Barry Jenkins has shared the teaser for his upcoming series, The Underground Railroad. Sett to stream on Amazon Prime, the series will examine the story of Cora Randall as she flees the Antebellum South.
"From Academy Award® winner Barry Jenkins and based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel by Colson Whitehead, The Underground Railroad chronicles Cora Randall’s desperate bid for freedom in the antebellum South," Amazon Prime described the series.
"After escaping a Georgia plantation for the rumored Underground Railroad, Cora discovers no mere metaphor, but an actual railroad beneath the Southern soil."
Actress Thuso Mbedu will take the lead as Cora Randall. The South African actress has starred in a number of projects including Saints and Sinners, Shuga and IsiBaya. Mbedu will be joined by a talented cast that includes Chase W. Dillon, Joel Edgerton, Aaron Pierre, William Jackson Harper, Sheila Atim, Amber Gray and several others.
The Underground Railroad is only Jenkins's third project since releasing Moonlight in 2016. He has remained selective in his work over the last five years. Since Moonlight, he has directed an episode of Dear White People and the feature film, If Beale Street Could Talk. Not to mention, he contributed to the 2020 HBO Max release, Charm City Kings. He is currently working on the aforementioned Amazon Prime series as well as a prequel for the Disney hit film, The Lion King. He is also working on the Claressa Shields biopic, Flint Strong.
The Underground Railroad is the first of many projects that Jenkins has in store. It is set to debut on Amazon Prime on May 14.
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