Honest, there's a new Abe!
Midnight Mass star Hamish Linklater has been cast as President Abraham Lincoln in Apple TV+'s upcoming series Manhunt, based on Lincoln's assassination, E! News confirms. American Crime star Lili Taylor will play Mary Lincoln.
Described as "part historical fiction, part conspiracy thriller," according to Apple TV+, the series will "take audiences into the aftermath of the first American Presidential assassination and the fight to preserve and protect the ideals that were the foundation of Lincoln's Reconstruction plans—issues that reverberate into the present day."
Manhunt will also shine a light on many individuals whose stories have rarely been told.
"The series strongly features Black historical figures whose lives intertwined with the escape, manhunt, and subsequent high-crimes investigation," says the streamer, "including Mary Simms, a former slave of the doctor who treated [John Wilkes] Booth's injury."
Greenleaf star Lovie Simone will play Simms, while Tony nominee Anthony Boyle will play Booth who is, of course, the man who killed Lincoln at Washington D.C.'s Ford's Theatre in April 1865.
The series stars Tobias Menzies, who won an Emmy for his portrayal of Prince Philip on The Crown, as Lincoln's War Secretary Edwin Stanton, who was "driven nearly to madness by the need to catch Booth and to carry out Lincoln's legacy."
Manhunt also features an ensemble including 13 Reasons Why's Brandon Flynn, Get Out's Betty Gabriel, Veep's Matt Walsh and comedian Patton Oswalt.
In addition to his role in Midnight Mass, Linklater has appeared in shows like Fargo and movies like The Big Short. He currently plays Jeb Magruder in Gaslit, the Starz limited series about Watergate.
Taylor is a three-time Emmy nominee for her work on American Crime, Six Feet Under and The X-Files. She currently appears on the Prime Video series Outer Range, starring Josh Brolin.
Most famously, Lincoln was portrayed by Daniel Day-Lewis in Steven Spielberg's 2012 film Lincoln. The performance earned Day-Lewis an Oscar, a BAFTA, a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award.
Good luck to Linklater!