“The project is currently in its infancy so we hope that people will reserve judgment until there is something to see.”
I recently stumbled across a conversation taking place on social media about an HBO show that is currently still in the works. The premise of the show is that slavery never ended, and the plot takes place in modern day. I thought it sounded like an interesting idea for a show, especially after learning it would have the same producers as Game of Thrones—of which I am an avid watcher.
The upcoming show, Confederate, drew backlash from online activists over its subject matter. April Reign, known for her participation in the “OscarsSoWhite” fiasco, was among the organizers of the latest hashtag “NoConfederate,” which asked users to tweet the hashtag to HBO during Sunday’s broadcast of Game of Thrones. Of course they chose this particular time because the wildly successful Game of Thrones is HBO’s top-rating show.
As the campaign went viral, HBO asked that users hold off on any uprising until they have the opportunity to present the show. HBO has enlisted prominent black writer-producers to be a part of the project and have addressed concerns activists and fans of HBO alike may have in a released statement. “We have great respect for the dialogue and concern being expressed around ‘Confederate,’” the network said. “The project is currently in its infancy so we hope that people will reserve judgment until there is something to see.”
Their statement didn’t stop the anger over the upcoming show, which isn’t even set to begin production for another year. One critic wrote an entire op-ed about how she’s not interested in watching “slavery fan fiction.”
Political correctness aside, this show actually sounds original. According to HBO, there will be broader discussion via the show that will advance further dialogue on the issue of racism in America. They’ve also explained that the show isn’t going to be the average plantation drama that has been done countless times. It seems like television and movies have gotten to the point of recycling work that has already been done. With the advance in technology and special effects, sometimes work can be remade to have more of an impact (although I have seen it done far too many times to be interested in seeing a remake).
Confederate definitely sounds like something that has never been touched on before. Personally, I’m interested in seeing the spin HBO puts on modern-day slavery in the United States. I hardly think that it calls for Twitter outrage before it has even had a shot at being viewed. Of all the uncomfortable and shocking content that film puts out, I’m surprised there isn’t backlash over more titles from the social justice warrior crew.
Of course, there was a small freakout recently among SJWs over Game of Thrones and the lack of diversity in the cast—even though there are people of color featured in the show. I guess nothing is safe from trending Twitter backlash these days. When will anything ever be good enough? I guess the old adage still holds that you can’t please them all.
