Ryan Murphy to
write and direct Dirty Tricks for Paramount

Ryan Murphy, the openly gay creator of Nip/Tuck and Popular, will write and direct Dirty Tricks for Paramount, reports Variety. Based on the play by John Jeter, Tricks examines the behind-the-scenes machinations of the Watergate scandal. Murphy has assembled an all-star cast, including Meryl Streep as Martha Mitchell, Annette Bening (the star of Murphy's upcoming directorial debut, Running With Scissors) as White House correspondent Helen Thomas, Gwyneth Paltrow as Maureen "Mo" Dean, and Jill Clayburgh as Pat Nixon. Murphy, who is currently midway through producing the third season of Nip/Tuck, hopes to shoot the film by next spring.