, relentless media coverage, and was often mocked and misunderstood in the public eye. What many didn’t see was the private toll it took — battling depression, suicidal thoughts and addiction as I tried to make sense of a life that had been so violently and publicly shattered."

There have been thousands of TV tabloid stories on the May 19, 1992, incident, when 17-year-old Amy Fisher, then having an affair with Buttafuoco's husband, Joey, shot Mary Jo in the face on the porch of the Buttafuocos' home in Massapequa. Three network TV films aired later — one that year, two in early '93 — and TV newsmagazines haven't let go since. Nevertheless, Lifetime, in a statement, said, "For the first time ever, Mary Jo Buttafuoco tells her story in her own words."

The 2019 "20/20" two-hour special "Growing Up Buttafuoco" included some perspective from Mary Jo, while she also wrote a 2009 memoir about the case, "Getting It Through My Thick Skull: Why I Stayed, What I Learned, and What Millions of People Involved with Sociopaths Need to Know."

In her statement, Buttafuoco said, "This is not just a true crime headline — it’s my journey of resilience, healing and reclaiming my voice."

In 2017, People reported that Buttafuoco had surgery to repair her facial paralysis; she has since, Lifetime said in its statement, "partnered with The Facial Paralysis Institute, which provides expert care, support and hope to people dealing with facial nerve issues."