Lupita Nyong’o and Danai Gurira’s much-anticipated TV adaptation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s “Americanah” has found a home. Variety confirms that forthcoming platform HBO Max has given the project a straight-to-series order. As previously reported, Nyong’o is starring and Gurira is writing the pilot. Both women will executive produce the limited series and the latter will also serve as showrunner.
Nyong’o originally optioned the novel in summer 2014 with plans for a feature adaptation. She is set to portray protagonist Ifemelu, a Nigerian woman who moves to America to attend college and build a writing career. During her time away, Ifemelu grapples with race, racism, and the complexities of black identity. Meanwhile, she maintains an intense connection to her first love, Obinze, whom she reconnects with when she returns to Nigeria.
“‘Americanah’ has been a passion project for me since I read Chimamanda’s beautiful novel in 2013,” said Nyong’o. “It’s a tale that is simultaneously timely and timeless. HBO Max is the perfect partner to bring this profound and celebrated story to life, and I’m thrilled that Danai will bring to the project her intelligence, wit, and understanding of the stories and the worlds of ‘Americanah.’”
“Through ‘Americanah,’ Chimamanda brought the African female voice into mainstream consciousness in an unprecedented way,” Gurira added. “It is intellectually incisive, indicting, yet full of humor, and riddled with humanity. She makes unheard voices familiar, universal, and yet palpably specific. I am honored to bring her incredible novel to life on the screen.”
“Americanah has sparked a cultural phenomenon and is revered by fans around the world,” observed Sarah Aubrey, head of original content for HBO Max. “It has affected me deeply as one of the most moving, socially relevant and romantic stories of our time. With exceptional talent like Lupita and Danai in front of and behind the camera, this series will give viewers a uniquely heartfelt and unforgettable experience.”
Prior to “Americanah,” Nyong’o and Gurira both appeared in box office smash “Black Panther.” Nyong’o also toplined Gurira’s play “Eclipsed,” a drama about four women held as sexual slaves by a warlord during the Liberian civil war.
You can catch Nyong’o next in zombie comedy “Little Monsters,” out November 15. Her other upcoming projects include December’s “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” and 2021’s women-driven spy thriller “355.” She’ll act alongside Jessica Chastain, Diane Kruger, and Fan Bingbing in the latter. Nyong’o won an Oscar for her supporting turn in “12 Years a Slave” and starred in this year’s horror hit “Us.”
Gurira has portrayed the badass Michonne on “The Walking Dead” since 2012. The AMC zombie drama’s upcoming 10th season will be her last. Gurira’s other screen credits include “Avengers: Endgame,” “Avengers: Infinity War,” and “Treme.” She’s penned plays “In the Continuum,” “The Convert,” and “Familiar.” “Eclipsed” received six Tony nominations in 2016.
Adichie has published three novels, a book of short stories, and two feminist manifestos: “Dear Ijeawele, Or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions,” framed as a letter, is a guide on how to raise feminist kids, and “We Should All Be Feminists” is a call-to-action based on Adichie’s 2012 TEDx talk. Last year she received the PEN Pinter Prize.
HBO Max’s packed future slate includes an adaptation of Madeline Miller’s “Circe,” a “Practical Magic” prequel, and a Julia Child drama starring Joan Cusack, among other projects.
