Anansi Boys: Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn, Grace Saif join Neil Gaiman adaptation

We’ve been following the development of Amazon’s six-episode limited series adaptation of Neil Gaiman’s 2005 fantasy novel Anansi Boys (buy a copy at THIS LINK) for several months now. In July, we heard that Delroy Lindo had been cast to play Anansi / Mr. Nancy on the show, and in September it was announced that Malachi Kirby will be taking on the dual roles of Anansi’s sons Charlie and Spider. Now The Hollywood Reporter says that Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn (Lovers Rock) and Grace Saif (13 Reasons Why) have also joined the cast.

St. Aubyn will be playing Rosie Noah, a teacher and fiancée to Charles “Fat Charlie” Nancy, the main protagonist and hero. According to THR, “Noah is described as cheerful, wise, good-humored and kind.”

Saif has been cast as Detective Constable Daisy Day, “who finds herself deep into several intersecting police cases, including a murder. She’s smart, efficient, determined and very funny.”

Gaiman had this to say about the casting news:

When you are casting something on the scale of Anansi Boys you need female leads who are as accomplished, charming, and brilliant as, well, Malachi Kirby in both his incarnations. Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn and Grace Saif are those women. [They’re] both funny, honest, brilliant actresses, and you will fall in love with both of them.”

Anansi Boys will center on

Charlie Nancy, a young man who is used to being embarrassed by his estranged father. But when his father dies, Charlie discovers that his father was Anansi: trickster god of stories. And he learns that he has a brother. Now his brother, Spider, is entering Charlie’s life, determined to make it more interesting, but also making it a lot more dangerous.

Here’s some more information on Charlie and Spider:

The character of Charles Nancy, sometimes known as Fat Charlie (it was his father’s nickname for him – he’s not fat), is described as awkward, stressed, engaged to be married, and working at a job he hates for a man he hates. He is as normal as it is possible to be – at least until he learns that his father was a god, and that he has a magical brother he does not know about. Spider is that brother. Described as cocky, self-assured, magical, superpowered, utterly amoral, and perhaps a bit of a monster.

Gaiman serves as showrunner on Anansi Boys alongside Douglas Mackinnon, who directed all six episodes of the Gaiman series Good Omens‘ first season. Gaiman also wrote the Anansi Boys scripts with Lenny Henry, Arvind Ethan David, Kara Smith, and Racheal Ofori. Gaiman, Henry, and Mackinnon are executive producing the show with Hilary Bevan Jones, Richard Fee, and Hanelle M. Culpepper.

The first episode is directed by Culpepper, whose credits include Star Trek: Picard. Jermain Julien (Grantchester) and Azhur Saleem (Doctor Who) are also on board to direct episodes.

Anansi Boys is being produced by Amazon Studios, the Blank Corp., Endor Productions, RED Production, and Paul Frift. Filming is currently underway in Scotland.