Mara Brock Akil, the celebrated creator and producer of the recently canceled sitcom ‘Girlfriends’ and the must-see TV series, ‘The Game,’ is on board to write the script and executive produce a buddy comedy based on the 2006 book ‘Making Friends With Black People,’ Variety reported.
About the state of race relations in the U.S., the project is being developed as a sitcom for NBC, and Salim Akil, her husband, is also on board too.’Making Friends’ will center on two guys — one African-American and one white — who become close friends, but who don’t necessarily see things the same way. Nick Adams, a standup comic, wrote the book as a humorous look at how people dance around issues of race. He’ll serve as a co-producer on the project.
He hopes the show can capitalize on how the election of Barack Obama as the country’s first African-American president has changed the nation’s dialogue on race.
“From time to time, race bubbles up in the consciousness of the country and then dissipates,” said Adams. “Now, with Obama, people are talking about race a lot more. We hope to capitalize on that and not let the dialogue die down. … It seemed like a good opportunity to strike while the iron is hot.”
We are still trying to understand the reason “Girlfriends” was cancelled, but when one door closes another opens. I am so glad to see that Akil has been offered another chance to produce a show for a major network. Her accomplishments are truly historical and a testament to the change in the opportunities available to Blacks in America today.
