State of Play is an upcoming American political thriller scheduled for release in 2009. It is a film adaptation of the critically acclaimed British television serial State of Play, which first aired on BBC One in 2003. It is directed by Kevin Macdonald and written by Matthew Michael Carnahan, Tony Gilroy, Peter Morgan, and Billy Ray. The film tells of a journalist's probe into the suspicious death of a Congressman's mistress. Russell Crowe plays the journalist and Ben Affleck plays the Congressman. Support comes from Helen Mirren, Jason Bateman, Robin Wright Penn, Rachel McAdams, Jeff Daniels, and Viola Davis. The plot of the six hour mini-series has been condensed to fit two hours, and the location changed to Washington, D.C. Macdonald said State of Play would be informed by the films of the 1970s, and explore the topical subjects of journalistic independence and the relationship between politicians and the press.