Gleeson to play Donald Trump in new TV mini-series

Brendan Gleeson will play Donald Trump in a new mini-series

Brendan Gleeson is set to play US President Donald Trump in an adaptation of former FBI director James Comey's memoir.

The 64-year-old Dublin-born actor will join Jeff Daniels as James Comey in the four-hour series which will be produced by US network CBS.

The US president abruptly fired FBI director Comey in May 2017, saying it was necessary to restore "public trust and confidence" in the nation's top law enforcement agency.

He also faced the US Senate Judiciary Committee over his handling of the investigations into Hillary Clinton's email server and potential Russian collusion with Trump's election campaign.

Speaking to Deadline, Billy Ray, who adapted the book, A Higher Loyalty: Truth, Lies and Leadership, and is directing the mini-series, said: "It's hard to imagine a bigger acting challenge than playing Donald Trump.

"You have to have presence, and a singular kind of dynamism. You also have to have the courage and the will to play Trump's psychology from the inside out."

"Oh, and you have to be spectacularly talented and watchable," he added.

"Not many actors check all those boxes. Brendan does. I'm ecstatic about this."

Filming for the series will begin in November, following a bidding war for the rights to Comey's bestselling book last year.

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