Roache elected to top slot for FX 'RFK' biopic 
Wed Feb 20, 2:08 AM ET 
By Jim McConville 

NEW YORK (The Hollywood Reporter) --- FX has signed British actor Linus Roache 
as the lead in "RFK," its original biopic about the late Robert F. Kennedy. 

"RFK" is directed by Robert Lynn Dornhelm, who directed ABC's Emmy-nominated movie 
"Anne Frank" and FX's "Sins of the Father." Production begins in California and Canada 
in April. The film has a tentative August premiere date. 

Artisan Television CEO Bob Cooper, who produced "Sins of the Father," 
will serve as executive producer. 

FX this month signed Artisan and Cooper to develop a dramatic 
film about the collapse of Enron Corp. 

Hank Steinberg, who penned HBO's Billy Crystal-directed "61*," 
is writing the original screenplay. Historian Doris Kerns Goodwin and former RFK staffer 
Dick Goodwin will serve as story consultants. 

"RFK" is one of four films on FX's production slate for 2002. 

"It's really been about quality and not quantity," FX vp original programming 
Kevin Reilly said. "This is the first biopic we're doing. We're trying to avoid 
the typical, superficial story by hiring a lookalike and will try to do something 
different by coming at it from a more psychological standpoint." 

"RFK," part of a multipicture deal with Artisan Television, will carry a $5 
million-$6 million production budget. 

"RFK" focuses on Kennedy's life after the 1963 assassination of his brother, President 
John F. Kennedy, up to his own assassination in 1968. 

"It's like a Greek tragedy," Dornhelm said. 

Dornhelm said that Roache, best known for his role in the 1997 movie "The Wings of the Dove," 
was his first choice to play RFK. 

"He is a brilliant, brilliant actor," Dornhelm said. "When you have just a famous person 
to portray, it's useful not to look at so-and-so playing so-and-so. It's easy to create a more 
believable, authentic character by having an actor that you don't associate with an image 
(but) more with good acting."