The Book of Eli Prequel Series to Star John Boyega

The Book of Eli is getting a prequel TV series, with Star Wars Sequel Trilogy star John Boyega taking over the titular role of a younger Eli. Alcon Entertainment produced the original film, and is the studio developing the TV show.

Book of Eli was the 2010 post-apocalyptic action-drama film from The Hughes Brothers (In Hell), and Gary Whitta (Rogue One) starring Denzel Washington as Eli. The story imagined a dystopian, Wild West-style future America, 30 years after a nuclear holocaust event. Eli is a man heading West carrying some precious cargo: the only surviving copy of the King James Bible. When Eli reaches a run-down town, a local gangster named Carnegie (Gary Oldman) comes to want the Bible for the powerful weapon of control it could be, leading to a brutal chase and battle. 

(SPOILERS) At the end of The Book of Eli, it’s revealed that Eli was blind the whole time, having lost his sight during the apocalypse. His unmatched skill as a fighter was one feat – but his ability to have read a bible written in braille and memorized the entire thing seemed like a true divine gift. Even though Eli died, he completed his mission and was able to dictate the passages of the bible for transcription, by those trying to re-establish civilization. 

The early details of The Book of Eli prequel series are few; it’s been revealed that it is set 30 years before the events of the film, which does make the most sense. Presumably, the series could cover how Eli initially survives the apocalypse but loses his sight in the process. It could then progress through how Eli manages to train himself to be a warrior in the dystopian world; how and when he first came across the bible and learned to read braille – and, most interestingly, how he came to hear the voice of God and/or “see” visions that made him have such deep faith in the mission to head westward. 

John Boyega has taken careful steps since his very visible frustrations with the Star Wars Sequel Trilogy. He’s taken on serious drama like the 2022 movie Breaking, about a troubled soldier trying to get back to being a civilian; The Woman King (the story of the real-life female African soldiers), and Netflix’s They Cloned Tyrone, a mix of urban crime drama and sci-fi thriller, with Boyega in the titular role. He’s built more than geek cred: he’s built all-around career cred, and Book of Eli is the type of project that could be a big success, without too much overbearing weight from the IP. 

The Book of Eli TV series is in development. 

Source: Deadline