【Dead Again】

How did Fox television go from the house The Dead AgainSimpsonsbuilt into something resembling Donald Trump's state-run news network?

A newly greenlit Showtime miniseries is set to explore the rise of Fox News, with Russell Crowe taking on the role of Roger Ailes, the network's disgraced former CEO. Ailes died in May 2017, just under a year after he resigned amid allegations of sexual harassment and abuse.

The eight-episode series will be based on The Loudest Voice in the Room, an Ailes biography penned by author Gabriel Sherman and released in 2014. That means the series likely won't be covering the end of Ailes reign at Fox News, since it was published two years before he was ousted.

Tom McCarthy (Spotlight) and Jason Blum (Get Out) will serve as executive producers. Showtime's official synopsis for the series can be found below (h/t Entertainment Weekly):

To understand the events that led to the rise of Donald Trump, one must understand Ailes. The upcoming limited series takes on that challenge, focusing primarily on the past decade in which Ailes arguably became the Republican Party’s de facto leader, while flashing back to defining events in Ailes’ life, including an initial meeting with Richard Nixon on the set of The Mike Douglas Showthat gave birth to Ailes’ political career and the sexual harassment accusations and settlements that brought his Fox News reign to an end.

It's worth noting that while Sherman's book received critical praise, it didn't include any cooperation from the former Fox News chief. That's likely why the synopsis makes a point of noting that the story will be "told through multiple points of view."

It's still early days for this admittedly timely miniseries, so there's no premiere date or even any casting info beyond Crowe. Expect more announcements soon.

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