Jeff Daniels To Play FBI Director James Comey In Miniseries

HOLLYWOOD, CA — Actor Jeff Daniels will play former FBI Director James Comey in a four-hour miniseries about his life and time at the center of political scandal.

Daniels will play opposite Emmy-winning actor Brendan Gleeson ("Into the Storm") as President Donald Trump, four-time Emmy nominee Michael Kelly ("House of Cards") as acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe and Tony-winning actress Jennifer Ehle as Comey's wife, Patrice. The miniseries is based based on Comey's book, "A Higher Loyalty," CBS Television Studios announced Monday.

"Jeff is so perfect for this part," said Billy Ray, who will adapt the book for the miniseries and be its director. "Great actor, instant integrity, loads of warmth, intelligence, complexity and gravitas. We talked backstage after I saw him in `To Kill a Mockingbird' on Broadway and I knew I was looking at the only person who could play Jim Comey. Lucky for me, he said yes."

"A Higher Loyalty," spans Comey's entire career, but it was his investigations of the Hillary Clinton email scandal and the early scandals of the Trump administration that made him a household name. Since being fired by Trump, he's been a regular target of the mercurial president.

Production is set to begin in November. An air date has not been set. The miniseries will air on the premium cable network Showtime, CBS All Access, the network's digital subscription video-on-demand and live-streaming service, or both.

Ray was nominated for an Oscar for best adapted screenplay in 2014 for "Captain Phillips."

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.