Diksha Sundriyal
Starring James Franco, ‘11.22.63’ follows the story of an English teacher whose life changes after he is introduced to the possibility of changing the world as he knows it. The protagonist is Jake Epping, who discovers that a portal exists in his local diner, allowing a person to travel to a specific date in time. The diner’s owner, Al, who is also a very good friend of Jake, tells him that by travelling in the past, they can save John F. Kennedy from being killed by Lee Harvey Oswald. Al has been trying to do it for a long time, but when he fails, he puts Jake up to the task. This leads him on a journey that completely changes his life. SPOILERS AHEAD.
The Fictional Jake Epping was Created in the Image of the Common Man
Jake Epping is a fictional character created by Stephen King for his 2011 novel, ’11/22/63,’ which serves as the inspiration for the James Franco series. The idea for the story originated with King in the early 1970s, when he was a high school teacher in Maine. It was the anniversary of the assassination, and another staff member in the teacher’s lounge spoke about what it would have been like if JFK had never been assassinated. The idea struck a chord with the author, who named his project ‘Split Track.’ However, he abandoned it because, at the time, he didn’t feel confident enough to pull off such a complex story, especially given the research required for it. Moreover, he thought that the wound was still fresh in the memory of the American people.
Years later, when King returned to the idea, he found that enough time had passed to explore the possibility of travelling back in time and stopping the assassination. Like most of his stories, King imagined his character as an everyday man who is suddenly pulled into the world of time travel and espionage and must learn to navigate his new reality. At the same time, he also created the protagonist as an unattached man who would have no problem leaving the present behind to live for several years in the past. With King having been a high school teacher himself, one can assume that the author relied on his own experience to create Jake’s life, particularly the part of him working as an English teacher.
He infused the character with the details that turned him into someone the audience could see themselves in. At the same time, King also ensured that the 50s were presented in an accurate light and highlighted the anachronisms that Jake brings with him, adding a more realistic touch to his experience. He paid special attention not to present the 50s with rose-tinted glasses, showing Jake and the audience both the good and the bad about that time. As for himself, he said, “The more I worked, the more time that I spent in the past, the more things that I remembered — and that was a pleasure. It was a great place, but I wouldn’t want to live there.”
Jame Franco Saw Jake Epping as an Ordinary Man in Extraordinary Circumstances
When James Franco came across Stephen King’s book, he was blown away by it. As soon as he finished reading it, he called King and asked if there was a possibility of obtaining the rights to the book. The author revealed that J.J. Abrams was already working on a series adaptation with Hulu. This made Franco give up hope about being a part of the adaptation. However, later, he wrote a review of the book for VICE, and after Abrams read it, he offered him the role of Jake Epping. One of the things that drew Franco to the character was that he was a man out of time, yet in many ways, he was an ordinary man. He noted that Jake had to change his clothes, his behaviour, and even the way he spoke to fit in with the times, and saw something of himself as an actor in it.
“He is essentially doing what I do as an actor when I play a role. Because he is trying to fit into the past. And so as an actor, playing somebody who essentially is being an actor himself, I don’t know, it was just fun,” he said. The actor also liked that Jake wasn’t a spy and didn’t have any military background that would make him equipped to take on such a mission, but that he was “smart and resourceful” enough. “I like playing characters like that, where it’s sort of an everyman character who is asked to rise to certain circumstances when he’s called upon,” he added. Franco took this approach, staying close to the way King painted the character, and played him with a depth and realism that makes the audience root for him.
