The Starz seriesSpartacusis getting a new life, but not the way fans might expect.Spartacus: House of Ashur, now in production in New Zealand, is not a revival or a reboot. Original series creatorSteven S. DeKnightis taking an “alternate universe” approach, applying Marvel’s “What If?” formula to an original character to create a whole new series, and Starz has now announced the cast that will bring it to life.
According to a report byDeadline,Nick Tarabaywill reprisethe role of Ashur, who died in the second season finale. The new series will explore what would have happened had Ashur survived, creating an alternate timeline story that isn’t constrained by the events of the original series. He will be joined by an all-new cast of actors in the ten-episode limited series, which will be the fifth in theSpartacusfranchise.
Starz says the new series will be a"history-bending, erotic, thrilling, roller-coaster experience.“DeKnight solves the problem of bringing back Ashur, a dead character, under the premise that the character didn’t die on Mount Vesivius in the finale ofSpartacusseason two. In the new timeline that this establishes, Ashur helps the Romans kill Spartacus and end the slave rebellion. As a reward, he is given the gladiator school owned by Batiatus (John Hannah), which will be the setting for the new series. While teasing the new chapter in theSpartacusfranchise,DeKnight promises fans “are not ready for this.”
Spartacus: Every Season in the Series, Ranked
With a new sequel series in the works, now is the perfect to look back at the original Spartacus and its three seasons.
The New Cast ofSpartacus: House of Asher
Tarabay is currently the only originalSpartacuscast member appearing in the new series. His other roles include playingCaptain Boomerang in the CW seriesArrow, as well as roles inPacific Rim: UprisingandPerson of Interest.
Starz also announced the following actors are joining the cast of the new series.
The originalSpartacusseries premiered in 2010 and ran for three seasons.The prequel seriesSpartacus: Gods of the Arenapremiered in 2011, followed bySpartacus: Vengeance(2012) andSpartacus: War of the Damned(2013).
All four seasons of the originalSpartacusseries are streaming on Starz and Plex.
