The Gray House

Big news about our new partnership

OK, so I’ve been teasing this one for a little while and I suppose it’s time to let the cat out of the bag.

We have partnered with Morgan Freeman’s production company, Revelations Entertainment, to help promote and bring you exclusive behind the scenes content about the new series The Gray House, which will debut on Prime Video on February 26.

If you haven’t heard about it, let me give you a quick breakdown- The Gray House tells the story of a network of women who turn the expectations of their era into cover for espionage. Together, they build a Union spy ring inside the Confederacy itself — gathering intelligence, moving messages, and quietly altering the course of the war.

Mary-Louise Parker stars as Eliza Van Lew, who is the Virginia socialite at center of the story, while Daisy Head plays her daughter Elizabeth. Amethyst Davis plays a free Black woman who is a key part of the conspiracy, while BEN FREAKIN VEREEN plays Isham Worthy.

This is not another of the war and of slavery, but a story about women that asks us to think about who shaped the course of the war end of American history itself. Here’s the trailer below.

Now, obviously, we’re super be partnering to do this. Frankly, I never thought that Morgan Freeman would appear on my CV but I guess that’s my life now. So let’s talk a little bit about what you guys are gonna get out of this.

First, the pods- we’re gonna be doing three different podcasts related to this series over time. The first is going to be an episode with director and producers that will take us behind the production of the series, how it came to be and why so important to talk about these women.

The second will be an interview with co-star and Tony Award-winning actor Ben Vereen about his role in the series and life on stage and on screen (I’m geeked about this one).

Finally, for you educators out we’re gonna be releasing an episode in the summer about how to use this series to teach the history of both slavery and the Civil War in your classrooms. We’re gonna be joined by some phenomenal scholars who I’ll announce later.

Let’s not forget the Historians At The Movies Watch party. On Sunday, March 1, we will be watching the first two of The Gray House on our Sunday night watch party.

So that’s about it. We are beyond excited to help in this little way because it’s a story that we think is important around here. If you’re excited about this, you can follow me here on Substack or on social media- just look for HerbertHistory.

And if you want some more civil war history, you can subscribe to the podcast below. Our current episode features Heather Cox Richardson, talking about the film Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. And yes, it’s a blast.

Alright, we’ve got a lot to do today, so let’s get moving.

Battlefields get the monuments.

Spies get the secrets.

Let’s talk about both.

Hit subscribe, send this to someone who loves Civil War history, and join the reckoning.