James Comey miniseries moved to air before 2020 election after director complains
Under pressure from the cast and crew, ViacomCBS moved up the scheduled release of the Showtime miniseries based on former FBI Director James Comey's memoir. The reversal came after Bill Ray, the director of the two-part, four-hour miniseries wrote a letter to cast members last week to express frustration that the series was scheduled to air in November, days after the 2020 election, according to the New York Times. Ray lamented to the cast that he completed the project with the expectation that it would air before the election. "We all were hoping to get this story in front of the American people months before the coming election," reads the letter, as reported by Deadline. "Word started drifting back to me that a decision about our airdate had been made at the very highest levels of Viacom: all talk of our airing before the election was suddenly a 'non-starter.' I and my fellow producers asked for a chance to plead our case on the matter, but we were told that even the discussion itself was a 'non-starter' … Why? I don’t know," Ray wrote.
On Wednesday, Showtime said in a statement that the project is now scheduled to air on Sept. 27 and 28. Showtime's The Comey Rule, based on the former FBI director's memoir, A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies, and Leadership, was teased earlier this month by the company after it shared ominous photographs of actors Brendan Gleeson as President Trump and Jeff Daniels, star of Dumb and Dumber, as the former FBI director. Comey was fired by Trump in May 2017. Other characters in the show include former acting Attorney General Sally Yates, former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper, and special counsel Robert Mueller, who investigated Russian interference in the 2016 election. The first part of the miniseries will depict the early days of the Russia investigation, the FBI's investigation into failed presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's emails, and Trump's 2016 election victory. The second will show the interactions between Comey and Trump, a day-by-day account of the first several months of the Trump presidency from Comey's perspective.
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/james-comey-miniseries-moved-to-air-before-2020-election-after-director-complains
In Reversal, Trump-Comey Mini-Series Will Now Air Before Election Day
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/24/business/media/trump-comey-mini-series.html
‘The Comey Rule’ Director Billy Ray Apologizes To Cast For ViacomCBS Decision To Move Comey-Trump Saga Until After Presidential Elections: Read His Letter
https://deadline.com/2020/06/the-comey-rule-billy-ray-cast-apology-note-post-election-airdate-president-trump-james-comey-jeff-daniels-1202967723/