Starz confirms new 'Spartacus' series reviving villain Ashur
Nov. 9 (UPI) -- Starz announced a new series in its Spartacus universe on Thursday. Spartacus: House of Ashur is now in development at the cable network.
The network announced development of a Spartacus revival in February. House of Ashur is officially greenlit.
Spartacus: Blood and Sand creator Steven S. DeKnight will showrun and executive produce the new show featuring the series villain Ashur. Nick Tarabay returns as Ashur.
Ashur died on Mt. Vesuvius at the end of the 2012 season Spartacus: Vengeance. The new series poses a "what if?" scenario in which Ashur lived through that battle and continued on.
In House of Ashur, Ashur has inherited Batiatus' gladiator school.
Spartacus: Blood and Sand premiered in 2010. When Spartacus actor Andy Whitfield was diagnosed with cancer, the show pivoted to a prequel for the second season to give Whitfield time to recover.
When Whitfield died, Liam McIntyre took over the role of Spartacus for the final two seasons. The final season, Spartacus: War of the Damned aired in 2013.