FIRST FAMILY: THE REAGANS

It’s 1987. As the scandal of Iran-Contra and the threat of impeachment looms in President Ronald Reagan’s shadow, he reflects on the journey that brought him to this extraordinary position of notoriety, celebrity, and world power. “How in the ever-loving world did we get here, Nancy?” The answer is the ultimate story of American dreams, ambition, and success.

As a movie star, Democrat Ronald Reagan (Emmy and Golden Globe winner James Brolin, Traffic)has made a name for himself as President of the Screen Actors Guild—a title that offers him a chance meeting with a calculating B-actress named Nancy Davis (Emmy winner Judy Davis, Life with Judy Garland). The brief encounter turns to romance, and, in an effort to renew his private and public life, Ronald leaves his wife, actress Jane Wyman, marries the cunning Nancy, and embarks on a short-lived career in a promising venue called television. Though successful in the inventive new medium, it’s Ronald’s political interests, his ability to connect to grassroots America, and Nancy’s omnipresent PR savvy that lure him down the unexpected path to Governor of California. But there’s one stipulation—he must change his party affiliation to Republican.

Ronald fears that such a political move will doom his Hollywood career. It does, but it also paves the way for the performance of a lifetime and the career he was born for—President of the United States, following a 1981 landslide victory. What unfolds from Hollywood to Washington over the years is a tumultuous relationship with his left-wing children; the controversial weapons-defence system that made him one of the world’s most ridiculed feared yet popular Presidents; a headline-making association with the Russians; the assassination attempt on his life; Nancy’s own reign as one of the one of the most prominent First Ladies in history and her influence over the man she devoted her life to; and the controversial Iran-Contra affair that plunged Ronald Reagan—a man of resilience, contradictions, and strong will—into the darkest chapter of his political career.

As fascinating as its subject and featuring an all-star cast, First Family is a miniseries event that sheds new light on a controversial political career, a devoted marriage, and a divisive family that changed American history forever.