When the mighty have fallen, everyone else gets to rise up and take the throne. That’s what’s happening over at FX now, as Sons of Anarchy’s ashes are being swept away and replaced by the development of a brand new spinoff series from creator Kurt Sutter himself. And it won’t be SAMCRO at the helm this time, either.
Details about the untitled project are few and far between, but the one clear fact is that this new series would be based on the Mayans motorcycle club that worked with and against Jax & Co. throughout the seven seasons of Sons of Anarchy. And while we don’t know that it’s going to be hyper-violent and full of deadly mayhem, that’s the safest assumption to make about any TV show ever.
It’s not clear whether this in-the-works spinoff would take place during the present-day affairs of the Oakland-based squad – with the complete destruction of the Teller family in the recent past – or if it would be a prequel to the flagship series, or even something that ran concurrent with any of the Sons of Anarchy seasons. (Charlie Hunnam guest spot!) The Mayans run heroin factories and are deep in the prostitution game, and I’m guessing more criminal enterprising would be added to deepen the story avenues. Truth be told, Emilio Rivera’s stellar performance as the Mayan M.C. president Marcus Alvarez was a big reason why that gang’s sideplots remained intriguing over the years, so I would be majorly disappointed if he wasn’t front and center of this potential series.
According to EW, Sutter is putting this thing together and will serve as an executive producer, but his longterm plans include looking to pass off the showrunner duties to someone else should FX choose to move forward with it. (And they probably will, since Sons of Anarchy was one of the network’s most popular series.) Sutter is currently busy trying to turn his historical epic The Bastard Executioner into a television addiction for viewers, so he doesn’t have the time or the energy to devote to another gang-based drama. Luckily, we’ll know by next month if Bastard was worth his effort.
Sutter has talked many times in the past about branching out from the central Sons of Anarchy story, but it’s almost always been conceived as a prequel series about SAMCRO’s originators, The First 9, with Jax’s father J.T. as the man in charge. But Sutter said he wanted to take a few years away from that world before heading back for more, so that project is still a possibility, regardless of what happens with this Mayan-centric one.
However any of it goes, you can bet your denim-covered ass I’ll be watching anything that Sutter brings to FX. Stay tuned for more info as it gets announced.
