Will Packer and original 'Roots' cast member LeVar Burton will executive produce the upcoming miniseries.
- May 1, 2015
AceShowbiz - The "Roots" remake is officially a go. The History Channel announced on Thursday, April 30 that the new take on the original eight-part miniseries would air across corporate siblings History, A&E Network and Lifetime in 2016.
Will Packer will executive produce the remake with LeVar Burton, who starred as Kunta Kinte on the original miniseries, as well as Mark Wolper, son of the late "Roots" executive producer David L. Wolper.
Packer said in a statement, "The opportunity to present one of America's most powerful stories to a generation that hasn't seen it is tremendously exciting. Contemporary society needs this story and I'm proud to be a part of it."
"My career began with 'Roots', and I am proud to be a part of this new adaptation," said Burton. "There is a huge audience of contemporary young Americans who do not know the story of 'Roots' or its importance. I believe now is the right time to tell this story so that we can all be reminded of its impact on our culture and identity."
Wolper added, "Kunta Kinte began telling his story over 200 years ago, and that story went through his family lineage, to Alex Haley, to my father, and now the mantle rests with me. Like Kunta Kinte fought to tell his story over and over again, so must we."
Lawrence Konner, Mark Rosenthal, Alison McDonald and Charles Murray will pen the upcoming miniseries. It's still unknown how many hours the remake will run.
The original "Roots" was a critical and commercial success, holding record as the third highest rated television series. Based on Alex Haley's 1976 novel "Roots: The Saga of an American Family", the story follows Kunta Kinte who is captured as a young man in Africa and then is sold as a slave in colonial America.
