"The Man in the High Castle," the latest drama series from Amazon Studios, poses the terrifying question, "What if the Allies had lost World War II?"
Frank Spotnitz adapted the Philip K. Dick novel of the same name, which gives an alternate American history. The Nazi Third Reich and the Japanese empire have split control of the U.S., and a mysterious news reel shows the reality of the Allies winning the war.
Ridley Scott, director of another famous Dick adaptation, "Blade Runner," produced the new Amazon series. The pilot episode became the most-watched of any Amazon original series since the streaming service's development program began.
Learn more about "The Man in the High Castle" and what might have been America's history.
Philip K. Dick Drew Inspiration from Other Works of Alternate History and the "I Ching"
The author reportedly conceived of the idea for "The Man in the High Castle" when he read the novel "Bring the Jubilee," which chronicles an alternate history to the American Civil War where the Confederate States of America claimed victory. He also cited texts such as "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany," "Hitler: A Study in Tyranny" and "The Foxes of the Desert" for his research.
Much like the characters in the novel used the "I Ching," Dick also let it guide his decision-making in plotting storylines.
"I used it in 'The Man in the High Castle' because a number of characters used it. In each case when they asked a question, I threw the coins and wrote the hexagram lines they got. That governed the direction of the book," Dick said in a 1974 interview.
Abundance of Swastikas Caused Problems in Finding Shooting Locations
The most shocking image in the pilot episode comes when Joe Blake (Luke Kleintank) strolls through New York City and past the Nazi banner in the middle of Times Square. The swastika also replaces the 50 stars on the American flag and is plastered all across the Germans' occupied territory.
Covering real buildings with swastikas for filming caused some trouble finding locations to shoot.
"We'd go to the art museum and say, "We want to put a Nazi banner in front of your building,' and they usually say no," Spotnitz told the Wall Street Journal. "We had to assure them this was not a pro-Nazi show."
Rocky Mountain States Provide the Only Safe Haven for Minorities
The Greater Nazi Reich has purged its territory of all races other than whites as well as all Jewish believers. The hospitals also burn the bodies of all the "cripples, terminally ill, drag-on-the-state" people. When Juliana Crain (Alexa Davalos) boards a bus to the neutral zone, she soon finds herself the only white woman on the bus.
Spotnitz revealed at the show's New York Comic-Con panel that he's already planning to explore further the horrors against these minority groups if Amazon picks up the show for a second season.
Did America Really Lose the War?
When Juliana's sister gives her a knapsack with film reels tucked inside, she discovers they are news reels that show a world in which the Allies won the war. She believes the footage is real, but her boyfriend Frank (Rupert Evans) tells her they are anti-fascist movies made by the titular "Man in the High Castle."
In Dick's novel, the reality of the U.S. winning the war is detailed in a book called "The Grasshopper." Although the Allies win the war, the circumstances surrounding their victory alter slightly from the reality of how the war was really won.
Spotnitz Takes Some Liberties
Spotnitz added a few characters not seen in the original novel, including Rufus Swell's Nazi commander John Smith and Joel de la Fuente's antagonist Inspector Kido of San Francisco. Overall, the story keeps with the ideas presented by Dick.
Despite the changes, Dick's daughter Isa Dick Hackett has championed the adaption's development for years and has faith Spotnitz will do her father's work justice.
"Frank has been really serious about wanting to honor the spirit of the novel," Hackett told Entertainment Weekly. "He's never going to do anything that will betray [it]."
"The Man in the High Castle" will be available for streaming on Amazon Prime on Nov. 20.
