Beneath the notorious hard shell of the serial killer, could there be a crying, broken heart hidden? Aileen Wournos (played by Charlize Theron) had a miserable and cold childhood where her family provided nothing but beatings, insults, and abuse. She once dreamed of becoming a shining star or finding true love, but the prince on a white horse never came to save her. To make a living, from the age of 13, Aileen had to sell her body. Later, she left Michigan for Florida and became a sex worker catering specifically to long-distance truck drivers traveling on highways. Time passed in commercial streets, gas stations, and seedy bars.