July 6th 2023.
Barry Jenkins, the Academy Award-winning director behind the Golden Globe-winning series "The Underground Railroad", was shocked to see his show getting promoted for the Fourth of July on Amazon Prime Video. In a since-deleted tweet captured by Complex, Jenkins shared a screenshot showing the description of the show as “Prime Get in the Fourth of July spirit.”
Jenkins expressed his surprise, tweeting “At first I went but then I went and now I’m like and basically just”, and followed up with “Clearly this is some algorithm madness. Though Homer WOULD be the one to use here… so there’s that).”
The series follows the secret routes escaped slaves used on a quest for their freedom, which has nothing to do with America’s independence on the 4th of July. The public agreed with Jenkins and questioned Amazon Prime’s intention in the show description. One user quipped “This actually feels like an appropriate way to mark the birth of this nation”, while another added sarcastically “The Underground Railroad x How to Blow Up a Pipeline Cocktail may be just what America needs this July 4th”.
Jenkins had a few of the responses listed under his “liked” tweets, along with one that claimed to have seen the series listed under “iconic eras”. The Underground Railroad premiered on Prime Video in May 2021 and follows the journey of Cora, a young woman who discovers the secret network that helped dozens of enslaved people like herself escape the deep South to freedom in the North. This powerful series won the Golden Globe Award for Best Miniseries or Television Film, the BAFTA for Best International Programme, and received a Peabody Award. It was also nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series.
Jenkins' series sparked an important conversation regarding Critical Race Theory, a topic that is relevant now more than ever. Icon Mann Reimagines African Diasporic Narratives with Salute to ‘The Woman King’ Director Gina Prince-Bythewood, ‘Sidney Poitier’ Director Reginald Hudlin, Director George Tillman Jr. and Uzodinma Iweala further explored this topic. This series is a must watch for anyone wanting to gain a better understanding of the historical and current struggles of the African American community.
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