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The 41-year-old read a copy of Colson
Whitehead's harrowing tale before its 2016 release, and was
enamoured by its young protagonist, Black slave Cora, and her
quest for freedom from a Georgia plantation.
Set in the 19th century Deep South, the 10-part series, released
on Amazon Prime Video on May 14, is Jenkins' biggest television
project to date, with haunting and harrowing images of slavery
brutality.
"Both the scale and scope of the story and the delicate nature
of the subject matter, I think for many different reasons it was
something to fear," Jenkins told Reuters in an interview.
"But I think that's a good thing. As an artist, if you're not
afraid somewhat of what you're doing, then the thing that you're
creating is not going to help you expand or evolve."
The story follows Cora, played by South African actress Thuso
Mbedu, as she discovers the "Underground Railroad", a secret
network of tracks, and embarks on her journey, travelling from
state to state.
"The show is ultimately about survival. It's about triumph in a
certain way, but it's rooted out of this trauma that is very
real and it must be acknowledged," Jenkins said.
Cora is pursued by slave hunter Ridgeway, played by Joel
Edgerton, who wants to make up for never catching her mother
when she escaped years before.
"There was a whole lot of preparation that went into Cora, but
even going into the production, I knew that ... I had a lot of
people to lean on," Mbedu said of her gruelling role, adding
that cast and crew made sure to organise events to unwind.
"I'd have situations where sometimes I'd feel the residue of
Cora bleeding into my own life. But I was intentional about
checking in, self awareness was very key. We also had a guidance
counsellor on set who would always check in on me as well, which
is something I really appreciated."
As part of the location scout, Jenkins visited a cotton field in
Georgia, a moment he described as "intense".
"But then it was also quite beautiful because I was there with
all these folks who looked like me and we were the descendants
of all these people who stood in this field," he said.
"And the idea that they could imagine us coming back there to
recreate their experience is something quite wonderful."
(Reporting by Lisa Keddie; Writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian;
Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
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