Oprah Winfrey, Pulitzer Prize Winner Nikole Hannah-Jones & Liongate To Develop ‘The 1619 Project’ For Multiple Platforms

Deadline is reporting that Lionsgate and media maven Oprah Winfrey have partnered with 2020 Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones and The New York Times to develop Hannah-Jones’ interactive project, The 1619 Project, along with the NYT podcast, 1619, into an expansive portfolio of films, television series and documentaries, unscripted programming and other forms of entertainment.

Launched in August of 2019, on the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in the English colonies, The 1619 Project is an ongoing series that connects the centrality of slavery in history with an unflinching account of the brutal racism that endures in so many aspects of American life today. With contributions from Black authors, essayists, poets, playwrights, and scholars, the project examines the legacy of slavery in America and how it shaped all aspects of society, from music and law to education and the arts, including the principles of our democracy itself.

Winfrey will serve as a producer along with Hannah-Jones, who will enlist Black creative voices to help adapt her celebrated series. Times Magazine’s Head of scripted entertainment and editor of The 1619 Project Caitlin Roper will also produce.

“For many Americans, The 1619 Project was a great awakening and a true history that you probably never learned in school,” said Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer. “For others, the project was a fresh analysis of the historical record by one of the world’s leading media authorities. We’re proud to partner with The New York Times, Nikole Hannah-Jones and Oprah Winfrey, a creative talent with unparalleled stature, to amplify Nikole’s voice and reach across our worldwide platform to marshal all of our top creative relationships to translate her vision into a canon of storytelling for a global audience.”