According to Deadline, Kevin Costner is considering playing former United States President Bill Clinton in United, a TV series in early development that will be produced in collaboration with the United Nations. Costner is already on board to executive produce the project alongside Leonardo DiCaprio. The report states it will be centered on a UN mission to East Timor in 1999. Additionally, Chukwudi Iwuji is being eyed to star as Kofi Annan, who served as UN Secretary General for ten years.
Written and directed by David Raymond (Night Hunter), United is “being approached as an ongoing series dramatizing true stories of the courage and sacrifice that humanitarian staff continuously make around the world.” Raymond partnered with the UN’s Creative Community Outreach Initiative almost a decade ago and has been working on “unearthing true stories that highlight the power of shared humanity” ever since.
I can’t say I would have pegged Costner as the actor to play Clinton, but here we are. Could be interesting.
In 1999, the United Nations established UNAMET — the United Nations Mission in East Timor — for the purpose of organizing and overseeing a referendum that would see the country decide whether to remain within Indonesia or become independent. The country had been occupied by Indonesia for over 25 years, with over 100,000 civilian deaths, although some put that number much higher. Pro-Indonesia militia groups fought against independence, but President Clinton and his administration played a critical role in de-escalating the violence. In 2002, they officially became a fully sovereign nation.
Costner has been working on his epic western, Horizon: An American Saga, but it’s hard to say what will happen with it. Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 premiered last year, but was a box office disappointment, grossing just $38.7 million worldwide. Chapter 2 was shot back-to-back with Chapter 1 and was screened at the 81st Venice International Film Festival. However, the release was postponed after the failure of Chapter 1, and there’s no word on when we might see it. Chapter 3 started shooting last year, but Costner is seeking funds to continue. “I need some more money — I do. I need some of these big billionaires, with f***ing boats ‘from here to here’ who are fond of telling people they’re billionaires, to come with me and make a movie,” he said. “I don’t have the money they have, and I’ve already made two of ’em. Where are you rich guys?“
