The stars of Hamilton may be known to many for their work in the now-iconic play, but many have, of course, moved on to new productions. This includes Daveed Diggs and Jasmine Cephas Jones, who starred alongside each other in the 2018 film Blindspotting, which Diggs wrote and produced. It was eventually announced that the two would continue the story in a TV series, and the first trailer has finally arrived. And fans of the film will be happy to learn that the show appears to be just as surreal and sharp.
Starz has officially released the first trailer for Blindspotting, which now puts Jasmine Cephas Jones’ Ashley in the lead role. The show picks up six months after the events of the film and sees Ashley reeling from the unexpected arrest of longtime boyfriend -- and baby daddy -- Miles (played by the returning Rafael Casal. With this, Ashley and young son Sean must move in with Miles’ mother (Helen Hunt) and half-sister.
Unfortunately, fans hoping to see Daveed Diggs reprise his role as Collin Hoskins will be out of luck because, as of right now, it doesn’t look like Diggs will appear on the show. However, he is serving as a writer and executive producer on the series.
2018’s Blindspotting was praised by critics when it first released, with many lauding the film for its comedy and poignant social commentary. With the TV follow-up, Daveed Diggs and Rafel Casal will look to continue to examine certain aspects of our society. In a statement previously released to Variety, Diggs discussed what he and Casal, who also serves as showrunner, want to accomplish with the new show:
Figuring out a way to bring The Bay to life in a half-hour comedy space has been so rewarding. Ultimately, this is a story about how a broken prison system affects all of us and, like the film, we’re using comedy to talk about very real systemic effects in the country with the largest prison population in the world.
The world-building that’s at play in Blindspotting is also going to be interesting to see. One can only imagine what else we’re going to learn about Ashley, and it seems like a given that we’ll learn a lot about MIles’ background and family history, which is bound to be messy.
The debut trailer for Blindspotting displays just how closely the show has managed to maintain the motif of the film. While the movie had a very grounded feel, it was also filled with plenty of surreal moments. The existential crisis Ashley goes through, as a result of her current situation, is sure to be both compelling and hilarious.
It’ll be fun to see how things pan out for her when Blindspotting premieres June 13 on Starz.
