Laura Dern to play journalist who investigated Jeffrey Epstein crimes in a new series

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I’m hearing some seriously big names are coming together to adapt the Jeffrey Epstein story, as told in the book “Perversion of Justice,” into a scripted series. It sounds like they’re building a real powerhouse team to bring this complex and disturbing story to television, and I’m definitely intrigued to see what they do with it.

Laura Dern, the Academy Award-winning actress, will play Julie K. Brown in an upcoming project. Brown is a journalist for the Miami Herald who famously investigated the Epstein sex-trafficking case. Her reporting revealed that federal prosecutors allowed Jeffrey Epstein to receive a lenient plea deal in 2008, a deal widely considered too favorable.

According to Variety, the upcoming series tells the story of an investigative reporter and her explosive uncovering of the secret deal between Jeffrey Epstein and federal prosecutors. Based on the reporter’s real-life work at the Miami Herald, the series follows her years-long investigation, which identified 80 victims, convinced them to share their stories, and ultimately led to the arrests of Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell.

I remember when the news broke about this financier back in 2008. He was accused of some truly awful crimes involving underage girls at his place in Palm Beach, Florida. It turned out he made a deal with the U.S. Attorney at the time, Alexander Acosta, that let him avoid a full federal trial – a trial where he could have gotten life in prison if found guilty. Instead, he just pleaded guilty to a couple of lesser state charges. It always felt like a really light sentence considering the accusations, and it stuck with me ever since.

He spent 13 months in county jail, but a work release program allowed him to go to his office for work six days a week.

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Director Brett Ratner’s name has resurfaced in connection to the Epstein case. He appears in recently released documents from the Department of Justice, shortly after the premiere of his documentary about Melania Trump.

Eileen Myers (“American Hostage”) and Sharon Hoffman (“House of Cards”) are co-showrunning the series, with Hoffman adapting the source book for television. Laura Dern, Adam McKay, Kevin Messick (known for “The Big Short,” “Don’t Look Up,” and “Succession”), and Brown will all serve as executive producers.

Sony Pictures Television is still shopping the series to different channels and streaming services, but people in the industry believe it’s likely to be approved soon, now that Laura Dern and Will McKay are involved.

Last week, Brown spoke with journalist Katie Couric on Substack about her reporting on Epstein. She explained that Epstein and his associates didn’t take her seriously, saying, “I don’t think he worried about a reporter from the Miami Herald.”

Brown explained to Couric that when she wrote her story, the perpetrator – a child sex offender – was still at large and, as later discovered, continuing to harm children. Her intention was to investigate the circumstances that allowed this to happen.

I wanted to figure out what went wrong and if anyone with influence helped him avoid consequences. It felt like the right time to re-examine everything, almost like reopening a cold case.

When I decided to revisit the case, the young women involved – who had been 13 to 15 years old at the time – were now in their late 20s and early 30s. Around the same time, Donald Trump became president. It was ironic because as I began investigating, he nominated Alexander Acosta to be Labor Secretary, and I immediately recognized Acosta as the person who had previously allowed Epstein to avoid consequences. That’s what led me to delve deeper into the case.

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2026-03-31 06:01