History Channel Releases The First Trailer For ‘Roots’ Remake

 

Today A&E and The History Channel released the first trailer for their ‘Roots’ Remake. ‘Roots’ is very culturally relevant in this country, both the book written by Alex Haley in 1976 and the mini-series just a year later in 1977. It was one of the first times that American slavery and the brutality that came with it, was put on the forefront and put right in the faces of white America. Although, the original mini-series was not as brutal as it maybe should’ve been but to be fair it was shown on 1977 network television. But this time around, Alex Haley’s epic can be told the way it was meant to be with A&E’s remake. After watching the trailer it looks like this version won’t shy away from the graphic atrocities that were committed during American slavery. It’s hard not to think that ’12 Years A Slave’ had a lot to do with this remake. There was a time where ‘Roots’ was the most accurate portrayal of American slavery until ’12 Years’ came along 34 years later and showed an even darker side to the world. LeVar Burtain, who originally played Kunta Kinte in 1977 miniseries and is co-executive producing told Collider:

“Nearly 40 years ago I had the privilege to be a part of an epic television event that started an important conversation in America. I am incredibly proud to be a part of this new retelling and start the dialogue again, at a time when it is needed more than ever.”

If you have no clue what ‘Roots’ is about or it’s origins, heres the book synopsis:

Brought up on the stories of his elderly female relatives—including his Grandmother Cynthia, whose father was emancipated from slavery in 1865—Alex Haley claimed to have traced his family history back to “the African,” Kunta Kinte, captured by members of a contentious tribe and sold to slave traders in 1767. In the novel, each of Kunta’s enslaved descendants passed down an oral history of Kunta’s experiences as a free man in Gambia, along with the African words he taught them. Haley researched African village customs, slave-trading and the history of African Americans in America—including a visit to the griot (oral historian) of his ancestor’s African village. He created a colorful history of his family from the mid-eighteenth century through the mid-twentieth century, which led him back to his heartland of Africa.

‘Roots’ premieres on Memorial Day on The History Channel and A&E.

[Source: Collider]