HBO greenlights 2016 presidential election miniseries from ‘Game Change’ team
Ever wish you could relive the 2016 presidential race? Forget the idea of “too soon.” HBO is doing it.
The premium cable network announced Thursday that it will chronicle the events of the recent presidential election in miniseries form, similar to what was explored in the 2012 telepic “Game Change,” which focused on the 2008 presidential campaign of Sen. John McCain and his VP candidate Sarah Palin.
Like “Game Change,” the forthcoming miniseries will be directed by Jay Roach, with Playtone’s Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman executive producing. It will be based on an upcoming book by Mark Halperin and John Heilemann. The pair’s book about Trump’s victory is set to be published by Penguin Press. The duo, it should be noted, also serve as hosts and executive producers of Showtime’s political documentary series “The Circus,” the second season of which premieres March 19 and will focus on Trump’s first 100 days as president.
Halperin and Heilemann’s 2010 bestseller, “Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime,” was adapted into an HBO movie in 2012 and starred Julianne Moore, Woody Harrelson and Ed Harris and took home five Emmys, including outstanding miniseries or movie.
It’s not yet clear which players of the 2016 race will take center stage in the untitled miniseries, or who will play them, but the project will tell the story of “Donald Trump’s dramatic, improbable victory over Hillary Clinton,” according to a release from HBO.
“We are thrilled to continue our relationship with Mark Halperin and John Heilemann, whose work on their bestselling book ‘Game Change’ set the bar for political reporting and storytelling inside a presidential campaign,” said HBO Films President Len Amato in a statement.
Amato went on to say the project promises to “vividly capture the most unique and impactful event in modern American politics.”
Trump’s victory and his decision-making since taking office have been a source of wide interest, running the gamut of news coverage and “Saturday Night Live” sketches. Others are also looking to explore the circus-like presidential race in scripted form: Ryan Murphy recently announced that the theme of the upcoming season of “American Horror Story” would pull inspiration from the election.
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