Disney+ Renews Alisa Reyes’ “Proud Family” Revival, “The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder,” for Second Season

There are more proud moments in Alisa Reyes’ future…

Disney+ has given The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, its Proud Family revival – featuring the 41-year-old Latina actress as part of the voice cast – a second season renewal.

The Proud Family: Louder and ProuderThe news comes only days before the first season’s upcoming finale on Wednesday, April 20. Season 2 has started production.

The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, from creator Bruce W. Smith and executive producer Ralph Farquhar, picks up the story of its central character, Penny Proud, and includes her madcap family: parents Oscar and Trudy, twin siblings BeBe and CeCe, and grandmother Suga Mama (and Puff).

Of course, it would not be The Proud Family without Penny’s loyal crew Dijonay Jones, LaCienega Boulevardez (Reyes) and Zoey Howzer, among others.

The series touts the voice talents of original cast members Kyla Pratt, Tommy Davidson, Paula Jai Parker, JoMarie Payton, Cedric the Entertainer, Karen Malina White, Soleil Moon Frye, Reyes, Carlos Mencia, Maria Canals-Barrera, Alvaro Gutierrez, Raquel Lee Bolleau and Marcus T. Paulk.

Set to return for Season 2 are Keke Palmer, Billy Porter, Zachary Quinto, EJ Johnson, Asante Blackk, Artist “A Boogie” Dubose, Bresha Webb and Aiden Dodson.

Disney+ also unveiled a buzzy lineup of Season 2 guest stars.

Set to appear are Chance the Rapper, Gabrielle Union, Normani, Leslie Odom Jr., Anthony Anderson, Dominique Dawes, Gabby Douglas, Latina Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez, Jane Lynch, Holly Robinson Peete, Maury Povich, Storm Reid, Courtney B. Vance and Spanish actress Liana Mendoza.

In addition to Smith and Farquhar, Calvin Brown, Jr. is co-executive producer and story editor, Jan Hirota is producer, Eastwood Wong is art director, and directors are Latoya Raveneau, Rudi Bloss and Tara Nicole Whitaker.

Eva Longoria to Guest Star on Disney+’s “The Proud Family” Revival “Louder and Prouder”

Eva Longoria is preparing for a moment of Proud

Disney+ has locked in a stacked cast of guest stars and new recurring talent for The Proud Family revival Louder and Prouder, including the 46-year-old Mexican American actress/producer, in commemoration of the original animated series’ 20th anniversary.

Eva Longoria

In addition to Longoria, best known for her starring role on Desperate Housewives, the guest-starring voice cast will feature A-listers from the worlds of music, film, TV and sports including LizzoLil Nas X, Chance the Rapper, Normani, Leslie Odom Jr., Tiffany Haddish, Lena Waithe, Anthony Anderson, Gabrielle Union, Debbie Allen, James Pickens Jr., Courtney B. Vance, Jane Lynch, Marsai Martin, Jaden Smith, Glynn Turman, Lamorne Morris, Brenda Song, Tina Knowles, Holly Robinson Peete, Al Roker, Bretman Rock, Gabby Douglas, Laurie Hernandez and Dominique Dawes, among others.

The series is set to launch on Disney+ in 2022

New recurring stars announced include Asante Blackk as Penny’s boyfriend, Kareem; rapper Artist “A Boogie” Dubose as Maya’s gamer brother, Francis “KG” Leibowitz-Jenkins; Raquel Lee Bolleau, who will reprise her role as Nubia Gross; and Marcus T. Paulk, who reprises his role as Penny’s classmate, Myron.

Airing on Disney Channel between 2001 and 2005, The Proud Family followed the misadventures of teenager Penny Proud (Kyla Pratt) and her numerous eccentric family members.

Louder and Prouder is currently in production at Disney Television Animation and will pick up the story of its central character, as it catches up with her parents Oscar (Tommy Davidson) and Trudy (Paula Jai Parker), her twin siblings BeBe and CeCe, her grandmother Suga Mama (JoMarie Payton) and dog Puff, and members of her loyal crew including Dijonay Jones (Karen Malina White), LaCienega Boulevardez (Alisa Reyes) and Zoey Howzer (Soleil Moon Frye), among others.

Other original cast members reprising their roles, as previously announced, are Cedric the Entertainer, Carlos Mencia, Maria Canals-Barrera and Alvaro Gutierrez. Additional recurring cast members new to the world of The Proud Family include Keke Palmer, Billy Porter, Zachary Quinto, and EJ Johnson.

The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder is executive produced by Bruce W. Smith and Ralph Farquhar, who served in the same capacity on the original series.

All seasons of The Proud Family are currently available for streaming on Disney+. Disney+ has release a 20th anniversary featurette, in which Louder and Prouder stars reflect on their draw to the original series.

Sofia Vergara to Co-Host This Year’s “Stand Up to Cancer” Special

Sofia Vergara is taking a stand

The 49-year-old Colombian actress and former Modern Family star will serve as a co-host for this year’s the seventh biennial televised fundraising special Stand Up To Cancer.

Sofia Vergara

Vergara will co-host the event alongside Anthony Anderson, Ken Jeong & Tran Ho.

Set to air Saturday, August 21 at 8:00 pm ET, this year’s Stand Up To Cancer event will be broadcast from Los Angeles and air simultaneously on more than 60 participating media platforms across the United States and Canada.

The telecast will also be available to stream live and on-demand on several streaming platforms.

The event, co-executive produced by Reese Witherspoon and Jim Toth, will see performances by Common, Brittany Howard and more artists that will be announced at a later date.

Stand Up To Cancer seeks to raise funds to support research and new treatments of cancer, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, which has affected nearly every aspect of cancer care and research.

The live-event is produced by Done + Dusted and Stand Up To Cancer’s production team.

Rosie Perez to Serve as a Presenter at This Weekend’s Golden Globes Ceremony

It’ll be a golden weekend for Rosie Perez

The 56-year-old Puerto Rican actress, choreographer and community activist, who most recently starred in HBO Max’s The Flight Attendant, is among the celebrities added as presenters for the 78th Golden Globes, set for Sunday, February 28.

 

Rosie PerezIn addition to Perez, Bryce Dallas Howard, Christopher Meloni, and Christian Slater are the latest group to be added.

All four will be appearing live from New York’s Rainbow Room for the NBC telecast of the ceremony, which will take place both in New York with co-host Tina Fey and at the Beverly Hilton with co-host Amy Poehler.

The ceremony will air from 8:00 -11:00 pm ET/5-8 p.m. PT on NBC and be available to stream the next day on Peacock.

The quartet join previously announced presenters, including Margot Robbie, Tiffany Haddish, Anthony Anderson, Kate Hudson, Kenan Thompson, Kevin Bacon, Sterling K. Brown, Michael Douglas, Kyra Sedgwick, Susan Kelechi Watson, and Catherine Zeta-Jones.

The Kid Mero to Guest Star on ABC’s “Black-ish” as Part of Upcoming Election-Themed Episodes

The Kid Mero is getting political…

The 37-year-old Dominican American television personality, writer and comedian, whose real name is Joel Martinez, will be part of Black-ish’s partially animated and election themed special next month.

The Kid Mero

The Kid Mero joins a roster of special guests that includes his Desus & Mero co-host Desus Nice and Stacey Abrams, the former Minority Leader of the Georgia House of Representatives.

The special, directed by Oscar winner Matthew A. Cherry, will follow the Johnson family as they navigate the upcoming election.

In the episode, which is the second of two new episodes scheduled to air back-to-back on October 4, Dre (Anthony Anderson) begins to explore local politics and, at one point, seeks some advice from Abrams. Later, he joins Desus Nice and The Kid Mero on their late night talk show Desus & Mero for a sit-down interview with some hard-hitting questions for the aspiring candidate.

Written by Eric Horsted, the live action ‘Election Special Pt. 1’ will see Marcus Scribner’s Junior pumped about finally being able to vote, only to find he has been dropped from the voters list – and discovering the realities of why that occurred. The animated ‘Election Special Pt. 2’ is penned by Graham Towers and Ben Deeb. That 10:30 – 11 PM ET episode early next month sees the Peter Mackenzie portrayed Stevens from Dre’s (Anderson) ad agency make a lunge for a Congressional seat. A lunge that takes Dre and his family down to the underbelly of modern day politics.

The back-to-back episodes will be broadcast on October 4 on ABC. The only caveat in that plan is if the Orlando bubbled NBA Finals are forced to shift their schedule, which would have a significant ripple effect over the entire ABC programming chart.

In its upcoming seventh season, black-ish will tackle current events like the global pandemic and “the movement for social justice and equality,” according to ABC.

Mariah Carey Premieres Her Original Theme Song for ABC’s “Mixed-ish”

Mariah Careyis mixin’ things up…

The 50-year-old half-Venezuelan American songstress has shared a special video of her original theme song for ABC’s Black-ish spinoff  Mixed-ish

Mariah Carey

Appropriately titled “In The Mix”, the song made its debut at the network’s “Embrace Your Ish” premiere event on Tuesday night.

The video for the song features clips from the black-ish spinoff which premieres on September 24. We also get to see series stars Arica HimmelMark-Paul GosselaarTika SumpterChristina Anthony and Gary Cole jam out to the radio-friendly bop. 

The Grammy-winning singer joined executive producer Kenya Barrison stage at the “Embrace Your Ish” event to talk about the genesis of the theme song and the importance of multiracial representation on television. The song was written by Carey and produced by Carey and Daniel Moore. And it’s now available for purchase wherever you buy music.

The event also featured screenings of mixed-ish and black-ish and a recap of grown-ish. “Ish” universe stars Anthony AndersonTracee Ellis RossLaurence Fishburne, Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Tika Sumpter were all on hand to discuss their shows.

Mixed-ish follows a young Rainbow Johnson (Himmel) as she recounts her experience growing up in a mixed-race family in the ‘80s and the dilemmas they face to acclimate in the suburbs while staying true to themselves. Bow’s parents, Paul (Gosselaar) and Alicia (Sumpter), decide to move from a hippie commune to the suburbs to better provide for their family. As her parents struggle with the challenges of their new life, Bow and her siblings navigate a mainstream school in which they’re perceived as neither black nor white. This family’s experiences illuminate the challenges of finding one’s own identity when the rest of the world can’t decide where you belong.

Mariah Carey Writes & Performs Theme Song for ABC’s “black-ish” Spinoff “mixed-ish”

Mariah Carey is Mix’ingthings up…

The 49-year-old half-Venezuelan American five-time Grammy-winning singer has been tapped to write and perform the theme song for ABC’s new black-ish spinoff mixed-ish. 

Mariah Carey

Titled “In the Mix”, the track is written by Carey and produced by Carey and Daniel Moore. Sung by Carey, the new theme song will be heard when the series premieres on Tuesday, September 24 at 9:00 pm ET on ABC. 

“As a fan of Kenya Barris’ megahit shows, black-ish and grown-ish, I was inspired to connect with Kenya to find a way we could work together,” said Carey. “As a biracial woman in the entertainment industry, there was no way I did not want to be a part of mixed-ish, especially after seeing the pilot, which I loved. I could not be more honored and proud to be writing and performing ‘In the Mix’ for Kenya and the show.”

ABC’s mixed-ish will follow Rainbow Johnson as she recounts her experience growing up in a mixed-race family in the ‘80s and the dilemmas they face to acclimate in the suburbs while staying true to themselves. Bow’s parents, Paul and Alicia, decide to move from a hippie commune to the suburbs to better provide for their family. As her parents struggle with the challenges of their new life, Bow and her siblings navigate a mainstream school in which they’re perceived as neither black nor white. This family’s experiences illuminate the challenges of finding one’s own identity when the rest of the world can’t decide where you belong.

The series stars Mark-Paul Gosselaar as Paul Johnson, Tika Sumpter as Alicia Johnson, Christina Anthony as Denise, Arica Himmel as Bow Johnson, Ethan William Childress as Johan Johnson, Mykal-Michelle Harris as Santamonica Johnson and Gary Cole as Harrison.

Karin GistPeter Saji and Barris are writers and executive producers, along with Tracee Ellis RossRandall WinstonArtists First (Brian Dobbins), Cinema Gypsy (Laurence Fishburne and Helen Sugland) and Anthony Anderson

Anton Cropperdirected the pilot. The series is produced by ABC Studios, a part of Disney Television Studios, a collection of studios comprised of 20th Century Fox Television, ABC Studios and Fox 21 Television Studios.

Francia Raisa to Star in Freeform’s “Black-ish” Spinoff, “Grown-ish”

Francia Raisa is Grown-ing up…

The 29-year-old Honduran and Mexican American actress has joined the cast of Freeform’s Grown-ish, the spinoff of ABC’s acclaimed sitcom Black-ish.

Francia Raisa

Grown-ish, from Black-ish executive producer Kenya Barris, is a contemporary take on the current issues facing both students and administrators in the world of higher education. Yara Shahidi portrays Zoey – Dre (Anthony Anderson) and Rainbow’s (Tracee Ellis Ross) popular, entitled, stylish and socially active 17-year-old daughter — as she heads off to college and quickly discovers that not everything goes her way once she leaves the nest.

Raisa will portray Ana, an outspoken conservative freshman at Southern California University.

Raisa joins previously announced cast members Shahidi, Deon Cole, Chris Parnell, Emily Arlook and Trevor Jackson.

The 13-episode comedy series is set to start production next week for an early 2018 premiere on Freeform.

Raisa, who rose to acclaim on The Secret Life of the American Teenager, previously appeared on Dear White People, The Mindy Project and In Plain Sight.

First Trailer Released for Gina Rodriguez’s Animated Holiday Film “The Star”

Gina Rodriguez’s star is rising this holiday season…

The first trailer has been released for the 32-year-old Puerto Rican actress and Jane the Virgin star’s The Star, an animated holiday film in which the animals run the village.

Gina Rodriguez

Steven Yuen stars as Bo, a donkey who yearns for a life beyond his daily grind. When finally he summons the courage to break free, his adventure leads him to make friends with a flockless sheep (Aidy Bryant) and ambitious dove (Keegan-Michael Key). Little do they know, but they and a group of eccentric camels and stable animals are about to become unlikely heroes in the Greatest Story Ever Told.

Directed by Timothy Reckart from Carlos Kotkin’s script, the toon features a diverse, big-name voice cast that also includes Zachary Levi as Joseph and, Rodriguez as Mary.

Gina Rodriguez's Mary in The Star

Christopher Plummer plays the villainous King Herod. The animal characters include Kelly Clarkson, Patricia Heaton, Kristin Chenoweth, Anthony Anderson, Ving Rhames, Gabriel Iglesias.

Meanwhile Tyler Perry, Tracy Morgan and Oprah Winfrey voice the trio of wise-cracking camels.

The film from Sony Pictures Animation and Affirm Films in association with Walden Media features a new title song by Mariah Carey, and the trailer sports a contemporary take on Stevie Wonder’s yuletide classic “That’s What Christmas Means to Me.”

Columbia Pictures will release The Star on November 10.

Brewster to Compete on the Next Installment of “Masterchef Celebrity Showdown”

Jordana Brewster is ready to put her best apron forward for charity…

The lineup for the next installment of Masterchef Celebrity Showdown has been announced, with the 36-year-old Brazilian-Panamanian actress among those joining the two-hour charity event set to air January 2 at 8:00 pm on Fox.

Jordana Brewster

Brewster, one of the stars of the The Fast and the Furious film franchise, joins a roster that includes Kal Penn, Anthony Anderson and former NFL stars Ronde Barber and Tiki Barber.

The special will also feature the first ever battle royale between Masterchef judges Gordon Ramsay and Christina Tosi, with Ramsay teaming up with Anderson to face off against Tosi and Brewster.

Here are the match-ups for the next Masterchef Celebrity Showdown:

Empire stars Trai Byers and Grace Gealey Byers representing Saving Our Daughters, vs. Nene and Gregg Leakes representing Broadway Cares.

Cheryl Hines cooking for United Cerebral Palsy of Central Florida, vs. Penn cooking for United Nations Relief and Works Agency.

Ronde and Tiki representing Kulture City, vs. Joel Madden and Benji Madden representing MusiCares.

Anderson and Ramsay representing Watts/Willowbrook Boys & Girls Club, vs. Brewster and Tosi competing for No Kid Hungry.