George Clooney will be directing a film based on the News International phone hacking scandal. The upcoming move is inspired by Nick Davies’ book Hack Attack. Davies is the journalist who investigated the hacking allegations made against Rupert Murdoch’s company, which saw News of the World being shut down amidst the discovery that missing school girl Milly Dowler’s phone was hacked by the paper.
The film will be produced with the help of Michael De Luca and Grant Hesloy. In his statement, Clooney said, “this has all the elements – lying, corruption, blackmail – at the highest levels of government by the biggest newspaper in London, and the fact that it’s true is the best part. Nick is a brave and stubborn reporter and we consider it an honour to put his book to film“.
Clooney has explored the field of journalism in his career before, with the Oscar Award-nominated film Good Night and Good Luck, which focused on news anchor Edward R Murrow’s public row with anti-communist US Senator Joseph McCarthy. On his recent Daily Mail spat, Clooney said, “it’s fun to slap those bad guys.” His father Nick Clooney is a noted politician and journalist.
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