Small Screen: 'Bob Hearts Abishola' Reaches Final Season, Paramount Global Announces Layoffs
Billy Gardell and Folake Olowofoyeku - Bob Hearts Abishola/CBS
Broadcasting: Bob Hearts Abishola will conclude with a fifth and final season despite budget cuts. The CBS multicam reduced costs this year to secure a Warner Bros. renewal, which meant supporting cast members were reduced to a five-episode guarantee. Only Billy Gardell (Mike & Molly) and Folake Olowofoyeku (Transparent) will retain full time status as actors. Executive producer Gina Yashere will produce 13 episodes this season.
“The industry is in flux right now. The money that was there 10 years ago is here anymore,” she told reporters, offering some insight into the budget cuts. “We made sure when we work with the characters, rather than just crowbarring them into an episode, we concentrate the stories by using a character and building a story around them. We make them the center of the episode. We use everyone properly.”
Olowofoyeku was emotional when asked about the end of the show. It performed well for CBS, ranking as the No. 1 new comedy of the 2019-2020 television season; it also tied The Neighborhood for top comedies viewed by African Americans during the 2022-2023 season. The plot won’t be tied up in a neat bow upon the finale, as the producers want to maintain the integrity of the story and realism of the characters. Bob Hearts Abishola airs Mondays at 8:30 p.m. on CBS.
“It’s a bittersweet,” said Olowofoyeku. “Bitter because it’s coming to an end, sweet because of the work we’ve done here for the last five years. It’s extremely impactful. I can speak for my culture, Nigerians, the reflection of these characters in such a positive light, is something we’ve yearned for, for so long. It gives context to our experience as immigrants and as Nigerians as a whole. I feel like the impact of this show will reveal itself for many more years to come.”
Martin Bobb-Semple was named a series regular for the third season of All American: Homecoming. Bobb-Semple (One Of Us Is Lying) plays a college baseball player named Orlando “Lando” Johnson, introduced to the series as a villain from the rival school. In the second season, he transferred to Bringston University and became involved with characters Simone and Damon, played by Geffri Maya (All American, Private Practice) and Peyton Alex Smith (All American, The Quad), respectively. All American: Homecoming is a young adult sports drama that takes place at an HBCU and focuses on Black excellence. Additional cast members include Cory Hardrict (Brotherly Love), Sylvester Powell (Five Points), Camille Hyde (Power Rangers Dino Charge), Mitchell Edwards (Bedeviled), Netta Walker (All American, Chicago Fire), and Rhoyle Ivy King (Monster, Pose). Nkechi Okoro Carroll created and executive produced the series. A premiere date for season three has not been announced.
Tony Gonzalez will guest-star in season six of CBS’s The Neighborhood. Gonzalez will play Derrick, an ex-professional football player who is the new physical therapist to Calvin (Cedric the Entertainer). Gonzalez is considered one of the greatest tight ends of all time, playing 17 seasons for the Kansas City Chiefs and eventually the Atlanta Falcons. After he retired in 2013, he worked as an analyst for The NFL Today and other NFL programming at CBS. Now he co-hosts Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime Video. Gonzalez’s acting credits include NCIS, XXX: The Return of Xander Cage, and The Underdoggs. Season six of The Neighborhood premiered February 12th, with new episodes airing Tuesdays.
The final season of Star Trek: Discovery will air in April. Season five consists of 10 episodes, with Paramount+ releasing the first two on April 4th. Moving forward, new episodes will drop weekly on Thursdays. The official description of season five shared that Captain Burnham and the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery will cross the galaxy to find a hidden ancient power before their enemies find it first. This final season was announced in March 2023. The series was the flagship modern Star Trek project; originally announced in 2017, it began the reboot of the Star Trek TV universe and subsequent spinoffs. Discovery featured the first Black female protagonist of the franchise and starred LGBTQIA+ characters never seen before in the universe. Cast members for season five include Sonequa Martin-Green (The Walking Dead), Doug Jones (The Shape of Water), Anthony Rapp (Rent, Dazed and Confused), Mary Wiseman (Marriage Story), Wilson Cruz (My So-Called Life, 13 Reasons Why), David Ajala (Jupiter Ascending, The Dark Knight), Callum Keith Rennie (Californication), and Blu del Barrio.
Quintessa Swindell will star in the new Apple TV+ conspiracy drama, Prime Target. Swindell (Voyagers, Black Adam) will play NSA agent Taylah Sanders who is responsible for observing and reporting upon pioneering mathematicians. She will star alongside Leo Woodall (The White Lotus) who plays genius mathematician Edward Brooks. The eight-episode drama follows Brooks as he finds himself caught between a major conspiracy and a computational breakthrough, with Sanders keeping an eye on him.
General Hospital cast Eva LaRue. Known as neurologist Dr. Maria Santos Grey on All My Children, LaRue now joins General Hospital to play the mother of Blaze (Jacqueline Grace Lopez). Her character Natalia Rogers-Ramirez will make her first appearance on February 26th. Blaze’s most recent plot line centers on her sexuality and relationship with Kristina (Kate Mansi), so Natalia arrives at a critical moment where Blaze fears blowback for her identity.
Jaime Camil was added to the season two cast of Lopez vs Lopez. Lopez vs Lopez follows father and daughter George and Rosie as they navigate reconnection amid dysfunction. Camil (Jane the Virgin, Schmigadoon!) will play Josué Consuelos, a personal injury attorney whose charming face is plastered on billboards across Los Angeles. Josué begins to charm Rosie (Selenis Leyva), serenading her with romantic baladas on his Spanish guitar. George (George Lopez) is not happy with any of it. Additional cast members include Brice Gonzalez (Flamin’ Hot), Matt Shively (The Real O’Neals), and Al Madrigal (The Way Back). Before working as an actor in the United States, Camil starred in the Spanish-language telenovelas La Fea Más Bella, Por Ella Soy Eva, and Qué Pobres Tan Ricos.
Lalisa Manoban - Han Myung-Gu
Cable: Blackpink member Lisa joins the cast of The White Lotus’s third season. The Thai rapper, singer, and dancer will be credited for her debut role under her given name, Lalisa Manobal. While Manobal’s role is unknown and specific plot details for the season have not been announced, it was reported that The White Lotus will begin production in Thailand this month. The ensemble cast for this season includes Leslie Bibb, Dom Hetrakul, Jason Isaacs, Michelle Monaghan, Parker Posey, Tayme Thapthimthong, Christian Friedel, Julian Kostov, Morgana O’Reilly, Lek Patravadi, Shalini Peiris, Carrie Coon, Scott Glenn, Francesca Corney, Nicholas Duvernay, Arnas Fedaravičius, Natasha Rothwell, Walton Goggins, Patrick Schwarzenegger, Aimee Lou Wood, Sarah Catherine Hook, and Sam Nivola.
Streaming: Apple TV+ renewed Invasion for a third season. The story follows an alien invasion through different global perspectives. Invasion’s cast members include Golshifteh Farahani (Extraction), Shioli Kutsuna (Deadpool 2), Shamier Anderson (Stowaway, John Wick: Chapter 4), India Brown (Infinite), Billy Barratt (Responsible Child), Azhy Robertson (Come Play), Paddy Holland (Holmes & Watson), and Tara Moayedi. Enver Gjokaj (Stone, The Avengers), Nedra Marie Taylor (Orange Is the New Black), and Naian Gonzalez Norvind (New Order) were added as series regulars during the second season. Season three will begin production later this month.
Amazon Freevee’s Boat Story released a U.S. trailer and premiere date. Produced by BBC and Fleabag’sproducers, this new thriller aired in the U.K. last year. Daisy Haggard (Back to Life, Breeders) and Paterson Joseph (Wonka, Timeless) play two strangers who discover a shipwreck full of drugs. The two characters develop a business, inviting police, hitmen, and gangsters into their lives. Additional cast members include Tchéky Karyo (The Missing, Baptiste), Joanna Scanlan (After Love), Craig Fairbrass (One Piece, Villain and Muscle), Phil Daniels (House of the Dragon), and Ethan Lawrence (Bad Education). The series received positive reviews in the U.K., attracting five million viewers per episode. The U.S. premiere is scheduled for March 12th on Freevee.
Ashley Park will return for the fourth season of Emily In Paris after a septic shock scare. The Netflix comedy has been filming season four for multiple weeks in Paris without Park; she endured a critical septic shock over the holiday break and needed time to recover. She posted on Instagram saying, “First day back to work; takin it slow, steady, and stylin in Mindy’s shoes again.”
Netflix renewed Survival of The Thickest. The original comedy series will return for a second season, starring Michelle Buteau (The First Wives Club, Always Be My Maybe) and Tone Bell (The Flash, Whitney). Buteau plays a newly single, plus-size Black woman who tries to turn her life around as a struggling stylist. Recurring guest stars include Tasha Smith (Why Did I Get Married?), Taylor Sele (Queens, When They See Us), Garcelle Beauvais (The Jamie Foxx Show), Marouane Zotti (Vetro), and Liza Treyger (The Degenerates). As Buteau celebrates the series’ renewal, she is also releasing a new stand-up special on Netflix.
Peacock ordered three new dramas straight-to-series. One of the dramas is an untitled original spy techno-thriller directed by James Wan (The Conjuring) and starring Simu Liu (Barbie, Shang-Chi and The Legend of the Ten Rings). Created by Thomas Brandon (Legacies), the series follows an American intelligence analyst, Alexander Hale (Liu), who realizes his brain has been hacked. The other two dramas are the limited series All Her Fault and Devil In Disguise: John Wayne Gacy. All Her Fault is a suburban thriller created by Megan Gallagher (Wolf, Suspicion) and based on the novel by Andrea Mara. Devil In Disguise: John Wayne Gacy comes from writer and executive producer Patrick Macmanus, following serial killer John Wayne Gacy.
Stephen Curry will star in the Peacock mockumentary series Mr. Throwback. Written by David Caspe, Matthew Libman, and Daniel Libman, the series follows a struggling memorabilia dealer, played by Adam Pally (Happy Endings, The Mindy Project). Pally’s character turns to his sixth-grade basketball teammate for help, none other than NBA star Steph Curry. Curry is currently the point guard for the Golden State Warriors and a four-time NBA champion. He previously portrayed himself in the series Ballers and performed voiceovers for Family Guy and The Simpsons. Curry will executive produce under his Unanimous Media Banner.
Max released a teaser trailer for The Sympathizer. The limited series from Robert Downey Jr., Park Chan-wook, and A24 is based on Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name. The Sympathizer follows Hoa Xuande’s character in a post-Vietnam War United States as he secretly spies for the Viet Cong. Xuande (A Stitch in Time) is joined by cast members Fred Nguyen Khan (Fatherhood, Mother!), Toan Le (Bigfoot, Visioneers), Ky Duyen (The Rich Woman), Sandra Oh (Killing Eve), and Robert Downey Jr. (Iron Man, Oppenheimer). The premiere date is scheduled for April 14th on Max.
Peacock cast Nicholas Pinnock in Long Bright River. Pinnock (Django, The Book of Clarence) will join Amanda Seyfried (Mamma Mia!) in this limited series based on Liz Moore’s novel of the same name. Long Bright River is a suspense thriller about Mickey (Seyfried), a police officer who patrols a Philadelphia neighborhood overcome by the opioid epidemic. A slew of murders occur, seemingly connected to Mickey’s past. Pinnock plays Truman Dawes. The series will be produced by Sony Pictures Television and UCP.
Lovie Simone (Greenleaf, Power Book III: Raising Kanan) and Michael Cooper Jr. (The Inhabitant, On the Come Up) were cast in Netflix’s Forever. Mara Brock Akil wrote this adaptation of Judy Blume’s 1975 novel that explores teenage sexuality. Netflix first ordered the series in 2022. Since then, Regina King (Ray, If Beale Street Could Talk) has joined the project as an executive producer and director of the first episode. The official logline describes the series as “an epic love story of two Black teens exploring romance and their identities through the awkward journey of being each other’s firsts, set in Los Angeles, 2018.” Simone plays Keisha Clark, a zealous track star, while Cooper Jr. plays Justin Edwards, a nerd disguised in a basketball player’s body. Both characters have ambitious dreams after high school in their respective sports. As part of an overall deal with Netflix, Brock Akil will also serve as showrunner and executive producer.
Paramount+’s Evil will end after season four. The series was renewed for a fourth season in June of 2022, but it was recently announced that this season will be the last. New episodes will be released in May, and season four will include four bonus episodes. Production for these new episodes is slated to begin in New York City this month. Evil premiered on CBS in 2019, eventually switching to Paramount+ for its second season. The series is a psychological mystery that “examines the origins of evil along with the dividing line between science and religion.” Cast members include Katja Herbers (Manhattan), Mike Colter (Luke Cage), Aasif Mandvi (Million Dollar Arm), Michael Emerson (Saw), Andrea Martin (My Big Fat Greek Wedding), Kurt Fuller (Midnight in Paris), Christine Lahti (Chicago Hope), Brooklyn Shuck (Rise), Skylar Gray (Married), Maddy Crocco, and Dalya Knapp (She Said).
AMC’s AllBlk renewed Wicked City for a third season. This series, created and written by Kristin Iris Johnson and Serena M. Lee, follows five modern witches whose powers grow after discovering dark secrets and entering “the world of the forbidden.” The members of the Atlanta coven are Jordan, Angela, Sherise, Mona, and Camille, played by Shaquita Smith (Switched at Love), Chantal Maurice (The Family Plan, Last Vermont Christmas), Chanel Mack (Quit Smoking Today), Mercedez McDowell (Black-ish), and Taylor Polidore (All American: Homecoming), respectively. During season two, the group found themselves separated at the hands of “The Handler,” a magical slaver played by Karon Joseph Riley (Ambitions). In the upcoming season, these Black witches with supernatural powers will continue to attract secrets and dangerous enemies around Atlanta. Production for season three is set to begin in March.
Dallas Goldtooth joins Apple TV+’s Last Frontier. Goldtooth (Reservation Dogs) will accompany previously announced cast members Jason Clarke (Dawn of the Planet of the Apes), Haley Bennett (The Girl on the Train), Dominic Cooper (Mamma Mia!), and Simone Kessell (Outlaws, Yellowjackets). The 10-episode drama follows U.S. Marshal Frank Remnick (Clarke), whose quiet jurisdiction over Alaska is interrupted when a prison transport plane crashes in the wilderness and liberates dozens of criminals. Upon investigation, Clarke begins to believe the crash was the first step of an international scheme. Goldtooth plays Hutch, the second-in-command U.S. Marshal at an Alaskan outpost.
Keon Alexander and Navid Negahban join season two of Netflix’s The Night Agent. Alexander (The Expanse) will be a series regular, playing Javad, a security monitor for the United Nations’ Iranian Mission. Negahban (Aladdin, The Cleaning Lady) will play Abbas, the U.N. ambassador for Iran, in a recurring guest role. The Night Agent is adapted from Matthew Quirk’s novel, in which an FBI agent becomes enveloped in the Night Agent program and a deep-rooted U.S. government conspiracy. Returning stars include Gabriel Basso (The Kings of Summer) and Luciane Buchanan (The New Legends of Monkey). Season two will follow Peter Sutherland (Basso) as a full-time Night Agent engaged in further international conspiracies. The Night Agent is the sixth most popular series to stream on Netflix, attracting 98.2 million viewers during its first season.
Adriana Martínez Barrón - CBS
Industry: Stacey Abrams picked former CBS executive Adriana Martínez Barrón to lead the Film & TV unit for the upcoming Sage Works Productions. Martínez Barrón was the Drama Series Development VP at CBS. She is “thrilled to partner with Stacey to bring her vision to life,” a vision that will prioritize authentically diverse stories and progressive characters. Her previous credits include VP of Film at Unbelievable Entertainment and manager of Latin American original series and content acquisitions at Netflix. Abrams — a former candidate for Georgia governor, political activist, and author — portrayed the President of United Earth on Star Trek: Discovery and produced and starred in Prime Video’s All In: The Fight for Democracy. Amid consideration for Joe Biden’s VP position and her get-out-the-vote campaigns, Abrams founded Sage Works in 2020.
Significant layoffs are happening at Paramount Global. Those affected by the changes were notified on Tuesday, with Deadline reporting the number to be roughly 800 employees. Paramount Global CEO Bob Bakish confirmed the cutbacks at a town hall event in January and released a timely internal memo. The cuts account for three percent of the company’s global employee count, which rounds out to 24,500 employees in 37 countries. Additionally, Paramount has 5,800 project-based staffers. Layoffs are becoming common in the industry as advertising slows and streaming booms. Currently Paramount is the product of a 2019 merger between CBS and Viacom, and it is managed by Shari Redstone’s National Amusements. Byron Allen, Skydance Media, and private equity investors are demonstrating interest in the acquisition.
“To those with whom we are parting ways, we are incredibly grateful for your hard work and dedication,” Bakish wrote. “Your talents have helped us advance our mission of unleashing the power of content around the world.”
David Harewood is the new president of Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA), a British drama school. Harewood’s film and TV credits include Blood Diamond, Supergirl, and The Merchant of Venice, and he has acted in theater productions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream and Henry IV. As a RADA alum, Harewood will succeed Kenneth Branagh in this new role. Cynthia Erivo, the star of Universal’s Wicked, was appointed vice president. Harewood and Erivo’s positions are symbolic and ambassadorial, meaning they will provide active support to the school, its students, and its community through donations, advocacy, and outreach.
Laz Alonso (The Boys) signed with Independent Artist Group. In its fourth season, The Boys follows a group of vigilantes attempting to take down corrupt superheros. Alonso plays a vigilante who goes by the name “Mother’s Milk.” Alonso also currently voices the title character for the Netflix animated series My Dad the Bounty Hunter. Additional acting credits include the Fast & Furious franchise, Avatar, Breakout Kings, Power Book II: Ghost, Southland, and Deception. Finally, Alonso is the CEO of production company Abundancia Pictures.
Universal Content Productions (UCP) is developing a drama inspired by Usher. Based on Usher’s music and career, the series will follow Black love in Atlanta. Themes include music, style, sex, romance, and secrets that threaten to break relationships as individuals search for belonging. Usher will executive produce via KMei Productions, his production company. His recent halftime performance at the 2024 Super Bowl generated a lot of buzz as he wraps up his Las Vegas residency and embarks on his next tour, Past Present Future. The tour begins on August 20th in Washington, D.C.
“My 30-year catalog has resonated with so many people no matter where they were in their lives,” Usher said in a statement. “I’m happy to be working with UCP to bring the music to life. I hope the series resonates with you the way my music continues to.”
A+E Networks promoted Kannie Yu LaPack to executive vice president of publicity, public affairs, and social media. Yu LaPack has worked for A+E for 18 years, including Lifetime, LMN, and A+E Studios. Currently, she manages Lifetime and LMN’s bicoastal team’s consumer and trade publicity, awards, public affairs initiatives, and social media. This new role will expand her responsibilities to publicity efforts for A+E Studios like Where Is Wendy Williams?, The Prison Confessions of Gypsy Rose Blanchard, Murdaugh Murders: The Movie, and Surviving R. Kelly. This promotion follows the studio’s success with The Lincoln Lawyer on Netflix, which reached the streamer’s global top 10 in 81 countries. Yu LaPack will continue to report to Michael Feeney, the executive vice president of corporate communications.
Paramount Global canceled Noggin, an interactive learning platform for preschool kids on Nickelodeon. This cancellation is on the heels of Paramount Global’s decision to let go of 800 staffers, including the entire Noggin team. The platform will be shut down sometime in 2024, though an exact date has not been announced. New subscribers will not be accepted and there will be a transition period for current subscribers. Noggin was designed for kids ages two to seven, originating as a cable TV channel offshoot that eventually transformed to a subscription service in 2015. The service provided a library of over 1,000 learning games, activities, exclusive shorts, and ebooks. Additionally, subscribers received access to ad-free episodes of TV series like PAW Patrol, Peppa Pig, Bubble Guppies, Dora the Explorer, Backyardigans, Wonder Pets, Little Bear, and Blue’s Clues. According to Noggin’s promotions, the “specialized educational approach” was meant to “build your child’s math, literacy, and wellness skills while developing their curiosity and social and emotional learning.” As of 2019, Noggin had 2.5 million paying subscribers.
J.C. ‘Spike’ Osorio died on the Marvel series Wonder Man due to a collapsing catwalk. Sources close to the accident stated that Osorio fell as the wooden catwalk gave out underneath him. Osorio was working as a rigger on Stage 3 at Radford Studio Center when the accident occurred at 6:42 a.m. Witnesses told the paramedics Osorio fell roughly 50 feet. CPR was not successful and Osorio was pronounced dead onsite. A source from set claims a wooden support holding up the catwalk broke, triggering the collapse of the planks resting on the support and causing Osorio to fall. Two IATSE officials later confirmed this testimony. Cal/OSHA is conducting an investigation that may last several months, though the agency declined to comment. Osorio’s family hired attorneys specializing in wrongful death and personal injury cases. There are clues the studio may not have been up to code, including Hackman Capital Partners’ plan to modernize the facility after “decades of under-investment” and a zoning application where a developer described the building as “aging and outdated.” The IATSE Local 728 union held a candlelight vigil on Saturday, and a GoFundMe campaign has raised more than $170,000 to support Osorio’s family.
Film Independent named eight writers to join its Episodic Lab. The seventh edition of this program provides personalized story and career development for writers with original TV pilots. This year’s selected participants and their featured projects include Desdemona Chiang (ZHIZHA! (紙紮!)), Giovanni Maldonado Chinea and Myles Hawthorne (The Machetero), and Azza Malik (Dear Azza,). Malik will receive a $10,000 grant from the MPAC Hollywood Bureau, an organization that works to promote stories by and about Muslims in entertainment. The purpose of the two-week in-person lab is to connect fellows with industry experts — including showrunners, creative producers, and executives — who can provide advice on the creativity and business aspects of writing episodic content. Netflix and its Fund for Creative Equity will support the fellows by pairing them with an industry advisor. Creative advisors and guest speakers for the lab include Wendy Calhoun (Nashville), Linda Yvette Chávez (Gentefied), Gina Kwon (The Good Girl), Van B. Nguyen (Blue Bloods), Gina Reyes, Jiah Shin, and Ligiah Villalobos.
