Netflix announced that it will be making a film on British royal Prince Andrew's controversial 2019 interview. The BBC interview revealed his friendship with a convicted sex offender and late billionaire Jeffrey Epstein and further damaged his public image.
The OTT platform has started the production of Scoop, the movie based on the interview's behind the scenes. It is based on the book of the same name, 'Scoops: The BBC's Most Shocking Interviews from Prince Andrew to Steven Seagal' by Sam McAlister.
The X-Files fame actress Gillian Anderson will be playing Emily Maitlis, the news anchor who conducted the interview. Rufus Sewell, who was last seen in Kaleidoscope, will play the British royal. TV producer McAlister who negotiated and secured the interview will be portrayed by Billie Piper. Prince Andrew's former private secretary Amanda Thirsk will be played by Keeley Hawes, reported Variety.
Netflix confirmed the cast on Twitter and wrote: "Gillian Anderson, Keeley Hawes, Billie Piper, and Rufus Sewell will star in SCOOP - a film based on Sam McAlister's memoir giving the inside account of Newsnight's bombshell interview with Prince Andrew."
The film's logline reads: "The inside track of the women that broke through the Buckingham Palace establishment to secure the scoop of the decade that led to the catastrophic fall from grace of The Queen's 'Favourite son. From navigating Palace vetoes to breaking through to Prince Andrew's inner circle, the high stakes negotiations and intensity of rehearsal - to the jaw-dropping interview itself."
Director Philip Martin said he wants to put the audience inside the breathtaking sequence of events that led to the interview with Prince Andrew. He described it as "uptempo, immersive, and cinematic." He added that the story is about "a search for answers, in a world of speculation and varying recollections. It's a film about power, privilege, and differing perspectives and how - whether in glittering palaces or hi-tech newsrooms - we judge what's true."
In the November 2019 interview, the royal was asked about Virginia Giufffre's claims that she was forced to have sex with him under the orders of Jeffrey Epstein. While Prince Andrew denied the claims, he said he remained friends with the offender even after he was released from prison. The controversy following the interview forced him to step down from public life. He was also stripped down from patronages and roles.