WGN America is looking to expand up its slate of original programming in some promising ways. The network already has the horror-influenced witch dramaSalem, as well asOutsiders,about an off-the-grid Kentucky family. But, while it also is getting ready for itsUndergroundrailroad series, it canceled the critically-liked nuclear dramaManhattan. In a more high-profile win that could bring more eyes to WGN America, the network has now purchased the rights to the DC Comics titleScalped.
This move could be also be a huge win for diversity.Scalpedis a 60-issue comic written byJason Aaronand illustrated byR.M. Guéra. It tells of Dashiell “Dash” Bad Horse who has returned to his Indian reservation years after he ran away.Geoff Johns, DC’s chief creative officer, will executive produceScalpedwithDoug Jung(Banshee), who is also penning the script.
Perhaps most importantly,THRnotes that WGN America is looking to feature an all Native American cast. Amid outcries for more diversity within both Hollywood and geek entertainment content, this could be the first of its kind. Though, we’ll have to see if the network can successfully turn these good intentions into action. Netflix’sUnbreakable Kimmy Schmidtcame under fire whenJane Krakowskiportrayed a character with Native American roots, which could already be a foreseeable problem for something likeScalpedif WGN swaps certain characters (see also:Gods of Egypt). Seeing Native Americans actors on TV is rare, and to have a series devoted to them with be a huge step in the right direction.
Elsewhere, WGN is also developing a series based on theArkadyandBoris StrugatskynovelRoadside Picnic.The series also boastsGame of Thrones’Alan Taylordirecting the pilot, and executive producing alongsideAlien: Convenant’sJack Paglen, who wrote the script.
Roadside Picnicexplores a near-future world where aliens have come and gone, leaving humankind to explore the wondrous and dangerous mysteries left behind as well as the societal ramifications of their visit, as seen through the eyes of Red, a veteran “stalker” who has made it his life to illegally venture into the once-inhabited zone and scavenge the abandoned remains of the alien culture.
Back to DC,Scalpedalso joinsPowerlessin new comic-based series for the upcoming pilot season (thoughPowerlessis an office-place sitcom), as well as a suite of other DC series already on the small screen, includingGothamandSupergirlon Fox, andThe Flash,Arrow, andLegends of Tomorrowon the CW.
Here’s the official plot synopsis fromVertigo ComicsonScalped #1:
Fifteen years ago, Dashiell “Dash” Bad Horse ran away from a life of abject poverty and utter hopelessness on the Prairie Rose Indian Reservation searching for something better. Now he’s come back home armed with nothing but a set of nunchucs, a hell-bent-for-leather attitude and one dark secret, to find nothing much has changed on “The Rez” - short of a glimmering new casino, and a once-proud people overcome by drugs and organized crime. Is he here to set things right or just get a piece of the action?
