Los Angeles - After it seemed as though it wasn't going to
happen, FX announced the third season of its "American Crime Story"
franchise will indeed tackle Bill Clinton's White House scandal and
impeachment.
The news came Tuesday during the network's presentation at the
Television Critics Association publicity tour in Beverly Hills
[California].
Titled "Impeachment," the new season begins production early next
year and will premiere September 27. Monica Lewinsky, the former
White House intern who got swept up in a media firestorm because of
her affair with the former president, will serve as a producer.
Executive producer Ryan Murphy has previously said he hadn't wanted
to move forward with the season without her involvement.
The cast will include Sarah Paulson as Linda Tripp, Beanie Feldstein
as Monica Lewinsky, and Annaleigh Ashford as Paula Jones. Sarah
Burgess will write the series, based on Jeffrey Toobin's 1999
bestseller, "A Vast Conspiracy: The Real Story of the Sex Scandal
That Nearly Brought Down a President." (Another Toobin book, "The Run
of His Life: The People v. O. J. Simpson," served as the foundation
for the inaugural season of the franchise, "The People vs. O.J.
Simpson.")
"This franchise reexamines some of the most complicated, polarizing
stories in recent history in a way that is relevant, nuanced and
entertaining," said FX Networks Chairman John Landgraf in a
statement. "'Impeachment: American Crime Story' will likewise explore
the overlooked dimensions of the women who found themselves caught up
in the scandal and political war that cast a long shadow over the
Clinton presidency."