The Midnight Cowboy star won an Oscar for portraying a paraplegic Vietnam vet in Coming Home (opposite Republican target Jane Fonda), but his real-life tirades against President Barack Obama are among the reasons that 13 percent of Democrats now avoid his work.
Hot button issues: Outspoken Tea Party support
Michael Buckner/Getty ImagesShowtime’s Ray Donovan drama pilot is rounding out its cast, casting Jon Voight and Elliott Gould.
In the family drama about a professional “fixer” for the rich and famous in Los Angeles — the title character to be played by Salt‘s Liev Schreiber — Oscar winner Voight will play Ray’s father Mickey Donovan, while Gould has been tapped for a possibly recurring guest star as Ray’s mentor.
With credits including Midnight Cowboy and Coming Home, Voight plays Mickey, a newly freed ex-convict looking to reconnect with his estranged family. Gould (MASH) would recur should the pilot be ordered to series and play Ezra Goodman, a senior partner at a law firm who is showing signs of early dementia.
STORY: Liev Schreiber to Star in Showtime Pilot ‘Ray Donovan’
As the go-to guy in Hollywood, Ray deftly solves the highly confidential problems of the city’s most intriguing personalities and yet can’t quite escape the damage in his own troubled family.
Created by Southland‘s Ann Biderman, who will executive produce alongside Mark Gordon and Bryan Zuriff for the Mark Gordon Co., Ray Donovan will begin production in the first quarter in Los Angeles.
Ray Donovan was one of three new pilots to get the green light under new Showtime entertainment chief David Nevins in August.
Voight is repped by CAA, Gould is with APA.
Email: Lesley.Goldberg@thr.com; Twitter: @Snoodit
