TV show about Trump-Comey clash to air before US election
LOS ANGELES – A new two-part TV drama mini-series about the clash between former FBI director James Comey and US President Donald Trump over Russian interference in the 2016 election will be broadcast in September – ahead of the November elections, cable channel Showtime said on Wednesday.
The Comey Rule, described as a “behind-the-headlines account of the historically turbulent events surrounding the 2016 presidential election and its aftermath”, was initially given a broadcast slot in late November but will now air on Sept 27 and 28.
Showtime, a unit of ViacomCBS, did not give a reason for the change, but it followed complaints about the post-election timing from writer-director Billy Ray were made public earlier this week.
He had apologised to cast members about the original timing of the show in an e-mail, writing: “While I’ve made movies about my country before, this was the first time I ever made a movie for my country. We all were hoping to get this story in front of the American people months before the coming election.”
Comey also previously issued a statement expressing his dismay, saying: “I don’t understand why CBS would sit on a movie about important current events.”
Trump is running for a second term in the White House in a Nov 3 election.
Comey’s firing by Trump in 2017 triggered a 22-month investigation by Special Counsel Robert Mueller on Russian election interference. Mueller documented numerous contacts between Trump campaign figures and Moscow but found insufficient evidence of a criminal conspiracy.
The show, starring US actor Jeff Daniels as Comey and Irish actor Brendan Gleeson as Trump, is based on Comey’s best-selling book A Higher Loyalty and more than a year of additional interviews, Showtime said. - REUTERS
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