'Enslaved': Release date, plot, cast, trailer and all you need to know about Epix docuseries on slavery featuring Samuel L Jackson
The aftermath of the George Floyd killing at the hands of Minneapolis police officers has once again brought the issue of Black Lives Matter to the forefront of the news. The 46-year-old African American man was killed after he suffocated when former police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for over eight minutes, despite pleas from Floyd that he could not breathe.
The history of African-Americans goes back to the beginning of the formation of the United States of America when Africans were transported to the Americas by sea to work as slaves. The history of African-Americans is one that is filled with hope and brave men and women like John Williams and Rosa Parks but is also one filled with injustice and pain. A new docuseries from Epix features actor and activist Samuel L Jackson as he traces his ancestry while learning more about the slave trade. Read on to know more details about the docuseries.
Release date
'Enslaved' will premiere on Epix on September 14 at 10 pm ET and will consist of six episodes.
Plot
Led by actor, icon and activist Samuel L Jackson, 'Enslaved' sheds new light on 400 years of human trafficking from Africa to the New World. Based on a DNA test identifying his ancestral tribe, the series traces Jackson’s personal journey from the United States to Gabon for his induction into the Benga tribe, with rare and unprecedented access to secret ceremonies and local customs.
Using new diving technology — such as advanced 3D mapping and ground-penetrating radar — to locate and examine sunken slave ships on three continents, the series reveals an entirely new perspective on the history of the transatlantic slave trade. The series also tracks the efforts of Diving With a Purpose (DWP), a collaborating organization with The National Association of Black Scuba Divers (NABS), as they search for and locate six slave ships that sank drowning the enslaved humans aboard. Featuring the most dives ever made on sunken slave ships, 'Enslaved' also chronicles the first positive identification of a "Freedom Ship", an American schooner that ferried African American runaways to Canada.
Cast
Each episode follows three separate storylines: the quest for a sunken slave ship, a personal journey by Samuel L Jackson and a historical investigation led by investigative journalists Simcha Jacobovici and Afua Hirsch.
Samuel L Jackson is an actor best known for his roles in 'Pulp Fiction', Marvel's 'Avengers' universe and 'Django Unchained'. Simcha Jacobovici is an Israeli-Canadian multi-award-winning film director, producer, freelance journalist, best known for his work on 'The Lost Tomb of Jesus', 'Atlantis Rising' and 'The Exodus Decoded'. Afua Hirsch is a Norwegian-born British writer best known for her book, 'Brit(ish): On Race, Identity and Belonging'.
Producers/Director
'Enslaved' is a Canada/UK co-production between Toronto-based Associated Producers and London-based Cornelia Street Productions produced in association with CBC, Canada's public broadcaster, and documentary Channel in Canada. Simcha Jacobovici serves as the series director.
'Enslaved' is executive produced by Samuel L Jackson, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Eli Selden, Rob Lee, Simcha Jacobovici, Ric Esther Bienstock, Sarah Sapper, and Yaron Niski, and produced by Ric Esther Bienstock, Sarah Sapper, and Felix Golubev. The series was produced in association with Anonymous Content, along with UppiTV, Samuel, and LaTanya Jackson’s television production company.
Trailer
The trailer for 'Enslaved' promises that it will be a "groundbreaking six-part event" with Samuel Jackson introducing the topic at hand. In the trailer, he says, "More than 12 million Africans were enslaved and trafficked. More than 2 million of our ancestors died at sea. The ocean holds stories that haven't been told." The docuseries promises to bring the viewer closer to "ground zero" of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. The docuseries also aims to clear the myth that the slave trade was something uniquely American. Jackson elaborates saying that the slave trade was a significant part of "world history" and was a "worldwide phenomenon".
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'The African Americans: Many Rivers to Cross'
'Freedom Riders'
'More than a Month'
'Slavery by Another Name'
'Eyes on the Prize'