Oprah is bringing the NYT's '1619 Project' podcast about slavery to the big screen

The New York Times’ 1619 Project is the latest podcast to get the big screen treatment and it’s slated to be backed by none other than media powerhouse Oprah Winfrey. The ongoing documentary series about the history and impact of slavery in the United States is headed up by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones. The cinematic and television adaptations (just one of many paths the project has taken when it comes to reaching the public) will be a collaboration between Hannah-Jones, Winfrey, and Lionsgate studios.“I created the 1619 Project to finally force a reckoning and to tell, within the pages of the most important news organization in the country, that virtually nothing in modern American life — socially, culturally, politically, economically or legally — has been left untouched by our decision to engage in chattel slavery,” said Hannah-Jones at a 2019 event honouring Black journalists and writers. “In essence, the 1619 Project argues that it is Black Americans — more than any other group — who are this nation’s true Founding Fathers.”[video_embed id='6017811503001']RELATED: Oprah’s new book retells her struggle with racism[/video_embed]The original wide-ranging project, which was launched in August of 2019 on the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery, has been a platform for Black artists, storytellers, academics, and other creatives to tackle the subject — and it has already been transformed into a series of school textbooks as well as a part-performance, part-conference event at Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. Now the 1619 Project will be delivered to screens across the globe, reports The Root.Oprah celebrated the news on her Twitter account yesterday:

When the #1619Project came out almost a year ago, I stood in tearful applause for the profound offering that it was giving our culture and nation. Today, I am honored to be a part of @nhannahjones’ vision to bring her transformative work to a global audience. Stay tuned, y’all! https://t.co/zcmVlLeSKV

— Oprah Winfrey (@Oprah) July 8, 2020

As of yet, there’s no release date attached to the project but Lionsgate’s own announcement reports that Oprah will sit in the producer’s chair while Hannah-Jones, “will serve as the creative leader and producer in developing feature films, television series, documentaries, unscripted programming and other forms of entertainment enlisting world-class Black creative voices to help adapt her celebrated series chronicling the ways that the original sin of slavery in America still permeates all aspects of our society today.” Until then, podcast listeners can hear the Times’ original episodes here.[video_embed id='1991285']BEFORE YOU GO: Tom Hanks has a blunt message for people who don't wear a mask[/video_embed]