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Much ado was made on Tuesday when it was revealed that former Homeland actor Damian Lewis will be playing late Toronto mayor Rob Ford in the upcoming thriller, Run This Town.

Shortly after that bombshell made the rounds on social media, ex-Toronto Star reporter (and current Globe & Mail reporter) Robyn Doolittle, the author of biography Crazy Town: The Rob Ford Story and one of the most preeminent journalists covering Ford’s mayorship and private life, expressed her disappointment in another Run This Town casting: that of the lead reporter, who will be played by male actor Ben Platt (Pitch Perfect).

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Doolittle sarcastically tweeted her disgust at the casting, asking “Why have a woman be a lead character when a man could do it?”

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I'm glad they're rewriting the fact that it was a female reporter who investigated Rob Ford. Why have a woman be a lead character when a man could do it? Ammaright? https://t.co/Nx3holhuZW — robyndoolittle (@robyndoolittle) April 10, 2018

For those unaware, Doolittle was one of the first journalists to delve deep into Ford’s life and is widely credited (along with a few other reporters, including John Cook of defunct publication Gawker) with helping break the now-infamous crack scandal.

During Ford’s tenure, he was famously caught with a crack-cocaine pipe in a video, accused of volatile relationships with colleagues and faced accusations of sexual harassment. Prior to his mayorship, Ford’s background was mottled by rumours of frequent drug use.

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Doolittle was one of the first Canadian reporters to witness the so-called “crack video,” and her coverage was must-read material. Cook first broke news of the video on Gawker, and Doolittle worked with fellow Star reporter Kevin Donovan to dig further into the story. The culmination of many journalists’ work, Doolittle eventually became the figurehead of the Ford story. Crazy Town is viewed by many as the essential Ford biography.

Strange, then, that Run This Town production opted to go with a white male journalist for the movie. While “not begrudging” Platt, Doolittle rued that yet again, white male journalism is being feted when it’s the perfect opportunity to bolster the work of a female reporter.

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Not begrudging @BenSPLATT (!) – just about the move in general: obviously I'm biased, but man, I've seen a lot of stories by male reporters celebrated in movies… https://t.co/VU0GJ8ZuTe — robyndoolittle (@robyndoolittle) April 10, 2018

Platt replied, saying that he’s playing an “entry-level” reporter and it’s a “completely fictional” drama. (The first two tweets have now been deleted.)

“I have the utmost respect for your accomplishments,” he tweeted to Doolittle. “I play a totally fictionalized character, an entitled, incapable entry-level reporter (my boss is played by Jennifer Ehle) at a fictional competing newspaper. The film alludes to the successful reporting from the Toronto Star.”

He expounded in a second tweet:

“To reiterate, the film is a completely fictional drama with several storylines exploring the millennial generation & their involvement in politics & journalism, the Rob Ford scandal serves as the platform. There is no attempt to portray or co-opt your story/accomplishments.”

His third tweet, still active, reads as follows:

Twitter users familiar with the Ford story stood behind Doolittle, deriding the casting as a typical Hollywood move.

yes but she'd have to fall in love with Rob Ford, and that would be very difficult to write — Alastair Coote (@_alastair) April 10, 2018

And here I was so excited to discover which actress would be cast in the role of my fierce friend @robyndoolittle – Question: is this fictional journalist going to be subject to sexism and gender-related threats, too? Also, can he figure skate? https://t.co/At4e9YFLtx — Joanna Smith (@smithjoanna) April 10, 2018

Good Christ, I just hope this male actor can even hope to accurately convey @robyndoolittle’s hustle and swagger. https://t.co/i5xX7rUCOk — Sarah Boesveld (@sarahboesveld) April 10, 2018

What studio is running this joint ? How in the world do they not represent @robyndoolittle 's role? The movie is called Run This Town. Robyn wrote Crazy Town. Just get Rooney Mara to play Doolittle and E. McGregor to play @_kevindonovan and it's done bro. https://t.co/8G0mPXFrd1 — Lucas Meyer (@meyer_lucas) April 10, 2018

Cool movie idea, other than cutting out the most badass character in this story @robyndoolittle who literally wrote a book called Crazy Town about it… 🙄🙄🙄 https://t.co/5QXrenDPUE — Caroline Palmer (@Care_) April 10, 2018

When I read this, I just figured they got their facts mixed up, and Nina Dobrev is playing you. — Axel Kussmann (@apkussma) April 10, 2018

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Bigger story (or question) is why has @robyndoolittle's character been turned into a man? Heaven forbid we have more films about strong reporting from women. — TOM! (@ThomasKAgar) April 10, 2018

I think Robyn Doolittle should play @robyndoolittle — Andykat (@andykat2) April 10, 2018

Global News reached out to Doolittle — who is now on maternity leave — for comment. She didn’t reply, but tweeted this.

To reporters emailing me – I appreciate the request for comment! – but I'm on maternity leave and gotta put down the electronics. — robyndoolittle (@robyndoolittle) April 10, 2018

Currently in production in Toronto, Run This Town follows “the inner workings of a city seen through the eyes of the interns and assistants that run it,” according to its IMDb description.

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While many details aren’t available yet, the main plot will involve a reporter trying to expose a corrupt politician — Ford — chin-deep in scandal. The politician’s aides work their hardest to keep the scandal under wraps. (It’s not known at this time if the character is a caricature of Ford, or will actually be a true depiction. No character names have been revealed for any cast members.)

Ford died in 2016 at age 46 after an 18-month battle with a rare form of cancer.

Ford’s brother Doug is currently running for Ontario premier.

As of this writing, there is no release date for the movie.

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