‘The First Lady’: Composer Geoff Zanelli to Score Upcoming White House Drama Series (EXCLUSIVE)

Look… even a heavy hitter like Viola Davis can miss every once in a while.

depiction of Michelle Obama in Showtime’s series “The First Lady” turned heads on Sunday evening following the premiere.The episode made fans’ jaws drop when they saw the Oscar winner’s portrayal of former President Barack Obama’s wife.Watchers were confused over one scene in which Davis, 56, is talking and her lips were overly-pursed in an exaggerated way. The scene involves Davis as Michelle conversing with her husband Barack, played by O.

Michelle Pfieffer is opening up about her latest role.

Viola Davis as Michelle Obama, Michelle Pfeiffer as Betty Ford and Gillian Anderson as Eleanor Roosevelt, Showtime's   examines American leadership from the eyes of three iconic First Ladies. Premiering on Sunday, April 17,  will dive into Obama's, Ford's and Roosevelt's political and personal lives, while examining the impact the White House's women had on the nation. The new drama series is streaming exclusively on Showtime. Watch on Showtime«She is all things.

Inside the halls of power. Showtime’s new series The First Lady examines what goes on in the White House through the lens of presidential wives — and several stars underwent major transformations to play them.

The Flight Attendant , and it's a good thing that HBO Max is rolling out only the first two episodes on Thursday because your stress levels won't be able to take that much more. “As big as season one is, season two is an even bigger swing,” "I would say it's 10 times the size in scope."She's not kidding.

Michelle Pfeiffer is in awe of Dakota Fanning. The 63-year-old actress met the budding actress when she was just 6 years old as co-stars on , and some two decades later they've come full circle on .While at the red carpet premiere for the Showtime scripted anthology series, Pfeiffer recalled to ET's Nischelle Turner about meeting Fanning as a little girl when they teamed up for the 2001 melodrama film, which also starred Sean Penn.«She turned seven on and I bought her a Barbie Winnebago,» Pfeiffer recalled.

Marc Malkin Senior Film Awards, Events & Lifestyle EditorMichelle Pfeiffer didn’t know much about Betty Ford before she signed on to play her in the new Showtime anthology series “The First Lady.”“I really only knew about, of course, the Betty Ford Center, which is I think what she’s the most famous for,” Pfeiffer told me at the show’s premiere on Thursday at the DGA building in Los Angeles. “And I knew that she came out and was open and transparent about her own issues with substance abuse and alcoholism, which was very, very taboo at the time.

Viola Davis as Michelle Obama, Michelle Pfeiffer as Betty Ford and Gillian Anderson as Eleanor Roosevelt, Showtime's   examines American leadership from the eyes of three iconic First Ladies. Premiering on Sunday, April 17,  will dive into Obama's, Ford's and Roosevelt's political and personal lives, while examining the impact the White House's women had on the nation. The new drama series is set to stream exclusively on Showtime. Sign Up for Showtime«She is all things.

Viola Davis as Michelle Obama, Michelle Pfeiffer as Betty Ford and Gillian Anderson as Eleanor Roosevelt, Showtime's   examines American leadership from the eyes of three iconic First Ladies. Premiering on Sunday, will dive into Obama's, Ford's and Roosevelt's political and personal lives, while examining the impact the White House's women had on the nation. Sign Up for Showtime«She is all things. She is a hero,» Davis told ET about portraying Mrs.

Viola Davis is playing Michelle Obama in the upcoming Showtime series “The First Lady”, but admits she’s “terrified” wondering what Obama will think of her performance.

LOS ANGELES -- “The First Lady” presents three influential women, three acclaimed actors playing them, and a century of history encompassing wars, presidential scandal and America's stubborn gender and race fault lines.The ambitious Showtime drama series proved an irresistible challenge for Oscar-winning director Susanne Bier. While its subjects — Eleanor Roosevelt, Betty Ford and Michelle Obama — each have a “compelling and gripping" story, the sum is even greater, Bier said of her first biographical project.“It was interesting to me that it wasn't one biopic,” Bier said in an interview.

The First Lady, snaps at Barack, coming home from work during the 2008 election to find her home crawling with secret service agents. The accuracy of Davis’ Obama is uncanny, almost surreal. With Davis taking point on a stellar trio including as Eleanor Roosevelt and as Betty Ford, The First Lady vivifies intimate scenes that have played over and over in the popular imagination. This content can also be viewed on the site it from.The show invites us to watch history through new eyes, literally.

The stars of The First Lady are hitting the red carpet!

Fans might think it's hard for a seasoned, award-winning and beloved actor like Viola Davis to be shaken by any role, but the  star isn't afraid to admit that her most recent project was a little nerve-wracking.In fact, the actress called portraying Michelle Obama for Showtime's scripted anthology series, , «absolutely terrifying.» Davis spoke with ET's Nischelle Turner ahead of the premiere of the non-fiction series alongside her co-stars Michelle Pfeiffer and Gillian Anderson, who star as Betty Ford and Eleanor Roosevelt, respectively. The show’s first season, directed and executive produced by Susanne Bier, follows the three former first ladies for «a revelatory reframing of American leadership, told through the lens of the women at the heart of the White House.»Set in the East Wing,  will show how «many of history’s most impactful and world-changing decisions have been hidden from view, made by America's charismatic, complex and dynamic first ladies.» The show, set to premiere on April 17, will go into the personal and political lives of three such «unique, enigmatic women,» recounting their journeys from wife to Washington.Davis noted that the scariest aspect of portraying Obama was the idea that she was someone whom «everyone has ownership over.»«You’re terrified whenever you start a job because you are afraid you are going to be found out — that’s big imposter syndrome.

Three iconic actresses are playing three iconic women of history.

, which will go inside the lives of three influential first ladies of the United States. The show’s first season, which will be directed and executive produced by, will star as Michelle Obama, as Betty Ford, and as Eleanor Roosevelt.“It’s one of those jobs where you almost have to say yes before you think about it too much because if you think too much you might actually say no out of fear or being absolutely terrified,” Anderson told ET about joining the series and taking on the daunting task of portraying such an iconic figure, with Davis adding that it was “absolutely terrifying” taking on someone like Obama, whom “everyone has ownership over.”“Once I realized the scope of this character, it was terrifying,” Pfeiffer said of joining the series, noting that she didn’t “want to let anyone down” with her portrayal.That said, they all came to slay.

Caroline Framke Chief TV CriticAs Chicago lawyer Michelle Obama becomes First Lady Michelle Obama in Showtime’s newest drama, her predecessor Laura Bush offers some words of advice and comfort. “You may think you have nothing in common with the First Ladies before you,” Laura tells her, “[but] trust me when I say we all felt that way.” Here, Laura Bush acts as both some benign voice of reason (an odd choice) and also as a mouthpiece for “The First Lady” writ large (odder), which tackles the stories of three First Ladies who share little beyond the fact of living in the White House (oddest, by a mile).There’s Michelle, played by Viola Davis with Obama’s familiar cadence (if also some very exaggerated stenciled half-moon eyebrows).

Viola Davis did speak with Michelle Obama before she played her in Showtime’s upcoming The First Lady, but she is reluctant to share much of what they talked about in their private conversation.