If a book, podcast, and pair of ABC and HBO documentaries weren’t enough, Elizabeth Holmes’ prominence in the media will soon continue in the form of a Hulu-exclusive TV series.
Deadline reported on Wednesday that the co-founder and disgraced CEO of Theranos will be played by Kate McKinnon (, ) in a series called , named after the podcast that chronicled the rise and fall of Holmes’ formerly $4 billion health-tech company.
The TV version is described as a “limited series” with an expected length of 6-10 episodes.
McKinnon will be joined on the production front by major players from ABC’s Dropout podcast, including its host and creator Rebecca Jarvis. Since the series is being reported as very recently “ordered,” no other information (including supporting cast or writers) has yet been revealed.
Deadline points out that this will be the first series made by relatively new production house Fox Searchlight TV. The show’s landing on Hulu is helped by the new media maelstrom formed by Disney’s acquisition of assets such as 21st Century Fox, Fox Searchlight, and Fox’s former 30 percent stake in Hulu.
Anyone who’s familiar with both Holmes’ media appearances and McKinnon’s knack for celebrity impersonations should be chomping at the bit to see what comes out of this project. Holmes’ peculiar mannerisms (particularly her ability to not blink) should be something else in McKinnon’s genius hands. The source podcast from ABC News dove deeply into both Holmes’ upbringing and the quieter parts of Theranos’ roughly 15 years of existence; those details were relatively glossed over in HBO’s documentary, which, while entertaining and informative, played more like a quick-and-dirty primer to the tale.
