The news just continues to pile on for the HBO network today. HBO already announced that its hit comedy Girls would be returning for a fourth season, and the premiere date for season four of Game Of Thrones.

The most recent news comes for an upcoming film that will air on HBO, which is likely to be up for several awards next year.

Two openly gay men, Jim Parsons and Matt Bomer, play the leads in the film’s adaptation. Parsons is known for playing the part of Sheldon Cooper on CBS’ The Big Bang Theory, earning him multiple Emmys, and Bomer is the star of USA’s White Collar.

Ryan Murphy has said that “it is sort of thrilling” to feature two gay men in an AIDS TV drama.

The film is called The Normal Heart, and is directed by Ryan Murphy, who has assembled an all-star cast for the HBO project. The film is also being written by Larry Kramer, who is an Academy Award nominee for the film Women In Love.

Ryan Murphy has previously worked on a series of successful shows including Glee, which he has won multiple Emmys for. He also works on American Horror Story, and was the director of Nip/Tuck. Murphy will join Kramer who wrote the film as well as the groundbreaking play that it is based on to make the film that is presented by HBO Films.

“I read it in the closet of my drama room when I was 14 years old and the irony was not lost on me.” -Matt Bomer re: Normal Heart.

— Jace Lacob (@televisionary) January 10, 2014

The Normal Heart is a drama that tells the story of the onset of the HIV-AIDS crisis in New York City in the early 1980s.

The film will take a look at the nation’s sexual politics as gay activists and their allies in the medical community fight to expose the truth about the burgeoning epidemic to a city and nation in denial.

Kramer’s play debuted at New York’s Public Theatre in 1985 and was revived in Los Angeles and London, and off-Broadway. Jim Parsons plays gay activist Tommy Boatwright, reprising his role from the 2011 Broadway revival. The 2011 Broadway revival garnered five Tony nominations, winning for Best Revival, Best Featured Actor and Best Featured Actress.

In addition to the lead actors being played by Jim Parsons and Matt Bomer, many other actors have joined on in an outstanding ensemble cast. The cast includes Oscar nominee Mark Ruffalo, Oscar winner Julia Roberts, Alfred Molina, Corey Stoll, and several others.

The Normal Heart is set to debut on HBO in May, although it has not been given an official premiere date yet.

Image via Wikimedia Commons