Nicole Kidman is in final negotiations to play the former Fox News anchor Gretchen Carlson in Jay Roach’s Untitled Women of Fox News Project, an individual with knowledge of the project told TheWrap.
Charlize Theron has already joined the project and will play Megyn Kelly in the Annapurna Pictures’ film about the ensemble of women who decided to take on the toxic male culture of Fox News and bring down network CEO Roger Ailes.
Jay Roach is directing, while “The Big Short” writer Charles Randolph is writing the script. A.J. Dix, Megan Ellison, Beth Kono, Margaret Riley, Theron, Roach and Randolph will produce.
Ailes resigned from Fox News in 2016 after Carlson filed a sexual harassment lawsuit that resulted in multiple women coming forward with similar claims. Before the scandals emerged, Ailes was considered the mastermind behind the success of Fox News and one of the most powerful men in both media and American politics.
Ailes was named the founding CEO of Fox News in 1996 and the network quickly gained popularity while he called the shots. Fox News is now regularly among the most-watched networks in all of cable and dominates the cable news category.
Kidman most recently starred in “How to Talk to Girls at Parties” and “The Killing of a Sacred Deer,” as well as the critically-acclaimed series “Big Little Lies.”
She will soon reprise her role as Celeste Wright in the second season of the HBO show, and will also be seen in “Boy Erased,” “Aquaman” and “Destroyer.”
She is represented by CAA, 42West and Media Talent Group.
The Hollywood Reporter first broke the news about Kidman’s casting.