Always available to assist the liberal candidate du jour, the entertainment industry and mainstream media are engaged in an apparent early effort to sway public opinion with regard to the expected 2016 presidential run of Hillary Clinton.
This time around, in the preconditioning endeavor, NBC is taking the lead for Hollywood. The Peacock Network is currently involved in the development of a four-hour primetime miniseries about Mrs. Clinton.
The timing of the project may seem a bit early to some, but the details have apparently been thoroughly thought through, as evidenced by Robert Greenblatt’s recent revelation at a presentation to the Television Critics Association, in which the top NBC entertainment executive suggested that the network is seeking to avoid the possibility of rival candidates demanding equal time. To avoid the potential problem, Greenblatt indicated that the parties involved in the production would be shooting for a broadcast date that would occur prior to Mrs. Clinton’s formal declaration of candidacy.
Forty-eight-year old actress Diane Lane, who received an Oscar nomination for her role in the film “Unfaithful,” has been cast to play Mrs. Clinton. As a side note, Lane was listed on AskMen.com's “Top 99 Most Desirable Women” from 2005 through 2007.
From a liberal perspective, Lane would appear to be a wise selection since she has the capacity to project an idealized image of the former first lady and secretary of state.
Although the role of Bill Clinton has yet to be cast, the Internet is abuzz with suggestions.
Chuck Todd, chief White House correspondent for NBC News as well as the host of The Daily Rundown on MSNBC, took to his Twitter account to distance himself and NBC News from the Hillary Clinton project.
“Just want to get this out of the way now: NBC News has nothing to do w/Clinton miniseries on NBC entertainment. So save your complaints,” Todd wrote.
Academy Award nominee Courtney Hunt has been tapped to write the script for the Hillary miniseries. Hunt is known in Hollywood for the film that secured her an Oscar nomination, “Frozen River,” which was both directed and written by Hunt.
The self-financed film debuted at the 2008 Sundance film festival and was awarded the best feature. Critics loved Hunt’s realistic and gritty approach, hailing her as the filmmaker of choice in dealing with women in film. “Frozen River” also garnered an Academy Award nomination for actress Melissa Leo.
The plot of “Frozen River” deals with two single mothers who, in order to support their families, hide illegal immigrants in the trunk of a car and transport them from Canada to the United States.
Hunt is a talented writer with a legal background and has received praise in the past for her adherence to the truth. It remains to be seen whether or not she will be able to withstand the likely pressure to transform the screenplay into a presidential campaign ad for Hillary.
NBC’s press release described the Hillary miniseries as programming that will “recount Clinton’s life as a wife, politician, and cabinet member from 1998 to present.”
“The script will begin with Clinton living in the White House as her husband is serving the second of his two terms as president. In the years following, she would eventually become a United States senator, run for president and, ultimately, serve the country as secretary of state,” the press release indicated.
The time period set forth in the press release would lead one to believe that the script will omit events that occurred in1994, when as first lady of the United States, Hillary’s major initiative, the Clinton healthcare plan, failed to gain public support or approval from Congress.
Also apparently absent from the plot will be when, in 1996, Hillary was the only first lady to have been subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury. Additionally, it remains to be seen how the screenplay will handle the 1998 Lewinsky scandal.
The NBC press release indicates that the script will end with “the present.” This would of course include September 11, 2012, when terrorist attacks on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi resulted in the deaths of U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens and three other Americans.
Whether or not any depiction of Hillary’s actions, or lack thereof, before, during, and after the terrorist attack in Benghazi will be included in the miniseries is yet to be seen.
James Hirsen, J.D., M.A., in media psychology, is a New York Times best-selling author, media analyst, and law professor. Visit Newsmax.TV Hollywood. Read more reports from James Hirsen — Click Here Now.