FX’s as yet untitled Fosse/Verdon project has signed up four-time Oscar nominee Michelle Williams and Oscar winner Sam Rockwell to star. The limited series has Lin-Manuel Miranda, Thomas Kail, and Steven Levenson on board as executive producers, with FX confirming it’s given the series an eight episode order.
Michelle Williams and Sam Rockwell will also be serving as executive producers. Levenson is the showrunner and wrote the first episode which Kail will direct. The show’s impressive pedigree includes actress/dancer/producer Nicole Fosse, daughter of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon, as a co-executive producer. Andy Blankenbuehler is the choreographer and a co-producer.
“We are over the moon about this dream team we’ve assembled for this incredible series,” said Nick Grad, President of Original Programming for FX Networks and FX Productions. “Tommy, Steven, and Lin are the perfect team to tell the story of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon, and we’re so thrilled to have Sam and Michelle playing these iconic roles.”
Filming is expected to get underway this fall on the Fox 21 Television Studios and FX Productions project. FX is targeting a 2019 premiere.
Commenting on the limited series, Kail, Levenson, and Miranda stated, “Bob Fosse ignited a revolution in American dance, theater, and film. But, in contrast to the well-worn myth of the visionary artist working in solitude, Fosse’s work would not have been possible without Gwen Verdon, the woman who helped to mold his style – and make him a star. We are honored to work with the incredible team at FX and Fox 21, and these two extraordinary actors, to tell the story of this remarkable couple, and the complicated, fascinating relationship between them.”
“My mother and father have one of the greatest love stories ever known. They were extremely complex people with an indestructible bond, loyalty, and trust that endured both fantasy and reality. Finally, we have a creative team with the talent and wisdom to tell the story,” add Nicole Fosse.
President of Fox 21 Television Studios Bert Salke said, “Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon’s story is one of a fascinating, passionate love affair that gave birth to some truly remarkable cultural achievements, and to this day it has been largely untold. In the capable hands of Steven, Tommy and Lin, with the vital creative input and imprimatur of their only daughter Nicole, this series is going to be a compelling look at these two icons as portrayed by the enormously talented Sam Rockwell and Michelle Williams. We’re very excited.”
The Plot: Based on Fosse, the biography written by Sam Wasson, this eight-part limited series tells the story of the singular romantic and creative partnership between Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon. He was a visionary filmmaker and one of theater’s most influential choreographers and directors, she was the greatest Broadway dancer of all time. Together they changed the face of American entertainment – at a perilous cost. Featuring Fosse’s choreography, the series explores the hidden corners of show business, the price of pursuing greatness, and the suffering inflicted in the name of art.
