Hit or Miss: Abbott Elementary
Abbott Elementary is a new series commissioned for ABC’s fall season lineup as they are looking for a new comedy to add to their fall lineup now that unfortunately, Mixed-ish will no longer be airing after two seasons. This new show follows the struggles of an underfunded public school in Philadelphia as the deeply dedicated teachers and a half-hearted principal duel a school district that is borderline hostile to education, and do their best to teach and succeed under their difficult circumstances.
The trailer depicts the many hijinks of the school’s operations from the decrepit bathrooms, to the smell in the walls and the uncomfortable first impressions of odd coworkers. Tyler’s James William’s character is the newest teacher sucked into the school. The pilot will introduce us to the setting and characters in the familiar single-camera comedy format. This style has begun to dominate mainstream comedies over the last decade following the popularity of The Office. The continued success of other shows in the same format such as Parks and Recreation and Brooklyn 99 and largely created, written and produced by the same people (usually Michael Shur). The endings of these many shows have left gaps for this style as shows like Modern Family, Brooklyn 99, and The Good Place have all ended in the past two years with little to replace the mockumentary format on TV that viewers have come to love. Viewers can expect hilarious and shocking cold opens, talking heads or confessionals, unrelenting dry humor, and innovative comedic camera work. All of these are tropes for workplace comedies without a laugh track in sight.
This cast includes Quinta Brunson, Tyler James Williams, Janelle James, Chris Perfetti, Lisa Ann Walter, and Sheryl Lee Ralph. Quinta Brunson will not only serve as the main lead, but also as executive producer and writer along with Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker, both of whom are a part of Delicious Non-Sequitur Productions. The show is being produced by Warner Brothers Television and 20th Television. The pilot will premiere midseason this fall and is written exclusively by Brunson and directed by Randall Einhorn.
Brunson has made a name for herself in recent years by becoming a Youtube and Instagram star by producing her own comedy series and acting in several different series for Buzzfeed Video as a freelancer. While she was at Buzzfeed, she also created a scripted comedy that she pitched to Buzzfeed Motion Pictures and was greenlit. The green light would turn out to be a show called Broke. Brunson would go on to write and produce as well as act in Broke for which she was nominated for a Streamy Award for her performance. She has filmed several pilots for the CW and when she pitched a pilot for ABC that would eventually become Abbott Elementary. The biggest ‘star’ in the cast is Tyler James Williams, who has distinguished himself in comedy with his breakout role as Chris in Everybody Hates Chris and has also appeared on The Walking Dead, A Black Women Sketch Show, and Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders.
Abbott Elementary will premiere this fall on ABC
