Race & Ethnicity On TV

[Trini]

On 2/13/2018 at 7:16 PM, Trini said:

Keeping an eye on this: '‘The Greatest American Hero’: Hannah Simone Gets The Lead In ABC Reboot Pilot'

If this goes to series, It will be the third(?) network show with an Indian as the lead; and the first show with a woman of color as a superhero lead.

So it seems ABC has decided not to pick up the reboot.

[GHScorpiosRule]

41 minutes ago, Trini said:

So it seems ABC has decided not to pick up the reboot.

And CBS has decided not to pick up the Cagney and Lacey Reboot. Something that I am verrrrry happy about and doing a happy dance.

[proserpina65]

23 hours ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

And CBS has decided not to pick up the Cagney and Lacey Reboot. Something that I am verrrrry happy about and doing a happy dance.

I don't know about this particular version, but I think a C&L reboot could work.  I don't imagine that police squad rooms have become happy little nirvanas for female detectives, and it would be an opportunity to bring in a diverse cast.  And I say that as someone who loved C&L.

On ‎05‎/‎14‎/‎2018 at 3:27 PM, Trini said:

So it seems ABC has decided not to pick up the reboot.

This one, on the other hand, sounded terrible in concept.

[DearEvette]

On 5/14/2018 at 4:10 PM, GHScorpiosRule said:

And CBS has decided not to pick up the Cagney and Lacey Reboot. Something that I am verrrrry happy about and doing a happy dance.

@GHScorpiosRule Now you have me curious about why?  Do you just dislike reboots or are a big C&L fan or just this concept in particular?

I am not a fan of the recent wave of reboots myself. Although I am bummed they passed on Get Christy Love but the original was so long ago that it almost doesn't even qualify as a reboot.

[GHScorpiosRule]

40 minutes ago, DearEvette said:

@GHScorpiosRule Now you have me curious about why?  Do you just dislike reboots or are a big C&L fan or just this concept in particular?

I am not a fan of the recent wave of reboots myself. Although I am bummed they passed on Get Christy Love but the original was so long ago that it almost doesn't even qualify as a reboot.

I hate reboots. Fucking hate them. And like another poster said upthread, I'm not against a cop procedural featuring two strong women; do it. I'm not against that concept. It's the reboot aspect and there was just something about Daly and Gless, their chemistry, real life friendship that came out of that and shone on the screen; plus a lot of the good stuff was ad-libbed by either or both.

[Katsullivan]

30 minutes ago, GHScorpiosRule said:

I hate reboots. Fucking hate them. And like another poster said upthread, I'm not against a cop procedural featuring two strong women; do it. I'm not against that concept. It's the reboot aspect and there was just something about Daly and Gless, their chemistry, real life friendship that came out of that and shone on the screen; plus a lot of the good stuff was ad-libbed by either or both.

It's a shame for Sarah Drew though, because her getting that pilot was supposed to be her safety net after leaving Grey'a Anatomy.

[Raja]

6 hours ago, proserpina65 said:

I don't know about this particular version, but I think a C&L reboot could work.  I don't imagine that police squad rooms have become happy little nirvanas for female detectives, and it would be an opportunity to bring in a diverse cast.  And I say that as someone who loved C&L.

This one, on the other hand, sounded terrible in concept.

Maybe not happy nirvana but still every other police commander is a woman and two women as among the first such partners is no longer in play. It was like the American Prime Suspect where you lost the lead being the first woman to lead murder investiations and where left with just another cop show trying to steal a legacy from the original 

[proserpina65]

12 hours ago, Raja said:

Maybe not happy nirvana but still every other police commander is a woman and two women as among the first such partners is no longer in play. It was like the American Prime Suspect where you lost the lead being the first woman to lead murder investiations and where left with just another cop show trying to steal a legacy from the original 

That is true, although maybe less so in a smaller city.  I could get behind a show about female detectives with a diverse cast that wasn't a reboot of Cagney and Lacey, then.  But of course, that probably wouldn't get picked up.  The reboot aspect is probably why it got any consideration at all.

[Llywela]

Since this site skews heavily American, I'm not sure how many folk here will have access to this show, but here in the UK, Sky One premiered last night a new buddy cop show called Bulletproof, featuring two black leads, Ashley Walters and Noel Clarke, who also co-created the show:

Early days yet, but I thoroughly enjoyed the first episode: a highly entertaining blend of action and comedy which also managed to hit dramatic and emotional notes when it needed to, the characters have a fun dynamic and interesting personal lives - plus obviously it's great to see such positive representation. I'm definitely on board for more and do recommend everyone to look out for it, if they get the chance.

Edited May 16, 2018 by Llywela

[SistaLadybug]

5 hours ago, Llywela said:

Since this site skews heavily American, I'm not sure how many folk here will have access to this show, but here in the UK, Sky One premiered last night a new buddy cop show called Bulletproof, featuring two black leads, Ashley Walters and Noel Clarke, who also co-created the show:

Early days yet, but I thoroughly enjoyed the first episode: a highly entertaining blend of action and comedy which also managed to hit dramatic and emotional notes when it needed to, the characters have a fun dynamic and interesting personal lives - plus obviously it's great to see such positive representation. I'm definitely on board for more and do recommend everyone to look out for it, if they get the chance.

This Whovian is quite glad to see Mickey in a show, even if it's not one I can watch at the moment.

[Llywela]

17 minutes ago, SistaLadybug said:

This Whovian is quite glad to see Mickey in a show, even if it's not one I can watch at the moment.

Yeah, Clarke actually tends to write and direct more than he acts, since Doctor Who - that's actually part of the reason he and Walters sat down and created this show, because as young black men growing up in London they found there weren't many people on TV they could relate to (not just as black men, but as black working class Londoners) and then as working actors, they found there weren't many roles out there for them...so they set out to create those roles for themselves. Clarke previously created a trilogy of films which were really well received, for much the same reason. It's early days for this show, but I enjoyed the first episode and I enjoyed the characters they've created, it was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to the second episode. I really hope the show does well and reaches a wide audience.

[Popples]

OMG! I wish I could watch Bulletproof here in the States. I've always wanted to see Noel Clarke in more things after Doctor Who and I got a bit of a crush on Ashley Walters since seeing him on his one and only series appearance on Hustle. He's also how I imagined Blaise Zabini from Harry Potter should look; those cheekbones. ?

I may have to look into some alternative sources for this show.

[In2You]

I'm not mad they passed on Get Christie Love. I dont think Kylie Bunbury is a strong enough actress to carry a show and I'm so tired of seeing biracial girls getting all the leading black women roles.

[In2You]

On 5/13/2018 at 8:41 PM, Ms Blue Jay said:

Mark Paul Gosselaar is one of my favourite examples.  He played the prototypical blonde on Saved by the Bell but he's very proud and outspoken about the fact that his hair is naturally black, and his mother is Indonesian.  God, I love him.

Gosselar's mom is only half Indonesian. Her other half is dutch.

[jhlipton]

3 hours ago, In2You said:

I'm not mad they passed on Get Christie Love. I dont think Kylie Bunbury is a strong enough actress to carry a show and I'm so tired of seeing biracial girls getting all the leading black women roles.

I liked her in Pitch and I think she would have done well in GCL.

[In2You]

2 hours ago, jhlipton said:

I liked her in Pitch and I think she would have done well in GCL.

I watched Pitch and I didn't think she was ready yet to carry her own show. I didn't buy her as a baseball player.

[jhlipton]

4 hours ago, In2You said:

I watched Pitch and I didn't think she was ready yet to carry her own show. I didn't buy her as a baseball player.

Fair enough.

[Minneapple]

All American, a new one from Berlanti, on the CW this fall:

 

I am ALL OVER this! High school football! Diverse cast! Please don't let me down, because this looks really good.

[topanga]

50 minutes ago, Minneapple said:

I am ALL OVER this! High school football! Diverse cast! Please don't let me down, because this looks really good.

Taye Diggs! Looks good. A few cliches, like the jealous kid who tries to sabotage the new kid. But I hope it moves past those quickly. 

[jhlipton]

3 hours ago, Minneapple said:

I am ALL OVER this! High school football! Diverse cast! Please don't let me down, because this looks really good.

I see a LOT of white women, one somewhat light darker woman and a fleeting glimpse of some black cheerleaders.  Looks good for the men, but more of the same for the women to me.

[biakbiak]

1 hour ago, jhlipton said:

one somewhat light darker woman

There are two somewhat lighter skinned women is the daughter of the Taye Diggs character and whoever is playing his white wife or ex and one who is dating the white player but Bre-z is not light skinned and is shown more than a glimpse and isnt a cheerleader. She seems to be his bff.

Edited May 18, 2018 by biakbiak

[Minneapple]

4 hours ago, topanga said:

Taye Diggs! Looks good. A few cliches, like the jealous kid who tries to sabotage the new kid. But I hope it moves past those quickly. 

Yes, me too. Although I expect this to be filled with WB-type high school cheesy cliches. Prepare yourself for the love triangles. I'm such a sucker.

But I miss Friday Night Lights and I am excited for the prospect of a high school football show.

Another show the CW picked up (for midseason) is the Roswell reboot, and this time they realized that there are, you know, Latino people living in New Mexico. The lead character is played by Jeanine Mason, an actress of Cuban descent. Michael Trevino, who is Mexican-American, is also on the show. Roswell was such a cute show in season 1 (oh, that Max and Liz ship!) that rapidly became a mess; I don't know how I feel about a reboot but I will probably give it a try.

[paulvdb]

8 hours ago, jhlipton said:

I see a LOT of white women, one somewhat light darker woman and a fleeting glimpse of some black cheerleaders.  Looks good for the men, but more of the same for the women to me.

As someone else already mentioned, the trailer showed two young women of color in the Beverly Hills based portion of the show and based on the show's description in the CW's press release I expect that those two are the main young female characters: "While Spencer struggles to find his footing, he makes an unlikely friend in Jordan's sister, Olivia, who is dealing with her own demons. He also quickly develops a crush on his classmate, Layla, something her boyfriend, Asher, quickly realizes." In addition to them there's Spencer's best friend Coop (Bre-Z) although I'm not sure how big her role will be when Spencer moves to Beverly Hills while she lives in his old neighborhood. But she and Spencer's mother (Karimah Westbrook) are the only other female characters mentioned in the show's description so I assume we'll be seeing more of them even after Spencer moves to Beverly Hills.

Based on that I'd say that all the white women you saw are less significant supporting characters or extras with the likely exception of the coach's wife who is not mentioned in the show's description but is listed in the main cast (Monet Mazur).

Based on what I found out about the actresses Samantha Logan (Olivia) is of Irish and Trinidadian descent and Greta Onieogou (Layla) is of Russian and Nigerian descent.

[possibilities]

I'd like to see a show about AA characters that's not about sports or entertainment.

I just can't find it in my heart to give a shit about another football show that's already advertising a teenage love triangle besides. They've packed more cliches into that one ad than I can usually tolerate in an entire season.

[Raja]

11 minutes ago, possibilities said:

I'd like to see a show about AA characters that's not about sports or entertainment.

I just can't find it in my heart to give a shit about another football show that's already advertising a teenage love triangle besides. They've packed more cliches into that one ad than I can usually tolerate in an entire season.

There are the cops shows like SWAT

[biakbiak]

3 hours ago, paulvdb said:

n addition to them there's Spencer's best friend Coop (Bre-Z) although I'm not sure how big her role will be when Spencer moves to Beverly Hills

I don’t think he actually moves to BH, he’s on an academic waiver so he doesn’t have to live in the district.

[paulvdb]

43 minutes ago, biakbiak said:

I don’t think he actually moves to BH, he’s on an academic waiver so he doesn’t have to live in the district.

Not at first, but according to the press release that I linked in my post "When Spencer is forced to move in with Billy and his family to protect his transfer permit to Beverly, Billy's son, Jordan (the team's starting quarterback), is less than thrilled to be sharing his father's attention - or the team spotlight - with Spencer." So he will move to Beverly Hills.

 

1 hour ago, possibilities said:

I'd like to see a show about AA characters that's not about sports or entertainment.

Black Lightning.

[jhlipton]

6 hours ago, paulvdb said:

ABased on that I'd say that all the white women you saw are less significant supporting characters or extras with the likely exception of the coach's wife who is not mentioned in the show's description but is listed in the main cast (Monet Mazur).

I found this photo of the cast:

which makes me feel a LOT better.

2 hours ago, possibilities said:

I'd like to see a show about AA characters that's not about sports or entertainment.

Black-ish?  (It has a lot of problems but fits your criteria.)

[possibilities]

8 hours ago, paulvdb said:

Black Lightning.

Mmmnnn, yes!

6 hours ago, jhlipton said:

Black-ish? 

Ok, that's a 2nd one.

But still... we need more.

[jhlipton]

28 minutes ago, possibilities said:

But still... we need more.

Possibly just one season, but Superstition on SyFy.

[callie lee 29]

They had me at Taye Diggs. 

[In2You]

I can't stand Taye Diggs and his constant jabs and resentment at black women. 

[Sparger Springs]

1 hour ago, In2You said:

I can't stand Taye Diggs and his constant jabs and resentment at black women. 

I couldn't make it through the preview. If its like all the other Taye Diggs vehicles it won't be around long and he will again blame black women. Its never the fault of white or Asian women when his crap fails.

[Apprentice79]

9 minutes ago, Sparger Springs said:

I couldn't make it through the preview. If its like all the other Taye Diggs vehicles it won't be around long and he will again blame black women. Its never the fault of white or Asian women when his crap fails.

Does he really look down on Black women or are those just rumors because he had a White wife. People are trashing Michael B. Jordan, there is a rumor going around that he hates Black women.  I think it is very unfair. 

Edited May 21, 2018 by Apprentice79

[Sparger Springs]

2 minutes ago, Apprentice79 said:

Does he really look down on Black women or are those just rumors because he had a White wife. People are trashing Michael B. Jordan, there is a rumor going around that he hates Black women.  I think it is very unfair. 

Google is your friend.

[Popples]

25 minutes ago, Apprentice79 said:

Does he really look down on Black women or are those just rumors because he had a White wife.

He gave an interview where he blamed his mother for the fact that he dates white women.

[In2You]

26 minutes ago, Apprentice79 said:

Does he really look down on Black women or are those just rumors because he had a White wife. People are trashing Michael B. Jordan, there is a rumor going around that he hates Black women.  I think it is very unfair. 

No one is unfair to Taye Diggs. He trashes black women in black women targeting magazines. He thinks black women were jealous of Idina even though I saw black women say she could do much better. And she's moved on to better now. 

[Apprentice79]

4 minutes ago, In2You said:

No one is unfair to Taye Diggs. He trashes black women in black women targeting magazines. He thinks black women were jealous of Idina even though I saw black women say she could do much better. And she's moved on to better now. 

My unfair comment was about Michael B. Jordan.  Not Taye Diggs.

Shame on Taye Diggs, for trashing Black women. It should not surprise me, to be honest. I am reminded about what Malcom X said, The most disrespected woman in America is the Black woman.

Edited May 21, 2018 by Apprentice79

[DearEvette]

On 5/18/2018 at 11:12 AM, possibilities said:

I'd like to see a show about AA characters that's not about sports or entertainment.

I just can't find it in my heart to give a shit about another football show that's already advertising a teenage love triangle besides. They've packed more cliches into that one ad than I can usually tolerate in an entire season.

Not as numerous on Network but you can find some around:

Insecure (HBO)

Queen Sugar (OWN)

Growinsh (FreeForm)

Dear White People (Netflix)

Chewing Gum (not AA but Afro-Brit -- Netflix)

Free Reign (Netflix)

Atlanta (FX)

Power (Starz)

The CHi (Showtime)

The Quad (BET)

She's Gotta Have It (Netflix)

shows with major AA characters/character arcs:

This is Us (NBC)

The Good Fight (CBS All Access)

Claws (TNT)

Edited May 21, 2018 by DearEvette

[Dee]

New 2018-19 Broadcast Shows Slowly Inch Toward Parity

Quote

Working with industry sources, Variety has identified 88 key roles in 34 scripted shows debuting on broadcast in fall 2018 and beyond. Among these roles across the five major networks (ABC, CBS, the CW, Fox, NBC) are 42% women and 42% people of color. Breaking it down further, Variety has identified 18% women of color in these roles.

Looking at those behind-the-scenes in executive producer roles, 34% are women this year, while 10.7% are people of color (2.68% are women of color).

Of course, there will be personnel changes from pick-up to premiere that may alter these numbers slightly. CBS’ “The Code” and NBC’s “In Between” have already announced recasting for a key role each, while many series from first-time creators will surely be looking to attached a seasoned showrunner. Other executive producers attached to the pilot may not stay for the series.

But thus far, for the most part, inclusion has already increased from last television season, when with 46 lead and co-lead actor roles, 35% were female and 20% were non-white. On the executive producer side last year, 29% were women and 10% were non-white.

Edited May 21, 2018 by Dee

[In2You]

The Quad got cancelled a couple months ago.

[jhlipton]

On 5/21/2018 at 8:20 AM, DearEvette said:

Not as numerous on Network but you can find some around

Also, Queen Sugar's "sister show" (they run on opposite seasons), Greenleaf

On 5/21/2018 at 11:34 AM, Dee said:

New 2018-19 Broadcast Shows Slowly Inch Toward Parity

Quote

Variety has identified 18% women of color in these roles.

And just how many of those Black women?  "of color" has come be a defense for colorism itself.  "Hey, they're a little bit brown -- close enough!"

I get that lighter women of color have unique problems -- as Meghan Merkle said, they tend to be rejected as both "not white enough" and "not black enough" (and I'm doing that a bit myself.  But it seems that almost every "woman of color" lately is lighter.  (I know there are exceptions and I gladly welcome them.)

[Llywela]

On 5/16/2018 at 3:39 PM, Llywela said:

Since this site skews heavily American, I'm not sure how many folk here will have access to this show, but here in the UK, Sky One premiered last night a new buddy cop show called Bulletproof, featuring two black leads, Ashley Walters and Noel Clarke, who also co-created the show:

Early days yet, but I thoroughly enjoyed the first episode: a highly entertaining blend of action and comedy which also managed to hit dramatic and emotional notes when it needed to, the characters have a fun dynamic and interesting personal lives - plus obviously it's great to see such positive representation. I'm definitely on board for more and do recommend everyone to look out for it, if they get the chance.

Quoting myself to say that episode two last night was also entertaining to watch, plus featured the beginning of what looks to become an overarching story arc - just as I was wondering if the show was going to be solidly standalone case-of-the-week.

The show also features the always excellent Clarke Peters as the father of Pike (Walter's character) - himself a senior police officer, whose career still overshadows that of his son. And the very beautiful Lashana Lynch plays Pike's wife Arjana - two episodes in, and they seem to have a very happy marriage, loving and supportive, which is nice (and too sadly rare) to see on TV (Clarke's character, Bishop, is the one with all the relationship drama) - Arjana has a flourishing legal career of her own, as well as being mother to their two daughters.

Asian actress Mandeep Dhillon also has a prominent role in the show, while we also get to see several women in senior roles. So a big thumbs up for the show both in terms of diversity and entertainment - do try to see it, if you get the chance, folks.

[jhlipton]

15 hours ago, Llywela said:

And the very beautiful Lashana Lynch plays Pike's wife Arjana

She is very beautiful!

[In2You]

I loved Mandeep Dhillon on Some Girls.

[ursula]

So this happened...

 

http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/29/media/roseanne-twitter-chelsea-clinton/index.html

Quote

 

ABC cancels 'Roseanne' after star's racist Twitter rant

ABC canceled its hit sitcom "Roseanne" on Tuesday after the show's biggest star, Roseanne Barr, went on a racist Twitter rant.

"Roseanne's Twitter statement is abhorrent, repugnant and inconsistent with our values, and we have decided to cancel her show," ABC Entertainment president Channing Dungey said in a statement.

Disney CEO Bob Iger added on Twitter that "There was only one thing to do here, and that was the right thing."

 

?

And I'm still in shock. Someone pinch me. Did this really happen????

[GHScorpiosRule]

55 minutes ago, ursula said:

So this happened...

 

http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/29/media/roseanne-twitter-chelsea-clinton/index.html

?

And I'm still in shock. Someone pinch me. Did this really happen????

Yes it did.  It's being discussed in the show's forum, and a new thread has been created to discuss the aftermath.

[festivus]

Wow. Is anyone surprised that Rosanne did this?  The show sucked anyway. I was all nostalgic when it first came back but the only things I even liked about it were Darlene, Bev, and little Mark. 

[In2You]

Was it not a month ago Channing was defending the show for taking jabs at Fresh off the Boat and Blackish? She changed her tune real quick and this isn't the first time Rosanne has tweeted racist things about a black woman. The show never should've been revived but clearly ABC thought they could get the MAGA viewers. 

[jhlipton]

I've posted on FaceBook that since the show was renewed, and now it's not, Roseanne has deprived then all of income, and they should sue her ass.