Whether you’re a sci-fi fan or not, you’ve likely heard of the cult-classic The Man Who Fell to Earth, which hit the big screen in 1976. Alex Kurtzman, Jenny Lumet, and Showtime are picking up where John Newton (David Bowie) left off.
Faraday (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is an alien from the same planet as Newton who continues the struggle of trying to save his species and his home. He seeks out beleaguered scientist Justin Falls (Naomie Harris) to help him build the equipment he needs to return to his planet with life-saving water. Earth, rife with energy and climate change issues, may also be saved in the process. Ejiofor and Harris bring their A-games in this deeply rich examination of human existence.
The series’s creators, writers, showrunners and executive producers Kurtzman and Lumet spoke with BGN via video chat to discuss their inspiration for reviving this story, what they hope viewers will take away from the show, and how Ejiofor and Harris brought the characters to life.
What inspired you to continue the story of The Man Who Fell to Earth?
Lumet: Sarah Timberman brought us the property of The Man Who Fell to Earth and I got us into it with absolutely no idea what it was gonna entail. Sometimes you don’t know why you do something until a couple of years later. You look in the rearview and you go, “Holy smokes!” I had gone through an enormous amount of personal loss, and the planet felt absolutely new. I felt absolutely new. I felt like I was walking on terrain that I didn’t know. Walter Tevis’ book, Nicolas Roeg’s movie, lets you ask the questions of, “Who am I now? Who was I before? Where am I and what’s going on?” I’m pretty sure those are questions that everybody can relate to.
Kurtzman: We started writing in 2018. We were looking at the world and were making less and less sense of what we were seeing. One of the great gifts of being an artist is that you get to use your work to work through the questions that you have about the world around you. The question is the first line of the show, which is, “How did we get here to this place, this moment?” We’ve obviously made all these choices. The choices that we’ve made have determined our current circumstances, and the choices that we make from here are going to determine our future. We create a lot of noise in our existence to obfuscate what’s really happening, and [Faraday is] just calling it out like he sees it because he doesn’t really know any other way. That was a really interesting way for us to articulate what we were feeling about the things we were seeing.
What do you hope the impact of the show will be on viewers?
Lumet: I hope folks who see this show ask a lot of questions. That’s the most valuable thing that almost anyone can do. Where are we going? What are we doing? What do we love, and what’s important to us? To remember that we have music and we have little kids. We have ice cream, and we have family dinners. We have all these beautiful things, and they’re important. Not everybody gets to live in that space, and we do. I hope they take that.
Kurtzman: You’ll see as the show progresses there’s a lot of darkness in the show, but we also wanted to present [Faraday’s] joy, the joy of that family, and the joy of what it means to be on this planet and to share real communication with people. That’s a theme that plays throughout the whole season.
What do you anticipate will be the audience’s reaction for those who experienced the original material?
Kurtzman: This amplifies what has been set up before. Hopefully, they’ll really like it because we did everything we could to honor the source material in both the novel by Walter Tevis and the film by Nicolas Roeg. The other truth is that you don’t have to read or watch any of that to understand the show. We did that very much on purpose. What would be lovely is if people love the show and actually go back to the source material because it’ll open up a different aspect of the show.
Did Ejiofor and/or Harris bring something to the roles that you were not anticipating?
Lumet: They brought everything to the roles. That they responded to the material — Alex and I were down on our knees thanking the drama gods because it’s kind of a murderer’s row in every part. Clarke Peters, Bill Nighy, Rob Delaney, Sonya Cassidy, Juliet Stevenson — a lot of actors who are supernaturally gifted. So to say that we were surprised and yet not surprised at their commitment and the levels of nuance and the power of their imagination…they’re better than your words, and they elevate it, and they are human beings. They’re the reason that someone’s gonna listen, so I’m pretty grateful.
Kurtzman: They’re both supernaturally gifted and in their processes very different. When you look at their films, there’s such ferocity on screen, right? They just grab the screen and hold on to it, and you can’t stop watching either. What was interesting, having directed a bunch of [the cast], was that before I knew them, I was really intimidated by just how extraordinary their talent was, and was nervous about whether or not I’d be able to raise their game in some way or help them get there. What I found so beautiful about the process with both of them is that they’re so collaborative. What happens as you work together, as you begin to stand in each other’s shoes together, that same ferocity that you see on screen becomes a process that you’re sharing in a funny way. I’m doing it behind the camera, and then I’ll cut and whisper something to Naomie. Usually it only takes one or two words; she is such an instinctual person. A lot of it is getting to know them really well and then knowing how to say as little as possible just to maneuver them in one direction or another.
The episode titles are named after David Bowie songs. Are there any other nods to the original movie or cast we should look out for?
Lumet: [There are] Easter eggs-a-plenty. We’re Bowie freaks like many other folks and anything that we could do to honor him and to feel his presence in this series we did shamelessly. [Laughs.]
Kurtzman: We didn’t choose the titles randomly. Hopefully, each episode captures the spirit of the song that we chose to name the episode after. That was a really considered process.
If you enjoy television shows that require your engagement and that make you think, be sure to treat yourself to this series. The Man Who Fell to Earth, produced by CBS Studios in association with Secret Hideoutand Timberman/Beverly, premieres April 24, 2022, on Showtime.
Whether you’re a sci-fi fan or not, you’ve likely heard of the cult-classic The Man Who Fell to Earth, which hit the big screen in 1976. Alex Kurtzman, Jenny Lumet, and Showtime are picking up where John Newton (David Bowie) left off.
Faraday (Chiwetel Ejiofor) is an alien from the same planet as Newton who continues the struggle of trying to save his species and his home. He seeks out beleaguered scientist Justin Falls (Naomie Harris) to help him build the equipment he needs to return to his planet with life-saving water. Earth, rife with energy and climate change issues, may also be saved in the process. Ejiofor and Harris bring their A-games in this deeply rich examination of human existence.
The series’s creators, writers, showrunners and executive producers Kurtzman and Lumet spoke with BGN via video chat to discuss their inspiration for reviving this story, what they hope viewers will take away from the show, and how Ejiofor and Harris brought the characters to life.
What inspired you to continue the story of The Man Who Fell to Earth?
Lumet: Sarah Timberman brought us the property of The Man Who Fell to Earth and I got us into it with absolutely no idea what it was gonna entail. Sometimes you don’t know why you do something until a couple of years later. You look in the rearview and you go, “Holy smokes!” I had gone through an enormous amount of personal loss, and the planet felt absolutely new. I felt absolutely new. I felt like I was walking on terrain that I didn’t know. Walter Tevis’ book, Nicolas Roeg’s movie, lets you ask the questions of, “Who am I now? Who was I before? Where am I and what’s going on?” I’m pretty sure those are questions that everybody can relate to.
Kurtzman: We started writing in 2018. We were looking at the world and were making less and less sense of what we were seeing. One of the great gifts of being an artist is that you get to use your work to work through the questions that you have about the world around you. The question is the first line of the show, which is, “How did we get here to this place, this moment?” We’ve obviously made all these choices. The choices that we’ve made have determined our current circumstances, and the choices that we make from here are going to determine our future. We create a lot of noise in our existence to obfuscate what’s really happening, and [Faraday is] just calling it out like he sees it because he doesn’t really know any other way. That was a really interesting way for us to articulate what we were feeling about the things we were seeing.
What do you hope the impact of the show will be on viewers?
Lumet: I hope folks who see this show ask a lot of questions. That’s the most valuable thing that almost anyone can do. Where are we going? What are we doing? What do we love, and what’s important to us? To remember that we have music and we have little kids. We have ice cream, and we have family dinners. We have all these beautiful things, and they’re important. Not everybody gets to live in that space, and we do. I hope they take that.
Kurtzman: You’ll see as the show progresses there’s a lot of darkness in the show, but we also wanted to present [Faraday’s] joy, the joy of that family, and the joy of what it means to be on this planet and to share real communication with people. That’s a theme that plays throughout the whole season.
What do you anticipate will be the audience’s reaction for those who experienced the original material?
Kurtzman: This amplifies what has been set up before. Hopefully, they’ll really like it because we did everything we could to honor the source material in both the novel by Walter Tevis and the film by Nicolas Roeg. The other truth is that you don’t have to read or watch any of that to understand the show. We did that very much on purpose. What would be lovely is if people love the show and actually go back to the source material because it’ll open up a different aspect of the show.
Did Ejiofor and/or Harris bring something to the roles that you were not anticipating?
Lumet: They brought everything to the roles. That they responded to the material — Alex and I were down on our knees thanking the drama gods because it’s kind of a murderer’s row in every part. Clarke Peters, Bill Nighy, Rob Delaney, Sonya Cassidy, Juliet Stevenson — a lot of actors who are supernaturally gifted. So to say that we were surprised and yet not surprised at their commitment and the levels of nuance and the power of their imagination…they’re better than your words, and they elevate it, and they are human beings. They’re the reason that someone’s gonna listen, so I’m pretty grateful.
Kurtzman: They’re both supernaturally gifted and in their processes very different. When you look at their films, there’s such ferocity on screen, right? They just grab the screen and hold on to it, and you can’t stop watching either. What was interesting, having directed a bunch of [the cast], was that before I knew them, I was really intimidated by just how extraordinary their talent was, and was nervous about whether or not I’d be able to raise their game in some way or help them get there. What I found so beautiful about the process with both of them is that they’re so collaborative. What happens as you work together, as you begin to stand in each other’s shoes together, that same ferocity that you see on screen becomes a process that you’re sharing in a funny way. I’m doing it behind the camera, and then I’ll cut and whisper something to Naomie. Usually it only takes one or two words; she is such an instinctual person. A lot of it is getting to know them really well and then knowing how to say as little as possible just to maneuver them in one direction or another.
The episode titles are named after David Bowie songs. Are there any other nods to the original movie or cast we should look out for?
Lumet: [There are] Easter eggs-a-plenty. We’re Bowie freaks like many other folks and anything that we could do to honor him and to feel his presence in this series we did shamelessly. [Laughs.]
Kurtzman: We didn’t choose the titles randomly. Hopefully, each episode captures the spirit of the song that we chose to name the episode after. That was a really considered process.
If you enjoy television shows that require your engagement and that make you think, be sure to treat yourself to this series. The Man Who Fell to Earth, produced by CBS Studios in association with Secret Hideoutand Timberman/Beverly, premieres April 24, 2022, on Showtime.
Power Book IV: Force is the latest installment in the Power universe. Centered around fan-favorite Tommy Egan (Joseph Sikora), this show has proven that Tommy can carry his own weight — no pun intended — outside of Ghost’s shadow.
The series opens with Tommy leaving New York for good. He has California in his sights but is detoured in Chicago by an old wound that needs tending. He decides to put down roots after a few run-ins with local gangsters and drug dealers. As always with Tommy, trouble ensues as he fights for a place among Chicago’s heaviest hitters.
Tommy has maintained the charisma that caused us to like this thugged-out white boy in the first place, but does he have what it takes to dismantle and take over a new drug scene? Force’s first season tests Tommy’s mettle, with players the likes of whom he’s never faced and family bonds he didn’t know he had.
Force debuted with 3.3 million multiplatform views — the biggest premiere in STARZ history — which has secured the show a second season. Sikora spoke with BGN via telephone to discuss the success of the show’s debut, why we root for Tommy, and whether Tommy will ever find love.
Was there a pivotal moment in your career that led you to the role of Tommy?
Maybe, it was a lack of something in my career that actually made Tommy accessible to me. Rather than somebody who’s been in the public eye from a very young age, I was incognito, observing life, so I was able to bring a lot of life to Tommy.
I had been doing this for 25 years before I got Tommy. To have a character on the page as two-dimensional and to add the 360 degrees necessary to make him someone we can cry, laugh, live, hate, destroy, and kill with, you need a lot of light to bring into him.
With Tommy essentially being a bad guy, why do you think the audience likes and roots for him as they do?
I think that there’s a practicality and mysticism in that. The practicality is that Tommy reminds us of ourselves. It’s that version of ourselves in terms of his loyalty, determination, and almost obsession at becoming more than he once was. At his worst, his rage controls him and he makes poor decisions in the land of love and in terms of trusting himself.
There’s also a little bit of narcissism pushing his idea forward rather than him taking his time to listen. There’s a mystical kind of attraction for the bad guy, gangster, or really, more than anything, the anti-hero in not only our culture but in world culture.
We forgive Tommy because we know that he loves, not that he just hates. We’ve seen what he loves. Tommy loves loyalty. Tommy loves family. When he loves, he loves deeply and hard. When you see that, it’s not only easy to forgive him, it’s easy to make plans for yourself.
With Tommy being a fan favorite from the original franchise, were you surprised at the success of Force’s debut?
It was THE biggest. [Laughs.] I wasn’t surprised because of [the success of] Power — it is not my trophy to hang on my shelf. That prize of having the number one rated, most viewed premier in the history of the network is something that I have to very gratefully share with the man, the myth, the legend, Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson, and Courtney A. Kemp. Also Mark Canton, our executive producer extraordinaire, who really began this process with an idea. I share it with Gary Lennon, who is our showrunner and cultivator of the Tommy character. I also share this with Omari Hardwick and the entirety of the first cast. I’m just constantly filled with gratitude. I really love playing Tommy, and I’m grateful for the opportunity. That goes for the fans too.
I was nervous about Force, but my fears were allayed in the first few moments in the car scene.
That was a moment! [Laughs.] That was a whole monologue without words. Larysa Kondracki, who directed it, did something that very few directors do. Gary Lennon did it in Power Season 5, Episode 9, when Tommy kills his father. We would do the scene and then sometimes do the entire scene again without any words. Larysa re-established that. You got to see that whole inner monologue from Tommy just through his emotions. It was awesome.
How do you feel the shift from New York to your hometown of Chicago has affected Tommy?
I haven’t lived in Chicago for 23 years. New York is really home, but my hometown, my roots, everything is definitely Chicago. When we started filming, all these memories just came flooding back. I came to Chicago a month early to relearn the topography and the feeling of the city. Tommy was learning the city and I was really relearning the city at the same time.
In terms of its effect on Tommy, in that first episode Vic actually got the drop on Tommy. Everybody forgets that. That was a real wake-up moment. From that moment on, I decided for every scene that Tommy always had his head on a swivel. He’s always taking information in and always clocking things. He’s like a mathematician, but Tommy calculates by feeling.
Also, the only way for Tommy and Tariq to live was for Ghost to die, making him a martyr. It renewed this second chance. Are Tommy and Tariq going to squander this second chance, or are they going to be able to fulfill whatever their ultimate dreams or desires are? A big shout out to Michael Rainey Jr. because he’s doing a tremendous job carrying the show.
Tommy has been unlucky in love. Do you have a hope for Tommy in that area?
I wonder if Tommy has hope for Tommy. If Tommy finally gives up on love, love might find its way.
When you asked me about the career thing, I got the Tommy character right after I got married. Part of that was because I loved something more than I love acting for the first time. When you’re not looking and you’re not desperate, things find you.
With Gloria, Tommy wasn’t looking for anything — he was trying to get a drink and some mannish water or pepperpot stew. Unfortunately, she was already spoken for, and that sets up a huge amount of the problems in Season 1. Shout out to Gabrielle Ryan, who is absolutely beautiful and talented as a person. We’ll see. If he keeps looking for love, he might find it in the wrong places.
The first season of Power Book IV: Force is currently available on STARZ.
Afronerd Radio can now be heard LIVE courtesy of Apple Music/Itunes
Hey, folks! Let's just get into it after our brief preemption for the Easter break. Welcome to the latest installment of Afronerd Radio's Mid Week in Review airing each and every Wednesday at 8 p.m. eastern on the BTalk 100 internet broadcasting platform. Join your cosmic-engineered/Afronerdist hosts as they decipher this (mid) week's topics: well, we almost forgot that there was another Marvel movie slated for release after Doctor Strange and the Multiverse of Madness but Thor: Love and Thunder DEFINITELY stirred the cinematic pot quite a bit with a new trailer:
Recent reports on the Discovery and WarnerMedia merger are asserting that the newly-aligned executives are looking to overhaul DC Entertainment, including finding someone to fulfill a role similar to Marvel's Kevin Feige; and speaking of WarnerMedia, their upcoming "multi-universal" Flash film may be in jeopardy due to their star, Ezra Miller, purportedly getting into violent altercations and subsequent arrests-we have our thoughts; Moon Knight , episode 4 from Disney plus was released earlier today and again, we give you our impressions; A recent Mediaite piece highlights a report that the African-American mayor of Livingston, TN, Curtis Hayes, has proclaimed April to be Confederate History Month and many onlookers are scratching their heads in bewilderment; Dburt tripped over another interesting anime series, Spy x Family:
There is, a new funk music anthology graphic novel series, by The Time drummer, Jellybean Johnson and FairSquare Comics, entitled, We Can Funk,
And lastly, our thoughts concerning growing criticisms of the Showtime series, The First Lady, and specifically, Academy Award-winning actress, Viola Davis' portrayal of former FLOTUS, Michelle Obama. Something appears "off." But we will discuss..
One thing that Dburt is doing (finally) is investing in cryptocurrency, courtesy of Roundlyx. We would implore our followers to investigate, discern and then explore by using our referral code: afro-87A4BF
Call us LIVE at 508-645-0100. AFTER CLICKING ON THE HIGHLIGHTED LINK, GO DIRECTLY TO AFRONERD RADIO!!!
Also, Afronerd Radio's podcast format can be heard via BTalk 100 Pandora, Spotify, and, IHeartRadio....more formats to follow!
Has there been a time when people of color weren’t experiencing racism? According to Pew Research, the mistreatment of Blacks by police and the criminal justice system happens more amongst Black individuals.
Police brutality, hate speech, and other racist moments leave recipients feeling traumatized. This type of trauma is known as racial trauma or race-based traumatic stress.It can become ingrained in the lives of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, or BIPOC. It can lead them to live in fear, feel hopeless about the future, and prevent them from living out their potential. For those experiencing racial trauma, it’s important to understand the signs and symptoms. This knowledge can lead to better support, recovery, and mental peace for BIPOC communities.
Mental Health America states that racial trauma is the mental and emotional damage caused by racial bias, ethnic discrimination, hate crimes, and racism. It is experienced through direct means such as receiving acts of violence or discrimination.
It can also be experienced through indirect means such as watching racist moments on the news or being around others who don’t take racism seriously. Although there are many ways to experience this trauma, it is not considered a mental health disorder. Nonetheless, it is a condition that requires proper attention and care.
Because BIPOC are the recipients of racism, it can negatively influence the mind and body. During trauma, the body releases cortisol, a hormone that prepares the body to react. In moments of stress, anger, or anxiety, the body will either combat the situation, pause, or run away. Also known as fight, flight, or freeze.
Constant exposure to racism, such as microaggressions at work, leads to an overproduction of cortisol. Without time and support for the body and mind to process these events and higher levels of cortisol, it can lead to problematic behaviors. Behaviors such as greater apprehension, anxiety and depression, nightmares, aggression, and substance abuse.
Greater apprehension: Events like the death of Ahmaud Arbery and the attacks on elderly Asians all contribute to heightened fears. This can manifest as tensing up when hearing police sirens or not engaging with certain people. Another manifestation includes avoiding everyday routines such as going for a jog or to the supermarket out of fear of racial attacks.
Anxiety and Depression: This can look like feeling anxious when hearing about an act of discrimination and extended periods of depression.
Substance abuse: Turning to alcohol and drugs to cope with the effects of trauma
Aggressive behavior: Feeling the need to show aggression or resistance to protect oneself or loved ones.
Black women can experience this trauma two-fold because of both racial and gender discrimination. Black women can carry a higher allostatic load according to a 2006 study by Trusted Source. This load refers to the “wear and tear” on the body.
With so many damaging side effects BIPOC must have systems and resources in place to cope with this ongoing trauma.
Coping with racial trauma is best combated in two ways. Supporting oneself and seeking professional support. Here are some examples to follow
Maintain a healthy lifestyle: With all the stress on the body, acts such as eating healthy and getting a full night’s rest can seem simple. Yet when healthy habits are consistent, they can prevent many severe health conditions.
Support a good cause: Activism, volunteering, and any similar community work can help one feel as if they are making a difference. It can offer a sense of control. This type of work is necessary but also very demanding. It’s important to balance this work with other hobbies and enjoyable activities.
Connect with others: Having a strong support system can provide a safe space for those experiencing racial trauma. Meeting with close friends, family, and members of different organizations is a great way to foster these connections.
Seek professional help: More organizations are forming and are in place to provide mental and emotional support for BIPOC. Some of these organizations include: the National Queer and Trans Therapists of Color Network, Therapy for Black Girls, Therapy for Black Men, Therapy for Muslims, Asian, Pacific Islander, and South Asian American (APISAA) Therapist Directory, Therapy for Latinx
It’s vital to recognize that racial trauma is a real issue affecting many BIPOC communities. A starting point is becoming aware of situations and people that may trigger negative responses. Awareness is powerful and allows one to either confront or avoid triggering situations.
Racism is something that can change over time. But in the day-to-day fight, taking care of oneself supports the long-term battle. For anyone experiencing racial trauma, remember to turn off the news when feeling overwhelmed. Cultivate joy daily. Maintain healthy relationships with friends and family. Continue to pursue goals because the hope and dreams of BIPOC are important and valid.