Amazon’s Hunters creator talks personal inspiration behind series

Amazon Prime’s Hunters creator talks about the very personal inspiration behind the Al Pacino led action thriller.

David Weil, creator of Amazon Prime’s upcoming Nazi-hunter series Hunters, says that the show has a very personal inspiration behind it. Deadline reported what Weil said at the TCA panel for the series:

"“My grandmother was a Holocaust survivor and she told me about her experiences during the war. Hearing this felt like the stuff of comic books and superheroes.”"

Hunters takes place in 1970s New York City, where a group of vigilantes discovers that hundreds of Nazis are living undercover in the city, secretly planning to take over and create a Fourth Reich in the US. The Hunters come together to bring the Nazis to justice and stop their genocidal plans.

Weil says that in creating Hunters he wanted to continue his grandmother’s story somehow.

More from Show Snob

• The Santa Clauses season 2, episode 6 recap “Wanga Banga Langa!”
• Lawmen: Bass Reeves season 1, episode 7 preview: Non-spoiler thoughts for Part VII
• Goosebumps season 1, episode 6 recap: “Night of the Living Dummy”
• Beacon 23 season 1, episode 3 recap: “Why Can’t We Go on as Three?”
• Upload season 3, episode 2 recap: “Strawberry”

"“There are so many survivors who are not with us. The community has grown smaller and it was a love letter to my grandmother.”"

He also explained how the creation of the series was his chance to battle “xenophobia, hidden crimes, and truths. It was wish-fulfillment for a Jewish kid growing up in Long Island.”

Of course, Weil acknowledges that the band’s acts of vigilantism aren’t exactly straight-forward acts of heroism and justice.

"“This is a show about vigilantes who reclaim their power and asks the question ‘If you hunt monsters, do you risk of becoming a monster yourself?’ It’s a timely idea we should be asking ourselves in this day and age.”"

Unfortunately, the series comes at an extremely relevant time in our country with xenophobia and anti-Semitism on the rise and recent hate crimes to prove it.

Another inspiration for the series included William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, specifically the character of Shylock in the creation of Al Pacino’s Nazi hunter Meyer Offerman. Considering Pacino has previously played Shylock in Michael Radford’s The Merchant of Venice (2004), those elements to his character may have been part of what attracted him to the role. There’s no doubt that he is perfect for the part.

Hunters premieres on Amazon Prime on March 21, 2020.

Are you excited for the upcoming Amazon series? Will you be watching? Be sure to tell us in the comment section below!

Source: Deadline