"PAY IT FORWARD," THE 2000 INSPIRATIONAL DRAMA STARRING KEVIN SPACEY, HELEN HUNT AND HALEY JOEL OSMENT, WILL BE BROADCAST SUNDAY, AUG. 22 ON THE CBS TELEVISION NETWORK

PAY IT FORWARD, the 2000 inspirational drama starring Kevin Spacey, Helen Hunt and Haley Joel Osment, will be broadcast as the "CBS Sunday Movie," Sunday, Aug. 22 (9:00-11:30 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network.

Trevor (Hayley Joel-Osment), a precocious 11-year-old boy living alone with his dysfunctional, alcoholic mother, Arlene (Helen Hunt), finds himself challenged by his new social studies teacher, the slightly disfigured Eugene (Kevin Spacey), who assigns his class a near impossible task � come up with an idea that will change the world, and then put it into action.

Inspired, Trevor comes up with a movement called �Pay It Forward,� in which a person helps three other people in trouble and asks only they do the same for others in return. Meanwhile, he launches another impossible task on the home front by trying to match up his mother with his teacher. As Trevor tries to create sparks between the two, his �Pay it Forward� idea quietly and unexpectedly begins to take speed around the country, as everyday citizens begin helping one another, and asking only they pass the favor along. However, it isn�t until a tragedy takes place that anyone realizes what an impact Trevor�s idea has made on the country.

Mimi Leder ("John Doe," "The Beast") directed the film; screenplay written by Leslie Dixon; based on the book Pay It Forward by Catherine Ryan Hyde.

RATING: TV14-V