Elisabeth Moss has joined the cast of James Vanderbilt’s Truth, as per Deadline. Moss joins an already solid cast composed of leads Robert Redford (All is Lost) and Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine). The film is about the backlash that occurred in 2005 when reporter Dan Rather broke a story on 60 Minutes II that then president George W. Bush had gotten preferential treatment that placed him in the National Guard so he could avoid the Vietnam War draft. The backlash from the report – which occurred in the midst of Bush’s re-election campaign – resulted in producer Mary Mapes getting fired and a severely damaged reputation for Rather.
The film, which is being directed by Zodiac and The Amazing Spider-Man scribe James Vanderbilt, is based on Mapes’ book Truth and Duty: The Press, The President, and The Privilege of Power. With Redford set to play Rather and Blanchett on board as Mapes, Moss will play the role of Lucy Scott, a seasoned CBS contributor brought on board as Mapes’ new associate producer.
For Redford, whose past portrayals of reporters and journalism was covered previously by mxdwn, Truth will bring about a familiar role. Blanchett, who played an Irish reporter in the titular role of Joel Schumacher’s Veronica Guerin, is also no stranger to journalism-centered topics. For Moss however, who has recently made a bigger name for herself on the festival circuit with her work on indie films, Truth is a more high-profile project with big Hollywood names attached and a notable scandal as the source material.
Moss has been busy, having filmed this year’s The One I Love and Listen Up Philip while still juggling her role as a series regular on AMC’s hit series Mad Men. She’s also slated for a slew of upcoming projects, including Ben Wheatley’s High Rise, Meadowland, and a reunion with Listen Up Philip director Alex Ross Perry in Queen of Earth.