Hulu announced that Ernest Kingsley Jr. and Iola Evans have been added to the cast of upcoming adventure limited series “Washington Black.” Kingsley will play George Washington “Wash” Black and Evans will play his love interest Tanna Goff.
“Washington Black” is adapted from Esi Edugyan’s novel of the same name. The nine-episode series is set in the 19th century and follows Wash as he flees from a Barbados sugar plantation after a shocking death threatens to upend his life. He becomes the protégé of Medwin Harris (Sterling K. Brown), a Black refugee from Nova Scotia who serves as the de facto major of Black Halifax. While trying to outrun his past and the hunters on his tail, he meets Tanna, a young wealthy British woman who passed as white but was secretly born of a Melanesian mother on the Solomon Islands, forcing her and her father to flee London for Nova Scotia. Tanna’s father pushes her into an arranged marriage with a white merchant to protect her, but she falls in love with Wash and begins to wonder what her life could be like with him.
Kingsley’s upcoming credits include Netflix’s “Sandman” and Epix’s “War of the Worlds 3.” He also recently appeared on stage in Royal Court’s production of “Is God Is.” He is repped by Markham, Froggat and Irwin.
Evans has appeared in Amazon’s “Carnival Row” and The CW’s “The 100” and starred in “An Octoroon” at the National Theatre in London. Up next, she will star in the Netflix’s “Curs>r” and Andrew Cumming’s film “The Origin.” She is repped by Insight Management & Production and Circle of Confusion.
“Washington Black” is executive produced by Selwyn Seyfu Hinds, Brown under his Indian Meadows Productions banner, The Gotham Group’s Ellen Goldsmith-Vein, Jeremy Bell, Lindsay Williams and DJ Goldberg, Anthony Hemmingway and Jennifer Johnson. Esi Edugyan is co-producer.
Deadline was first to report Kingsley and Evans’ casting.