Jane Fonda has signed on to play CEO Leona Lansing in Aaron Sorkin’s untiled HBO series, unofficially referred to as Newsroom, according to TVLine.com. Fonda joins a previously announced cast that includes Broadway vets Jeff Daniels, Alison Pill, John Gallagher, Jr., Thomas Sadoski and Sam Waterston, along with Emily Mortimer, Olivia Munn and Dev Patel.
The series takes a behind-the-scenes look at a fictional cable news network, and follows a prominent news anchor (Daniels), his boss (Waterston) and his executive producer (Mortimer). Fonda will play a reoccurring role as the network’s CEO.
Fonda earned a Tony nomination for 33 Variations. Her other Broadway credits include Strange Interlude, The Fun Couple, Invitation to a March and There Was a Little Girl. She won Oscars for Klute and Coming Home. Her many other film credits include On Golden Pond, Nine to Five and Georgia Rule.
Sorkin wrote and executive produced the pilot, which is directed by Greg Mottola. Additional executive producers include Scott Rudin and Alan Poul.