Chris Spencer Partners With Lebron James’ Production Company For New Show On FOX
Fox has given a script commitment with penalty to I Just Do, a multi-camera comedy starring and co-written by comedian Chris Spencer. It hails from LeBron James’ SpringHill Entertainment and Warner Bros. TV where the company is based.
Written by John Beck, Ron Hart and Spencer, I Just Do is inspired by Spencer’s standup. It’s about an African-American family therapist (Spencer) and his loving and expressive Latina wife living beyond their means in an upper-middleclass neighborhood, where they are raising twin teenagers with the “help” of their intrusive parents. The co-mingling of Black and Latino cultures gives a unique perspective on the universal challenges of marriage and family.
Beck and Hart executive produce alongside James and Maverick Carter via SpringHill Entertainment. Spencer and his manager, J.P. Williams, co-executive produce.
It’s been a very busy broadcast selling season for SpringHill with four projects set up so far. I Just Do joins Hoops and Brotherly Love at NBC and Lean On Me at the CW. The company is repped by WME.
Beck & Ron Hart are repped by Paradigm, manager Rob Golenberg and attorneys Jared Levine & Priya Verma.
Actor-comedian Spencer was the first host of the syndicated late-night talk show Vibe. He is repped by WME and Williams.
Source: Deadline
Issa Rae To Star In Paul Feig Comedy ‘American Princess’
Stella Meghie, the helmer behind the YA adaptation ‘Everything, Everything,’ is on board to direct the project.
Issa Rae, the star and co-creator of HBO comedy Insecure, is attached to star in American Princess, a comedy set up at Fox.
Stella Meghie, the helmer behind the YA adaptation Everything, Everything, is on board to direct the project.
Paul Feig, who has shepherded female-centric comedy with movies such as Bridesmaids and the recent Ghostbusters reboot, will produce with Jessie Henderson via their Feigco Entertainment banner. Brendan O’Brien will also produce.
The story centers on an American woman (Rae) who moves to London where she’s drawn into a world of wealth and high society, and she falls in love in a very unexpected way. The script was written by Amy Aniobi, a scribe who has worked with Rae on Insecure as a writer/co-exec producer.
Jonathan Wu is overseeing for Fox.
Meghie made her feature directorial debut with Jean of the Joneses, which earned her a first screenplay nomination at the 2017 Independent Spirit Awards. Her most recent film, The Weekend, premiered at TIFF in 2018 and she is developing The Photograph, a family drama, with producer Will Packer at Universal.
Rae was recently nominated for an best actress in a comedy series for her work on Insecure, and has received Golden Globe nominations as well. The comedian, who is also behind the web series The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl, is currently on screens in the acclaimed drama, The Hate U Give, with Amandla Stenberg. She is currently filming Little, a Universal comedy with Black-ish star Marsai Martin.
Meghie is repped by CAA and Del Shaw. Rae is repped by UTA, 3 Arts Entertainment, and Hansen Jacobson.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Finesse Mitchell To Debut First Comedy Special ‘Finesse Mitchell: The Spirit Told Me To Tell You’ On Showtime!
Finesse Mitchell takes the stage in his first stand-up special FINESSE MITCHELL: THE SPIRIT TOLD ME TO TELL YOU, premiering on Friday, October 19 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME on-air, streaming and on demand. In the hour-long special directed by Devon Shepard and shot at the Alex Theatre in Glendale, California, the Saturday Night Live alum discusses everything from L.A. life and staying out of the club to juggling the non-stop demands of marriage, fatherhood and “adult-ing.”
Mitchell is a multi-faceted actor, comedian and author. He burst onto the scene with his three-year run on Saturday Night Live, creating hilarious characters like “Starrkeisha” and impersonating actor Morgan Freeman and rapper 50 Cent. His other television credits include Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns, Mad Families (opposite Charlie Sheen and Tiffany Haddish), Roadies on SHOWTIME, Media and A.N.T. Farm. On the big screen, his appearances include Who’s Your Caddy, The Comebacks, Mad Money and Barely Lethal, starring Samuel L. Jackson and Jessica Alba. Mitchell performed on the Shaq All-Star Comedy Jam tour and shined as a featured act on the SHOWTIME special, Shaquille O’Neal Presents: All Star Comedy Jam – Live From Atlanta, filmed in his hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. Additionally, Mitchell is a published author with Your Girlfriends Only Know So Much: A Brother’s Take on Dating and Mating for Sistas which is an advice book for women born out of his widely popular monthly advice column for ESSENCE.
FINESSE MITCHELL: THE SPIRIT TOLD ME TO TELL YOU is directed by Devon Shepard and executive produced by Brian Volk-Weiss and Cisco Henson for Comedy Dynamics along with Finesse Mitchell, Adris Debarge and Adam Ginivisian.
Steve Harvey Fights Lawsuits Over His TV Show And Radio Show
Steve Harvey is battling several legal issues as his entertainment platforms have taken hits in various ways.
The comedian and his companies are at the center of a few litigation claims and complaints and his talk show and radio show’s schedules have been shaken up.
For one, former “Bad Girls Club” star Danielle Victor accused Harvey’s talk show “Steve” of scheduling her to appear on a dating segment before rescinding the invitation purportedly because of her reality TV past.
“I grew up watching @iamsteveharveytv I looked at him as an icon and now I don’t know how I feel about him or the people he works for,” she said on Instagram Sept. 27. “This isn’t racist but it’s discriminatory, period.”
It followed another lawsuit from Kaliqah Muhammad, who filed a claim in September alleging that two executives from his brands urged her to engage in sexual encounters with them and when she refused, she was fired. Muhammad, a receptionist/travel coordinator for Harvey’s radio and production companies said Gerald Washington, former president of Steve Harvey World and president of Strategic Partnerships and Content Development for Steve Harvey Radio Network, and Meagan Dotson, a Harvey company secretary, allegedly sent her text messages asking about “sexy pictures” encouraging her to meet in bed with the pair.
Additionally, Harvey faces a $5 million lawsuit from the widow of “What’s Happening” star Fred “Rerun” Berry. Essie Berry accused Harvey of blocking her efforts to make it in the entertainment industry, filing an affidavit claiming Harvey’s associates have “harassed, bullied, stalked, silenced, threatened, and intimidated” her, making her life “a living hell.”
The litigations and complaint come on top of issues with “Steve” and Harvey’s radio show, “The Steve Harvey Morning Show.”
Harvey’s nationally syndicated radio show is being replaced in Dallas by former “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” star Claudia Jordan’s program, “The Morning Rush with Claudia and Rudy.” It took over in the 5 a.m. to 10 a.m. time slot that Harvey’s morning show held for 15 years.
Additionally, the comic’s talk show is set to be replaced in select NBC markets for the fall 2019 season as the peacock network tests Kelly Clarkson’snew talk show as a lead-in to “The Ellen Degeneres Show.” However, it’s not all bad news. His representatives clarified that the show is not being canceled altogether and will still air in other non-NBC markets, as it does in Atlanta where “Steve” airs on Fox.
Source: Atlanta Black Star
Comedy Central Launches ‘This Week At The Comedy Cellar’!
The hottest of hot takes served faster than ever. In a world where comedy is more necessary, more urgent than ever before, Comedy Central provides audiences with a groundbreaking new series during which comedians sort through the noise to deliver the freshest jokes through a topical filter. This Week at the Comedy Cellar, a new, weekly, half-hour stand-up series filmed at the legendary New York City comedy club, premieres Friday, October 26 at 11:00 p.m. ET/PT and delivers stand-up comedy as has never been seen before.
Recorded over the course of the same week they premiere, each episode of This Week at the Comedy Cellar provides a front row seat to fans of topical comedy as comedians react to recent headlines, weaving sharp takes on current events into a tight and topical 30-minute weekly show. Interspersed among the stand-up sets is a one-of-a-kind look at the famed Comedy Cellar “comics’ table,” where featured comedians will debate the week’s topics and discuss their process of taking what everyone’s been talking about and spinning it into comedy. Each episode will also feature a biographical spotlight on one of that week’s featured stand-ups.
Comedy Central will post the extended comedian roundtable discussions and various stand-up highlights weekly on cc.com/StandUp and on YouTube. The CC App, cc.com/StandUp and YouTube will feature clips from each episode. In addition, full episodes of This Week at the Comedy Cellar will be available the day after premiere on the Comedy Central App and cc.com. Fans can follow the social conversation about the series on Twitter @StandUp (71.5k) and Instagram @ccstandup (71.8k) using the hashtag #ComedyCellar.
This Week at the Comedy Cellar is executive produced by Noam Dworman (for the Comedy Cellar) and Ray Ellin; Michael Hirschorn and Jessica Antonini from Ish Entertainment; and Ted Tremper. Christian McLaughlin, Anne Harris and Chloe Ifshin are the Executives in Charge of Production for Comedy Central.
Featuring an expertly curated line-up of series and specials, Comedy Central is the epicenter of stand-up. From its Friday Night Stand-up anchor on television to its social platforms, from 24/7 access on Comedy Central Radio and the Comedy Central App to home assistants, fans of Comedy Central stand-up consumed over 166 million hours of the best stand-up content this year.
Pete Davidson Tears Apart Kanye West For Post ‘SNL’ Speech Supporting Donald Trump
The highlight of tonight’s Saturday Night Live Weekend Update came when cast member Pete Davidson evaluated last week’s musical guest Kanye West and his impromptu off-air speech given in support of President Donald Trump. Davidson said that many felt Weekend Update host Michael Che should have commented on Kanye, but that “even though Che is black and I’m crazy, we both know which side of Kanye is at the wheel right now.”
Davidson said “what Kanye said after we went off the air last week was one of the worst, most awkward things I’ve ever seen here. And I’ve seen Chevy Chase speak to an intern.” Davidson recently took on Chase for saying the current SNL isn’t funny anymore.
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Back to Kanye: Davidson said they all had to stand behind West as he wore his MAGA hat, the red number that reads Make America Great Again. Davidson can be seen with his head bowed, but said he decided “I want a career, so I leave.” He can be seen exiting.
The highlight of tonight’s Saturday Night Live Weekend Update came when cast member Pete Davidson evaluated last week’s musical guest Kanye West and his impromptu off-air speech given in support of President Donald Trump. Davidson said that many felt Weekend Update host Michael Che should have commented on Kanye, but that “even though Che is black and I’m crazy, we both know which side of Kanye is at the wheel right now.”
Davidson said “what Kanye said after we went off the air last week was one of the worst, most awkward things I’ve ever seen here. And I’ve seen Chevy Chase speak to an intern.” Davidson recently took on Chase for saying the current SNL isn’t funny anymore.
He said West said he was told not to wear the MAGA lid, but Davidson said the rapper wore it all week. “He wore it all week. Nobody told him not to wear it. I wish I told him not to wear it, suggested that it might upset some people. Like your wife, or every black person ever.”
Davidson said West said Democrats broke up black families with welfare and that slavery is not real. Asked Davidson: “You know how wrong you have to be about politics for me to notice?”
He said “Kanye is a genius, but like a musical genius. Like Joey Chestnut is a hot dog eating genius. But I don’t want to hear Joey Chestnut’s opinion on things that are not hot dog related. I know Kanye is saying, this is the real me. I’m off the meds. Take them! There’s no shame in the medicine game. I’m on them. There’s nothing wrong with taking them. If I ever got on a plane and the pilot said, I just want all you to know, this is the REAL ME FLYING!, I’d jump out. Being mentally ill is not an excuse to act like a jackass.”
Davidson finished by donning his own red baseball hat that read “Make Kanye 2006 Again.”
That ought to be an awkward encounter, when Davidson accompanies his fiance Ariana Grande and they bump into West. But it was the best moment of SNL tonight.
Source: Deadline
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Bill Cosby Seeks Prison Release And Trying To Get His Former Judge Tossed
Just under two weeks after Bill Cosby went behind bars for three to ten years for the 2004 rape of Andrea Constand, the disgraced comedian’s lawyers are now trying to not only get him out of the big house but have the case and the judge tossed too.
“The defendant, William H. Cosby, Jr., moves this Court for a new trial in the interest of justice, or at least for reconsideration and modification of the sentence imposed on September 25, 2018,” a defense motion filed in Pennsylvania state court on Oct. 5 and made public this weekend declares.
Found guilty in an April retrial of three counts of aggravated indecent assault, and facing up to 30 years, the much accused Cosby saw the charges collapsed into one with a maximum of a decade in state prison. Formally labeled a sexually violent predator as well by Judge Steven O’Neil at the Sept. 24-25 sentencing hearing in Norristown, PA. the man once known as “America’s Dad” was taken away in cuffs and chains to begin to serve his time.
Denied home arrest or bail Cosby already had an appeal attorney in the courtroom with him and promises of filing a motion on the matter — as he now has.
Having gained zero traction at the Supreme Court with his duo of petitions, this new-ish document cites a litany of supposed errors on the part of Judge O’Neil in both the initial mistrial of 2017, the retrial of this spring and the sentencing hearing late last month. Among those and other arguments that have floundered in previous motions and incarnations, Cosby’s latest set of attorneys Joseph Green, Jr. and Peter Goldberger additionally claim that a vital taped piece of evidence was “not authentic,” the statute of limitations on the crime may have expired and that testimony from five other accusers at the criminal retrial “violated the defendant’s right at sentencing.”
Contained in those arguments is also a renewed attack on Judge O’Neill after he twice before refuted their desire to see him recuse himself from the case.
“For the reasons detailed in Mr. Cosby’s previously-filed motions for recusal (which are incorporated here by reference, without being repeated and set forth at length), and for all the foregoing reasons, a reasonable observer could question the impartiality of the judge who imposed the September 25, 2018, sentence,” the 10-page wide-ranging filing says. “Accordingly, Judge O’Neill should have recused himself from imposing sentence,” it throws in.
Having charged Cosby in late 2015 to be within the Keystone State’s longer than most statute of limitations, Montogomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele mocked the tape tampering allegation at a post-sentencing press conference on September 25. “If that’s what they’ve got, it’s beyond a Hail Mary,” he said standing next to former Temple University employee Constand. “This is nothing new, maybe its new for these defense attorneys.”
The D.A.’s office is expected to reply to the defense motion and seeking of a hearing in a filing of its own within days. At the same time, Cosby’s wife of 54 years, Camille, is seeking to have O’Neill investigated by the state for “misconduct” in the trials.
Even as Cosby has admitted in depositions more than 10 years ago to giving Constand several Benadryl pills on the night of the alleged assault in his Philadelphia-area mansion back in 2004, the actor has insisted unsuccessfully through various investigations, two trials and the sentencing hearing that the encounter with her was consensual.
Many of the more than 60 women also have claimed that Cosby drugged and assaulted them over the decades with a similar combo of pills and alcohol. Unlike many of those women, some of whom were at the two trials and the sentencing hearing last month, Cosby paid Constand millions in a once-confidential settlement about a decade before the criminal case was opened in late 2015.
Now a new chapter, in this case, has been opened… at least for now.
Source: Deadline
Nick Cannon To Jump Into Late Night With A New Series!
Fox is looking to enter the late-night space.
The network is teaming with Nick Cannon and The Talking Dead executive producer Michael Davies for a weekly topical late-night series. The untitled project, which is in development, would be hosted by Cannon and cover pop culture and feature high-profile celebrity interviews, music performances and stand-up comics.
The late-night talker is part of a larger development deal Cannon has signed with Fox, the soon-to-be independent broadcast network. As an extension of the potential weekly late-night show, Cannon and Davies will join Fox’s digital team to curate online segments to be distributed via social media. The development pact extends Cannon’s relationship with Fox as he next hosts and co-exec produces the network’s upcoming celebrity competition series The Masked Singer. The former America’s Got Talent host recently served in the same capacity on The Teen Choice Awards, which aired on Fox in August.
The deal arrives as Fox is poised to lose 20th Century Fox TV’s roster of top producers as the studio is set to become a Disney property once that multi-billion-dollar deal closes. The so-called New Fox is focusing on broader-skewing programming, including sports (the NFL, wrestling), procedurals and multi-camera comedies.
Fox has tried its hand at a late-night show several times, including with 1993’s The Chevy Chase Show, 1986’s The Late Show (with Joan Rivers and Arsenio Hall) and 2009’s The Wanda Sykes Show. None lasted more than two seasons.
Cannon has hosted MTV2’s Wild ‘N Out as well as multiple other awards shows. He is repped by CAA and Del Shaw.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Katt Williams Arrested In Portland For Alleged Assault
Katt Williams has been arrested for alleged assault in Portland, Oregon.
The comedian was arrested by Port of Portland police and booked for misdemeanor assault Saturday. His bail’s been set at $2,500.
As of now … it’s unclear what Williams did to get arrested, but the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office lists him as a fugitive in another jurisdiction. We’re told he may be sent to Atlanta, which could possibly be related to this fugitive status.
Katt was supposed to be a part of Nick Cannon‘s ‘Wild ‘N Out Live’ concert at the Moda Center Friday night in Portland, but we’re told he never made the show.
Story developing …
Source: TMZ
DC Young Fly Joins MTV’s ‘How High 2’
How High 2, MTV’s sequel to stoner classic How High, has rounded out its cast. DC Young Fly (Almost Christmas) is set to star opposite previously announced Lil Yachty in the non-theatrical movie followup to the 2001 Universal comedy feature, which starred Method Man and Redman.
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Alyssa Goss (The Bobby Brown Story), DeRay Davis (21 Jump Street) and Mary Lynn Rajskub (Night School) are also set to co-star. Additional appearances include NeNe Leakes (Glee, The New Normal), Tameka “Tiny” Harris (Meet The Blacks), Cynthia Bailey (The Real Housewives of
MTV
Atlanta), Shekinah Jo (T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle) and hip-hop artist Lil Baby.
How High 2 is co-produced by MTV and Universal 1440 Entertainment, the production entity of Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Production is currently underway in Atlanta for a spring 2019 premiere on MTV.
Written by Family Guy’s Shawn Ries and Artie Johann, Alex Blagg (Workaholics) & Neel Shah (Powerless), How High 2 chronicles two young “potrepreneurs” on a magical hash-fueled journey to fund their on-demand munchies delivery start-up.
Bruce Leddy (Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, MADtv) directs. Shauna Garr (How High) returns as executive producer. Kevin “Coach K” Lee, Pierre “Pee” Thomas and Lil Yachty from Quality Control serve as executive producers, along with Brian Sher. Mike Elliott (Halloween II, American Pie: Band Camp) will serve as producer. Morgana Rosenberg, Josh Vodnoy and Jason Goldberg serve as executive producers for MTV.
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The 2001 How High movie, written by Dustin Lee Abraham and directed by Jesse Dylan, starred Redman and Method Man as two underachieving pot smokers who, after smoking a batch of marijuana they had fertilized with the ashes of their deceased friend, ace their college exams and end up at Harvard University.
DC Young Fly was most recently seen in a guest-starring role opposite Lil Rel Howery on Fox comedy series Rel. His other recent TV credits include Dead House, The Quad and The New Edition Story.
