HBO orders Casey Affleck, Matthias Schoenaerts-starring "Lewis & Clark"

PanARMENIAN.Net - Long-gestating project "Lewis and Clark" is finally moving forward with a greenlight from HBO. Michael Lombardo, president of HBO programming, announced it on Friday, January 30, "In 'Lewis and Clark', we can see American idealism and the breathtaking natural beauty of the continent, as well as the complexities and tragedies of what came to be known as America's 'manifest destiny'. We are tremendously excited to bring together this incredible group of talents to tell a seminal American story."

According to AceShowbiz, Oscar-nominated actor Casey Affleck ("The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford", "Gone Baby Gone", "Interstellar") and Matthias Schoenaerts ("Loft", "Bullhead", "Rust and Bone") will star as Meriwether Lewis and William Clark, respectively. Tom Hanks, Edward Norton and Brad Pitt, meanwhile, will serve as executive producers along with Dede Gardner and Gary Goetzman.

The six-hour miniseries is based on the book "Undaunted Courage" by Stephen E. Ambrose. It depicts America's first contact with the land and native tribes of the country west of the Mississippi River. The story follows the journey of the Corps of Discovery and its captains, Lewis and Clark, who traverse uncharted territory on a mission to deliver President Jefferson's message of sovereignty as they search for his fabled all-water route to the Pacific.

John Curran ("The Painted Veil") is on board as director, with the script provided by Michelle Ashford ("The Pacific"), Curran and Norton. Filming is scheduled to begin this summer.