Steve Coogan, who plays Jimmy Savile in the upcoming BBC drama The Reckoning, stands by.
The four-part drama featuring the paedophile is set to debut this autumn and has already sparked anxiety since its announcement.
Coogan, 57, will play the evil TV host, who was a serial abuser who was ultimately outed after his death in 2011, utilising his participation in charity, the BBC, politics, and even his friendship with the Royal Family to conceal his atrocities.
Many people condemned the series for repeating the issue and perhaps retraumatizing Savile’s victims.
‘It is controversial and I understand that,’ Coogan told Radio Times.
‘The BBC are damned if they do and damned if they don’t, and I believe the correct choice is to be damned if they do. Broadly, it’s better to talk about something than not.
‘The team had the right attitude and it was done with the cooperation of survivors. I think when it’s broadcast, it will vindicate itself.’
The BBC previously said it will ‘use drama’s unique ability to place events in their emotional and historical context’.
Four survivors will also be questioned on video about their contacts with Savile in the series.
Siobhan Finneran from Happy Valley, Mark Lewis Jones from Outlander, and Gemma Jones from Marvellous will also appear.
The Reckoning is expected to air on BBC this autumn. Read Steve Coogan’s full interview in this week’s Radio Times.
Source My Celebrity Life.
