In 1990, Dr. Jack Kevorkian captivated the world as he took the end-of-life debate head on with his “Mercy Machine” and performed his first assisted suicide. Now, HBO is telling this fascinating story in You Don’t Know Jack, a new original film starring Oscar® and Emmy®-winning actor Al Pacino as Kevorkian, premiering Saturday, April 24 at 9 p.m. ET/MT on HBO Canada, a multiplex channel of Astral Media’s The Movie Network (Eastern Canada) and Corus Entertainment’s Movie Central (Western Canada).
Recognized by many as one of the most polarizing figures in modern American history, Jack “Dr. Death” Kevorkian’s passionate belief that people have the right to die brought him both praise and vilification. When Kevorkian performed his first assisted suicide, by helping an Alzheimer’s patient end her life using a homemade machine known as a “Mercitron,” the event set off a national media frenzy and triggered a decade-long war between Kevorkian and county prosecutors who were committed to shutting Kevorkian down.
You Don’t Know Jack follows the story of former pathologist Kevorkian as he launches his crusade to provide what he considers to be a humane and dignified option for the terminally ill, assisted suicide. Aided by his allies –older sister Margo Janus (Brenda Vaccaro); loyal friend Neal Nicol (John Goodman); right-to-die organization and Hemlock Society activist Jane Good (Susan Sarandon); and defence attorney Geoffrey Fieger (Danny Huston) – Kevorkian offers his “death counselling” services to over 100 patients, and ultimately catapults himself to the forefront of news headlines and a cause fraught with legal and ethical hurdles.
The film is directed by Oscar®-winner Barry Levinson; executive produced by Steve Lee Jones, Glenn Rigberg, Lydia Dean Pilcher, Tom Fontana and Levinson; produced by Scott Ferguson; and written by Adam Mazer.
You Don’t Know Jack will be simulcast on HBO Canada HD, and will be available on demand. It will also be available on The Movie Network OnLine with Bell TV following its network premiere.
HBO Canada is a multiplex channel offered by Astral Media’s The Movie Network (Eastern Canada) and Corus Entertainment’s Movie Central (Western Canada).
