Credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images via TNS
Hollywood’s leading man is working to share the many stories of Ohio State athletes abused by university physician Richard Strauss.
According to the Hollywood Reporter, George Clooney will produce a docuseries about the sexual abuse scandal of Strauss within the Ohio State Athletics department.
The series is based off an October 2020 Sports Illustrated story by Jon Wertheim, which details the Ohio State sports doctor’s abuse of more than 350 athletes and the response from university officials.
“This article uncovers the most widespread sexual abuse scandal in the history of American higher education. It is a story about power, abuse, enabling and the hierarchy of college sports that had been concealed for far too long,” Wertheim, executive producer of the series, said to the Hollywood Reporter. “Because these courageous men made the decision to remain silent no longer, we can finally begin to hold the abuser, and those who were complicit in their silence, accountable for their actions — and inactions. With the help of 101 Studios, [SI owner] Authentic Brands Group and Smokehouse Pictures, their voices and stories — harrowing as they are — will be amplified.”
In October, Ohio State finalized a $46.7 million settlement with 185 survivors of Strauss’s sexual abuse. An independent investigation conducted in May 2019 found that Strauss had abused at least 177 students during his tenure and Ohio State failed to act.
Ohio State did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
Strauss was the team doctor for 17 varsity sports and a physician at the university’s Student Wellness Center from 1978-98. He was released from the university before committing suicide in 2005.
The series is being produced by Clooney and Grant Heslov’s Smokehouse Pictures, Sports Illustrated Studios and 101 Studios. It has not been slated to a specific outlet for distribution yet.
