Just the other day a reader alerted me to a report at BoxOffice.com that Sony Classics had dated James Vanderbilt‘s Truth for an Oct. 16 release. It seemed odd in that a) the film hadn’t been announced for either Venice or Toronto; b) we hadn’t seen a trailer or promotional still; c) Sony Classics didn’t have the film even listed on their press site; and d) one would expect all these things given the awards buzz surrounding star Cate Blanchett in the role of Mary Mapes. As it turns out, the report was accurate, the film will arrive in October and we also have the first look at Blanchett and Robert Redford in the upcoming film.
Of course, there’s a bit of decision-making to be had when it comes to Blanchett as she is also looked at as a top contender for Best Actress for her role in Carol. Word is Sony will also be pushing Blanchett for Best Actress for her Truth performance and this October release date now suggests Truth might show up in Toronto as part of a latter announcement, but will most likely have its world premiere at Telluride.
The film, which Vanderbilt also wrote based on Mapes’ book “Truth and Duty”, also serves as the longtime screenwriter’s directorial debut. Described as being in the vein of All The President’s Men and The Insider, the film tells the true story of Mapes (Blanchet) and Dan Rather (Robert Redford) as the CBS News uncovered a story that the sitting US president may have been AWOL from the United States National Guard for over a year during the Vietnam War. When the story blew up in their face, the ensuing scandal ruined Rather’s career, nearly changed a US Presidential election, and almost took down all of CBS News in the process.
The film co-stars Elisabeth Moss, Topher Grace, Dennis Quaid, Bruce Greenwood, David Lyons, John Benjamin Hickey, Rachael Blake, Steve Bastoni and Nicholas Hope.
