Today is Oscar-winner Barry Jenkins‘ birthday, and what better way to celebrate the big four-one than reminding everyone how dang talented you are. The Moonlight filmmaker released yet another teaser for The Underground Railroad, his upcoming Amazon mini-series, and the footage looks simply sun-drenched and gorgeous, in typical Jenkins style.
Based on the book by Colson Whitehead, the series imagines the very real network of shelters and safe routes followed by escaped slaves in the mid-19th century as an actual, literal railroad, complete with trains and engineers. Although this latest teaser doesn’t include much story footage, it is another showcase of the gorgeous attention to detail in costuming, the lush golden-hued cinematography from James Laxton, and Nicholas Brittell‘s sweeping score. (Brittell also scored Moonlight and If Beale Street Could Talk, two pieces of music guaranteed to make me weep openly regardless of setting 100% of the time.)
Jenkins directed every episode of The Underground Railroad Thuso Mbedu in the lead as a woman navigating the railroad, along with Chase W. Dillon, Aaron Pierre, Joel Edgerton, Amber Gray, William Jackson Harper, and Damon Herriman.
Check out the new teaser below. The Underground Railroad will (hopefully!) debut on Amazon in 2021, and then Jenkins will get to work on reimagining The Lion King.
via Collider