There is no doubt that Lee Daniels can deliver some drama (and melodrama). He’s told the heart-wrenching story of an overweight abused teen in Precious and has given us a historical epic with The Butler. His soapy TV hip-hop musical drama Empire has become this generation’s Dynasty. Now that he’s conquered drama, Daniels is setting his sights on comedy. The Oscar-nominated actor and super-producer Brian Grazer have sold a half-hour single-camera show starring comedian Ms. Pat.
The yet-to-be-titled comedy will air on Fox and will be based on Ms. Pat’s stand-up comedy and her upcoming memoir that centers on everything from her upbringing in Atlanta to her life as an unlikely mom in conservative middle America with her loving husband and two sets of kids raised under very different circumstances.
Alyson Fouse is set to write the script and will executive produce with Ms. Pat. Grazer, Daniels, Francie Calfo, Pam Williams, and Effie Brown will also serve as executive producers.
Ms. Pat (a.k.a. Patricia Williams) competed in the stand-up reality competition Last Comic Standing. She also appeared on the new comedy series Jeff Ross Presents Roast Battle. She is repped by APA and Foundry Literary Media.
The new season of Daniels’s Empire will premiere in September. Next up for Daniels is the TV series, Star, which follows a girl group in Atlanta and is set to premiere during the 2016-2017 television season. He is repped by CAA.
Grazer serves as the producer for the upcoming Fox action series 24: Legacy. On the big screen, he produced Inferno starring Tom Hanks and the highly anticipated The Dark Tower. He is repped by CAA.
Dino-Ray Ramos | Staff Writer
