Hillary Clinton Miniseries: Diane Lane Set To Play Former First Lady In New NBC Project

Actress Diane Lane has signed on to play Hillary Clinton in a brand new miniseries, according to NBC Entertainment execs.

The series is set to air some time before the 2016 presidential election, in which Clinton is widely expected to make her second run for office.

"We need to be in the event business. I think you're going to hear that from every broadcast network," NBC Entertainment chairman Bob Greenblatt said.

In addition to a series about the former first lady, NBC also plans to air a six-hour mini based on Cleopatra, and another produced by Mark Burnett, reportedly called "Plymouth."

Greenblatt said the network just hopes to stand out with "anything that can shake up the landscape and say 'we have something special.'"

The Clinton series, written and directed by Courtney Hunt, will focus on Hillary's life as a woman in politics, starting half way through Bill Clinton's second term in office. The show will feature her struggle through the infamous Monica Lewinsky scandal and should also focus on her eventual run for president herself.

While the series should grab the attention of viewers, it could also cause some legal political issues for NBC. Law dictates that networks must provide equal time for presidential candidates, which would mean trouble if Clinton announced her intentions to run before the series airs.

But Greenblatt isn't worried.

"She's not going to declare her candidacy for two more years, so I think it will be the late spring or early summer of '15 that she will declare," he said. "This could well have aired before that. We have to talk through all that."

Execs said casting for the role of Bill Clinton has yet to begin.