It’s rather concerning when you realise Watergate, once the most prolific political scandal in history, now appears charming, quaint, and downright kindergarten stuff. Or as one punter in the YouTube comment section of HBO’s White House Plumbers trailer so aptly described it, nothing more than a “speedbump” in the grand scheme of 21st century public office misconduct. Perhaps that’s why this particular chapter within the so-called American Experiment is so ripe for a tongue-in-cheek retrospective a la Adam McKay’s The Big Short.
Based on public records and the book Integrity by Egil “Bud” Krogh and Matthew Krogh, the forthcoming dramedy follows the masterminds behind Watergate and President Richard Nixon’s fixers: E. Howard Hunt (Woody Harrelson) and G. Gordon Liddy (Justin Theroux). Both men were part of the eponymous “White House Plumbers” – also known as the Room 16 Project, or more officially, the White House Special Investigations Unit – and famously helped overturn the very administration they were so zealously aiming to protect after the bungled Watergate burglary circa 1972.
RELATED: Good News, Foxtel Just Renewed Its Contract For HBO Content
“We’ll be laughed at as third-rate burglars forever,” Woody Harrelson’s E. Howard Hunt can be heard saying in the first White House Plumbers trailer.
“People need to understand why we did what we did.”
Woody Harrelson and Justin Theroux are joined by an all-star cast which includes Lena Headey as Dorothy Hunt, Judy Greer as Fran Liddy, Domhnall Gleeson as John Dean, Toby Huss as James McCord, Ike Barinholtz as Jeb Magruder, Kathleen Turner as Dita Beard, Kim Coates as Frank Sturgis, Kiernan Shipka as Kevan Hunt, F. Murray Abraham as Judge Sirica, and John Carroll Lynch as John Mitchell.
RELATED: HBO Snaps Up Andrew Callaghan’s Documentary About The January 6 Riots
If this all seems tonally familiar, there’s a good reason for that: White House Plumbers has been created, written, and executive produced by Alex Gregory and Peter Huyck. The duo cut their teeth with HBO’s other cracking/hilarious political comedy series Veep, and reunite with fellow alum David Mandel, who serves as both executive producer and director this time around. A bunch of the producers behind HBO’s Succession have also gotten involved.
The five-part miniseries premieres sometime in March 2023 (specific release date TBA) – check out HBO’s White House Plumbers trailer above.
