Less than a day after former Republican lawmaker George Santos’ historic expulsion, HBO announced a movie in the works based on Santos’ career.
The New York congressional representative became the first House member to be expelled from Congress in more than 20 years on Friday after a 311 to 114 vote. This followed Santos being indicted on 23 counts related to wire fraud, identity theft, falsification of records, credit card fraud and other charges. He was also accused of using campaign funds on a number of luxury goods and treatments such as botox. He has pleaded not guilty.
The following day, in a statement to Deadline, HBO Films, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery, revealed that Santos’ brief congressional career will now be the subject of a dark comedy movie.
"Written by Mike Makowsky (HBO’s Bad Education), the film tells the story of a seemingly minor local race that wound up a battle for the soul of Long Island, and unexpectedly carved the path for the world’s most famous (and now disgraced) congressman. It follows the Gatsby-esque journey of a man from nowhere who exploited the system, waged war on truth and swindled one of the wealthiest districts in the country to achieve his American Dream," Deadline reported.
THESE FOUR HOUSE DEMS VOTED 'PRESENT' OR AGAINST EXPELLING GEORGE SANTOS FROM CONGRESS
The film will be based on Mark Chiusano’s book "The Fabulist: The Lying, Hustling, Grifting, Stealing, and Very American Legend of George Santos," which was officially published on Tuesday. It will be produced by Frank Rich who previously worked on the HBO comedy "Veep" and the HBO drama "Succession."
Amazon’s description of the book read, "Newsday alum and PEN/Hemingway honoree Mark Chiusano tells the full (well, as full as can be given the subject) story of Santos here for the first time. From humble years spent in Brazil, to glamorous nights on the west side of Manhattan, to the stunning small-time scams employed to ease his slippery climb up the American society ladder, ‘The Fabulist’ tells a story you’ll have to read for yourself to believe…and even then, it’s George Santos, so who’s to say for sure."
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Though the announcement followed the expulsion vote, HBO confirmed to Fox News Digital that the project had been in the works for some time.
Shortly after Santos’ expulsion, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced a special election to fill his vacancy in the state’s 3rd District. According to New York Republican Election Attorney Joe Burns, the date of a special election should be within 70 to 80 days of Hochul’s announcement.
