Viola Davis Set to Play First Lady Michelle Obama in Showtime’s ‘First Ladies’

Viola Davis will once again flex her ultimate acting chops as she is set to portray First Lady Michelle Obama in Showtime’s scripted series in the works, titled First Ladies.

The show will follow the personal and public lives of former first ladies throughout American history. The first season will also look into the life of Eleanor Roosevelt and Betty Ford should the show move forward. Written by author Aaron Cooley, Showtime’s First Ladies follows the comings and goings of the east wing and shows the game-changing decisions made hidden from public view. Showtime reportedly has high hopes for the series as it is now being fast-tracked.

Davis is also attached to executive produce the drama alongside husband Julius Tennon under their JuVee Productions banner. Cathy Shulman, Jeff Gaspin, and Brad Kaplan are also on executive producing duties.

Davis is currently in production for the Ma Rainey biopic Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom with Black Panther’s Chadwick Boseman. The actress is set to play Rainey, depicting the tensions the blues singer encountered between her bandmates, white agent, and producer while recording an album in 1927. Davis’ starring role as First Lady Obama comes fresh after her How to Get Away with Murder stint at ABC concludes with its final season this fall. She is also returning to the DC Extended Universe in James Gunn’s upcoming reboot of The Suicide Squad as Amanda Waller.

Meanwhile, the Obamas currently have a full slate of stories to be developed with their Higher Ground production banner. In a new clip from Netflix, the Obamas sat down with American Factory directors Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar to talk about their new venture into the world of film and TV.

“We all have a sacred story in us, right? A story that gives us meaning and purpose and how we organize our lives,” President Obama says. “A good story is a good story. If it’s a documentary like yours or if it’s a scripted story that helps people understand something they didn’t understand before, we want to see if we can give voice to it.”