“The Prophecy is a narrative podcast that asks the question: ‘What if the stories we’ve heard and read from the bible were not a retelling of events from the past but were actually events unfolding in the present moment?’,” Washington (Scandal), told Newsweek in a recent exclusive phone interview.
Such stories include re-imaginings of biblical tales such as a British zoo veterinarian named Daniel (David Oyelowo, Selma) who has a terrifying encounter with lions, a commercial sea diver named Jonah (Daniel Dae Kim, Lost) who finds himself up close and person with a whale, and Washington’s character, famed hydrologist Dr. Virginia Edwards, who just might be the Virgin Mary.
The 8-part supernatural thriller written by Randy McKinnon (Notes from a Young Black Chef), and produced by Audible, QCODE, and Washington’s production company, Simpson Street, blurs the lines between reality and the unexplained in similar fashion to what much of the world is experiencing today. Through global hunger crises, diseases of unknown origin, and unprecedented heat waves, “a lot of us are living in a world that feels beyond explanation,” Washington said. “We’re living through unprecedented times, each of us trying to desperately wrap our heads around what it means.”
The central characters in The Prophecy make sense of what they’re experiencing by identifying the common connection between them—Special Agent Scott Thomas (Fishburne, The Matrix). Working from within a top-secret government facility in Langley, Virginia, Agent Thomas tries to understand the significance of how Jonah, Daniel, and Dr. Edwards could be connected to so much global calamity, all the while battling inner doubts and demons stemming from his own mysterious past.
“In a way, my character represents the doubting Thomas’s of the world,” Fishburne told Newsweek, referring to the New Testament apostle known for disbelieving things until he witnessed them with his own eyes. “We all have doubts from time to time,” Fishburne said, “I think my character will be very relatable to a lot of people.”
“I have very, very deep faith”
Though religion weaves its way through much of The Prophecy (at one point, Fishburne’s character says the world is experiencing “the largest revival of religion since the great awakening.”), Fishburne explained that he doesn’t consider himself to be a religious person and says the audio drama can be appreciated by believer and non-believer alike. “People who aren’t at all religious will still connect with these stories because of the imaginative and fresh way we’re telling them,” he said.
Washington, on the other hand, considers herself to be “a very spiritual person,” having been raised and confirmed in the Episcopalian church. “I have very, very deep faith, and there’s a lot about Christianity that I adore and hold very close to my heart,” she said. Even still, she said religion is at its best when practitioners are willing, “to ask questions, dig deeper, and have a real personal relationship with God,” — all themes central to The Prophecy, and questions for which there are only high-stakes answers. “A lot of those ideas are explored in this material in a way that was really exciting for me,” Washington said.
Washington and Fishburne each explained that one of the things that drew them to the project was the way the story balances both science and faith. “It’s a story that demonstrates the power of faith but with a supernatural edge,” said Fishburne. And Washington said she, “really identified with (how her character) puts a lot of weight and value on science and reason but is also willing to hold space for the divine.”
Beyond faith, the story also explores race. The series was described by its creator as “literally a love letter to Black women,” and nearly all cast members are people of color. “The series makes us wonder if a modern unfolding of these events would happen with people that look just like the images we’ve seen historically,” Washington told Newsweek.
Her own character has a connection to the Virgin Mary and at one point says the mother of Christ can empathize with, “the fears that every Black parent has the moment we bring a black child into this world;” a line that rang especially true to Washington, who has children of her own. “The series does justice to all mothers who devote their lives to the wellness and safety of their children,” Washington explained. “And the added intensity of having that child be the Messiah is what kind of illuminates the material and makes us all ask important questions like who Christianity belongs to, who the church belongs to, and who faith belongs to.”
The Prophecy is available exclusively on Audible beginning July 28, 2022.
