A final recasting has been made for the FX television series, Y: The Last Man. According to Shadow and Act, Ashley Romans (Shameless, NOS4A2) will replace Lashana Lynch (Star-Crossed, No Time to Die) as the series begins production. Based on the DC Comic by Brian K. Vaughan (Runaway, Under the Dome) and illustrator Pia Guerra (Me the People, Doctor Who: The Forgotten), the adaptation to small screen has seen several changes within the last decade.
According to Shadow and Act, the project had been originally pitched as a film through New Line Cinema in 2008. When that plan died, Michael Green (American Gods, Logan) was attached to helm the show for FX in 2016. His departure was followed by Aida Mashaka Croal’s (Luke Cage, TURN: Washington’s Spies) short stint. Today’s iteration of the series – airing via FX on Hulu – has Eliza Clark (One Life to Live, Third Watch) serving as showrunner. Clark will executive produce along with Nina Jacobson (Crazy Rich Asians, The Goldfinch) and Brad Simpson (Burden of Truth, Rookie Blue) through their production team Color Force. They are joined by Mari Jo Winkler-Ioffreda (Dan in Real Life, Away We Go), Melina Matsoukas (Queen and Slim, Insecure) and Vaughan. Nellie Reed (Da Vinci’s Demons, Flashforward) is also set to produce.
Originally published in 2002, Y: The Last Man is a sci-fi graphic novel set in a post-apocalyptic world where all but two male mammals have been mysteriously eradicated, via Shadow and Act. The last remaining animals with Y-chromosomes are a man named Yorick Brown and his primate friend, Ampersand. In the midst of societal implosion, Yorick seeks to find his girlfriend Beth Deville, as she is one of the million women left behind to adjust to the male-free world. She is heavily protected by a U.S. government agent known as Agent 355.
According to Shadow and Act, Lynch was set to play the role of Agent 355, but scheduling conflicts forced her to depart the series. Romans joins a cast that includes Ben Schnetzer (The Book Thief, Pride) as Yorick, and Juliana Canfield (Succession, On the Rocks) as Beth. They are joined by Diane Lane (Unfaithful, Let Him Go), Olivia Thirlby (Dredd, The Wackness), Amber Tamblyn (The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Joan of Arcadia), Marin Ireland (The Man in the Woods, Hell Or High Water), Diana Bang (The Order, The Interview) and Elliot Fletcher (Shameless, The Fosters).
The series will have an abundance of women working behind the scenes, according to Shadow and Act. FX stated all the episodes will be directed by women, with Louise Friedberg (House of Cards, Tell Me You Secrets) already helming the first two episodes. In addition to direction, women department heads and staff will oversee production and costume design, casting, editing and stunt coordination.