Hulu Developing Sci-Fi Series Old City Blues With Kerry Washington

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Hulu is adding another series to its ever-expanding lineup of original content with Old City Blues. The series, adapted from the sci-fi graphic novel of the same name by Giannis Milonogiannis, is set to star and be executive produced by former Scandal star Kerry Washington, with Pirates of the Caribbean director Gore Verbinski on board to helm the pilot episode. In addition, Outcast showrunner Chris Black is set to lead the writers’ room with Allison Davis (Underground) reportedly writing the pilot episode’s script.

Another genre series set in an extreme technology-driven future, Old City Blues stands the chance of competing with Netflix’s visually impressive Altered Carbon, especially with Verbinski on hand to establish the show’s visual template. Set in the year 2048, the story develops in New Athens, the area where Greece once stood. The city is now a robot-filled haven for criminals, offering a place for everything from drug dealers to smugglers to shady corporations and politicians. The only thing standing in their way is the New Athens Special Police.

As reported by THR, the inciting incident of the story takes place when the cyborg founder of a tech company is found dead. At present, there has been no mention of the role Washington will play, though it would not be hard to imagine her as a prominent member of the New Athens Special Police.
 

A live-action adaptation of the source material sounds ambitious, and should it come to pass, a pilot episode directed by Verbinski could give the streaming service its most impressive-looking series to date. The big question surrounding Old City Blues, then, is whether or not it will have the budget to match the likes of Netflix’s Altered Carbon and Lost In Space, or even Amazon’s The Man in the High Castle, series that are heavily defined by their high production values and impressive visual effects. If so, and given Washington’s profile after her time on ABC’s Scandal, the show stands a chance of being a real winner for the service.

It will also mark the second high-profile series that Washington and Hulu have collaborated on. The first is another adaptation, this time of Celeste Ng’s acclaimed novel Little Fires Everywhere, which will see Washington star and produce alongside Reese Witherspoon. With two very different projects in the works, it sounds as though Kerry Washington’s collaborations with Hulu are just getting started.