In a major blow for TNT’s upcoming Snowpiercer series, showrunner Josh Friedman has departed the project.

As per Variety, Friedman has left Snowpiercer over creative differences. In addition to serving as showrunner, Friedman was also the main writing force behind the show. At this stage, no replacement has been announced.

If you’ve not been keeping tabs on this one, quite the impressive cast has been amassed, including Oscar winner Jennifer Connelly, Grammy winner Daveed Diggs, and other notable names such as Benjamin Haigh, Katie McGuinness, Roberto Urbina, Susan Park, Sasha Frolova, Alison Wright, Mickey Sumner, and Lena Hall.

Snowpiercer began life as a Jacques Lob and Jeam-Marc Rochette graphic novel before being turned in to a 2013 movie starring Chris Evans, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Song Kang-ho, John Hurt, Ed Harris, and Octavia Spencer. The futuristic tale is set seven years after the world has been turned in to a frozen wasteland, with the remaining survivors of humanity taking refuge on a perpetually moving train that circles this icy landscape. Of course, with a mixed bag of various survivors, it’s not long before familiar social themes such as class divides, social prejudice and politics come to the fore.

Where TNT’s small screen version is concerned, Sinister and Doctor Strange’s Scott Derrickson has directed the pilot and will executive produce the series.

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