John Mulaney Cast as Henry David Thoreau in Apple TV+’s Dark Comedy ‘Dickinson’

Hailee Steinfeld stars as poet Emily Dickinson in the coming-of-age series

John Mulaney Henry David Thoreau Dickinson

Comedian John Mulaney has signed on to play writer Henry David Thoreau in Apple TV+’s “Dickinson,” a dark coming-of-age comedy starring Hailee Steinfeld as famed poet Emily Dickinson in her early, rebellious years.

Creator, show runner and executive producer Alena Smith, alongside executive producer and star Steinfeld and star Jane Krakowski, made the announcement Saturday night at the Tribeca TV Festival, where “Dickinson” was the centerpiece. Zosia Mamet will also guest star as Louisa May Alcott.

There are no accounts of Dickinson and Thoreau, who was a “transcendentalist” best known for writing the classic “Walden” and the essay “Civil Disobedience,” having known each other, so it’s unclear how he will fit into the half-hour series.

Friday, Apple TV+ announced Wiz Khalifa had also joined the cast, playing Death. Dickinson was known for being obsessed with death.

“We literally put Wiz Khalifa on our tone board as this would be the dream, like he’s the aesthetic we want Death to have and then somehow we magically got Wiz Khalifa, so that was incredible,” series creator Alena Smith told Entertainment Weekly.

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