Barry Levinson and HBO have cultivated a great working relationship in the past few years, with the channel releasing his two films, the Al Pacino starring “You Don’t Know Jack” in 2010 and, most recently, his acclaimed Robert De Niro film “The Wizard of Lies” last year. He returns to the channel with “Paterno,” re-teaming with Pacino to explore Penn State’s football coach Joe Paterno’s role in the Jerry Sandusky sexual abuse scandal.
“ ‘Paterno’ is not a sprawling piece that spans years,” Levinson said. “It unfolds largely over a two-week period, when we watch the events play out. I’m not following an agenda or trying to tell the audience to take a certain side in regards to Coach Paterno. The film lays out the elements of the story and leaves you to make your own judgement. There are times when you may feel one way, and times when you may feel a totally different way, and I think that’s what makes the piece so compelling.”
While Levinson has been hit and miss with his recent theatrical releases (with his last film being the Bill Murray starring “Rock the Kasbah” in 2015), he really has been putting out great work with HBO, including producing Pacino in the David Mamet film “Phil Spector,” so it’ll be exciting to see Pacino and Levinson take on another “based on a true story” tale.
“Paterno” is co-written by “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Vinyl” scribe Debora Cain and “Nurse Betty” writer John C. Richards. In addition to Pacino, the film co-stars Riley Keough, Kathy Baker, Greg Grunberg, and Annie Parisse. Tom Fontana, who has had a multi-decade spanning working relationship with Levinson, including “Homicide: Life on the Street” and “Oz”, is producing.
“Paterno” hits HBO this spring.