Fans who had been looking forward to seeing Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's acclaimed novel Americanah come to the small screen in 2021 have been disappointed.
HBO had made a straight-to-series order for the show, which was set to be written by Danai Gurira (The Walking Dead). Her Black Panther co-star, Lupita Nyong'o was going to headline as the main character.
A Victim Of The COVID Pandemic
However, the project became yet another victim of the COVID-19 pandemic, as scheduling challenges forced Nyong'o to drop out from the show. HBO consequently decided not to go ahead with the production.
At the moment, Nyong'o is focused on a different novel adaptation, Laura Lippman's Lady in the Lake, which will also feature Natalie Portman on Apple TV+.
The move by HBO caused quite a bit of a stir on social media, as fans were left in disbelief that the network was unable to find a suitable replacement. "Did this project hinge on whether Lupita was willing to do it or not?" one wrote. "Or was it an excuse to drop the project altogether?"
Neither the network nor Nyong'o (who was also going to be an executive producer for Americanah alongside Gurira) have made an official comment on the cancellation. There is likely a more sensible explanation for the failure to recast the main role, however.
In 2014, ELLE reported that Nyong'o had acquired the life rights for the novel by Nigerian writer Chimamanda, and was set to play Ifemelu, the central character in the story. Nyong'o has been on record professing her admiration for Chimamanda and her work, with this particular venture a long-time passion project for the Mexican-born Kenyan actress.
This leaves the door open for a future where we might still see Nyong'o bring Ifemelu to life on screen, although whether that will still be at HBO or not remains to be seen.
The novel Americanah follows Ifemelu's life from her days as a young girl growing up in Lagos, Nigeria. She falls in love with a schoolmate called Obinze. With the country under the strife of a military dictatorship, she leaves to study in the United States. Obinze, on the other hand, relocates to London.
Years later, they meet again back home, Ifemelu a successful blogger in the States and Obinze a rich property developer in the now democratic Nigeria. Their attempts to rekindle their old love are complicated by their divergent personal evolution processes while they were apart.
Star-studded Cast
Before plans for the series adaptation fell apart, a few big names had already been confirmed as part of the cast alongside Nyong'o. Zackary Momoh (Seven Seconds, Dr. Sleep) would have portrayed Obinze. Corey Hawkins (24: Legacy, Straight Outta Compton) had been cast as Blaine, a Yale professor who falls in love and ends up dating Ifemelu. Uzo Aduba (Orange Is The New Black, Mrs. America) would have played Aunty Uju, Ifemelu's aunt and confidante.
Americanah was Chimamanda's third novel, following Purple Hibiscus (2003) and Half A Yellow Sun (2009). Both were also massively successful projects for the writer, who is known for being a vocal advocate of women's rights as well.