Scandal star Kerry Washington has signed on to deal with another wave of political controversy in real life drama Confirmation. Groundswell Productions and ABC Signature Studios are producing the feature for HBO, which takes its inspiration from the scandal-plagued nomination process of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. Washington is expected to tackle the role of Anita Hill; the woman who testified against Thomas during his nomination season.
Per The Wrap, here’s a brief rundown of the story:
Confirmation follows Hill as she accuses Thomas of sexual harassment while he was being considered to replace Thurgood Marshall on the U.S. Supreme Court. Eventually she was called before Congress to testify that Thomas had harassed her while serving as her supervisor at the U.S. Department of Education and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Scripting duties have been awarded to Erin Brockovich scribe Susannah Grant, whose screenplay for the Julia Roberts-starrer landed her an Oscar nomination. Both Grant and Washington will executive produce along with Groundswell CEO Michael London and production president Janice Williams.
Production on Confirmation is expected to kick off during Washington’s hiatus on Scandal, the show in which she stars as political fixer Olivia Pope. However, progress may depend on whether or not the right candidate can be selected for the director’s chair. According to The Wrap’s initial scoop, Rick Famuyiwa (The Wood, Brown Sugar) is in talks for the gig, but a deal has not yet been ironed out.