Project Based on Jennifer Steil’s Critically Acclaimed Novel; Hathaway Will also Produce
Entertainment One to Handle International Distribution of the Series

LOS ANGELES, CA – August 18, 2015 - The Mark Gordon Company has acquired the rights to finance and produce a limited television series adaptation of award-winning author and journalist Jennifer Steil’s novel The Ambassador’s Wife, with Oscar and Golden Globe®-winning actress Anne Hathaway set to star, as well as produce.
 
Inspired by her personal experiences as the wife of the British Ambassador to Yemen, Steil’s novel is a harrowing tale about the kidnapping of an American woman in the Middle East and the heartbreaking choices she and her husband each must make in the hope of being reunited.
 
Published by Doubleday on July 28, 2015 and having received the 2013 William Faulkner-William Wisdom Creative Writing Competition Best Novel award, The Ambassador’s Wife is Steil’s second book and debut novel. Steil’s first book The Woman Who Fell From the Sky, a memoir about her adventures as an editor of the Yemen Observer in Sana’a, received accolades in the New York Times, Newsweek, ELLE, and the Sydney Morning Herald, among other publications. Her work has appeared in the World Policy Journal, Die Welt, Vogue UK, The Washington Times, The Week, Time, and The Rumpus, among other outlets.
 
“The Ambassador’s Wife is an incredible story that pulls you in immediately and resonates with all of us based on the images and news headlines that are pervasive in our lives today,” said Mark Gordon. “We are so fortunate to have Anne starring in this timely, gripping, and compassionate drama. She is in a league all her own and we cannot think of anyone who can better portray Steil’s complex heroine.”
 
Hathaway has a long list of award-winning and critically acclaimed credits under her belt, including Interstellar, Les Misérables, The Dark Knight Rises, Rachel Getting Married, and The Devil Wears Prada. She will next be seen in Nancy Meyers’ The Intern starring opposite Robert De Niro, and fantasy sequel Alice Through The Looking Glass.
 
The Ambassador’s Wife is represented by CAA for television and Brettne Bloom at The Book Group for publishing.  Hathaway is represented by CAA, Management 360, and Jason Sloane of Sloane Offer Weber Dern.  The Mark Gordon Company is represented by CAA. 
 
The Ambassador’s Wife is the first television project to fall under the recently announced independent studio formed by The Mark Gordon Company and Entertainment One (eOne) to finance and produce premium film, television and digital content, which eOne will distribute internationally. The venture both produces Mark Gordon premium content as well as finances projects by other producers. The studio, based in Los Angeles, combines Mark Gordon’s track record of working with emerging and established creative talent with the financial backing and international distribution network needed to bring exciting content to audiences worldwide.
 
About The Mark Gordon Company
The Mark Gordon Company, which partnered with Entertainment One (eOne) in 2015 to create an independent film and television studio, is helmed by Mark Gordon who has produced more than 100 motion picture and television projects.  The company is currently in production on several established television series including “Ray Donovan” (Showtime), "Grey's Anatomy" (ABC) and "Criminal Minds" (CBS), as well as upcoming drama series “Quantico” premiering September 27, 2015 on ABC; and franchise spin-off “Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders” on CBS. Past television credits include “Private Practice" (ABC), "Army Wives" (Lifetime) and “Reaper” (CW).
 
Forthcoming projects from The Mark Gordon Company’s film division include STEVE JOBS written by Academy Award winning screenwriter Aaron Sorkin and directed by Academy Award winning director Danny Boyle, and ARMS AND THE DUDES, starring Jonah Hill and Miles Teller, with Todd Phillips directing.  Past film credits include SAVING PRIVATE RYAN (which earned Gordon Academy Award and BAFTA nominations, as well as a Golden Globe for Best Picture), 2012, THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW, SPEED, SOURCE CODE, THE MESSENGER, THE PATRIOT, among others. As an executive producer and financier, Gordon’s credits include TOMB RAIDER, WONDER BOYS, THE PAINTED VEIL, A SIMPLE PLAN and PRIMARY COLORS.
 
In 2015, Gordon was honored by the Producers’ Guild of America with the Norman Lear Award for achievement in television. Gordon is also a five-time Emmy Award nominee with two wins and has been nominated for multiple Golden Globe Awards, earning two wins.