It hasn’t even shot one episode, but HBO’s newest planned drama series may be the most controversial one the cable company is pushing through, with backlash for “Confederate” continuing nearly two weeks after the series was announced.

The new show, which will see “Game of Thrones” showrunners David Benioff and D.B. Weiss at the helm, has courted a large amount of controversy because of the concept behind it, which involved a world where slavery still exists in the United States.

“’Confederate’ chronicles the events leading to the Third American Civil War,” a description from HBO reads. “The series takes place in an alternate timeline, where the Southern states have successfully seceded from the Union, giving rise to a nation in which slavery remains legal and has evolved into a modern institution. The story follows a broad swath of characters on both sides of the Mason-Dixon Demilitarized Zone—freedom fighters, slave hunters, politicians, abolitionists, journalists, the executives of a slave-holding conglomerate and the families of people in their thrall.”

Read: Twitter Campaign Criticizes “Confederate” on HBO

However, the show’s concept has not been thoroughly well-received since, with a social media movement using #NoConfederate gaining traction and popularity during the Season 7, Episode 3 broadcast of “Game of Thrones.”

So what is it about this show that has people so worked up? Here’s everything we know so far:

The Show’s Premise Has Been Widely Panned

Since the announcement that the show was in the works, there has been wide criticism about the fact that a show which imagines an alternate reality involving modern-day slavery was conceived by Benioff and Weiss, who are both white men.

Things did not calm down as time progressed, with #NoConfederate trending on social media after a movement was started by April Reign, who also started the #OscarsSoWhite protest in 2016 after the Film Academy only nominated a full slate of white actors for award nominations.

HBO later responded to that criticism of the social media protest, releasing a statement about the show and asking for those against it to wait and watch before forming an opinion about it.

“We have great respect for the dialogue and concern being expressed around ‘Confederate,’” the statement read. “.. The project is currently in its infancy so we hope that people will reserve judgment until there is something to see.”

Read: David Benioff And D.B. Weiss Announce Involvement In “Confederate”

Benioff And Wise Aren’t The Only Ones Behind The Show

Though Benioff and Wise are the ones who will serve as the official showrunners and creators of the show, the initial HBO announcement also revealed that two other very prominent faces in Hollywood would be joining them as the writers and producing partners—Nichelle Tramble Spellman (“The Good Wife”) and Malcolm Spellman (“Empire”)—both of whom are black. In an interview with Vulture after the announcement and backlash, all four defended the show, with Malcolm Spellman saying that for he and his wife, becoming involved in the project with their old friends was something important to them both because of the thought-provoking conversations it could help produce.

“For me and Nichelle, it’s deeply personal because we are the offspring of this history. We deal with it directly and have for our entire lives. We deal with it in Hollywood, we deal with it in the real world when we’re dealing with friends and family members,” he said. “And I think Nichelle and I both felt a sense of urgency in trying to find a way to support a discussion that is percolating but isn’t happening enough. As people of color and minorities in general are starting to get a voice, I think there’s a duty to force this discussion.”

HBO Programming President Casey Bloys Has Taken The Blame For The Negative Reaction

Casey Bloys, the Programming President at HBO has tried to shoulder some of the blame for the criticism the show has received. During his appearance at the Television Critics Association summer press tour last week, Bloys admitted that in hindsight, announcing the show the way HBO did was a big part of the problem for how it was received.

“File this under hindsight is 20/20. If I could do it over again, HBO”s mistake—not the producers’—was the idea that we would be able to announce an idea that is so sensitive that requires such care and thought on the part of the producers in a press release was misguided on our part,” he said. “[We] had the benefit of sitting with these four producers, we heard why they wanted to do the show, what they were excited about, and why it was important to them, so we had that context, but I completely understand that somebody reading the press release would not have that at all. If I had to do it over again, I would’ve rolled it out with the producers on the record so people understood where they were coming from.”

It is currently unclear when HBO plans to debut the show.

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