Comedy Central has released its 2018-2019 development slate, including two series pick-ups and five pilot orders. The slate is headlined by orders for sketch series Alternatino with Arturo Castro and stand-up series This Week at the Comedy Cellar. The news was announced by Sarah Babineau and Jonas Larsen, executive vice presidents and co-heads of talent and development at Comedy Central.
“With an exciting mix of established and emerging talent, our current development slate continues Comedy Central’s rich legacy of working with the most distinct and talented comedic voices,” said Babineau and Larsen.
The two spoke on the series order for Alternatino with Arturo Castro saying, “Arturo’s abilities as an actor knows no bounds, which combines with his stellar comedic instincts and unique point of view, makes ‘Alternatino with Arturo Castro’ a potent and hilarious series in the grand tradition of Comedy Central’s sketch shows.”
The executive vice presidents also commented on This Week at the Comedy Cellar: “We’re thrilled to partner with the Comedy Cellar and provide fans of comedy a look at the hot-button issues of the week through the lens of the best comics in the world straight from the legendary and beloved NYC comedy club.”
Series Greenlights:
Created by and starring Arturo Castro (Broad City, Narcos) and directed by Nick Jasenovec (Detroiters, Broad City), Alternatino with Arturo Castro is a sketch show based on Arturo’s experiences as a Latino millennial in the United States. The series is executive produced by Castro, Jasenovec, Sam Saifer, David Martin, Jon Thoday and Richard Allen-Turner for Avalon Television, with Avalon Television producing. Jose Acevedo and Ari Pearce are the Executives in Charge of Production for Comedy Central.
This Week at the Comedy Cellar takes an unprecedented look inside New York City’s hottest comedy club and the country’s top comedians as they tackle all the freshest topics of the week. Each half-hour episode will showcase the best topical jokes generated in the Comedy Cellar in the days immediately leading up to the premiere. Accompanying the stand-up is a one-of-a-kind behind the scenes look at the prestigious “comics’ table,” where comics debate the week’s topics and discuss the origins of their material. Plucked straight from the headlines and filtered through the eyes of the country’s best comedians, this is a front row seat to where the best stand-up comedy begins. Executive producers include Noam Dworman (for the Comedy Cellar), Ray Ellin, Michael Hirschorn and Jessica Antonini, (both for Ish Entertainment) and Ian Gelfand. Christian McLaughlin and Anne Harris are the Executives in Charge of Production for Comedy Central.
Pilot Orders:
Mall Town USA is an animated comedy that follows the afterschool misadventures of a 13-year-old girl navigating the complexities of life in the classic microcosm of American culture that is The Mall. Mall Town USA is written and created by Gabe Liedman (Broad City, Brooklyn Nine-Nine) and executive produced by Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer.
Awkwafina is a half-hour scripted narrative inspired by Nora Lum’s experiences as a 20-something woman in Queens who strives for a larger than life existence. The show stars Nora, also known as rapper Awkwafina, and includes musical set pieces to embellish the story. Nora has a lead role in upcoming studio films Ocean’s 8 and Crazy Rich Asians. Awkwafina is written by Lum and Teresa Hsiao and is show-run by Karey Dornetto. The series is executive produced by Lum, Dornetto, Peter Principato, Itay Reiss & Principato-Young Entertainment, and co-executive produced by Hsiao.
Robbie is a half-hour scripted comedy about an overzealous church-league basketball coach who aspires to restore glory to his rural Georgia town by following in his father’s footsteps as the infamous coach who won two high school basketball championships in the nineties. Rory Scovel, who co-stars alongside Amy Schumer in the upcoming film I Feel Pretty, will play the lead. Robbie is written by Scovel and Anthony King. Scovel, Scott Moran, Anthony King and Gary Sanchez Productions will executive produce.
Kevin vs. Josh is created, written by, and starring Kevin Barnett (Broad City, The Carmichael Show) & Josh Rabinowitz (Broad City, The Carmichael Show), and is executive produced by Jerrod Carmichael, Ari Katcher, Avi Gilbert, Barnett, and Rabinowitz. Based on the real-life friendship of Kevin and Josh, the show follows two childhood best friends whose dreams are falling apart. Reunited by their separate but equal failure, they do everything they can to simply make sure their lives are at least better than the other.
Verified with David Spade is a weekly comedy series that skewers pop culture and news all through the lens of social media. Relying on his legendary wit and sardonic worldview, Spade, in front of a small studio audience, utilizes a mix of original in-studio bits, panel discussion, and field pieces to take viewers on a tour of the best (and worst) social media had to offer that week. The series is executive produced by David Spade, Free 90 Media’s Brad Wollack and Tom Brunelle and Brillstein Entertainment’s Alex Murray and Marc Gurvitz.
