“Today, people get their energy from the sun. Humans have set foot on Mars. Cancer has been defeated. And yet, for every question answered, another one appears,” Daveed Diggs’ character orates in the trailer for upcoming Apple TV+ show “Extrapolations.”
It’s a notable sentiment that his character, a man named Marshall Zucker, shares. But even more notably? The fact that it’s delivered as a sermon from the bimah. That’s right, Marshall Zucker is actually Rabbi Marshall Zucker.
TL;DR Daveed Diggs is playing a rabbi in “Extrapolations”!!!! Baruch Hashem!!!
Premiering March 17, “Extrapolations” tells the story of our changing planet. Per Apple TV+, the show “introduces a near future where the chaotic effects of climate change have become embedded into our everyday lives. Eight interwoven stories about love, work, faith and family from across the globe will explore the intimate, life-altering choices that must be made when the planet is changing faster than the population.”
It also features an all-star cast, which, aside from Diggs, includes Meryl Streep, Matthew Rhys, Kit Harrington, David Schwimmer, Hari Nef, Gemma Chan and more.
Based on the trailer, it appears that Rabbi Zucker’s storyline will have something to do with providing spiritual guidance for a congregation dealing with the troubling affects of climate disaster. As Zucker delivers his sermon, the camera pans down to show that the gorgeous synagogue sanctuary is actually flooded and congregants are wearing rain boots to attend services.
However, it also seems there will be a personal nature to Zucker’s narrative as well. In the final scene of the trailer, Rabbi Zucker and his mother meet with (presumably) a doctor. “Miami is dangerous,” the doctor says. “Your mother’s moving with her sister in Chicago.”
“I thought you hated your sister,” the rabbi says, turning to his mother.
“It’s too hot out to hate people these days, Marshall,” his mother retorts.
Wow. I think we can all agree that though there’s nothing explicitly Jewish about that exchange, everything about it was incredibly Jewish.
For now, I personally cannot wait until “Extrapolations” drops on Apple TV+. The only question remaining in my mind is: Do we think Daveed Diggs would consider changing careers and attend rabbinical school? I would join a synagogue helmed by Rabbi Daveed Diggs in a heartbeat.
