What’s going on in the TV world?
Marvel is dominating platforms with popular shows on network TV, Hulu and Netflix. This year they will be adding a new show to their stable with Cloak & Dagger on Freeform. The show stars Aubrey Joseph as Tyrone Johnson and Olivia Holt as Tandy Bowen. The two teenagers discover that not only do they have superpowers, those powers are linked together. Tandy has the power to manifest light daggers while Tyrone has the ability to engulf things in darkness. The first episode was directed by Love & Basketball‘s Gina Prince-Bythewood. The first look at it was shown at the Freeform Summit event held in Los Angeles. Cloak & Dagger premieres June 7 at 8:00 p.m EST.
The Freeform Summit also revealed new information about Grown-ish. The freshman comedy staring Yara Shahidi was renewed for a second season. The second season will increase from 13 episodes to 20. The premiere episode of drew 1.56 million total viewers, a record for Freeform.
Also in renewal news, Fox has ordered another season of Ryan Murphy’s 911 after two episodes. Between live and digital viewers, the premiere was seen by 10.7 million people. The show stars Angela Bassett, Aisha Hinds, Connie Britton, Peter Krause, Oliver Stark, Kenneth Choi, and Rockmond Dunbar. It follows a group of first responders as they deal with bizarre and tragic calls.
Freeform is adding to their scripted TV shows with a reboot of the popular 1990s family drama Party of Five. The original series centered around the five Salinger siblings who were orphaned after their parents were killed in a car accident. The original series’ creators Chris Keyser and Amy Lippman are returning for this new take. This time the series will focus on the five Buendias children. Rather than losing their parents to a car accident, the have to deal with the fallout after their parents are suddenly deported back to Mexico. Keyser, Lippman and Michal Zebede will write the pilot. In case you were wondering, the show will have Latinx involvement. Zebede is a first-generation American writer with Costa Rican and Panamanian. The pilot will be directed by Rodrigo Garcia.
In addition to the Party of Five reboot, Freeform has also ordered a show about Cleopatra. The show is from Quantico and Code Black executive producer Michael Seitzman, former CBS head of drama Christina Davis and Lorenzo di Bonaventura. “Our show is an adventure story that centers on a young Cleopatra during the period of her life when she was exiled by her own brother and forced to be a scrappy outsider forging shaky alliances and acquiring powerful enemies, including the gods and monsters of Egyptian mythology vying for supremacy over the human race,” said Seitzman about the plot. “It’s also a love story about a young woman caught between two men, the fierce General Julius Caesar and his protege, the young, rebellious Centurion Marc Antony.” They are still in the process of assembling a writers room and hiring a casting director so whether or not any black people will appear in this series is up in the air.
Black Lightning finally premiered this week, drawing in 2.3 million viewers. It garnered an 0.8 rating with adults 18-49. It kept most of the audience from its lead-in The Flash, The CW’s number 1 show. The premiere was also the highest-rated one in two years. Black Lightning is produced by Mara Brock Akil and Salim Akil. It airs Tuesdays at 9 pm EST. You can check out our review here.
Also in the realm of CW’s DC universe, Wally West a.k. Kid Flash (Keiynan Lonsdale) is making the move from The Flash to Legends of Tomorrow. After it was announced that he would appear in Legends, fans began speculating on whether or not his move would be permanent. Now it’s official. Wally West will be joining the team. “We loved working with Keiynan in our series premiere — the episode in which we learned that in between seasons 2 and 3 he had been fighting crime in Central City with Nick Zano’s Nate Heywood. So when his character stepped away from Flash to go on walkabout, after being dumped and feeling somewhat estranged from his family and team, we knew that Wally West would fit in perfectly on Legends,” executive producer Phil Klemmer said about the move. This comes after the departure of Franz Drameh and Victor Garber who played Ronnie Raymond and Martin Stein respectively. Together they formed the character Firestorm. Wally will make his first appearance in episode 11, which will air Feb. 19. He will officially join the team in episode 13. Legends of Tomorrow will also have an episode this season set in the late 1970s that will revolve around a young Obama.
Entertainment Weekly gave us our first look at the upcoming season of RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars. This season of All-Stars includes Shangela (seasons 2 and 3), Morgan McMichaels (season 2), BenDeLaCreme (season 6), Milk (season 6), Trixie Mattel (season 7), Kennedy Davenport (season 7), Thorgy Thor (season 8) and Aja (season 9). “With over 100 fabulous queens to choose from, I’m announcing the cast of a brand new season of RuPaul’s Drag Race All-Stars,” RuPaul said about the cast. “I’ve handpicked a cast that not only deserves a second chance at the crown, but also inspires all of us to ever give up on our dreams. Not to mention: They’re some hungry-ass bitches.” RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars 3 debuts Thursday, Jan. 25 at 8 pm EST on VH1. Don’t forget to check out our livetweet of it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2B85lYenaxE
The new red band trailer for Heathers is here. Based on the cult classic film of the same name, the show re-imagines the world of the film as a modern high school where the outcasts rule. The show is described as a pitch-black comedy anthology series. Lead by the plus-sized Heather Chandler (Melanie Field) and her sidekicks Heather Duke (Brendan Scannell) and Heather McNamara (Jasmine Mathews), the Heathers rule the school through a combination of fear, intimidation and amazing fashion sense. Heathers debuts on the Paramount Network on March 7 at 10 p.m.
Back in November, Amazon ordered The Boys to series with an initial eight episodes. Created by Supernatural creator and Timeless co-creator Eric Kripke, the show is a superhero drama based on the comic book of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. It centers on a group of vigilantes known as ‘The Boys’ who fight to take down corrupt superheroes. Survivor’s Remorse star Jessie T. Usher and Nathan Mitchell have joined the cast which also includes Erin Moriarty, Chace Crawford, Antony Starr and Dominique McElligott. Usher will play A-Train, a member of a superhero team named The Seven. His superpower is super speed. Mitchell will play a superhero called Black Noir, known for his martial arts skills. Preacher‘s Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen will serve as directors.
ABC has dropped the long trailer for For the People. This new Shondaland series is set in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York a.k.a. The Mother Court. It follows six young lawyers at the beginning of their careers. Sandra Bell (Britt Robertson) and Allison Adams (Jasmin Savoy Brown) play best friends and public defenders along with Jay Simmons (Wesam Keesh). Hope Davis plays their boss Federal Public Defender Jill Carlan. On the other side are the prosecutors, Seth Oliver (Ben Rappaport), Leonard Knox (Regé-Jean Page), Kate Littlejohn (Susannah Flood). They report to the chief of the Criminal Division in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Roger Gunn played by Ben Shenkman. This group of young, talented lawyers have to learn to balance their personal lives with the prestigious cases they have to work on. For the People premieres on March 13 at 10 pm EST.
Malcolm-Jamal Warner will have a recurring role in Fox’s The Resident. The medical drama centers “on a tough, brilliant senior resident who guides an idealistic young doctor through his first day, pulling back the curtain on what really happens, both good and bad, in modern-day medicine.” Warner will play AJ Marino, gifted cardio-thoracic surgeon who is also volatile, dramatic and even abusive. The series is written by Amy Holden Jones, Hayley Schore and Roshan Sethi. Phillip Noyce is the director with Antoine Fuqua as an executive producer.
Bad Boys is coming to the small screen but not the way you think. The unofficial sequel will feature a female duo and will star Gabrielle Union. Union will star as “free-spirited former DEA agent Syd Burnett [who] has a fresh start in her new job as an LAPD detective. She’s partnered with Nancy McKenna [not yet cast], a working mom who can’t help but look at Syd’s freedom with some grass-is-greener envy. These two have totally different lifestyles and approaches, but they both are at the top of their fields in this action-packed, character-driven procedural.” The Blacklist‘s Brandon Sonnier and Brandon Margolis will serve as showrunners. As of now, the series is still untitled.
In Movie News…
Disney has released new character posters for A Wrinkle In Time. Featured in the posters are Meg Murry (Storm Reid), Kate Murry (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), Alex Murry (Chris Pine), Mrs. Whatsit (Reese Witherspoon), Mrs. Who (Mindy Kaling) and Mrs. Which (Oprah Winfrey). A Wrinkle In Time hits theaters on March 9, 2018.
Netflix’s Bright wasn’t the blockbuster Will Smith probably hoped it would be. Now he has a new project on the horizon. He will be starring in the Ang Lee directed Gemini Man. He will play two roles. The first is an aging assassin named Henry who wants to get out of the business. The second is a clone, 25 years younger and at his peak. The clone has one mission, to kill Henry. Fargo‘s Mary Elizabeth Winstead was just cast as the female lead in the film. She will play an operative sent to watch Henry and ends up teaming up with him. Clive Owen is in talks to play the head of the cloning facility, one of the villains of the film.
Sony’s Superfly is rounding out their cast. I reported earlier that Grown-ish‘s Trevor Jackson was cast as the lead, Youngblood Priest. Now they’ve added Mudbound and Straight Outta Compton star Jason Mitchell in a co-starring role as Eddie. Lex Scott Davis will play Georgia, Andrea Londo will play Cynthia, Jacob Ming-Trent will play Fat Freddy, and Omar Chapparo will play Adalberto. Rapper Future has joined the project as a producer. Alex Tse will write the script and Director X is set to direct.
The writers of Spider-Man: Homecoming, John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, are currently in negotiations to direct Flashpoint. The stand alone film focuses on The Flash played by Ezra Miller. He was introduced in the Justice League. The film has been on hold since the previous director, Rick Famuyiwa, left the project. Ben Affleck was in talks to replace him but has since passed on it. Ezra Miller is currently filming Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald so there’s still time to work out the kinks of this movie.
Marvel has released a photo of Scott Lang (Pault Rudd) and Hope van Dyne (Evangeline Lilly) suited up as Ant-man and the Wasp. Michael Pena and Michael Douglas are returning for the sequel. He will be joined by Laurence Fishburne, Walton Goggins and Michelle Pfeiffer. The official description of the film is: From the Marvel Cinematic Universe comes Ant Man and the Wasp, a new chapter featuring heroes with the astonishing ability to shrink. In the aftermath of Captain America: Civil War, Scott Lang grapples with the consequences of his choices as both a Super Hero and a father. As he struggles to rebalance his home life with his responsibilities as Ant-Man, he’s confronted by Hope van Dyne and Dr. Hank Pym with an urgent new mission. Scott must once again put on the suit and learn to fight alongside the Wasp as the team works together to uncover secrets from the past.
The second trailer for Tomb Raider is out. The video game adaptation stars Alicia Vikander as Lara Croft. Into the Badlands fave Daniel Wu along with Dominic West, Walton Goggins and Kristin Scott Thomas also star in the film. This reboot seems to stick closer to the 2013 Square Enix video game than Angelina Jolie movies. In this version, a message from her dead father sends Lara on a quest to find a tomb called Mother of Death. On the way there, her ship wreaks stranding her on an island with dangerous and maybe familiar inhabitants. Tomb Raider premieres March 16, 2018.
Award-winning Haitian-American novelist Edwidge Danticat has recently been in the news criticizing Trump’s comments about Haitian immigrants. Now one of her stories is being adapted for the big screen. The story, “Caroline’s Wedding,” is the last story in her 1995 collection Krik? Krak! which follows a family of Haitian immigrants navigating through life in the United States while dealing with generational and cultural issues. Easmanie Michel, France-Luce Beeson, and Darcy Miller are writing the screenplay. Chef Julian‘s Numa Perrier was just cast as the lead.
Get ready for John Wick 3. The second film in the franchise ended with a price on Wick’s head and few allies on his side. Principle photography is set to begin on the third installment on March 1st in New York City. Chad Stahelski, who co-directed the first film and and second film alone, is returning to take on the third. A few familiar faces from the Chapter 2 will be returning. Namely Laurence Fishburne’s Bowery King, Common’s Cassian and Ruby Rose’s Arex. The Wolverine‘s Hiroyuki Sanada will be joining the cast as the head of a Japanese syndicate. The studio is also looking to add a female co-star to film. Keanu Reeves, who stars as the titular character, is hoping to add Tilda Swinton to the project.
In other news…
Academy Award-winning actress, Lupita Nyong’o is writing a children’s book. Sulwe, which means ‘star’ in Nyong’o’s native language of Luo is being published through Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. The story follows a 5-year-old Sulwe as she grows up in Kenya. Uncomfortable with having the darkest skin in her family, she wants to find a way to lighten it. Her mother offers words of wisdom that sends Sulwe on a journey to discover that beauty is more than she thought. The book will be released next January.
Black, co-created by Kwanza Osajyefo and Tim Smith 3, wrapped up its six-issue run last summer. They’re not done with the world they created. There will be another book set in the same universe called Black [AF]: America’s Sweetheart. It follows 15 year old Eli Franklin as she becomes Good Girl and tries to bridge the country’s racial divide as its first superhero. Jennifer Johnson will be coming on board as the artist. According to Johnson, the book “embodies ideas of heroism, sacrifice, and empathy while reflecting on the world around us. Eli is a savior that we need and a character that many can identify with. In the wake of her powers, Good Girl harbors an uncompromising sense of justice and selflessness, unafraid to do what’s right for the greater good.” Black [AF]: America’s Sweetheart comes out January 31.
Osajyefo and Smith 3 are also working on another addition to the Black universe, a four-issue miniseries called Black [AF]: Widows & Orphans. “This story features Anansi and Hoodrat investigating a human-trafficking ring that will take them across the globe and bring them face to face with dark pasts of abuse, child soldiers, and families torn apart. The series asks a genuinely disturbing question — in a world where only black people have superpowers, what price do they fetch on the black market?” Smith said about the book. Black [AF]: Widows & Orphans will be released in April.
If you have anything I missed, email me at mel@blackgirlnerds.com or tweet me at @jane_anon. Check back in next Monday for all the exciting news happening next week.
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