Lovecraft Country: 10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Making Of The Upcoming Series

Lovecraft Country is perhaps the most timely and relevant TV series of the year. Adapted from the novel of the same name by Matt Ruff, it follows the story of Atticus Black (Johnathan Majors), a young black man in search of his missing father. Set at the height of the Jim Crow Era, Atticus, along with his friend Letitia Dandridge (Jurnee Smollett-Bell) and his Uncle George (Courtney B. Vance), journey through the country and face all manners of Lovecraftian terrors and the perils of racist 1950’s America.

The series is an ambitious and unique foray into the horror genre and with J.J. Abrams and Jordan Peele as executive producers, its thrilling storyline, and talented cast, the series is one of the most anticipated shows of the last few years. Thankfully, fans don’t have to wait much longer as the show will premier on 16 August on HBO. In the meantime, here are some interesting things about the making of the show.

10 Fans Have Been Waiting For The Series Since 2017

It was first announced in May 2017 that an adaptation of Mutt Ruff’s Lovecraft Country had been picked up for a straight-to-series order by HBO and that the series would consist of 10 one-hour episodes.

Jordan Peele was one of the main figures behind the show’s development. He was responsible for bringing along J.J. Abrams and his production company Bad Robot, and for enlisting Underground creator Misha Green as the showrunner.

9 J.J. Abrams and Jordan Peele Pledged To Donate Profits From The Show To Fight The Controversial “Heartbeat Bill”

The state of Georgia is one of the most popular filming locations in America, thanks to its lucrative tax production credits. However, in May 2019, many in Hollywood called for a boycott of the state after a controversial anti-abortion “Heartbeat Bill” was signed into law.

Seemingly, due to the amount of work that had already gone into shooting in Georgia, J.J. Abrams and Peele announced that they would still continue to film in the state, but that they would donate their respective episodic fees of the first season to organizations leading the charge against the bill.

8 The Show May Have A Game Of Thrones Like Budget

Currently, there isn’t a lot known about the series, including its budget. However, there are some indications that a lot of money has been put into the show’s production, and with the type of people behind the scenes, it is really not that surprising.

The show used three soundstages belonging to Blackhall Studios, and according to CEO Ryan Milsap in an interview with TheA-Scene, the show has a “Game of Thrones budget.”

7 Took Chicago’s Pilsen Neighborhood Back To The 1950s

As with many TV shows and movies that are set in the past, they often require places to be slightly redesigned in order to get the correct aesthetics. Last year, the Chicago neighborhood of Pilsen was transported all the way back to the 1950s in order for filming to take place.

Shops had turned into decades-old versions of themselves, while the streets were filled with strung up washing lines, peeling billboards, and vintage cars.

6 Lovecraft Country Could Have Been A Very Different TV Show

The novel Lovecraft Country was first published in 2016. Yet long before it was even written, author Matt Ruff first pitched it as a TV show. It was going to follow an African-American family who owned a travel agency in 1950s America, and Atticus would have been a field researcher who traveled the country looking for hotels and restaurants that would serve him.

It also would have been a horror series that had the potential of broadening into other genres. Ultimately, Ruff wasn’t able to get the TV show going and instead, turned it into a novel a few years later.

5 Yann Demange and Daniel Sackheim Are Directing The First Three Episodes

Although everything around the show has been kept pretty quiet, they have revealed that directors Yann Demange and Daniel Sackheim are directing the first few episodes of the show.

Yann Demange is best known for his work on the British series Top Boy, for which he was nominated a BAFTA, and his feature film, ’71. He is directing the pilot, while Emmy-Award Winning director Daniel Sackheim is behind episodes two and three. Sackheim has been involved in the world of TV since the early 80s and has worked on a variety of popular shows, like The X-Files, The Americans, and Game of Thrones.

4 Artist Afua Richardson Will Have Work Featured On The Show

Illustrator and artist Afua Richardson is best known for her work on the comic book series, Black Panther: World Of Wakanda, which won the 2018 GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Comic Book.

Late last year, she tweeted that some of her work will be prominently featured in the show’s first season and explained why she had stopped posting a lot on social media, as she had to keep everything about the show under wraps.

3 Actress Elizabeth Debicki Was Replaced By Abbey Lee

Australian actress Elizabeth Debicki was originally cast in the role of Christina Braithwhite, the daughter of the head of a secret order called the “Sons of Adam” who desperately wants to get her father’s respect and has no problem using Atticus and his family to get it.

Unfortunately, due to a scheduling conflict, she had to leave the series and fellow Australian actress and model Abbey Lee was cast in her place. While Debicki won’t be appearing on the show, she will be starring in Christopher Nolan’s much anticipated new spy film, Tenet, which is set for release later this year.

2 A Stunt Car Flipped During Filming And Injured A Cameraman

Lovecraft Country also filmed in Elburn, Illinois. In July 2018, while filming a chase scene, a stunt car flipped over. There were four people inside the car, but the cameraman was propped on top of the car in a pod. Therefore, he was injured when the car tippled over.

The cameraman was immediately rushed to a hospital and, thankfully, didn’t sustain any life-threatening injuries.

1 Production of Lovecraft Country Almost Cost Smollett-Bell Her Role In Birds Of Prey

This is a pretty successful year for actress Jurnee Smollett-Bell. Besides, Lovecraft Country, she also starred in one of the biggest films of the year, Birds of Prey as the Black Canary. Yet, Smollett-Bell almost never got the chance to take on the role of the crime-fighting songstress. At first, those working on the film weren’t even interested in her auditioning for the movie because of her commitment to Lovecraft Country.

Thankfully, after some encouragement from Misha Green, Smollett-Bell went ahead and sent in an audition tape, which eventually led to her being cast as Dinah Lance.

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