Trigger warning: This article includes mentions of sexual assault and sex trafficking.
The scandal surrounding Prince Andrew has been reignited following news that his disaster Jeffrey Epstein interview is being turned into a feature film.
For those who forgot, the royal did a sit-down TV interview in 2019 to address his links to the convicted paedophile with the hopes of clearing his name.
However, the “train wreck” appearance only sparked more outrage and led to Prince Andrew stepping down as a senior working royal.
Prince Andrew pictured with Jeffrey Epstein (far right).
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His comments about Epstein, his victims and the woman who alleged Prince Andrew had sex with her while she was underage made headlines around the world.
Now they’re set to hit the big screen in a project titled Scoop, which will explore how BBC’s Newsnight program got rare access to the royal and what happened during and after the now infamous interview.
The film could be another PR nightmare for the royal family, who had to endure months of backlash due to Prince Andrew’s involvement in the Epstein scandal.
Not only did he have to step down from royal duties, the Queen also stripped him of several titles and his daughters, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, avoided the public spotlight for months.
Now the film recounting the interview that truly kickstarted his downfall could cause a fresh wave of public outrage and anti-royal sentiment.
Based on the book Scoops: Behind the Scenes of the BBC’s Most Shocking Interviews, writer Peter Moffat said the true details behind Prince Andrew’s interview will make a “very thrilling drama.
“How was it that he decided it was a good idea to do a great big long interview with Emily Maitlis on the BBC?” he told Deadline.
So who’s in the running to play the disgraced royal?
Prince Andrew won’t be happy with the new film, which could be another PR nightmare.
(Image: Getty)Deadline reported rom-com icon Hugh Grant was “one of the unconfirmed names in the frame”, but the star denied it.
Prince Andrew was friends with Epstein before his arrest on sex trafficking charges and later death in custody, however the royal insists he had no knowledge of Epstein’s heinous crimes.
“Do I regret the fact he has quite obviously conducted himself in a manner unbecoming? Yes,” he said of Epstein in the 2019 interview, to which the reporter replied: “Unbecoming? He was a sex offender.”
Prince Andrew added: “Yeah, I’m sorry, I’m being polite, I mean in the sense that he was a sex offender.”
Prince Andrew during his interview with BBC’s Newsnight program.
(Image: BBC)He was also involved in a legal battle with Virginia Giuffre, an Epstein victim who alleged the royal had sex with her while she was underage and being trafficked by Epstein.
Prince Andrew vehemently denied the claims and settled a sexual assault case brought against him by Ms Giuffre out of court.
If you or someone you know has been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, help is always available. Call 1800 RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit their website.
This article was originally published on our sister site New Idea.
