Project by project, the Ryan Murphy Cinematic Universe is expanding, and the newest title in the super-producer's repertoire will cover one of the biggest scandals in American history: the impeachment of former president Bill Clinton in 1998. As the latest installment of American Crime Story nears its premiere date, FX is sharing yet another glimpse at what fans of the franchise can expect — our first look at Beanie Feldstein as Monica Lewinsky.
American Crime Story follows some of the darkest pop cultural moments of our time. The first season detailed the high profile trial of NFL star O.J. Simpson (as portrayed by Cuba Gooding Jr.), and its follow up laid out the terrifying circumstances of high fashion designer Gianni Versace's 1997 murder. Season three will focus on the political upheaval brought about by the scandal involving President Bill Clinton (played by Clive Owen) and Monica Lewinsky (Feldstein). In addition to covering the alleged perjury and obstruction of justice that President Clinton committed at the time to hide the nature of his relationship with Lewinsky, the show will tease out the often-overlooked perspective of the former White House intern.
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The latest promotion for the third season of American Crime Story officially reveals Feldstein's transformation into Lewinsky, showing the actress wearing the infamous blue dress that was used as evidence of the intern's intimate connection with the president during the federal trial.
"Every side has a story," Feldstein captioned the image on her Instagram page.
We can expect the new season of American Crime Story to provide a fuller scope of the historic scandal because it was produced in part by Lewinsky herself. In 2019, she revealed that Murphy had personally asked her to join the project to give it more authenticity.
"People have been co-opting and telling my part in this story for decades," Lewinsky shared of her decision to work on American Crime Story to Vanity Fair. "In fact, it wasn’t until the past few years that I’ve been able to fully reclaim my narrative; almost 20 years later."
"But I’m so grateful for the growth we’ve made as a society that allows people like me who have been historically silenced to finally reintroduce my voice to the conversation," she continued. "This isn’t just a me problem. Powerful people, often men, take advantage of those subordinate to them in myriad ways all the time. Many people will see this as such a story and for that reason, this narrative is one that is, regretfully, evergreen."
Impeachment: American Crime Story will premiere on September 7, only on FX.