Starring Sarah Paulson and Clive Owen, the third season of the FX series depicts the 1998 impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton.
American Crime Story continues to turn back time as the anthology series executive produced by Ryan Murphy revisits true events that shaped the American landscape. Following The People vs. O.J. Simpson and The Assassination of Gianni Versace, the new installment depicts the 1998 impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton and surrounding events involving Linda Tripp, Monica Lewinsky and Paula Jones. With the series returning in September, here is everything to know season 3.
The Backstory
According to FX, the series will go inside the national scandal that made Lewinsky, Tripp and Paula Jones key figures in the country’s first impeachment proceedings in over a century. Based on Jeffrey Toobin’s bestselling book, A Vast Conspiracy: The Real Story of the Sex Scandal That Nearly Brought Down a President, the Washington, D.C.-set installment will be written and executive produced by Sarah Burgess with Lewinsky also serving as a producer.
Just like the first two installments, Impeachment: American Crime Story features an all-star ensemble. This time, it’s led by Feldstein, who portrays Lewinsky; returning ACS actresses Paulson as Tripp and Annaleigh Ashford as Jones; and Clive Owen as the 42nd president.
While speaking with ET, Feldstein praised Paulson, who won an Emmy for her portrayal of Marcia Clark on the first season of American Crime Story. “Sarah Paulson is my favorite actor of all time,” Feldstein said. “So to get to stand toe-to-toe with her as Monica Lewinsky and Linda Tripp is going to be a ride of a lifetime.”
The Cast
Beanie Feldstein as Monica Lewinsky
At the center of the scandal is the 22-year-old White House intern, who engaged in a sexual relationship with the president between 1995 and 1997 and whose world was turned upside down once it became public.
“I am so, so honored to be portraying [Lewinsky],” Feldstein told The Daily Beast about the part. “And to be doing it with Ryan Murphy is out of my wildest dreams. He is sort of the king of television, and his work is so profound.” She also added that she’s “honored to be a part of bringing this story to light right now, and hopefully getting to frame her in a completely new way for the next generation.”
Sarah Paulson as Linda Tripp
A key player in the scandal is Tripp, who worked alongside Lewinsky at the Pentagon. She became known as the whistleblower after she started recording her conversations with Lewinsky, who confided in Tripp about her relationship with the president.
When it comes to portraying Tripp, Paulson told The Hollywood Reporter that she’s “going to take about three months off to eat some food, because I’m going to gain some weight to play her.” The actress also shared some insight on how she plans to approach the mindset of her character. “There’s no way for me to approach playing her as a way of thinking how to redeem her. I don’t know that it's redeemable, some of what she did to her friend,” she said, adding: “But I’m not going to be looking for a way to make her likable -- I don’t really like to do anything like that. I’m not worried if people like me as Linda Tripp. That’s not my job.”
Annaleigh Ashford as Paula Jones
After a small role as Elizabeth Cote in The Assassination of Gianni Versace, Ashford will portray one of the three women at the center of the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal. Jones is a former Arkansas state employee who sued Clinton for sexual harassment. While the two eventually agreed on an $850,000 settlement, it was during the case’s deposition that counsel believed Clinton perjured himself, which led to his impeachment.
Clive Owen as President Bill Clinton
Owen, who will return to TV for the first time since starring on The Knick, takes on the president. After famously saying he “did not have sexual relations with that woman” while under oath, Clinton was charged with perjury and impeached by the House of Representatives. He was eventually acquitted on all impeachment charges of perjury and obstruction of justice by the Senate.
Edie Falco as Hillary Clinton
Falco’s return to TV will be as Clinton, who famously weathered the scandal and stood by her husband at the most trying time in their marriage and respective political careers. She recently went into more detail about that time in her life in the Hulu docuseries Hillary.
Margo Martindale as Lucianne Goldberg
After most recently appearing in Mrs. America as activist Bella Abzug, Martindale is now playing Goldberg, a literary agent who was dubbed on of the key players in the scandal after it was revealed that she Tripp to tape Lewinsky’s phone calls about the affair.
Billy Eichner as Matt Drudge
Eichner is playing Drudge Report creator and editor Matt Drudge, who famously broke the news of an affair in the White House. “Truly an honor to join Sarah Paulson, Beanie Feldstein, Clive Owen and more in American Crime Story: Impeachment,” the actor wrote on Twitter following news of his addition to the cast.
Cobie Smulders as Ann Coulter
Smulders has been tasked with replacing Betty Gilpin as the conservative media pundit, who authored the 1998 book, High Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Case Against Bill Clinton, which covers controversies surrounding Lewinsky, Jones and others. Prior to her career on cable news, Coulter served as a legal adviser for Jones’ attorneys in her sexual harassment suit against Clinton.
Taran Killam as Steve Jones
The former Saturday Night Live actor is reportedly appearing opposite as Ashford as Paula Jones’ husband Steve, who she first met in 1989 while living in Little Rock, Arkansas.
Rounding out the cast is Judith Light as Susan Carpenter-McMillan, Mira Sorvino as Marcia Lewis, Blair Underwood as Vernon Jordan, Kevin Pollak as Bernie Nussbaum, Dan Bakkedahl as Kenneth Starr, Rae Dawn Chong as Betty Curie, Elizabeth Reaser as Kathleen Willey, Anthony Green as Al Gore, Colin Hanks as Mike Emmick, Fred Melamed as William H. Ginsberg, Kathleen Turner as Susan Webber Wright, Jim Rash as Ken Bacon, Joseph Mazzello as Paul Begala, and Patrick Fischler as Sidney Blumenthal.
Sadly, Attorney General Janet Reno, who was previously played by Jane Lynch in Manhunt: Unabomber, is not a character here. But seeing Lynch reprise the role would have been the ultimate true crime, multi-universe crossover.
Trailer and Premiere Date
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, filming of Impeachment was pushed back to the fall of 2020. Instead of premiering around the presidential election, the new season will now debut in the fall.
Ahead of its premiere on September 7, FX shared a provocative teaser, following Lewinsky (Feldstein) as she makes her way through the White House to the Oval Office, before debuting the full-length trailer, giving an extended look at the new season as well as the cast as it depicts the events surrounding the presidential scandal.
Impeachment: American Crime Story will debuts Tuesday, Sept. 7 on FX.
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