Apple TV+ will tell the story of Black Panther leader Huey Newton in 'The Big Cigar'

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Apple TV+ (Image credit: Bryan M. Wolfe / iMore)

What you need to know

  • Apple TV+ has bought a new TV series based on Black Panther leader Huey P. Newton.
  • Newton was hunted by the FBI and escaped to Cuba with the help of celebrities.
  • André Holland is in talks to play the lead role.

Apple TV+ has announced that it has picked up a new six-episode TV series that will tell the story of Black Panther leader Huey P. Newton and his escape to Cuba while being hunted by the FBI.

The new show, which doesn't yet have its cast let alone a release date, will be written by Jim Hecht and "based on the eponymous magazine article from Joshuah Bearman," Apple TV+ announced.

Apple TV+ had the following to say about the new show as well as a possible lead actor.

Apple TV+ announced today "The Big Cigar," a new six-episode limited series executive produced and written by Jim Hecht ("Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty"), and executive produced and showrun by NAACP Image Award winner Janine Sherman Barrois ("Claws," "The Kings of Napa"), with Don Cheadle ("No Sudden Move," "Black Monday," "House of Lies") on board to direct and executive produce the first two episodes, and based on the eponymous magazine article from Joshuah Bearman ("Argo"), who will also serve as executive producer. With André Holland ("The Eddy," "Moonlight") in discussions to star as Black Panther leader Huey P. Newton, "The Big Cigar" tells the extraordinary, hilarious, almost-too-good-to-be-true story of how Newton relied on his best friend, Bert Schneider, the Hollywood producer behind "Easy Rider," to elude a nationwide manhunt and escape to Cuba while being pursued into exile by the FBI.

The story will include how Newton escaped to Cuba as the FBI hunted him for murder. He was helped by the Hollywood producer behind the infamous Easy Rider, Bert Schneider, as well as a number of celebrities.

While we still don't know all of the details behind The Big Cigar we can be sure that this will be another must-watch Apple TV+ show once it lands on the streaming service. You'll need to be a subscriber to watch, of course, while those paying for the Apple One subscription bundle will also be able to watch.

If you want to enjoy The Big Cigar in style, be sure to check out our list of the best Apple TV deals on the market today.

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Oliver Haslam
Oliver Haslam
Contributor

Oliver Haslam has written about Apple and the wider technology business for more than a decade with bylines on How-To Geek, PC Mag, iDownloadBlog, and many more. He has also been published in print for Macworld, including cover stories. At iMore, Oliver is involved in daily news coverage and, not being short of opinions, has been known to 'explain' those thoughts in more detail, too. Having grown up using PCs and spending far too much money on graphics card and flashy RAM, Oliver switched to the Mac with a G5 iMac and hasn't looked back. Since then he's seen the growth of the smartphone world, backed by iPhone, and new product categories come and go. Current expertise includes iOS, macOS, streaming services, and pretty much anything that has a battery or plugs into a wall. Oliver also covers mobile gaming for iMore, with Apple Arcade a particular focus. He's been gaming since the Atari 2600 days and still struggles to comprehend the fact he can play console quality titles on his pocket computer.