''Kindred'' is an American

science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...

television series developed by

Branden Jacobs-Jenkins Branden Jacobs-Jenkins (born 1984) is an American playwright. His play ''Purpose'' won the 2025 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, for which his works '' Gloria'' and '' Everybody'' were finalists in 2016 and 2018, respectively. His play '' Appropriate'' ...

and based on the 1979 novel of the same name written by

Octavia E. Butler Octavia Estelle Butler (June 22, 1947 – February 24, 2006) was an American science fiction writer who won several awards for her works, including Hugo, Locus, and Nebula awards. In 1995, Butler became the first science-fiction writer to recei ...

. The series premiered with eight episodes on December 13, 2022, on

FX on Hulu FX Networks, LLC, commonly known as FX Networks, is an American media company built around FX, FXX, and FX Movie Channel, plus their associated production company, FX Productions, and is a subsidiary of Disney General Entertainment Content, th ...

. In January 2023, the series was canceled after one season.

Premise

Dana has just moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

to establish a life close to her only remaining family, her Aunt Denise, when she gets pulled back in time to the 19th century plantation in Maryland. The modern setting is 2016.

Cast

* Mallori Johnson as Dana James *

Micah Stock Micah Stock (born December 31, 1988) is an American actor best known for his roles in the Sundance breakout ''Brittany Runs a Marathon'', as Doug in Netflix’s ''Bonding (TV series), Bonding'' and as Kevin in the FX original series ''Kindred (mi ...

as Kevin Franklin *

Ryan Kwanten Ryan Christian Kwanten (born 28 November 1976) is an Australian actor and producer. He played Vinnie Patterson from 1997 to 2002 in the Australian soap opera ''Home and Away''. After his stint ended, he joined the American teen drama series '' ...

as Thomas Weylin *

Gayle Rankin Gayle Rankin is a Scottish actress. She is known for her role as Sheila in the Netflix series '' GLOW'' (2017–2019). She also played Emily Dodson in the HBO series ''Perry Mason'' (2020). Her films include ''The Greatest Showman'' (2017), ''Her ...

as Margaret Weylin * Austin Smith as Luke * David Alexander Kaplan as Rufus Weylin *

Sophina Brown Sophina Brown Simmons is an American actress, active in theater and television. She is best known for her starring roles as prosecutor Raina Troy in the CBS legal drama ''Shark'' from 2006 to 2008, and as FBI agent Nikki Betancourt in the CBS cri ...

as Sarah * Sheria Irving as Olivia

Episodes

Production and release

In March 2021,

FX Productions FX Productions, LLC (FXP) is an American television and in-house production company owned by FX Networks, a division of the Disney Entertainment unit of The Walt Disney Company. It was also known in copyright as Bluebush Productions from 2007 ...

announced that it had obtained the rights to adapt

Octavia Butler Octavia Estelle Butler (June 22, 1947 – February 24, 2006) was an American science fiction writer who won several awards for her works, including Hugo, Locus, and Nebula awards. In 1995, Butler became the first science-fiction writer to recei ...

's 1979 novel '' Kindred'' into a television series developed by

Janicza Bravo Janicza Bravo () is an American film director, film producer, and screenwriter. Her films include '' Gregory Go Boom'', a winner of the short-film jury award at the Sundance Film Festival; ''Lemon'', co-written with Brett Gelman; and '' Zola'', c ...

directed the pilot episode, and Mallori Johnson was cast in the lead role, in her acting debut. The rest of the main cast was revealed in September 2021, adding

, Austin Smith,

Antoinette Crowe-Legacy Antoinette Crowe-Legacy is an American actress best known for her role as Elise Johnson, the daughter of Bumpy Johnson, in the Epix series ''Godfather of Harlem''. Early life and education Crowe-Legacy was raised in Garland, Texas and attende ...

, and David Alexander Kaplan. After producing the

television pilot A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie) in United Kingdom and United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television netwo ...

, FX ordered the show to a full series in January 2022. Filming took place in June 2022 in

Rome, Georgia Rome is the largest city in and the county seat of Floyd County, Georgia, United States. Located in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, it is the principal city of the Rome, Georgia metropolitan area, Rome, Georgia, metropolitan statist ...

Twin Shadow George William Lewis Jr. (born March 30, 1983), better known by his stage name Twin Shadow, is a Dominican-born American musician, producer, and actor. He has released six studio albums to date: '' Forget'' (2010), '' Confess'' (2012), ''Eclip ...

provided the score for the series, making his television scoring debut. ''Kindred'' was released on December 13, 2022, on

Hulu Hulu (, ) is an American Subscription business model, subscription streaming media service owned by Disney Streaming, a subsidiary of the Disney Entertainment segment of the Walt Disney Company. It was launched on October 29, 2007, initially as ...

. On January 30, 2023, the series was canceled after one season.

Reception

Critical reception

Accolades

References

External links

* * {{Hulu 2020s American science fiction television series 2022 American television series debuts 2022 American television series endings Hulu original programming FX on Hulu original programming 2020s American time travel television series Television shows based on American novels