Apple TV+ is keeping in the horror business with an upcoming adaptation of author Victor LaValle’s novel The Changeling. The streaming service already has M. Night Shyamalan’s Servant on its roster, and, in this case, they will be bringing us fairytale-inspired horror goods. The show already had LaKeith Stanfield (Knives Out, The Girl in the Spider’s Web) attached. Now, the cast has filled out nicely with several new additions from all over the map.
First up, the folks at Deadline report that Malcolm Barrett (Timeless), Alexis Louder (Copshop), Amirah Vann (Underground), and Jared Abrahamson (Ramy) have boarded the ensemble. Stanfield will be playing the lead character, Apollo, and now we know that Barrett will be playing Patrice Green, his best friend who is also a veteran. Louder will star as Lillian Kagwa, Apollo’s mom, while Vann is on board as Kim Valentine, Emma’s sister and sole family member. Lastly, Abrahamson plays Brian West, a parole officer, and Lillian’s current husband.
But that’s not all! Variety also brings word that Samuel T. Herring is joining the cast as well. Herring is best known as the lead singer of Future Islands, which will mark his major acting debut, adding an interesting little twist to the show. Herring will star as William Wheeler, who becomes friends with Apollo and is looking to win back his wife and children. Alright, so what is The Changeling about? The official synopsis for the book reads as follows:
“When Apollo Kagwa’s father disappeared, he left his son a box of books and strange recurring dreams. Now Apollo is a father himself—and as he and his wife, Emma, settle into their new lives as parents, exhaustion and anxiety start to take their toll. Apollo’s old dreams return and Emma begins acting odd. At first Emma seems to be exhibiting signs of postpartum depression. But before Apollo can do anything to help, Emma commits a horrific act and vanishes. Thus begins Apollo’s quest to find a wife and child who are nothing like he’d imagined. His odyssey takes him to a forgotten island, a graveyard full of secrets, a forest where immigrant legends still live, and finally back to a place he thought he had lost forever.”
Annapurna has partnered with Apple on the forthcoming adaptation. Kelly Marcel (Cruella, Venom) wrote the script with Melina Matsoukas (Insecure) set to serve as director. Megan Ellison, Sue Naegle, Patrick Chu and Ali Krug are on board as executive producers alongside Stanfield, Matsoukas and Marcel. No word yet on when filming is set to begin, but with the cast filling out nicely, one expects Apple is getting close to rolling cameras on this one. If so, we could/should expect to see it sometime next year.
The Changeling does not yet have a release date set.
