BRIAN D'ARCY JAMES, TRIESTE KELLY DUNN AND ELIZABETH REASER JOIN DISCOVERY'S
SCRIPTED ANTHOLOGY SERIES ABOUT THE INFAMOUS UNABOMBER
New Title Announced as 'Manhunt: The UNABOMer'
(LOS ANGELES and SANTA MONICA) - Discovery Channel announced that three-time Tony Award nominee Brian d'Arcy James ("Hamilton," "Spotlight," "13 Reasons Why"), Trieste Kelly Dunn ("Blindspot," "Banshee") and Elizabeth Reaser ("Mad Men" and "Young Adult") have been cast in the network's upcoming scripted series now titled "Manhunt: The UNABOMer," formerly known as "Manifesto," set to air this year. Produced by John Goldwyn, serving as consultant to Discovery, Lionsgate, Trigger Street Productions and Discovery Channel, the anthology series tells the story about the hunt for Ted Kaczynski, who terrified the nation with a letter bombing campaign in the 1980s and early 1990s. The new title reflects the name given by the original task force created by the FBI and ATF to investigate the "UNABOM" case, a combination of the words "University" and "Airline BOMber."
The series will tell the story of how FBI agent Jim "Fitz" Fitzgerald (Sam Worthington, "Avatar," "Hacksaw Ridge") deployed a radical approach to intelligence gathering to take down Kaczynski, portrayed by Paul Bettany ("Gangster No. 1," "Captain America: Civil War"). Emmy(R) Award-winning television producer and director Greg Yaitanes ("Quarry," "Banshee") will executive produce, direct and serve as showrunner. Andrew Sodroski, whose "Holland, Michigan" topped Hollywood's famed Black List for screenplays in 2013, created the series and serves as an Executive Producer. Jim Fitzgerald will serve as Consulting Producer.
James will play 'Henry Murray,' a professor of Kaczynski's at Harvard University, who convinced his young students to participate in mind control experiments supervised by the CIA. It's believed that these sessions, which were psychologically brutal and lasted for almost a year, were responsible for effectively weaponizing Kaczynski. Dunn will play 'Theresa Oakes,' a librarian at the Lincoln Public Library in Montana, who befriended Kaczynski and engaged him to tutor her 11-year-old son in math; and Reaser will play the role of 'Ellie,' Jim Fitzgerald's wife and the mother of their two children.
Discovery also announced Golden Globe(R) and two-time Emmy winner Jane Lynch ("Glee," "Hollywood Game Night") will play the role of former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno. Other cast includes Golden Globe(R) nominee Chris Noth ("The Good Wife," "Sex In The City") as character Don Ackerman, the Bay Area Divisional Head of the FBI, who supervises the UNABOM Task Force; Oscar nominee Keisha Castle-Hughes ("Roadies," "Game of Thrones") as Tabby, a street agent who partners with Fitz; Mark Duplass ("Togetherness," "Blue Jay") as David Kaczynski, Ted's younger brother; Michael Nouri ("Woman Walks Ahead," "The Slap") as Penthouse founder Bob Guccione; Ben Weber ("Sex and the City," "Secret Life of the American Teenager") as Andy Genelli, former head of the UNABOM Task Force; Jeremy Bobb ("The Knick," "Godless") as Stan Cole, a seasoned FBI agent and Ackerman's "foul-mouthed pit bull"; Lynn Collins ("X-Men Origins: Wolverine") as Natalie, a post-doc in linguistics at Stanford; Katja Herbers ("Manhattan," "The Leftovers"), as Linda, David Kaczinski's wife; and Brian F. O'Byrne ("Mildred Pierce," "Aquarius") as Frank McAlpine, the FBI's master profiler and Fitzgerald's professor who leads the Behavioral Analysis Unit. This series features both Bettany and Worthington's first major leading roles on U.S. television.
James was awarded the 2016 SAG Award, Critics Choice Award, Gotham Award and the Independent Spirit's Robert Altman Award for Best Ensemble for his portrayal of Matt Carroll, one of the four critical members of the Boston Globe's Spotlight team opposite Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo and Rachel Mc Adams in the 2016 Best Picture Oscar winning film "Spotlight." He is a celebrated stage actor who has received three TONY nominations for his work on Broadway: Nick Bottom in the currently running hit musical "Something Rotten," "Shrek in Shrek the Musical" and Sidney Falco in "Sweet Smell of Success." In 2015 he also originated the role of King George in Lyn Manuel Miranda's "Hamilton" at New York's Public Theater. Additional Broadway credits include: the role of Banquo opposite Ethan Hawke in the Lincoln Center production of "Macbeth," starring alongside Laura Linney, Christina Ricci and Eric Bogosian in the hit play "Time Stands Still" and starring in the Pulitzer Prize-winning play "Next to Normal." Television fans know him most noticeably for his roles on NBC's "Smash," Showtime's "The Big C" and the Award-winning HBO movie "Game Change." He also appeared in the 2015 film "Sisters" with Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. He has multiple projects in the works including Netflix's new TV show, "13 Reasons Why," and the feature films "Felt," "Molly's Game," "Song of Back and Neck," "1922" and "Trouble."
Dunn graduated with a BFA from the North Carolina School of the Arts. She can currently be seen recurring on NBC's "Blindspot" and in Bob Byingtons upcoming indie comedy "Infinity Baby" premiering at SXSW. TV credits include a series regular role on the Cinemax hit series "Banshee", and recurring and guest star roles on NBC's "Believe," "The Good Wife," "Almost There," "Golden Boy," "Brothers and Sisters," "Bored to Death" and "Canterbury's Law." Dunn has been in many critically acclaimed indie features and was named one of the 25 faces of film in 2010's filmmaker magazine. Her leading roles in the following NY Times Critics pick indies are; "Applesauce," "Loves Her Gun," "Cold Weather," "The New Year," "Vacation!" She can also be seen in Paul Green Grass Oscar nominated "United 93."
Reaser's film credits include "Ouija: Origin of Evil;" "The Twilight Saga;" "Films 1-5;" "Hello, My Name Is Doris;" "One and Two;" "Sweet Land" (Newport Beach Film Festival Award; Independent Spirit Award nomination); "Stay;" "Liberal Arts;" "Young Adult;" "The Art of Getting By;" "Puccini for Beginners;" and "The Family Stone." She also has appeared on multiple television series including "Easy," "Mad Men," "True Detective," "The Good Wife," "The Ex List," "Grey's Anatomy" (Emmy, SAG, and Prism award nominations), "Saved," "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," "The Sopranos." As a stage actor, her off-Broadway credits include: "The Babylon Line" (Lincoln Center Theater); "Permission" and "The Money Shot" (MCC); "How I Learned to Drive" (2ndStage Theatre); "The Winter's Tale" (CSC); "The Hologram Theory" (Blue Light Theater Company).
Production began in Atlanta on January 30.
About Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is dedicated to creating the highest quality non-fiction content that informs and entertains its consumers about the world in all its wonder, diversity and amazement. The network, which is distributed to 100.8 million U.S. homes, can be seen in 224 countries and territories, offering a signature mix of compelling, high-end production values and vivid cinematography across genres including, science and technology, exploration, adventure, history and in-depth, behind-the-scenes glimpses at the people, places and organizations that shape and share our world. For more information, please visit www.discovery.com
About Discovery Communications
Discovery Communications (Nasdaq: DISCA, DISCB, DISCK) is the world's #1 pay-TV programmer reaching nearly 3 billion cumulative subscribers in more than 220 countries and territories. For 30 years Discovery has been dedicated to satisfying curiosity and entertaining viewers with high-quality content through its global television brands, led by Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, Investigation Discovery and Science, as well as U.S. joint venture network OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network. Discovery controls Eurosport, the leading pan-regional sports entertainment destination across Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa. Discovery also is a leading provider of educational products and services to schools, including an award-winning series of K-12 digital textbooks, through Discovery Education, and a digital leader with a diversified online portfolio, including Discovery Digital Networks. For more information, please visit www.discoverycommunications.com.
About Lionsgate
Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF.A, LGF.B) is a vertically integrated next generation global content leader with a diversified presence in motion picture production and distribution, television programming and syndication, premium pay television networks, home entertainment, global distribution and sales, interactive ventures and games and location-based entertainment.
With the acquisition of Starz, Lionsgate adds to its portfolio of businesses the flagship STARZ premium pay network serving nearly 25 million subscribers and the STARZ ENCORE platform with over 31 million subscribers. The combined company will operate five over-the-top (OTT) streaming services and the STARZ app delivering content directly to consumers.
The Company's feature film business spans eight labels and includes the blockbuster Hunger Games franchise, the Now You See Me and John Wick series, the critically-acclaimed box office hit La La Land, which earned a record-tying 14 Academy Award(R) nominations, Hacksaw Ridge, Tyler Perry's Boo! A Madea Halloween, CBS Films/Lionsgate's Hell or High Water, Roadside Attractions' Manchester by the Sea, Codeblack Films' breakout concert film Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain and Pantelion Films' Instructions Not Included, the highest-grossing Spanish-language film ever released in the U.S.
One of the largest independent television businesses in the world, Lionsgate's slate of premium quality series encompasses nearly 90 shows on more than 40 different networks. These include the ground-breaking Orange is the New Black, the fan favorite Nashville, the syndication success The Wendy Williams Show, the hit drama The Royals, the acclaimed Casual, the breakout success Greenleaf and hit Starz series including Outlander, Black Sails, Survivor's Remorse and Power, the second highest-rated premium pay television series of 2016.
Lionsgate's home entertainment business is an industry leader in box office-to-DVD and box office-to-VOD revenue conversion rates. Lionsgate handles a prestigious and prolific library of more than 16,000 motion picture and television titles that is an important source of recurring revenue and serves as a foundation for the growth of the Company's core businesses. The Lionsgate, Summit Entertainment and Starz brands are synonymous with original, daring, quality entertainment in markets around the world. www.lionsgate.com
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