Scalped Lead Role Cast in TV Adaptation

Alex Meraz has been cast in the lead role of Tribal Police officer Dashiell "Dash" Bad Horse for Scalped, a television adaption of the Vertigo Comics series of the same name, according to published reports. Both The Tracking Board and Screen Rant have reported Meraz has been cast as the main character for the series, which is slated to appear on WGN America. The critically-acclaimed comic Scalped was originally created by Jason Aaron and R. M. Guéra, and ran for 60 issues for Vertigo from 2007-2012. The series focused on the Oglala Lakota inhabitants of Prairie Rose, a fiction Indian reservation in  South Dakota. Organized crime, poverty, drug addiction, alcoholism, and cultural identity were major areas of focus in the series, as seen from the perspectives of main characters Officer Bad Horse, Sheriff Lincoln Red Crow, and the sheriff's daughter (and Bad Horse's love interest) Carol Red Crow. Though originally planned as a re-imagining of classic DC Comics character Scalphunter, the comic was instead partially inspired by the story of Native American activist Leonard Peltier, who was arrested and given two life terms for the 1975 murder of two FBI agents during a controversial reservation shootout. In addition to the casting of Meraz (Twilight series, Suicide Squad) in the lead role, Lily Gladstone (Certain Women) has also been cast as Carol Red Crow. Scalped has been in development as a television series as far back as 2014, though WGN America ordered a television pilot just last year. The series will be written by Doug Jung (Star Trek: Beyond, Banshee) and co-executive produced by both Jung and Geoff Johns (The Flash, Arrow) of DC Comics. Bilall Fallah and Adil El Arbi (Black, Beverly Hills Cop 4) have also been chosen as directors for the pilot episode. There is currently no known production schedule, premiere date, or other casting news. Stay tuned to Entertainment Fuse for more information on this upcoming series as it becomes available.