Travis Beacham, the writer who brought us Mako and Raleigh taking down kaiju in Pacific Rim, has created a new television show called Hieroglyph, a fantasy series set in ancient Egypt.
According to Variety, this is what we can expect from the show:
“Hieroglyph follows a notorious thief who is plucked from prison to serve the pharoah, navigating palace intrigue, seductive concubines, criminals and even a few divine sorcerers.”
Beacham himself described it a bit more dramatically:
Sounds pretty sweet, right? Evidently, Fox thinks so, too, because they have offered it a straight-to-series order. With the ever-growing popularity of period dramas and fantasy shows – Game of Thrones, Reign, Once Upon A Time, Downton Abbey, and Sleepy Hollow are just a few – it makes sense that Fox would want to capitalize on the trend as much as possible. Plus, Travis Beacham has earned himself a devoted fanbase post-Pacific Rim, so that’s an existing audience on which to draw for a new project like this.
Now I’m going to come out and say what we’re all thinking: is Fox going to cast a bunch of white people to play ancient Egyptions? The practice of whitewashing, or casting white actors in roles that should be people of color, is a common and serious problem in film, television, and stage. It decreases opportunities for non-white actors and makes the world seem way whiter than it actually is. Pacific Rim was noted by many people as being refreshingly ethnically diverse, but this show is a different project and will have different people in charge, so don’t get too comfortable. Things could still tank in that department.
Let’s hope that Hieroglyph turns out to be just as awesome as it has the potential to be. Kevin Reilly, chairman of entertainment at Fox, called it a show about “deceit, sex, intrigue in the court, and fantastical goings-on.” This sounds like a cross between Game of Thrones and The Mummy and I want to binge-watch it with a bowl of popcorn right now. In an ideal world, Hieroglyph will have all the drama and fun of a nighttime fantasy soap but will also play to Travis Beacham’s strengths of worldbuilding, progressivism, and straightforward themes. Once again, folks: fingers majorly crossed.
Hieroglyph‘s pilot will be written by Beacham and directed by Miguel Sapochnik.
(via: Slash Film, photo by jay8085 on Flikr)
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