Goran Visnjic Set to Star in the USA Network Production of 'Spartacus' USA Today/Yahoo!Finance, May 21, 2003 by USA Today Press Release Los Angeles, May 21 /PRNewswire/ -- USA Network announced today that production is underway for Spartacus, a four-hour original miniseries based on Howard Fast's acclaimed novel Spartacus. Spartacus will be directed by Robert Dornhelm ("RUDY: The Rudy Giuliani Story," "Anne Frank") from a script by Pulitzer Prize winning writer Robert Schenkkan ("The Quiet American," "The Kentucky Cycle"). The miniseries stars Goran Visnjic ("E.R.," "The Deep End," "Welcome to Sarajevo") as Spartacus, Alan Bates ("The Sum of All Fears," "Gosford Park") as Lentulas Agrippa, Henry Simmons ("NYPD Blue") as Draba, Angus Macfayden ("Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood," "Braveheart") as Crassus, Rhona Mitra ("Sweet Home Alabama," "The Life of David Gale") as Varinia, and James Frain ("The Count of Monte Cristo") as David. In 72 B.C., a time when the Roman Empire's brutal force was far-reaching, each country conquered meant new slaves to do their Roman masters' bidding. During this time, Spartacus, sold into slavery as a young boy after witnessing his father's murder, led a slave revolt against Rome's powerful generals and politicians. The profound impact of Spartacus' challenge to the Empire in the name of freedom was felt for years to come. Spartacus will begin filming in Bulgaria on May 26, 2003 and is slated to premiere in first quarter 2004. The miniseries will be produced by Fuel Entertainment and distributed by USA Cable Entertainment. Adam Shapiro ("Helen of Troy," "Andre," "Tom's Midnight Garden") will serve as executive producer. USA Network has a history of premiering successful original miniseries. "Helen of Troy," which debuted in April 2003, was the network's most-watched original movie or miniseries since the top-rated "Atilla" in January 2001. USA Network is cable television's leading provider of original series and feature movies, sports events, off-net television shows, and blockbuster theatrical films. USA Network is available in 81% of all U.S. homes and is seen in nearly 87 million U.S. homes. The USA Network Web site is located at www.usanetwork.com . USA Network is a program service of Universal Television Networks, part of the Universal Television Group, a division of Vivendi UNIVERSAL Entertainment (VUE) ( www.universalstudios.com ), the U.S.-based film, television and recreation entity of Vivendi Universal, a global media and communications company. For further information please contact Andrea Tiano, +1-818-777-6679, andrea.tiano@unistudios.com , or Aurli Bokovza, +1-212-413-5552, aurli.bokovza@unistudios.com , both of USA Network.