Small Screen: Byron Allen Prepares TheGrio.TV As The First African American-Owned Broadcast Network, Plus ‘Nice White Parents’ Adaptation Coming To HBO

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Broadcast: Kathryn Washington has been promoted by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to become its newest Senior Vice President, Television Content. In her new role, the executive will oversee the funding of content developed for national audiences by public television stations and independent producers. Washington has been with the CPB since 2009, previously serving as its Senior Director of Content Strategy, its Director of Diversity and Innovation and most recently as its Vice President, Television Content, where she oversaw both national broadcast and digital content; she will begin her new position on December 19.

Following its recent acquisition of Light TV from MGM, Allen Media Group has announced that it will be rebranding the broadcast channel as TheGrio.TV, aligning it with the Allen Media Group-owned TheGrio.com, acquired from NBCUniversal by CEO Byron Allen in 2016. With a slogan of “Our Culture Forever,” the channel will offer African American-focused content to audiences through over-the-air stations, cable, telco and satellite and free online streaming. In addition, TheGrio.TV will be available on Fox Television Stations in 11 major markets: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas, San Francisco, Houston, Atlanta, Phoenix, Minneapolis and Orlando. The soon-to-be-launched channel will air movies; sitcoms; dramas; concerts; talk, variety and game shows; news and lifestyle content to over 100 million households in the United States, with its Fox deal delivering TheGrio.TV to 29.6% of all general market households in the United States, reaching 36.3% of African American households. Allen emphasized the importance of the upcoming channel in its mission to “serve and uplift all viewers,” as “the first and only 100% African American-owned and targeted broadcast television network and free digital platform,” unfiltered by other media entities or stakeholders “outside of the community.” TheGrio.TV will officially launch on January 15.

ABC has found its Emmett Till for the upcoming Women of the Movement, casting Cedric Joe in the pivotal role for the limited series on Mamie Till-Mobley. Following a nationwide casting call, Joe joins a cast that includes Adrienne Warren, Niecy Nash and the recently-cast Glynn Turman, who will play Till’s great uncle, Mose Wright. Created and written by Marissa Jo Cerar, Women of the Movement premiers in 2021.

Zorro, a gender-bending adaptation of the story of the eponymous vigilante, is coming to NBC. Set in contemporary times, the series follows the story of Sola Dominguez- artist by day, vigilante by night- as she works to expose the criminal underworld by taking justice into her own hands. Coming from the sibling writing team of Robert and Rebecca Rodriguez, with the latter Rodriguez also directing, Zorro features a slate of executive producers that includes the Rodriguezes; Propagate’s Ben Silverman, Howard T. Owens, Rodney Ferrell, Greg Lipstone and Jay Weisleder; Sofia Vergara and Luis Balaguer of LatinWe; Geoff Clark; Eric Bromberg and John Gertz. Zorro is an upcoming co-production between CBS Studios and Universal TV.

Jamila Hunter & Jihan Robinson - ABC

Cable: A half-hour series adaptation of the Nice White Parents podcast is coming to HBO, having received a pilot commitment from the premium cable channel. Adapted by Issa Rae and Adam McKay, the upcoming comedy takes a satirical approach in exploring the issue of influential and well-resourced white parents whose actions have affected generations of Black and Brown students in New York’s public school system. The original five-part podcast from the New York Times-owned Serial Productions launched this past July and features a creative team composed of reporter Chana Joffe-Walt; producer Julie Snyder; editors Sarah Koenig, Neil Drumming and Ira Glass; editorial consultants Eve L. Ewing and Rachel Lissy and sound mixer Stowe Nelson. Still searching for a showrunner, the executive producing slate for the upcoming series includes HooRae’s Rae and Montrel McKay; Hyperobject Industries’ McKay and Todd Shulman; Serial Productions’ Joffe-Walt, Snyder, Alissa Shipp and Koenig and 3 Arts Entertainment’s Dave Becky and Jonathan Berry. In addition, the adaptation is set to be produced by HooRae’s Sara Rastogi.

Freeform has announced a series of changes in its executive ranks, promoting Jamila Hunter to the position of Executive Vice President of Original Programming and Development and bringing in Quibi’s former Head of Documentaries Jihan Robinson to act as its new Vice President of Alternative Programming. Hunter will now oversee all Freeform original series, both scripted and unscripted, while Robinson will oversee the channel’s nonfiction and alternative content.

Ahead of its upcoming second season, OWN’s David Makes Man has added 10 more actors to its cast to appear in recurring roles. As billionaire developer Joe Padilla, Tony Plana’s character will tempt David, played by Kwame Patterson, with a business opportunity that may be too good to be true. Playing David’s architect girlfriend Nicole is Brittany S. Hall. David’s middle school rival Marissa returns to Season 2 as a marine biologist and activist, with the adult version of her character to be played by Erica Lutrell. Zsané Jhé plays the adult version of Shella, who will dedicate her time to fighting against a real estate redevelopment company’s effort to gentrify The Ville. Bobbi Baker’s Robin is the partner of Gloria and owner of Robin’s Nest, a foster home in Little Havana that provides a safe place for LGBTQ+ youth to stay. Denise, played by Patrice Arenas, works with David at the Edwards Firm as an office assistant. Trinity Cidel’s Trenise is David’s talented young niece with a personality more reminiscent of her uncle than of her father, JG. As Trisha, Brandi Huzzie plays JG’s long-time girlfriend and Trenise’s mother. A Miami-based commissioner and politician, Rodney Gardiner’s Corey Roberts can help David and Joe move forward with their plans at redeveloping The Ville, though he will not compromise on doing things his way. Rounding out the new casting additions is Janmarco Santiago, who will play Elan, Joe’s nephew whose connection gets him a job as David’s assistant. Season 2 of David Makes Man will be directed by Kiel Adrian Scott and Erica Watson and features an executive production team composed of creator Tarell Alvin McCraney, showrunner Dee Harris-Lawrence and Page Fright’s Mike Kelley and Melissa Loy, as well as Michael B. Jordan’s Outlier Society and Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Films. The upcoming second season is slated for a summer 2021 premier.

Native American Media Alliance / Netflix

Streaming: A series of changes have been announced at UMC, AMC Networks’ streaming platform focused on Black film and television content, with the recent promotion of executive Brett Dismuke and the unveiling of the platform’s upcoming rebranding campaign. Dismuke, who has been with the streamer since 2019 when he joined on as its Head of Content, has been promoted as the new General Manager for both UMC and We tv. The executive has previously served as Image Entertainment’s Senior Vice President of Acquisitions, Urban Content; as Chief Operating Officer of The Swirl Group production company and most recently as the owner and founder of So Chi Entertainment since 2016. Prior to joining UMC, Dismuke offered consulting services for the platform regarding production, distribution and release strategy. News of Dismuke’s promotion was followed shortly after by the announcement that UMC will officially rebrand as ALLBLK starting in January. In a statement, founder Robert L. Johnson touched on UMC’s roots as “a distribution model for Black creatives to directly reach the then largely underserved African-American audience without the restrictions of legacy content development and traditional broadcast models.” Johnson went on to say that the rebranding effort will allow for ALLBLK to be “well positioned to breakout as the preeminent streaming destination for viewers seeking Black entertainment.” Miguel Penella, President of SVOD at AMC Networks, echoed Johnson’s projections for the streaming platform, emphasizing “the need for curated entertainment experiences immersed in authenticity and targeted to the viewing interest of Black Americans, specifically the Black female audience.” With a slate of original series that already includes Double Cross, A House Divided and Craig Ross Jr.’s Monogamy, the rebrand will be met with a major expansion of the platform with the upcoming debuts of Millennials, Lace, My Mane Problem, Partners in Rhyme, Notorious Queens, the We tv-joint production Beyond the Pole, A Close Look, For the Love of Jason and Terror Lake Drive.

Netflix has announced that it will be partnering with the Native American Media Alliance to provide assistance to above the line and below the line Native employees in entertainment who have lost their jobs or struggled financially due to the pandemic. The Native Americans in the Entertainment Industry COVID-19 Relief Fund will distribute approximately 200 grants of $2000 to eligible Native workers in film and television, who can apply online. This latest initiative adds to Netflix’s prior efforts in assisting those in the industry who have struggled financially or professionally due to the coronavirus, including a $150 million relief fund this past April.

A period drama focusing on the FBI’s COINTELPRO operation is coming to Peacock. Written by Leon Hendrix III and Ajani Jackson, the upcoming series focuses on Korean War veteran Amos Harvey after he is brought into the COINTELPRO initiative. Forcibly recruited by the FBI, the conservative Black police officer is tasked with infiltrating the civil rights movement to hinder the progress of its various groups and destroy it from within. Harvey’s FBI work eventually comes into conflict with his personal life after his wife Roberta, tired of the unjust status quo in America, begins getting involved with the movement behind his back. Hendrix and Jackson will also take on executive producing duties alongside David Ayer, Chris Long and Darryll C. Scott of Cedar Park, with Evergreen Valley Productions, a subsidiary of the production company, also executive producing. The upcoming series is a co-production between eOne and Universal Studio Group’s UCP.

Ayo Edebiri and Ben Schwartz are lending their voices to Netflix’s upcoming interactive animated series We Lost Our Human. The choose-your-own-adventure style series centers on a scenario in which pets wake up to discover that all humans have disappeared. Viewers can follow the pets in their search for their owners through the perspectives of either Schwartz’s vain cat character, Pud, or Edebiri’s zany and sweet dog character, Ham. Adrienne C. Moore, Lauren Tom, Jon Glaser, Henry Rollins, Lucas Grabeel and Matty Cardarople also star alongside the headlining duo. Created by executive producers and directors Rikke Asbjoern and Chris Garbutt, We Lost Our Human comes from the writing team of Asbjoern, Garbutt, Laura Sreebny and Nick Arciaga.