Sky released a new teaser for its upcoming limited series, “Amadeus,” on Tuesday, but it didn’t receive a standing ovation from fans online.
The Sky Original, set to premiere in December, has revealed a first look at the reimagining of Peter Shaffer’s 1981 play (which, in turn, inspired the 1984 film of the same name that won Best Picture at the Academy Awards).
However, fans were quick to blast the new iteration of “Amadeus,” calling out the series for casting Will Sharpe, a half-Japanese performer, in the lead role – because Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was historically not Asian.
After one X user commented that “not a single person asked for this,” another fan commented on Sharpe’s casting: “I didn’t know Mozart was Asian. It’s a good thing that Hollywood is providing such historical accuracy here. If something out of the ordinary happened, like Hollywood portraying Obama as a white man, I wouldn’t bother watching.”
“Is this the one where we find out the real genius behind Amadeus is a paraplegic, non-binary black woman who taught him everything,” another person sarcastically wrote on X, “and wrote his music?”
Many also took issue with Sky saying they “believed in the original stories” while promoting a remake. On Tuesday, one X user asked: “Can we do something new that hasn’t been done before? Maybe? Please?”
“Why on earth would we need to tell a familiar story, when this blockbuster movie already exists?” another spoke. “Just remaster in 4K and do an annual release in theaters. I’ve watched it so many times and will happily watch it again.”
A third noted: “lol they really ended this trailer with “believe the original stories??” Really ?? After remaking perhaps the only film that will ever need to be [be] redone??
“Amadeus,” written by “Black Doves” creator Joe Barton, sees Sharpe stepping into Tom Hulce’s shoes as a celebrated classical composer.
Barton has since responded to the criticism, writing on
Paul Bettany, Gabrielle Creevy, Rory Kinnear, Lucy Cohu, Jonathan Aris and many more complete the cast.
The series is produced by Two Cities Television, part of STV Studios, in association with Sky Studios. Megan Spanjian, Michael Jackson, Stephen Wright, Julian Farino and Paul Gilbert serve as executive producers alongside Sharpe.
Watch the new teaser above.
