Orphan Black co-creator takes over as Snowpiercer showrunner

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Just over a month ago, it was announced that Josh Friedman had left his position as showrunner on TNT's upcoming series Snowpiercer over "creative differences". Snowpiercer is based on Bong Joon-ho's 2013 sci-fi film of the same name, and Friedman was no stranger to turning cinematic properties into TV shows, having developed the short-lived Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles a decade ago.

Friedman was executive producing Snowpiercer and wrote the pilot episode (which was directed by Scott Derrickson). Now that his association with the series is over, TNT has found his replacement: Snowpiercer's new showrunner is Graeme Manson, who is known for co-creating the series Orphan Black and writing the awesome sci-fi thriller CUBE.

Sarah Aubrey, executive vice president of original programming for TNT, has this to say about Manson's hiring: 

Graeme's extensive background in the sci-fi genre coupled with his brilliant work behind Orphan Black made him the perfect choice for this series. He is the best conductor to navigate the thought provoking and delicate themes of the series while bringing this frozen, futuristic world to life."

Snowpiercer is set 

seven years after the world has become a frozen wasteland. The series centers on the remnants of humanity, who inhabit a gigantic, perpetually-moving train that circles the globe. As it does, issues of class warfare, social injustice and the politics of survival are raised.

The show stars Daveed Diggs as a prisoner in the tail end of the train, Jennifer Connelly as a first class passenger who handles the train's PA announcements, Mickey Sumner as part of the train's security force, Annalise Basso as a poor fourth class passenger, Sasha Frolova as a character who is returning to the front of the train after serving three years in the prison car, Benjamin Haigh as the poverty-stricken Fergus McConnell, Katie McGuinness as Fergus's no-nonsense mother, Alison Wright as a fourth-class passenger who works in a nail salon, Roberto Urbina as a fireman in a polyamorous relationship, Susan Park as the finest chef at the train's best restaurant, and Lena Hall as the train's archivist. Sam Otto and Sheila Vand are also on board, but details on their characters were not given.

It's a shame there was a behind-the-scenes shake-up between the production of the pilot and the rest of the series, but Manson sounds like a good choice for the showrunner job.