Clay Aiken didn’t reach Capitol Hill — or “American Idol” victory — but he will make it to his own TV series.
Esquire Network, part of NBCUniversal’s cable stable, announced Wednesday that it had picked up a four-episode series about Aiken’s failed run for Congress from North Carolina’s 2nd District. The series, which is still untitled, will premiere in early 2015.
In Tuesday’s election, Aiken, an openly gay Democrat, got trounced by 17 points by Republican incumbent Renee Ellmers, who won with more than 58 per cent of the vote.
British documentary producer Simon Chinn, best known for features such as Man on Wire and Searching for Sugarman, and his team followed Aiken for months, from his February entry into the race through Tuesday night’s returns.
“The docu-series provides an intimate look at the hope of victory and, ultimately, the disappointment of defeat,” Esquire wrote in a news release.
Aiken, now 35, shot to fame in 2003, when he was runner-up to Ruben Studdard on American Idol. His first album for RCA went double platinum, but sales of his subsequent records have dwindled.
— Los Angeles Times
