Salena Zito’s Butler to begin filming this month, revisiting a day of trauma and loss

Washington Examiner columnist Salena Zito will watch her book, Butler: The Untold Story of the Near Assassination of Donald Trump and the Fight for America’s Heartland, make it to the big screen as filming begins later this month. 

“It makes sense that it should be a movie just because of how it happened, where it happened, and its impact,” Zito told the Washington Examiner. 

Zito was standing just feet away from President Donald Trump in Butler, Pennsylvania, on July 13, 2024, when a gunman opened fire from a nearby roof. Identified as 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks, the would-be assassin hit Trump’s ear with a bullet.

Zito said she never thought “ahead to the next day or the following days” after the tragic event, which resulted in the death of Corey Comperatore, a 50-year-old former fire chief, husband, and father of two.

Zito said she never thought she would have a book, let alone a movie, made about the day.

The film will focus on the events that transpired at the campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds, according to a casting notice from Nancy Mosser Casting.

“It is a story of ordinary Western Pennsylvanians caught inside one of the most shocking moments in modern American history. Everyone remembers the day, but few know what really happened,” the notice said.

Zito said her story seeks to capture the grief and profound loss of that day, as well as the trauma experienced by everyone who lived through it.

“I have no idea what that’s going to look like or feel like for me,” Zito said, reflecting on what it will be like to relive such a traumatic experience on film.

Zito emphasized that this story is also about journalism, and how working in the field can take a turn at any moment and become history.

She said it’s part of the “nature of reporting”: starting out with a list, and watching it all change.

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“Our level of expectation is probably that 70% of what we planned on doing that day turns out to be something completely different,” Zito said.

The movie’s producer, Christian Sander, told the Washington Examiner that the film captures the raw emotion of the day.

“It’s fascinating to see how, when history unfolds in our backyard, how people handle it,” Sander said. 

Sander said the actress who will play Zito, whose name has not yet been released, captures “her Italianness, her no-BS attitude, and also her grandmotherly presence.”

Zito said she has spent a lot of time getting to know the actress, whom she described as “amazing.”

“God bless her trying to be me,” Zito said. 

Sander said they have faced some challenges in creating the movie.

“People have very strong opinions about that day, regardless of where they sit,” Sander said.

The purpose is to “capture a dramatic snapshot of a moment in history, rather than something political,” Sander said.

Zito announced that her book would be made into a movie in July 2025.

“There was a production company called Pense, and they just asked to see an early copy of the book,” Zito said on The Sean Spicer Show. “They were interested; they thought ‘this was a really pivotal moment in history,’ then they read the book and went, like, crazy for it, and they optioned it as a movie!”

Zito has reported extensively on Trump and was even called to the stage by Trump at the Pennsylvania Defense and Innovation Summit on July 15.

“I worked with Salena Zito; I don’t know if Salena’s here. Is Salena here? Where’s Salena?” Trump said. “I love Salena. She’s queen of the Rust Belt, but you’re no longer the Rust Belt; you’re really the ‘Money Belt.’”

Zito had said she was “grateful” for the name-drop.

Filming is slated to start Sept. 14, according to the casting call.

Film crews are looking for paid background actors, ages 18 and up, to portray “Rally Attendees, Security, Event Staff, Police, SWAT, Secret Service, Vendors, Law Enforcement, FBI, Press and more.”

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The listing says to expect 12-14 hour shoot days. The gig pays $225 for a 12-hour guarantee, with most of the filming in Beaver County, Pennsylvania.

Interested applicants can fill out the form online using the link.