FX’s ‘Feud: Capote vs. The Swans’.Photo:FX
FX
Feudis back to tell another true story of dramatic social fallout. The FX show’s season 2 focuses onTruman Capote’s exile from the elite after he penned an exposé dishing the scandalous secrets of his influential friends, a group of glamorous women he called his “swans.“In 1975,Esquirepublished “La Cote Basque, 1965,” an excerpt from his novel in the works,Answered Prayers, which was a thinly veiled account of the private lives of the swans and their husbands. The fallout was instantaneous.The latest installment ofRyan Murphy’s anthology series features some Hollywood’s biggest names.Demi Moore,Naomi WattsandChloë Sevignyare just a few of the A-listers tasked to live up to the swans' big reputations. The lateTreat Williamsstars in his final on-screen role as media mogul Bill Paley, and on the other side of the bitter battle,Tom Hollanderplays the titular literary legend Truman Capote.See the cast ofFeud: Capote vs. The Swansin character as the real-life friends and foes who once dominated high society.
Feudis back to tell another true story of dramatic social fallout. The FX show’s season 2 focuses onTruman Capote’s exile from the elite after he penned an exposé dishing the scandalous secrets of his influential friends, a group of glamorous women he called his “swans.”
In 1975,Esquirepublished “La Cote Basque, 1965,” an excerpt from his novel in the works,Answered Prayers, which was a thinly veiled account of the private lives of the swans and their husbands. The fallout was instantaneous.
The latest installment ofRyan Murphy’s anthology series features some Hollywood’s biggest names.Demi Moore,Naomi WattsandChloë Sevignyare just a few of the A-listers tasked to live up to the swans' big reputations. The lateTreat Williamsstars in his final on-screen role as media mogul Bill Paley, and on the other side of the bitter battle,Tom Hollanderplays the titular literary legend Truman Capote.
See the cast ofFeud: Capote vs. The Swansin character as the real-life friends and foes who once dominated high society.
01of 12Naomi Watts as Babe PaleyNaomi Watts as Babe Paley.Pari Dukovic/FX; Tony Palmieri/WWD/Penske Media via GettyBabe Paley turned heads as a fashion editor forVoguebefore she married William S. Paley, who founded CBS. She remained a prominent figure in the couture world and was eventually inducted into the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1958.Naomi Wattsplays Paley, who died of lung cancer in 1978, one day after her 63rd birthday.
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Naomi Watts as Babe Paley
Naomi Watts as Babe Paley.Pari Dukovic/FX; Tony Palmieri/WWD/Penske Media via Getty
Pari Dukovic/FX; Tony Palmieri/WWD/Penske Media via Getty
Babe Paley turned heads as a fashion editor forVoguebefore she married William S. Paley, who founded CBS. She remained a prominent figure in the couture world and was eventually inducted into the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1958.
Naomi Wattsplays Paley, who died of lung cancer in 1978, one day after her 63rd birthday.
02of 12Diane Lane as Nancy ‘Slim’ KeithDiane Lane as Slim Keith.Pari Dukovic/FX; BettmannIn addition to her elite status, Slim Keith acquired a Ladyship title thanks to her third husband, British banker Baron Keith of Castleacre. Per herNew York Timesobituary published after her death in 1990, Capote referred to the California-born swan as “Big Mama” before their famed falling out.Viewers got a taste of Diane Lane’s fiery portrayal of Keith in thetrailer forFeud: Capote vs. The Swans. During her character’s confrontation with the titular writer, Lane angrily shatters a plate against a wall.
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Diane Lane as Nancy ‘Slim’ Keith
Diane Lane as Slim Keith.Pari Dukovic/FX; Bettmann
Pari Dukovic/FX; Bettmann
In addition to her elite status, Slim Keith acquired a Ladyship title thanks to her third husband, British banker Baron Keith of Castleacre. Per herNew York Timesobituary published after her death in 1990, Capote referred to the California-born swan as “Big Mama” before their famed falling out.
Viewers got a taste of Diane Lane’s fiery portrayal of Keith in thetrailer forFeud: Capote vs. The Swans. During her character’s confrontation with the titular writer, Lane angrily shatters a plate against a wall.
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Chloë Sevigny as C. Z. Guest
Chloë Sevigny as C. Z. Guest.Pari Dukovic/FX; Slim Aarons/Hulton Archive/Getty
Pari Dukovic/FX; Slim Aarons/Hulton Archive/Getty
Guest went on to welcome son Alexander and daughter Cornelia, the latter of whom followed in her mother’s footsteps to becomea stylish socialite in her own right. Guest died at age 83 in 2003.
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Calista Flockhart as Lee Radziwill
Calista Flockhart as Lee Radziwill.Pari Dukovic/FX; Reg Burkett/Express/Getty
Pari Dukovic/FX; Reg Burkett/Express/Getty
“Lee just couldn’t let go. It was a sickness. It really destroyed her life,” said Leamer just before the release of his own bookCapote’s Women: A True Story of Love, Betrayal, And a Swan Song for an Era, which provided the basis for the FX series.
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Demi Moore as Ann Woodward
Demi Moore as Ann Woodward.Pari Dukovic/FX; Bettmann
06of 12Molly Ringwald as Joanne CarsonMolly Ringwald as Joanne Carson.Pari Dukovic/FX; Michael Ochs Archives/GettyInFeud’s sophomore season,Molly Ringwaldtakes on the role of the lateTonight ShowhostJohnny Carson’s ex-wife. Before her death in 2015,Joanne Carsonwas a close confidante of Capote’s; he even died at the writing room he kept at her home, per her obituary in theLos Angeles Times.A few years after Capote died, Joanne allegedsomeone stole the writer’s ashesduring a soirée at her home. Shortly after, his ashes were miraculously returned to her home, leaving partygoers like Laurence Leamer skeptical.PEOPLE sent a reporter to the party, who spoke to Joanne about her whimsical relationship with the late writer.“He used to say to me, ‘My precious, I have a treat for you. Tomorrow we go to Paris. Is your passport handy?’ " she recalled to PEOPLE in 1988. “In the morning I would wake up and we would have croissants on a tray with little jelly jars from the Crillon hotel in Paris. This house was our playpen.”
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Molly Ringwald as Joanne Carson
Molly Ringwald as Joanne Carson.Pari Dukovic/FX; Michael Ochs Archives/Getty
Pari Dukovic/FX; Michael Ochs Archives/Getty
InFeud’s sophomore season,Molly Ringwaldtakes on the role of the lateTonight ShowhostJohnny Carson’s ex-wife. Before her death in 2015,Joanne Carsonwas a close confidante of Capote’s; he even died at the writing room he kept at her home, per her obituary in theLos Angeles Times.
A few years after Capote died, Joanne allegedsomeone stole the writer’s ashesduring a soirée at her home. Shortly after, his ashes were miraculously returned to her home, leaving partygoers like Laurence Leamer skeptical.
PEOPLE sent a reporter to the party, who spoke to Joanne about her whimsical relationship with the late writer.
“He used to say to me, ‘My precious, I have a treat for you. Tomorrow we go to Paris. Is your passport handy?’ " she recalled to PEOPLE in 1988. “In the morning I would wake up and we would have croissants on a tray with little jelly jars from the Crillon hotel in Paris. This house was our playpen.”
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Tom Hollander as Truman Capote
Tom Hollander as Truman Capote.Pari Dukovic/FX; John Downing/Express/Getty
Pari Dukovic/FX; John Downing/Express/Getty
Speaking to PEOPLE at theN.Y.C. premiere ofFeud: Capote vs. The Swans,Tom Hollandercalled his character a “rebel.”
“I think [at a time] where people were much more repressed, he was a great show off in a world where everyone is showing off all the time,” the British actor said.
WhileTruman Capote’s legacy spans far beyond his fraught relationship with his so-called swans,Feudfocuses on the fallout that followed the publication of theAnswered Prayersexcerpt “La Côte Basque, 1965.” According to asynopsis of the series, theIn Cold Bloodwriter’s resulting banishment from high society sent him “into a spiral of self-destruction from which he would ultimately never recover.”
08of 12Treat Williams as Bill PaleyTreat Williams as Bill Paley.Pari Dukovic/FX; CBS via GettyTreat Williams— whodied unexpectedlyat age 71 in a June motorcycle accident — makes his final on-screen appearance as Babe Paley’s media tycoon husband on the anthology series.Williams' family attended theFeudpremiere in New York City in January, where Ryan Murphydedicated the season to his memory. In a heartfelt speech, the show’s co-creator shared the final words Williams said to him during a celebratory group dinner held after they wrapped filming.“The last thing he said to me was, he grabbed my face and said, ‘I loved every minute,’ ” Murphy recalled.
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Treat Williams as Bill Paley
Treat Williams as Bill Paley.Pari Dukovic/FX; CBS via Getty
Pari Dukovic/FX; CBS via Getty
Treat Williams— whodied unexpectedlyat age 71 in a June motorcycle accident — makes his final on-screen appearance as Babe Paley’s media tycoon husband on the anthology series.
Williams’ family attended theFeudpremiere in New York City in January, where Ryan Murphydedicated the season to his memory. In a heartfelt speech, the show’s co-creator shared the final words Williams said to him during a celebratory group dinner held after they wrapped filming.
“The last thing he said to me was, he grabbed my face and said, ‘I loved every minute,’ ” Murphy recalled.
09of 12Joe Mantello as Jack DunphyJoe Mantello as Jack Dunphy.Pari Dukovic/FXTwo-time Tony winnerJoe Mantellostars as Capote’s partner Jack Dunphy. The two writers met in 1948 and remained romantically involved until Capote’s death at age 59 in 1984. In the months that followed, Dunphy spoke to PEOPLE abouthis memories with the late literary iconand the consequences of his unfinished novel based on the swans and their scandals.“If Truman hadn’t publishedAnswered Prayersin parts, he’d have had the drive to finish it. The peacocks took it away from him,” Dunphy said bitterly, as reported in the article published in October 1984.
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Joe Mantello as Jack Dunphy
Joe Mantello as Jack Dunphy.Pari Dukovic/FX
Pari Dukovic/FX
Two-time Tony winnerJoe Mantellostars as Capote’s partner Jack Dunphy. The two writers met in 1948 and remained romantically involved until Capote’s death at age 59 in 1984. In the months that followed, Dunphy spoke to PEOPLE abouthis memories with the late literary iconand the consequences of his unfinished novel based on the swans and their scandals.
“If Truman hadn’t publishedAnswered Prayersin parts, he’d have had the drive to finish it. The peacocks took it away from him,” Dunphy said bitterly, as reported in the article published in October 1984.
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Russell Tovey as John O’Shea
Russell Tovey as John O’Shea.Ray Mickshaw/FX
Ray Mickshaw/FX
11of 12Chris Chalk as James BaldwinChris Chalk as James Baldwin.Monica Schipper/Getty; Anthony Barboza/GettyChris Chalkrevives civil rights activistJames Baldwinfor the small screen inFeud. Capote and Baldwin were contemporaries as fiction writers and openly gay men in literary society.Speaking toDeadlinein March 2023, Chalk said he has “always wanted to play” theGo Tell It on the Mountainauthor.
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Chris Chalk as James Baldwin
Chris Chalk as James Baldwin.Monica Schipper/Getty; Anthony Barboza/Getty
Monica Schipper/Getty; Anthony Barboza/Getty
Chris Chalkrevives civil rights activistJames Baldwinfor the small screen inFeud. Capote and Baldwin were contemporaries as fiction writers and openly gay men in literary society.
Speaking toDeadlinein March 2023, Chalk said he has “always wanted to play” theGo Tell It on the Mountainauthor.
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Jessica Lange as Lillie Mae Faulk
Jessica Lange as Lillie Mae Faulk.FX
In season 2 of the anthology series, Lange plays Capote’s mother, Lillie Mae Faulk, who died in 1954.
source: people.com
