'The Underground Railroad' Teaser: The New Amazon Series From Barry Jenkins Asks, "Who Built All This?"

Barry Jenkins just gave us our first teaser for The Underground Railroad, and it's stunning. This isn't a traditional teaser, but it so much more effective than just a series of random shots cut together. By gathering a large cast of characters together in one spot and overlaying that footage with some beautiful music from  Nicholas Britell, Barry Jenkins has immediately caught our attention. Watch The Underground Railroad teaser below.

I was already all-in on The Underground Railroad.  I have yet to read Colson Whitehead's Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, but I'm already interested in everything and anything Barry Jenkins does. However, if I was still uncertain about the series, this teaser would've convinced me. It's such a unique approach – there's no real "footage" per se – or rather, I doubt the footage here is actually a scene from the show. Instead, it's Jenkins setting the mood – the teaser is labeled a "Preamble" – complete with a gorgeous new score from Nicholas Britell.

In The Underground Railroad, "Cora is a slave on a cotton plantation in Georgia. Life is hell for all the slaves, but especially bad for Cora; an outcast even among her fellow Africans, she is coming into womanhood—where even greater pain awaits. When Caesar, a recent arrival from Virginia, tells her about the Underground Railroad, they decide to take a terrifying risk and escape."

And in the world of the book and now show, "The Underground Railroad is no mere metaphor—engineers and conductors operate a network of tracks and tunnels constructed in secret beneath the very Southern soil upon which they've been enslaved. Cora and Caesar's first stop is South Carolina, in a city that initially seems like a haven. But the city's placid surface masks an insidious scheme designed for its black denizens. And even worse: Ridgeway, a relentless slave catcher of mythic origin, is close on their heels. Forced to flee again, Cora embarks on a harrowing flight, state-by-state, seeking true freedom in a heroine's journey carved through the soil and soul of America."

Jenkins is directing all episodes of the upcoming limited series. "Working with Amazon and a wonderful group of screenwriters to develop Colson's novel into a limited series has been an extremely rewarding experience," the filmmaker said when the project was announced. . "Translating his singular voice into a cohesive and equally singular visual language is a task I very much look forward to."

Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios, added: "It's an absolute gift to have Barry Jenkins commit to directing all the episodes for our upcoming limited series The Underground Railroad. Barry's eye for character and sustained exhilarating, emotional storytelling style ensures that this project is in the right hands. We can't wait to get started and bring this significant story to our Prime Video audience."

There's no premiere date set yet, but I'm guessing we'll see The Underground Railroad before the end of the year.