The much buzzed-about Fox News movie is taking shape, and big names in Hollywood are set to play big names in cable news. Connie Britton, who most recently played Debra Newell in Dirty John, will star as former Fox News CEO Roger Ailes’ wife, Elizabeth Tilson, who he married in 1998.
The film, which Coming Soon reports is tentatively titled Fair and Balanced, tells the story of how Ailes was finally ousted from power after sexually harassing many female staffers over the course of decades. It was a long, drawn-out ousting: it took the work of famous journalists such as Gretchen Carlson and Megyn Kelly, who added their voices to the chorus of women that reported instances of sexual misconduct at the media company, to finally push Ailes out. Ailes resigned from Fox News in 2016 and died in 2017.
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Kelly will be played by none other than Charlize Theron, who looks eerily similar to the former cable news anchor. Nicole Kidman will play Carlson, whose allegations set off the beginning of the end for Ailes’ career — and, in many ways, for Fox News’ culture of sexual harassment at large. Carlson’s attorneys stated that the number of women who accused Ailes of misconduct stands at over 20.
Other stars involved in the film include Margot Robbie, Kate McKinnon, Allison Janney, and John Lithgow, who will play Ailes. Talked about a star-stacked cast — and a perfect director in Jay Roach, who directed HBO’s Game Change about Sarah Palin’s rise to power during the 2008 election.