Looking for a new fantasy adventure? Want one that centers on people of color? Well, look no further than AMC’s newest action fantasy series, Nautilus.
Based on Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, the epic adventure follows Nemo (Shazad Latif), an Indian Prince robbed of his birthright and family, who is imprisoned by the East India Mercantile Company and driven by revenge against the forces that took everything from him. He steals the Nautilus, the submarine prototype, from his captors and sets sail with his fellow prisoners to find the fabled Viking treasure buried at the Pillars of Halvar.
AMC sent The Nerds of Color an exclusive sneak peek into the series. Nemo has convinced his fellow misfit prisoners to fight against the British soldiers who imprisoned them, stealing the Nautilus.
The role of Captain Nemo has been whitewashed throughout history (Sir Patrick Stewart played the character for a 2005 TV movie), though several iterations have kept the character South Asian. With this series, Nautilus seems to have accurately nailed Nemo’s background and his crew of misfits (with the majority of them taken from India). It would be interesting to explore the British occupation of India through this story, alongside its epic and thrilling fantasy elements.
The series also stars Pacharo Mzembe, Chum Ehelepola, Ashan Kumar, Thierry Fremont, Damien Garvey, Georgia Flood, and Céline Menville. Richard E. Grant, Anna Torv, and Noah Taylor make guest appearances in the series. Nautilus is developed and produced by Moonriver TV’s Xavier Marchand and Seven Stories’ Anand Tucker, is written and executive produced by James Dormer, and is executive produced by Johanna Devereaux, Chris Loveall, Colleen Woodcock, and Daisy Gilbert. Cameron Welsh serves as producer, and Michael Matthews is the lead director.
The highly anticipated 10-episode series premieres with two episodes on Sunday, June 29 at 9 PM ET/PT on AMC and AMC+.
