Original Hamilton cast member Daveed Diggs is set to star in a new TNT pilot, Snowpiercer. The show is based on the 2013 Chris Evans movie of the same name, which also stars Tilda Swinton, Octavia Spencer, and Ed Harris. The movie is based on the 1982 French graphic novel Le Transperceneige by Jacques Lob and Jean-Marc Rochette.
The premise of Snowpiercer takes place seven years after the world has been frozen over and is essentially a wasteland. TVLine reported that the futuristic thriller handles themes like social injustice, class warfare, and everything that goes into survival as few humans are left on earth. The survivors are believed to occupy a large train that travels throughout the world.
Diggs has been cast as Layton Well. TNT’s press release describes the character as “a prisoner barely surviving the harsh conditions in the tail end of the train.” Though Diggs will portray a different character than Evans in the film, their characters essentially have the same leadership role and have many similar character traits.
The pilot for Snowpiercer was written by Josh Friedman. He is best known as the creator, writer, and producer of Fox’s Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Scott Derrickson, best known for directing and co-writing the 2016 film Doctor Strange, will direct the pilot.
While Diggs made a name for himself as Marquis de Lafayette and Thomas Jefferson in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Hamilton, he is no stranger to the world of television. He has made guest appearances on NBC’s Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Netflix’s The Get Down, ABC’s Black-ish, and HBO’s Sesame Street. He is set to star in HBO’s upcoming film Tour de Pharmacy, which is a mockumentary on sports doping created by Andy Samberg and Murray Miller.
Snowpiercer is not the only new series Diggs will be involved with during the 2017-2018 season. Diggs will serve as Executive Producer for ABC’s upcoming comedy The Mayor. Deadline reported that the series follows a young rapper named Courtney Rose, played by Brandon Michael Hall (TBS’s Search Party), as he tries to make it in the music business. While struggling to make ends meet, Rose decides to run for mayor in his hometown as a publicity stunt to promote his music. When his plan goes wrong and he ends up winning the election, antics ensue. The series is also set to star Lea Michele (Fox’s Glee), Yvette Nicole Brown (NBC’s Community), and Bernard Jones (TBS’s Meet the Browns).