Neil Gaiman’s Fantasy Series ‘Anansi Boys’ Finds Its Female Leads
Amazon’s upcoming adaptation of Neil Gaiman‘s (Good Omens) best-selling fantasy novel Anansi Boys has cast its lead female stars, Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn (Small Axe) and Grace Saif (13 Reasons Why).
St. Aubyn, who made her screen debut as part of Steve McQueen‘s Small Axe series in the feature Lovers Rock, is set to play cheerful and kind teacher Rosie Noah. Rosie is the fiancée to Charles “Fat Charlie” Nancy, the show’s main protagonist, played by fellow Small Axe actor Malachi Kirby (who will also play Charles’ brother, Spider).
Saif, meanwhile, will portray the smart, determined, and very funny Detective Constable Daisy Day. Daisy finds herself tied up in multiple overlapping police cases, including a murder.
“When you are casting something on the scale of Anansi Boys, you need female leads who are as accomplished, charming, and brilliant as, well, Malachi Kirby in both his incarnations,” said Gaiman (via The Hollywood Reporter).
He continued: “Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn and Grace Saif are those women. [They’re] both funny, honest, brilliant actresses, and you will fall in love with both of them.”
The six-episode limited series, currently filming in Scotland, revolves around Charlie, a young man used to his estranged father embarrassing him. However, after his father dies, Charlie finds out his dad was Anansi, the trickster god of stories. He also discovers that he has a brother, Spider, who is determined to make Charlie’s life more interesting… and a lot more dangerous.
“We are trying to make a new kind of show with Anansi Boys and to break ground with it to make something that celebrates and rejoices in diversity both in front of and behind the camera,” Gaiman said in a previous statement. “I’m so thrilled it’s happening and that people will be meeting Mr. Nancy, Charlie and Spider, the Bird Woman and the rest of them.”
Gaiman serves as showrunner alongside Douglas Mackinnon and co-writes the series with Sir Lenny Henry. The popular novelist also executive produces alongside Henry, Mackinnon, Hanelle M. Culpepper, Hilary Bevan Jones, and Richard Fee. Culpepper is expected to direct the pilot.
Anansi Boys, TBA, Prime Video
