Elisabeth Moss to Play 'Typhoid Mary' in BBC America Miniseries
Elisabeth Moss has come down with a "Fever."
The "Handmaid's Tale" star is set to headline a BBC America miniseries about the infamous "Typhoid Mary," the nickname given to Irish immigrant Mary Mallon. She was the first known healthy carrier of typhoid fever.
"Fever" is based on Mary Beth Keane's novel of the same name, and follows Mary, a cook in 1900s New York City. She becomes vilified by tabloids and given her nickname after she unknowingly spread the disease to wealthy families that she worked for.
Moss optioned the rights to the book and will executive produce the series (just as she's done with "Handmaid's Tale). "Mad Men" writer Robin Veith and director Phil Morrison are also on board.
"I look forward to telling this story about one of the most infamous women in America, 'Typhoid Mary,' a woman whose true tale has never been told," Moss said in a statement.
"She was an immigrant in turn of the century New York, a time of huge change and progress in America. She was incredibly unique, stubborn, ambitious and in fierce denial of any wrongdoing until her death where she lived out her days imprisoned on an island just off of the Bronx in NY. She is incredibly complicated, something I seem to enjoy playing."
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