The series from Sony Pictures Television is set to be based on reporter Julie K. Brown’s book, 'Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story'
Credit: Neil Mockford/WireImage/Getty; Harper Collins
NEED TO KNOW
- Laura Dern is attached to a new series following the crimes of Jeffrey Epstein
- The series will be based on Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story, the 2021 book by investigative journalist Julie K. Brown
- Per a description shared by Sony Pictures Television, the project will be “an explosive account of an investigative reporter exposing the secret plea deal between Epstein and federal prosecutors.”
Laura Dern is attached to star in a new series following Jeffrey Epstein's crimes.
Dern, 59, is joining Sony Pictures Television and writer/director Adam McKay for a new limited series based on Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story, the 2021 book by journalist Julie K. Brown, PEOPLE can confirm.
Brown, known for her years of investigative work for the Miami Herald into Epstein's crimes, confirmed the news via X on Monday, March 30, alongside the message "some personal news."
Dern is set to star in the series. Sharon Hoffman (Mrs. America, House of Cards) will serve as co-showrunner and executive producer alongside Eileen Myers (American Hostage, Masters of Sex). Brown and Dern will also executive produce, per both outlets, with Adam McKay and Kevin Messick executive producing via Hyperobject Industries. Sony is currently taking the project to potential buyers.
Credit: Rick Friedman Photography/Corbis via Getty
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Per a description shared by Sony Pictures Television, the series will be “an explosive account of an investigative reporter exposing the secret plea deal between Epstein and federal prosecutors."
"Drawing from Brown’s experience as a groundbreaking reporter for the Miami Herald, the book and the limited series follow her relentless years-long investigation that identified 80 victims, persuaded key survivors to go on the record, and led to Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s arrests," the description continues.
Credit: Karwai Tang/WireImage/Getty
Brown's reporting and interviews with Epstein victims followed her looking through "thousands of redacted court documents, traveling across the country and chasing down information in difficulty and sometimes dangerous circumstances," per a description of her book from HarperCollins.
Her investigative work, published in 2018, became "one of the most explosive news stories of the decade" for the Herald, per the book description. It was later followed by Epstein's July 2019 arrest, Ghislaine Maxwell's arrest and the resignation of former Labor Secretary Alex Acosta amid renewed scrutiny over the plea deal he had negotiated with Epstein.
Epstein died by apparent suicide at 66 almost a month after he was arrested for allegedly sex-trafficking girls as young as 14. Maxwell was convicted of sex trafficking in 2021 and is seeking to have her conviction overturned.
Dern's latest projects also include Linda Shaw in Palm Royale, as well as film roles in 2025's Is This Thing On? and Jay Kelly.
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