Tracy Morgan to Star in 'The Neighborhood' Spinoff Series; HBO Sets History of Black Television Doc; 'Highest 2 Lowest' Film Debuts on Apple TV Plus
CIC Triple Take Q&A Spotlights The Africa Channel's Narendra Reddy
Paramount Plus Sets `The Neighborhood’ Spinoff Series
Veteran actor Tracy Morgan will star in a new comedy series set in the world of the comedy series The Neighborhood. Paramount Plus’ eight-episode series Crutch debuts November 3 and stars Morgan as a beloved yet brash Harlem shop owner whose world is turned upside down when his highbrow son and free-spirited daughter move back into the family home, according to the streaming service.
Morgan previously guest-starred on The Neighborhood as the brother of the show’s lead character, Calvin Butler, played by Cedric The Entertainer.
To support the launch of Crutch, Morgan will appear in a special episode of The Neighborhood, which will air the same night as the Crutch premiere, said the streaming service.
Crutch also stars Jermaine Fowler, Kecia Lewis, Adrianna Mitchell, Adrian Martinez, Braxton Paul and Finn Maloney.
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‘Bel-Air’ Returns for Final Season in November
Peacock’s Bel-Air will conclude with a fourth and final season debuting on November 24. The series, a dramatic reimagining of the 1990’s comedy series Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, will continue to focus on the exploits of Philadelphia-born teenager Will Smith (played by Jabari Banks), who, after getting into trouble at home, moves in with his Aunt’s family in their ritzy California home. Per Peacock, the final season has Will trying to balance the fun and excitement of senior year with the expectations that have brought him to this moment. Meanwhile, Will’s cousin Carlton (Olly Sholotan) tests his own resolve as he deals with the fallout of some very big decisions that could threaten his future. The eight-episode, final season of Bel-Air also stars Adrian Holmes, Cassandra Freeman, Coco Jones, Akira Akbar and Jimmy Akingbola.
HBO Explores Black Representation on the Small Screen in New Documentary
Issa Rae, Oprah Winfrey, Tyler Perry, and Shonda Rhimes headline a star-studded lineup in Seen and Heard: The History of Black Television, a new documentary exploring the evolution of Black representation on TV, premiering September 9 on HBO. Rae serves as executive producer of the two-part series, which showcases how Black artists and creators shaped and revolutionized the medium while confronting the systemic challenges that have often undermined their contributions, according to HBO.
Denzel Washington, Spike Lee’s ‘Highest 2 Lowest’ Hits Apple TV Plus
Spike Lee and Denzel Washington team up for their fifth movie collaboration in the crime thriller Highest 2 Lowest, currently airing on Apple TV Plus after a limited theatrical run. The movie, based on Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa’s 1963 drama High and Low, follows a music mogul (Washington) who becomes the target of a ransom plot, forcing him to confront a life-or-death moral dilemma. Lee and Washington previously worked together on such films as Mo Better Blues, Malcolm X, He Got Game, and Inside Man.
TV Celebrity Birthdays (August 30-September 5)
Aug. 30: Michael Michele (ER, Dynasty), Trevor Jackson (Grown-ish). Aug. 31: Chris Tucker (Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper), Shar Jackson (Moesha). Sept. 1: Zendaya (Euphoria). Sept. 2: Damson Idris (Snowfall). Sept. 4: Damon Wayans (In Living Color, My Wife and Kids), Khandi Alexander (CSI: Miami, Scandal), Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs (Welcome Back Kotter), Beyonce (All of Us).
CIC Triple Take With The Africa Channel’s Narendra Reddy
A bi-weekly Q&A spotlighting voices of color shaping TV trends and storytelling
The Africa Channel is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a focus on the future, highlighting its mission to showcase the richness and diversity of African culture. I recently spoke with COO Narendra Reddy about the company’s strategy to engage audiences across multiple platforms with content from the continent, while tapping into the growing global appetite for African music, fashion, and entertainment. Below is a three-question excerpt from our conversation, lightly edited for clarity and length.
—The Africa Channel is marking its 20th anniversary during a period when African culture and entertainment are increasing in popularity in the U.S. What has changed over the past few years that has created a greater demand for African-based content among American viewers?
Clearly, one of the big shifts we've hopefully made and created is changing the narrative of what Africa represents in the world and what it means, particularly to American audiences. I also think a big shift has been the explosion of social media and the internet, which has democratized to some degree the availability of content that was previously not available. The big streamers have certainly made it more palatable for Western audiences to accept content that may not be in pure American English. Then outside, I think there's a great blend between television, film, music, and other forms of entertainment and digital. Obviously, as you know, Afrobeats, in terms of music, has had some of the biggest explosive growth, with artists like Burna Boy now household names in the U.S. Also, African fashion is now informing all the major fashion houses.
—How has the emerging interest in African culture translated into success for The Africa Channel both on air and on the distribution front?
We've had to evolve as the television landscape has changed. We started primarily as a cable network, and although we made some modest growth in distribution over the last couple of years, the cable industry in general has started to flatten out and lose subscribers. So we've had to evolve with that and launch our digital services, including Demand Africa. The biggest obstacle that we faced is that we've done all this without any fresh infusion of capital, to be candid. So we've largely had to rely on the goodwill of the partners we've had in Africa to essentially work with us with a longer-range vision of putting their content in and building a space for the diaspora community to come together.
—What content seems to be working on The Africa Channel, and what type of shows would you like to see on the network going forward?
In order to reach a broader audience here, we’ve focused more on the unscripted lifestyle space. It has entry points for people who are not necessarily interested in specific African culture, but are interested in broader things like fashion and food. We have been producing a fair amount of lifestyle content that reflects the diaspora experience because people don't necessarily want to only see what people are doing in Africa; they want to see what Africans are doing in the UK and Brazil. That resonates both for audiences here as well as for audiences on the continent.
Bonus Video: Narendra Reddy Discusses The Africa Channel’s Future