BET+ Announces New Comedy, "Ms. Pat"

BET+ Picks up New Scripted Comedy “Ms. Pat” From Award-winning Producers Brian Grazer and Lee Daniels

Based on Comedian Patricia “Ms. Pat” Williams’ Stand-up Comedy and Memoir, ‘Rabbit: The Autobiography of Ms. Pat’

Imagine Television and Lee Daniels Entertainment to Executive Produce

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--BET+ announced the pick-up of new original scripted comedy, “Ms. Pat,” from Imagine Television and Lee Daniels Entertainment. Based on Patricia “Ms. Pat” Williams’ stand-up comedy and memoir, the ten-episode multi-camera sitcom will tell the story of a former convicted felon turned suburban mom (Ms. Pat), whose hustle and resilient spirit was forged on the streets of Atlanta. To much reserve, she now finds herself in conservative middle America alongside her well-intentioned husband, played by J. Bernard Calloway (“City On A Hill”), a struggle of a sister played by Tami Roman (“The Family Business”), and two distinct sets of kids played by Theodore Barnes (“The Prince of Peoria”), newcomer Briyana Guadalupe, and Vince Swann (“50 Central”), raised under very different circumstances.

Brian Grazer, Lee Daniels, President of Imagine Television Samie Kim Falvey, and Anthony Hill (who serves as the series’ showrunner) will executive produce, alongside Ms. Pat and Jordan E. Cooper (“Star”), who also penned the pilot. “Ms. Pat” marks Grazer’s and Daniels’ first scripted project on the network.

    “We are thrilled that Lee Daniels Entertainment, a division of Disney, and BET are working together for the first time. Historic!”

“We are thrilled to welcome powerhouse creators Lee Daniels, Brian Grazer, and writing phenom Jordan E. Cooper home to the BET family. We look forward to bringing Ms. Pat’s story to life on BET+ and offer viewers more premium content that reflects and celebrates the spectrum of the Black experience and tons of laughs,” said Traci Blackwell, Executive Vice President, Scripted Programming, BET.

“I have always been drawn to stories that celebrate universal human themes of family and love. Ms. Pat is an authentic, truthful voice that reflects what’s going on in our culture and how it relates to family. Because of her fierce authenticity, fans already love her humor and irreverence. She and Jordan E. Cooper have created this family comedy that will reach even more of the world - and we all desperately need to laugh,” said Brian Grazer. “I am excited to be working again with Lee Daniels and BET+ to bring Ms. Pat's story to life - showcasing her powerful tale of survival, as she finds humor and love in all things life.”

“This is the type of show I wish I had growing up - raw, funny, and honest. Ms. Pat and Jordan Cooper are magic together,” said Daniels. "We are thrilled that Lee Daniels Entertainment, a division of Disney, and BET are working together for the first time. Historic!”

Declared by The Washington Post as “unforgiving and darkly hilarious,” and The New York Times as “brutally honest and outrageous,” Patricia “Ms. Pat” Williams is a comedian, author, podcaster, and actress who brings a raw, in your face, and hilarious perspective to her work. Ms. Pat was just hailed by Variety Magazine as a Top 10 Comic To Watch. She has appeared on NBC’s “Last Comic Standing,” Comedy Central’s “This Is Not Happening,” Netflix’s “Larry Charles’ Dangerous World of Comedy,” TV Guide Network’s “Standup in Stilettos,” Nickelodeon’s “Mom’s Night Out,” and was just featured in the second season of the Netflix stand-up series “Degenerates.”

Jordan E. Cooper is a playwright and performer who resides in Brooklyn, New York, by way of Hurst, TX. Jordan received an Obie award for his writing and performance of his play AIN'T NO MO', which just completed a sold-out world premiere run at The Public Theater. He was nominated for the same play, The Drama League's Distinguished Performance award alongside Bryan Cranston, Laurie Metcalf, and Andrè De Shields. He also starred in the award-winning independent film “Wolf.” Jordan has also been featured in The New York Times, The Hollywood Reporter, and V Magazine. He received his BFA from The New School For Drama.

“Ms. Pat” is executive produced by Brian Grazer ("Empire," "Wu-Tang: An American Saga," "Genius: Aretha") and Samie Kim Falvey for Imagine Television; Lee Daniels ("Empire," "Star," "Precious"), Marc Velez, and Pam Williams for Lee Daniels Entertainment; Anthony Hill (“Family Reunion,” “Ravens Home”) who will also serve as the series’ showrunner; Patricia “Ms. Pat” Williams; and Jordan E. Cooper, who also penned the pilot.


ABOUT BET+:
BET+ is the preeminent streaming service for the Black audience, with exclusive originals and thousands of TV episodes and movies from the best Black creators. A joint venture between BET Networks and Tyler Perry Studios, BET+ allows users to stream Black culture including hit movies, TV shows, stand-up comedy, award shows, and specials, all in one place, commercial-free. The new service from BET Networks, a subsidiary of ViacomCBS Inc., is the official home of Tyler Perry’s film, TV and stage works. The ad-free subscription video-on-demand service also provides users with access to original content including hit series First Wives Club from Tracey Oliver, Tyler Perry’s Ruthless and Bruh, Will Packer’s Bigger, hit unscripted anthology series American Gangster Trap Queens, exclusive originals from Carl Weber including The Family Business, Sacrifice and Influence to name a few. Visit BET.Plus to learn more and follow @BETPlus on social to join the conversation and get the latest.

ABOUT LEE DANIELS ENTERTAINMENT:
Lee Daniels Entertainment is a full-service production company founded in 2001 by Academy Award-Nominated Director, and Writer and Producer, Lee Daniels. Since its inception, LDE has been responsible for some of Hollywood’s most exhilarating film projects including Monster’s Ball, The Woodsman, Shadowboxer, The Paperboy, The Butler, Precious and more. LDE is gearing up for the release of The United States vs. Billie Holiday for Paramount Pictures, also directed by Lee Daniels. More recently, LDE’s expansion into television has birthed what could be considered some of the most dynamic TV storytelling to date - FOX’s Empire and Star. In 2015, Lee Daniels went on to sign an overall development deal with 20th Century Fox TV, where he continues to create develop, write, direct and supervise new projects under his Lee Daniels Entertainment banner. Additional upcoming projects include Good People, Sammy Davis Jr. Mini-Series, The Spook Who Sat By The Door, Our Kind of People and Mason Dixon.

ABOUT IMAGINE TELEVISION:
Imagine Television Group is comprised of Imagine Television and Imagine Television Studios. Imagine Television was founded in 1986 by Brian Grazer and Ron Howard and is run by Imagine Television President Samie Kim Falvey. Over the years, the company’s productions have been honored with 198 Emmy nominations and 30 Golden Globe nominations. In 2018, the company formed Imagine Television Studios to produce and finance a slate of projects that currently includes the series “Genius: Aretha” with showrunner Suzan-Lori Parks and starring Cynthia Erivo; “Why Women Kill” for CBS All Access from Marc Cherry; “Swagger” for Apple with Kevin Durant and Reggie Rock Bythewood; “Wu-Tang: An American Saga” for Hulu with The RZA and Alex Tse; and “Joe Exotic” with Amazon. Imagine Television is also producing “Filthy Rich” from Tate Taylor and staring Kim Cattrall for Fox. Additional productions include Fox’s award-winning series “Empire;; Nat Geo’s Emmy®-winning Genius anthology series; Fox’s Golden Globe- and Emmy®-winning Best Drama Series “24”; NBC’s Peabody Award-winning series “Friday Night Lights”; Fox’s Emmy®-winning Best Comedy “Arrested Development”; Fox’s “Shots Fired” and “Lie To Me”; WB’s “Felicity”; ABC’s “SportsNight”; and HBO’s “From the Earth to the Moon,” which won the Emmy® for Outstanding Mini-Series. Howard and Grazer began their collaboration in the early 80’s on the hit film comedies “Night Shift” and “Splash,” and continue to run Imagine as executive chairmen. www.imagine-entertainment.com

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