John Legend Goes “Underground” with New Series

09 Mar, 2016

The Trending Report had a candid conversation with  Jurnee Smollett-Bell, star of WGN America’s highly anticipated Series ‘Underground’ that’s set to debut March 9th.

Fittingly our conversation took place at the State Street Macy’s in Chicago as the iconic company celebrated Black History Month. Smollett-Bell has been acting since she was just out of diapers with roles on Full House, The Cosby Show and Friday Nights Lights.

Now she’s taking on a role that few would be willing to venture to.

Stories of the Underground Railroad has been told in a host of genres from history books, museums to theatrical plays.  WGN America pushed the envelope depicting the series of events as a suspense thriller, giving an intense look into the spirit of slaves who risked it all for the hope of freedom.

Executive produced by John Legend, the series gives a inside looking into the lives of slaves who were courageous enough to cultivate an escape route from the south, to the north of America. It took many people, of different races, in order for some to finally feel as if freedom was at their grasp. History dubs it as The Underground Railroad…I’m sure survivors saw it as their rocky road to liberation.

In this groundbreaking series, Smollett-Bell plays Rosalee, a house slave during a grisly time in American history. We’ll see Rosalee live the life of a slave that never really feels a part of anything. She lives in the “big” house however, she is still only seen as property.

Although she’s still a slave, the field slaves have a comradery the she will never fully experience. On top of feeling ostracized from each element of her life, she will need to decide if she will stand up, fight and run…or remain enslaved…the only life she’s known.

When I asked Smollett-Bell how she prepared to play such a dynamic role, she told me that her research and dialect coaching was extensive. She also delved into researching the era and read a lot of books including a collection of slave narratives titled ‘The Bullwhip Days.’

That book and books like that were pivotal in her education of a history that has been diluted, made fun of, and honestly encouraged to be forgotten about. She also shared that there were times during filming that her emotions didn’t leave with the sound of  the director’s cut call signifying the end of the day.

“It was difficult to jump in and out of that life,” she said.  But I, for one, cannot wait to see how this story of the largest, most impactful American revolution is displayed on the small screen.

And if you’re wondering if she and her brother Jussie Smollett, star of FOX’s Empire, have any sibling rivalry, the answer is absolutely not. “Our mother always made sure that we were each other’s biggest fans and encouragers.” In fact, Jussie will be guest starring on Underground as well. I look forward to seeing another side of the talented performer.

Be sure to check out Underground when it debuts march 9th. Both Jurnee and I are hoping that the audience receives a new perspective on what some of our ancestors endured for me to write and for her to act. As Jurnee said and others before her “If you don’t know your past, you don’t know where you’re going…we come from kings and queens and we are here because they survived.”

Wendy Simmons

Image WGN America twitter

Mentioned In This Post: @UndergroundWGN, @jurneesmollett