‘Game of Thrones’ Showrunners Set for New HBO Series Following Alternate American Timeline Where Slavery Still Exists
As HBO‘s hit fantasy series “Game of Thrones” sets course for its surely explosive ending, the cable outfit is apparently eager to stay in business with showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss.
Casey Bloys, president of HBO Programmning, has announced that the pair are now signed on for a new original series, entitled “Confederate,” which will imagine an alternate American timeline in which a third civil war has irrevocably changed the fabric and landscape of the United States.
Per an official announcement, “Confederate” will follow “the events leading to the Third American Civil War. The series takes place in an alternate timeline, where the southern states have successfully seceded from the Union, giving rise to a nation in which slavery remains legal and has evolved into a modern institution. The story follows a broad swath of characters on both sides of the Mason-Dixon Demilitarized Zone – freedom fighters, slave hunters, politicians, abolitionists, journalists, the executives of a slave-holding conglomerate and the families of people in their thrall.”
The new series will be written and created by Benioff and Weiss, who will also serve as showrunners on the series. Partnering with them as executive producers and writers on the series will be Nichelle Tramble Spellman (“Justified,” “The Good Wife”) and Malcolm Spellman (“Empire,” the forthcoming “Foxy Brown”). Carolyn Strauss (“Game of Thrones”) and Bernadette Caulfield (“Game of Thrones,” “Big Love”) will also join as executive producers.
“As the brilliant ‘Game of Thrones’ winds down to its final season, we are thrilled to be able to continue our relationship with Dan and David, knowing that any subject they take on will result in a unique and ambitious series,” said Bloys in an official statement. “Their intelligent, wry and visually stunning approach to storytelling has a way of engaging an audience and taking them on an unforgettable journey. CONFEDERATE promises to be no exception, and we are honored to be adding the talented team of Nichelle and Malcolm Spellman to the mix.”
The pair have apparently been formulating the project for some time, initially imagining it as a feature film. They added in their own statement, “Our experience on ‘Thrones’ has convinced us that no one provides a bigger, better storytelling canvas than HBO. There won’t be dragons or White Walkers in this series, but we are creating a world, and we couldn’t imagine better partners in world-building than Nichelle and Malcolm, who have impressed us for a long time with their wit, their imagination and their Scrabble-playing skills.”
Production will begin following the final season of “Game of Thrones.”
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