Marcia Gay Harden, of “Into the Wild,” is replacing Rosemarie DeWitt in the HBO series “The Newsroom.” The actress will move right into season two of the Aaron Sorkin drama, reports the Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday, Jan. 22, re-filming scenes that have already been shot with DeWitt in the role of an attorney for the fictional channel. Viewers will just have to go with the flow and accept the change, which is certainly not a first for HBO continuing characters.
Rosemarie DeWitt, formerly a co-star of “United States of Tara,” cited scheduling complications as her reason for leaving the show so abruptly, late last week. That statement ranks just one step ahead of “spending more time with the family” as an excuse for unexpected contract shifts among actors, but viewers will get used to it.
The re-cast character is that of Rebecca Halliday – a litigator who defends Atlantis Cable News channel against a wrongful-termination lawsuit, which figures to be an important part of the season two plotline. Seems fitting, under the circumstances.
Marcia Gay Hardin is no stranger to television dramas, but this role could be a career-rejuvenation for the actress, who has already won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in “Pollock”, and who has more recently battled with divorce and breast cancer. The stage and screen actress has also won a Tony for “Gods of Carnage.” Her fans will be wishing Marcia Gay Harden all the best in this new undertaking.
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