Emmy-award winning composer Geoff Zanelli is slated to compose the music for “The First Lady,” premiering on Showtime. The new hour-long anthology drama follows the lives of three of America’s First Ladies and stars Viola Davis as Michelle Obama, Michelle Pfeiffer as Betty Ford and Gillian Anderson as Eleanor Roosevelt.
Zanelli served as composer of films such as “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales,” “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” and “Christopher Robin,” and he won an Emmy award for his work in the Steven Spielberg and Dreamworks miniseries “Into the West.” He also was nominated for HBO’s “The Pacific,” another Spielberg collaboration.
“I’ve had the honor of writing music for ‘The Pacific’ and ‘Into The West,’ both shows about distinct times in America’s history, but nothing as intimate as ‘The First Lady,’” Zanelli said. “We’re so up close and personal in this show. This isn’t a story about history, it’s a vibrant, living and relevant story of humanity. It’s a deep dive into the lives of three extraordinary ladies whose stories are ready to burst out of the East Wing. It’s one of hope, of change, and of the tireless pursuit of a better world in the face of adversity.”
The series aims to capture the powerful impact that America’s First Ladies have had on the country, shedding a light on the personal and political lives of these three women. The series stars Viola Davis as Michelle Obama, Michelle Pfeiffer as Betty Ford and Gillian Anderson as Eleanor Roosevelt.
“These are ladies who each find their own way to use their platform to change the course of history, but they are also people with everyday struggles, successes and failures, so the score is written to oscillate between the grand and the intimate,” Zanelli said. “Their public and private parallel lives are fertile ground for musical inspiration.”
“The First Lady” is produced by Lionsgate Television for Showtime, and Susanne Bier will direct all of Season 1. The series will premiere on Sunday, April 17 at 9 p.m.
From Variety US