Prolific English filmmaker Michael Winterbottom will write and direct a television series dramatizing British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, the producers behind the project announced Friday.
The untitled series “will tell the true story of the biggest national and personal crisis facing a government leader since World War II,” the Fremantle, Passenger and Revolution Films companies said in a joint statement.
Johnson, who was hospitalized in an intensive care unit after testing positive for COVID-19 in April, has been criticized for his response to the public health crisis.
The United Kingdom has the highest number of coronavirus deaths in Europe, more than 43,000 as of Friday afternoon, and the second highest number of deaths per capita in the world.
The Prime Minister has come under particular scrutiny for his actions in the lead-up to the British outbreak, and some experts say he waited too long to impose social restrictions and failed to adequately prepare the National Health Service with personal protective equipment.
Shortly after being discharged from the hospital, Johnson, 56, received a new son, his first child with his fiancé, Carrie Symonds, 32.
“There are rare moments in history when leaders find their private lives uniquely connected to national events, where personal experience and official roles collide in an unusual way,” said Fremantle COO Andrea Scrosati, it’s a statement.
“The last few months in the life of the UK Prime Minister clearly mark one of these moments,” added Scrosati.
Winterbottom, 59, is widely regarded as one of the most active and eclectic filmmakers in British cinema, having directed more than 30 feature films in the past 25 years, including the recent financial satire “Greed”, starring frequent contributor Steve Coogan.
He also directed three installments of the award-winning comedy series “The Trip,” co-starring Coogan.
“Michael Winterbottom is the ideal filmmaker to tell the story of the extraordinary events surrounding the new Boris Johnson government and the Covid-19 pandemic, which has captured the world’s attention,” co-producer Richard Brown said in a statement.
