Friends‘ Matthew Perry will play the late Senator Edward Kennedy in Reelz Channel‘s sequel to The Kennedys TV mini-series. The Kennedys — After Camelot is an adaptation of J. Randy Taraborrelli’s book, After Camelot: A Personal History of the Kennedy Family 1968 to the Present. Perry currently stars in The Odd Couple TV series on CBS.

Katie Holmes is set to return as Jackie Kennedy Onassis. Intuition Productions’ Keri Selig is an executive producer on the series. Jon Cassar (The Kennedys) and Katie Holmes will direct from scripts by Stephen Kronish and Sandra Chwialkowska. Holmes and Perry also executive produce.

Here’s the Reelz Channel press release:

MATTHEW PERRY TO STAR AS TED KENNEDY IN REELZ MINISERIES ‘THE KENNEDYS-AFTER CAMELOT’

By press release

Produced by Muse Entertainment

Principal Photography Begins May 2016

(Albuquerque, NM)– Tuesday, March 15, 2016 – Actor Matthew Perry will star as Ted Kennedy in The Kennedys-After Camelot, the follow up to the award winning The Kennedys. The new four hour mini-series is based on the New York Times best seller, “After Camelot: A Personal History of the Kennedy Family 1968 to the Present” by best-selling author and biographer J. Randy Taraborrelli and will premiere on REELZ in spring 2017. Perry will also serve as an executive producer.

Matthew Perry portrays Ted Kennedy in the years following the assassinations of his brothers Jack and Bobby and depicts his very complicated public and private life as he tries to live up to the Kennedy family political ambition and fill a male leadership void in the family itself. Perry joins Katie Holmes, portraying Jackie Kennedy Onassis, who despite her desire for privacy had arguably become the most famous and admired woman in the world. Jackie’s ties to the Kennedy family remained strong throughout her life and her relationship with her brother-in-law Ted grew ever closer as they constantly turned to one another for support and as confidantes.

“We are privileged to have an actor of Matthew Perry’s stature and ability take on the role of such a complex and controversial figure as Ted Kennedy,” said Executive Producer Michael Prupas, president of Muse Entertainment. “Matthew Perry and Katie Holmes will fascinate audiences around the world as they bring these two famous Americans to life.”

“As the REELZ brand has evolved to tell the real stories of celebrities’ lives there’s no bigger celebrity family than the Kennedys and we’re proud to continue this amazing and dramatic story that began with The Kennedys mini-series,” said Stan E. Hubbard, CEO of REELZ. “The Kennedys have inspired more movies, books, TV shows and documentaries than any other American family.”

Perry is currently starring on stage in London’s West End in “The End of Longing,” a play which is his playwriting debut. The second season of the CBS comedy, The Odd Couple, in which Perry stars and serves as executive producer, premieres April 7.

The Kennedys-After Camelot project was brought to Muse Entertainment by Keri Selig of Intuition Productions (The Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe) who serves as an executive producer. Jon Cassar (The Kennedys) and Katie Holmes are directing from scripts by Stephen Kronish (The Kennedys) and Sandra Chwialkowska (Lost Girl). Holmes also serves as an executive producer.

The Kennedys-After Camelot is filming in Toronto, Canada this spring. Muse Distribution International is handling its international distribution.

About Muse Entertainment Enterprises
Muse Entertainment is a leading film and television production company and international distributor known for its well-crafted and high-quality productions. Since its founding in 1998, Muse Entertainment has won over 100 awards and garnered over 300 international award nominations. Muse is now producing the second season of The Art of More series for Sony Pictures for whom it also produced two seasons of the sci-fi series Helix. Muse’s other recent productions were the 6-hour event series Tut for Spike, the reality series Extractors for A&E and the docu-drama Caitlyn Jenner: Collision Course for Reelz. Muse is currently producing multiple mystery movies for Hallmark’s Movies and Mysteries channel. Muse produced four seasons of the supernatural dramatic series Being Human for Syfy, the series Signed, Sealed, Delivered, two seasons of the wartime dramatic series Bomb Girls and several TV movies for Disney and Hallmark channels. Muse’s 8-hr. historical drama The Kennedys, sold to networks around the world by Muse Distribution International, earned 10 Emmy Award nominations, winning four, as well as the DGA award for best director. Its 8- hour event series Pillars of the Earth also won an Emmy and many other awards. Muse Entertainment maintains production and development operations in Montreal, Los Angeles, Toronto and Vancouver. For more information, please visit www.muse.ca

About REELZ—Real lives. Real stories. Real celebrities.
REELZ is a leading independent cable and satellite general entertainment network that is home to factual entertainment, television events, mini-series, movies and series featuring big stories and big stars. Programming ranges from the critically acclaimed and award-winning The Kennedys to Autopsy: The Last Hours Of…, Celebrity Legacies, OK! TV, Hollywood Scandals, Murder Made Me Famous, the upcoming mini-series The Kennedys-After Camelot and much more that connects directly to the world of entertainment. REELZ also showcases top movie and entertainment expert Leonard Maltin who provides specific on-air recommendations for movies viewers can watch at home.

REELZ is available in 70 million homes on DIRECTV channel 238, DISH Network channel 299, Verizon FiOS TV channel 233, Time Warner Cable channel 128, AT&T U-verse channels 799/1799HD and cable systems nationwide. Find REELZ in your area by visiting www.reelz.com. REELZ is a High- Definition network and if it is not available, or not in HD on your cable or telco provider, we encourage viewers to call them and ask for it. Owned by Hubbard Media Group, REELZ is headquartered in Albuquerque, NM with national ad sales based in New York City with offices in Boston and Chicago. As one of the last truly independent television networks remaining in today’s media landscape REELZ has created the Independence Happens Here® website to help keep free thought and innovation alive by highlighting the importance of independent businesses. The website can be found at http://IndependenceHappensHere.com.

What do you think? Did you watch The Kennedys mini-series? Do you plan to check out the sequel? Can you see Perry as Teddy?