Hollywood studio making CIA leak movie

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Warner Bros. Pictures is developing a feature film on the lives of Valerie Plame and Joseph Wilson, the Washington couple at the center of the CIA leak scandal, a studio spokeswoman said on Friday.

The Time Warner Inc.-owned studio has secured their life rights, and will also use Plame's memoir, "Fair Game," which is expected to be published late this year by Viacom Inc.'s Simon & Schuster.

Plame's identity as a CIA operative was leaked to the press in 2003 after her husband Wilson, a former ambassador, publicly accused the Bush administration of manipulating intelligence to build its case for the Iraq war.

The ensuing three-year investigation into who blew her cover led to the criminal trial of former vice presidential aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who was charged with lying to investigators.

A jury is deciding his fate on two counts of perjury, two counts of making false statements and one count of obstruction of justice. He faces up to 30 years in prison and $1.25 million in fines if found guilty.

Nobody has been charged with intentionally identifying Plame.

The movie will be produced by Akiva Goldsman, the Oscar-winning writer of "A Beautiful Mind," Jerry Zucker, the producer of the "Airplane!" and "Naked Gun" comedy spoofs, and his wife, Janet Zucker.

The Zuckers got to know Plame and Wilson because all four are involved in lobbying for stem cell research, according to entertainment trade paper Daily Variety, which first reported Warner's plans for the film.

Variety said that publication of Plame's memoir remains subject to CIA review and clearance of the book, but it quoted Jerry Zucker as saying that would not affect the outcome of the film.

"Almost everything that we need for the movie is available from print outlets, and obviously we haven't read the book yet because it hasn't been approved by the CIA," Zucker told Variety. "Valerie has been incredibly careful with what she tells us. It's almost like she is still working for the CIA."

Zucker also said the central theme of the film is "the story of two people who spent their lives in service of their government, and were then betrayed by that government."

The screenplay is from Jez and John Butterworth, who recently finished writing a movie about the late soul icon James Brown for director Spike Lee, a studio spokeswoman said.

She said no director has been lined up for the Plame project, and no casting choices have been made. Nor has a time frame for the film been set.

Reuters/Nielsen