The long-awaited American Crime Story: Impeachment will be a retelling of President Bill Clinton's affair with Monica Lewinsky and subsequent political and media fallout. Two decades after the scandal, many have re-examined Lewinsky's role in the scandal and now think of her as more of a victim of both Clinton and the press instead of a wrongdoer. Adding authenticity to the portrayal in American Crime Story season 3, Lewinsky herself will be involved in production.

The scandal immediately made Lewinsky an obsession of popular culture, from countless jokes on late-night comedy shows to furious scrutiny from news and current affairs programs. Lewinsky attempted to capitalize on this scrutiny, making appearances on shows like Saturday Night Live, selling a line of handbags, and even hosting a dating show called Mr. Personality. These attempts, done in part to pay for Lewinsky's legal costs, were greeted with hostility by many, who saw her as taking advantage of infidelity to launch a celebrity career. Lewinsky withdrew from the spotlight in the mid-2000s, struggling with public attention and looking to further her education.

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Lewinsky will act as a co-producer on American Crime Story as part of the show's efforts to present a new perspective on familiar events. Lewinsky's role on American Crime Story is part of her gradual re-emergence into the public sphere in recent years. She has acted as an ambassador against cyber-bullying and maintains an acerbic Twitter account. Her story has also been re-evaluated in light of the Me Too movement. Lewinsky published an article in Vanity Fair magazine in 2018 saying that she now thought of her relationship with Clinton as an "abuse of power." American Crime Story creator Ryan Murphy certainly isn't afraid to deal with hot-button issues, so it seems likely the upcoming season will deal with changing perspectives on workplace harassment.

Beanie Feldstein as Lewinsky in American Crime Story: Impeachment

The exact role of a producer is often nebulous, but Lewinsky seems to be heavily involved with the production of American Crime Story: Impeachment. Lewinsky was reportedly consulted on every script, and the series aims to present the incident from her perspective. She had the opportunity to provide first-hand insight on her experiences to writers, directors, and actress Beanie Feldstein, who will be portraying her in the show.

American Crime Story offers Lewinsky an opportunity to re-tell her story, and she has said in interviews she approached it as an opportunity to "re-claim her narrative" [via YouTube]. Murphy has commented on how Sarah Paulson's portrayal of Marcia Clark in American Crime Story season 1 reframed another woman who became tabloid fodder in the 1990s and hopes that the upcoming season can do the same for Lewinski.  While Lewinsky has sat for multiple interviews and contributed to a biography published in the 1990s, she has never written a memoir to directly tell her story, and the upcoming series could offer her a chance to do so. Lewinsky was often vilified and mocked in the media during the scandal, and this is her chance to engage with the affair on her own terms.

Its star-studded cast, including Clive Owen and Edie Falco as the Clintons, and the long wait time since the last season has made American Crime Story: Impeachment one of the most highly anticipated TV shows for fall 2021. The miniseries is expected to be an Emmy contender and could restart the public conversation around the scandal that culminated in Clinton's impeachment.  If so, Lewinsky will have finally played a part in shaping the conversation about her.

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