The_Underground_Railroad_(miniseries)

<i>The Underground Railroad</i> (miniseries)

The Underground Railroad (miniseries)

American drama streaming television miniseries


The Underground Railroad is an American historical drama limited television series created and directed by Barry Jenkins based on the 2016 novel of the same name by Colson Whitehead. The series premiered on Amazon Prime Video on May 14, 2021.

Quick Facts The Underground Railroad, Genre ...

The series won the Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film, the BAFTA for Best International Programme, received a Peabody Award, and garnered several other nominations including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series.

Premise

A fictional story of people attempting an escape from slavery in the southern United States in the 1800s utilizing a key plot element that employs the literary style of magic realism.[2] In reality, "The Underground Railroad" was a network of abolitionists, hidden routes, and safe houses that helped enslaved African-Americans escape to freedom in the early to mid-1800s. In the novel and the series, it is an actual railroad complete with engineers, conductors, tracks, and tunnels. Cora, an enslaved woman from Georgia, joins newcomer Caesar to ride the subterranean train to freedom.[3]

Cast

Main

Recurring

Episodes

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Production

Editor Joi McMillon and director Barry Jenkins in 2024

Development

On September 16, 2016, it was announced that Barry Jenkins was set to adapt Colson Whitehead's novel The Underground Railroad into a limited series. Jenkins was expected to produce the series alongside Adele Romanski. Production companies involved with the series were set to include Plan B Entertainment.[6] On March 27, 2017, it was reported that Amazon Video had given the production a script-to-series commitment.[7] On June 5, 2018, it was announced that Amazon given the production a formal greenlight and that Jenkins would direct all eleven episodes of the series.[3] In June 2019, Nicholas Britell announced he would serve as composer on the series.[8]

Casting

In April 2019, Thuso Mbedu, Chase W. Dillon, Aaron Pierre and Joel Edgerton joined the cast of the series.[9][10] In August 2019, Damon Herriman and William Jackson Harper joined the cast of the series in recurring roles.[11][12] In September 2019, Lucius Baston joined the cast of the series in a recurring role.[13] In October 2019, Amber Gray joined the cast of the series in a recurring role.[14] In November 2019, Jim Klock joined the cast of the series in a recurring role.[15] In January 2020, Lily Rabe joined the cast of the series in a recurring role.[16] In February 2020, Fred Hechinger and the rest of the cast was announced.[17][18]

Filming

Filming began in August 2019 in Savannah, Georgia, and production lasted 116 days before concluding on September 22, 2020.[19][20][21]

Release

The Underground Railroad was released on Amazon Prime Video on May 14, 2021.[22] The Underground Railroad will receive a home media release through The Criterion Collection on June 25, 2024.[23]

Reception

Critical response

The Underground Railroad received widespread critical acclaim. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 94% based on 106 critic reviews, with an average rating of 8.9/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "With a superb ensemble and Barry Jenkins' singular eye, The Underground Railroad delicately translates its source material into a powerfully humane series that is as challenging as it is necessary."[24] Metacritic gave the series a weighted average score of 92 out of 100 based on 37 critic reviews, indicating "universal acclaim".[25]

Reviewing the series for Rolling Stone, Alan Sepinwall gave a rating of 4/5 and described the series as "an imperfect take on a painful, sprawling subject. But its emotional highs and lows are stronger than anything you are likely to find on TV this year, just as those images are more gorgeous and nightmarish."[26] Stephen Robinson of The A.V. Club gave the series an A and said, "Jenkins has assembled an amazing cast, including William Jackson Harper as Cora's love interest, Royal, and Lily Rabe, who chills the screen as Ethel, the wife of a North Carolina abolitionist (Damon Herriman)."[2]

Accolades

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See also


References

  1. "JAMES LAXTON BEGINS SHOOTING THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD". Lux Artists. June 4, 2019. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  2. Robinson, Stephen (May 5, 2021). "Barry Jenkins outdoes himself in the transcendent Underground Railroad". The A.V. Club. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  3. Andreeva, Nellie (March 27, 2017). "Amazon Lands Barry Jenkins & Plan B's 'Underground Railroad' Limited Series". Deadline. Retrieved June 5, 2018.
  4. Petski, Denise (August 16, 2019). "Damon Herriman Joins 'Underground Railroad'; 'Ballers' Casts Catherine Haena Kim". Deadline. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  5. Petski, Denise (August 22, 2019). "'The Underground Railroad': William Jackson Harper To Recur On Amazon Series". Deadline. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  6. Evans, Greg (October 24, 2019). "'The Underground Railroad': Broadway's Amber Gray Joins Amazon Limited Series". Deadline. Retrieved October 24, 2019.
  7. Petski, Denise (January 22, 2020). "'The Underground Railroad': Lily Rabe To Recur On Amazon Series". Deadline. Retrieved January 22, 2020.
  8. Petski, Denise (February 27, 2020). "'The Underground Railroad': Fred Hechinger Joins Amazon Drama Series". Deadline. Retrieved June 13, 2020.
  9. Dennis, Zach (February 26, 2021). "Savannah-shot 'The Underground Railroad' set for Amazon Prime debut on May 14". Savannah Now. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
  10. Hersko, Tyler (September 22, 2020). "Barry Jenkins Wraps 116-Day Production on 'Underground Railroad'". IndieWire. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
  11. Haring, Bruce (February 25, 2021). "'The Underground Railroad' Amazon Prime Limited Series Sets Premiere Date". Deadline. Retrieved February 25, 2021.
  12. Perez, Rodrigo (March 15, 2024). "Barry Jenkins' 'Underground Railroad' Comes To The Criterion Collection In June". The Playlist. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
  13. "Black Reel Awards for Television 2021: Plenty of "Love" in the Heart of the Country!". The Black Reel Awards. June 17, 2021. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
  14. Lattanzio, Ryan (November 30, 2021). "Gotham Awards: 'The Lost Daughter' Wins Top Prize — See the Full List of Winners". IndieWire. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  15. Menzel, Scott (July 9, 2021). "Ted Lasso, The Handmaid's Tale, and Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist lead Inaugural HCA TV Awards Nominations". Hollywood Critics Association. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
  16. Schneider, Michael (August 29, 2021). "'Ted Lasso,' 'The Crown,' 'The Mandalorian,' 'Cruel Summer,' 'New Amsterdam' Among HCA TV Awards Winners". Variety. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
  17. Turchiano, Danielle (July 15, 2021). "'Ted Lasso' Scores the Most 2021 TCA Awards Nominations". Variety. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  18. Hipes, Patrick (January 25, 2022). "ASC Awards Nominations Include 'Dune', 'Nightmare Alley', 'Belfast'". Deadline. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
  19. "BAFTA Television 2022: The Winners". BAFTA. March 29, 2022. Retrieved May 8, 2022.
  20. Hipes, Patrick (January 26, 2022). "Costume Designers Guild Awards Nominees Include 'House Of Gucci', 'Cruella', 'Zola'". Deadline. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
  21. Chuba, Kirsten; Gajewski, Ryan; Lewis, Hilary (March 12, 2022). "DGA Awards: Jane Campion and 'The Power of the Dog' Take Top Honor". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  22. Pedersen, Erik (January 24, 2022). "Golden Reel Awards: Sound Editors Crank Up Nominations For 69th Annual Ceremony". Deadline. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
  23. Long, Brent; Tangcay, Jazz (December 14, 2021). "Indie Spirit Awards 2022: Full List of Nominations". Variety. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  24. Zhan, Jennifer (February 26, 2022). "NAACP Image Awards Winners Include Jazmine Sullivan, Will Smith, Red Table Talk". Vulture. Retrieved February 27, 2022.

Notes

  1. Only credited as starring in episode 4
  2. Only credited as starring in episode 7
  3. Only credited as starring in episode 10

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