Schreiber, who will play President Lyndon B. Johnson, joins a cast that features Forest Whitaker as Allen, Oprah Winfrey as his wife, James Marsden as John F. Kennedy, Minka Kelly as Jackie Kennedy, Robin Williams (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo) as President Dwight D. Eisenhower, John Cusack as Richard Nixon and Tony nominees Alan Rickman (Seminar) and Jane Fonda (33 Variations) as Ronald and Nancy Reagan, respectively. The cast also includes Tony Award nominee Colman Domingo (The Scottsboro Boys), Cuba Gooding, Jr., David Oyelowo, Lenny Kravitz, Jesse Williams, Alex Pettyfer, Mariah Carey, Tony Award winner Vanessa Redgrave (Long Day's Journey Into Night), Yaya DaCosta, Elijah Kelly.

Lee Daniels will direct from a screenplay by Danny Strong, which is based on Wil Haygood's Washington Post article about Allen. Original music for the film is being composed by Quincy Jones.

Schreiber won a Tony Award in 2005 for his performance in Glengarry Glen Ross and was nominated for his performances in A View From the Bridge and Talk Radio. He has also been seen on Broadway in Betrayal and In the Summer House.