Damian Lewis Cast As Former Toronto Mayor Rob Ford In Political Drama ‘Run This Town’

English actor Damian Lewis has confirmed he is playing the late Rob Ford in the upcoming drama Run This Town, which is fittingly being filmed in Toronto, the city Ford was the mayor of from 2010 to 2014.

DAMIAN LEWIS CAST AS ROB FORD IN RUN THIS TOWN

Ford, who passed away in March 2016 after a battle with cancer, attracted a lot of attention during his erratic tenure as the mayor of Toronto. The best-known aspect of his career concerned his substance abuse, though his eccentric personality also drew much attention.

While details concerning the finer points of Run This Town are scarce, it will serve as the directorial debut of Ricky Tollman. The film currently doesn’t have a projected release date.

Journalist Robyn Doolittle, who covered Ford while she wrote for the Toronto Star, has publicly expressed her disappointment over the studio’s decision to actor Ben Platt to play the character who’s based on her.

The 47-year-old Lewis confessed to Kit Magazine prior to an interview with them that he was getting fitted for prosthetics so he could better look the part. The procedure required Lewis to completely cover his head in silicon strips, leaving only “a small hole near the nose” so he could breathe. Lewis added how “a similar experience apparently once sent a big-screen martial-art tough guy into a blind panic.”