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First Ladies, Starring Viola Davis as Michelle Obama, Snags Series Order

It’s official: Viola Davis will be trading in the letters HTGAWM for FLOTUS.

Showtime has ordered to series First Ladies, a drama starring the Emmy and Oscar winner as former First Lady Michelle Obama.

First Ladies, which initially received a script commitment at the network last August, will pull back the curtain on the personal and political lives of multiple enigmatic women who have served as First Lady throughout American history. “In the East Wing of the White House, many of history’s most impactful and world-changing decisions have been hidden from view,” the project’s logline teases, “made by America’s charismatic, complex and dynamic first ladies.”

In addition to Obama, the show’s first season will focus on Eleanor Roosevelt and Betty Ford, though casting for those roles has yet to be announced.

“Throughout our history, presidents’ spouses have wielded remarkable influence, not only on the nation’s leaders but on the country itself,” said Jana Winograde, Showtime’s president of entertainment. “First Ladies fits perfectly within the Showtime wheelhouse of drama and politics, revealing how much personal relationships impact both domestic and global events. Having Viola Davis play Michelle Obama is a dream come true, and we couldn’t be luckier to have her extraordinary talent to help launch this series.”

Davis will also executive-produce the hourlong drama alongside husband Julius Tennon. In the meantime, the actress is about to wrap a six-season run on ABC’s How to Get Away With Murder, which resumes Thursday, April 2 for its final six episodes.

Photo: Brian Bowen Smith (inset: Shutterstock)

Original article: https://tvline.com/2020/02/05/viola-davis-first-ladies-series-order-showtime-michelle-obama/