George and Cindy Anthony to Talk to Dr. Phil

Aug. 16, 2011 — -- George and Cindy Anthony, the parents of acquitted murder defendant Casey Anthony and grandparents of murder victim Caylee Anthony, will tell their story to Dr. Phil McGraw in an interview to air on his show's season premiere Sept. 12.

"We appreciate the way in which Dr. Phil has helped others, and we trust him enough to completely open our hearts in telling our story," George Anthony said in a written statement released by Paramount Television on behalf of the "Dr. Phil" show.

"He is a professional that understands the uniqueness of our family situation," George Anthony said of McGraw. "There's no one better to do this interview than Dr. Phil. We knew he would ask the difficult questions, and we were right."

Both George and Cindy Anthony were key witnesses at their daughter Casey Anthony's trial.

Casey Anthony, 25, was acquitted July 5, 2011, on charges she killed her 2-year-old daughter, Caylee, but convicted on charges she lied to authorities about the case.

During the trial, defense attorneys accused George Anthony and other members of the Anthony family of abusing Casey Anthony. George Anthony and others denied those accusations.

In the Paramount release, Dr. Phil expressed sympathy for the Anthonys' "ordeal." But he added that "nothing is off limits" during the interview.

"Cindy and George have suffered a horrific loss with the untimely death of their granddaughter Caylee, and they have since endured an unprecedented public attack on their family," Dr. Phil said. "Have these attacks been warranted, or not? I looked them straight in the eye and asked some very tough questions. Despite living under a 'media microscope' for years, THEIR story has never really been told and there's so much more to it than we've heard in the media."

Cindy Anthony offered her own reasons for breaking her silence about the trial and its verdict.

"We knew that we'd want to speak at some point, and we figured there was no better place than with Dr. Phil," she said in the written statement. "We are hoping that by doing this interview, we will be able to help other people who may be experiencing struggles of their own. We certainly don't want anyone to experience what we have these last three years."

Paramount emphasized that the Anthonys did not seek payment for the interview, but asked for an unspecified donation to "Caylee's Fund," a separate charity that will honor their granddaughter, and advocate for missing and abused children and grandparents' rights.

ABC News' Michael S. James contributed to this report.