Michelle Dean  Erin Michelle Dean (born 1979) is a journalist and critic from Canada. She received a B.A. in history from McGill University in 2002 and a law degree in 2005. She worked at White & Case from 2005 to 2010. She received a master's degree in Law from university of Toronto in 2011. She currently lives and works in the United States. Dean was honored in 2016 with the National Book Critics' Circle's Nona Balakian Citation for Excellence in Reviewing. Her work has appeared in "The New Yorker", "The New Republic", "The New York Times Magazine", and "Elle". Her first book, "Sharp: The Women Who Made an Art of Having an Opinion", was published by Grove Atlantic in 2018. One of her projects was the Hulu anthology series "The Act". The first season is based on Dean's Buzzfeed article, "Dee Dee Wanted Her Daughter to Be Sick, Gypsy Wanted Her Mom Murdered". She is co-writer and producer. The first episodes premiered on Hulu 20 March 2019. On April 4, 2019, Gypsy Blanchard stated that she was upset at "The Act" and Dean, its creator. While Blanchard was not able to watch the show in prison, she stated: "I feel it is very unfair and unprofessional that producers and co-producer Michelle Dean has used my actual name and story without my consent, and the life rights to do so". Kristy Blanchard, Gypsy's stepmother, stated that Dean promised to share financial proceeds from "The Act" with the Blanchard family but broke that promise: "Michelle had told me 'Whatever I make, [we're] cutting it 50/50 so y'all can put [it] aside for Gypsy,'" Kristy told "In Touch". "I did not ask her that...She voluntarily told me that. I was not expecting to get anything from it. Just [for her to] tell the truth."