Versace Family Speaks Out About Ryan Murphy’s “American Crime Story”

On Monday, only hours before FX’s Los Angeles premiere event for The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, the Versace family distanced itself from the Ryan Murphy-produced FX series, which stars Edgar Ramírez as Gianni Versace and Penélope Cruz as Donatella Versace. “The Versace family has neither authorized nor had any involvement whatsoever in the forthcoming TV series about the death of Mr. Gianni Versace,” the family said in a statement Monday. “Since Versace did not authorize the book on which it is partly based nor has it taken part in the writing of the screenplay, this TV series should only be considered as a work of fiction.” Though the family has not been formally involved in this project—which examines the fashion designers’ personal and professional lives in the 90s—Donatella did speak to Cruz about the series at least once. “I did have one conversation that was between she and I,” Cruz told Entertainment Weekly last summer. “I don’t want to say the details, but it was a long conversation. That was very important to me. I think she knows that the way I’m playing her, that I truly love her and respect her.” Cruz has since elaborated: “I really hope that when she sees the show, she’s going to be happy. I’m sure there are going to be scenes that are hard for her to watch, because it’s a lot about the loss of her brother, which, of course, I have so much respect for. I did it with all my love.” Read more at Vanity Fair.