George Lopez To Star In New Series Titled ‘Once Upon a Time in Aztlan’ For STXTV
In what is expected to be a hot TV package, STXtv is bringing Once Upon a Time in Aztlan, a new TV series anchored by George Lopez, famed photographer Estevan Oriol and iconic Los Angeles-based artist Mister Cartoon aka Mark Machado to the market. Michael Connolly, under his Mad Hatter Entertainment banner, brought the elements together. Lopez is in final talks to star and executive produce through his Travieso Productions, and Javier Rodriguez will pen the pilot. Oriol and Cartoon also will exec produce.
“I’m thrilled to be teaming up with Cartoon, Estevan, Jada and Michael for this series and developing a show with STXtv,” Lopez said. “Cartoon and Estevan are the DaVincis of our community; they have been the street chroniclers of our uniquely Chicano story … our American story. I’m looking forward to working with them and the rest of the team to expand their canvas to capture the diverse stories and people that make our culture and community so amazing, colorful and vibrant.”
This authentic L.A.-based series examines a family coming to terms with the falsehoods of the American dream and their ability to defy expectations.
“I want to create a vision of Los Angeles inspired by my tattoos and murals that enriches and showcases the culture, opening it up to new audiences,” Cartoon said. “Putting together the dream team of Latino street culture and a collection of creative minds headed up by George Lopez, who is born and raised in L.A. and is an icon of our community. George’s experience and sense of humor acts as a foundation for this team.”
The pilot will be directed by Ricardo de Montreuil, who helmed Eva Longoria and Demián Bichir in the Blumhouse/Imagine East L.A.-set drama, Lowriders. During that production, he worked closely with Oriol and Cartoon, who also were involved in the production. Oriol and Cartoon’s longtime collaborators Mark Suroff and Marco Valadez, who produced LA Originals, also will serve as executive producers with Connolly.
“I’m Looking forward to developing this with Cartoon, George, Jada and Michael,” said Oriol. “STXtv truly gets what it takes to develop a real show that can only be made in LA. This is the dream team. Period. It doesn’t get more authentic than this and I’m proud and privileged to be invited on this ride.”
Lopez has done some TV in recent years including a talk show that ran from 2009-11, but this would mark his first major TV show since hit comedy George Lopez ended in 2007. While that show ran on ABC, STXtv will zero in on buyers in the cable and streaming markets.
Cartoon is L.A.’s legendary tattoo artist, designer and cultural icon whose stylish and influential global work has been featured on countless celebrities including Kobe Bryant, Eminem, Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, Beyoncé, Lewis Hamilton, Snoop Dogg and many others. Cartoon also designed the logos for Cypress Hill and Eminem’s Shady Records, and his résumé includes cutting-edge designs for Nike, the LA Clippers and T-Mobile and others.
Oriol is an internationally celebrated photographer, director and urban lifestyle entrepreneur. Beginning as a tour manager for Cypress Hill and House of Pain, he developed a passion for photography as he documented life on the road to become hip-hop’s best-known chronicler; his work has been showcased in bestselling books, select galleries, and institutions, including the Smithsonian Center for Latino Initiatives, Mesa Contemporary Art Center, Petersen Automotive Museum, and The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles’ and New York’s Art in the Streets exhibit. He has photographed Eminem, Kim Kardashian, Cypress Hill, Dennis Hopper, Blink-182, Forest Whitaker, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Kendrick Lamar, 50 Cent, and Danny Trejo, among many others. He most recently executive produced the film Lowriders and directed the hit Netflix documentary L.A. Originals.
The L.A. Originals was critically acclaimed and extremely successful, introducing new fans to the world to Oriol and Cartoon.
Connolly is an executive producer on the upcoming Amazon anthology horror series Them with Lena Waithe. He executive produced Hemlock Grove for Netflix and The Son for AMC. On the feature side, Connolly co-produces the How to Train Your Dragon franchise. The deal also reunites Lopez with Jada Miranda, who runs scripted series at STXtv and oversaw the hit series The George Lopez Show while a programmer at ABC Network.
“Javier’s script has brilliantly brought to life these characters and this place that is all at once raw, hopeful, and entertaining,” said Connolly.
Rodríguez who has sold pitches to Fox, WBTV, 20th TV with America Ferrera, and Sony Pictures TV.
Source: Deadline
Leslie Jones To Host The 2020 Emmy Awards Nominations
“Saturday Night Live” alum and upcoming “Supermarket Sweep” revival host Leslie Jones has been tapped to host the 72nd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards nominations, the Television Academy announced Thursday.
Actors Laverne Cox (“Orange is the New Black”), Josh Gad (“Avenue 5,” “Central Park”) and Tatiana Maslany (“Perry Mason”) are also on board as presenters.
Nominations for this year’s awards will be announced live July 28 beginning at 11:30 a.m. ET / 8:30 a.m. PT, streaming on emmys.com. This year, the event will be a virtual one, due to production restrictions ad health and safety guidelines amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Television has played an integral role in navigating these unprecedented times and has brought us together as we remain apart,” said Frank Scherma, chairman and CEO, Television Academy. “We are honored to have these groundbreaking actors, producers and comedians announce this year’s Emmy nominees — whose extraordinary work has been vital to the evolution of the television landscape this season.”
This year the voting calendar shifted, also due to the coronavirus pandemic. Voting members of the Television Academy had from July 2 to July 13 to look over the nominations-round ballots and make their selections. Some categories saw record-high number of submissions, with drama series clocking in at 197 and comedy series at 111.
The 72nd Emmy Awards will be produced once again by Done+Dusted. Reginald Hudlin, Guy Carrington, David Jammy, Ian Stewart and Jimmy Kimmel serve as executive producers. Kimmel will also return to host after last year’s ceremony opted to go without a host at all. The show will air live Sept. 20 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on ABC.
Source: Variety
A New ‘Empire’ Spinoff Starring Taraji P. Henson To Land On FOX
The world of Empire will continue at Fox.
The independent broadcast network is re-teaming with Taraji P. Henson for an untitled Empire spinoff, with the actress behind Cookie Lyon reprising her role in the potential series. The offshoot, which is in development, is the first project to stem from a newly signed two-year, first-look deal that Henson has signed with Empire producers 20th Century Fox TV. Henson’s newly launched production company, TPH Entertainment, will also produce the Empire spinoff, which will follow what’s next for Cookie. Former vp television at Working Title Christine Conley will partner with Henson to run TPH.
Danny Strong — who co-created Empire with Lee Daniels — will be joined by the franchise’s Yolanda Lawrence and Stacy Littlejohn to co-write the series. All three will serve as co-showrunners. Sanaa Hamri is also attached to direct. Henson will also exec produce alongside Strong, Daniels, Littlejohn, Lawrence and Hamri. Imagine Entertainment’s Brian Grazer and Samie Falvey will also return to exec produce the spinoff. The drama, like the flagship, hails from the now Disney-owned 20th TV. While official plot details remain under wraps, sources tell THR the spinoff will follow Cookie as she moves to L.A., and potentially feature some of her other family members.
Sources say the spinoff could also help Empire come to a proper conclusion after its series finale was unable to be produced before the industry-wide production shutdown. In announcing that the series finale would not be able to be filmed, Empire co-creators Daniels and Strong left the door open for a potential follow-up, with rumors of the Henson-led spinoff circulating in industry circles for months.
“I believe that normalizing stories around stigmatizing matters will make them more palatable for audiences to embrace,” Henson said. “Art can change perception and I plan to develop projects that can help further the conversation. I also aim to help cultivate and establish new young talent and their stories because they are our future and deserve a voice and a platform to be heard. I’m so excited to have 20th, led by the talented Carolyn Cassidy, support me in this new endeavor!”
Added Cassidy, president of 20th TV: “We were lucky to have a front row seat to Taraji’s meteoric rise as a fixture on television through Empire. Through that relationship everyone at the company grew to appreciate her passion for storytelling and her strong creative gut instinct. With Empire finished we look forward to helping her explore stories that need to be told through her talent and advocacy.”
The Henson-led drama arrives as Daniels has been open for years about wanting to do an Empire spinoff. Daniels previously co-created music drama Star, which existed in the same world as Empire but was not technically considered a spinoff despite the fact that both shows often crossed over. That series ran for three seasons before being canceled last year (much to Daniels’ chagrin). In 2017, there had been rumors of an Empire prequel series focused around a young version of Henson’s Cookie. That project was never ordered, though Henson was open about her interest in remaining a part of the Empire world for as long as possible.
Henson is repped by UTA and Ziffren Brittenham. Conley, who spent four years working in physical production before turning to development roles at Working Title (Gypsy, About a Boy), is repped by attorney Patti Felker.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Yara Shahidi Signs Overall Deal With ABC Studios
Yara Shahidi is making a home at ABC Studios.
The Grown-ish star, who recently was upped to executive producer as well, has signed an overall deal with the Disney Television Studios unit. Shahidi and her mother and business partner, Keri Shahidi, have formed production company 7th Sun to develop scripted and unscripted projects for ABC Studios.
“I’m thrilled to be partnering with my home family, ABC Studios, in this exciting next chapter, alongside my family,” Yara Shahidi said in a statement. “It’s exciting to add our production company to the roster of my peers and mentors who are also actively committed to sharing meaningful stories.”
Added ABC Studios president Jonnie Davis: “We can’t wait to extend and expand our relationship with the incredibly talented Yara Shahidi, who has been a member of the family since Black-ish. When she’s not studying at Harvard and starring in our series Grown-ish, she’s mentoring and inspiring other young people, which makes us all feel like underachievers but also very proud that she’s part of our studio.”
Shahidi was a regular on Black-ish for the ABC comedy’s first two seasons before moving on to lead the spinoff Grown-ish — which has been renewed for a fourth season — on Freeform. The series ranked as the top live-action cable comedy of 2019-20 among African American adults 18-34, and under the guidance of creator Kenya Barris, Shahidi became the youngest producer at the network.
“Yara is a force,” said Barris. “She is insanely talented, unreasonably smart and hardworking beyond compare. I’ve called her ‘McMogul’ for years, and seeing all that she has accomplished should come as no surprise to anyone that knows her. This deal is just the beginning for Yara, and I’m excited to see where she takes this next chapter and the storyteller she becomes.”
The Shadidis’ 7th Sun will seek out projects that touch on themes of history, heritage, culture and joy, and that elevate underrepresented voices. The company has hired former NBC International executive Lajoie St. George to lead development.
Yara and Keri Shahidi are repped by CAA, Principal Entertainment and attorney Ryan Nord. They join a lineup of creatives at the studio that includes LeBron James’ SpringHill Entertainment, Danai Gurira, Kerry Washington, Liz Tigelaar, Dan Levy (Schitt’s Creek) and Aline Brosh McKenna, among others.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
The Hilarious Trailer For ‘Saturday Night Live’ Writer Sam Jay’s New Comedy Special Just Dropped
Allow us to introduce you to Sam Jay.
The hilarious queer comedian, who’s earned her stripes writing for Saturday Night Live (even earning an Emmy Award nod) is out with her first-ever hourlong comedy special, 3 In The Morning. And ESSENCE has your first look at the trailer.
Filmed pre-corona in Atlanta’s The Masquerade, Jay keeps it all the way real when it comes to living authentically in a world steeped in masculinity that just can never mind its business.
In the trailer, the Boston-bred comic turns a simple story of being at the airport with her girlfriend into a hilarious play-by-play. (I won’t even try to retell here. Let Jay tell you herself.)
The comedian announced that she was getting her own Netflix comedy special last week on Instagram with a throwback photo.
“Aw damn this little mother f–ker cute and she grew up to have a Netflix special,” Jay wrote in the caption. “Wow 3 in the Morning drops August 4th hoooooeeeeesssss!!! Awww damn.”
Jay, who was raised in Boston, returned to the northern city to pursue comedy in 2011, according to the Boston Globe. Since then, she’s shared comedy stages with Hannibal Buress, written for Eddie Murphy on SNL and made her late night TV debut on Late Night with Jimmy Kimmel. In 2018, the same year she dropped her own comedy album, Donna’s Daughter, she was also featured in Netflix’s special, The Comedy Lineup Part 1, alongside Michelle Buteau.
Sam Jay: 3 In The Morning hits Netflix on August 4.
D.L. Hughley Slams Kanye West For Diminishing Harriet Tubman
D.L. Hughley sounded off on Kanye’s comments about Harriet Tubman that he made while speaking to a crowd in North Charleston, South Carolina over the weekend.
D.L. started out by stating that Kanye’s rants over the years have been seemingly calculated to coincide with the upcoming release of his music and fashion projects. He then pointed out that Kanye always targets a Black person in his rants, and D.L. said he’s tired of Kanye putting an asterisk by the names of prominent Black figures. From there, he slammed Kanye for saying Harriet Tubman didn’t free slaves, and D.L. praised Tubman for personifying “Black Girl Magic.”
D.L. ended his statement by reiterating his claims that Kanye is the same kind of person as Trump, which he spoke about during a recent appearance on “The View.” Hughley stated, “They’re the same type of men. They both are amoral, they both are narcissistic, neither reads. So I think they’re exactly the same.”
W. Kamau Bell Talks Comedy During Tragedy, White Supremacy, & More with Karen Hunter On SiriusXM
*Stand-up comedian, W. Kamau Bell was a guest on SiriusXM Urban View’s “The Karen Hunter Show” and spoke with host, Karen Hunter and co-host Drew McCaskill about learning to laugh through pain, how comedy has given him room to explore tough topics.
He says: “The history of black folks in this country, we had to be funny as a survival mechanism. If you took all this stuff too seriously, if you dealt with all the pain every day, we wouldn’t have survived, so I feel like that’s natural to us..being funny in situations of pain.”
Bell also responds to Karen’s question about a cure for “white supremacy” and talks about America’s Direction. “Do we have the appetite to dismantle the entire system, from stem to stern, and start over? You know how you window shop for like a new tv? I’m window shopping for a new country.”
Source: EURWEB, SiriusXM, UrbanView
The Just For Laughs Comedy Festival Officially Moves To Virtual Festivities
Montreal (July 21, 2020) – With theatres closed, and stages silenced, the stand-up comedy sector has been one of the most profoundly disrupted industries as a result of COVID-19. With no clear indication when theatres will reopen fully and large crowds can gather, the Just For Laughs Group has made the decision to move ahead with Montreal’s annual world-renowned Just For Laughs Festival and its well-established French sister festival, Juste pour rire, in collaboration with Loto-Québec – however, always the trailblazer, for the first time in its 38 year history, the festivals will be virtual this Fall.
The current demand for quality comedy content inspired the Just For Laughs Group decision to keep their postponed plans and take their festivals online this Fall, looking at it as an opportunity to rethink how comedy festivals can operate in a virtual space.
Just For Laughs will be 100% virtual, and Juste pour rire will be a hybrid of in-person, pre-recorded and virtual performances. Both festivals will be hosted on a new virtual online portal where users can choose among numerous free offerings, which will emulate the regular festival experience Montreal is notorious for offering its dedicated festival goers and industry friends.
“More than ever, we want to maintain our position as an industry leader by creating innovative comedy events that allow our artists to work and to make the highest-quality comedy available to the public,” says Charles Décarie, President and CEO of the Just For Laughs Group. “Despite all the changes our industry has been going through, the most important thing for us is to satisfy our festival-goers. We’re sparing no effort to present the best festival possible, while respecting the health measures that are in force.”
JOIN JUST FOR LAUGHS ONLINE
FOR AN UNPRECEDENTED TWO-DAY COMEDY FESTIVAL
Just For Laughs is currently working on the programming details that will be 100% virtual and consist of free, funny, interactive online gatherings, conversations, panels, performances, and events which will take place over two consecutive days, October 9 and October 10, 2020.
JFL Montreal’s ComedyPRO, Toronto’s JFL42 and ComedyCon will join the party online, with their unique brand of comedy programming that caters to both comedy fans and industry experts.
“With no precise indication of when borders will reopen, and faced with soaring demand for high-quality digital comedy content, we’ve made the decision to move our festival online, while always maintaining our focus on the excellence of our offerings – an excellence that is recognized and appreciated throughout the world,” says Bruce Hills, President for Just For Laughs.
The Ethnic Show, The Nasty Show and the Bill Burr concert show will reschedule to 2021.
Programming details for the virtual festival will be announced in the weeks ahead.
JUSTE POUR RIRE
A HYBRID FORMAT, ACCESSIBLE TO EVERYONE
Juste pour rire will take place from September 29 to October 10, and will host a number of innovative, free and paid online and onstage performances that audiences have never seen before! In addition to this collection of online offerings, if Quebec health guidelines permit, there will be live and pre-recorded theatre shows. All of your favourite comics are coming together to participate in this one-of-a-kind festival for the first time in Juste pour rire history.
“After presenting the HAHAHA digital festival back in May, we really listened to all the feedback we received from our fans, and we are confident we will present a hybrid festival that will go even further toward pleasing the public and satisfying expectations,” says Patrick Rozon, Vice President of Juste pour rire.
“Assuming the new health measures are maintained, we’re thrilled to be able to offer a part of our festival before a live Montreal audience. Above all, it was very important to us to continue to present a portion of the festival that was free of charge, as we’ve been doing for 38 years!” notes Charles Décarie, President and CEO of the Just for Laughs Group. “We are so pleased to be giving comedy lovers around the world free access to the online portion of both of our festivals. We believe that in doing so, we’re making sure that the best comedy from Quebec and around the world remains accessible to everyone, and continues to widen its popular appeal.”
Judge Allows Mo’Nique’s Suit Alleging Netflix’s Comedy Special Offers Were Discriminatory
Is it unlawful for a producer to throw out an opening low-ball offer and then not budge when the talent demands more? It might be, according to a novel decision on Thursday from a California federal judge.
The case concerns Mo’Nique, who felt insulted by Netflix’s offer for a comedy special. Her reps pleaded with Netflix to reconsider a “racially and gender biased offer” and asked, “What makes Mo’Nique, who has been labeled a living legend based on her awards from around the world worth $12,500,000 less than Amy Schumer to [Netflix]?”
That didn’t persuade Netflix, which soon felt the wrath of a lawsuit.
Now, rejecting a motion to dismiss and Netflix’s arguments that retaliation could be premised on a comedy special offer that never actually went away, U.S. District Court Judge Andre Birotte Jr. rules, “Mo’Nique plausibly alleges that, after she spoke out and called her initial offer discriminatory, Netflix retaliated against her by shutting down its standard practice of negotiating in good faith that typically results in increased monetary compensation beyond the ‘opening offer’ and denying her increased compensation as a result. Accordingly, Plaintiff has sufficiently alleged that Netflix’s alleged failure to negotiate and increase her ‘opening offer’ by straying from its standard practice are employment actions that are ‘reasonably likely to adversely and materially affect an employee’s… opportunity for advancement in… her career.’”
The decision points to the allegation that Schumer, a White comedian, was able to get her own offer increased by $13 million after she pointed to significantly higher compensation being paid to Dave Chapelle and Chris Rock. No such luck for Mo’Nique.
“The Court notes that Mo’Nique raises a novel theory here, namely that an employer’s failure to negotiate an ‘opening offer’ in good faith, consistent with its alleged customary practice which typically leads to increased compensation, constitutes an ‘adverse employment action’ for purposes of a retaliation claim,” states the decision. “While Netflix argues that the novelty of Mo’Nique’s claim and the absence of on-point legal authority for it should bar her retaliation claims outright, the Court disagrees.”
Mo’Nique’s lawyer David deRubertis was pleased with the ruling. “Today’s ruling is an important victory for Hollywood talent who, just like all other workers, need protections against retaliation if they raise concerns about pay discrimination during the hiring process,” he says. “Employers in the entertainment industry need to take pay discrimination concerns seriously, fix them if the concerns have merit, and never retaliate against those who have the courage to speak up about equal pay.”
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Nick Cannon “Taking Time Away” From Syndicated Radio Show
Nick Cannon has announced that he will be “taking time away” from his radio show, after he issued an apology online for anti-Semitic comments he made on a podcast.
In a series of tweets, Cannon said that he made the decision in order to “commit (himself) to deeper, more thorough reflection and education.” Cannon said in his apology, posted Wednesday evening, that he is speaking with “Rabbis, community leaders and institutions” within the Jewish community.
I will use this time to establish an action plan towards real, impactful change and advocacy aimed at bringing people together,” added Cannon via Twitter. “I continue to express my gratitude to the Rabbis, community leaders and institutions who have reached out to me to help enlighten me. “Their input and friendship will help me as I further commit myself to more profound learning and towards strengthening the bond between the Black and Jewish cultures every day going forward.”
The companies who work with Cannon have had differing responses to his comments. ViacomCBS, with which Cannon has had a long-term relationship, terminated its work with the star, including his long-running sketch comedy series “Nick Cannon’s Wild ‘n Out.” Whereas Fox decided to keep Cannon as the host of “The Masked Singer,” with a spokesperson for the company saying that “this moment calls for dialogue.”
The controversy stems from the June 30 episode of Cannon’s podcast “Cannon’s Class,” which featured former Public Enemy member Professor Griff. At one point in the episode, Cannon said Black people are the “true Hebrews” and talked about anti-Semitic conspiracy theories involving the Rothschild family.
