Laura Dern to play journalist who exposed Jeffrey Epstein's crimes in Sony's upcoming TV series
Oscar winner Laura Dern is set to star in a limited series centered on the investigation of the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Variety reported. The 59-year-old actress will play the Miami Herald's investigative journalist Julie K. Brown, who uncovered the secret plea between the disgraced financier and prosecutors in her 2021 book, 'Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story.' Sharon Hoffman, of the 'House of Cards' fame, will adapt the book for the small screen and serve as the co-showrunner with Eileen Myers. She will also executive produce the series with Dern, Brown, Adam McKay and Kevin Messick for Hyperobject Industries. The untitled project is currently in development at Sony Pictures Television.
As per the official description of the series, it will be "an explosive account of an investigative reporter exposing the secret plea deal between Epstein and federal prosecutors. Drawing from Brown’s experience as a groundbreaking reporter for the Miami Herald, the book and the limited series follow her relentless years-long investigation that identified 80 victims, persuaded key survivors to go on the record, and led to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s arrests." For decades, Epstein operated a sex trafficking ring of underaged girls, some as young as 14, at his private island. Several powerful men and women from all walks of life had close ties to him, but only his accomplice, Ghislaine Maxwell, has been arrested and charged so far. In 2008, he was convicted in Florida for procuring a minor for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute. However, the state prosecutor, Alex Acosta, handed him a 'sweetheart deal,' allowing him to escape federal charges and serve only 13 months in a county jail with work release. He only had to register as a sex offender.
Brown’s investigation labeled the controversial plea agreement the 'deal of a lifetime' in the Miami Herald. After escaping justice for years, Epstein was finally arrested and indicted on federal sex trafficking charges in July 2019. However, he reportedly committed suicide by hanging in his prison cell a month later, on August 10, while awaiting trial. The circumstances around his death fueled speculation that he was murdered. On March 28, Bank of America was reported to pay $72.5 million to Epstein's victims, according to a federal court filing in Manhattan. Hundreds of victims sued the bank for ignoring warning signs that indicated their accounts were being used to carry out the abuse of young girls and women. Bank of America is the third bank, after JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank, to settle a multimillion-dollar case involving the sex offender.
Dern is one of Hollywood's high-profile actresses with a string of award-worthy performances to her credit. She won the Academy Award for 'Best Supporting Actress' in 2020 for playing the feisty divorce lawyer Nora Fanshaw in Noah Baumbach's drama 'Marriage Story.' Her casting was met with criticism online, with several people questioning the need to shine a spotlight on the disgraced Epstein. The project marks the first scripted series about the Epstein case, as the sensitive subject matter has only been covered in documentaries so far.
