Written by Kianna Best on Aug 20, 2024. Posted in Production News

Michaela Coel to write, star in and executive produce new HBO and BBC Drama series

Multi-talented Michaela Coel is set to write, star in and executive produce a new 10 part series for HBO, co-produced with the BBC. The series titled First Day of Earth follows British novelist Henri, played by Coel, as she travels to Ghana to reconnect with her roots, finding everything is not as she expected. Made by Various Artists for BBC iPlayer and BBC One, and in association with A24, filming will commence next year.

Image courtesy of Spencer Hewlett

“I am delighted to be working with VAL, the BBC and HBO again, and to partner with A24; thanks to all of their combined taste, care and expertise, I feel our show is in great hands,” Coel stated. “The process of creating FDOE thus far has been a beautifully intimate experience, and I am excited to embark on the next phase to eventually offer this as another televisual gift for anyone willing to accompany Henri on what will be a wild odyssey!”

Michael Coel, known for her work on a number of projects including Chewing Gum and I May Destroy You, is a multi-award winning talent in the UK and global screen industry. Her newest venture will see her executive producing alongside Jesse Armstrong (Succession), Phil Clarke and Roberto Troni for Various Artists Limited, Jo McClellan for the BBC, and Piers Wenger for A24.

When she is offered a job to film in Ghana, her parent’s homeland, Henri, played by Coel, is drawn by the chance to reconnect with her roots and estranged father. But when things are not as she expected, she must deal with danger and hypocrisy, form new friendships, lose her illusions, and create a new sense of identity

“Michaela’s words have the ability to transport the reader like no other,” Amy Gravitt, executive Vice President at HBO & Max Comedy Programming, commented. “I am thrilled to have the opportunity to continue the conversation that began with I May Destroy You, alongside our close collaborators at VAL, A24 and the BBC. With Henri as our guide, First Day on Earth is as lyrical as it is visceral in its excavation of the idea of home.”

“Michaela is one of those exceptional talents whose work I have long admired,” commented Lindsay Salt, director of BBC Drama ahead of the Edinburgh TV Festival. “I May Destroy You is one of the reasons I wanted to join the BBC! In First Day on Earth, Michaela has created another unmissable series - truly original, heartfelt, hilarious, poetic storytelling and told in a way that only Michaela can. I can’t wait for everyone to see it.”

“We’re delighted and feel extremely lucky that Michaela chose to bring her brilliant new show to us, after the extraordinary experience we had working together on I May Destroy You,” stated Various Artists Limited (VAL), executive producers Phil Clarke and Roberto Troni. “Yet again, Michaela delivers a highly original, singular story that explores the relationship between England and Ghana via a second generation British-Ghanaian woman who takes up the opportunity to return to the homeland of her parents and finds herself encountering a cast of memorable characters and experiences that force her to face some painful home truths. But as ever with Michaela, it is by turns shocking, funny and unforgettable, and done in her inimitable style.”