As Ryan Murphy (American Horror Story) gears up for Impeachment, FX has already set the story of the fourth edition to American Crime Story with the story of Studio 54, via Deadline. Murphy previously pitched the idea in June.
Studio 54 will follow the story of Steve Rubell and Ian Schrager, who in 1977 turned their Midtown Manhattan disco into a hub of nightlife for the rich and famous. Notable patrons included Woody Allen, Donald and Ivana Trump, and Freddie Mercury. Their rise turned into a quick demise when the two were convicted of tax fraud less than three years later.
In December 1978, Studio 54 was raided after Rubell claimed that the club was making more money than it was actually bringing in. The partners were charged with tax evasion, obstruction of justice, and conspiracy for skimming more than $2.5 million in unreported income from the club’s receipts. The two were sentenced to three and a half years of prison and fined $20 thousand each for tax evasion charges.
“When I was a child, in Indiana, getting the Liz Smith column in the Indianapolis Star, reading about it, I’m like, ‘Oh! I wanna go there.’ I love what it’s about. I love that time and place,” creator Ryan Murphy told Deadline about his excitement for telling the story. “But I also feel like, it’s a story of excess and a story of two guys who had a dream and took the dream too far and paid for it. I love Ian Schrager’s work, and I think he’s a genius. It’s an interesting story to tell through the prism of American Crime Story.”
The third season, Impeachment, released its trailer yesterday. Impeachment will follow the affair of President Bill Clinton and White House intern Monica Lewinsky with Clive Owens and Beanie Feldstein playing the respective roles. The season will center around the women involved in the scandal: Monical Lewinsky, Linda Tripp (Sarah Paulson), and Paula Jones (Annaliegh Ashford). Impeachment will explore how power can lift some and disposes others within our own institutions. Lewinsky herself will executive produce the series.
Impeachment: American Crime Story will premiere on September 7 on FX.