During the premium cable network's presentation at the Television Critics Association's summer press tour, Showtime confirmed a series order for an untitled original limited series starring Wonder Woman's Gal Gadot as famed actress-inventor Hedy Lamarr.
Hedy Lamarr came to Hollywood from Europe in 1938 and took the industry by storm. Dubbed "The Most Beautiful Woman in the World," she appeared in multiple films alongside actors like Judy Garland, Lana Turner, Spencer Tracy, Jimmy Stewart and Clark Gable. But Lamarr's intelligence and ambitions far exceeded the roles she was being offered. So she formed her own production company at a time such a thing was unheard of, for a woman. And in her spare time, she worked as an avid inventor, eventually patenting a frequency-hopping technology in 1941 that our modern day Wi-Fi is predicated upon. She was a woman ahead of her time but she suffered greatly for that exceptionalism and died a recluse, nearly forgotten. The series will explore the rise and fall of feminism in the American landscape during the Golden Age of Hollywood and World War II, aiming to find, in Lamarr's life and legacy, clues for who we are now.
The Affair creator Sarah Treem is writing the series. She will executive produce with Gadot, Jaron Varsano, Katie Robbins and Warren Littlefield. Endeavor Content and The Littlefield Company will produce.
"The life of Hedy Lamarr was a truly fascinating one," said Jana Winograde, President of Entertainment, Showtime. "She stood at the forefront of many issues that challenge women and our society today. In Gal Gadot, we have found the transcendent actress to portray the deeply complex Lamarr. And with the award-winning talents of Sarah Treem and Warren Littlefield, this is going to be a special series."
