HBO Max has cast Corey Hawkins in a leading role alongside Lupita Nyong’o, Zackary Momoh and Uzo Aduba in its upcoming “Americanah” limited series.
The 10 episode series is based on Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s best-selling novel of the same name.
Here’s HBO Max’s official description:
“‘Americanah’ tells the story of Ifemelu (Nyong’o), a young, beautiful, self-assured woman raised in Nigeria, who as a teenager falls in love with her classmate Obinze (Momoh). Living in a military-ruled country, they each depart for the west. Ifemelu heads for America, where she finds academic success, but is forced to grapple for the first time with what it means to be black. Quiet, thoughtful Obinze had hoped to join her, but with post-9/11 America closed to him, he instead plunges into a dangerous undocumented life in London. A highly lauded tale that has become a leader in the cultural conversation, Americanah is an incredible exploration of the human experience that crosses three continents to give an empathetic, compelling view of the complex realities of race, politics, immigration and identity.”
Hawkins is set to play Blaine, Ifemelu’s (Nyong’o) “present-day boyfriend and Yale Professor, who is madly in love with her. Deeply passionate about social injustices, he tutors at risk youth and organizes protests for a wrongly accused black Yale security guard.”
The actor just warpped production on the film adaptation of Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “In the Heights,” which is set for release later this year. He has also recently appeared in Michael Bay feature “6 Underground,” as well as “Georgetown.” He has previously been seen in “BlacKkKlansman,” “Straight Outta Compton,” “Kong: Skull Island,” the “24” reboot “24: Legacy,” and “The Walking Dead.”
“Americanah” will be executive produced by showrunner and writer Danai Gurira, as well as Nyong’o for Eba Productions, Plan B Entertainment, Andrea Calderwood for Potboiler Television, Didi Rea and Danielle Del for D2 Productions, Nancy Won and Erika L. Johnson.